One of the most enticing games of matchday eight in the league phase of the Champions League will see Stuttgart welcome Paris Saint-Germain to the MHPArena in a battle to reach the playoffs.

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Both clubs sit just inside the top 24 on 10 points, and if they reach 11, it is hard to see how enough sides will catch up to overtake either of them.

With an opportunity to be seeded in those playoffs on the line though, both should have ambitions of winning

Stuttgart have not made the best of preparations though, suffering defeat for the first time in 2025 at the weekend, going down 2-0 at Mainz, after Sebastian Hoeness's side had made a 100% start to the year, beating Augsburg, RB Leipzig and Freiburg in the Bundesliga, as well as Slovan Bratislava on matchday seven last week.

While they remain in the top four domestically, all focus will quickly turn to this must-not-lose encounter for the hosts, who start the final matchday teetering on the edge of the elimination zone.

A defeat for 24th-placed Stuttgart leaves them in trouble of being overtaken by Manchester City, Dinamo Zagreb and Shakhtar Donetsk, and their home form in Europe does not provide a lot of encouragement.

Beating a pointless Young Boys 5-1 last time out is their solitary win in 10 attempts at home on the continent, but they have only lost one of their four encounters with French clubs at the MHPArena in Europe - winning two.

On the contrary, PSG have lost on eight of their 13 trips to Germany in Europe, winning just two, with a 1-0 defeat at Bayern Munich earlier in this campaign contributing to that poor record.

However, confidence will be at an all-time high after an exhilarating 4-2 win over Man City last Wednesday, providing PSG with the opportunity to win three straight Champions League games under Luis Enrique for the first time.

The last man to accomplish that was Thomas Tuchel in 2020, and it looked as though Enrique would not get close to it in this campaign, especially considering they went on a run of four defeats in five away Champions League games, before beating Red Bull Salzburg in December.

That 3-0 win set them up perfectly for the visit of Man City to the Parc des Princes last week, and even though the Parisians were staring at a strong chance of elimination, they fought back from 2-0 down to win, with Joao Neves and Goncalo Ramos getting the important late goals.

Instead of being three points adrift of the playoff places, PSG now find themselves inside them, knowing that a point will be enough for them to advance.

PSG are often strong at the finish of this stage, winning five of their last six group stage finales, drawing the other, and after a dismal league phase campaign, they will be glad just to get over the line.

Stuttgart possible starting lineup:

Nubel; Vagnoman, Al Dakhil, Chabot, Mittelstadt; Keitel, Stiller, Millot; Leweling, Undav, Fuhrich

Paris Saint-Germain possible starting lineup:

Donnarumma; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Hernandez; Joao Neves, Vitinha, Fabian Ruiz; Dembele, Doue, Barcola