The French champions have never secured back-to-back titles before.
But with les Monegasques slipping further and further behind as their challenge fades, can Laurent Blanc and his side switch their full and undivided attention to the UEFA Champions League?
Paris is bracing itself for the visit of English Premier League side Chelsea this week, as Jose Mourinho and the Blues return to the French capital for the first time since the Portuguese tactician engineered a 3-0 victory at the Parc des Princes back in 2004.
Considering the massive bonus that PSG have been handed by Claudio Ranieri and his side’s inept performance in Annecy last weekend—incidentally the only place the titleholders have also lost domestically this season—the Parisians will now look at this first leg differently.
If Blanc’s men can build up a significant enough lead on Wednesday, not to mention keep a vital clean sheet, then they will surely view Saturday’s Ligue 1 encounter as sacrificial if it means they can travel to Stamford Bridge next week with a fully rested and focused team.
They have the depth to cope with playing all three matches in the space of just seven days.
Now, thanks to their unerring consistency so far this season, PSG have also earned the right to place a higher priority on these next two continental outings than on one increasingly meaningless league encounter.
Of course, the title is not yet won. However, both sides showed last weekend that their minds were already on this mammoth quarterfinal doubleheader. In their current positions, PSG can afford to prioritise the Champions League, but Chelsea cannot.
Despite Mourinho’s bleatings about a possible EPL title being “impossible” after a surprise defeat to Crystal Palace, his team remain in the mix. As long as that is the case, the Blues will always have one eye on the league throughout the two-legged affair.
But assuming they get past Chelsea, is getting to the Champions League semifinals an adequate enough step for PSG?
Absolutely.
Blanc’s mission at the start of the season was to better last campaign’s showing under Carlo Ancelotti.
Defending the title, reaching the semifinals or better in Europe and also being involved in a domestic cup final is a massive improvement on last term’s performance. The Italian could only guide the team to the title, the Champions League quarterfinals and the last eight in both domestic cups.
Still, should PSG not reach the semifinals, that does not mean that progress has not been made under Blanc.
The real signs of improvement have come closer to home, where PSG have generally swept all before them—except for Evian—and improved their domestic cup record under the ownership of Qatar Sports Investments.
Going out in the Champions league quarterfinals is no less an achievement than the same result last season and certainly cannot be used as a potential stick with which to beat Blanc at the end of the season.
At the very least, le President has equalled Ancelotti’s showing on the continent. This demonstrates continuity, while the improved league and cup record in France illustrates how much stronger the team has become over the past 12 months.
The French champions are seven points away from equalling last season’s total points tally of 83 with as many games remaining.
The fact that PSG have also been able to see off a new rival in Monaco, who have already run the capital club closer than bitter rivals Olympique de Marseille did last campaign, is another boon.
What cannot be overlooked, though, is the importance of the Coupe de la Ligue final.
Blanc has bettered Ancelotti’s PSG by reaching a first final in the competition since 2008, but the Italian’s Coupe de France performance was better. The Parisians crashed out in the round of 32 to Montpellier HSC this time around, but at least reached the quarterfinals last year.
There they lost, ironically, to Evian on penalties.
In order for the underperformance in the Coupe de France to be rendered obsolete by PSG’s Qatari owners, a Coupe de la Ligue triumph is now expected. Along with securing the first-ever consecutive titles in the capital outfit’s history, it would also be a first-ever league and cup double (they won a domestic cup double in 1997-98).
Therefore, with league success almost assured, provided that PSG do not lose their focus in April 19’s Coupe de la Ligue final against Olympique Lyonnais at the Stade de France, Blanc and his players can solely focus on their upcoming Chelsea encounters.
Parisian dreams of an unprecedented treble are still alive, for now.
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