Tomorrow night, European football is back, and we are kicking things off with the UEFA Super Cup in Salzburg. It is Paris Saint-Germain taking on Aston Villa.
Now, I am going to put my cards on the table. I am a neutral for this one, but I am massively favouring Villa. You know what I mean, right? PSG are obviously a brilliant side with endless talent, but they just hog European football, and they completely hog their own league. It gets boring. Villa, on the other hand, are fresh off winning the Europa League and bring a bit of actual grit to the table.
The Facts You Need to Know
Here is the situation. History absolutely hates the underdogs here. The Champions League winners almost always bully their way to this trophy in fact, the Europa League winners have only won it once in the last 13 years. And just to make things a bit more stressful for the English side, Unai Emery has managed in three Super Cup finals before and lost every single one of them.
But do not let that completely write Villa off. Cast your mind back to April 2025. They played PSG in the Champions League quarter finals and actually battered them 3-2 at Villa Park. Yes, PSG went through 5-4 on aggregate in the end, but Villa proved they know exactly how to get under their skin.
Off the pitch, the drama is brilliant. UEFA have put Omar Artan in charge the Somali referee the US banned from the World Cup over vetting issues. UEFA basically gave him this massive match just to annoy FIFA, so expect him to take zero nonsense from anybody. You can read more about the match setup directly on the official UEFA Super Cup page.
Players to Watch
Villa have had a brutal summer window. They lost Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans, and Lucas Digne. And where did Digne go? PSG. Classic. But do not panic, because Villa have brought in João Gomes from Wolves for £38m, and he is an absolute machine in the midfield.
Take Alejandro Garnacho, for example. He has just come in on loan from Chelsea, and the lad is electric. If he gets space out wide, he is going to cause absolute chaos. Watch out for him driving into the box and putting PSG on the back foot.
On the PSG side, they are relying heavily on youth. They have Warren Zaïre-Emery and João Neves running the centre of the park. If Gomes and John McGinn do not get in their faces early, those two will dictate the entire game.
The Verdict
So, what are we thinking? Do you reckon Emery can finally break his Super Cup curse, or will PSG just do what they always do and ruin the fun?
Personally, I think Villa are going to put up a massive fight. They love a rapid transition, and Ollie Watkins is always going to cause problems. But PSG just have so much depth right now.
Prediction: PSG 2 – 1 Aston Villa. A tight game, but the Parisians might just pinch it in the end.
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