Paris (AFP)

Fifty-eight days after touching on his dream of European coronation, Paris SG returns to the Champions League on Tuesday (9 p.m.) behind closed doors, with a shock against Manchester United, his old nightmare that he must beat on pain of crushing again of black.

Can PSG win the C1?

By exorcising years of failures and "remountings" suffered, the summer epic in Lisbon must have provided a clear answer to this question which has been coming back repeatedly since the arrival of the current Qatari owner in 2011.

"We will work next season to win the Champions League because that is our goal," assured Parisian President Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, after the defeat in the final against Bayern (1-0).

"We believe in it more than before."

This time, it's the right one ... except that the failed return to school, between cases of Covid-19, defeats, injuries, suspensions and internal tensions, again called questions, at the dawn of the 13th campaign of the club in C1.

"The challenge is not to think about the August final. It was extraordinary, but it passed. We are another team, it is the challenge for me to recreate a tight team, capable of playing together, "coach Thomas Tuchel warned.

The late arrivals of Danilo Pereira, Moise Kean and Rafinha have closed the first gaps.

It remains to find a powerful cement to solidify a team not yet ready: Manchester United comes at the right time.

The shock against the "Red Devils", the most formidable opponent of its group with RB Leipzig, will say a lot about the ability of PSG to reach the Grail, as will its great victory against Real Madrid (3-0) in September 2019, in the same context, had been premonitory of the successes that followed.

- Finally a benchmark victory?

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As against the Spaniards, the outgoing finalist will do without several injured holders, in this case Marco Verratti, Mauro Icardi and Leandro Paredes.

This poster will also determine the tone for the rest of the calendar, before two trips in two weeks, to Istanbul against Basaksehir and then to Germany.

Before this busy streak, if they have won their last five L1 matches, the Parisians need to beat a benchmark opponent.

Their only shock played so far, against Marseille on September 13, ended in an embarrassing defeat (1-0) in a hateful atmosphere.

At curfew time, it is indeed an atmosphere of "Clasico" which surrounds this poster, with its poorly healed wounds and its desire for revenge.

The last visit of the Mancuniens in the capital, in March 2019 for an 8th return of C1, was experienced as a trauma by the Rouge et Bleu, eliminated at home (3-1) after winning the first leg at Old Trafford (2 -0).

"If players want to motivate themselves by taking this game as a rematch to have a good game, they can do it," captain Marquinhos said after the draw.

Confused, Neymar, injured at the time, Presnel Kimpembé, author of the hand which had led to the penalty of elimination in stoppage time, and Kylian Mbappé, powerless against David de Gea, have a history to erase .

- Cavani absent -

As if the litigation were not enough, Manchester was strengthened at the end of the transfer window with the top scorer in the history of PSG, the Uruguayan Edinson Cavani, free party of the capital at the end of June, without farewell.

But "the Matador", who resumed collective training on Sunday and has not played again since March, has not been called by his coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who believes that the player still needs time before resuming competition.

Defender Harry Maguire and young winger Mason Greenwood, injured, are also missing.

"The victory of 2019 marked our history, but it is the past. Today we are a different team, too, it is a different stage of the competition, in a different atmosphere. It will be a new situation ", explained the Norwegian technician.

With Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial, Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba, he keeps enough to hit hard, even if his team is still looking for itself, two weeks after the rouste received at home in the league against Tottenham (6-1), against a background of porosity defensive.

Many questions surround these two giants not yet ready.

Tuesday evening, they will have their first answers.

© 2020 AFP