PARIS - Lionel Messi's sensational transfer to Paris St Germain was a surprise for everyone, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said, adding that he hopes the Argentine plays in Tuesday's Champions League group game between the two sides.

Messi joined PSG in August when he left Barcelona after the Spanish club — where he had spent his entire career — were unable to finance a new deal for the forward.

The 34-year-old suffered a knock on his left knee last week and is a doubt for the clash against the team led by his former Barça coach Guardiola.

The UEFA Champions League has only played one group stage game thus far meaning it’s time to predict the semifinals. It’s almost like trying to guess the Final Four during March Madness, however this Champions League prediction will be a little different.

After the Round of 16 anything goes in terms of the Champions League draw. There runs the risk of two predicted teams meeting at some point before the semifinals. To solve this issue each of the four teams I predict to make it to the semifinals will have an alternate club to take its place.

A litany of players can make the claim that they have netted goals in the Champions League and Europa League. With the introduction of the Conference League the question must be asked, has a player scored in the Champions, Europa and Conference League? After the first ever match day in Conference League history, the answer is yes. His name is Lorenzo Pellegrini.

LISBON - It was only last month that Sébastien Haller was being jeered off the field but the towering Ajax forward proved his worth on Wednesday with four goals in their 5-1 Champions League win at Sporting Lisbon.

The gangly 27-year-old striker, who Ajax forgot to register for European competition last season, delivered a masterclass in finishing as the Dutch club got the perfect start to their Group C campaign.

FC Sheriff Tiraspol made headlines for being the first club from Moldova (Transnistria) to make the Champions League group stage. I don’t think anyone realized how much of a gold mine this team is until the club’s historic 2-0 home victory against Shakhtar Donetsk.

Chelsea defeated Zenit 1-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday, but one of the most exciting moments of the match came from center back Antonio Rudiger. With nothing working in the final third, Rudiger decided he’ll do what Kurt Zouma did against Ajax. Let’s compare the Rudiger and Zouma runs.

First, let’s start with the original Chelsea center back dash. During Chelsea’s Champions League clash against Ajax in 2019 Zouma dribbled through the entire team before launching his shot into orbit.