Top 5 predictions for Matchday 2 of the UEFA Champions League
Matchday 1 of the UEFA Champions League group stage saw some shocking results. Perennial heavyweights Manchester United and Barcelona both suffered humiliating defeats at the hands of Young Boys and Bayern Munich respectively.
Elsewhere, French powerhouse PSG could only manage a 1-1 draw against Club Brugge, despite the huge difference in quality between the two teams. There were wins for the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City, Real Madrid and Juventus. All these teams will go into Matchday 2 looking to take a commanding lead in their respective groups.
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Matchday 2 of the UEFA Champions League will serve up some exciting matchups. PSG take on Manchester City in what is sure to be a great game for the neutral. Elsewhere, reigning champions Chelsea will travel to Turin to take on Juventus. Meanwhile, Manchester United will look to put their demons to rest as they take on Villarreal in a rematch of the 2020-21 Europa League final.
With all that in mind, let's take a look at the Top 5 predictions of Matchday 2 of the UEFA Champions League.
#5 Barcelona and Manchester United bounce back
Barcelona and Manchester United were embarrassed on Matchday 1 of the UEFA Champions League. The Catalan side were humbled in a 3-0 home defeat to Bayern Munich, while the Red Devils suffered a shock 2-1 loss at the hands of Swiss club Young Boys.
Both sides will want to come back strong and win their Matchday 2 fixtures. Barcelona will travel to Portugal to take on Benfica, while Manchester United host Villarreal at Old Trafford.
The Blaugrana are going into the game off the back of a 3-0 win against Levante in La Liga. The game also marked the return of Ansu Fati to the side, who ended up scoring as well. The young Spaniard is expected to be involved in some capacity against Benfica as Barcelona look to build some form of resurgence.
Manchester United, on the other hand, will head into the game following a 1-0 defeat against Aston Villa in the Premier League. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's have lost three of their last five games across all competitions and will need to put in a big performance in order to beat Villarreal.
Both Barcelona and Manchester United will be looking to kickstart their UEFA Champions League campaigns with a win. They should be able to do so on Matchday 2.
#4 Chelsea take control of Group H
Chelsea take on Italian giants Juventus on Matchday 2 of the UEFA Champions League. Thomas Tuchel's side will go into the game hoping to bounce back from their 1-0 loss against Manchester City at the weekend.
The Blues will know that if they manage to beat Juventus at the Allianz Stadium, they will take a commanding lead in Group H. Chelsea beat Zenit St. Petersburg 1-0 in their opening group stage game, courtesy of a goal from Romelu Lukaku. Thomas Tuchel will hope that the Belgian will deliver again and help them win the game against the Bianconeri.
Chelsea will take on a Juventus side who are unbeaten in their last four games across all competitions. However, Massimiliano Allegri will be without a few key players for the game. Both Paulo Dybala and Alvaro Morata were injured at the weekend and are unavailable for the game. Additionally, Brazilian midfielder Arthur is still not yet fit enough to play.
Chelsea are likely to take advantage of a weakened Juventus side and go clear at the top of Group H with a win.
Allegri confirms that Dybala and Morata will both miss Juventus’ Champions League match vs. Chelsea on Wednesday after picking up injuries today. https://t.co/7ZW5RIWSKX