Matchday four of the Champions League league phase brings three heavyweight ties tonight, with Aston Villa and Manchester United both in action. All kick-offs are in UK time (GMT), and tables are as they stood before tonight’s games. If the format is unfamiliar, here is how the league phase works and what the top eight and the play-off places mean.
Team news comes from managers’ press conferences, club previews and news agencies. Where sources disagree, we say so, and predicted line-ups are only that. This is analysis only. There are no selections or odds here, because those come from the Tips Desk.
Barcelona v Aston Villa – 20:00, Spotify Camp Nou
Villa arrive second in the table with three wins from three. They have scored 12 and conceded three, and only Paris Saint-Germain, on 14, have scored more. Barcelona are eighth on six points after beating Feyenoord and Galatasaray and then losing 4-2 at PSG, their first defeat of the season.
Barcelona lost El Clásico 2-1 to Real Madrid last month (our preview of that game), then beat Alavés 6-1 on Saturday and sit two points clear at the top of La Liga. They have gone 18 Champions League games without a clean sheet, the longest current run in the competition. Villa’s last two games have been less convincing: a 3-0 League Cup defeat at Bournemouth and a 1-1 home draw with Fulham.
The clubs have not met in a competitive game since the 1983 European Super Cup, which Villa won 3-1 on aggregate. Unai Emery has described this as perhaps the most difficult match Villa will face in this season’s competition.
Barcelona are without Dani Olmo (adductor), Xavi Espart (ankle), Andreas Christensen (thigh), Roony Bardghji (cruciate ligament), Eric García (thigh) and Jules Koundé (ankle). Lamine Yamal scored twice on Saturday and is level with Kylian Mbappé on 13 Champions League goals, the most by a teenager.
Villa are missing Amadou Onana (knee), Matteo Ruggeri and Aaron Wan-Bissaka (both thigh). Nicolas Jackson, who scored against Fulham, is fit. Predicted line-ups differ in midfield, with Sports Mole suggesting João Gomes may be preferred to Leon Goretzka, who made his first Premier League start against Fulham.
Manchester United v Roma – 20:00, Old Trafford
United are 21st on three points. They won their first league-phase game, then lost 2-0 at Atlético Madrid and 4-1 at Como. Domestically they have lost three in a row in all competitions, most recently 2-0 at Chelsea on Saturday (our weekend football guide previewed that one), and are 17th in the Premier League, above Crystal Palace only on goal difference. ESPN notes they have not won in nine games or kept a clean sheet in that time.
Roma are 15th on four points: a win, a draw and a defeat to Real Madrid, a game they led 3-1 before conceding three times in the last 10 minutes. In Serie A they are third, a point behind leaders Lazio, after a 5-2 win over Udinese on Saturday, and are unbeaten in their last five games in all competitions. They have won only one of 21 UEFA away games against English clubs, and none of the last 16.
Out for United are Benjamin Sesko and Manuel Ugarte, and Marcus Rashford is a doubt with a hip problem. Sources disagree on Luke Shaw and Patrick Dorgu, who ESPN lists as out and Sports Mole as doubtful. Michael Carrick has said he expects to be in charge tonight.
Roma are without Lorenzo Pellegrini, Manu Koné and goalkeeper Mile Svilar. Paulo Dybala has a calf problem, and sources differ on whether he is out or a doubt. United won all four of their previous home games against Roma, scoring 15 goals. United face Aston Villa on Sunday.
Atlético Madrid v Bayern Munich – 20:00, Metropolitano
This is the biggest tie of the night on paper, and it sits right on the edge of the table. Bayern are 14th on five points after a 3-3 draw with Viking and a 2-2 draw with Arsenal. Atlético are 16th on four, having lost to Liverpool, beaten Manchester United 2-0 and drawn 1-1 with Stuttgart.
Atlético have recovered from a poor start to the season and have won nine of their last 10 games in all competitions without losing. They are second in La Liga, two points behind Barcelona, and have not lost at home this season. Bayern lead the Bundesliga on 18 points, ahead of Borussia Dortmund on goal difference after Saturday’s 2-2 draw. The clubs last met in December 2020, a 1-1 draw.
Vincent Kompany is still recovering from an illness, so assistant Aaron Danks will again lead Bayern from the touchline. Sporting director Max Eberl says the recovery is going well, with no complications and no return date yet. Luis Díaz is out with a hamstring injury, and Serge Gnabry and Ismael Saibari were hurt against Dortmund.
Manuel Neuer and Michael Olise both travelled to Madrid. Danks said they were looking good, with a decision to come on the day, although Sports Mole lists both as doubts. For Atlético, Morten Hjulmand is suspended after his red card on matchday three. Johnny Cardoso and Koke are back in training but remain concerns.
Also tonight
At 17:45, Shakhtar Donetsk (17th) host Sporting (12th) and Galatasaray (23rd) host Stuttgart (6th). At 20:00, Feyenoord (26th) host Inter (20th), Bodø/Glimt (28th) host Lille (35th), LASK (24th) host Slovan Bratislava (36th) and Villarreal (19th) host PSG (1st).
Liverpool, Manchester City and Arsenal are all in action on Wednesday. Line-ups are confirmed about an hour before kick-off, and several of the doubts above are genuine late calls, so check the team sheets first. If you follow the numbers in previews like this, here is what xG means in football. For the wider picture, see the league tables and the fixture list, or browse more football previews.
Further reading: Champions League table (BBC Sport), Man United v Roma team news and predicted line-ups (ESPN), Barcelona v Aston Villa pre-match report (Aston Villa).
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