Barcelona take on Portuguese giants Benfica
Barcelona will aim to post their sixth Champions League victory in seven matches this season when they take on Portuguese giants Benfica in Lisbon.
Hansi Flick‘s side are currently second in the Champions League table, boasting 15 points from their opening six matches, while Benfica are 15th, having picked up 10 points from their six matches in this season’s league phase.
Benfica have won three, drawn one and lost two of their six matches in this season’s Champions League, with 10 points leaving them in 15th spot, which is enough, at this moment, to make the playoff round.
The Lisbon giants are only three points behind eighth-placed Lille, though, in the race to secure automatic qualification for the next round, so a victory in this contest would do an awful lot for their chances of making the top eight.
Barcelona have just won the Spanish Super Cup and are through to the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey, but they are on their worst run of form in La Liga for 17 years, having triumphed in just one of their last eight matches in the competition.
This is such a tough game to call, as Barcelona have been impressive in Europe this season, but Benfica are a classy outfit and certainly have the players to harm the Catalan giants; it would not be a shock to see a home or an away win on Tuesday, but we just have a feeling that a tight match will end with the points being shared.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Atlético Madrid to bounce back against Bayer Leverkusen
Atletico Madrid will be bidding to bounce back from their shock La Liga defeat to Leganes when they resume their Champions League campaign with a contest against Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday night.
Diego Simeone‘s side are 11th in the Champions League table, one point behind eighth-placed Lille, while Leverkusen are fourth, with the German outfit picking up 13 points from their six matches in this season’s competition.
Simeone’s team remain top of the La Liga table and are very much in a title race this term, but the Red and Whites have work to do in the Champions League.
Atletico have won four times and lost twice in the league phase of the Champions League, which has left them one point off eighth-placed Lille, who occupy the final automatic qualification position at this moment in time.
Atletico have an excellent home record against German opposition in Europe, winning 17 and losing just three of 25 such fixtures, while they have been victorious in seven of their last eight home Champions League games.
This is such a tricky match to call considering Atletico’s strength on home soil; Leverkusen will bring a seriously good winning run into this match, but Atletico’s recent form has also been brilliant, and we are finding it incredibly difficult to separate the two teams.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Liverpool welcome Lille to Anfield
Liverpool can confirm their place in the Champions League round of 16 on Tuesday when they host French side Lille at Anfield.
The Merseysiders are first in the league phase and their 1-0 win against Girona on December 10 ensured that they maintained their perfect record of six victories from six, while Lille are eighth with 13 points and currently occupy the final automatic qualification spot for the round of 16.
Liverpool is the only team in the Champions League to have triumphed in all six of their matches in the league phase, and they also boast the competition’s joint best defence having conceded just once.
Arne Slot‘s team are already guaranteed a round of 16 playoff spot but need just one point more to secure one of eight automatic qualification spots, though they could lose their two remaining games and still advance.
Lille have won two and drawn one of their three most recent games away from home and have not lost on the road since September 2024, a stretch of 11 matches.
Liverpool’s only confirmed absentee for Tuesday’s clash is Joe Gomez, who will not return until early February.
Lille will pose significant challenges on Tuesday considering their strong form of late, and they may frustrate the Anfield crowd at times, even if the French side eventually succumbs to defeat.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Bologna seek their first win against Dortmund
Bologna host Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Tuesday, with the home team still seeking their first win in the competition this season.
The visitors come into this fixture just outside the automatic qualification spots for the knockout stages, so they will have plenty of incentive to win in Italy.
Bologna have had a troubled season in Europe, and having suffered four defeats from their first six games, they only have two points on the board so far in the standings.
Bologna have scored just once in the Champions League this season, while conceding seven times, making them the competition’s lowest-scoring side.
Dortmund’s good form in Europe has yet to be replicated in the league, as they disappointingly find themselves in 10th place in the Bundesliga.
Up against a goal-shy Bologna team, they will fancy their chances of keeping a clean sheet in Italy, but the Serie A side have managed two clean sheets themselves in the tournament, meaning that goals at the other end are far from guaranteed.
Dortmund will look to improve on their miserable away record this season.
It has been a tough start for the year for Dortmund and with the pressure on their boss, we think they will grab a win that will keep Sahin in his job at least a little longer.
We think that the visitors will edge a close encounter against a Bologna side that have found it difficult to score goals in the Champions League this season.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
FIXTURES
Atlético Madrid 20:00 Bayer Leverkusen
Bologna 20:00 Borussia Dortmund
