Paris St. Germain star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic is fit to face his boyhood club Malmo FF in the Group A fixture of the UEFA Champions League 2015-16 at the Parc des Princes on Tuesday.
The Swedish hotshot was given a much-needed rest by PSG manager Laurent Blanc during his side's French league game last weekend against Bordeaux, after he picked up a knock while on international duty. PSG's 13-game winning run in the Ligue 1 came to an end as the game against Bordeaux ended 2-2.
The mercurial forward started his playing career with the Swedish outfit when he was very young and played three seasons with the Malmo senior side, before making a move to Dutch giants Ajax.
Speaking about the game to be played tonight in France, Ibrahimovic has mentioned that it is 'more than a dream' for him to play against his boyhood team in a revered competition such as the Champions League.
Malmo beat Scottish giants Celtic this season to qualify for the group stages of the competition.
"It's more than a dream [to play against Malmo]! For me, it's destiny. Last year I wanted to play against Malmö, but it didn't happen. It's happened this year!" the 33-year-old told his club's website.
"To play against my first club will be fantastic. I will enjoy every second of these matches. But, I'm a Paris Saint-Germain player and I will give everything for this club. We need to win on Tuesday," he added.
Even Malmo head coach Age Hareide is excited about the prospect of seeing Ibrahimovic ply his trade against his team over the two legs in the group this year, but also mentioned that qualifying from the group this season is tough.
"It is great to face Zlatan," the Norwegian coach said. "But we are in a very tough group. We would have preferred a slightly weaker third team (than Shakhtar)."
Both PSG and Malmo are grouped alongside ten-time European champions Real Madrid and Shakhtar Dontesk. And the two face each other in the other match from Group A tonight.
Last three results (all competitions):
PSG - D W W
Malmo - D W W
(D - Draw, W - Win)
Team News:
PSG - Laurent Blanc will have plenty on options in the form of star players such as Ibrahimovic, Edinson Cavani, Angel di Maria, David Luiz, Thiago Silva, Ezequiel Lavezzi, and Lucas, who are all fit to play. Right-back Serge Aurier however, remains suspended for the game.
Malmo - Age Hareide will also have a full squad as none of the players are injured or suspended. Markus Rosenberg will remain the captain.
The Paris St. Germain vs Malmo FF match kicks-off at 8.45 pm CET (12.15 am IST, 7.45 pm BST, 2.45 pm ET).
Where to Watch Live
In India, the game can be watched live & exclusive on Ten Cricket, with the option of live streaming for India (and the rest of the subcontinent) on tensports.com.
UK viewers can catch the game on BT Sport Extra 3, while the online live stream option is on Watch BT Sport Live. The BT Sport app will also show the match Live.
US viewers can catch the game on Fox Sports, with the option of live streaming on FoxSoccer2Go and Watch ESPN. ESPN 2 will also broadcast the game Live.
Viewers in Australia, France, Middle East and North Africa can watch the UEFA Champions League game live on Bein Sports and Bein Sports Connect.
People in Sweden can catch Malmo in action on Viaplay Sweden and TV3 Sweden.
