UEFA Champions League Matchday 3: Key stats and what to look out for in every game
The UEFA Champions League resumes with the best of the best locking horns once more on Matchday 3. There will be emotional reunions for the likes of Thomas Delaney, Noa Lang, Eric Dier, Jorrel Hato and Hugo Ekitiké, and another chapter written in the great rivalry between Real Madrid and Juventus.
Here is a look at the key facts and stats from every fixture as the league phase continues.
All matches kick off at 21:00 CET unless stated.
Tuesday 21 October
Barcelona vs Olympiacos (18:45)
The only previous UEFA competition matches between these teams were in the 2017/18 Champions League group stage when a 3-1 home victory for Barcelona on Matchday 3 was followed by a 0-0 draw in Greece on Matchday 4.
Barcelona have won all their previous seven home matches in UEFA competition against Greek teams.
Lamine Yamal (18 years 100 days) could become the youngest player to make 25 appearances in the Champions League proper. The current youngest is Warren Zaïre-Emery (19 years 32 days).
Olympiacos are without a win in their previous 16 away matches against Spanish teams in UEFA competition (D2 L14) and have lost their last 11 Champions League group stage/league phase matches away from home.
The Greek outfit have won only two of their last 22 Champions League group stage/league phase matches (D3 L17). However, the Piraeus club have kept seven clean sheets in their last 11 European games.
Olympiacos midfielder Daniel Podence could make an appearance on his 30th birthday.
Kairat Almaty vs Pafos (18:45)
Kairat Almaty’s only previous UEFA matches against a Cypriot team were a pair of 0-0 draws with Omonoia in the 2021/22 Conference League group stage.
The Kazakh side are without a win in their previous eight UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches (D2 L6).
Kairat Almaty, who are aiming to become the first team from Kazakhstan to win a match in the group stage/league phase of the Champions League, have failed to score in four of their last five UEFA competition matches.
Pafos have played one UEFA competition match against a team from Kazakhstan previously. That was a 1-0 home win against Astana on Matchday 3 of last season’s Conference League.
Pafos are aiming to become the first team from Cyprus to win a match in the group stage/league phase of the Champions League since APOEL won 2-1 at home against Porto on 1 November 2011.
The Cypriot outfit have scored in 14 of their last 16 UEFA competition matches.
Arsenal vs Atlético de Madrid
Arsenal have won their last six Champions League matches against Spanish teams. They are the first team to achieve that in the European Cup/ Champions League history.
A victory for Arsenal would be their 100th win in the Champions League proper.
The Gunners have won their last 14 UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches at home. They have won 11 in a row without conceding a goal.
Bukayo Saka has scored 11 goals in his first 19 Champions League appearances. The record for most goals scored by an English player in his first 20 appearances in the competition is held by Harry Kane (15 goals) but Saka is already second on the list, ahead of Andy Cole (ten).
Atleti are without a win in their previous nine Champions League group stage/league phase matches against English teams (D4 L5).
The Spanish side have only failed to score in one of their last 18 Champions League group stage/league phase matches.
Julián Alvarez has scored seven goals in his last seven Champions League appearances but never scored against Arsenal in four games for Manchester City.
Leverkusen vs Paris Saint-Germain
The only previous UEFA competition matches between these teams were in the 2013/14 Champions League round of 16 when Paris followed up a 4-0 victory in Germany with a 2-1 home win, Marquinhos getting their first goal.
Leverkusen are unbeaten in their last five UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches against French teams (W3 D2).
Die Werkself have lost only two of their last 18 UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches (W11 D5). At home, it is just one defeat in their last 17 such games (W14 D2).
Paris have won 12 of their last 14 Champions League matches (L2), and their last five games in the league phase of the Champions League.
Senny Mayulu has scored three goals in his last four Champions League appearances.
Warren Zaïre-Emery (19 years 227 days) could become the first player under the age of 20 to make 30 appearances in the Champions League proper. The youngest player to reach the landmark is currently Cesc Fàbregas (20 years 207 days).
Copenhagen vs Borussia Dortmund
These teams have met four times previously in UEFA competition. They met in the 2001/02 UEFA Cup third round when Dortmund won both legs 1-0 then in the 2022/23 Champions League group stage when a 3-0 home win for Dortmund on Matchday 1 was followed by a 1-1 draw in Copenhagen on Matchday 6.
Copenhagen have won only one of their previous 17 UEFA competition matches against German teams (D6 L10). However, the Danish outfit have lost only two of their previous 19 home Champions League group stage/league phase matches (W8 D9).
Copenhagen midfielder Thomas Delaney made 88 appearances for Dortmund between 2018–21 while forward Youssoufa Moukoko joined FCK in the summer from Dortmund, where he became the youngest ever Champions League player.
This is Dortmund’s 200th match in European Cup/Champions League history. They are only the second German team to reach the landmark after Bayern.
Dortmund have scored four goals in successive Champions League matches for the first time since the 2014/15 group stage (4-0 a, 4-1 h vs Galatasaray). They have never scored four in three successive games in the competition.
Serhou Guirassy has scored 16 goals in his first 20 Champions League appearances – only Erling Haaland has more – and has 11 in his last 11 games in the competition’s group stage/league phase.
Newcastle United vs Benfica
Newcastle have won only one of their previous seven UEFA competition matches against Portuguese teams (D4 L2) but are unbeaten in their previous four at home against those clubs (W1 D3).
The Magpies are aiming for successive wins in the Champions League proper for the first time since back-to-back triumphs against Leverkusen in the second group stage in 2002/03. Their 4-0 victory at Union SG on Matchday 2 was their biggest win in the competition proper.
Anthony Gordon has scored three goals in his last two league phase appearances. He is aiming to be the first player to score in three successive appearances in the Champions League proper for Newcastle.
Benfica are without a win in their last eight UEFA competition matches against English teams (D3 L5), since a 3-1 victory at Tottenham in the first leg of the 2013/14 Europa League round of 16. They lost 1-0 at Chelsea on Matchday 2.
The Eagles are without a win in their last 11 matches against English teams in the Champions League proper (D3 L8), since a 2-0 victory at Liverpool in the second leg of the round of 16 in March 2006.
Benfica have lost their last four matches in the Champions League proper.
PSV Eindhoven vs Napoli
PSV have won seven of their last 12 UEFA competition matches at home against Italian teams (D2 L3).
PSV need three goals to reach 300 scored in European Cup/Champions League history – Ajax (396) are the only Dutch club to previously reach the milestone.
There have been 45 goals in PSV’s last 11 Champions League matches, an average of 4.1 per game.
The Dutch outfit have lost only three of their last 15 Champions League group stage/league phase matches (W6 D6).
Napoli’s last UEFA competition matches against a Dutch team were in the 2022/23 Champions League group stage against Ajax, when they won 6-1 away from home on Matchday 3 and 4-2 in Naples on Matchday 4.
The Partenopei have lost their last three away Champions League matches.
Napoli forward Noa Lang joined the club from PSV in the summer. The 26-year-old Netherlands international scored 19 goals in 63 games across two seasons with the Eindhoven club.
Union Saint-Gilloise vs Inter
Union SG’s only previous UEFA competition match against an Italian team was a 1-1 draw against Roma in the league phase of last season’s Europa League.
Only two of Union SG’s previous 38 UEFA competition matches finished goalless.
Union SG were unbeaten in their last seven home group stage/league phase matches in UEFA competitions (W4 D3) prior to their 4-0 defeat by Newcastle on Matchday 2.
Inter have lost only one of their last 16 Champions League group stage/league phase matches (W11 D4), and have kept ten clean sheets in their last 11 games at that stage of the competition.
Lautaro Martínez has scored ten goals in his last nine appearances in this competition.
Alessandro Bastoni could make his 50th appearance in the Champions League proper.
Villarreal vs Manchester City
Manchester City won the only previous two UEFA competition matches between these teams in the 2011/12 group stage, 2-1 in Manchester and 3-0 in Villarreal.
Villarreal are without a win in their last eight UEFA competition matches against English teams (D3 L5). They have lost five in a row, including at Tottenham on Matchday 1.
The Yellow Submarine have lost only one of their last ten UEFA competition matches at home (W6 D3).
Manchester City have won five of their last six Champions League group stage/league phase matches against Spanish teams (L1).
Pep Guardiola’s men are without a win in their last five Champions League matches away from home (D1 L4) but have lost only three of their last 22 games in the group stage/league phase (W14 D5).
Erling Haaland has scored 36 goals in his 32 Champions League group stage/league phase appearances.
Wednesday 22 October
Athletic Club vs Qarabağ (18:45)
Athletic Club have won 14 of their last 19 UEFA competition matches at home (L5).
However, the La Liga outfit have now lost four successive UEFA competition matches for the first time.
Athletic Club’s only previous UEFA competition matches against a team from Azerbaijan were in the third qualifying round of the 2015/16 Europa League when they defeated FK Şamaxı 2-0 on aggregate.
Qarabağ’s only previous Champions League proper games against a Spanish team were a pair of draws against Atleti in the 2017/18 group stage (0-0 h, 1-1 a).
The Azerbaijani club have won successive matches in the league phase of the 2025/26 Champions League – they had never won a match in the competition proper previously. They have won seven of their eight UEFA competition matches this season (L1).
None of Qarabağ’s last 44 UEFA competition matches have finished goalless and they have scored 15 times in their last five Champions League matches.
Galatasaray vs Bodø/Glimt (18:45)
Galatasaray are unbeaten in their previous three UEFA competition matches at home against Norwegian teams (W2 D1) and their last six at home versus all clubs (W4 D2).
The Turkish side have only failed to score in one of their last 23 UEFA competition matches at home.
Galatasaray are unbeaten in their last 29 home matches in all competitions (W21 D8).
Bodø/Glimt have won their last three UEFA competition matches against Turkish opposition (all vs Beşiktaş: 3-1 home and 2-1 away in the 2023/24 Conference League group stage and 2-1 at home in the league phase of last season’s Europa League).
The Norwegian outfit are unbeaten in their last five UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches (W2 D3).
Bodø/Glimt have scored two or more goals in ten of their last 14 UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches.
Monaco vs Tottenham
Monaco won the last two UEFA competition matches between these teams in the 2016/17 Champions League group stage (2-1 h, 2-1 a). Their only other encounters were in the 2015/16 Europa League group stage when a 1-1 draw in Monaco on Matchday 2 was followed by a 4-1 home win for Tottenham on Matchday 6.
Monaco defender Eric Dier played in all four of those previous meetings for Tottenham. The defender made 365 appearances for Spurs across ten seasons in north London.
Monaco have lost only one of their last ten UEFA competition matches at home against English teams (W6 D3) but have won only one of their last eight Champions League matches (D2 L5).
Spurs have won seven of their last 12 Champions League group stage/league phase matches (D3 L2). They are unbeaten in six (W3 D3).
Tottenham have scored in 17 of their last 18 UEFA competition matches while only one of Monaco’s last 72 European games have finished goalless.
Atalanta vs Slavia Praha
Atalanta have won nine of their last 16 UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches (D5 L2).
At home, La Dea have lost only one of their last eight in the group stage/league phase of European competition (W4 D3).
On Matchday 2, Mario Pašalić became Atalanta’s all-time top scorer in the Champions League proper with eight goals.
Slavia Praha have won only one of their last 12 UEFA competition matches against Italian teams (D3 L8) and have lost nine of their last ten European games away to Italian sides (D1). They were beaten 3-0 at Inter on Matchday 2.
The Czech side are without a win in their last 13 matches in the Champions League proper (D5 L8), since a 2-1 home victory against Steaua on Matchday 1 of their debut campaign in September 2007.
Slavia Praha are without a win in their last nine UEFA competition matches (D3 L6) and have lost their last four away European games without scoring.
Chelsea vs Ajax
The only previous UEFA competition matches between these teams were in the 2019/20 Champions League group stage when a 1-0 win for Chelsea in Amsterdam was followed by a 4-4 draw in London – current Blues defender Reece James scoring the equaliser. Overall, Chelsea are unbeaten in their previous four UEFA competition matches against Dutch teams (W3 D1).
This is Chelsea’s 200th match in the Champions League proper while it is Ajax’s 250th game in European Cup/Champions League history.
None of Chelsea’s last 50 UEFA competition matches have finished goalless.
The Blues have lost only two of their last 60 UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches at Stamford Bridge and are unbeaten in the last 15 (W11 D4).
Chelsea signed defender Jorrel Hato from Ajax in the summer. The 19-year-old centre-back made 111 appearances in his three seasons in Amsterdam.
Ajax are without a win in their last 11 UEFA competition matches against English teams (D2 L9), since a 1-0 away victory against Tottenham in the first leg of the 2018/19 Champions League semi-finals. They have not scored a goal in the last five of those games.
The Dutch side have lost six of their last seven Champions League group stage/league phase matches (W1).
Frankfurt vs Liverpool
Frankfurt have lost only one of their last ten UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches at home (W7 D2). They have won four in a row.
Only one of Frankfurt’s last 67 UEFA competition matches have finished goalless.
Hugo Ekitiké joined Liverpool from Frankfurt this summer. The 23-year-old striker scored 26 goals in 64 matches across his two seasons in Germany.
Liverpool are unbeaten in their last 14 UEFA competition matches against German teams (W11 D3), since a 4-2 defeat away to Leverkusen in the 2001/02 Champions League quarter-finals.
None of Liverpool’s last 28 UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches finished level. The last draw was on 9 December 2020 away to Midtjylland in the Champions League (1-1).
Mohamed Salah needs two goals to reach 50 in the Champions League, and become the first African player to do so.
Bayern München vs Club Brugge
Bayern have lost only one of their last ten UEFA competition matches against Belgian teams (W6 D3) and have won seven of their previous eight at home against them.
The German giants are unbeaten in their last 35 home Champions League group stage/league phase matches (W33 D2) and have lost only three of their last 50 home and away (W43 D4).
Harry Kane has scored 44 goals in his 59 appearances in the Champions League proper. The most goals scored by a player who has made 60 appearances is Ruud van Nistelrooy (48).
Club Brugge have won only two of their last 15 UEFA competition matches against German teams (D4 L9).
The Belgian team have won only one of their previous 16 UEFA competition matches away from home against German teams (D5 L10). The only victory was a 2-1 success at Leipzig in the Champions League group stage in September 2021 – current midfielder Hans Vanaken was on target for Club Brugge in that game.
Club Brugge are without a win in their last four Champions League group stage/league phase away games (D1 L3).
Real Madrid vs Juventus
Real Madrid and Juventus have met 21 times in UEFA competitions, with the Spanish team winning ten, the Italian side nine, and two ending in draws. Two of those games were Champions League finals – Real Madrid winning the 1998 showpiece 1-0 and 2017 decider 4-1.
The Meringues have won 18 of their last 20 UEFA competition matches against Italian teams (L2).
Real Madrid have won 14 of their last 17 Champions League group stage/league phase matches (L3) and 12 of their last 13 such games at home (L1).
Kylian Mbappé (26 years 306 days) could become the youngest player to make 90 appearances in the Champions League proper. The record is currently held by another Real Madrid icon, Raúl González (27 years 114 days).
Juventus have lost only one of their last eight Champions League group stage/league phase matches against Spanish teams (W4 D3).
The Italian side have scored a total of 497 goals in European Cup/Champions League history.
Juventus forward Jonathan David scored the winning goal in a 1-0 victory for Lille against Real Madrid on Matchday 2 of the Champions League last season.
Sporting CP vs Marseille
These teams have faced each other twice in UEFA competition, both in the 2022/23 Champions League group stage. Marseille emerged victorious in both matches, 4-1 at home and 2-0 in Lisbon. Current OM defender Leonardo Balerdi scored in the first of those games.
Sporting CP have won six of their last eight UEFA competition matches at home against French teams (L2).
The Portuguese outfit have won only one of their last eight Champions League matches (D2 L5).
Marseille have lost only two of their last eight UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches (W4 D2).
OM have scored 99 goals in the Champions League proper. Sporting CP registered their 100th on Matchday 2.
None of Marseille’s last 26 matches in the Champions League proper have finished level (W5 L20).
