PSG – Aston Villa

Aston Villa will be closer to winning the trophy than the match favorite.

The past season for PSG ended with a second consecutive triumph in the Champions League. Moreover, the football year for the Parisians turned out to be similar to the previous one. In the first half of it, Luis Enrique did not push the team's form hard. However, when it came to the Champions League playoffs, PSG began to rack up wins over their opponents. Importantly, the draw for the French champions was such that there could be no doubt about the merit of their victory on the European stage. PSG beat Chelsea, Liverpool, Bayern, and Arsenal one after another. The last two, the Parisians had to struggle with, but these are two clubs that up to the semifinal stage traded the status of Champions League favorite. Aston Villa had already been considered the main contender to win this competition as early as the qualifying round of the previous Europa League campaign. Under the guidance of the already-great Unai Emery, there could be no other scenario. From the group stage to the final playoff rounds, the Villains were never in a critical position, beating opponents one after another. Easily defeating Freiburg in the final, the Birmingham-based team earned the right to participate in the UEFA Super Cup. In the past season in such a match PSG also faced the English club Tottenham. Then the Parisians approached the match clearly not ready for serious tests, which caused them to trail for most of the game and only equalized the score in stoppage time of the second half. Already in the penalty shootout PSG achieved victory, but questions about this trophy remained more than weighty. Undoubtedly, Aston Villa is a more cohesive side when compared with last year's Tottenham, whose fate in the Premier League at the end of the season boiled down to a fight for survival. Do not doubt either that the Villains are hungrier for trophies. Not long ago PSG lost 0-3 in a friendly to Mallorca, a team relegated from La Liga. Of course, friendlies say little objectively about the team's condition, but year after year PSG finds it hard to settle into the season. In addition, most of the team's leaders participated in the 2026 World Cup and practically did not train with the squad for the new season. Aston Villa will not lose in regulation time.