By Ian Laird
@UneducatedU on Twitter
Through matchday three half of the group stage games have now been completed in the Champions League, and for the most part there have been very few surprises, but there are some notable teams that are struggling at the midway point with a limited amount of games to turn around their knockout round hopes. Lets run through each group and analyze how each team got to the position they are in and assess their chance of advancing to the next round. I already did Groups A and B in part one so now lets move onto Groups C and D.
Group C
Teams MP W D L GF GA GD Pts
Liverpool 3 2 0 1 7 3 4 6
Napoli 3 1 2 0 3 2 1 5
Paris Saint-Germain 3 1 1 1 10 6 4 4
Red Star Belgrade 3 0 1 2 1 10 -9 1
Liverpool: Liverpool won’t be disappointed with their record through three games as they picked up six points with their first win coming against French giants PSG at home and their second win over Serbian side Red Star Belgrade in a comfortable 4-0 result on matchday three. Their one loss was also a good performance from the The Reds, requiring a 90th minute goal from Lorenzo Insigne to eventually lose away to Napoli. Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino have been excellent with two goals apiece in the competition while fellow forwards Daniel Sturridge and Sadio Mane each also have a goal. Andrew Robertson has been excellent in the competition as well consistently getting forward on overlapping runs and providing decent service and delivering balls into the box with two assists in the Champions League so far. The midfield has also been solid with Georginio Wijnaldum driving the team forward with solid play in possession of the ball, while Jordan Henderson puts in solid work on both sides of the ball, and James Milner and Fabinho have both played in the deeper lying midfield role doing the dirty work defensively to keep the team ticking. The return of Naby Keita to full fitness will add yet another midfield pivot for Jurgen Klopp to have at his disposal in an already deep area of the squad. Going into the Champions League Liverpool might’ve been daunted by the draw as many considered Group C to be this year’s vaunted “Group of Death”, but Liverpool have shown they are more than capable of keeping pace with other top tier European sides and actually seem poised for a possibly deep run in the Champions League. There is still plenty of work to do though as only two points separate them and third place PSG, but Salah and company can feel confident heading into the second half of the group stage.
Napoli: Napoli will feel disappointed to not be atop the group after they picked up three points against group leaders Liverpool, but could only manage draws against PSG and Red Star Belgrade. Against Red Star on matchday one, despite having 74% possession and over three times as many shots as their opponents, Napoli were held to a goalless draw with their talented, and normally clinical, set of attacking players seeming to be just off the mark throughout the game, squandering multiple chances that normally they would’ve finished. As mentioned above their victory over Liverpool required a late goal to decide the game, but they limited Liverpool’s typically potent attack to only four shots with none of them being directed on goal. Then against PSG, Napoli saw their opponents score a late goal with Angel Di Maria’s 93rd minute goal equalizing late for the Parisian side. The result was likely fair given the relatively even performances from each side, but Napoli will still rue their inability to pick up all three points for several reasons. First ,Napoli once again weren’t clinical enough with their finishing, missing several fairly easy chances given their standards and ability, secondly, PSG’s second goal came off of an unfortunate deflection from Mario Rui who was credited with the own goal which is always a hard way to concede on such a large stage, and lastly on the equalizing goal their were errors across the field defensively; at the start of the move Neymar skipped by Allan who took a poor angle to cut off the Brazilian forcing him into a lunging, reaching challenge that was easily avoided, Neymar then powered forward for 40 or so yards unchallenged before the ball found its way to an open Julian Draxler who was trailing the play, and then Draxler laid the ball off to Di Maria who was given too much time with the defenders being slow to close him down and allowing him to pick his shot. There were a couple positives though that Napoli could take from the game and hope to replicate later, first, David Ospina stood on his head to make several brilliant saves to keep Napoli ahead and give them a chance to see out the game, and they could hope to see him keep that form going forward. Also, the first goal they scored was a brilliant display of class and skill both on the inch perfect pass from Jose Callejon and then on the deft finish where Lorenzo Insigne had the intelligence and presence of mind to just lift the ball over Alphonse Areola. That level of talent is what Napoli need more of from their attack which I expect them to get because they have too many talented goal scorers to remain this quiet as a team in the Champions League, instead I would be worried about their defense being unable to keep up their impressive record so far of two shutouts and only two goals against.
Paris Saint-Germain: For a team that has one of the highest payrolls in all of sports PSG have to be disappointed with how their performances in the Champions League have gone recently. The game against Liverpool simply wasn’t good enough as they failed to generate any chances other than their two goals, and Thomas Meunier’s goal to open the scoring for PSG was set up by a fortunate deflection off of Andrew Robertson. Their expensive defense looked overwhelmed and incapable of stopping Liverpool’s offense, and even with their two first choice full backs out PSG still have more than capable replacements in Juan Bernat and left back and Meunier at right back so that really shouldn’t be an issue. Their 6-1 beatdown of Red Star was somewhat expected given the gulf in talent between the two sides, but after seeing Napoli slip up against them PSG should get a nod for taking care of business in a tidy manner. Against Napoli though many of the same issues that plagued them against Liverpool reappeared. Once again their defense was poor and if not for better finishing from Napoli, PSG easily could’ve ended up several goals behind the Italian runner-ups. Offensively they didn’t struggle to create chances, but rather they struggled with finishing moves. Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani were poor in front of goal and didn’t put away several clear cut chances which could’ve easily won them the game considering Napoli’s struggles in front of goal as well. PSG’s ten goals look good on paper, but with six of them coming against Red Star, one as a product of a deflection off of a defender, and another coming as an own goal that goal record looks drastically less impressive. They will take the goals however the come, but they need to put out more consistent play through the next three games if they are going to climb out of this mini hole they find themselves in and move on to the knockout round.
Red Star Belgrade: Considering Red Star have one of the worst teams in the Champions League they will be happy to have reached even this far after winning several qualifying rounds to gain entry into the European competition. First they beat Spartaks Jurmala, a first tier Latvian side 2-0 on aggregate, then in the second qualifying round they were victorious over Lithuanian side FK Suduva via a score of 5-0 across two legs, and in the final qualifying round the won 3-2 on aggregate over Slovakian champions Spartak Trnava pushing them through to the playoff round where they would face a much stiffer test. They were drawn against Red Bull Salzburg, a team from the Austrian Bundesliga whose club value is nearly four times their nearest competitor in the A. Bundesliga at well over €110 million. The first leg of the playoff was at home for Red Star and the game was a dull affair with neither team threatening to score and only five shots on goal between the two sides resulting in a 0-0 draw. The second leg was very different though as in the first half Salzburg had Red Star pinned back and were peppering Milan Borjan’s goal and eventually earned a breakthrough with a goal just before half time. The second half started off well for Salzburg as well when they drew a penalty less than two minutes into the second period of play and converted extending their lead to two goals. Red Star then responded with two goals of their own in quick succession with the first coming in the 65th minute and the second in the 66th. They would manage to see out the game and advance on away goals to the Champions League group stage. Getting this far with their current roster was enough of an accomplishment that anything else from here on out is icing on the cake. Their draw against Napoli was a massive statement showing that while they are undermanned and punching above their weight class opposing teams cannot be lackadaisical around them or they could be in for a surprise. I doubt they finish anywhere above fourth place, but I wouldn’t count out the possibility of them getting another win or draw against a team caught looking ahead in the schedule.
Group D
Teams MP W D L GF GA GD Pts
FC Porto 3 2 1 0 5 2 3 7
Schalke 04 3 1 2 0 2 1 1 5
Galatasaray 3 1 1 1 3 1 2 4
Lokomotiv Moscow 3 0 0 3 1 7 -6 0
FC Porto: A fairly convincing argument could be made that this is the worst group in the Champions League this year given its lack of a top team and star power, but Porto won’t be dissatisfied with the opportunity it has provided them to win the group. In the first game, they drew against Schalke in a match where they really should’ve won. They only converted one of their two penalties and Otavio missed a point blank chance directing his shot straight at Ralf Fahrmann. Their misfortune in that game was compensated though in their win at home versus Galatasaray when a draw would’ve seemed like a more fair result. The Turkish club generated more clear cut chances for most of the match with Porto only really becoming a consistent threat late in the game after they had scored and Galatasaray were forced to chase the game to get a result. The third game away to Lokomotiv Moscow was a much simpler game as Porto scored two first half goals and an early second half goal to put the game to bed early. While Moscow are objectively the worst team in the group that game was a potential banana peel given it was one of the longest flights any team will have to make for the Champions League, so a comfortable win is a good sign for this Porto team moving forward. Porto should be favorites to win Group D from here on out, not only because of their advantage in the table, but also because of their experience in the Champions League in recent years, which includes advancing to the knockout round in each of the past two years, and the fact that Schalke have been struggling domestically this year and may be forced to turn their focus to the Bundesliga if they don’t want to finish in the cellar of the German league and Galatasaray just aren’t that good. Porto are clearly the best team in the group and unless they see a massive dip in form they should win this group fairly comfortably.
Schalke 04: Despite having one of their worst starts to a Bundesliga season ever Schalke have gone undefeated in the Champions League with a 1-1 draw against Porto, a 1-0 victory over Lokomotiv Moscow, and a scoreless draw against Galatasaray. Like the Bundesliga defense hasn’t been the issue for Schalke as they have only allowed one goal so far through the first three games, but rather their inability to score has been what holds them back. Their midfield lacks the creative spark that Leon Goretzka and Max Meyer brought to the team to release the forwards in the attacking third, and the players brought in to replace them simply aren’t good enough or experienced enough. Weston McKennie has been the most active of those players producing a goal and an assist in his two starts, but he is still too inexperienced to be expected to carry the load offensively for this team. Players like Yevhen Konoplyanka, Amine Harit, and Suat Serdar need to step up as well and show they belong on this stage. A recent 3-1 win over Hannover 96 in the Bundesliga will hopefully jumpstart a Schalke attack that had previously failed to score three goals in a competitive match in the 2018 calendar year and get this team back on track because time is running out for them in both the Champions League and the Bundesliga.
Galatasaray: Galatasaray have a massive opportunity to capitalize on a Schalke’s poor start to their European campaign even with some struggles of their own. Their matchday one game against Lokomotiv Moscow seemed to be going as well as they could expect as they carried a 2-0 lead into the final minutes of regulation, but then Badou Ndiaye needlessly picked up his second yellow card of the game disqualifying him from their matchday two showdown with Porto which proved to be a vital loss. They missed his typically calming and solid presence in the midfield especially later in the game when they began to push numbers forward and became disjointed with Porto often winning the ball back all too easily and then running Galatasaray ragged in transition. The Turks produced enough chances in that game to at least tie, but were unable to and I’m sure Ndiaye would’ve made sure they got a result from the game. The game against Schalke was different though as Galatasaray struggled defensively and despite having nearly 60% possession were often pinned back in their own half. They failed to create any chances with their possession either as they only had two shots on goal neither of which really troubled Schalke. They have a talented midfield with players like Ndiaye, Younes Belhanda, Fernando, and Ryan Donk and equally capable wingers in Henry Onyekuru, Garry Rodrigues, and Sofiane Feghouli, but they lack a number one striker who they can consistently expect to get goals from and their typical starter in the number nine position, Eren Derdiyok is out with a thigh injury and there isn’t a timetable yet for his return. I think it would be worth a shot to play Garry Rodrigues up front given he has experience there, is often Galatasaray’s biggest threat, and they can still trot out a pair of wings in Feghouli and Onyekuru so that their isn’t a massive drop off in talent in that part of the field. Either way Galatasaray are in a similar situation as Schalke with a lack of offensive firepower currently holding them back.
Lokomotiv Moscow: Lokomotiv Moscow have a talented roster that would seem to indicate that they should be performing much better in European competition, but they have struggled mightily with their normally solid defense allowing seven goals and their deep, dynamic set of attackers only producing one goal so far. In the first game goalkeeper Guilherme made several great saves, but was also liable for all three of Galatasaray’s goals as on the first one he got his hands to the ball, but was unable to keep the ball out of the net. Then on the second goal he seemed poorly set up for a free kick with a four man wall when the situation probably called for at least five men and Guilherme was also set up too close to the far post allowing Eren Derdiyok to curl the ball around the wall fairly comfortably and giving Guilherme no chance to make a save. On the final goal Guilherme came out of his net and cleaned out Emre Akbaba who had touched the ball past him conceding a penalty which Selcuk Inan converted. In the second game Lokomotiv were unfortunate to not get a result after dominating the game with plenty of attempts from within the box throughout the game and eventually losing on an 85th minute header from Weston McKennie who rose above two Lokomotiv defenders to win the ball. The third game was also unlucky as Lokomotiv easily could’ve been up 2-0 inside of twenty minutes, but Manuel Fernandes saw his penalty saved and then multiple players failed to put the ball in the net following an open goal scramble inside of the six yard box that featured multiple goal line clearances. Porto capitalized on their poor finishing to convert two of their own chances and take a 2-0 lead before Anton Miranchuk finished off a chance created by his twin brother Aleksey Miranchuk to make the game 2-1 heading into halftime. A third goal for Porto early in the second half started to put the game out of reach and then a red card late for Solomon Kvirkvela effectively ended the game as Lokomotiv were unable to generate meaningful chances while a man down. A major issue for Lokomotiv has been their inability to find a striker that they trust with Fedor Smolov missing two Champions League games with a shoulder injury and not being included in the squad for the third. They have tried using his back up Eder who has been unconvincing so far, and even moved Jefferson Farfan, who normally plays on the wing, to the number nine role. Smolov has recovered from his injury and was on the bench for their most recent league game indicating he may be available for this week’s game which will be a welcome sight for Lokomotiv. At this point advancing from the group stage seems unfeasible so Lokomotiv will likely be hoping for a third place finish.
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