Lens blast PSG request to move crunch Ligue 1 fixture to prepare for Champions League tie versus Liverpool

Martin Macdonald

• 24 Mar 2026 05:30 CDT
• 3 min read

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Lens have sensationally hit back at Paris Saint-Germain's request that the top-of-the-table Ligue 1 clash between the two sides be moved in order for PSG to rest before a Champions League tie versus Liverpool.

The two teams positioned first and second in Ligue 1 are due to play each other on 11 April. PSG are first on 60 points and have a game in hand over Lens, in second on 59 points.

The crunch fixture comes in between PSG's two Champions League quarter-final matches against Liverpool.

On Monday, the reigning Champions League winners made an official request to The Ligue de Football Professionnel to postpone the Lens match.

However, Lens insist the French top flight should not be treated as a "variable adjustment" to suit PSG, while they themselves would be thrust into a needlessly hectic run of matches should the fixture be moved.

The club posted a statement on X which reads:

"On 6 March, the scheduling of the fixture between Racing Club de Lens and Paris Saint-Germain was finalised, establishing a framework that all parties were expected to adhere to. In a spirit of responsibility and restraint, Racing Club de Lens made its intention not to see this date modified known to Paris Saint-Germain from the very first solicitations. Committed to the principle of sporting stability, the club also chose to refrain from any public communication on the matter. However, the recent surge in public statements, interventions, and various suggestions has led us to break this reserve today.

"It appears to us that a concerning sentiment is beginning to take hold: that of a French championship being progressively relegated to the status of a mere 'adjustment variable' at the mercy of the European imperatives of a few. This is a singular conception of sporting equity, the likes of which are difficult to find in other major continental competitions. Modifying the date of this match now would mean Racing Club de Lens being deprived of competition for 15 days, only to then be forced into a run of games every three days - a rhythm that corresponds neither to the schedule defined at the start of the season, nor to the resources of a club expected to absorb such new constraints without consequence.

"It would therefore be understood that the championship's tenth-largest budget must adapt to the demands of the most powerful, in the name of interests that clearly now transcend the domestic framework - a framework that has already been lightened in recent seasons (Ligue 1 reduced to 18 clubs, the abolition of the Coupe de la Ligue). Beyond this specific case, a more essential question is being posed: that of the respect due to the competition itself. One must wonder when, on its own soil, the championship sometimes seems relegated behind other ambitions, however legitimate they may be. Racing Club de Lens remains committed to equity, clarity of rules, and respect for all stakeholders. These are simple principles for a French football that is fair and respected."

Speaking after Lens’ 5-1 victory over Angers on Friday, head coach Pierre Sage told reporters: “We don’t agree (with a postponement).

“We played a French Cup match, it was scheduled for Thursday, and we had to play against Metz on Sunday. We were happy to be in the French Cup, and we played Metz on Sunday. After that, I understand that having rest allows you to perform better.

“They managed to prove that in their match against Chelsea. But today, it’s a very competitive club that is involved in many competitions.”

Lens are chasing their first Ligue 1 title since 1998 and seem destined for Champions League football themselves next season.

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