The questions we are all asking now is; Can Real Madrid win the Champions League for the fourth consecutive time without Cristiano Ronaldo? Despite having a quiet transfer window over the summer, Los Blancos would still be looking to win this competition for the 4th consecutive time. The loss of Cristiano Ronaldo means they would enter this season’s competition without the attacker who has netted the most goals in the competition for the past six seasons. The host play the only other strong team in the group, Roma, as they both look to top the group ahead of Viktoria Plzen and CSKA Moscow, making this game the biggest game of the group. A domestic double is Real Madrid’s target this season, and they have dropped just two points so far to keep themselves close to rivals and defending champions Barcelona in the race for the La Liga which they last won in 2017. AS Roma were closed to reaching the finals last season after eliminating Barcelona in the quarterfinals, however, Liverpool proved too much for them after a 5-2 first leg loss at Anfield. They would be looking to go further this year, but they haven’t started their domestic season in the best possible way. The Italians have lost their last four away Champions League games and they come into this game after failing to win any of their last 3 Serie A games, so it doesn’t look good for them. They have also conceded 7 times in their last three league games. This will be the 11th encounter between Real Madrid and Roma in the Champions League, with Real holding the upper hand so far (6 wins to 3, 1 draw).

Manchester City enter this season’s Champions League as favourites again after they swept aside all oppositions in the Premier League and broke all sorts of records last season. Liverpool were the team that stopped them from getting past the quarterfinal stage last season, but after winning five of six group games the last time out, their fans would be expecting them to easily top this group again. Pep Guardiola’s team haven’t really kicked into top gear this season. They were held by Wolves to a 1-1 draw before the international break and failed to sparkle in their 2-1 win over Newcastle, however, their 3-0 win over Fulham before this game would have boosted their morale well enough to get them a win. Lyon come back into this competition after a two-year absence, and they would be looking to get out of this group alongside Manchester City. The French men won two of six group games the last time out, and the way they have started their domestic campaign does not give Manchester City any reason to fear. They drew with Caen at the weekend to make it two wins, two losses and a draw in their last five league games. Keeping Nabil Fekir beyond last season was a good piece of business, and they would be hoping he can build on his impressive performances last season. This is the first time these teams are meeting before now.

Juventus would be looking to win the Champions League this season that is why they have spent as much as £99 million on the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo this summer. The Old Ladies have reached the final on two occasions in the last four years, but they have fallen short each time. However, this time they have Ronaldo who have won four of the last five finals and he is as motivated as ever to continues showing how good he is. The Portuguese legend has been the highest goal scorer in the competition for the last 6 seasons and after a long drought, he has finally opened his goalscoring account at the weekend, and he would be raring to go as he returns to Spain where he was very successful. The Old Ladies have won all of their last four league games before this match. Valencia return to the Champions League after having an impressive season in the La Liga the last time out. Their return to the competition has helped them to fund some impressive transfers, however, they haven’t had the best start to their La Liga campaign, and they come into this game on the back of four games without a win. Valencia will be the eighth different Spanish opponent that Juventus have faced in the Champions League, with this the first competitive meeting between the sides.

Southampton is famous for being a selling club that has sold the likes of Dejan Lovren, Adam Lallana, Nathaniel Clyne, among others, but not long ago they were in the League Cup final and even qualified for the Europa League, only to struggle with relegation last season. They showed signs of improvement when they drew their first league game of the season 0-0 against Burnley at home, before going on a 2-games losing streak. However, they bounced back to winning ways against this same opponent at the Carabao Cup and defeated Crystal Palace 0-2 away from home in their last league game. There have had striker issues over the past few seasons, but the signing of Danny Ings looks to be a smart decision, and he has scored two goals already. Brighton may have beaten Manchester United already this season, but they have one of the worst away records in the Premier League. They come into this game on the back of 4 straight away losses, and they have not won any of their last 15 away games, a run that stretches to November 2017 when they beat Swansea away. Southampton haven’t lost any of their last six Premier League games against Oppositions from the South Coast, and Chris Houghton has won just once in nine trips to the Saint Marys.

England were brought back down to earth in their game against Spain on Saturday, and after a sweet run at the World Cup, the Three Lions showed in that game why their manager said they had overachieved in Russia. They were beaten 2-1 by the former World Champions at Wembley to continue their rather unimpressive run of goal returns when they play at home. This English team is almost the same as the one who played at the World Cup, with Raheem Sterling pulling out, and Luke Shaw injured, a few changes might take place in this game, but we expect the same back three that featured the impressive Joe Gomez. Would the Three Lions continue their dominance over Switzerland? Switzerland made a minor tactical change in their last game against Iceland and they beat the European minors by 6 goals in their last match. With Xerdan Shaqiri running the show from attacking midfield, the Swiss showed in that game just how abundantly talented they are. Both of these sides have decent records over the past couple of years, but there is a certain lack of goals shining through at both ends of the pitch. Since Southgate took charge in September 2016, England have seen seven of their 12 home games end with fewer than three goals scored, including back to back goalless draws against Germany and Brazil. England have lost just one of their 14 meetings with Switzerland, and four of the last five encounters have resulted in a win for The Three Lions. The last of these was in 2015 in the qualifying campaign for Euro 2016, with England winning both fixtures 2-0.

This friendly match pitches two teams who just played their UEFA Nations League games with different degrees of success, as Poland looks to build on their good start, while Ireland looks to forget their shocking start. The Polish national team nearly knicked a win against Italy last week after they took a first-half lead through the in-form Piotr Zielinski, however, Jorginho scored a second-half penalty to help the Azzurri earn a 1-1 draw. Poland would be looking to rest their star men for this game and test the many exciting young prospects they have named for this international break. The Republic of Ireland started their Euro Nations League campaign in the worst possible start after they were beaten 4-1 by Wales in their first game, and Martin O’Neil would now be looking to give the British nation’s fans something to smile about in this game. Ireland seems to have a really poor pool of talent at the moment especially in their attack, and that has made it difficult for them to play an exciting brand of football. Defensively they have been good, but conceding 9 goals in just two games against Denmark and Wales means that Poland can also pick them apart in this game. These two sides last met during the qualifying campaign for Euro 2016, with Poland winning this fixture 2-1.

These two European heavyweights go head to head as they try to top their group in the UEFA Nations League. Spain have started a new dispensation under the guidance of Luis Enrique, and they got off to the best possible start when they beat England 2-1 at Wembley in their last game. Managing a team that most of its stars have retired, Enrique would be looking to prove that Spain still has the talents to reach the heights of the game like they did between 2008 and 2012. La Roja would be without Diego Costa for this game, but Rodrigo has started the season well and scored a fine goal against England, he can lead the line for them. Croatia are one of the world’s best teams and they showed that at the World Cup. However, most of their star men have retired, and those who remain are into their 30s, so this competition may be their last chance to win a trophy for their country. Croatia also have a striker problem as Mario Mandzukic has retired, but their abundance of midfield talent can make up for the lack of firepower in their attack. These two sides have beaten each other once in their last two meetings at Euro 2012, and Euro 2016.

Wales have started their UEFA Nations League campaign in good form after they hit four past the Republic of Ireland in their first game. They are top of their group standings at the moment, but can they maintain that against this Danish team that reached the quarterfinals of the World Cup? Denmark would have made things easier for the Welsh had they not reached a temporary agreement with their top players to play this game as they continue to negotiate over image rights. Now Wales would not have to face the Danish team that is made up of players from the Danish third tier like Slovakia faced, and that has significantly changed the outlook of this game. Denmark reached the last 8 of the last World Cup before eventually losing to the runners-up, Croatia, so this game would see them playing to continue their unbeaten run that stretches throughout the last World Cup qualifying campaign. Denmark hit five 10 goals in their 5 home games during the World Cup qualifiers and Christian Eriksen has scored 11 times in his last 12 games for them. None of the last three meetings between these two sides have seen a home win.