Following the exciting EFL Cup final last Sunday, in which Liverpool triumphed over Chelsea, the excitement levels will hit the roof this weekend as France’s big two, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Monaco square off later today.

The weekend will culminate with the eagerly anticipated Manchester derby, with Manchester United aiming to knock Manchester City off their perch.

Event # 1 – FRANCE – Monaco vs PSG – 3:00 PM

French Lique 1 leaders PSG will be aiming to widen their lead atop the standings when they visit Monaco later today in an expected thriller.

Monaco sit third in the table and will be hoping to use home advantage to get one over the defending champions. However, Monaco have been a little inconsistent recently, as after beating top four contender Nice 3-2, they lost to strugglers Toulouse 1-2 before beating another top four contender, Lens, 3-2 at the weekend.

With those results, they have won just two of their last six league games. With that said, the one thing that has remained consistent since the new year for Monaco is their ability to find the back of the net as they have scored in nine successive matches in all competitions, and against PSG they have had some good results recently at home, winning three consecutive games between both sides.

PSG enter this encounter off the back of a disappointing 1-1 home draw against Rennes, securing the point via a 97th-minute penalty kick. That point extended their unbeaten run in the league to 18 matches, their longest unbeaten streak without defeat in the league since the 2018/19 season.

PSG head to the capital high on confidence, having won all five away league matches they have played so far in 2024 by a combined goal margin of 19-2. However, PSG have not won at Monaco since January 2020, but they did end a three-match losing streak against Monaco by beating them 5-2 at the Parc des Princess when both sides met earlier this season.

KEY STATS

Monaco — are winless in their last four home matches and have conceded two or more goals in 11 of their last 20 matches in all competitions.

PSG — are unbeaten in their last 18 matches and have scored two or more goals in 17 of their last 20 matches.

Both sides — Monaco have scored at least one goal in nine of their last 10 meetings against PSG but were soundly beaten 5-2 when both teams met earlier in the season; PSG have won eight of their last 10 away matches.

THE BETTING TIP: PSG WIN

Event # 2 EPL – Man City vs Man United – 10:30 AM

The stage is now set for a blockbuster showdown at the Etihad on Sunday, with Manchester City and Manchester United colliding in the Manchester derby.

City are on an impressive run of form, including a 6-2 hammering dished out on Luton Town in midweek FA Cup action.

City are finding their groove at this stage of the season, having gone unbeaten in their nine league games, a run that has seen them climbing to second in the table, just a single point behind leaders Liverpool.

City have had the upper hand against their more illustrious neighbours in recent times, winning five of their last six meetings, including an impressive 3-0 over the Red Devils earlier this season at Old Trafford.

Manchester United enter this crucial match with their egos bruised, having been beaten 2-1 at home by struggling Fulham in their last league match, ending their four-match winning streak.

The Red Devils are currently sixth in the league table, 15 points behind their noisy neighbours, City, who will be aiming to put the cats amongst the pigeons by securing the three points at the Etihad.

However, in order to accomplish this feat, Manchester United will have to improve on the worst part of their game this season, scoring goals.

They have struggled to score goals consistently so far, with their total of 36 being the lowest of all the teams in the top half of the table.

Although, since the new year, they have seen an improvement in that department, mainly due to the upturn in form of Rasmus Hojlund. He will miss this game due to an injury sustained recently so they might have a difficult time keeping their ‘noisy neighbours’ from scoring, with Erling Haaland in the form of his life, having scored 5 times in City’s 6-2 hammering of Luton on Tuesday.

KEY STATS

Manchester City – have won four and drawn one of their last five matches and are unbeaten in their last 9 matches, winning eight during this run.

Manchester United – Like City, Manchester United have won four and drawn one of their last five matches.

Both sides — Manchester City have won five of the last six head-to-head meetings against Manchester United, including a 3-0 victory earlier this season at Old Trafford.

The betting Tip: Manchester City win