New Delhi: UEFA Champions League action returned last night and we were all treated to some exciting games and some mouth watering performances. Vinicius Jr helped Real Madrid destroy Borussia Dortmund at home while Unai Emery’s Aston Villa continued their perfect start to their first UEFA Champions League campaign since the tournament rebranded. Tonight’s fixtures will look to continue the entertainment from where it left off last night.
Wednesday’s fixture list, like any other Champions League matchdays, has a few marquee matches that fans can forward to as well. Certain key matches are sure to stand out above the rest given the quality of opposition from both sides. The main reasons give by UEFA for changing the format of the tournament was that it’ll increase marquee matches for fans and that has been the case till now. Dive in to find out which are the key matches taking place tonight and where to watch them.
RB Leipzig vs Liverpool (12:30 AM IST)
Bring it on 👊
🆚 @LFC
🕘 21:00 CEST
🏆 #UCL MD3#RBLLIV pic.twitter.com/U8jh5LfsfD— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) October 23, 2024
English side Liverpool’s tough run of fixtures began when they faced Chelsea in the league over the weekend and it continues for them with a tricky trip to Germany tonight. Arne Slot’s men will take on his predecessor’s new club later tonight as they take on RB Leipzig. It’s going to be a fun and exciting game for the fans given the talent amongst the ranks of these clubs and it’ll be difficult to predict a winner out of this one.
RB Leipzig are joint-top at the Bundesliga table with Marco Rose’s men just behind on goal difference while the Reds hold a slender one point lead at the top of the Premier League. Both teams are heading into the game on good domestic form but when it comes to the Champions League, the story differs a bit. Liverpool have started their UEFA Champions League campaign strongly with two wins out of two while Leipzig haven’t had a great start. The German side have lost both their opening games and will look to bounce back with a result against Liverpool tonight.
Prediction: RB Leipzig 2-2 Liverpool
FC Barcelona vs Bayern Munich (12:30 AM IST)
💫 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒎𝒑𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝑳𝒆𝒂𝒈𝒖𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉𝒅𝒂𝒚 💫
All set for a big night in the #UCL – Let’s go! 🙌
🆚 FC Barcelona
🏆 @ChampionsLeague
⌚️ 21:00 CEST
🏟️ Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys
#️⃣ #FCBFCB #FCBayern #MiaSanMia | #FCBFCB #UCL pic.twitter.com/bJoBHsAqEg— FC Bayern (@FCBayernEN) October 23, 2024
It’s a similar story to the previous game for this one as well as this is a clash between the La Liga leaders and the Bundesliga leaders. Barcelona look like a completely rejuvenated squad under Hansi Flick and the German manager would be looking for revenge against his former club, who sacked him unceremoniously. Bayern Munich also have a new manager of their own in Vincent Kompany and the Belgian has led the Bavarians to an extremely impressive start. Both managers are pretty young when it comes to managerial experience despite Flick being over 20 years senior to Kompany
The Barcelona job is only Flick’s third major role as a manager and the same can be said for Kompany but the pedigree of his clubs before Bayern wasn’t quite the same as Flick. Both Barca and Bayern have had a shocking defeat in their first two UEFA Champions League fixtures and currently sit outside the top eight of the table. However, both sides have scored for fun in their other Champions League game. Barcelona scored five against BSC Young Boys while Bayern hit nine past Dinamo Zagreb. One thing is for sure, the game will not disappoint fans and neutrals alike.
Prediction: FC Barcelona 3-2 Bayern Munich
Other fixtures taking place tonight
Atalanta vs Celtic (10:15 PM IST)
Stade Brestois vs Bayer Leverkusen (10:15 PM IST)
Manchester City vs Sparta Praha (12:30 AM IST)
Atletico Madrid vs LOSC Lille (12:30 AM IST)
RB Salzburg vs Dinamo Zagreb (12:30 AM IST)
Benfica vs Feyenoord (12:30 AM IST)
BSC Young Boys vs Inter Milan (12:30 AM IST)
Where to watch the UEFA Champions League?
Fans of the game in India can tune into the Sony Sports Network to catch up on all the action. The matches can be seen on Sony Sports Ten 1, Sony Sports Ten 1 HD, Sony Sports Ten 2, Sony Sports Ten 2 HD, Sony Sports Ten 3, Sony Sports Ten 3 HD, Sony Sports Ten 5 and Sony Sports Ten 5 HD. For fans that are interested in streaming the game online can tune into the Sony Liv app or website.
