Champions League Preview: Round 4
After a slight pause for the international break, the Champions League returns this week and the second half of the group stage will be played out on a weekly basis just like the first half was.
In Round 4, we have the reverse fixtures of the games we saw in Round 3 meaning we have a very recent meeting to work with when making predictions. Here are my thoughts on Round 4, feel free to let me know what you think before making your Predictor and Odds-based fantasy picks.
Rennes vs. Chelsea: The game between these two at Stamford Bridge was made fairly easy for Chelsea by a harsh red card and penalty decision. This will be more difficult for the Blues away from home and (probably) against 11 men for the duration but given the recent form of Frank Lampard's side, I think they'll be OK. Chelsea have a big game against Tottenham on Sunday so there might be a few players rotated but even if so, you'd still expect the likes of Giroud, Hudson-Odoi and Azpilicueta to perform strongly. Prediction: 0-2
Krasnodar vs. Sevilla: Krasnodar scored a couple away at Sevilla and were unlucky not to score at home against Chelsea so I think they might have some joy in attack again here. Sevilla are still favourites and they're putting some form together at the moment so I'm going to go for another narrow win for the Spanish side but was tempted by a 2-2 draw. Prediction: 1-2
Lazio vs. Zenit: Lazio beat Borussia Dortmund in their only home UCL match this season so far so there should be some confidence going into this one, especially after the 1-1 draw in Saint Petersburg. Strikers Ciro Immobile and Joaquin Correa both scored in a 0-2 win for Lazio over Crotone in Serie A at the weekend. Prediction: 3-1
Dortmund vs. Brugge: There's only one man being talked about ahead of this game and rightly so after the laughably good performance he put in against Hertha on Saturday. Brugge know all about Erling Haaland as the Norweigan also scored twice against them in the reverse of this fixture but his 4 goals in Berlin at the weekend really were impressive. It would be a big surprise to see Haaland and the numerous attacking talents he has alongside him at Dortmund fail to get the job done here. Prediction: 2-0
Dynamo vs. Barcelona: Barcelona are without a lot of first-team players for this match, including Lionel Messi who has been rested, but I'd still be surprised to see them drop points. Koeman will still be very confident in the players he has available and finding some tactical balance without the distraction of how happy Lionel Messi is looking might actually ease the pressure for Barca tonight who are set for some rare time out of the spotlight. Prediction: 1-3
Juventus vs. Ferencvaros: To the surprise of no one, Juventus are starting to look quite good now that Cristiano Ronaldo and Matthijs de Ligt are back available. If Pirlo goes with a first XI here we could see a real thrashing. Juve won comfortably in Hungary and this is just a question of margin. Prediction: 4-0
PSG vs. RB Leipzig: Now that PSG have those key players back, I'd be surprised to see them lose this. Leipzig's recent form has been patchy after a good start to the season and it's just so difficult to deal with the pace of Mbappe and trickery of Neymar. PSG might make a meal of it as they often do but they should come out on top. Prediction: 2-1
Manchester United vs. Istanbul Basaksehir: After being shown up in Turkey, United need to bounce back and win this game and I think they will because Solskjaer will surely rotate and give van de Beek and Cavani a chance to prove themselves in this team. United's win over West Brom was far from convincing and it seems like they're crying out for those new players to come in and provide something different from the start of a game. Prediction: 3-0
Bayern vs. Salzburg: We can obviously expect a lot of goals again between these two following Bayern's 2-6 win in Round 3. The German giants don't tend to rest up in the Champions League group stage even when qualification is certain so an upset is highly unlikely in this game. Bayern also have extra motivation to get back on track in this match after a surprising 1-1 draw with Werder Bremen at the weekend that ended their run of 10 straight wins in all comps. Prediction: 5-1
Atletico vs. Lokomotiv: The 1-1 in Moscow will have been frustrating for Atleti but this should be three points now that they're back at the Wanda Metropolitano. Suarez will likely still be missing but after finally beating Barcelona in LaLiga at the weekend, they should be able to cope without him here as well. Prediction: 2-0
Gladbach vs. Shakhtar: I definitely didn't see such a heavy Gladbach win coming in the reverse of this fixture but fair play to them and they're naturally strong favourites for this home meeting now. I think this will be a far more competitive match and Plea, who scored a hat-trick in the away game, has now tested positive for Covid but I think Gladbach will have enough regardless. Prediction: 2-1
Inter vs. Real Madrid: Despite the opponent being Real Madrid, this is a great chance for Inter to find their first win of the group stage and move above Zidane's side on the table. Madrid are without Valverde as well as Ramos and Benzema meaning Inter are strong favourites for me, especially with Lukaku back. Inter really troubled Real Madrid in the reverse game and would likely have won if Lukaku was fit in my opinion. Prediction: 2-1
Olympiacos vs. Man. City: City's struggle to score goals in the Premier League hasn't really been an issue in the Champions League and I think they'll confirm their progression to the knockouts with a win. The intensity we've been used to seeing from them in previous seasons maybe isn't quite there at the moment but they're still playing decent football, dominating games and should score goals against a team like Olympiacos. Prediction: 0-2
Marseille vs. Porto: I was excited to see what Marseille could do this season in their return to the Champions League but it just hasn't been working out and I think you have to back Porto here. A convincing 3-0 home win in the reverse suggests they can also win away and Marseille haven't played since November 6th due to their league game against Nice being postponed. Prediction: 0-1
Ajax vs. Midtjylland: The reverse of this match may have been closer than many expected but this should be more one-sided now that Ajax are back in Amsterdam. The hosts have scored 8 goals in 2 games since their win in Denmark. Prediction: 3-0
Liverpool vs. Atalanta: There's perhaps still a realistic chance that Liverpool run out of steam soon with so many players unavailable but there's no sign of that at the moment! The Reds beat Leicester convincingly with a 'B-team' at the weekend and Mo Salah should be ready to return for this one. Atalanta could do with a result not only for the points but to ensure Liverpool still need points when they play Ajax next week but I can't see it after such a poor display at home. Prediction: 3-1
Best of luck to you all in Round 4!
In Round 4, we have the reverse fixtures of the games we saw in Round 3 meaning we have a very recent meeting to work with when making predictions. Here are my thoughts on Round 4, feel free to let me know what you think before making your Predictor and Odds-based fantasy picks.
Tuesday
Group E
This group has played out almost exactly as expected so far and though Chelsea and Sevilla each face a slightly tougher test this week away from home, if they pick up the wins most will be predicting them to get then they'll have each secured qualification to the knockouts.Rennes vs. Chelsea: The game between these two at Stamford Bridge was made fairly easy for Chelsea by a harsh red card and penalty decision. This will be more difficult for the Blues away from home and (probably) against 11 men for the duration but given the recent form of Frank Lampard's side, I think they'll be OK. Chelsea have a big game against Tottenham on Sunday so there might be a few players rotated but even if so, you'd still expect the likes of Giroud, Hudson-Odoi and Azpilicueta to perform strongly. Prediction: 0-2
Krasnodar vs. Sevilla: Krasnodar scored a couple away at Sevilla and were unlucky not to score at home against Chelsea so I think they might have some joy in attack again here. Sevilla are still favourites and they're putting some form together at the moment so I'm going to go for another narrow win for the Spanish side but was tempted by a 2-2 draw. Prediction: 1-2
Group F
Things remain far more in the balance in this group meaning we have a pivotal evening coming up tonight. Brugge failed to get anything against Dortmund at home meaning they now face the difficult task of trying to make up for it at Signal Iduna Park while Lazio will be hopeful of a home win against Zenit having managed a point in Russia.Lazio vs. Zenit: Lazio beat Borussia Dortmund in their only home UCL match this season so far so there should be some confidence going into this one, especially after the 1-1 draw in Saint Petersburg. Strikers Ciro Immobile and Joaquin Correa both scored in a 0-2 win for Lazio over Crotone in Serie A at the weekend. Prediction: 3-1
Dortmund vs. Brugge: There's only one man being talked about ahead of this game and rightly so after the laughably good performance he put in against Hertha on Saturday. Brugge know all about Erling Haaland as the Norweigan also scored twice against them in the reverse of this fixture but his 4 goals in Berlin at the weekend really were impressive. It would be a big surprise to see Haaland and the numerous attacking talents he has alongside him at Dortmund fail to get the job done here. Prediction: 2-0
Group G
Predictably, we've seen a similar situation to Group E here as Juve and Barcelona battle it out to see who progresses as group winners rather than runners-up. There's lots of noise about Barcelona's domestic form but they've been going well in Europe so far.Dynamo vs. Barcelona: Barcelona are without a lot of first-team players for this match, including Lionel Messi who has been rested, but I'd still be surprised to see them drop points. Koeman will still be very confident in the players he has available and finding some tactical balance without the distraction of how happy Lionel Messi is looking might actually ease the pressure for Barca tonight who are set for some rare time out of the spotlight. Prediction: 1-3
Juventus vs. Ferencvaros: To the surprise of no one, Juventus are starting to look quite good now that Cristiano Ronaldo and Matthijs de Ligt are back available. If Pirlo goes with a first XI here we could see a real thrashing. Juve won comfortably in Hungary and this is just a question of margin. Prediction: 4-0
Group H
There's still all to play for in this group and we have a huge match coming up tonight between Paris and Leipzig. With Neymar and Mbappe back, PSG are favourites to get revenge and beat RB Leipzig but if they don't, they'll be in real trouble in Group H.PSG vs. RB Leipzig: Now that PSG have those key players back, I'd be surprised to see them lose this. Leipzig's recent form has been patchy after a good start to the season and it's just so difficult to deal with the pace of Mbappe and trickery of Neymar. PSG might make a meal of it as they often do but they should come out on top. Prediction: 2-1
Manchester United vs. Istanbul Basaksehir: After being shown up in Turkey, United need to bounce back and win this game and I think they will because Solskjaer will surely rotate and give van de Beek and Cavani a chance to prove themselves in this team. United's win over West Brom was far from convincing and it seems like they're crying out for those new players to come in and provide something different from the start of a game. Prediction: 3-0
Wednesday
Group A
Atletico's draw at Lokomotiv in Round 3 means there's a slight opportunity for an upset in this group but if Atletico pick up the win they'll expect to in the reverse of that fixture, the group will almost certainly end up as most will have predicted with them progressing behind holders Bayern.Bayern vs. Salzburg: We can obviously expect a lot of goals again between these two following Bayern's 2-6 win in Round 3. The German giants don't tend to rest up in the Champions League group stage even when qualification is certain so an upset is highly unlikely in this game. Bayern also have extra motivation to get back on track in this match after a surprising 1-1 draw with Werder Bremen at the weekend that ended their run of 10 straight wins in all comps. Prediction: 5-1
Atletico vs. Lokomotiv: The 1-1 in Moscow will have been frustrating for Atleti but this should be three points now that they're back at the Wanda Metropolitano. Suarez will likely still be missing but after finally beating Barcelona in LaLiga at the weekend, they should be able to cope without him here as well. Prediction: 2-0
Group B
You might not have thought it possible, but Group B is about to get even more interesting folks! All 4 teams still have a great chance of qualifying and on Wednesday Real Madrid will travel to Inter without Karim Benzema and Sergio Ramos...Gladbach vs. Shakhtar: I definitely didn't see such a heavy Gladbach win coming in the reverse of this fixture but fair play to them and they're naturally strong favourites for this home meeting now. I think this will be a far more competitive match and Plea, who scored a hat-trick in the away game, has now tested positive for Covid but I think Gladbach will have enough regardless. Prediction: 2-1
Inter vs. Real Madrid: Despite the opponent being Real Madrid, this is a great chance for Inter to find their first win of the group stage and move above Zidane's side on the table. Madrid are without Valverde as well as Ramos and Benzema meaning Inter are strong favourites for me, especially with Lukaku back. Inter really troubled Real Madrid in the reverse game and would likely have won if Lukaku was fit in my opinion. Prediction: 2-1
Group C
Unless Marseille can fix their terrible UCL form on Wednesday, this group could be all but sealed with wins for Manchester City and Porto.Olympiacos vs. Man. City: City's struggle to score goals in the Premier League hasn't really been an issue in the Champions League and I think they'll confirm their progression to the knockouts with a win. The intensity we've been used to seeing from them in previous seasons maybe isn't quite there at the moment but they're still playing decent football, dominating games and should score goals against a team like Olympiacos. Prediction: 0-2
Marseille vs. Porto: I was excited to see what Marseille could do this season in their return to the Champions League but it just hasn't been working out and I think you have to back Porto here. A convincing 3-0 home win in the reverse suggests they can also win away and Marseille haven't played since November 6th due to their league game against Nice being postponed. Prediction: 0-1
Group D
Liverpool's win in Bergamo means they have taken control of this group and another win over Atalanta would seal their progression to the Last 16. Ajax will also be confident of a win on Wednesday that would put them in the driving seat to progress ahead of Atalanta, at least for the time being.Ajax vs. Midtjylland: The reverse of this match may have been closer than many expected but this should be more one-sided now that Ajax are back in Amsterdam. The hosts have scored 8 goals in 2 games since their win in Denmark. Prediction: 3-0
Liverpool vs. Atalanta: There's perhaps still a realistic chance that Liverpool run out of steam soon with so many players unavailable but there's no sign of that at the moment! The Reds beat Leicester convincingly with a 'B-team' at the weekend and Mo Salah should be ready to return for this one. Atalanta could do with a result not only for the points but to ensure Liverpool still need points when they play Ajax next week but I can't see it after such a poor display at home. Prediction: 3-1
Best of luck to you all in Round 4!
I read that Kiev had 6 players with Covid & 3 more in isolation! So 1-3 Barca seems Ok but I went 1-2 as its away in freezing cold Kiev.
If you get paid by the letter I'd be giving Gladbach their full name! (Joke : Question? Who is the most unpopular man in German football? Answer: The guy who starts the chant at a Borrusia Munchen Gladbach game with "GIVE US A B....GIVE US AN O.....")