Relevo: France give PSG rest between 2 legs of UCL but it won't happen in Spain

In the midst of the schedule crunch with Barcelona vs. Osasuna, France gives PSG a rest between the first and second leg of the Champions League.

The LFP has decided to give Luis Enrique's team a break so they're fresh for the quarterfinals.

The reporter of Relevo, Jonas Perez, makes his view clear:

It won't happen in Spain. Not even if we wanted to, because the schedule doesn't allow it. But it will in France .

The LFP has postponed the match between Nantes and PSG on April 13 to give the Parisians a rest in the middle of the Champions League quarterfinals against Aston Villa . This measure has been implemented previously in other seasons and does nothing more than ensure the well-being of the clubs so that their players arrive with fresh legs for the continental qualifiers. A method that seeks the common good, that the international prestige of French football increases, and that (not this season) could even contribute to Ligue 1 enjoying an extra place.

The Nantes-PSG league match was scheduled to be played on the weekend separating the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals and the second leg, now in consecutive weeks at the request of UEFA. In fact, the semi-finals will also be played . However, that Ligue 1 match won't be played until April 22, the Tuesday of the following week, when there are no continental competitions and it is reserved as a blank date in the French league.

It is still surprising that while one of the five major European leagues allows itself to deliberately and voluntarily postpone a match to give one of its teams a rest, the Spanish league is mired in a deep scheduling crisis to schedule last year's match between Barcelona and Osasuna at Montjuic . The match could not be played due to the death of one of the Barça team's doctors just minutes before kick-off and was left pending the clubs' request and the decision of the Competition Judge .

The problem is that the alternatives were minimal because Barcelona are still present in all three competitions and it wouldn't be surprising, given their level, if they reach the finals of the Copa del Rey or the Champions League. That said, if that happens, the only possibility to recover that match is to play it between Matchdays 37 and 38 of the competition, something unlikely because they want to respect the spirit of the tournament by playing the last two matches together . It would be extremely strange if, with just one match left, one of the LaLiga contenders and another that could be fighting for Europe or even relegation still have three points in hand .

Given this complex situation, the Competition Judge has decided to schedule the match for Thursday, March 27, just after the end of the international break. This move will be a successive one, as other league matches will have to be postponed. This poses a serious problem for Barcelona, which would have a Thursday-Sunday-Wednesday series , with the second leg of the Copa del Rey semifinal against Atlético Madrid on Wednesday. Furthermore, they would be without Raphinha and Araujo because they are playing with their national team in the South American windows.

But as the Competition Judge rightly points out, it's impossible to predict the match date based on Barcelona's potential eliminations because they don't necessarily have to happen. So, then? Given that the match between Matchday 37 and Matchday 38 is ruled out, this is the only option left, which has already been appealed by both clubs. In a couple of days, the Judge will make the final decision.

Meanwhile, an oasis in Ligue 1. PSG will not play in the Champions League quarterfinals to give themselves an even better chance of advancing to the semifinals. This already happened, for example, last season before PSG-Barcelona. An unusual scenario in Spain, plagued by an atrocious schedule. It's true that there they play with the advantage of only having 18 teams in their table, a solution that, of course, isn't on the table in the Spanish league.