Kylian Mbappe is set for a breather as Paris Saint-Germain move to avoid the risk of their star striker suffering early season exhaustion.
PSG head coach Thomas Tuchel declared at a pre-match news conference Mbappe may only feature as a substitute in Saturday's Ligue 1 clash with Dijon.
A run of four games in 10 days for Mbappe, including two internationals with France, appears to have persuaded Tuchel the time is right to allow the 21-year-old some rest.
It will be the briefest of respite, however, with PSG back in Champions League action next Wednesday as they travel to face Istanbul Basaksehir.
Injuries and cases of COVID-19 in the camp have hindered Tuchel with his selections this season and the suspended Layvin Kurzawa and Angel Di Maria will miss the Dijon game.
"We're also thinking about leaving Kylian Mbappe and Presnel Kimpembe on the bench because they have played too many matches," Tuchel said.
"We don't want to take risks because it's not the time to do that. We'll talk with the physios, the doctors and the players."
The risk of injuries and fatigue has to be balanced with PSG's need to collect points, as they continue to repair the damage caused by losing their two opening domestic league fixtures.
Five successive Ligue 1 wins since those losses to Lens and Marseille have helped, but they slipped to a 2-1 Champions League home loss to Manchester United on Tuesday.
