News.Blanc eager to build on victory

Paris Saint-Germain coach Laurent Blanc is hoping his reigning Ligue 1 champions can build on Wednesday night's first away victory of the season when they travel to Toulouse this weekend.

The Parisians, who had Lucas and Marquinhos to thank for their midweek 2-0 win at Stade Michel-d'Ornano, had only collected four points from their previous four away games but remain unbeaten so far this season. Blanc's men currently sit fourth in the standings just three points behind leaders Marseille and the 48-year-old is confident his side can come away from Stadium Municipal with a positive result.

He told his side's official website: "The result is very reassuring. In our situation, the most important thing was the three points. Paris Saint-Germain had struggled to win away, now we've done it.

"We travel away to Toulouse again on Saturday. We are in a tricky period. We have spoken a lot with the players. A lot of clubs go through these moments when you have to dig deep."

On-loan C?te d'Ivoire defender Serge Aurier makes his return to his former club but star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic continues to be sidelined with a heel injury and misses the match. Blanc told a press conference on Friday: "We have some hopes (for Ibrahimovic) to recover for Bar?a (Tuesday in the UEFA Champions League). We'll see what happens in (the next) 48 hours."

Toulouse head into the clash on the back of Tuesday's comfortable 3-0 victory at Rennes following a mix of results so far this term, but they have only dropped two points at home and sit tenth, just three points behind Saturday's opponents.

Coach Alain Casanova is confident his side can cause an upset for the visit of PSG, and he told his club's official website: "I think what will make the difference on the whole will be both the mental and technical, also the tactical and physical (components), all these four components will be important. Anything is possible. Just look at the results in the Coupe de France every year."

Monday, September 29, 2014