Paris Saint-Germain will play against Aston Villa at home on Wednesday in the Champions League quarterfinal first leg. PSG is coming off a successful weekend, having secured their 13th French Ligue 1 title with six games remaining in the 2024-25 season. Aston Villa`s coach, Unai Emery, will return to Paris, where he previously managed PSG from 2016 to 2018. The winner of this match will proceed to the semifinals to play against either Arsenal or Real Madrid, with matches scheduled around April 29-30 and May 6-7.
PSG, who are also aiming for the French Cup title, are now focused on the Champions League. They are still undefeated in Ligue 1 with an impressive record of 23 wins and 5 draws in 28 games. They are eager to succeed in the Champions League after past disappointments, including a semifinal loss to Borussia Dortmund last season and a final loss to Bayern Munich in 2019-20. This game marks the first-ever meeting between PSG and Aston Villa in history.
PSG will be without Lee Kang-In due to injury and Marquinhos due to suspension for this game. Here’s a preview of the match details:
Match Details
- Date: Wednesday, April 9
- Location: Parc des Princes, Paris, France
First Meeting
This is the first time PSG and Aston Villa are playing against each other. For PSG, this is their fifth game against an English team this season. In the round of 16, they lost 1-0 at home to Liverpool but won the return leg 1-0 at Anfield and advanced on penalties (4-1) before reaching this quarterfinal against Aston Villa.
Journey to Quarterfinals
Aston Villa was a surprise in the league stage, finishing eighth with 16 points, qualifying for the round of 16 where they defeated Club Brugge 6-1 on aggregate. PSG had a tougher league phase, finishing 15th with 13 points. They qualified after wins against RB Salzburg, Manchester City, and Stuttgart, then defeated Brest 10-0 on aggregate in the playoffs, and Liverpool in the round of 16.
Projected Starting Lineups
PSG XI: Gianluigi Donnarumma; Achraf Hakimi, Lucas Beraldo, Willian Pacho, Nuno Mendes; Joao Neves, Vitinha, Fabian Ruiz; Kvicha Kvaratskhelia, Ousmane Dembele, Bradley Barcola.
Aston Villa XI: Emiliano Martinez; Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings, Lucas Digne; Boubacar Kamara, Youri Tielemans; John McGinn, Marco Asensio, Morgan Rogers; Marcus Rashford.
Key Player to Watch
Ousmane Dembele, PSG: Since Kylian Mbappe`s departure, Dembele has become a key player for PSG. In 2025, he has scored 24 goals in 20 games for PSG, with 21 Ligue 1 goals this season and 29 goals in all competitions in 2024-25. His best previous record was 14 goals for FC Barcelona in 2018-19. In the Champions League this season, he has 7 goals and 1 assist in 10 games.
Main Storyline
Will Emery succeed against his former team? Unai Emery, now coaching Aston Villa, previously managed PSG from 2016 to 2018, winning the Ligue 1 title. A victory against PSG would further enhance his reputation as a top European coach.
Match Prediction
PSG is favored to win this quarterfinal and is considered a strong contender for the Champions League title. Prediction: PSG 3, Aston Villa 1.
