Following an eventful domestic weekend, players minds will now be back on the Champions League. Didier Drogba makes his return to the competition, two footballing giants meet in Group G and a friendly face return to the Emirates as Shakhtar Donetsk head for London to play Arsenal.
Group A – FC Twente; Inter Milan; Tottenham Hotspur; Werder Bremen
Tottenham face their first real test when they travel to San Siro to play the might of Inter Milan. Harry Redknapp is familiar with their boss, Rafa Benitez, and will enjoy pitting his wits against the former Liverpool man once again.
FC Twente will be looking for revenge against the side that knocked them out of last years competition. Like Werder Bremen they only have one point and will be aiming to secure the third spot and possible Europa League participation.
Group B – Benfica; Hapoel Tel-Aviv; Lyon; Schalke 04
If they can continue their good start in the CL, Benfica will cement their position at the top of the group, although they won’t expect an easy trip to Lyon.
Schalke have to go all out to beat Hapoel if they are to keep pace with the leaders. They will feel safer knowing the Israeli team have only scored one goal in two CL matches.
Group C – Bursapor; Manchester United; Rangers; Valencia
A lot of eyes will be on Old Trafford after Manchester United’s capitulation against West Bromwich Albion last Saturday in the Premier League. Their opponents, Bursapor, may feel they have an opportunity to grab a cheeky point.
Ibrox will be rocking as Scottish Champions, Rangers, hope to continue their promising start. Valencia will be under-strength in terms of attacking power with midfielder Joaquin spraining his left ankle and being out for two weeks.
Group D – Barcelona; Copenhagen; Panathinaikos; Rubin Kazan
No Danish team has ever beaten Barcelona and they will hope that record continues as they aim to overtake Copenhagen at the summit of Group D. If the group’s winner comes down to goal scored, Barcelona’s attacking ability will surely be the difference.
Rubin Kazan and Panathinaikos have only scored one goal each so this match screams bore draw unless home team-mates Djibril Cisse and Sidney Govou recover their form in Greece.
Group E – Basel; Bayern Munich; CFR Cluj; Roma
The Germans will be looking to gain their sixth straight CL home win, but they would do well not to take CFR Cluj lightly. The Romanians beat Basel at home, sit third in the table and Argentinian Juan Culio tops the goal assists chart with three.
With Basel struggling at the bottom of the group, Roma will be looking to increase their points to six. The Swiss visitors lost their previous two CL matches by a 2-1 deficit.
Group F – Chelsea; Marseille; MSK Milina; Spartak Moscow
Chelsea return to the stadium where they lost the CL final against Manchester United in 2008. Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou are expected to return in Moscow. The Premier League champions will still be without Frank Lampard.
Neither team has a point in this Group F clash as, Marseille entertain their first ever Slovakian opponents, MSK Milina. In four group campaigns, Marseille have lost half (six) of the CL games they have played at home.
Group G – AC Milan; Ajax, Auxerre; Real Madrid
Clarence Seedorf has won the CL with both Read Madrid (1998) and their visitors, AC Milan (2003, 2007). Jose Mourinho will hoping his team continue their 100% record in this year’s competition.
Ajax have to beat Auxerre and hope Milan slip up in Spain if they are to have any of chance of qualifying from this group. The Dutch team may be without Siem de Jong, after he was injured during international duty with the Dutch Under-21′s, but they will be hoping to build on the draw with Milan.
Group H – Arsenal; SC Braga; Partizan Belgrade; Shakhtar Donetsk
It is still not known if captain Cesc Fabragas will make his return after a hamstring injury. Former Arsenal forward Eduardo will be feature for Donetsk after his summer move to Ukraine. Shakhtar are level on points with the English side but may be without midfielder Douglas Costa as he recovers from a thigh strain.
After conceding nine goals in two matches, Domingos Paciencia’s Braga will be hoping to at least score in their home match against Partizan Belgrade. A stalemate would leave them both on zero points.
You have mastered an art form I have not: restraint. I can never boil a game down to 2-3 lines - but its so incredibly helpful (and so much less overwelming). Thanks!
It took me a while. Actually I can’t wait until the knock-out stages when I can go into more detail.
Thanks for the feedback.