Aston Villa vs. Paris Saint-Germain: Picks, Predictions, Odds and Player Props

Aston Villa stand in Paris Saint-Germain’s path to the UEFA Champions League semifinals when the pair meet in the second leg on Tuesday.

Villa stunned the Parc des Princes with the opening goal in last Wednesday’s quarter-final first leg, but Luis Enrique’s side stormed back to establish a 3-1 lead at the halfway mark in the tie.

Now Villa boss Unai Emery is plotting the downfall of his former club and calling on the home fans to make a difference.

The Villans warmed up for the clash with a 3-0 Premier League win at Southampton, which means last week’s loss in Paris is the only blemish amid a run of eight victories since the end of February.

But Paris Saint-Germain, who did not have a game last weekend, are in even better form. The French champions’ solitary taste of defeat since November came in a game they dominated against Liverpool and they enter Tuesday’s game looking to extend a seven-match winning streak.

Aston Villa vs. Paris Saint-Germain betting picks and predictions

Paris Saint-Germain Moneyline (+105)

The visitors hold most, if not all, the cards ahead of the second leg thanks to their stirring comeback in Paris.

Luis Enrique’s side are experts at finishing opponents off on counter attacks and it will take all of Emery’s tactical genius to ensure Aston Villa avoid playing into their hands on Tuesday.

The Villans need to score the first goal, which they have done in four consecutive UEFA Champions League games, to feed the passion of the home fans.

But even if they do, they still need to score again and prevent Paris Saint-Germain from punishing them just to take the tie to extra time.

As is so often the case, the battle will be won and lost in midfield and that is where Paris look to be significantly stronger than Villa.

Despite struggling through the initial League Phase, Paris now have the third-highest ratio of possession in the competition.

They have registered the second-highest number of progressive carries, the most successful take ons and are only just behind Bayern Munich for the highest number of touches in their opponents’ penalty area.

And while the stats point to Paris being the most improved European force since Christmas, they don’t fail the eye test either.

The midfield trio of Fabian Ruiz, Joao Neves and Vitinha complement each other perfectly.

And they should be able to steer the team through a potentially tricky second leg by protecting their defence, winning the ball back in deep areas and setting off some lightning fast breaks.

Aston Villa lack pace in the center of midfield and have full backs that can get caught too high up the pitch, factors which the Parisians can prey on.

Both Teams to Score in the 1st Half (+275)

The French side's free weekend ahead of this clash afforded Enrique’s players a welcome rest and the coach more time to refine his gameplan, but it also broke up the team’s winning rhythm.

And it may take the Parisians longer than normal to move through the gears on Tuesday as a result of that time off.

Aston Villa could capitalise on this by beginning on the front foot and it would be no surprise to see the hosts grabbing an early goal.

They registered the opener at the Parc de Princes and have found the back of the net before the fourth minute in three of their last six UEFA Champions League matches.

PSG have kept clean sheets in their last two away games in this competition but can count themselves fortunate to have done so each time.

Mohamed Salah squandered two early chances at Anfield while Abdallah Sima could have equalised with a header in the all-Ligue 1 clash at Brest.

Backing both teams to score in the first half, which has happened in three of Villa’s last four European ties, looks a worthwhile bet at the odds.

Under 3.5 Cards (+120)

Spanish referee Jose Sanchez takes charge of this do-or-die clash and there may be an expectation for cards in the game because of his record in La Liga.

The man from Murcia has issued 40 cards in his last eight Spanish league appointments, but he has not been kept as busy in this competition.

Sanchez has shown a combined total of five cards across his last three UEFA Champions League assignments and it is not as if they were meaningless matches.

He took charge of Manchester City’s must-win League Phase clash with Club Brugge, a lively Playoff round first leg between Feyenoord and AC Milan, plus a big round of 16 clash between Borussia Dortmund and Lille. 

There were only 17 fouls and one yellow card issued in last week’s first leg, which suggests Sanchez may be in for another quiet night.

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Aston Villa vs. Paris Saint-Germain odds

Aston Villa	+250
Draw	+275
PSG	+105

Aston Villa vs. Paris Saint-Germain player props

Anytime Goalscorer

Ousmane Dembele (PSG)	+140
Khvicha Khavartskhelia (PSG)	+200
Bradley Barcola (PSG)	+240
Goncalo Ramos (PSG)	+162
Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)	+175
Desire Doue (PSG)	+300
Marcus Rashford (Aston Villa)	+275

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.