Champions League Matchday 5 preview: Man United vs. PSG big in Group H

With just two rounds to go in the Champions League group stage, matchday five has plenty of big games with big implications.

— How teams can qualify for last-16
— Also see: Soccer world pays tribute to Diego Maradona

The crucial action comes in Group H as Man United and PSG go head to head, while there are also heavyweight clashes which pit Atletico against Bayern Munich and Liverpool vs. Ajax.

With that in mind, we run you through all the action ahead of what promises to be another unpredictable, dramatic week of Champions League action. Who will seal their place in the knockout stages?

Jump to groups:
— Tuesday’s matches: A | B | C | D
— Wednesday’s matches: E | F | G | H

Standings: Bayern (12 pts), Atletico Madrid (5 pts), Lokomotiv Moscow (3 pts), FC Salzburg (1 pt)

ATLETICO MADRID vs. BAYERN MUNICH

Tuesday, 3 p.m. ET / 8 p.m. GMT

Atletico Madrid picked up an impressive 1-0 win at Valencia at the weekend to make it six in a row in La Liga, but they badly need a victory in the Champions League to secure their place in the round of 16. Hector Herrera should be available again, while Luis Suarez needs to return a negative COVID-19 test to be permitted back in training.

Bayern Munich battled to a 3-1 win at Stuttgart on Saturday with Kingsley Coman, Robert Lewandowski and Douglas Costa all scoring. They are four from four in the Champions League and will aim to continue that in Madrid. Alphonso Davies and Joshua Kimmich miss out through injury while Marc Roca is suspended.

Expect this one to be a thriller, but end all square.

LOKOMOTIV MOSCOW vs. FC SALZBURG

Tuesday, 12.55 p.m. ET / 5.55 p.m. GMT

Lokomotiv Moscow have three draws from their four Champions League matches, and backed that trend up with a 0-0 at the weekend away at Akhmat Grozny in the Russian Premier League. Their form has been mediocre this season and they sit seventh in the table — they’ll also be without Fyodor Smolov, Mikhail Lysov and Dmitri Barinov for Tuesday’s match.

FC Salzburg lost 3-1 at Bayern Munich in matchday four, but reminded the Austrian Bundesliga of their dominance at the weekend as they won 8-2 at St Polten. The much-admired Hungarian midfielder Dominic Szoboszlai bagged a hat trick, as did Malian striker Sekou Koita, while Mergim Berisha and Karim Adeyemi also scored. They will be without Youba Diarra and Patson Daka for Tuesday’s match.

Salzburg should upset the hosts here.

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Julien Laurens feels Real Madrid defender Marcelo is no longer good enough to play for the club.

Standings: Borussia Monchengladbach (8 pts), Shakhtar Donetsk (7 pts), Real Madrid (4 pts), Inter (2 pts)

SHAKHTAR DONETSK vs. REAL MADRID

Tuesday, 12:55 p.m. ET / 5:55 p.m. ET

Shakhtar won 1-0 at Dnipro-1 at the weekend thanks to Tete’s 88th-minute winner, but have endured a rough time in the Champions League of late having shipped 10 goals to Borussia Monchengladbach in their last two matches. Shakhtar have four points from four matches and will be without Yevhen Konoplyanka, Davit Khocholava,