After two rounds of the group stage, the start for the English teams was disappointing, with three of the four having already lost a game and far from certain of progressing to the knockout stages.
Chelsea are the most in trouble.
After a defeat at Dinamo Zagreb in Group E and only a draw at home to Salzburg, Chelsea – two-time champions in the past decade and the club that spent nearly $300m this summer – are heading to a difficult double. head against Italian champions AC Milan in a tricky place and with a new coach still trying to find his best line-up and formation.
Graham Potter only took charge last month after Thomas Tuchel was sacked, which is not an ideal situation for a side approaching halfway through a Champions League group stage. On the bright side for Chelsea ahead of Wednesday’s home game, they rallied to beat Crystal Palace 2-1 in the Premier League at the weekend.
Liverpool, meanwhile, started with a 4-1 defeat at Napoli in Group A and could have been in as tough a position as Chelsea had it not been for a last-minute goal from Joel Matip to beat Ajax 2-1.
Now there is a sense of optimism surrounding the Reds’ European hopes, particularly given two games in a row against last-placed Rangers, starting on Tuesday – after which Liverpool could still be in sight of qualification.
Then there’s Tottenham, who only beat Marseille 10 in Group D thanks to two late goals from Richarlison and were then well below par in a surprise loss to Portuguese side Sporting.
Spurs now have two games against Eintracht Frankfurt, starting with Germany on Tuesday. He comes on after a 3-1 defeat in the North London derby at Arsenal.
Manchester City, who beat rivals Manchester United 6-3 on Sunday, are the only English side in a strong position after wins over Sevilla and Borussia Dortmund already. Next comes back-to-back games against FC Copenhagen, with City having a good chance of progressing from Group G with two games to go. Their first match is Wednesday.
Here’s what else to look for in the third round of matches: DOMINANT MADRID
Defending champions Real Madrid can take full control of their squad with a home win against Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday. A win would give Madrid a five-point lead after just three games in Group F, considered one of the easiest. Madrid have enjoyed a perfect start to the season in all competitions but were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Osasuna in the Spanish Premier League on Sunday. Madrid have six points, two ahead of second-placed Shakhtar. Madrid’s arch-rivals Barcelona aren’t in such great shape after losing to Bayern Munich last time out. Barca visit Inter Milan on Tuesday in a game that could help decide runners-up Group C, with both teams three points behind Bayern.
THE (MANY) NAPOLI OPTIONS
With every game, it seems, Napoli discover a new weapon. It started with Georgian dribbler Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and South Korean centre-back Kim Min-jae. Then Polish midfielder Piotr Zieliński stood out in the 4-1 win over Liverpool last month, followed by Giovanni Simeone and Giacomo Raspadori who each assert themselves as centre-forwards in the absence of Victor Osimhen. Saturday, it was the turn of André-Frank Zambo Anguissa that the Cameroonian midfielder scored twice in the victory against Torino for his first goals in the Italian league. And now Osimhen could return from injury at Ajax on Tuesday in Group A as the Partenopei look to extend their perfect Champions League start and keep an unbeaten record intact in all competitions.
Worryingly for their visit to Plzeň on Tuesday, Bayern Munich ended crisis talk and regained their traditional dominance in the Bundesliga with a 4-0 rout of Bayer Leverkusen. The Bavarian powerhouse traditionally suffers a mini-crisis at the start of the season before returning to its old strength for the rest, and it seems to be the misfortune of Plzeň that Julian Nagelsmann’s side seem to have shaken off their insecurities for the return of Europe’s premier club competition. Bayern players are also improving their performance in the Champions League. The only concern for Nagelsmann will be the likely absence of influential players Thomas Müller and Joshua Kimmich. Both tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday.
Benfica and PSG will fight for the top of Group H on Wednesday as they both have six points while Juventus and Maccabi Haifa have none. PSG beat Nice 2-1 on Saturday with goals from Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe to maintain their two-point lead over Marseille in the French league. Centre-back Presnel Kimpembe and midfielder Marco Verratti were both suspended against Nice and were injured anyway. Messi was arguably the best player against Nice while Neymar’s form has plummeted recently. Nice prevented PSG from creating chances for most of the first half by pressing high up the pitch. Benfica will look to bully PSG down the middle as the two central midfielders can be isolated at times.
Marseille are desperate for a win against Sporting Lisbon after losing the first two games to Tottenham and Eintracht Frankfurt in Group D. The French club are hoping to avoid a repeat of the 2013-14 campaign when they finish the group stage with zero points. Marseille beat Angers 3-0 on Friday to stay second in the French league. Striker Alexis Sanchez was rested as he remained on the bench after playing two full matches for Chile during the international break. Defender Sead Kolasinac is doubtful for Tuesday’s game. Marseille are still unbeaten in the French league, but their defensive weaknesses have been exposed in the more competitive Champions League.
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
