2023-09-18 12:57:57
A highlight on the first matchday of the Champions League takes place in Paris. In what is probably the toughest Group F, French champions PSG will meet Borussia Dortmund with Marcel Sabitzer on Tuesday (9 p.m./live Sky). In the Bundesliga, BVB recently achieved a sense of achievement with a 4-2 win in Freiburg, although not a real breakthrough. PSG is starting its next attempt to win the Champions League for the first time without top stars Lionel Messi and Neymar.
“This team competed to win the title. That’s why they invested almost 350 million euros again in the summer,” said BVB sports director Sebastian Kehl. “When Mbappé, Kolo Muani and Dembélé play on the offensive, that is incredible quality,” said club boss Hans-Joachim Watzke, emphasizing the strength of the opponent. However, like Dortmund, the series champions from the neighboring country have not yet really gained momentum this season.
The BVB defense will play a key role in the Parc des Princes stadium. Ousmane Dembélé used to play in Dortmund, Randal Kolo Muani at Eintracht Frankfurt. “We know what to expect. Nevertheless, we are going to Paris with a big heart and want to take something with us,” said Kehl. Last season, PSG was eliminated in the round of 16 against FC Bayern. This season, coach Luis Enrique’s team is not among the closest favorites.
“When a club is obsessed with something, it’s never a good sign. You have to have ambition, but obsession doesn’t work in any area of life,” said Enrique rather cautiously on Monday. “You have to wait and see how the competition goes. Football is a wonderful sport, any result is possible.”
Manchester City, on the other hand, is again considered a promising candidate. The defending champions will host Red Star Belgrade with ÖFB legionnaire Aleksandar Dragovic in Pool G on Tuesday. In addition to City, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Bayern Munich and FC Barcelona stand out from the field of participants, which each includes 14 champions and former Champions League winners. Since the current format was introduced in 2003, this quintet has won 13 of the 20 events. The only winner in the past two decades that did not come from England, Italy, Germany or Spain was FC Porto in 2003.
The Portuguese runner-up celebrates their premier class opener on Tuesday in Hamburg’s Volksparkstadion, which acts as an alternative home for Shakhtar Donetsk in Group H. In the parallel game, Barcelona will face Royal Antwerp at home. The Belgian champion is one of two debutants this year, the other being Union Berlin with Christopher Trimmel from Burgenland. The Berliners are in action against Real Madrid on Wednesday.
Atletico Madrid has to go to Lazio Rome, Feyenoord Rotterdam plays with Gernot Trauner against Celtic Glasgow (Group E). In the other game of PSG Group F, AC Milan and Newcastle United meet. In the second game of Group G, the Young Boys Bern face RB Leipzig.
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