A
win too for the Germant giant will ensure they continue
their dominance of Champions League Group C. Though, Julian Nagelsmann
may shuffle his pack for todays encounter with the depleted Bavarians set to
host Borussia Dortmund four days later.
Meanwhile, Viktoria Plzen will be
looking to give a good account of themselves in this game, but they will know
that coming away from Munich with anything to show for their efforts is highly
unlikely. However, Michal Bilek's side will be looking to pick up
their first points of a challenging European campaign so far.
Les Olympiens are bottom of Group D, losing their opening two
matches of this competition without a goal thus far, while Leoes currently hold
a 100% record and have yet to concede.
Marseille seems to have bought into Tudor's
philosophy, but it seems as though this competition is turning into a
psychological barrier for them because there are plenty of quality individuals
on this team who have not played up to their potential in the Champions League.
Sporting, on the other hand, have been a lot more consistent in
Europe this season than in Portugal, and their patience and poise, we believe,
will enable them to maintain their 100% record in this season's competition.
The visitors have lost both of their opening matches so can ill
afford another defeat if they are to remain in the competition.
Liverpool should be able to cut loose against
Rangers, who appear to be lacking the quality to be able to properly compete in
Group A.
Klopp's side are clearly lacking confidence at present after a
poor start to the season, but Tuesday's tie could be the start of a long road
to recovery for them.
THE 8PM HOUR MARK
Champions League Group A will see group leaders Napoli travel to face third-placed Ajax at the Amsterdam Arena.
Ajax have had a promising start to the campaign so far, defeating
Scottish side Rangers followed by a narrow defeat away to English giants
Liverpool at Anfield.
On the other hand, visitors Napoli have disposed of Liverpool with
a comfortable victory before easing past Rangers at Ibrox to gain maximum
points.
In what will be a tightly contested game in
Amsterdam, we expect both sides to create plenty of chances and to play an open
game that could leave them susceptible to counter-attacks.
Nevertheless, Napoli will manage to find a way through the Ajax
rearguard due to their sheer quality in the final third. Their offensive
arsenal will prove to be too much for Ajax to handle in the end, handing them a
narrow victory.
Following a resounding victory over Braga on Friday, Porto face a difficult test on matchday
three of the Champions League as they take on Bayer Leverkusen in
a match that could have severe ramifications in Group B.
The hosts come into the tie fresh off the back of their first win
in three across all competitions, while the visitors enter the fray seeking a
reaction from a heavy defeat against Bayern Munich on Friday that ended their
four-match unbeaten run.
Porto and Bayer Leverkusen will both be desperate
to come flying out of the blocks and claim a result that could change the
landscape of Champions League Group B.
Ultimately, the two sides will be inseparable on Tuesday evening
in a game of fine margins. With both teams being able to call on plenty of
talented attackers to influence proceedings, a score draw is the most likely
result.
Having won their two opening Champions League games, Club Brugge welcome
Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid to
the Jan Breydel Stadium on Tuesday evening.
In a group that promised to be tight as soon as it was drawn, this
could be a defining week for all the teams involved in Group B.
Club Brugge look really strong in this year's
competition but Atletico Madrid are always a threat when they need a result.
Home advantage will play a key role here, as Atletico are likely
to play on the counter and frustrate their hosts, so a low-scoring draw appears
to be on the cards.
Xavi will not be on a revenge
mission when Barcelona face Inter in a "very
important" Champions League showdown at San Siro on Tuesday. Head
coach Xavi was in the Barca side knocked out of the Champions League by Inter
at the semi-final stage in 2010.
The Blaugrana were beaten 3-1 in
the first leg in Milan and failed to overturn that deficit, crashing out after winning
1-0 at Camp Nou against Jose Mourinho's men, who went on to lift the
trophy.
Xavi
returns to San Siro with the two sides both having picked up three points from
their opening two Group C games, with Barca beaten 2-0 at leaders Bayern Munich
last month. And the former Spain midfielder is motivated by the prospect of
qualifying for the last 16 rather than having a score to settle.
In the Group C, European heavyweights Inter Milan and Barcelona clash at San Siro on Tuesday
night. Both sides have seen off Viktoria Plzen but lost to Bayern Munich, but
the hosts have endured their worst Serie A start for 11 years while their
Catalan counterparts are unbeaten in seven La Liga games to date.
Defensively vulnerable and often unable to hold on
to a lead, Inter are ripe for the taking this week, and Barcelona's
much-improved squad are well-placed to take three points home from San Siro.
Both sides are afflicted by injuries, but the greater depth
available to Xavi means that whichever XI starts on Tuesday should have enough
guile and experience to see off an ailing home side.
Conte made it crystal clear he is not impressed with questions
being asked about his approach ahead of Tuesday's Champions League clash at
Eintracht Frankfurt. After a deflating derby day defeat on the
weekend, Tottenham Hotspur face
a tricky Champions League trip to Eintracht Frankfurt on
Tuesday, in a game that could have major implications in Group D.
While Antonio Conte's men fell to a 3-1 defeat at the Emirates
Stadium on Saturday, Frankfurt became the first side to defeat early Bundesliga
leaders Union Berlin this campaign, with a satisfying 2-0 home win.
With plenty to play for, we expect a buoyant
Eintracht Frankfurt to cause Spurs problems coming forward.
However, the Germans have conceded 11 goals at home this season,
so are likely to give up a few chances that should be punished by a
high-quality forward line.
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