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Welcome to another evening of thrilling Champions League football. 9 games are planned for tonight, featuring three English teams in play. The Blues take on Barça in the marquee match of the evening, whilst Newcastle travel to the French side and Manchester City host Bayer Leverkusen.

Current Standings

It's the midway stage of the group stage, meaning the rankings is starting to take shape. Each of the six English clubs are presently in the upper twelve, however there are only 2 pts between fifth and 16th position, so there's a hint of volatility about the entire situation. It’s all up for grabs.

Tonight’s Fixtures

These are this evening's matches, each starting at 8:00 PM unless stated:

• Benfica lead Ajax 1-0 (5.45pm)
• Galatasaray 0-0 Union SG (5.45pm)
• Juventus face Bodo/Glimt
• Chelsea v Barcelona
• Dortmund v Villarreal
• Man City v Leverkusen
• Marseille v Newcastle
• Qarabag play Napoli
• Athletic Bilbao clash with Slavia Prague

Squad Updates

Wesley Fofana, Moises Caicedo, Alejandro Garnacho, Malo Gusto and Estevao join the Blues team. Excluded are Adarabioyo, Andrey Santos, Jamie Gittens, Pedro and Delap.

Yamal is in the starting lineup for Barça; Marcus Rashford is among the substitutes.

The Blues (possible 4-3-3) Sanchez; Reece James, Wesley Fofana, Trevoh Chalobah, Marc Cucurella; Malo Gusto, Moises Caicedo, Enzo; Estevao, Pedro Neto, Alejandro Garnacho.

Substitutes: Kjell Scherpen, Adarabioyo, Badiashile, Liam Delap, Bynoe-Gittens, Santos, Joao Pedro, Hato, George, Acheampong, Guiu, Buonanotte.

Barça (possible 4-2-3-1): Garcia; Kounde, Araujo, Cubarsi, Alejandro Balde; Eric Garcia, Frenkie de Jong; Yamal, Fermin Lopez, Torres; Robert Lewandowski.

Substitutes: Wojciech Szczesny, Kochen, Raphinha, Rashford, Christensen, Casado, Gerard, Olmo, Noah Darvich, Dro Fernandez, Roony Bardghji.

Official Slavko Vincic (Slovenia).

Past Meetings

The only previous meeting involving Newcastle and Marseille was the Uefa Cup semi-final of 2003-04, won by an rising star from Côte d'Ivoire. Manchester City and Bayer Leverkusen have never met before. Chelsea and Barcelona have a peedie bit of history.

Early Match Updates

Only a single goal in the first half of the early fixtures. Dahl's 6th-minute strike has earned Jose Mourinho’s Benfica a one-nil advantage away to Ajax.

Marseille v Newcastle Preview

Even though The Magpies traveled to the south of France fresh from their restorative 2-1 home Premier League win against Manchester City on Saturday, and having defeated Union Saint-Gilloise, the Portuguese side and Athletic Bilbao in the Champions League, their only on the road victory since early April came in Brussels at Union SG.

Not that Eddie Howe was eager to talk about the psychological aspect of this away form issue. “The Champions League is distinct from domestic games,” said the coach, whose side are sixth in the Champions League standings, with 9 pts from a available 12 and automatic qualification to the knockout phase almost within touching distance. “I don’t know if you can compare them.”

A dedicated live feed is available for Chelsea v Barcelona. Scott Murray, the MBM version of Maradona is handling for that.