'It's sad' - Paris Saint-Germain double injury blow ahead of Newcastle United clash

Paris Saint-Germain will be missing two key players for Tuesday night’s Champions League clash against Newcastle United (kick-off 8pm). 

The French champions beat Monaco 5-2 on Friday night and did so without midfielder Warren Zaire-Emery and captain Marquinhos. 

Zaire-Emery scored on his France debut in their 14-0 win over Gibraltar but in the same game picked up an ankle injury. It has since been revealed that the 17-year-old has suffered a sprain and will be sidelined until early 2024. 

The midfielder burst onto the scene last season and has quickly established himself as a regular under new Luis Enrique. During PSG’s 4-1 defeat to Newcastle last time out, Zaire-Emery provided the assist for Lucas Hernandez’s goal. 

Meanwhile, the visit of Newcastle will come too soon for Marquinhos. 

The 29-year-old started for Brazil in their 1-0 defeat to Argentina last week but was forced off at half-time with a hamstring injury. As a result, the Brazilian was ruled out for 10 days. 

Speaking prior to the Monaco win, Enrique said he is confident his squad can cope in the pair's absence.

“We have a squad that is the best of the (Ligue 1) championship, in my view. The only thing that every time a player gets hurt, it’s sad, because they won’t be able to play,” Enrique said “However, the number of players is very broad and is at a very high level.

“We are used to it (injuries), but we have to make sure that the players get back. We take stock of what happened to the players and we advise according to each one to have the best possible recovery.”

Newcastle too have an endless amount of injury problems. 

Ruled out are the likes of Sven Botman, Dan Burn, Matt Targett, Elliot Anderson, Jacob Murphy, Matt Ritchie, Joe Willock, Harvey Barnes and Callum Wilson.