It is a duel between the best attack and one of the worst defenses in the championship, between first and twelfth, which will take place this Saturday, February 3 between Racing 92 and USAP.
On paper, the poster seems unbalanced.
But in reality, Racing will have to be wary of an opponent who defeated them last year (30-21).
Stuart Lancaster's men have for the moment a mixed record in 2024. Beaten at home by Toulouse last week at home (20-27), the Ciel et Blanc see their lead over their main pursuers melt away in the Top 14 On the European scene, the Ile-de-France club has enjoyed more success recently, having managed to snatch the last qualifying place in their Champions Cup group after a success against Cardiff (48-26).
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Against them, the Perpignanais are lacking confidence at the start of the year, with only one victory at home against Oyonnax, on January 6 (27-12).
Since then, USAP has had a series of failures: two elimination defeats in the Challenge Cup at the Ospreys (25-3) and against Newcastle at Aimé-Giral (23-32), before a match lost away against Lyon (36- 24).
The Catalans will therefore start in a position of outsiders against Siya Kolisi and his teammates, even deprived of several internationals with the start of the 2024 Six Nations Tournament.
The kickoff for Perpignan-Racing 92 will be given this Saturday, February 3 at 3 p.m.
The meeting will be broadcast in full on Canal + Sport.