Champions League Matchweek Five Preview: Newcastle desperate for win in Paris

As we reach the business end of the Champions League group stage there is still so much to play as some big six-pointers await us.  

With Manchester City through and Arsenal looking likely Round of 16 candidates, Newcastle and Manchester United are the English teams who are most desperately in need of three points this week.

We preview the two key matches below.

PSG v Newcastle, Tuesday 20:00

After kicking off their Champions League campaign with a draw against AC Milan and a win over PSG, Newcastle will be looking disappointedly at their four-point tally which sees them bottom of Group F after four matches.

At 19/5, The Magpies are the obvious underdogs in this game and it will certainly pose a challenge. An even tougher mountain to climb for them could be getting points from both of their final two group matches, which they will need to do as 9/4 outsiders to qualify from Group F.

Eddie Howe’s men have failed to score away from their fortress of St James’ Park so far, and the Parc des Princes is not the easiest place to break that duck. Howe will be pinning his hopes on star Alexander Isak who is 11/5 to find the back of the net.

Despite the departure of Lionel Messi and Neymar, PSG still have a star-studded squad and will be expecting to pick up three crucial points at home as the 6/10 favourites.

No doubt all eyes will be on Kylian Mbappe. The Frenchman has 16 goals in as many appearances so far this season, netting two of those in the Champions League. Mbappe knows what it means to score in big games and this is certainly one of those, so it is no surprise that he is favourite to score first at 5/2.

Galatasaray v Manchester United, Wednesday 17:45

Galatasaray v Manchester United does not necessarily look to have the makings of a Champions league classic on paper, but the situation that both these clubs find themselves in at the moment could spell fireworks in Istanbul.

Having been drawn in a group with Copenhagen and Galatasaray, most expected United to breeze through to the knockout stages with ease, a stark contrast to the fact that they currently sit bottom of Group A with just three points to their name.

Erik ten Hag has failed to rally the troops so far in the Champions League, but he will expect his players to be up for this game and justify their slim 29/20 favouritism. United are by far the superior side on paper, but they came unstuck against Galatasaray at Old Trafford and the Turkish outfit are certainly not out of it at 6/4 to steal another three points form the Red Devils.

Marcus Rashford finally found his scoring boots in United’s 3-0 win over Everton at the weekend, but all eyes will be on Rasmus Hojlund who is 7/4 to add to his impressive tally of five in this season’s Champions League.

Former Manchester United man Wilfred Zaha got his sweet revenge at Old Trafford after netting an equaliser in the 3-2 victory for Galatasaray, and he won’t want to make United’s trip to Turkey a pleasant one, with the explosive winger 7/1 to have the last laugh and net the final goal of the match.

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