Champions League Matches Tonight: Marseille v Newcastle & Additional Games

Welcome to a fresh night of thrilling European Cup football. 9 games are planned for tonight, featuring 3 British clubs in play. The Blues take on Barcelona in the marquee match of the evening, whilst The Magpies travel to Marseille and Manchester City welcome Leverkusen.

Current Standings

We're at the midway point of the league phase, meaning the table is taking form. All six British teams are currently in the upper twelve, but there are only two pts separating 5th and sixteenth position, so there's a hint of volatility about the entire situation. It’s all up for grabs.

Match Schedule

Here are tonight’s fixtures, each starting at 8:00 PM unless stated:

  • Benfica lead Ajax 1-0 (5.45pm)
  • Union SG and Galatasaray level at 0-0 (5.45pm)
  • Juventus face Bodo/Glimt
  • Chelsea v Barcelona
  • Villarreal meet Dortmund
  • Leverkusen visit Man City
  • Marseille v Newcastle
  • Napoli v Qarabag
  • Slavia Prague v Athletic Bilbao

Lineup Changes

Fofana, Moises Caicedo, Alejandro Garnacho, Malo Gusto and Estevao all come into the Chelsea lineup. Dropped are Tosin Adarabioyo, Santos, Gittens, Pedro and Delap.

Yamal starts for Barcelona; Rashford is among the substitutes.

The Blues (probable 4-3-3) Robert Sanchez; Reece James, Wesley Fofana, Chalobah, Cucurella; Malo Gusto, Moises Caicedo, Enzo; Estevao, Neto, Garnacho.

Subs: Kjell Scherpen, Tosin Adarabioyo, Badiashile, Liam Delap, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, Andrey Santos, Pedro, Hato, George, Joshua Acheampong, Marc Guiu, Facundo Buonanotte.

Barça (possible four-two-three-one): Joan Garcia; Kounde, Araujo, Cubarsi, Balde; Garcia, De Jong; Yamal, Lopez, Torres; Robert Lewandowski.

Substitutes: Szczesny, Kochen, Raphinha, Marcus Rashford, Christensen, Marc Casado, Gerard, Olmo, Noah Darvich, Dro Fernandez, Bardghji.

Official Slavko Vincic (Slovenian).

Past Meetings

The sole past encounter between Newcastle and Marseille was the Uefa Cup semifinal of 2004, claimed by an rising star from Ivory Coast. Manchester City and Bayer Leverkusen have never met before. Barcelona and Chelsea have a notable history.

Initial Game Reports

Only a single goal in the first half of the early fixtures. Dahl's sixth-minute goal has given Jose Mourinho’s Benfica a 1-0 advantage at the Dutch side.

Newcastle’s Trip to Marseille

Although Newcastle traveled to the French south fresh from their confidence-boosting two-one home Premier League victory against Manchester City on the weekend, and having beaten Union Saint-Gilloise, Benfica and Athletic Bilbao in the Champions League, their only away victory since the start of April came in Brussels at Union SG.

Not that Howe was eager to discuss the psychological aspect of this away form issue. “The European Cup is distinct from domestic games,” said the manager, whose team are 6th in the Champions League standings, with 9 points from a available twelve and direct qualification to the knockout phase nearly secured. “I don’t know if you can draw parallels between them.”

We have a separate live blog for Barcelona vs Chelsea. Murray, the minute-by-minute version of Maradona is on duty for that.
Jonathan Newton
Jonathan Newton

A passionate life coach and writer dedicated to helping individuals unlock their potential through mindful practices and innovative strategies.