The 2018-19 UEFA Champions League resumes this week with Matchday 4 of the group stage.
Sportsnet’s soccer panel of broadcasters, writers and pundits offer their picks and predictions below.
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JUVENTUS vs. MANCHESTER UNITED
James Sharman: On Sportsnet’s Premier League broadcast on Saturday, Craig Forrest, Danny Dichio and I discussed whether Juventus would have any concern having seen Manchester United’s performance in its last-gasp win against Bournemouth. The consensus was a resounding no. United have improved of late, and they have in-form players such as Anthony Martial and Paul Pogba. However, Juventus is a different beast all together, and is in many ways reminiscent of some of those legendary United teams of the past.
On Matchday 3, Juventus triumphed 1-0 at Old Trafford, but that score line masked the reality of the contest. Juve were superb, playing a near perfect road game, where at times it resembled a cat toying with a ball of wool. Cristiano Ronaldo marked his return to Old Trafford with a subdued performance, albeit with one excellent assist on the goal, as it was his teammates who came through big. I cannot imagine anything else than a convincing Juve win at home on Wednesday, as United look ahead to the Manchester derby this weekend.
Prediction: Juventus wins 2-0.
MANCHESTER CITY vs. SHAKHTAR DONETSK
John Molinaro: Save for a home loss to Lyon on Matchday 1, the Blues have been purring along this campaign, as they sit atop Group F and lead the way in the Premier League with an unbeaten record of nine wins and two draws.
Pep Guardiola’s men are coming off a 6-1 demolition of Southampton (hardly stiff competition, but still), and blanked Donetsk 3-0 in Ukraine on Matchday 3. A victory by City on Wednesday could see them clinch a spot in the knockout round with two games to spare.
Considering they’re playing at home, and their general form, and that David Silva has been brilliant this season, and the general gap in quality between the two sides, I envision a straight-forward victory for the Manchester City.
Prediction: Manchester City wins 3-0.
BAYERN MUNICH vs. AEK ATHENS
Peter Galindo: There is still a small crisis at Bayern Munich because, yet again, the Bavarians struggled to both create and convert quality chances in a 1-1 draw with Freiburg over the weekend. This might benefit AEK in Germany on Wednesday, as the Greeks will try to prevent Bayern from advancing into the box, thus reducing the hosts to shots from distance.
With that said, Bayern does have far superior individuals to AEK, and that usually shows in the final result. Therefore, the German champions should pick up the three points and move one step closer to the last 16.
Prediction: Bayern Munich wins 3-0.
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NAPOLI vs. PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN
Dan Riccio: PSG is hanging on by a thread in this group, as the injury-time equalizer from Angel Di Maria in this fixture two weeks ago kept them alive. The French champions are loaded with talent, but Carlo Ancelotti set up Napoli to bravely attack in Paris, and the home side struggled to deal with it. PSG is 12-0-0 in Ligue 1 so far this year, but have looked average in this Champions League group of death. A loss here for PSG could spell the end of their tournament – it’s a must win as they sit third in the group with three to play.
PSG could struggle to keep Napoli off the scoresheet as the Partenopei have 24 goals in 11 Serie A games so far this year, but the reason they are so good at the Stadio San Paolo is because their defensive record matches their offensive output. Napoli have conceded just two home goals since the start of September. PSG have the star power, but Napoli is no push over. We could be talking about PSG in crisis after Tuesday’s match in Italy.
Prediction: Napoli wins 2-1.
INTER MILAN vs. FC BARCELONA
Geoff Lowe: Barcelona have been without their best player since Oct. 20, but haven’t let Lionel Messi’s arm injury cramp their style. The Catalan club have won every game since the loss of Messi, including an emphatic 5-1 victory in El Clasico against Real Madrid and a 2-0 win over Inter in the Champions League. And now it sounds like there’s a chance Messi could return for Tuesday’s match.
Meanwhile, Luciano Spalletti’s Inter are in spectacular form – they’ve won seven straight in Serie A and have lost just one game in their last 10 in all competitions. That loss, of course, came to Messi-less Barca. In the two Serie A games since that defeat, the Nerazzurri have scored eight and haven’t conceded. This match has the makings of an epic clash at San Siro.
Prediction: A 3-3 draw.
ATLETICO MADRID vs. BORUSSIA DORTMUND
Donnovan Bennett: Borussia Dortmund have a chance to make it three straight wins in this group when they visit Atletico on Tuesday. Dortmund have been one of the strongest teams in Europe, going undefeated in all competitions and have won their last five games by scoring 22 goals. Dortmund has secured 20 points from a possible 24 points in the Bundesliga, and are in first place in Group A of the Champions League. Atletico are in fifth in the La Liga table with just 16 points. In the Champions League, Atletico have fared much better, winning a pair of games.
Borussia Dortmund striker Paco Alcacer has scored eight goals in just five appearances this campaign, but he is questionable for this game due to injury. The Germanys are already without a trio of key players in Manuel Akanji, Marcel Schmelzer and Marius Wolf. This contest will most likely decided who finishes on top of Group A, so both teams will be aggressive and try to secure the full three points at the Westfalenstadion.
Prediction: A 1-1 draw.
OTHER GAMES
Wednesday
Valencia 1, Young Boys 0 (James Sharman)
Benfica 1, Ajax 1 (James Sharman)
CSKA Moscow 1, AS Roma 2 (Geoff Lowe)
Viktoria Plzen 0, Real Madrid 3 (Donnovan Bennett)
Olympique Lyon 1, Hoffenheim 0 (Donnovan Bennett)
Tuesday
Tottenham 3, PSV Eindhoven 1 (Peter Galindo)
AS Monaco 2, Club Brugge 1 (Peter Galindo)
Red Star Belgrade 0, Liverpool 3 (Dan Riccio)
FC Porto 2, Lokomotiv Moscow 0 (John Molinaro)
Schalke 1, Galatasaray 0 (Geoff Lowe)
