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- 👀 What to Watch on Matchday 2 🏆
👀 What to Watch on Matchday 2 🏆
After a bunch of 1-1 draws in big games and a shambolic display from Ten Hag's team, we turn our attention to matchday 2 of the Champions League...
George Hudson
October 02, 2024 • Estimated Reading Time: 12 minutes
The big games over the weekend ended in 1-1 draws. In Germany, the big one between Bayern and Leverkusen gave us two screamers but no winner. Bayern dominated the game with 70% of possession and 18 shots but only 3 were on target though! In Spain an intense Madrid derby was suspended for 15 minutes after Atletico fans threw objects at Thibaut Courtois. With all the intensity in the stands, Militao put Madrid ahead just after the hour mark but Angel Correa bundled in the equaliser in the 95th minute to send Atleti fans wild.
In the Premier League, Manchester United put in a ‘disgusting‘ performance in front of the Old Trafford faithful as they went down 3-nil to Tottenham. Whether or not Bruno Fernandes’s sending off was deserved, Ten Hag’s men were being played off the park with or without him. Beside’s the lack of intensity on the pitch, the worrying thing for United fans is the lack of ideas. Erik Ten Hag has been in charge since April 2022 but is still struggling make this United team follow his ‘process‘. The pressure is once again building on Ten Hag and the United hierarchy.
Always in search of the beautiful game, this week we’re looking at some of the big fixtures in European club competitions. Our main match preview looks at the match between one of the most exciting teams in Germany and Italy’s Old Lady who happen to have the best defensive record in Europe.
We’ve also got big news on the latest defensive prospect coming out of Brazil —a player that’s being chased by Real Madrid, Arsenal and a host of other big clubs.
Today's game plan:
What’s in the bag?
RB Leipzig vs Juventus | Wednesday | 20:00 BST
Unbeaten after five games played, RB Leipzig are sitting pretty in third place of the Bundesliga. They’ve only conceded two goals in those five games —that is the fewest goals conceded in Germany’s top flight this season. Their opponents, Juventus are also unbeaten in domestic competition. But Juve’s record is more impressive: Six games played and zero goals conceded.
Tonight’s game will therefore be a tight game but it will also be a high quality one. Leipzig’s team is packed with exciting forward players like Xavi Simons, Lois Openda and Benjamin Sesko; whilst Juventus are built around strong defensive players like Gleison Bremer and Manuel Locatelli.
Form & Team News
In matchday 1 of this year’s new Champions League, Leipzig put up a spirited away performance but ultimately lost to Atletico Madrid after a late goal from Jose Gimenez. Taking the lead within 5 minutes through star striker Benjamin Sesko, the game against Atletico showed that Leipzig have the ability and the confidence to take on any team, home or away.
Since that tough away game, Leipzig have picked up four points from two Bundesliga games. A combative 0-0 draw away at St Pauli and a confidence-boosting 4-nil home win against Augsburg. Leipzig are now on a record unbeaten run in the Bundesliga, having gone 17 games without defeat.
Leipzig manager Marco Rose has a number of players injured, including three midfielders: Kevin Kampl, Assan Ouedraogo and Xaver Schlager. However, the good news for Rose is that Macedonian midfielder Eljif Elmas should be fit for tonight’s game, at least off the bench. The main thing for Leipzig is that their first choice defenders and forwards are fit, and they are.
GR Red Bull Leipzig predicted lineup | Gulacsi, Geertruida, Orban, Lukeba, Raum, Baumgartner, Haidara, Vermeeren, Simons, Sesko, Openda
Juventus got their Champions League campaign underway with a 3-1 win over Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven. Undoubtedly a great result against top opposition, but the surprising thing about the result is that Juve conceded a goal. Under Thiago Motta, Juventus have the best defensive record in Europe and in Serie A they have either drawn 0-0 or won 3-0.
Since taking over the Old Lady, Motta has been able to perfect his take on the 4-2-3-1 formation. His approach focuses on shape and defensive stability with control of the ball in central areas. In Gleison Bremer, Juventus have one of the best centre-backs in world football but questions remain around Juve’s attack. Dusan Vlahovic is the leading scorer with four goals but has been labelled as one-dimensional by some Italian football analysts.
In terms of injuries, Juventus are assessing the fitness of Timothy Weah who is still recovering from an ankle injury and Arkadiusz Milik who is still out with a knee injury he picked up playing for Poland in June. Motta will welcome back first choice goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio and winger Francisco Conceição.
GR Juventus predicted lineup | Di Gregorio, Kalulu, Gatti, Bremer, Cambiaso, Locatelli, Fagioli, Gonzalez, Koopmeiners, Yildiz, Vlahovic
This Week’s Shocker…
In the big clash between Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid over the weekend, the game had to be suspended after the Atletico fans started throwing all kinds of stuff, including lighters and coins, at Thibaut Courtois.
Diego Simeone had to go to the stands to calm down the supporters. The game was suspended for 15 minutes and the Spanish Football Federation’s disciplinary committee will meet today to decide on Atlético’s punishment. The club have already begun handing out lifetime bans to fans who have been found guilty of throwing objects, but it’s likely that Atletico will have to play at least one game behind closed doors.
Around the world…
The Manchester United hierarchy are backing Erik Ten Hag despite a run of poor performances from Man United in the Europa League and Premier League. Among fans and football reporters, discussions have already started around potential replacements for Ten Hag with Thomas Tuchel, Zinedine Zidane and Julian Nagelsmann among the names commonly mentioned.
Just 33-years old and current vice-captain of France, Griezmann has announced his retirement from international football. The Atletico Madrid man made 137 appearances for his national team and scored 44 goals, making him the third most-capped player and fourth-highest goalscorer in France's history.
Mourinho placed his laptop in front of a television camera to show that a VR offside decision was actually wrong. After he was booked, his Fenerbahce team went on to win the game against Antalyaspor 2-nil. Mourinho’s Fenerbahce are in second place in the Tirkish Super Lig, three points behind reigning champions Galatasaray.
Now 39 years old, Ronaldo scored against Al Rayyan over the weekend and set a new milestone in his illustrious career: he has scored more goals over the age of 30 than he scored in his 20’s! Since turning 30, Ronaldo has scored 441 goals in 523 games. Between the age of 20 and 29, Ronaldo scored 440 goals in 596 matches.
Real Madrid are eading the chase for Palmeiras centre-back Vitor Reis. The defender is now 18 but has captained Brazil at under-17 level and recently signed a new contract with Palmeiras that runs until December 2028. The contract has a release clause which is activated on offers of 100 million euros.
Games to keep an eye on…
Lille vs Real Madrid | Wednesday | 20:00 BST
This will be the first ever meeting between Lille and Real Madrid in the Champions League. Reigning champions Real Madrid beat Stuttgart on matchday one whilst Lille lost 2-nil to Sporting Lisbon.
Fiorentina vs The New Saints | Thursday | 20:00 BST
The famous Viola welcome minnows The New Saints to Florence. Fiorentina have won Serie A twice, six Coppa Italias, one Supercoppa Italiana, and one UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. The New Saints play in a stadium with 1,700 seats. This is a David vs Goliath matchup.
Arsenal vs Southampton | Saturday | 15:00 BST
Arsenal have coped pretty well without their captain Martin Ødegaard but they need to keep it going. The main priority for Arsenal is to take advantage of City’s loss of Rodri as Pep Guardiola’s adapt to playing without Rodri. Southampton have been way off the pace so this should be nothing other than a comfortable Arsenal win.
Aston Villa vs Manchester United | Sunday | 14:00 BST
After a number of difficult fixtures to start the season, Villa went unbeaten throughout the entirety of September. United have been struggling for goals whilst also giving up goals far to easily. The good news for United is that they successfully appealed the red card Bruno Fernandes received in the Spurs game. Both teams have European games before the game on Sunday —Villa welcome Bayern Munich to Villa Park tonight and United have a trip to Porto on Thursday.
Chelsea vs Nottingham Forest | Sunday | 14:00 BST
With Saka holding down the left-forward position for England, we’re unlikely to see much of Cole Palmer on the international stage. It’s therefore vital that we football fans take every opportunity to watch him play for his club, even if his current club is Chelsea.
GOAT Trivia…
Say congrats to…
Happy birthday to Alisson Becker [@Alissonbecker], Liverpool’s #1 turns 32 today, 2nd October.
On this day in football…
On 2nd October 2002, Manchester City demolished Manchester United at the Etihad. Phil Foden and Erling Haaland both netted hat-tricks as City won 6-3 to add another famous battering of United to the club’s small but growing history.
Goal of the week…
There were some nice hits in the Bayern/Leverkusen game but our goal of the week has to be Cole Palmer’s free-kick against Brighton. This was his hat-trick goal, and every finish is technically sound.
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