UCL Preview: In-form Man Utd vs Neymar-less PSG; Madrid visit De Jong's Ajax

Champions League is finally back! Welcome to our All Football Champions League Preview!

Man United vs PSG

Kick off: 21:00(CET)

Date: Tue, 12-Feb-19

Probable Lineups: 

Man United News

Anthony Martial has cemented a starting spot after his performance against Fulham on Saturday.

Marcus Rashford, Ashley Young and Jesse Lingard will also return to the starting XI after being rested at the weekend.

Victor Lindelöf was not risked against Fulham after picking up a small injury and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will hope he recovers in time for Tuesday.

The only doubt in the starting XI is who partners Lindelof at centre-back. Solskjaer may opt for Eric Bailly to utilise his pace against Kylian Mbappe.

PSG News

Paris Saint-Germain are expected to be without Neymar and Edinson Cavani for both legs.

Thomas Meunier will miss out on Tuesday because of concussion, but PSG at least have Marco Verratti back even if he is not at peak physical fitness.

Kylian Mbappe is expected to lead the line for the away side, while Dani Alves has been tipped for a more advanced right-wing position.

Thilo Kehrer and Verratti will miss the return leg if they are booked at Old Trafford.

Focus:

Paris Saint-Germain were expected to thrash Manchester United when the draw was made in December but so much has changed since then that United have a real chance of progressing.

United have won 10 of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's first 11 matches in charge and come up against a PSG side that will be without star forwards Neymar and Edinson Cavani. The Red Devils are by no means guarenteed to win on Tuesday night but they will be disappointed if they don't take an advantage into the second leg.

PSG only win in the Champions League away to English opposition was against Chelsea in 2016, otherwise their record is D4, L5. An away goal would leave them in a good position for the second leg.

Prediction:

Man United 2-1 PSG

Roma vs Porto

Kick off: 21:00(CET)

Date: Tue, 12-Feb-19

Probable Lineups: 

Roma News

Roma will be without first-choice goalkeeper Robin Olsen for the first leg of their last-16 Champions League tie. Antonio Mirante is ready to deputise.

Cengiz Ünder has missed Roma's last four matches with a hamstring injury and is also expected to miss out on Tuesday. With Patrik Schick sidelined, Justin Kluivert has a good chance of starting on the wing.

Porto News

Eder Militao, Pepe and Otavio are all one booking away from missing the return leg, while Jesus Manuel Corona is suspended on Tuesday.

Porto will be missing both first-choice strikers Vincent Aboubakar and Moussa Marega for Tuesday's trip to Italy.

Focus:

Roma have only lost one of their last eight matches, though that defeat was a 7-1 loss to Fiorentina. The Serie A outfit have not been overly convincing in recent months.

Porto are unbeaten in all competitions since October, though they did lose on penalties to Sporting in the cup last month.

Porto have won their last five Champions League matches. An average of 3.8 goals per game were scored during that time, so expect another entertaining game here.

Prediction:

Roma 2-2 Porto

Tottenham vs Dortmund

Kick off: 21:00(CET)

Date: Wed, 13-Feb-19

Probable Lineups: 

Tottenham News:

Harry Kane and Dele Alli are both back in training, but aren't expected to feature here, while Ben Davies remains sidelined for the home side.

Ben Davies misses out through injury, while Eric Dier and Erik Lamela will be assessed after the pair missed the 3-1 win over Leicester.

Lucas Moura and Victor Wanyama will both be pushing for a start, while Toby Alderweireld could come in for Oliver Skipp from the side that overcame the Foxes on Sunday.

Dortmund News:

Marco Reus has sustained a small muscle tear and is out for 10 days, which could prove to be a huge blow for Borussia Dortmund.

Manuel Akanji misses out for Dortmund, so Lucien Favre has to decide whether Julian Weigl or Omer Toprak will partner Abdou Diallo in defence.

In attack, Mario Gotze could drop back to midfield to deputise for Reus and allow Paco Alcacer to start.

Focus:

Tottenham progressed to the knockout stages of the Champions League by the skin of their teeth to set up a meeting with Borussia Dortmund. They beat Dortmund both home and away in the group stages of the Champions League last season, but the Bundesliga side are a more difficult proposition this time around.

Dortmund were pegged back from 3-0 down to draw 3-3 with Hoffenheim at the weekend and have now failed to win in three in all competitions. The German giants won two of their three away group stage matches, with their sole defeat coming in their toughest test at Atletico Madrid.

This promises to be an entertaining meeting between two attacking sides and we could see a draw as a result.

Prediction:

Tottenham 2-2 Dortmund

Ajax vs Real Madrid

Kick off: 21:00(CET)

Date: Wed, 13-Feb-19

Probable Lineups: 

Ajax News

Nicolas Tagliafico and Daley Blind are both one booking away from missing the return leg.

Noussair Mazraoui recovered from injury to feature from the bench in Ajax's 1-0 defeat to Heracles on Saturday.

Frenkie de Jong is reportedly a doubt and Ajax will be desperate to have him available here.

Real Madrid News

Thibaut Courtois has started all three of Santiago Solari's Champions League matches and is expected to continue here.

Marcelo has dropped down the pecking order in recent weeks, with Sergio Reguilón expected to start at left-back here.

Gareth Bale is also no longer a guarenteed starter for Madrid and may have to settle for a place on the bench here.

Sergio Ramos will miss the return leg if he is booked on Wednesday. Isco is the only reported injury concern for the away side.

Focus:

Ajax have lost form at the worst time. The Dutch side have lost three matches all season and two of them have come in their last three outings.

Real Madrid, meanwhile, appear to be edging closer to their best form after a rough season. The defending champions are unbeaten in their last seven and have won six of those.

Madrid have drawn away to Barcelona and triumphed on the road to Atletico Madrid in the last week. What looked a tricky draw at the time now appears more straightforward for the defending champions.

Prediction:

Ajax 1-2 Real Madrid