The new format added to the uncertainty coming into the campaign and some of the big guns have failed to perform so far.
Three of last season’s semi-finalists find themselves outside of the automatic qualification places heading into matchday five. Borussia Dortmund are the best-performing of the four and currently occupy 7th place. Bayern Munich are the next highest at 17th. They face a PSG side that are all the way down in 25th. Real Madrid, the reigning champions of Europe, are 18th.
Champions League Market
Odds
Bayern Munich vs PSG – Bayern Munich to Win
Liverpool vs Real Madrid – Liverpool to Win
Odds courtesy of Parimatch. Correct at time of publishing and subject to change.
Despite losing their last two Champions League games, Bayern are the third highest-scoring team in the competition, netting 11 goals in their four matches. This is due to their 9-2 demolition of Dinamo Zagreb in their opening game. Also, there have been plenty of promising signs across all competitions in the opening months of the season.
Bayern are top of the Bundesliga and are strong favourites to regain their crown from Bayer Leverkusen. Vincent Kompany has adopted an aggressive approach, requiring his players to relentlessly press from the front. They employ a very high defensive line to compress the pitch, which has proven to be highly effective.
The Bavarians are averaging over three goals per game across all competitions and have lost the xG battle on just one occasion. The underlying numbers suggest they were unfortunate to lose at Villa Park. Bayern had 1.15 more xG than their opponents in that one.
PSG kicked their Champions League campaign off with a win against Girona, however, they have picked up just one point since. They were beaten at home by Atletico Madrid in their last European game. Luis Enrique’s side will lose hope of making it to the top eight if they succumb to another defeat.
The head-to-head stats aren’t favourable for Les Parisiens. They have lost five of the last six competitive matches with Bayern, scoring in just two of those games.
Liverpool lead the way in the league phase and are the only team to boast a 100% record in the competition. They take on Real Madrid, the reigning champions who have struggled to get going this season.
Carlo Ancelotti became the first person to win the Champions League four times as a manager last season.
Kylian Mbappe’s addition was expected to elevate Real Madrid, but it hasn’t worked out yet. The Frenchman joined an attacking unit already brimming with talent, and maximising their potential has been challenging.
Los Blancos’ first loss in this year’s competition came at the hands of Lille. In their last Champions League outing, Real were beaten 3-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu by AC Milan. Carlo’s men are still awaiting their first clean sheet of the league phase, and have conceded an average of 1.75 goals per game.
Liverpool, on the other hand, beat the Rossoneri 3-1. The Reds have shown strong defensive form under Arne Slot. They boast the best defensive record in the Premier League and have conceded just one goal in the Champions League.