Club World Cup: Botafogo vs. PSG Preview
Both clubs won their matches on Matchday 1 and are tied with three points each, but PSG leads Group B thanks to a better goal difference. Luis Enrique and his team secured a 4-0 win over Atlético de Madrid last weekend while Botafogo came away with a 2-1 victory in a tightly contested match against MLS side Seattle Sounders.
A win for either side will put them in the driver's seat to finish first in Group B and advance to the knockout stage of the FIFA Club World Cup. In this competition, teams from Latin America have gone head-to-head with their European counterparts.
Boca Juniors drew against SL Benfica, Fluminense drew against Borussia Dortmund, Palmeiras drew against FC Porto, and CF Monterrey drew against Inter Milan, who PSG defeated to win their first-ever Champions League trophy this past season.
Even Real Madrid drew against Al-Hilal on Wednesday, so the Parisians need to be on alert to avoid dropping points against a non-European opponent.
Despite these tightly contested matches, Botafogo manager Renato Paiva understands that his side will need to be near perfect to pull the upset over PSG as he stated after the Brazilian side's win over the Sounders.
"We must look hard at what went wrong [against Seattle], because you can't make those kinds of mistakes against PSG. They're an outstanding side, capable of attacking in multiple ways. They're aggressive out of possession too, but also know how to manage the tempo."
Although PSG are coming off winning the treble, they aren't letting up and want add another trophy to what has been an excellent 2025 for the club. Following the win over Atlético, Enrique noted the mindset he's seeing from his squad in this short competition.
"It's a very short competition that requires us to be precise and efficient at the right moments. We're only at the beginning of the tournament, so we need to be competitive and train well. Our team is training very well and, in terms of competitiveness, they like to take on challenges. From that point of view, I have no doubt."
PSG will look to become the first European side to earn a victory over a club from Latin America at the Club World Cup in what will be a fantastic atmosphere in Los Angeles.
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