UEFA Champions League fixtures
Tuesday 27 October
8:55: Lokomotiv Moscow v Bayern Munich
8:55: Shakhtar Donetsk v Internazionale
11pm: Atletico Madrid v RB Salzburg
11pm: Borussia Monchengladbach v Real Madrid
11pm: Porto v Olympiakos
11pm:Olympique Marseille v Manchester City
11pm:Liverpool v Midtjylland
11pm: Atalanta v Ajax
Wednesday 28 October
8:55: Krasnodar v Chelsea
8:55: Istanbul Basaksehir v Paris Saint-Germain
11pm:Sevilla v Rennes
11pm: Borussia Dortmund v Zenit St Petersburg
11pm: Club Brugge v Lazio
11pm: Juventus v Barcelona
11pm: Ferencvaros v Dynamo Kyiv
11pm: Manchester United v RB Leipzig
London, UK | THE INDEPENDENT | Champions Bayern Munich will feature in early kick off action in Russia, where they face Lokomotiv Moscow, while English heavyweights Manchester City and Liverpool will back themselves to claim wins over Olympique Marseille and Midtjylland respectively.
Reds manager Jurgen Klopp has warned his side against underestimating their Danish opponents: “Midtjylland is for different reasons…one of the most interesting teams because they have quite a specific way [of playing]. They try to play real football, all the teams run a lot, so the games will be intense.”
Yet the pick of matches on Tuesday evening will come from Bergamo in Italy, where Atalanta and Ajax – two teams renowned for their stylish, attacking play – will meet at the Gewiss Stadium.
“Atalanta were the revelation of the Champions League of last season,” said Ajax boss Erik ten Hag of La Dea. “They are a pressing machine. We have gained experience against these kinds of opponents but they are one of the very best.”
Wednesday 28 October is headlined by the meeting of Juventus and Barcelona (in a repeat of the Champions League final from 2015) at the Allianz Stadium in Turin – and a revival of the Cristiano Ronaldo vs. Lionel Messi rivalry not seen since the former left Real Madrid just over two years ago.
This will be their first meeting in the group stage of the competition and Messi has generally ended on the winning side against his fellow all-time great: the Argentine’s teams have had the better of their European games against Ronaldo’s teams: W2 D2 L1.
Ronaldo is yet to score in five European games against teams featuring Messi, while the Barca player has scored three Champions League goals against Ronaldo’s teams.
Wednesday also features Manchester United at home to RB Leipzig, Paris Saint-Germain away to Turkish champions Istanbul Basaksehir, and Chelsea travelling to the south of Russia for a clash with Krasnodar.
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