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Bayern target CSKA scalp

Manchester City face Roma; Ibrahimovic to miss Barcelona game
Last Updated 29 September 2014, 18:31 IST

Playing five-times winners Bayern Munich in the Champions League should have been one of the highlights of CSKA Moscow’s season but unfortunately for the Russian champions, they will have to play the Group E contest behind closed doors on Tuesday.

CSKA were ordered to play the match in an empty arena by UEFA following the poor behaviour of their fans against Viktoria Plzen last December.

After being thrashed 5-1 by AS Roma in their opening match two weeks ago, CSKA now have the daunting task of taking on European heavyweights Bayern without the backing of their boisterous supporters.

The last time they met at the Khimki Arena, Bayern were emphatic 3-1 winners at the same stage a year ago.

Meanwhile, in the other game of the group, Manchester City will play host Roma in a must-win game for Manuel Pellegrini’s English champions.

Manchester City have scored 11 goals in winning their last two matches, but a meeting with a Roma side who have won all five Serie A games so far and thumped CSKA Moscow 5-1 two weeks ago promises to be a stiff test.Chelsea face Lisbon test

 As Jose Mourinho returns to his Portuguese footballing roots, the Chelsea manager may have to decide which back-up marksman he trusts most to shoot down his old employers at Sporting Lisbon on Tuesday.

In his perfect world, Mourinho would turn to his most ruthless hit man Diego Costa to down the club which two decades ago gave his fledgling coaching career a boost by letting him act as manager Bobby Robson’s interpreter. 

Instead, Costa’s continuing hamstring fragility means that, while Mourinho insists he still hopes to start him, he is more likely to have to choose instead between Didier Drogba and Loic Remy to revitalise Chelsea’s campaign after their disappointing opening Group G draw with Schalke.

After playing out a draw Chelsea on matchday one Schalke should fancy their chances of reaching the last 16 from Group G as they prepare to host Slovenian champions Maribor in Gelsenkirchen. Jens Keller’s side are also fresh from beating bitter rivals Borussia Dortmund 2-1 in the Ruhr derby on Saturday.

Zlatan ruled out

The Parc des Princes, the home of the French champions, Paris St Germain, will be the scene for the heavyweight showdown as they play host to Barcelona.

With their Swedish talisman, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, been ruled out of the tie, PSG will have an uphill task at hand, when they face an in-form Barcelona  who come will be high on confidence after they demolished Granada 6-0 in La Liga at the weekend.

After drawing their first game at Ajax Amsterdam, Laurent Blanc’s side have little room for error against the Catalan giants, who are eyeing a fifth Champions league crown.

In the other game of the group, APOEL will host Ajax. The Cypriot champions earned plenty of plaudits for their performance in losing 1-0 to Barcelona at the Camp Nou in their group opener, but if they are to stand any prospect of progressing they will need to beat Ajax in Nicosia.

Shakhtar host Porto

After a dull draw against Athletic Bilbao in their opening game, Shakhtar will be keen to get on the winning track when they host Porto in Lviv. Porto is expected to give them a tough fight who are coming back on a convincing 6-0 win over BATE.

In the other game, Athletic Bilbao will be eager to get back to winning ways when they become the first visitors to BATE’s new Borisov Arena.

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(Published 29 September 2014, 18:28 IST)

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