Matchday 14: Five things to look out for this weekend in Ligue 1 McDonald's

This weekend's Ligue 1 McDonald's action sees Monaco travel to the capital, whilst Olympique de Marseille will be hoping to keep the pressure up behind PSG as they host Toulouse at the Stade Vélodrome. Meanwhile Lens and LOSC will be chasing down those European spots in their respective games, as Strasbourg get back to domestic action against Brest after their win over Crystal Palace.

From the Principality to Le Parc: A Paul Pogba appearance against PSG?

AS Monaco travel to face an in-form Paris Saint-Germain side at the Parc des Princes on Saturday, after both sides had contrasting performances in Europe during the week. Les Parisiens completed a 5-3 demolition of English side Tottenham Hotspur during the week, as Vitinha scored his first-ever hat trick for the club. Yet Monaco managed to drop points in the Champions League to Cypriot side Pathos (2-2).

Whilst Paul Pogba returned to football for the first time since September 2023 against Stade Rennais last weekend, the France 2018 World Cup winner did not feature at all in Europe this week. "We tried to bring a bit more going forward," said ASM manager Sebastien Pocognoli on the Pogba decision. The Paul option was a bit more defensive, but he was ready, and he will be ready tomorrow, too.”

Paul is obviously an option, but we have to take things step by steps," said Pocognoli on whether the Frenchman could start or appear against PSG on Saturday. "We are moving in the right direction and we hope to push him to have more minutes on the pitch.”

Nayef Aguerd returns to Marseille squad against Touluose

Marseille will be welcoming the return of Nayef Aguerd in the squad to face Toulouse this weekend, as Les Olympiens ride high after their 2-1 win over Newcastle United in the Champions League. “Aguerd should be back in the squad," De Zerbi said at his pre-match press conference. I told my medical staff to keep an eye on the players that are currently playing a lot of games: Greenwood, Paixao, Aubameyang, Højbjerg, and of course Balerdi who has only come back to play two games after several weeks out of action.”

Leonardo Balerdi 'believes' Marseille can compete for the title

Meanwhile Marseille captain Leonardo Balerdi says he believes Olympique de Marseille can push Paris Saint-Germain in the race for the title until the end of the season. "We must always believe. We must stay at the top until the last match. This year, there are a lot of teams in contention, it's a more competitive championship," said Balerdi during his pre-match press conference. "PSG are strong, but we have to focus on ourselves." If we start thinking, “we have a chance if we win or if they lose”, we'll lose our way." The next step in his battle will be against Toulouse FC on Saturday afternoon.

Olympique Lyonnais travel to Nantes

Paulo Fonseca's Olympique Lyonnais will be hoping to climb back into a European position in Sunday's clash against Nantes at the Groupama Stadium. Sitting seventh on goal difference, Les Gones face a Luís Castro side that are under increasing pressure as they sit in 15th in the table.

After a winless run of four games domestically, OL won out in a big 6-0 victory over Maccabi Tel Aviv during this week's UEFA Europa League action - which has put them top of the table in Europe. Now it's time to translate that form under the lights to this weekend's game against a battling Nantes outfit.

Chasers Strasbourg face Brest

Liam Rosenior's men will turn their attention back to Ligue 1 McDonald's after a win over English side Crystal Palace in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday. Les Strasbourgois are hoping to stay within touching distance of the chasing pack. They will have to do so against a Brest side that grabbed their first win in seven matches last weekend.