Desk Report:
PSG played a total of 65 matches last season. Neither Real Madrid nor Barcelona had to play that many matches. After winning the league, PSG played the remaining matches of the Champions League, the FIFA Club World Cup and the UEFA Super Cup. This tight schedule did not give Luis Enrique’s team a chance to fully recover before the start of the new season. Therefore, at the beginning of the season, two proven stalwarts of the attack, Ousmane Dembele and Didier Due, were out for a long time due to injuries. Apart from them, Khabib Kavaratskheliya, Lee Kang-in, and Lucas Belardo are also suffering from injuries. All in all, the question of ‘Can PSG retain the title?’ has arisen at the beginning. PSG is taking the field today with this question in the new season’s Champions League, which started yesterday. Their home opponent is Atalanta of Italy. Liverpool will host Atletico Madrid at Anfield in the other two of the five remaining matches on the day, while Bayern will play Chelsea at home.
PSG-Atalanta
PSG have lost only one of their last 12 matches against Italian teams. 5 wins, 6 draws.
The Parisians have won three consecutive seasons on the first matchday of the Champions League.
PSG won 2-1 in their only meeting against Atalanta.
Atalanta have lost only one of their last 14 European away matches.
The Italian team holds the record for scoring in 15 consecutive away matches.
PSG-Atalanta
PSG have lost only one of their last 12 matches against Italian teams. 5 wins, 6 draws.
The Parisians have won three consecutive seasons on the first matchday of the Champions League.
PSG won 2-1 in their only meeting against Atalanta.
Atalanta have lost just one of their last 14 European away matches.
The Italian team holds the record for scoring in 15 consecutive away matches.
Liverpool-Atletico
Liverpool have won 14 consecutive European matches at Anfield, keeping a clean sheet in nine of them.
Mohamed Salah has scored 18 goals in his last 20 Champions League matches.
Atletico have yet to win against an English team in the group stage (D4, L4).
Atletico have only lost twice in their opening Champions League matches (W8, D5).
Diego Simeone’s team have scored in 14 of their last 16 matches.
Bayern-Chelsea
Bayern are unbeaten in 34 consecutive home matches in European competition (W32, D2).
Bayern have won their first match for 21 consecutive seasons. They last lost their first match in 2002.
Chelsea have won seven of their last 11 games against German sides.
Chelsea won their first Champions League title in 2012, beating Bayern Munich.
It’s a battle of mixed emotions for Nicholas Jackson, who joined Bayern from Chelsea on September 1.
