Zenit St. Petersburg vs Club Brugge
Saint-Petersburg Stadium, St. Petersburg
Tuesday, 20-10-2020 @7:55pm
Ref: Benoit Bastien (FRA)
The champions of Russia host the champions of Belgium, as Zenit take on Club Brugge on Matchday 1 of the Champions League in St. Peterburg.
Club Brugge, who had some terrific moments in the group stages of the Champions League last season, like the 2-2 draw against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu, will no doubt be delighted to be back in the competition, after they were crowned the winners of the Belgian Pro League last season.
FC Zenit and Club Brugge have never faced each other in a competitive game before, with their only meeting coming in a pre-season friendly in 2014.
Both these sides aren’t exactly fancied to make a knockouts, so an early impression that they are no pretenders is essential.
For FC Zenit, Malcom missed the game against PFC Sochi on Saturday with an injury, and is not yet clear to play this game. He is expected to miss out. FC Zenit don’t have other unavailabilities to contend with.
Brugge goalkeeper Simon Mignolet, on Sunday, confirmed that he tested positive for COVID-19 and begun his period of self-isolation. Odilon Kossounou and Michael Krmencik also tested positive for the virus. In addition, Matej Mitrovic is a long-term absentee for Club Brugge as well.
Dynamo Kiev vs Juventus
NSK Olimpijs’kyj, Kiev
Tuesday, 20-10-2020 @7:55pm
Ref: Ovidiu Hategan (ROM)
Dynamo Kyiv return to Champions League for the first time since 2016/17 and they kick-off with a tough match against reining Italian champions Juventus.
This is Kiev’s 14th appearance at group stage since they reached the semifinals in 1997/98 season, but the previous 13 saw them failing to reach the knockout stage.
Juventus were eliminated by Lyon on goal-aggregate last season will be aiming for a positive start this term. With FC Barcelona the main rival for top spot in the group, these are the kind of matches to win to stay in the race.
With Cristiano Ronaldo in quarantine, this will be a tough match for the Italians, yet we believe they have got what it takes to do a professional job.
There has been four h2h meetings between Dynamo Kyiv and Juventus and the Bianconeri are unbeaten with 3 wins and 1 draws.
The first of this came back in the 1997/98 Champions League quarter final, they drew 1-1 in Turin before the Italians cruised to a 4-1 win in Kiev.
The most recent meeting date back to 2002/03 group stage, 5-0 win in Turin and 2-1 at Kiev.
Overall, Dynamo Kiev have a poor record against Italian clubs, having won just 2 of the 24 duels, drew 8 and lost 14. Even at home, the record read a poor 1 win, 3 draws and 8 losses from 12 games.
Meantime, Juventus with their rich history in Europe, came across Ukrainian clubs very rarely. There has been 8 overall meetings and they won 5, drew 2 and lost 1. The defeat happened in 1976, away at Shakhtar Donetsk, but won in subsequent 3 visits to the country.
Chelsea vs Sevilla
Stamford Birdge, London
Tuesday, 20-10-2020 @10pm
Ref: Daniele Massa (ITA)
Chelsea is seeking to progress from the group stage of a UEFA Champions campaign for a sixth consecutive time with this season.
They will host on the back of a 3-3 draw at home against Southampton in the previous Premier League. Most of their victories from their last UCL two group stages in the schedule came on the road.
Claiming four of the last seven UEFA Europa League titles, including the one last season, Sevilla has earned their fourth UCL group stage appearance within the last decade in their records.
They will visit on the back of a 1-0 loss on the road against the likes of Granada last time out in the La Liga. Los Palanganas have progressed to the CL knockouts in the 2016/17 and 2017/18 season.
The teams have not met each other in recent times. The Blues met Spanish clubs on 40 occasions in the history of UEFA competitions and hold a WDL record of 15-15-10. At Stamford Bridge, the record is 9 wins, 6 draws and 3 losses from 19.
Sevilla’s overall record against English Premier League clubs is 8 wins, 5 draws and 4 losses from 17 games. From 8 away trips to the country, they return with 2 wins, 3 draw and 3 losses.
Rennes vs Krasnodar
Roazhon Park, Rennes
Tuesday, 20-10-2020 @10pm
Ref: Anastasios Sidiropoulos (GRE)
Both Rennes and Krasnodar have little hope in moving to the knockout stages with Sevilla and Chelsea in their group this season of the Champions League.
However, the benefits of doubt shall point to the home team considering their ground advantage and league supremacy.
An unbeaten run in the French top tier puts them in front of the upcoming match. Their five-game unbeaten run includes two draws, following a 1-1 draw on the road with Dijon in the previous league clash this season.
Krasnodar visits from the Russian Premier League and finished as the second runners-up last season in their domestic campaign. They had five wins in the last ten clashes across all major competitions, including a 3-1 win at home against Kazan in the previous league clash in the schedule.
The teams have not met before in recent times.
Lazio vs AS Roma
Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Tuesday, 20-10-2020 @10pm
Ref: Clement Turpin (FRA)
Lazio is pitted together with Club Brugge and Zenit, but the real problems will be from the German giants Borussia Dortmund. And at home, they will start the CL group fixture facing the strongest squad in the mix this season in Group F.
The host is playing on the back of a three-game winless streak in the Italian league. They will host after a 3-0 loss on the road against Sampdoria last time out in the Serie A.
However, all three of those winless games have seen both teams score, which opens the door for some action in the game.
The teams have met twice in the 1995 Europa League season. Both teams have a win each, favoring the hosting side at each fixture.
Barcelona vs Ferencvaros
Estadio Camp Nou, Barcelona
Tuesday, 20-10-2020 @10pm
Ref: Sandro Scharer (SWI)
With Juventus in the group, the Catalonians will not take other clashes with ease.
The match with Ferencvaros will most likely be a training encounter for Barcelona prior to the much-anticipated clash between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi later in the Champions League schedule.
It was a tough week for Barcelona at La Liga with their last match on the road against Getafe resulting in a 1-0 loss in the league. It was their second consecutive winless game in La Liga, but Seiten will not be concerned as they are facing Ferencvaros from an inferior league, Hungary OTP.
The visitor is on the back of a 12-game unbeaten run across all major competitions in the league. However, their triumphs cannot be compared with the competitive nature of La Liga. They will visit on the back of a 0-2 win on the road against the likes of Kisvarda in the OTP Liga.
The teams have not met before in recent times. Barca’s only meeting with a Hungarian club happened in 1975/76 UEFA Cup, against Vasas FC. They tasted victory in both legs, 3-1 at Camp Nou and 1-0 in the away leg.
Meantime, Ferencvaros faced Spanish clubs on 3 times and most recently in last season’s Europa League group stage against Barcelona’s cross city rivals Espanyol. Both games were stalemates, 2-2 home and 1-1 away. They also met Real Madrid in the 95/96 Champions League group. They drew at home on that occasion after losing 6-1 at Madrid.
PSG vs Man United
Parc de Princes, Paris
Tuesday, 20-10-2020 @10pm
Ref: Antonio Mateu (SPA)
After a slow start to their league campaign, PSG are now back at their phenomenal best. They are determined to make amends for the near miss they had in the UCL, when they were downed by Bayern Munich in the final.
Moreover, they also have history with Manchester United. In the 2018-19 campaign, the Parisians had taken a 0-2 lead in the first leg at the Old Trafford – only for them to go on and lose at home in the reverse fixture, by a 1-3 scorecard.
That loss had given Thomas Tuchel’s men the tag of ‘chokers’, and the pain that followed was unimaginable for fans.
All that could be settled this Tuesday, as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men take a trip to the Parc des Princes.
Form-wise, the Ligue 1 team are far ahead than that of their counterparts, and so are they in case of talent. On top of that, Tuchel’s men are dead-set on proving themselves to doubters in the biggest of stages.
Manchester United, who have picked up a reputation for being inconsistent lately, are easily the underdogs here.
The last time these two met on the pitch, the Red Devils had won 1-3 at this same venue. The English contingent progressed to the quarters, the last time these two were pitted against each other in the UCL.
Not once have Solskjaer’s men kept a clean sheet against this rival. The hosts are searching for their first win at this venue.
RB Leipzig vs Istanbul BB
Red Bull Arena, Leipzig
Tuesday, 20-10-2020 @10pm
Ref: Jesus Gil (SPA)
The 2020-21 edition of the Champions League kicks off this week as RB Leipzig take on reigning Turkish champions Istanbul Basaksehir at the Red Bull Arena in Germany. RB Leipzig have made an excellent start to their season and hold the upper hand in this game.
Istanbul Basaksehir have struggled since their successful league campaign last season and currently find themselves languishing in a lowly 19th place in the Turkish Super Lig table.
The Turkish outfit has won only one match this season and will need a miracle to win its UEFA Champions League game this week.
RB Leipzig are on the other side of the spectrum and are currently unbeaten in the Bundesliga. The German side has scored 10 goals in their four league games so far and will want to start their European campaign on a positive note.
RB Leipzig have never played against Istanbul Basaksehir in an official fixture and will have to adapt to an unfamiliar set of players on Tuesday. The German outfit is more than capable of stepping up to the challenge and should be able to put in a convincing performance.
Istanbul Basaksehir have endured a dismal season so far and are in desperate need of a victory at the moment. The Turkish side will face a stern challenge against RB Leipzig and cannot afford to slip up in this game.
Wednesday’s fixtures
-RB Salzburg vs Lokomotiv Moscow @7:55pm
-Real Madrid vs Shakhtar Donestk @7:55pm
-Man City vs FC Porto @10pm
-Ajax Amsterdam vs Liverpool @10pm
-Bayern Munich vs Atletico Madrid @10pm
-Inter Milan vs Borussia Monchengladbach @10pm
-Midtjylland vs Atalanta @10pm
-Olympiakos vs Olympique Marseille @10pm
