Axel Witsel has found himself on the referee’s radar across the last two Champions League matchdays and he looks overpriced to commit a minimum of one foul on Wednesday night. The 35-year-old was guilty of two misdemeanours during Atletico Madrid’s 3-1 defeat to Lille. He also sinned once away at Benfica on matchday two. Last season, the veteran defender averaged a shade under one foul per-game in the Champions League.

Given that Witsel is expected to come up against PSG’s Bradley Barcola on Wednesday night, there is plenty of scope for that trend  to continue. The French forward has been fouled at least once in four of his last five Ligue 1 outings.

Given the aforementioned Bradley Barcola’s knack for drawing fouls, it makes sense to side with him to earn at least one free kick during this contest. The PSG attacker was fouled three times against Lens last weekend. He was also on the receiving end of a foul in three of his four Ligue 1 outings prior to that. It’s also worth pointing out that Barcola earned his side a free kick during their previous Champions League home game with PSV.

The Frenchman is likely to cross paths with ageing Atletico Madrid defender Axel Witsel, who has committed a combined total of three fouls across his last two Champions League outings.

Look to Achraf Hakimi to commit one or more fouls against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday night. The Moroccan right back has been a frequent offender for PSG in this season’s Champions League. He has tackled his way into trouble five times across his opening three appearances, including three against PSV in the French capital last month. Hakimi also gave away a free kick during PSG’s 1-0 win over Lens last time out.

He is likely to run into Atletico Madrid left wing back Samuel Lino this midweek. The Brazilian defender has been fouled in each of his three Champions League outings this season, including three times away at Benfica. He has also earned Atleti a free kick in two of his last three appearances in La Liga.

While Samuel Lino has proven to be a bit of a foul-magnet for Atletico Madrid this season, he is also prone to committing the odd foul. The 24-year-old fell foul of the referee during Atleti’s previous Champions League away game at Benfica. He has also committed a foul in two of his last three starts in La Liga.

As already mentioned, Lino is likely to be in a direct battle with PSG’s Achraf Hakimi on Wednesday night. Hakimi regularly finds himself on the receiving end of some rough treatment from PSG’s opponents. He has drawn a combined total of six fouls across his three Champions League run-outs this season. The Moroccan has also been fouled eight times over the course of his eight appearances in Ligue 1 this term. Thus, siding with the aforementioned Lino to commit a foul holds plenty of appeal.

Koke has been a serial offender for Atletico Madrid over the years and he should have plenty of defensive work to get through on Wednesday night. The 32-year-old has racked up 10 fouls across his 10 starts for Atleti in La Liga this season. He was also reprimanded by the referee once when the Spanish side lost 3-1 to Lille on matchday three. The Atleti ace was giving away just shy of one foul per game in last season’s Champions League.

Koke will likely be assigned a shackling job on PSG wonderkid Warren Zaire-Emery. The 18-year-old has been on the receiving end of a foul in each of PSG’s last two Champions League games. The teenage sensation has also been fouled eight times across his nine Ligue 1 outings this season.

Atletico Madrid’s mastery and use of the game’s dark arts makes them an appealing option to pick up three or more cards inside the Parc des Princes. Diego Simeone’s side have accumulated 10 yellow cards across their opening three Champions League games. That has coincided with them collecting at least three cautions in each of their first three league phase assignments. The majority of those cards (4) were flashed in their direction during their one and only previous away game to date at Benfica. They have also been shown three or more cards in two of their last five outings in La Liga.

Girona went into the book on three occasions against PSG on matchday one, while PSV picked up no fewer than five cards in the French capital a fortnight ago.

Bradley Barcola is one of the brightest prospects in Europe and he should pose Atletico Madrid plenty of problems on Wednesday night. The PSG forward’s dribbling skills and electric pace saw him earn his side no fewer than three free kicks against Lens last weekend. He was also fouled on multiple occasions during PSG’s home win over Montpellier earlier this season.

Given the aggression that Diego Simeone led sides are renowned for playing with, a minimum of two fouls on Barcola looks worth getting behind at a big price. Expect to see Barcola pit his wits against Axel Witsel, who was guilty of two misdemeanours against Lille on matchday three.

As already alluded to, Achraf Hakimi has been pretty prolific at earning PSG free kicks this season. The forward-thinking full back has been fouled at least once in each of his three Champions League outings this term. Furthermore, Hakimi has drawn multiple fouls in each of PSG’s previous two continental contests in the French capital this season. It’s been a similar story in Ligue 1 this season, with the Moroccan winning his side a set piece in four of his last five appearances.

In direct opposition to Hakimi is likely to be Atletico Madrid’s Samuel Lino, who gave away a free kick away at Benfica on matchday two, not to mention the Brazilian did the same in his last La Liga outing.