The Champions League returns tomorrow as the group stage kicks off with two marquee games that’ll garner attention across the globe: at 12:55 p.m. ET, Inter Milan and Tottenham do battle at the San Siro, and that’s followed by a 3:00 p.m. ET classic between Liverpool and PSG at Anfield. That’s one helluva first day.
However, we’ve also got a desperate-for-European-success Barcelona side kicking off at home against reigning Dutch champions PSV (and one Chucky Lozano), an insanely lit meeting of Turkish and Russian champions in Istanbul, and another that’ll probably match that game in terms of crowd noise/flairs/absolute bedlam: Red Star Belgrade vs. Napoli at Red Star Stadium.
And, if your tastes are a little more sophisticated, we’ve got Monaco vs. Atletico at the Stade Louis. Goodness gracious.
Champions League Schedule 2018 Group Stage: Dates, Times, Predictions And What To Watch
All the percentages for the predicted outcomes are taken from FiveThirtyEight
Tuesday, Sept. 19 (9/18/18)
Barcelona vs. PSV Eindhoven | Camp Nou
12:55 p.m. ET
Barcelona win = 72%
PSV win = 13%
Draw = 15%
A meeting between the champions of Spain and the Netherlands should set the pulse racing — especially with both clubs returning to the summits of their respective leagues already this season — but we’re all well-aware of the increasing divide between LaLiga and the Eredivisie (and the fact that Barcelona has this guy Messi).
Barcelona’s the overwhelming favorite to win here, but an interesting side story will be the young guns of PSV — Hirving “Chucky” Lozano (23), Steven Bergwijn (20), Angelino (21) and Gaston Pereiro (23) — all trying to showcase their abilities with the world watching.
Inter Milan vs. Tottenham | San Siro
12:55 p.m. ET
Inter win = 40%
Spurs win = 34%
Draw = 26%
Who can forget the last time these two sides met in the Champions League back in 2010? In the first meeting in Milan, Gareth Bale scored a hat-trick. Back in London, Bale provided two assists and cemented his standing as the world’s most exciting young player.
Much has changed since then — Bale is in his sixth season with Real Madrid and Inter’s just returning to the Champions League after a six-year hiatus. With good reason, this’ll be billed as a clash between two of the most talismanic strikers in club football: Tottenham’s Harry Kane and Inter’s Mauro Icardi.
Neither side has experienced a dream start domestically. Tottenham has nine points from five matches, Inter has only four from four.
Monaco vs. Atletico Madrid | Stade Louis II
3:00 p.m. ET
Monaco win = 26%
Atletico win = 47%
Draw = 24%
Atletico will be desperate for some UCL respite after recording only one win from its first four LaLiga matches. However, the same could be said for Monaco in Ligue 1, where the club is marooned in 15th place after recording only one win in five games.
The match will also see Thomas Lemar return to Monaco following his $70 million summer move to the Spanish capital.
Club Brugge vs. Borussia Dortmund | Jan Breydel Stadium
3:00 p.m. ET
Brugge win = 39%
Dortmund win = 38%
Draw = 24%
After failing to advance from the group stage last season, Dortmund will travel to Bruges desperate for three points with Atletico and Monaco lying in wait. However, Club Brugge is in good form, sitting atop the Belgian First Division table after seven matches. After missing time with a muscular injury, Christian Pulisic is expected to play tomorrow.
Galatasaray vs. Lokomotiv Moscow | Turk Telekom Arena
3:00 p.m. ET
Galatasaray win = 60%
Lokomotiv win = 15%
Draw = 25%
It’s a less-heralded matchup on Tuesday, but a meeting between Turkish and Russian champions in front of over 52,000 supporters in Istanbul is exactly what this competition’s all about — it should be spectacular. In terms of the match, Turkish sides rarely drop points at home and Russian sides rarely win away, so Galatasaray’s the heavy favorite here.
Liverpool vs. PSG | Anfield
3:00 p.m. ET
Liverpool win = 52%
PSG win = 24%
Draw = 23%
Tuesday’s glamor tie features last season’s defeated finalists, Liverpool, and the club whose season was something of a failure despite winning a domestic quadruple, PSG.
The two sides probably have distinctly different agendas this season — for Thomas Tuchel, it’s reach the semifinals of the UCL or face the axe. For Liverpool, there’s an increasing sense that this could be its moment in the Premier League.
Regardless, you don’t miss a matchup featuring Neymar, Mohamed Salah, Edinson Cavani, Roberto Firmino, Kylian Mbappe and Sadio Mane.
Red Star Belgrade vs. Napoli | Red Star Stadium
3:00 p.m. ET
Red Star win = 26%
Napoli win = 49%
Draw = 26%
Despite winning the European Cup in 1991, this is Red Star’s first appearance in the competition since its reformatting as the Champions League. The club’s victory over Red Bull Salzburg in the playoff round triggered scenes of euphoria throughout Belgrade, and the three group stage matches at Red Star Stadium sold out instantly.
Despite finishing runners-up to Juventus in Serie A last season, Napoli’s facing an extremely difficult road trip here.
Schalke 04 vs. Porto | Veltins-Arena
3:00 p.m. ET
Schalke win = 42%
Porto win = 32%
Draw = 26%
The 2017-18 Portuguese champions travel to Gelsenkirchen to take on last year’s Bundesliga runners-up, Schalke. Schalke lost defender Thilo Kehrer to PSG over the summer, but reinvested the $43 million in players like Sebastian Rudy, Suat Serdar and Omar Mascarell.
Porto also made vast sums from the sales of Ricardo Pereira, Willy Boly and Diogo Dalot, but they’ve reinvested in a slew of young Brazilians, so it goes.
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