The penultimate round of the league format in the Champions League takes place this week, with nine matches to look forward to on Tuesday.
Aston Villa and Liverpool will look to take a big step towards automatic qualification for the knockout stages, when they both face Ligue 1 opposition.
Meanwhile, Barcelona, Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund are all on the road looking for crucial European points.
- ASTON VILLA TO BEAT MONACO
- ATLETICO MADRID VS BAYER LEVERKUSEN - BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE
- BARCELONA TO BEAT BENFICA
- BOLOGNA VS BORUSSIA DORTMUND - DRAW
- LIVERPOOL VS LILLE - BENJAMIN ANDRE TO BE BOOKED
Bet On The Champions League
Monaco vs Aston Villa
Aston Villa find themselves fifth in the Champions League standings, after collecting 13 points from their opening six matches.
Unai Emery has plenty of European success under his belt during his time at Sevilla and his tactical nous looks like getting Villa through to the knockout stages.
They now prepare to face Monaco at what looks like a good time, with the Ligue 1 outfit having collected just one win in their last eight in all competitions.
Adi Hutter’s men are in 16th place in the new league format following back-to-back defeats against Benfica and Arsenal.
In contrast, Villa are unbeaten in five in all competitions and Emery’s squad have scored six goals in their three away dates, so far.
ASTON VILLA TO WIN
Atletico Madrid vs Bayer Leverkusen
Two teams with high hopes of going deep in this year’s competition meet at the Wanda Metropolitano, as Atletico Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen go head-to-head.
Atletico have won their last three European ties on the spin, which has moved them up to 11th in the league standings – just a point outside the top-eight.
With a trip to Salzburg remaining in Gameweek Eight, Diego Simeone’s men have a great chance of finishing in the top third.
Leverkusen, last season’s Europa League runners up, are fourth after just one defeat in their opening six matches.
Their form hasn’t been great on the road in this competition though, with defeat at Liverpool and a draw at Brest, following their win at Feyenoord.
Xabi Alonso’s team have averaged two goals per game so far, while Atleti have found the net 12 times in their last four Champions League matches.
BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE
Benfica vs Barcelona
Barcelona make the short journey to Portugal on Tuesday having won four and drawn one of their last five games in all competitions.
The Catalan giants sit second in the Champions League, where the goals have been flowing. Barca are the competition’s top scorers, with 21 to date.
Striker Robert Lewandowski is also the tournament’s leading scorer, with seven goals in six appearances, while Raphinha has chipped in with six.
Kerem Akturkoglu has been the star for Benfica, with the Turkish winger finding the net three goals including the opener in the 4-0 win over Atletico.
That was a standout victory but Bruno Lage’s men have collected just one point and scored just one goal in their last two Champions League home fixtures.
BARCELONA TO WIN
Bologna vs Borussia Dortmund
After finishing fifth in Serie A last season, Bologna lost several key players including Premier League duo Riccardo Calafiori and Joshua Zirkzee.
The summer exits have left a huge gap in their squad and been part of the reason for their major struggles in this season’s Champions League.
The Italians have collected two points from their opening six games and scoring just one goal in the process.
One of those points came in a 0-0 draw against Benfica last time out and they will feel they can build on that against an out-of-sorts Borussia Dortmund.
The pressure is mounting on manager Nuri Sahin after three consecutive league defeats, which include a 4-2 loss at relegation-threatened Holstein Kiel.
They also suffered a confidence denting defeat in Champions League Gameweek Six, following a late 3-2 home loss at the hands of Barcelona.
Dortmund are still without defender Niklas Sule and could find this a tough assignment against an improving Bologna side.
DRAW
Liverpool vs Lille
Liverpool are the only team in this season’s competition with a 100% record and another victory on Tuesday will seal their place in the last-16.
It seems likely that Arne Slot will make a number of changes to his starting XI, as the Reds look for success both domestically and in Europe.
A dramatic 2-0 win at Brentford on Saturday saw them extend their lead in the Premier League to six points, with a game in hand on their rivals.
While their form in the Champions League has been equally impressive, with six wins from six and having conceded just one goal in those six games, which came in their opening fixture at AC Milan.
Lille go into this game still inside the top eight of the table and having scored in each of their last four European ties.
That includes a shock 3-1 win at Atletico Madrid in October, as well as November’s 2-1 victory at Bologna.
Midfielder Benjamin Andre has been a key player for the Ligue 1 outfit, forming an impressive central partnership with Portugal’s Andre Gomes.
Andre is inside the top 15 of the Champions League disciplinary standings, conceding nine fouls and picking up two cautions in six matches.
The 34-year-old has also been booked in Lille’s last two Ligue 1 matches and will have his hands full against an energetic Liverpool midfield.
BENJAMIN ANDRE TO BE BOOKED
