Champions League 2016: Group Live Stream, TV Info, Predictions for Tuesday
Manchester City will be out to make amends in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday evening, as they welcome Barcelona to the Etihad Stadium.
When the two sides met at the Camp Nou a fortnight ago, Barcelona romped to a 4-0 win, thanks in the main to Lionel Messi's hat-trick. City boss Pep Guardiola, formerly of the Catalan giants, will want to see his team give a much better account of themselves in the reverse fixture.
Away from east Manchester, PSV Eindhoven will host Bayern Munich in an eye-catching contest, while Arsenal visit Ludogorets Razgrad looking to cement their strong position in Group A.
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Here are the matches to come on Tuesday, the key viewing details for the games and a more in-depth look at two standout contests.
| A | 7:45 p.m. | Basel vs. PSG | 1-2 |
| A | 7:45 p.m. | Ludogorets vs. Arsenal | 1-3 |
| B | 5:45 p.m. | Besiktas vs. Napoli | 1-1 |
| B | 7:45 p.m. | Benfica vs. Dynamo Kiev | 2-1 |
| C | 7:45 p.m. | Borussia Monchengladbach vs. Celtic | 3-0 |
| C | 7:45 p.m. | Manchester City vs. Barcelona | 2-2 |
| D | 7:45 p.m. | Atletico Madrid vs. FC Rostov | 2-0 |
| D | 7:45 p.m. | PSV vs. Bayern Munich | 1-3 |
TV Info: Matches are broadcast on BT Sport (UK) and ESPN (U.S.)
Live Stream: Games can be viewed via the BT Sport website (UK) and Watch ESPN (U.S.)
Manchester City vs. Barcelona
Although the scoreline painted a different picture, City fared well against Barcelona on their visit to the Camp Nou for spells in the game.
At 1-0 to the hosts, Guardiola’s team were hunting for an equaliser and threatening in their forward forays. However, any momentum they accrued was sapped as a result of Claudio Bravo’s red card, before Messi turned on the style in the second period.
Squawka Football broke down what was an impressive performance from the Barcelona No. 10, as he took the game away from City:
On home soil, Guardiola will be hopeful his team can do a better job of containing his former protege. It’s vital City are switched-on in their defensive duties on the night, as it was shown in the previous meeting that Barca’s attacking stars will ruthlessly punish even minor errors.
At the Etihad, there’ll be a greater onus on City to come forward, and in Sergio Aguero, they have their own striker in marvellous form. The Argentina international was on the bench for the previous meeting, but after netting twice against West Bromwich Albion on Saturday, he will surely lead the line when Barca visit.
Bleacher Report UK broke down just how important Aguero has been to City since moving to the club:
With City needing to pick up points here, they’ll have to attack in front of their home fans. While they have the class to cause problems for the Barcelona back line, the space left in defence will see the visitors thrive on the break. Expect a pulsating score draw.
Prediction: Manchester City 2-2 Barcelona
Ludogorets vs. Arsenal
A 6-0 win for Arsenal in the previous meeting between these two teams may not be a precursor for an interesting second showdown in Ludogorets, but the Bulgarian champions will feel confident of springing an upset.
After all, at the Emirates Stadium they were a threat going forward before the floodgates opened, with David Ospina on hand numerous times to keep the visitors from scoring. Had Ludogorets netted early on, the match could have panned out differently.
Per sports journalist Andy Brassell, the underdogs were brave in their approach to the contest and will likely adopt a similar approach for the next meeting:
Even so, Arsenal will be big favourites. Once the Gunners found their pattern against Ludogorets last time out, they were able to scythe through the defensive structure with ease. Mesut Ozil—who bagged a hat-trick on the night—Alexis Sanchez, Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all shone.
Arsenal can’t afford to let complacency creep into their mindset. Failing to finish top of the group in years gone by has meant a testing draw in the knockout stages of the competition and with Paris Saint-Germain also vying for the summit, the Premier League side need to be ruthless in their approach.
With that in mind, expect manager Arsene Wenger to field a strong team and a professional performance from the Gunners.
Prediction: Ludogorets 1-3 Arsenal
