Right now information
2025-01-22 19:11:00
Key occasions
Our clockwatch is dwell, overlaying the next matches that additionally kick-off at 8pm GMT:
Milan v Girona
Arsenal v Dinamo Zagreb
Celtic v Younger Boys
Feyenoord v Bayern
Actual Madrid v RB Salzburg
Sparta Prague v Internazionale
A lot of the Manchester Metropolis focus constructing as much as this match continued to fall on Erling Haaland after the information broke final week of his record-breaking nine-and-a-half-year contract.
Metropolis have additionally spent massive on two younger defenders this month. Neither Vitor Reis or Abdukodir Khusanov are in Guardiola’s squad tonight.
There’s anticipated to be an extra big-money arrival in Omar Marmoush from Eintracht Frankfurt.
Let’s unpack these groups a little bit.
PSG line up in a 4-3-3, a extra defensive formation to the one they fielded on the weekend towards Lens. Having began that sport, Warren Zaïre-Emery drops out of the XI. Having missed that squad fully, Ousmane Dembélé returns to the bench.
Manchester Metropolis line up of their customary 4-2-3-1 that can morph right into a 4-3-3 and again once more. Jérémy Doku has a knock so Savinho is available in. Gündogan drops out for Bernardo Silva. John Stones returned to the squad after a one‑month damage layoff, whereas Rodri has travelled to be part of issues as he recovers from his anterior cruciate ligament rupture. Kyle Walker isn’t within the squad as he seems to finish his transfer to Milan.
The groups!
PSG: Donnarumma, Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Nuno Mendes, Vitinha, Neves, Fabian, Lee, Doue, Barcola.
Subs: Safonov, Tenas, Kimpembe, Goncalo Ramos, Dembele, Asensio, Hernandez, Mayulu, Zaire Emery, Lucas Beraldo, Zague, Tape.
Manchester Metropolis: Ederson, Matheus Nunes, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol, Silva, Kovacic, Foden, De Bruyne, Savio, Haaland.
Subs: Ortega, Carson, Stones, Grealish, Gundogan, Wright, Alleyne, O’Reilly, Lewis, McAtee.
Referee: Szymon Marciniak (Poland)
Ought to point out that Brest, the shock crew of this league part, are at the moment 2-0 down away at Shakhtar in one of many early kick-offs. Half-time there. It could be that the French aspect should accept a play-off, fairly than the highest eight.
Elsewhere, RB Leipzig lead Sporting 1-0. The Portuguese aspect proceed to wrestle following the departure of Ruben Amorim to Manchester United, who proceed to wrestle following the departure of Erik ten Hag, who struggled at Outdated Traffor … you get the gist.
Fábian Ruiz, who scored the winner in PSG’s 2-1 comback win at Lens on the weekend, is considered one of two PSG gamers that can miss the following (and ultimate) league part match if he’s booked tonight, Nuno Mendes is the opposite. The Portuguese wing-back is so essential to Luis Enrique, the place it’s in a 4-3-3 or a 3-4-3 formation, so it’s essential that he stays out of the referee’s guide tonight, from a PSG perspective.
In case you haven’t been following, PSG are in fairly good type domestically, profitable six of the final seven in all competitions together with essential league wins over Lyon, Monaco and Lens. Which means the Parisians are 9 factors away from second-placed Marseille with simply over half the season executed.
The Champions League has been a unique story altogether, although. Wins over Girona and Salzburg have been overshadowed by defeats to Arsenal, Atlético, Bayern and a house draw to PSV. They’re the lowest-ranked French crew within the competitors by a distance, with Brest, Monaco and Lille sitting ninth, tenth and eleventh respectively. This was a pleasant preview piece by Raphaël Jucobin that outlines how nicely Ligue 1 groups have executed within the Champions League this season, PSG apart.
Preamble
What a sport that is. The brand new format was designed to make the primary stage of the Champions League extra thrilling, and whereas we will’t but decisively decide if this has been a greater concept than retaining the ol’ group levels till the league part reaches its conclusion, 2024-25 definitely has offered loads of shocks, and created extra jeopardy for the so-called greater groups, significantly as a result of mentioned groups are assembly earlier within the competitors.
With PSG in twenty sixth out of 36 groups and Manchester Metropolis twenty fourth with simply two video games left within the league part, each groups have already mentioned goodbye to their possibilities of computerized qualification (the highest eight) to the final 16. If one crew loses tonight, there’s additionally a risk that they won’t even make the play-off spherical (ending within the high 24 after eight video games). If PSG and Metropolis draw tonight and outcomes go towards them, we may find yourself within the state of affairs the place neither aspect make it to a play-off. However there’s loads of soccer but to be performed earlier than that.
Neither supervisor is below any illusions in regards to the precarity of the state of affairs. “I don’t know what number of factors we’ll want [from the final two games]”, mentioned Metropolis supervisor Pep Guardiola this week. “Six factors shall be mathematically [sure], however perhaps 4, perhaps three”.
After all, this is only one of 9 Champions League video games tonight. RB Leipzig v Sporting and Shakhtar v Brest are each nicely underway, whereas the opposite six video games (beneath) will kick off at 8pm GMT. You possibly can observe these half dozen in our clockwatch with Simon Burnton.
Milan v Girona
Arsenal v Dinamo Zagreb
Celtic v Younger Boys
Feyenoord v Bayern
Actual Madrid v RB Salzburg
Sparta Prague v Internazionale
This kick-off is at 8pm GMT, with groups due at 7pm.
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