UEFA Champions League Matchday 2 Preview

Following September's opening round, the UEFA Champions League continues this week with matchday 2 play. Sixteen of the 36 clubs look to go 2-0-0, while the other 20 are aiming to get their maiden victory in what is the first of back-to-back European matchweeks.

Here is a preview of all 18 games to occur between Tuesday and Wednesday.

Atleti, Barca Look to Continue Domination

In the early action on Tuesday, RC Lens are home to Sporting CP. Both teams were winners a month ago, with Les Sang et Or looking to match the number of wins they had in each of their three previous Champions League group stage showings. For Sporting, they own a 13-5-8 record all-time versus French teams, having won each of their last three. However, all three wins of the current streak were at home. Leões, who qualified for the competition via titleholder rebalancing, have not scored in their last two road matches in Europe.

Sabah Baku and Slavia Praha are the other two clubs to face off in the early kickoff on Tuesday. The Azeri champions won all four of their qualifying home matches, which is already more than their other three European campaigns combined. Slavia are unbeaten across their four head-to-heads with clubs from Azerbaijan, winning three such games. With that said, they are currently on a 16-game winless run in Europe, and are a draw/loss away from matching their worst stretch without a continental victory. That occurred between 2007 and 2010.

Last season's finalists Arsenal look to maintain their strong record in group phase play as LOSC Lille make the trip to North London. The Gunners have come out on top in their last 17 at the Emirates at this point of a UEFA club competition, having last lost to Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League seven years ago. Lille have never prevailed in England, losing all but one match. Les Dogues were victorious on the road twice in their last UCL appearance in the 2024/25 season.

Atlético Madrid face Manchester United in what is perhaps the biggest match of Tuesday's clashes. Los Colchoneros are 2-2-0 against their English-based opponent, having eliminated them from the competition back in 2021/22 at the round of 16. With that said, this is a first group phase meeting between the pair. United have won their last six group matches in a UEFA club competition and are unbeaten in nine such games. Interestingly enough, the Red Devils have been beaten just once in their last 10 trips to Spain.

It is a battle of blue and black teams as Internazionale and Club Brugge meet in Italy. Surprisingly, this is a first-time clash, though Inter will fancy themselves given their strong record against Belgian teams (5-2-2). The Nerazzurri defeated Union Saint-Gilloise in last season's edition, making it four victories on the spin versus clubs from Belgium. For Brugge, they have qualified for the knockout stage in each of their last three UCL showings. This is their fourth year running facing off against an Italian side, knocking out Atalanta in the knockout round playoffs back in 2024/25.

Galatasaray will be in for a tough match as they welcome Barcelona, a side they have beaten just once across 10 head-to-heads. Eight of those 10 matches have taken place during a Champions League group phase, six at this stage. Gala made the round of 16 last term, winning four of their six home matches during the run. Barca are looking for their best-ever start to a league phase, having taken three points after two games in each of their first two attempts. They last started 2-0-0 in 2023/24.

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RB Leipzig take on Dutch opposition for the very first time as PSV Eindhoven head to Germany. Since making the semifinals of the Europa League in 2021/22, Leipzig have not gone past the round of 16 in Europe. The Bundesliga outfit, participating in the UCL proper for the eighth time, made the last four in 2019/20. PSV are without a win in their last six against German since defeating Wolfsburg 11 years ago. Having failed to get out of the league phase a year ago, the Eredivisie holders will aim to build on their draw from last month. They have just one win in their last six in UCL road matches, which came in England last term.

For the second round in a row, Viking and Bayern Munich take on a side from the other's country. The former were beaten at Stuttgart, while the latter eased past Bodø/Glimt. Viking earned a win and a draw in their other group stage showing 21 years ago in the UEFA Cup. Their only triumph over a German side across 10 games came in 1982/83 against Lokomotive Leipzig. In contrast, Bayern are 7-2-0 versus Norwegian sides, scoring 30 times while conceding just six times.

With their head-to-head even with two wins each plus two draws, Villarreal and Napoli meet in Spain. The Yellow Submarine are in a difficult run in the Champions League, failing to win any of their last 12 since stunning Bayern Munich in the 2021/22 edition. With that said, their only point last term came at the expense of an Italian side. Napoli also missed out on the knockout stage in 2025/26, picked up a solitary point on their travels in their appearance last term. The Partenopei beat Villarreal in their first Champions League group stage showing in 2011/12, which remains their only win on Spanish soil in the competition.

Match of the Round: Manchester City vs Paris Saint-Germain

For this matchday's game of the round, the last two first-time winners of the UCL, Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain, are set to face off in England.

City lead the head-to-head with four victories to two (plus two draws). However, those two reverses have come in the last three matches. While the Cityzens have never lost at home in this matchup, they were beaten by Lyon in the group phase eight years ago. They are now looking to win their opening two UCL matches in a season for the first time since 2023/24, when they went all the way.

Two-time defending champions PSG got past an English team in last spring's final, maintaining their unbeaten run against Premier League sides to nine (7-2-0). Les Parisiens have yet to finish in the top eight of the league phase, something they will aim to complete this time around. They did beat City in the 2024/25 league phase, which helped them confirm a top 24 spot.

Villa Strive to Keep Up Perfect Record

Wednesday will open up in the Netherlands, where Feyenoord play host to Como. The Dutch side, European Cup winners in 1969/70, have prevailed in four of their last six home group phase play. They look to win on matchday 2 of the UCL for the second appearance in a row, having edged Girona two years ago. Como could not have asked for a better start to life in their European debut as they topped Leipzig on matchday 1. They were the only Italian club to win in the opening round.

LASK Linz make their home debut in the UCL proper against Liverpool. The Austrian side fell home and away during the teams' Europa League group stage meetings three years ago. Die Schwarz-Weißen are still in search of their maiden victory versus an English club in what is their seventh time of asking. They are in for a serious challenge, as Liverpool are 8-1-1 versus Austrian teams. Remarkably, the Reds have never lost in Austria, winning in each of their last four trips.

In the Italian capital, AS Roma welcome Real Madrid, with the latter facing Italian opposition for the second round running. The Giallorossi have successfully negotiated the group phase of the UCL in each of their last three appearances, going as far as the semifinals nine years ago. However, their last two home defeats in the competition proper have come at the hands of Real. Los Blancos, on the other hand, have enjoyed much success on Italian soil, having won their last nine games there.

Aston Villa face Fenerbahçe at home as the Villans look to maintain their perfect record against the Turkish opponent. En route to Europa League glory last term, Villa prevailed 1-0 on the road during the league phase. Their first-ever European wins - both home and away - also came at the expense of Fener in the 1977/78 UEFA Cup. Including qualifying, Fenerbahçe are on a seven-game unbeaten run in Europe, which is their best run since going nine without defeat in the Conference League three years ago.

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London is the place Shakhtar Donetsk will call home in the UCL this term, with AEK Athens the first side to make the trip there to face the Ukrainians. The Pitmen are 1-4-0 all-time versus Greek clubs, with the only victory coming against PAOK 21 years ago. They are looking to end a nine-year wait to play knockout football in the UCL. As for AEK, they won their opening game, keeping a clean sheet for the third European match running. However, they have never come out on top in an away match in the Champions League proper.

Bodø/Glimt and Borussia Dortmund square off for the second league phase in a row - this time, in Norway. It was in Germany last December where the side from the Arctic Circle began their incredible unbeaten run, which paved the way for a round of 16 appearance. Including qualifiers, Bodø have won their last five at home in the UCL, scoring thrice on each occasion. They face a Dortmund club that have fallen in their last three on the road, conceding 10 times. With that said, Die Schwarzgelben are 4-2-1 against Norwegian sides historically.

Having been eliminated in the Europa League last spring by a Portuguese club, Real Betis will want a better outcome at home to Porto. Only once in four attempts have Los Verdiblancos beaten a side from Portugal at home in Europe. After claiming an important win last month, Betis could significantly increase their chances of advancing with a win. Each of Porto's last two UCL forays ended at the round of 16, though they spent the last two seasons in the Europa League. No Portuguese team have more wins versus Spanish opposition than Porto with 17.

Slovan Bratislava are up against Stuttgart, striving to earn a first win over the Bundesliga side at the fourth time of asking. The Slovak champions have yet to even pick up a point in the UCL group phase in their first nine attempts, losing 6-1 on the opening matchday. Only once have a team from Slovakia won a Champions League match, which came 21 years ago. Former finalists in the UEFA Cup and Cup Winners Cup, Stuttgart narrowly missed out on qualification to the knockout stage two years ago. They did beat Slovan that same season on the road, which was their second win in the head-to-head.