Simply put, it really appeared to be inevitable. Although they had battled with Barcelona earlier this season in the Champions League group stages, PSG, at some point or another, were going to have to face Lionel Messi & Co. yet again. Paired with the the Blaugrana for quarter-finals - the second time in the past three campaigns - Laurent Blanc's task was made from tough to a near "Mission Impossible" due to the suspensions of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Marco Verratti, as well as injuries to David Luiz and Thiago Motta.
However, whilst the Brazilian defender seemed to have made a speedier recovery than expected, Blanc certainly would have wanted to give him a bit more rest. Unfortunately, the home side's team went from bad to worse in an instant early on in the game:
21' @DavidLuiz_4 remplace @tsilva3 #PSGBAR pic.twitter.com/q19foIWkyL
— PSG Officiel (@PSG_inside) April 15, 2015
"21st minute: David Luiz replaces Thiago Silva"
From frustrating to dire: Key defender and captain Thiago Silva will likely miss the clash with Nice and fans will be worried about his availability for the trip to Camp Nou
Meanwhile, as they ponder how to overcome this massive deficit suffered in the heavy loss against the Catalan giants, Les Parisiens also have some worries on the domestic front.
Last season saw them clinch their second straight Ligue 1 crown with a fairly comfortable nine-point lead over Monaco. Their 89 points earned also set a new French football record for the most accumulated over the course of a season.
Yet, this time around, it will not be as simple. Not only have they repeatedly thrown points away with a total of 11 draws out of their 31 games but also have struggled at times when Ibrahimovic - who himself has not been as prolific this seasons - has missed out on games due to injury or suspensions.
Will Ibrahimovic's latest rant and resulting ban truly cost his team the Ligue 1 title?
In fact, the Swedish star's reign as France's top marksman looks set to end thanks to Alexandre Lacazette's brilliant goal-scoring form, with the young Frenchman having racked up 25 goals so far for Lyon this campaign.
PSG have seen themselves slip to second, albeit they have a game in hand. Lyon will certainly hope for to Nice do them a little favour on Saturday...
In Nice, they will face a team that not only have they beaten five times in their last five meetings (including friendlies), but also have only conceded two goals against them. In their last four competitive matches, Ibrahimovic has scored five goals - including a hat-trick on November 9, 2013 and it was his effort that gave all three points to PSG in the reverse fixture earlier this season.
Meanwhile, Claude Puel's side have comfortably secured their spot in French football's top flight as they sit in tenth place. Still, they will be keen on finally earning three points at home as they have not won at the Allianz Riviera since January 10th of this year - a 3-1 comfortable victory over Lorient. And with their opponents' pride battered and bruised after losing to Barcelona in Paris for the first time, they definitely will be fancying their chances, as highlighted by midfielder Carlos Eduardo:
"I feel at ease against all teams but it is true that those teams at the other top have other concerns. That leaves more space and therefore there are more opportunities to express ourselves," the Brazilian, who is on loan from Portuguese powerhouse Porto, noted in an interview with Nice's official website.
Indeed, has been a difficult week for Les Parisiens. With their European dreams already appearing to be in tatters, they will have to quickly regroup as their opponents would certainly love to heap more misery on them domestically by further frustrating them on Saturday evening.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Follow the game on-the-go
Download our iOS and Android apps to follow soccer on-the-go. It comes packed with features - live scores, fixtures, results, tables, line-ups, stats, TV schedule and much more! Sorry, no live streaming within the app.
