As the revamped Champions League enters its fifth gameweek, the race for automatic entry into the round of 16 is heating up.
With just four matches remaining of the league phase, including this week’s fixtures, clubs are running out of time to seal a place in the all-important top eight, who will all secure a direct route into the knockout stages.
Gulf News dives into three key storylines to follow as Europe’s premier club competition returns on Tuesday evening.
Arsenal face a tricky test at Sporting
After securing their first win since October 30 with a comfortable victory over Nottingham Forest on Saturday, Arsenal now shifts focus to a challenging trip to Sporting CP.
The Portuguese champions are coming into their first Champions League match since losing manager Ruben Amorim to Manchester United. However, Sporting showed they can still succeed without him, thrashing Amarante 6-0 in the Taca de Portugal under new head coach Joao Pereira.
Promoted from reserve team manager following Amorim’s departure, Pereira adopted the same 3-4-3 formation that proved successful under his predecessor. Arsenal can expect a similar tactical setup when they face Sporting in Lisbon.
In the race for the knockout stages, Sporting are in a strong position, sitting second in their group with 10 points, having drawn once and won three times, including a stunning 4-1 victory over Manchester City. Arsenal, on the other hand, are in 12th place with seven points, having earned two wins, one draw and one loss - most recently to Inter Milan.
Only the top eight sides in the league will qualify automatically for the round of 16, while the teams finishing in 9th to 24th place will compete in a two-legged knock-out phase play-off to secure their path to the last 16 of the competition.
The two sides last met in last season's Europa League, when Arsenal were eliminated in the round of 16 by Sporting in a penalty shootout at the Emirates.
Manchester City to return to winning ways?
"I trust these players more than ever," Pep Guardiola told the media on Saturday evening after Manchester City suffered their fifth consecutive defeat in all competitions - a first in the Spaniard's managerial career.
That trust will face its toughest test yet when City take on Premier League leaders Liverpool on Sunday. Another loss would leave Guardiola’s side 11 points adrift of the Reds. Before that, however, the 53-year-old has the chance to halt City’s dismal run when they host Feyenoord in the Champions League.
City and Feyenoord have met twice before in the competition, with the English champions winning both encounters. Their last meeting at the Etihad Stadium in 2017 ended 1-0, courtesy of a late Raheem Sterling goal.
Both come into the match following defeats in the previous gameweek - City were thrashed 4-1 by Ruben Amorim’s Sporting CP, while ten-man Feyenoord fell 3-1 to Salzburg in Rotterdam.
Feyenoord’s Champions League form has been mixed. While they’ve lost their last two home games, they’ve excelled on the road, winning their most recent away matches against Girona and Benfica as part of an impressive 21-game unbeaten run away from home.
A win at the Etihad would not only deepen City’s woes but also mark a historic milestone for Feyenoord, as they would secure three consecutive away victories in Europe’s top-tier club competition for the first time.
Bayern and PSG go to battle
When UEFA revamped the Champions League this season, one of the main goals was to create more high-profile matchups earlier in the competition. That aim comes to life on Tuesday evening at the Allianz Arena, where Bayern Munich host PSG in a heavyweight clash between the giants of Germany and France.
Bayern enter the match as strong favourites, riding a six-game winning streak in all competitions and boasting victories in their last three meetings with PSG. This includes their two-legged triumph in the 2022/23 Champions League round of 16.
However, despite starting their campaign with a dominant 9-2 demolition of Dinamo Zagreb, Bayern have struggled for consistency in Europe. Losses to Aston Villa and Barcelona were followed by a bounce-back win against Benfica. Those results leave them 17th in the standings, three points shy of the top eight automatic knockout spots.
PSG are in even deeper trouble, sitting outside the top 24 and at real risk of missing out on European competition altogether, with just four matchdays remaining in the league phase. Luis Enrique, who will be overseeing his 50th game as PSG manager, has seen his team earn just four points from four matches, with their only win coming against Girona on the opening gameweek.
Desperate for at least a point in Munich, PSG face an uphill battle. They’ve failed to score in their last three games against Bayern and haven’t kept a clean sheet in their last 20 Champions League away matches. The odds, and recent history, are firmly against the Parisians.
