PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain will be looking to keep the pressure on Champions League Group A rivals Porto on Tuesday by inflicting a 10th straight Champions League group phase defeat on Croatian opponents Dinamo Zagreb.
After three games Porto lead Group A with a perfect nine points, PSG have six, Dynamo Kiev three and Zagreb none.
Porto - the 2004 Champions League winners - travel to Ukraine to play Kiev also on Tuesday.
PSG will be aided by the barring of all Dinamo Zagreb fans from travelling to France for the fixture after French Interior Minister Manuel Valls decided they presented a risk to both people and property should they be allowed into the country for the game.
The Qatari-owned French side should take their tally to nine points with a second successive win over Dinamo - having beaten them 2-0 away a fortnight ago - before a trip to Ukraine on November 21, and a final home game with Porto December 4.
PSG, though, are far from a world beating side, despite millions ploughed into signing new players in the summer, and their limitations were exposed on Saturday when they suffered their first league defeat of the season going down 2-1 at home to Saint Etienne.
However, PSG are facing opponents who are riven with internal strife and reduced simply to retaining their league title which they have won in the past five seasons.
The trouble began when Dinamo coach Ante Cacic publicly blamed Portuguese defender Tonel for the PSG defeat.
"He looked like he'd been electrocuted every time he got the ball, which just completely broke up our rhythm," Cacic told the press.
Even though Cacic subsequently apologised in front of the whole dressing room, Tonal gave vent to his feelings to the press resulting in a 50,000 euros fine, being dropped from the team and is likely to be released in December if Cacic is still in his post.
Croat newspaper Jutarnji List reported this week Dinamo are courting former Croatia boss SlavenBilic - though he is presently coaching Russian Premier League side Lokomotiv Moscow - a campaign that may gather pace since Dinamo lost 3-2 to bottom of the league Zadar in the Cup last weekend.
Dinamo gained something of a morale boost for their trip to Paris with a 3-1 home win over Istra 1961 Pula on Friday but their defence will face a far more intimidating attack led by Swedish striker ZlatanIbrahimovic. (AFP)
