The UEFA Champions League is nearing the midway point of the league phase campaign. Tuesday and Wednesday will see the fourth round of action, where the pressure truly begins to mount. A dozen sides are awaiting a first win of this season’s competition, with two of those clubs yet to even pick up a point. Meanwhile, eight teams are unbeaten, five of which claimed maximum points after three rounds.
Ahead of the round of play, here is The Deck’s preview for each clash.
UEFA Champions League: Matchday 4
PSG and Bayern Face Off in Blockbuster Tie
Kicking off the round is Napoli taking on Eintracht Frankfurt. Across four previous UCL home matches versus German sides, Napoli has never lost (2-2-0). This includes the previous matchup with Frankfurt, where they prevailed 3-0 in the round of 16 back in 2022/23. That season coincided with Napoli best-ever Champions League run. Die Adler, meanwhile, have been involved in three high-scoring clashes so far. They have been on the wrong side of 5-1 results in their last two after having won by that same score on matchday 1.
The other game to commence the day is between Slavia Praha and Arsenal. The Czech champions earned a surprise draw in Italy two weeks ago, and will be looking for more. They have never beaten their London-based opponent across four previous attempts (0-2-2), owning a 2-4-9 record versus English clubs. Arsenal has kept three successive clean sheets so far while maintaining a perfect record. They have never lost to a Czech side across 10 previous matches (8-2-0). The Gunners have won five of their last six away clashes in UEFA club competition (5-0-1).
Atlético Madrid looks to return to winning ways as Belgium’s Union Saint-Gilloise makes the trip to the Spanish capital. Matchday 3 was a round to forget for Atleti, who took a 4-0 beating on the road. They have, however, seen much joy at home in the UCL of late. Los Colchoneros are 10-0-1 in their last 11 in Champions League home ties, losing just once in their last 16 (11-4-1). Union will have reason to have hope in what is their first-ever meeting with a Spanish club in Europe. After all, their sole victory so far did come on the road. Plus, they have come out on top in three of their last four away games (3-0-1).
Bodø/Glimt will fancy their chances for a first UCL home win against AS Monaco. The Norwegian side drew with Nice in the UEL league phase last fall in their only other match versus French opposition. Although this is their first appearance in the UCL proper, they have progressed from a group phase in each of their last four attempts. Victory on Tuesday night will be pivotal if they are to stand a chance at moving on. It has not been a good run for Monaco, who has just one victory in their last nine European clashes (1-3-5). Their only other game with a Norwegian club ended in defeat, as Viking beat them 1-0 in the UEFA Cup 20 years ago.
Juventus is out to keep their unbeaten record against Sporting CP alive as the pair go at it. The last time Juve met the Portuguese champion, they knocked them out of the Europa League back in 2022/23. Since then, they have lost all three subsequent games versus Sporting’s local rival Benfica. Speaking of Sporting, they are already on six points from three games. Their only loss did come against another Italian team, falling to Napoli on matchday 2. They will be hoping to do something they have never done before – win on Italian soil.
Just as they did in last season’s league phase, Liverpool will square off against Real Madrid. It is a 13th head-to-head between the two sides, which Liverpool has won four times, including last fall’s clash. The Reds will aim to complete the double over Madrid-based sides in the UCL this term, having already defeated Atleti to start the league phase. Real is off to a perfect start so far, earning three wins. They have conceded only once across those games, and will hope to make it 4-0-0 for the second time in three years.
Olympiakos Piraeus and PSV Eindhoven meet in what will be a crucial match for both teams. The Greeks knocked out their Dutch opponent in the UEL round of 32 in 2020/21 before being eliminated the next round. Olympiakos has conceded eight times, all coming in their last two outings. They are in desperate need of a win to maintain hope of advancing past this stage. PSV has recovered well after their stunning matchday 1 reverse. They own a solid 10-1-5 record versus Greek teams, and if they can make it 11 wins on Tuesday, it will do them a world of good.
Our tie of the round has Paris Saint-Germain taking on Bayern Munich in a huge clash. It is the sixth time in the last nine seasons that the clubs will do battle in the Champions League. PSG had a rough go in last year’s league phase, but turned things around to achieve UCL glory for the first time. They have scored the most goals so far with 13. Bayern is one goal behind them on 12, as they currently own a perfect record across all competitions this term. The Bavarians have won each of their last four against Les Parisiens in UEFA club competition play, with their most crucial victory coming in the 2019/20 final.
Rounding out Tuesday’s play will be a tie between Tottenham and FC København. Spurs’ only other game against a team from Denmark came at this stage of the 2007/08 UEFA Cup, when they beat Aab 3-2. Since losing to Bayern in the 2019/20 group stage, they have not been defeated at home in Europe. Both of FCK’s successes against English teams came against Manchester United at home. Exclude those results and they are 0-5-12 against Premier League opposition. They have conceded at least twice in each of their league phase matches this fall.
City, Dortmund to Meet in Battle of the Unbeaten
Wednesday’s early kickoff sees Paphos and Villarreal meet, with both teams looking for their maiden win of the league phase. The Cypriots have put up a valiant effort so far, earning a pair of away draws. They return home, where they have been rather strong in their European history. Paphos has a record of 8-2-3 in continental clashes at home. The Yellow Submarine are without victory in their last six UCL contests since stunning Bayern Munich in the 2021/22 quarterfinals. They are facing Cypriot opposition for the first time in 11 years, when they beat Apollon Limassol home and away in the Europa League group stage.
Looking to pull off another stunt, Qarabağ has a home tie with Chelsea. The Azeri champions are 2-0-1 after surprising the competition in their opening two games. Despite their reverse two weeks ago, they will be pushing for another result to give them a realistic shot at moving on. Chelsea, meanwhile, has recovered from their opening round loss, winning their last two. The Blues beat their opponents eight years ago by a combined 10-0 score across their two group stage clashes. They have, however, lost their last three UCL away games.
Desperate to get off the mark, Ajax hosts Turkish champions Galatasaray. It is the second year running that the pair will meet in Amsterdam, having also done so last term in the UEL. Ajax came out on top that time, winning 2-1. That was their only previous match. The four-time UCL winners have a solid 12-1-1 record against teams from Türkiye, and will certainly fancy their chances in this one. Galatasaray’s weak showings against Dutch opposition will give them reason to worry. Winners of their last two, a point here could be key in their chances of progression.
The other side without a point, Benfica, will face Bayer Leverkusen. The Portuguese giants are without a victory in their last six versus Bundesliga opponents in Europe (0-1-5). In their six previous outings against Leverkusen, they lost just once (2-3-1). That sole defeat came 11 years ago in the UCL group stage. As for Die Werkself, they are one of three sides to have conceded 10 or more goals already. Seven of those goals came in their reverse last time out, where they conceded seven in a European game for just the second time.
After successive losses, Club Brugge will be in for a tough night as they welcome Barcelona. The Belgian club has never come out on top in the four previous head-to-heads (0-1-3), although they do have seven wins versus Spanish sides. That could be reason to believe for Blauw-Zwart, who reached the last 16 in their last two UCL runs. Barca ran rampant two weeks ago, scoring six times to win easily. They did lose in their last trip to Belgium, as Antwerp stunned them in the 2023/24 season.
Aiming to make it four clean sheets on the spin Internazionale faces Kairat Almaty. No side has been able to score at Inter in their last six group phase home matches. The Nerazzurri have been quite hard to break down, having kept eight clean sheets since the start of the 2024/25 campaign. They meet a Kairat side who just defended their title in Kazakhstan. They have also been a challenge to break down, having already shut out opposition on six different occasions – five of which have come at home.
Wednesday’s standout fixture comes from the Etihad where Manchester City takes on Borussia Dortmund. This will be their seventh meeting, with the Cityzens owning a 3-2-1 record. In fact, City has enjoyed more success versus German teams than any other nation. They have come out on top in 23 of the 37 previous matchups (23-6-8). Dortmund, meanwhile, has had mixed success in matches against teams from England, going 14-6-15. This tie comes three years on from their last showdown, which City won 2-1 on the road.
Olympique Marseille and Atalanta go at it in what could be another fascinating game. L’OM is in need of a second win to strengthen their chances of successfully negotiating this round for the first time since 2011/12. Before this term, their last continental game came against the Bergamaschi. That occurred in the Europa League semifinals in 2023/24, which Atalanta won 4-1 on aggregate before going on to lift their maiden European trophy. Of the sides currently in the top 24. La Dea have scored the fewest with just two goals.
For the second time this league phase, Newcastle hosts a Spanish club, with Athletic Club making the trip to St. James Park. The Magpies fell to Barcelona on matchday 1 of the Champions League, although they have recovered well since then. Two wins and two clean sheets later, they enter the round in the top eight. They face an Athletic team who finally returned to winning ways two weeks ago. However, the Basque club has a rather tame record when facing English sides, going 5-4-10. That includes an opening round defeat at home.