Paris Saint-Germain vs Vllaznia match facts

Paris Saint-Germain host Albanian champions Vllaznia on Matchday 3 of the 2022/23 UEFA Women's Champions League with both clubs looking to score their first goal in Group A.

This is the first time the two clubs have met. Indeed, neither has faced opposition from the other's country in any previous UEFA Women's Champions League campaign.

Beaten semi-finalists in each of the last three seasons, Paris were the top scoring-team in last term's inaugural group stage, hitting 25 goals and conceding none in their six Group B encounters. However, they have failed to find the net in their first two Group A games in this campaign, losing 1-0 at home to Chelsea on Matchday 1 before a 0-0 draw at Real Madrid last time out.

Gérard Prêcheur, who took over as Paris head coach in August, guided his side into this group stage at the expense of Swedish outfit BK Häcken, courtesy of a 4-1 aggregate success in Round 2 of qualifying (2-1 h, 2-0 a), Lieke Martens and Kadidiatou Diani scoring in both legs.

Vllaznia, who secured their ninth successive league and cup double last term, have made history by reaching this stage of the UEFA Women's Champions League, becoming the first Albanian side to qualify for the last 16 of a UEFA competition since KF Tirana 33 years ago in the men's European Cup.

The Shkoder-based side sealed their group stage berth by beating Slovakian champions Spartak Myjava 1-0 in their Round 1 final before another narrow victory against Ukrainian club Vorskla-Kharkiv-2 in Round 2, winning 3-2 on aggregate (1-1 a, 2-1 h). Their first two group games, however, have both ended in defeat, a 2-0 home loss to Real Madrid preceding an 8-0 humbling away to Chelsea.

Players to watch

Lieke Martens

The 29-year-old joined Paris in June on a three-year contract.

Martens achieved global fame as the star of the Netherlands' Women's EURO 2017 success, scoring three goals in six games, including one in the 4-2 final victory against Denmark in Enschede.

She was voted as Player of the Tournament and later in 2017 received further recognition as UEFA Women's Player of the Year and the Best FIFA Women's Player.

She also helped the Netherlands reach the final of the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup in France, where they were defeated 2-0 by the United States in Lyon.

Martens joined Barcelona from Swedish side Rosengård just before her 2017 national team success and in five years at the club won three domestic titles as well as the UEFA Women's Champions League in 2020/21, scoring five goals in the run to the final, which the Spanish side won 4-0 against Chelsea.

She scored 11 UEFA Women's Champions League goals in total for Barcelona and found the net on each of her first two appearances in the competition for Paris, against BK Häcken in the Round 2 qualifier.

Sara Maliqi

The 27-year-old Albanian international central defender has been competing with Vllaznia in the UEFA Women's Champions League since 2015.

This is her eighth season in the competition and she is set to make her 25th appearance on Matchday 3, having started all five of Vllaznia's matches so far this term

She has scored one goal in Europe – in a 2-0 victory against Luxembourg side Bettembourg in the 2017/18 qualifying round.

She has won the Albanian league and cup in each of her seven seasons with Vllaznia.

Key facts

The defeat by Chelsea on Matchday 1 was one of just three in Paris's last 20 UEFA Women's Champions League home games (W14 D3).

However, they have won just one of the last four in France (D1 L2) and only two of their last seven in the competition, home and away (D2 L3).

Fifteen of Paris's 25 goals in last season's group stage came at home.

The French side had scored in 15 successive UEFA Women's Champions League matches before drawing a blank against Chelsea on Matchday 1

Vllaznia have won only two of their last 13 UEFA Women's Champions League matches (D4 L7), failing to score in seven of those games.