Juventus’ Paul Pogba (left) and Stephan Lichtsteiner race at a training session in Vinovo, Italy, on Monday, the eve of their Champions League match against Manchester City. — AFP
Juventus’ Paul Pogba (left) and Stephan Lichtsteiner race at a training session in Vinovo, Italy, on Monday, the eve of their Champions League match against Manchester City. — AFP
Manchester United make their eagerly-awaited return to the Champions League away to PSV Eindhoven on Tuesday while last year’s beaten finalists Juventus prepare for a trip to Manchester City.
United are back in the Champions League after a painful exile last season, their first run-out seeing Memphis Depay make a quick return to the club he left in the summer. The sides clashed at the same stage of the 2000/2001 competition, with honours shared — United losing 1-3 on the road, turning the tables with the same scoreline at Old Trafford.
PSV gained automatic qualification as Dutch champions, while Louis van Gaal’s United eased through the play-off route 7-1 against Brugge.
PSG host Ibra’s old club Malmo Paris Saint-Germain, the dominant force in French football, begin another quest to emulate their domestic success on the European stage against Malmo, the 1979 European Cup runners-up, at the Parc des Princes.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic will come up against his hometown club having made his professional debut with Malmo in 1999. PSG’s 33-game unbeaten European home record was snapped by Barcelona in a third straight quarter-final exit last season and the French club will be out to start a new streak against a Malmo side making just their second group stage appearance following last year’s debut campaign.
Real set for Shakhtar clash Real Madrid face an intriguing first-ever meeting with competition regulars Shakhtar Donetsk at the Santiago Bernabeu as Rafa Benitez prepares to make his European bow with the 10-time champions.
Cristiano Ronaldo extinguished any fears over his form in emphatic style on Saturday by scoring five goals in Madrid’s thumping 6-0 win over Espanyol in La Liga that saw him overtake Raul as the club’s all-time leading league goalscorer.
Shakhtar, who had their five-year reign in Ukraine ended by Dynamo Kiev last season, are featuring in the group stage for the 11th time after knocking off Austrians Rapid Vienna in the play-off round.
Juventus travel to man city What should be a meeting between European giants has a feeling of uncertainty about it. City have got off to a flying start in the EPL with five wins from five but their Champions League record over the last four years has been dire, twice failing to get out of the group stage and then twice losing to Barcelona in the second round.
Juventus, by contrast, went all the way to the final last year, before Barca beat them 3-1. But they have yet to win in three league games this season.
