Champions league: Two matches on the docket as Europe’s elite clash

Photo [Courtesy]

Champions League football returns tonight with two matches scheduled to be played. Borussia Dortmund welcome Tottenham Hotspur to Signal Iduna Park while Real Madrid host Ajax Amsterdam at the Bernabeu.

Borussia Dortmund Vs Tottenham Hotspur FC

Tottenham Hotspur look to hold on their lead [Courtesy]

Borussia Dortmund will be looking to overcome a three-nil deficit they suffered at Wembley last time out. The Bundesliga outfit is currently going through a horrible run of games after registering losses both domestically and in Europe.

 The recent stumble in their domestic campaign means that Champions Bayern Munich are catching up fast.

 Therefore, they will have to choose between focusing on winning the Bundesliga title or craft a great Champions League story of a club making a comeback.

Tottenham Hotspur have also had a fair share of the domestic troubles in the Premier League with a string of poor results that led to their fall from title contention. This has reduced them to a top-four fight with Man United, Arsenal and Chelsea not far behind.

The falling out of the premier league race means the Champions League is the last place Pochettino has to look for silverware after many years of barrenness.

German-based Borussia Dortmund have a job to do at home [Courtesy]

Team news

Dortmund has a number of stars out for this encounter. Schmelzer and Piszczek are both out with injury while Chelsea bound Christian Pulisic is a doubt.

Tottenham, on the other hand, are without Delle Alli and Kieran Trippier who didn’t travel to Germany. Trippier suffered a hip injury during the London derby on Saturday.

The injury has prompted Pochettino to blast the Premier league for piling fixtures on the Champions League participating clubs.

 Stars to watch

The former Bundesliga champions will be counting on Jadon Sancho, Marco Reus, and Paco Alcacer to fire them back into the game while Tottenham will call upon Harry Kane and Son Heung-min.

 

Real Madrid Vs Ajax Amsterdam

Real Madrid have a fine record in the Competition [Courtesy]

 

Real Madrid have to recover from a domestic horror to see off an Ajax side that is looking to dethrone them as far as Champions League is Concerned. The Los Blancos will be cautious against the Eredivisie Giants despite a 2-1 advantage.

Ajax is a young and promising side which put up a fight in the first leg and if they can handle the pressure that comes with playing at the Bernabeu, then the Football faithful have a mouthwatering clash to look up to.

A young Ajax side promises good football tonight [Courtesy]

Team news

Real have a host of stars returning including Lucas Vasquez, Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior while skipper Sergio Ramos will miss the encounter through suspension. He will also be absent in the first leg of the quarterfinals if his team qualify.

On the other hand, Ajax have fewer injuries to worry about but a number of players risk suspension for the quarterfinals is they pick up yellow cards in today’s match. They include Blind, De Ligt, Mazraoui, Tagliafico, Van de Beek and Ziyech.

Stars to watch

Real Madrid have Benzema in their ranks while Ajax have veteran Klaas Jan Huntelaar and Dusan Tadic.