The return of the Champions League has a lot of people excited for sure. It’s going to be the first time this season that we get to see some of the top teams square off against one another. In some cases it means that certain teams will be asked to step up their level of competition from what they’re used to. Yes, we’re looking at you PSG. PSG gets to share a group in the Champions League with Juventus, and Benfica, as well as Israeli side Maccabi Haifa. With all due respect to Maccabi Haifa they are the weaker team of the bunch.
If PSG are able to surpass the group stage they may oddly be one of those teams that benefits from the rough competition that they have to face in the group stage. In most of their Ligue 1 games Messi, Mbappé, and Neymar can literally stay on the opponent’s half of the field the entire game, and not be worried about providing some offensive pressure to block the opposing team’s free release. If they try to do that against Juventus they could be looking at a long night for Gianluigi Donaruma. We’ve essentially given it away by this point the game that most people are going to be watching is Juventus vs PSG.
What To Expect From Juventus Against PSG
There’s not been as much turnaround at PSG for this season. The club has chosen to stick with their big 3, and we’ve already talked about the fact that the 3 of them need to be more active off the ball particularly when Juve has possession to even the game out a bit. If not they have to play 3 men down on defense, you can’t win a European Cup like that. No matter how talented the front 3 are. Now, Juventus is still a bit of an enigma this year.
The team allowed Alvaro Morata to return to Atlético de Madrid, and now rely heavily on Polish national Arkadiusz Milik for offensive firepower. Even the Juve defense got a makeover after being led by Giorgio Chiellini for what seemed to be everyone’s lifetime. The strongest part of the Juve team may very well be its midfield with Leandro Paredes, Weston McKennie, and Manuel Locatelli. They are going to be PSG a ton of fits, especially if as we mentioned the PSG attacking force does not apply itself when they don’t have the ball. Odds on a Juve win are currently at +750 that seems high for what wouldn’t necessarily be a major upset.
In The Mood For A Rout?
Many of Tuesday’s matchups seem a bit one-sided. Maccabi Haifa vs Benfica in the same group as Juve and PSG is one of them. The Real Madrid vs Celtic game also seems kind of lopsided. Chelsea vs Dinamo Zagreb is in the early slot so that could be a rout to watch before the midday games. If you wanted to bet which match will feature the largest score differential it may very well be the Manchester City vs Sevilla game.
Sevilla is one of those teams that tends to do very well in their European Cup campaigns. Of course, their successes usually come in the Europa League and not the Champions. Julen Lopetegi’s side was just beaten badly by Barcelona, and they can’t seem to find their footing in La Liga. They are up against a team that is red-hot, and are therefore likely going to have their hands full, with Eirling Haaland. Man City is heavily favored with their odds sitting at -300, but could be one of the safest bets of the day.
