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The fourth matchday in the Champions League offers up a number of key talking points. Here we break them down.
Chelsea need to hit repeat
The Blues have been indifferent this season – and that culminated in Thomas Tuchel getting sacked – but have turned it around nicely recently. A 3-0 win over Wolves was the perfect way to follow up the same margin of victory when they hosted AC Milan last week.
A win on the road will not be easy but even a draw will go a long way to leaving Champions League qualification in their own hands. AC Milan have a terrible history with English teams – they’ve lost 6 of their last 7.
Remember Timori
If Chelsea fans had forgotten Fikayo Tomori then they better hope he’s not holding any grudges. The former Blues player scored against Juventus as AC Milan steadied their title defence. Will Tomori be able to inspire his teammates again?
Haaland in heaven
There seems no better match for Erling Haaland than Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City. The Norwegian leads the UCL scoring charts and should he play tonight, then he will no doubt score again. City travel to Liverpool on Sunday and so Guardiola may just opt to play Julian Alvarez instead. Copenhagen will be hoping so. A win for City will ensure they qualify with two games to go.
Real conundrum
Real Madrid have El Classico this weekend and a visit to face Shakhtar. Perhaps, it wouldn’t be wise to shuffle the squad as the defensive pattern needs more time on the pitch to rectify matters. Just one clean sheet in the league and Barcelona’s attacking unit to worry about. Tonight’s big test could be concentrating on matters immediately at hand. A draw should be enough to qualify even with two games to go.
Can Juve break free?
Juventus will need Dusan Vlahovic to be at his best as they look to score more than one goal for only the second time in eight matches in this competition. Vlahovic has registered five goal contributions across his last four matches for club and country. They face Maccabi Haifa, who are almost out of the competition following three losses.
Mbappe on the brink
With another goal in the UCL, Kylian Mbappe would edge ahead of Edinson Cavani (30 goals) as PSG’s highest European scorer in club history. With PSG tied with Benfica, it might be the best time to break history and move clear of the Portuguese team in Group H.
Benfica eyeing their own mark
The Eagles have never won a single UCL away game on French soil (D2, L5) while scoring only twice in the process. Tonight could be their night if David Neres finds the net, Benfica often win when he scores.
Dortmund to leave it late?
Dortmund’s last seven matches in all competitions have featured at least one goal during or after the 75th minute. A win over Sevilla tonight will ensure they qualify.