Champions League preview: Porto vs Liverpool, Paris Saint-Germain vs Man City
Porto vs Liverpool
Unbeaten in all competitions and having held Atletico Madrid to a draw in their opening Champions League fixture, can Porto provide a challenge for a Liverpool side still smarting from the weekend?
Liverpool were held to a 3-3 draw by Brentford on Saturday, the Bees fighting gamely to earn a share of the points – and demonstrate to the Portuguese side how to frustrate Jurgen Klopp at the Estadio do Dragao, perhaps.
History is against Sergio Conceicao’s side; Liverpool are unbeaten in eight meetings with Porto across the last two decades, winning five of those matches – including a 4-1 win in 2019 and a 5-0 victory in 2018, each on Porto’s home turf.
Liverpool overcame a spirited Milan side in their first Champions League fixture, winning 3-2 against the Serie A side, and the Merseyside team are 8/11 to take victory on Tuesday night against a Porto team that has often struggled in Europe in recent years.
So will damage limitation be the order of the day again here? Perhaps, but in all likelihood Liverpool will be out to nip any doubts in the bud after the dropped points of the weekend. And that could mean another dispiriting evening for the hosts.
Liverpool have played eight games in all comps so far this season, and scored three goals in six of them. With the Merseyside team’s recent record against Porto, backing Liverpool to score over 2.5 goals in the Total Goals by Liverpool market is a 12/5 shot which looks tempting.
Paris Saint-Germain vs Man City
Life seems pretty good at Paris Saint-Germain. But despite the French side topping Ligue 1, possessing the incredible attacking trident of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi, and having won every league game this season, there are still a few niggling concerns for manager Mauricio Pochettino.
PSG were held to a draw by Club Brugge in their opening fixture in the Champions League, while Messi is yet to score for his new club. Each of those issues could be ameliorated on Tuesday night, with Messi possibly ready to return after missing his last two games through injury – and Paris looking to silence their critics.
It won’t be easy of course, with Manchester City overcoming an ultra-defensive Chelsea at the weekend. City have a fine record against the Parisian side too, beating them twice last season in the semi-finals; in five previous meetings with the side, City are unbeaten, too.
City’s biggest issue is a world class centre forward – something that generally isn’t an issue, since most of the time the entire team seem more than capable of finding the net. Of course, the nil-nil against Southampton earlier this month shows that Pep isn’t bullet-proof – but another goalless draw seems unlikely here.
PSG were beaten by Man Utd, RB Leipzig and Bayern Munich as well as City last season – and even Barcelona held them to a draw at the Parc des Princes. With the French side unable to beat Brugge last time out, it doesn’t feel like much of a reach to believe Guardiola’s esteemed side can do the business here.
Both teams to score and City to win is available at 29/10.
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