UEFA Champions League 2018/19: Matchday 3 predictions

Manchester United will see their prodigal son return in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, as a rampaging Juventus side head to the Old Trafford in Group H. Elsewhere FC Barcelona will have to make do without the injured talisman, Lionel Messi against Inter Milan at the Nou Camp.

There are plenty of other mouthwatering ties across Europe to look forward to as Borussia Dortmund host Atletico, Paris SG take on SSC Napoli, while the English Premier League champions Man City are away at Shakhtar Donetsk in Ukraine.

Group A - Atletico Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Club Brugge, AS Monaco

Atletico Madrid will be looking to make an impression

Club Brugge vs AS Monaco

Club Brugge from the Belgian First Division and AS Monaco face each other at Jan Breydel stadium. Following an unlucky 1-0 defeat to Dortmund in their season opener, Brugge were outclassed by Atletico in Madrid. The Belgian champions are on a 12 game winless run in the Champions League.

Monaco are no different as they have been struggling in all competitions ever since their top players left the club and we do not believe that the visitors are capable of spoiling the party on Wednesday.

Prediction: Club Brugge 2-1 AS Monaco

Borussia Dortmund vs Atletico Madrid

All eyes will be on the Westfalenstadion when BVB and Atletico Madrid face each other in the Group A heavyweights clash. Dortmund kicked off their CL campaign with a 1-0 win in Belgium, with the German team also rolling over Monaco 3-0 next.

Lucien Favre's side are the team to watch in this group and they are definitely capable of grabbing something against Atletico Madrid. Los Rojiblancos will rely on their water-tight defence and we are positive that fans will see a low-scoring game.

Paco Alcacer has been scoring goals left and right this season and he will be someone to watch out for.

Prediction: Borussia Dortmund 1-1 Atletico Madrid

Group B - FC Barcelona, Internazionale, PSV, Tottenham Hotspur

Messi won't be able to play for the Blaugrana after he injured himself

PSV Eindhoven vs Tottenham Hotspur

Wednesday’s game at the Philips Stadion will see PSV go head to head with Tottenham as they both look for their first win.

Marc van Bommel’s men are likely to stick to their attacking style of play against Spurs and we strongly believe that they are going to find the net in Wednesday’s clash.

Spurs, on the other hand would see this as a must-win game after consecutive losses and we believe that it will be safe to say that both teams will score.

Prediction: PSV Eindhoven 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur

FC Barcelona vs Internazionale

Barcelona will be aiming to keep their 100% record in Group B intact as they host Inter Milan at the Nou Camp. The Catalan giants are going to go all guns blazing (even without Messi) at the Nerazzurri as they look to wrap up the group.

Inter, on the other hand, have been in a splendid form of late and they must be high on confidence ahead of their trip to Catalonia. The Serie A side might just be outclassed by Barcelona as they are a real force to be reckoned with at home, the visitors may have to go home empty-handed.

Prediction: FC Barcelona 3-1 Internazionale

Group C - Red Star Belgrade, Liverpool, Napoli, Paris Saint Germain

Paris Saint Germain vs SSC Napoli

Paris SG and SSC Napoli go up against each other at the Parc des Princes in a game that is expected to have lots of fireworks. Les Parisiens have been scoring goals for fun this season.

Kylian Mbappe looks unstoppable at the moment and all eyes will be on the pacey attacker when the two teams face each other in the “City of Lights” and we predict that the Neapolitans are going to return to Italy empty-handed.

Carlo Ancelotti’s men will have a much bigger fish to fry in Wednesday’s match against PSG than they had against Liverpool.

Prediction: PSG 3-1 Napoli

Liverpool FC vs Red Star Belgrade

Crvena Zvezda were totally outclassed by PSG at the Parc des Princes and the Serbian champions face yet another uphill task on Wednesday as they take on a star-studded Liverpool side away from home.

Jurgen Klopp’s men are eager to bounce back from a 1-0 loss to Napoli and we are positive that Mohamed Salah and company are going to emerge victorious in their third group game.

Prediction: Liverpool 4-0 Red Star Belgrade

Group D - Schalke 04, Galatasaray, Lokomotiv Moscow, Porto

Porto are looking to do it again this season

Galatasaray vs FC Schalke 04

Galatasaray and Schalke 04 square off against each other at Turk Telekom Arena in this exciting group D matchup. Galatasaray did very well to beat Lokomotiv Moscow 3-0 but Porto proved to be a big catch for the Turkish side in their second game of the season.

Die Knappen beat Lokomotiv in Moscow in their second group match, but they will have a much bigger fish to fry against Galatasaray, who have turned their home into a real fortress.

Prediction: Galatasaray 2-1 Schalke 04

Lokomotiv Moskva vs FC Porto

RZD Arena will host Wednesday’s game between Lokomotiv Moscow and Porto. The Russian side are likely to leave their hearts on the field against FC Porto, but this match will be no walk in the park for them.

The Dragons are determined to make it to the Champions League knockout stages and we believe that the Portuguese outfit will emerge victoriously.

One of the men to watch in the away team will be Marega, who scored the winner against Galatasaray in Porto’s second group game.

Prediction: Lokomotiv Moskva 0-1 FC Porto

Group E - AEK Athens, Ajax, Benfica, FC Bayern Munchen

Lewandowski has a habit of scoring in the Champions League

AEK Athens vs FC Bayern Munich

The match at Olympiako Stadio Spyros Louis on Tuesday pits together AEK Athens from Greece and Bavarian giants Bayern Munchen. Bayern coach Kovac is surely going to feel the pressure ahead of the trip to Athens and, there is little to doubt that the Croatian tactician and his men will give it their all to pick up all 3 points.

Bayern Munchen are more of a team than AEK Athens and seeing that we believe that the visitors will come out with 3 points from this clash.

Prediction: AEK Athens 1-2 Bayern Munich

Ajax Amsterdam vs SL Benfica

Ajax have been performing above all expectations in the 2018/19 campaign. After rolling over AEK Athens in their opener they did well to hold a star-studded Bayern Munchen side to a one-goal draw at the Allianz Arena.

The side from the Eredivisie aim to retain top spot in the group, but Tuesday's match against SL Benfica will be anything but a walk in the park. The Eagles from Portugal aim to build on an impressive 3-2 win over AEK Athens, but we predict that the two sides are going to play out a draw at Johan Cruijff Arena.

Prediction: Ajax 1-1 Benfica

Group F - Lyon, Manchester City, Shakhtar Donetsk, 1899 Hoffenheim

Guardiola telling everyone who the top scorer will be

Shakhtar Donetsk vs Manchester City

Oblasny Sport Komplex Metalist in Kharkiv, Ukraine will host Tuesday's game between Shakhtar and the blue half of Manchester. The Miners are eager to record their first win of the tournament by adopting an attack-minded approach against Man City.

The Citizens were very fortunate to beat 1899 Hoffenheim away from home, but they held themselves to bounce back from a shocking 2-1 loss to Lyon and nothing else matters.

Prediction: Shakhtar Donetsk 2-2 Man City

1899 Hoffenheim vs Olympique Lyon

German minnows, Hoffenheim were on the brink of sharing the spoils with a star-studded Manchester City side, but the Citizens eventually scored the winner to break German hearts.

The Bundesliga side are eager to record their first win of the tournament while Olympique Lyon did extraordinarily well to beat Guardiola’s troops at their home ground, with the team playing out a snoozefest draw with Shakhtar Donetsk.

Hoffenheim, though, want this win more than Lyon and that is why we are tempted to put our money on the German outfit.

Prediction: Hoffenheim 2-1 Lyon

Group G - CSKA Moscow, Viktoria Plzen, Real Madrid, AS Roma

Real Madrid vs Viktoria Plzen

Real Madrid have not made a flying start to their season in any competition as Los Blancos have already dropped a lot of points in the LaLiga, with the team also suffering a shock loss to Russian side CSKA in Moscow.

The three-time title holders obviously miss the genius of Ronaldo, but they are considered hot favourites to win Tuesday's match against Viktoria Plzen. Viktoria Plzen experienced all sorts of problems to start their season and we do not believe that they are capable of spoiling Madrid’s party in the Spanish capital. Any other upset would be the story of the week.

Prediction: Real Madrid 4-0 Viktoria Plzen

AS Roma vs CSKA Moskva

The Romans absolutely thrashed Viktoria Plzen with a 5-0 win and it doesn't need rocket science to see that they are regarded as favourites to win Tuesday's match. The Giallorossi are a real force to be reckoned with at home.

CSKA, on the other side of the coin, proved that they are not to be trifled with in a historic 1-0 win over Real Madrid, but beating a Roma at Stadio Olimpico is easier said than done.

Prediction: Roma 2-0 CSKA Moskva

Group H - Young Boys, Juventus, Manchester United, Valencia CF

Manchester United vs Juventus

There will be guaranteed fireworks when a struggling Manchester United and bulldozing Juventus side face each other at the iconic Old Trafford. Manchester United have been struggling to find their feet, but they made a fine start to their UCL campaign, with the team beating BSC Young Boys, while they shared the spoils with Spanish side Valencia.

The Red Devils are in all probability going to adopt a cautious approach in the match against Juve. A close encounter is definitely on the cards and we like many others will be looking out for the prodigal son returning home.

Prediction: Manchester United 1-1 Juventus

BSC Young Boys vs Valencia CF

Young Boys will be aiming to make amends when they host a rampaging Valencia side at their Stade de Suisse on Tuesday evening. The Young Boys do not look capable of taking on the top European teams, but they will not have a better chance than this to record their first win.

We do believe that the visitors are going to emerge triumphant as it is an important game for Los Che and they are definitely capable of grabbing everything from the Young Boys clash.