Five Must-Watch League Phase Fixtures

The Champions League makes its return on Tuesday and there are a number of standout fixtures to cast your eyes over between now and January.

The desire for more glamorous ties between the heavyweights of European football – and the increased financial rewards that come with them – was the bedrock of the revamp the competition underwent last season.

The league phase that was introduced in place of the group stages a year ago remains in situ and this season features emotional reunions, trips to far-flung places the Champions League has never visited before and old foes back in town to haunt their rivals.

Here are five must-watch fixtures in the league stage.

Newcastle vs Barcelona, September 18

A home fixture against Barcelona would be marked in red of most clubs’ calendars, but for Newcastle fans the visit of the Catalans holds a particular meaning.

It is almost three decades since the Blaugrana arrived in the north east of England and were beaten 3-2 in one of the greatest Champions League fixtures ever played, with Faustino Asprilla’s hat-trick etching his name in Geordie’s lore forever more.

It is now time for Newcastle to write new memories and while Alexander Isak’s departure to Liverpool is a blow, they retain enough quality to target the knockout stages.

And just as it was against Barcelona in 1997, St James’ Park will be shaking and rocking for the arrivals of the LaLiga champions.

But amid the electric atmosphere and the justifiable euphoria beating the Catalans would spark, there are cautionary tales for Eddie Howe.

Newcastle failed to make it out of their group in 1997 as they did two years ago, when they finished bottom of their group despite dismantling Paris Saint-Germain 4-1 at home in their first Champions League fixture at home in two decades.

If they get off to a great start, the Magpies must capitalize on it.

Manchester City vs Napoli, September 18

Kevin De Bruyne makes his return to Manchester just three months after leaving the Etihad Stadium to sign for Napoli as free agent.

The Belgian has a legitimate claim to be considered City’s greatest ever player, making 422 appearances for City in all competitions, scoring 108 goals and registering 177 assists since signing from German side Wolfsburg in 2015.

De Bruyne won 16 major trophies with City and was arguably the catalyst for the Pep Guardiola’s era that reshaped English football.

At 34, De Bruyne’s legs might be heavier than his prime but his brain remains as sharp as ever, which is why Antonio Conte wanted him in Naples.

The former Italy manager is the only man to have won the Serie A title with three different clubs – Juventus, Inter Milan and Napoli – and the Premier League with Chelsea, but has never managed to translate the domestic success onto the continental stage.

After winning the league last term and spending big in the summer, Conte must now deliver a proper tilt at the Champions League and qualification should be well within Napoli’s reach.

Much of their chances, on the night and in the tournament as a whole, will rest on De Bruyne’s shoulders, whose return will be treated as a glorious homecoming.

“I think Pep [Guardiola] and all of his colleagues will be really happy to receive him and our fans will be also,” he said. “It will be very exciting and we will be very happy to see him again.”

The same cannot be said for former Manchester United men Scott McTominay and Rasmus Hojlund, who will be hoping to get one over their former local rivals.

Kairat vs Real Madrid, September 30

Kairat captain Alyaksandr Martynovich said it would be a dream to play Real Madrid after the Kazakhs knocked out Celtic in the preliminary round to qualify for the Champions League for the first time.

His dream came through as the 15-time European champions will be making the 3,980-mile trip to Almaty to face Kairat.

From a footballing standpoint, the fixture may lack the jeopardy and glamour of some of the other entries in this list, and it is difficult to imagine anything other than a routine Real Madrid win.

And yet, the Spanish giants’ epic trip to the Kazakh capital is a salutary reminder that European football can, occasionally, still feel like a journey into the unknown.

After all, Almaty is in Asia and closer to Tokyo than it is to Madrid.

Liverpool vs Real Madrid, November 4

From Kevin De Bruyne’s glorious homecoming, to one that could be a more awkward affair as Trent Alexander-Arnold returns to Liverpool just months after leaving his boyhood club for Real Madrid.

But while De Bruyne left Manchester with the blessing of City fans, Alexander-Arnold’s exit from Anfield drew the ire of sections of Liverpool fans.

An academy product who spent two decades at the club, the England international was booed against Arsenal in May after he announced he would leave Liverpool at the end of the season.

He eventually received a great send off as the Reds celebrated a record-equalling 20th title weeks later, but Anfield should be far less welcoming on his return.

With 22 European Cups and Champions League titles between them, this kind of fixture is exactly why the new Champions League format was introduced and this marks the second consecutive season Liverpool and Real Madrid cross path in the league phase after the Reds won 2-0 at home last term.

It is hard to dispel the feeling showdowns between European football’s best and most historic clubs should be preserved for the knockout stages, but the atmosphere at Anfield will be electric nevertheless.

As Arne Slot succinctly put it, this is “a fixture that the whole world will be looking at”.

Arsenal vs Bayern Munich, November 26

If Kevin De Bruyne and to a lesser extent Trent Alexander-Arnold can expect a welcoming atmosphere on their return to the Etihad Stadium and Anfield, there is no such luxury in store for Harry Kane.

The England captain returns to north London at the end of November and, as a Tottenham Hotspur icon, he will be public enemy number one when the German giants face Arsenal at the Emirates.

Kane has been a constant thorn in the Gunners’ side for years, scoring 15 times in 21 meetings against them and scored at the Emirates for Bayern in a 2-2 draw in the first leg of the quarter-finals two years ago.

A goal in November would see Arsenal become Kane’s joint-second preferred victim along with Everton, behind Leicester City, against whom he has scored 21 times.

Worryingly for Mikel Arteta, Bayern have nice memories of their recent visits to the Emirates, winning three and drawing one of their last five trips to north London.