UCL Group Stage MD3 stats ahead of Wednesday's matches

Barcelona lost their first two UEFA Champions League matches against Dynamo Kyiv in the 1997-98 group stages but have since won four in a row against them, beating them twice in last season’s group stages.

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Dynamo Kyiv have won one of their six away matches against Barcelona in European competition (D1 L4), a 4-0 victory in the UEFA Champions League in November 1997 with Andriy Shevchenko scoring a hat-trick. It remains Barcelona’s heaviest home defeat in the European Cup/Champions League.

Barcelona have lost their last three home UEFA Champions League matches, their worst home losing run in European competition and as many defeats as they’d had in their previous 74 home Champions League matches (W59 D12 L3).

Dynamo Kyiv have lost three of their four away games under Mircea Lucescu in the UEFA Champions League (D1), including each of the last three. They last suffered four consecutive away defeats in the competition in November 2006, with two of the four games in that run coming in Spain (v Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu).

Despite only taking charge of 4% of Barcelona’s home UEFA Champions League matches (5/131), 25% of their total home defeats in the competition have come under Ronald Koeman (3/12). He is the only Barcelona manager to lose more than twice at home in the competition.

Dynamo Kyiv manager Mircea Lucescu has lost seven of his 10 UEFA Champions League games against Barcelona (W2 D1), with only Arsène Wenger against Barcelona losing more times (eight) against an opponent of any manager in Champions League history.

Barcelona have recorded fewer shots on target (1) than any other team in the UEFA Champions League this season, while only Wolfsburg and FC Porto (11) have attempted fewer shots than Ronald Koeman’s side (13). They are looking to avoid going three consecutive games without scoring in European competitions for the second time in their history, after March 1988 in UEFA Cup.

Dynamo Kyiv have suffered more high turnovers against (opposition sequences that start within 40 metres of Kyiv’s goal) than any other team in the UEFA Champions League this season (30), while only AC Milan (7) and Besiktas (6) have conceded more shots directly from high turnovers than the Ukrainian side (5).

Barcelona’s Ansu Fati has been directly involved in three goals in two UEFA Champions League starts at the Camp Nou (one goal and two assists), with the most recent of those starts coming against Dynamo Kyiv in November 2020 - Fati provided the assist for Gerard Piqué’s goal in a 2-1 victory.

Marc-André ter Stegen has conceded 23 goals in his last eight UEFA Champions League appearances for Barcelona, as many goals as he conceded in his previous 29 games in the competition for them between April 2017 and August 2020.

FC RB Salzburg v VfL Wolfsburg
20 October 2021 / KO: 18:45

This is the first ever meeting between FC RB Salzburg and VfL Wolfsburg in any competition.

In RB Salzburg’s last four UEFA European competition meetings with German opponents, there have been 21 goals scored (6 for, 15 against) – last season’s Champions League games against Bayern Munich saw 12 scored alone (2-6 home defeat, 3-1 away defeat).

VfL Wolfsburg have only faced Austrian opponents once before in European competition, winning 5-3 on aggregate against Sturm Graz in July 2005 in the Intertoto Cup.

RB Salzburg are looking to go unbeaten in their opening three games of a UEFA Champions League campaign for the first time (currently W1 D1), while following their victory over Lille last time out, could also win consecutive games in the competition for the first time.

VfL Wolfsburg have drawn both of their games in the UEFA Champions League this season (0-0 v Lille and 1-1 v Sevilla). Indeed, the German side’s two games have had a total of just 4.1 expected goals (1.3 for, 2.8 against), with only Chelsea (3.8) having a lower tally in the competition so far.

The average age of RB Salzburg’s starting XI in the UEFA Champions League this season is 22 years and 312 days; the youngest of any team in the competition. At the same time, no team have used fewer players than the Austrian side through the opening two rounds of the group stage (16).

Since the start of last season, RB Salzburg have averaged more pressed sequences per game than any other team in the UEFA Champions League (19.3). This highlights the pressing ability of teams by capturing the number of opposition sequences that start in their defensive third, where they make three or fewer passes and the sequence ends in their own half.

RB Salzburg’s Luka Sucic has been directly involved in more shots than any other player for the club in the UEFA Champions League this season (9 – four shots and five chances created), while his total of nine is also the most of any teenager in the competition through the opening two rounds.

Renato Steffen scored Wolfsburg’s only goal in the UEFA Champions League to date this season (v Sevilla) – it was only his second goal in the competition, and first since scoring on his debut in the UEFA Champions League back in September 2016 for FC Basel (v Ludogorets).

Karim Adeyemi has won four penalties for RB Salzburg in the UEFA Champions League this season. Since 2003-04 (as far back as we have this data), no player has ever won more than four in a single season in the competition.

Young Boys v Villarreal
20 October 2021 / KO: 21:00

This is the first ever meeting between Young Boys and Villarreal in European competition.

The only previous Swiss side Villarreal have faced in European competition is FC Zürich, playing them in the 2014-15 and 2016-17 UEFA Europa League campaigns (P4 W2 D1 L1).

Young Boys won their first ever meeting with a Spanish side in the European Cup/UEFA Champions League (1-0 v Real Madrid in September 1986), but are winless in their last three such games since then (D1 L2) and lost the most recent one - 1-3 v Valencia in November 2018.

Villarreal have lost eight of their last nine games in the UEFA Champions League (D1), conceding at least two goals in all nine outings in this run. They will be looking for their first win in the competition since March 2009, when they won 2-1 v Panathinaikos under Manuel Pellegrini.

Young Boys are unbeaten in their last three home games in the UEFA Champions League (W2 D1), and could equal their longest run without defeat on home soil in the European Cup/UEFA Champions League – a run of four games between 1957 and 1959.

Young Boys attempted 19 shots in their previous home game in the UEFA Champions League, in their 2-1 win v Manchester United. This was their most shots in a single game in the competition, however last time out against Atalanta away from home, they recorded their fewest shots in a UEFA Champions League game (3).

Villarreal’s defeat against Manchester United on MD2 was their first loss in European competition since April 2019 (0-2 v Valencia in the UEFA Europa League), ending a run of 17 games unbeaten. They haven’t lost consecutive away games in major European competition since September 2015 (1-2 v Sevilla and Rapid Wien in the UEFA Europa League).

Arnaut Danjuma has been directly involved in two goals in two UEFA Champions League appearances for Villarreal (one goal and one assist). Since 2003-04 (for when we have this data available), no player has ever scored or assisted in three consecutive appearances for the Yellow Submarine in the competition.

Young Boys’ Nicolas Moumi Ngamaleu has attempted (22) and completed (12) more take-ons than any other player in the UEFA Champions League this season. Indeed, there have been three instances of a player attempting more than 10 dribbles in a game in the competition this term, with the Cameroonian doing so for two of those (11 v Manchester United and Atalanta).

Villarreal winger Arnaut Danjuma was directly involved in five shots following a carry (moving 5+ metres with the ball) against Manchester United on MD2, firing in four shots himself and creating one chance. This was the most by a player in a single game in the UEFA Champions League this season, while only Bayern Munich’s Kingsley Coman managed more in a game in the competition last term (6 v Atlético Madrid in October 2020).

Benfica v Bayern Munich
20 October 2021 / KO: 21:00

Benfica have never beaten Bayern Munich in any of their 10 UEFA European meetings previously (D3 L7), last facing them in 2018-19 in the Champions League, losing both games.

Bayern Munich’s eight unbeaten matches against Benfica in the European Cup/Champions League (W5 D3) is the joint-most by a team against an opponent since the tournament began in 1955 – Bayern Munich vs Spartak Moscow (W5 D3) and Barcelona vs Lyon (W5 D3) have also faced eight times without ever losing.

Bayern Munich are on a record of 19-matches away UEFA Champions League unbeaten run (W15 D4), netting 54 goals in this run since losing 3-0 at PSG in September 2017. Over a third of their goals in this unbeaten run have been scored by their Polish striker Robert Lewandowski (19 – 35%).

Benfica have kept a clean sheet in each of their last three games in the UEFA Champions League (W2 D1); their joint-longest run in the competition, having last kept three in a row in March 2006 under Ronald Koeman.

Since the start of last season, Bayern Munich have averaged more goals (3.2) and have a higher expected goals tally (2.6) per game than any other team in the UEFA Champions League. Among teams involved in both the 2020-21 and 2021-22 tournaments, they also have the highest shot conversion rate in this period (18.3%).

Benfica have won their last two home games in the UEFA Champions League by 3-0 scorelines (v Zenit in December 2019 and Barcelona last month). They haven’t won three consecutive home games in the European Cup/UEFA Champions League without conceding since October 1991, when they did so in 11 in a row.

Since the start of last season, no player has made more second assists (the pass to the player who assisted the goal) than Bayern Munich’s Joshua Kimmich in the UEFA Champions League (3). Furthermore, only Lionel Messi (21) and Toni Kroos (16) have created more secondary chances than the German midfielder (15) in this period.

Darwin Núñez has scored two goals in two games for Benfica in the UEFA Champions League, while only one player has netted more in his first three games for the club in the competition - Claudio Caniggia with 3 in 1994-95.

Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski has scored five goals in six UEFA Champions League appearances against Portuguese opponents, including three against Benfica. No player has ever scored more times against sides from Portugal in the competition.

Manuel Neuer is in line to make his 100th UEFA Champions League appearance for Bayern Munich in this game (currently on 99). The German international will become the fourth player to reach a century of appearances for the club in the competition, and only the second goalkeeper after Oliver Kahn (103).

Chelsea v Malmö FF
20 October 2021 / KO: 21:00

Chelsea and Malmö FF faced in the last 32 of the UEFA Europa League in 2018-19, with the English side winning both games and 5-1 on aggregate (2-1 away, 3-0 home).

Chelsea have never lost against a Swedish side in UEFA European competition (W3 D3), avoiding defeat against Åtvidabergs FF in the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1971-72 (D2), Helsingborgs IF in the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1998-99 (W1 D1) and Malmö in the Europa League in 2018-19 (W2).

This is the first meeting between English and Swedish teams in the UEFA Champions League since the first group stage in 1999-00, when Arsenal played AIK and beat them twice. Malmö’s only previous meeting in the European Cup with an English team was in the 1979 final, losing 1-0 to Nottingham Forest in Munich.

Chelsea have only lost two of their last 48 home UEFA Champions League group stage matches (W33 D13), losing to Basel in 2013-14 and Valencia in 2019-20. Current boss Thomas Tuchel has only lost one of his 13 home group stage matches (W10 D2): a 2-1 defeat to Man Utd as PSG manager last season.

This will be Thomas Tuchel’s 10th game in charge of Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League. The Blues have only conceded three goals under the German so far, which would be the joint-fewest through a manager’s first 10 games of a club in the competition (along with Fabio Capello at AC Milan and José Mourinho in Real Madrid), if they keep a clean sheet against Malmö FF.

Malmö FF have lost their last five games in the UEFA Champions League by an aggregate score of 0-24, losing by 3+ goals on each occasion. The last team to suffer a longer run of consecutive defeats by 3+ goals in the European Cup/UEFA Champions League was Luxembourg side Avenir Beggen between 1969 and 1986 (a run of eight).

Since Thomas Tuchel’s first UEFA Champions League game in charge of Chelsea on February 23rd, the Blues have kept six clean sheets in nine games in the competition. They’ve allowed an expected goals against figure of just 0.73 per game in this period, which is the lowest of any team to have been involved in each of the last two editions of the tournament.

Only RB Leipzig (8) have conceded more goals than Malmö FF (7) in the opening two rounds of the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League, while only Besiktas (6.5) have a higher expected goals against total than the Swedish side so far (6.1).

Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku has scored 14 goals in 18 appearances in European competition since the start of the 2019-20 season. In this period, the only two players who have scored more non-penalty goals than Lukaku (12) across the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League are Robert Lewandowski (19) and Erling Haaland (18).

Since the start of the 2020-21 tournament, Chelsea midfielder Jorginho has initiated more sequences of play (171) than any other player in the UEFA Champions League. Indeed, he has started the joint-most sequences of play that ended in shots of any midfielder in this period (15), along with Toni Kroos.

Lille v Sevilla
20 October 2021 / KO: 21:00

Lille and Sevilla last met in the 2005-06 UEFA Cup at the last 16 stage, with the Spanish side winning 2-1 on aggregate on their way to winning the tournament against Middlesbrough in the final that season.

Sevilla have lost both of their two away European matches against Lille, losing both 1-0, in the 2004-05 UEFA Cup group stage and away leg of the last 16 of the UEFA Cup in 2005-06.

Lille have only won two of their previous 13 games against Spanish opponents in European competition (D5 L6), while they’re winless in seven games since beating Sevilla in the UEFA Cup in March 2006 (D2 L5). The French side haven’t scored more than once in any of these previous 13 games, netting just eight goals in total.

Sevilla are unbeaten in their last eight away games in the UEFA Champions League (W3 D5), the last five of which have come under current boss Julen Lopetegui. Their last away defeat in the competition came in October 2017, when they were beaten 5-1 by Spartak Moscow under Eduardo Berizzo.

Lille have won just 15% of their home games in the UEFA Champions League to date (3/20) – among teams to have played 20+ home games in the competition, only Romanian side FC Steau Bucharest have a worse win percentage (9.5% - 2/21).

Lille have only scored three goals in their last nine home games in the UEFA Champions League (D3 L6), failing to score at all in six of these fixtures. The last time they scored more than once in a home game in the competition was against CSKA Moscow in September 2011 (2-2 draw).

The average age of Sevilla’s starting XI in the UEFA Champions League this season is 29 years and 200 days; the oldest of any of the 32 sides. Indeed, Sevilla have handed starts to five different players aged 30+ in the competition this season (Jesús Navas, Fernando, Papu Gómez, Ivan Rakitic and Yassine Bounou), with only Malmö FF (6) having more.

Three of Sevilla’s last four goals in the UEFA Champions League have come from the penalty spot, including both of their goals in the competition this season (both by Ivan Rakitic). Prior to this run of three of their last four, only three in their previous 41 goals in the UEFA Champions League had come from the penalty spot.

Burak Yilmaz scored Lille’s only goal in the UEFA Champions League so far this season (v RB Salzburg), while Cristiano Ronaldo (36y 236d v Villarreal) is the only player to have netted in the competition this term at an older age than the Turkish forward (36y 76d).

Since the start of last season, Sevilla’s Jesús Navas has created seven chances following ball carries (moving 5+ metres with the ball) in the UEFA Champions League; the second-most of any full back in the competition, following Juventus' Juan Cuadrado (11).

Manchester United v Atalanta
20 October 2021 / KO: 21:00

Manchester United and Atalanta have never faced in any competition previously, with La Dea the seventh different Italian team the Red Devils have faced in Europe (also Fiorentina, Inter Milan, Juventus, Lazio, Milan and Roma).

Atalanta have won three of their six UEFA European matches against English opponents (D1 L2), beating Everton twice in the 2017-18 Europa League and away at Liverpool in November 2020 in the Champions League.

Manchester United have won six of their last seven home games in the UEFA Champions League against Italian opponents, however the most recent of these was a 0-1 defeat to Juventus in October 2018 under José Mourinho.

Atalanta are one of two teams in major UEFA European competition history to have played more than one away game against English opponents and won more than half of their games (67% - 2/3) – the other is Berliner FC Dynamo, who also won two of their three games (L1): against reigning European Cup champions Nottingham Forest in 1979-80 and Aston Villa in the European Cup in 1981-82, who would go on and win the trophy that season.

Manchester United have lost 58% of their UEFA Champions League games under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (7/12) – the highest percentage of defeats by any manager to have taken charge of an English club on 10+ occasions in the competition.

Atalanta have only lost one of their last seven away games in the UEFA Champions League (1-3 v Real Madrid in March), winning five and drawing the other. The Italian side have scored 17 goals across this run of seven away trips, at an average of 2.4 per game.

Since making his first UEFA Champions League appearance for Manchester United in October 2020, Bruno Fernandes has been directly involved in more goals in the competition than any other player for the club (7 – four goals and three assists). Overall, no midfielder has been directly involved in more than Fernandes in the UEFA Champions League in this period.

Duván Zapata has assisted two of Atalanta’s three goals in the UEFA Champions League so far this season, doing so once against both Villarreal and Young Boys. He could become the first player to assist in three consecutive appearances for Atalanta in the competition.

Man Utd’s Cristiano Ronaldo has scored 18 goals in 23 UEFA Champions League appearances against Italian sides, only scoring more against German opponents (28 goals). This is his first appearance in the competition against an Italian side since April 2018, when his last minute penalty for Real Madrid against future side Juventus took them through to the semi-finals on aggregate.

10 of Atalanta’s last 11 goals in the UEFA Champions League have been scored in the second half of games, with the only exception being Remo Freuler’s midfielder after six minutes against Villarreal on MD1.

Zenit St Petersburg v Juventus
20 October 2021 / KO: 21:00

Zenit St Petersburg and Juventus have only met previously in the 2008-09 UEFA Champions League group stage – a 1-0 win for Juve in Turin and 0-0 draw in Russia.

In all European competition, Juventus have never lost in eight previous encounters with Russian sides (W7 D1), scoring 18 times and only conceding three, although their only failure to win came away at Zenit in November 2008.

Zenit St Petersburg have only lost one of their last five home games against Italian opponents in European competition (W2 D2), with that lone defeat coming against AC Milan in the UEFA Champions League back in October 2012.

Juventus are looking to win their opening three games of a UEFA Champions League campaign for the first time since 2018-19, which was the previous season in which Massimiliano Allegri managed them.

Following their victory over Malmö FF last time out, Zenit are looking to record consecutive victories in the UEFA Champions League for the first time since November 2015, when they won five in a row under André Villas-Boas.

Juventus have won their last four games in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League without conceding a single goal, with two of these coming away from home – 3-0 v Barcelona in December 2020 and 3-0 v Malmö FF in September 2021.

Juventus forward Paolo Dybala could make his 50th appearance in the UEFA Champions League in this game. The Argentinean would be the third-youngest player at the time of his 50th game for Juventus in the competition (27y 339d), after Alessio Tacchinardi (27y 098d) and Alessandro Del Piero (27y 326d).

Artem Dzyuba has been directly involved in 13 goals for Zenit St Petersburg in the UEFA Champions League (nine goals and four assists), with only Hulk (18) managing more for the club in the competition. Dzyuba (9) is also only one goal shy of equalling the Brazilian (10) as the Russian side’s top scorer in the UEFA Champions League.

Federico Chiesa has scored in each of his last three UEFA Champions League appearances for Juventus. The last player to net in four consecutive appearances for the club in the competition was Mario Mandzukic in October 2017, while the only Italian player to have done so for Juventus is Alessandro Del Piero, who scored in five in a row on two occasions (in 1995 and 1997).

Zenit’s Douglas Santos has created the joint-most chances from open play in the UEFA Champions League this season (8), along with Club Brugge’s Charles De Ketelaere. The Brazilian created six open play chances against Malmö FF in his last appearance; the most by a Zenit player in a UEFA Champions League game since Andrey Arshavin in September 2008 v Real Madrid (also six).