10 UCL talking points as Liverpool eye history and Klopp wants revenge

After more than a month, the Champions League is back.

There are still two competition weeks to go in the new competition, the first of which starts on Tuesday. Liverpool currently lead the way in the league stage, with Arsenal and Aston Villa alongside them in the top eight.

This season's competition has been tougher for Manchester City, who are at high risk of missing the knockout stages entirely. Villa kicks off on Tuesday evening with a trip to Monaco.

And by the time the 8pm kick-off comes to an end on Wednesday, we could have our first Last 16 qualifiers. Here, Mirror Football looks at the biggest talking points ahead of this week's matches.

Liverpool's historic achievement

Arne Slot's side only need a draw against Lille to confirm their place in the Last 16. They would become the first team to do so in the new era of the Champions League, with a win likely to see them claim top spot.

They are the only team whose fate on the penultimate matchday is in their own hands. The Reds have won all six of their games in this year's competition, although Tuesday's match could be a difficult test.

Lille are also in the automatic qualification places after winning four of their six matches. Their only defeat came on Matchday 1, with the French side having since defeated both Real Madrid and Atletico.

Man City's six-pointer

As Liverpool look set to qualify for the knockout stages, Manchester City are fighting to save their future in the competition. Pep Guardiola's men are just one point above the elimination places.

The club that could replace them in the play-off places is PSG, who travel to the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday. It's a six-pointer for both sides, with a win for PSG potentially moving City into the elimination zone depending on other results.

City have won just two of six games in their European campaign so far. But they have history on their side as they have lost just one of their seven games against Les Parisiens in the UEFA competition.

More questions for PSG

A defeat against City would be a disaster for PSG, who have already lost three times in the Champions League this season. The club have long stated that winning the league is their main goal, but a defeat on Wednesday would put them on the brink of a knockout before the knockout stages begin. They have reached the final only once in the last thirteen years, although they were semi-finalists last season.

The French giants come into the game having spent £59 million to sign Khvicha Kvaratskhelia from Napoli, with another loss potentially piling pressure on manager Luis Enrique.

Klopp's revenge mission

This will be the first round of Champions League matches since Jürgen Klopp started working at Red Bull. And one of the clubs he now oversees could help him get revenge on a Real Madrid side that was his ace at Liverpool.

The German failed to beat the La Liga giants in any of his six games against them as Reds boss, falling to five defeats. His new job as global head of football for Red Bull, with Salzburg as one of the teams under his charge.

They travel to the Bernabeu on Wednesday evening with the chance to seriously damage Madrid's chances of progression. Los Blancos are 20th in the table and defeat to Salzburg would end their hopes of automatic qualification for the Last 16.

Arsenal are trying to come back

It has been a difficult two weeks for Arsenal, who have suffered three defeats in four games in that period. Their Carabao Cup hopes are on life support, they were dumped out of the FA Cup and the draw with Aston Villa seriously damaged their title challenge.

One place where things are going well is the Champions League, with Mikel Arteta's team in third place in the rankings. Wednesday's match against Dinamo Zagreb provides an excellent opportunity for the Gunners to bounce back from their disappointing draw against Villa.

Zagreb are 24th in the table, the last qualifying place for the play-offs, having won just two games so far. This seems like the perfect match for Arteta to get his team's season back on track.

Villa achieved their goal

It was an almost dream return to the highest level of European competition for Aston Villa. They have won four games and lost just once, leaving them in fifth place, with a strong chance of automatic qualification for the Last 16.

Unai Emery's men travel to Monaco on Tuesday evening, where a win is likely to all but confirm their place in that knockout stage. That would fulfill the target set by captain John McGinn after the win over RB Leipzig last time out.

He said: “It's exciting. We'll take each game as it comes, but if we get into the top eight that's great. That's the goal now.”

The message of Gyokeres

Viktor Gyokeres has emerged as one of Europe's best strikers and could well cement his place in the minds of Europe's top clubs this week. The Swedish star has already scored five goals in Sporting Lisbon's six games so far.

The Portuguese team travels to winless Leipzig on Wednesday, with the German team conceding thirteen goals in their six games. They have already been eliminated from this year's competition and have little to play for.

This offers Gyokeres an excellent opportunity to improve his scoring record. Sporting are currently in mid-table and still have work to do to secure their place in the knockout stages.

Brest is approaching a miracle

Brest has been one of the stories of the Champions League this season. Four wins in six games have taken the French side to seventh place and they are all but assured of a place in the knockout stages.

It is a remarkable achievement for Eric Roy's side, who currently sit ninth in Ligue 1. If they beat Shakhtar Donetsk this week, it would be the first time they have qualified for knockout football in European competition .

It certainly seems feasible, with their Ukrainian opponents on the brink of elimination. Shakhtar have won just once in the Champions League this season, with Brest the favorites to pull off a miracle.

Celtic want to end the drought

It's been 12 years since Celtic reached the knockout stages of the Champions League. But that drought could end on Wednesday evening when the Hoops host Young Boys at Celtic Park.

The Swiss side are bottom of the table after losing all six matches, scoring just three times and conceding 22 goals in the process. Brendan Rodgers' side have a golden opportunity to virtually secure their place in the play-off round at least.

A win would take them to 12 points, which would likely send them to the knockout stages. Young Boys have nothing to play for as they have already been eliminated from this year's competition.

Playoff picture becomes clear

The play-off picture should become much clearer towards the end of Wednesday's matches. As it stands, every team up to 33rd-place Bologna has a chance of at least reaching the play-off stages.

Anything less than a win this week for the Italians, along with Salzburg, Red Star Belgrade, Girona and Sturm Graz, will end their chances of reaching the knockouts. Sparta Prague and Donetsk both need to at least draw to keep their hopes alive.

All of these teams are in last-chance territory, with PSG and Stuttgart both also at serious risk of missing the knockout stages. They will play against each other in the final week of play in what is already shaping up to be a crucial clash.

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