Champions League matchday 3 preview

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We preview the main Champions League games on matchday 3. BeSoccer

The next set of Champions League matches take place on 19th and 20th October and the matches start becoming more even important. Some teams could end up on the verge of qualification or elimination and we take a look at the key fixtures from the matchday.

Champions League nights are always special and, as usual, there are some absolute crackers to look forward to. Some teams have started brilliantly such as Bayern Munich, Juventus, PSG and Liverpool, but the likes of Man City and especially Barcelona have not done so well. The third set of games will give us a much clearer idea to which teams will qualify and we preview the pick of the action.

One of the must see matches is the clash between Barcelona and Dynamo Kiev. What initially was set to be a routine fixture has become all the more important given the fact Barca have been defeated in their opening two games. Anything other than a victory against the Ukrainians will see their Champions League hopes hanging by a thread. The fact the game begins at 18:45 CEST on the Wednesday allows fans to watch this crunch game and then watch another match afterwards. Few will want to miss this one.

Another big fixture sees Atletico Madrid take on Liverpool on the Tuesday. The Premier League team lead Group B with six points while the Spaniards have four. The two teams are expected to qualify from the section, which also features Porto and Milan, and three points for either side will see them take a big step towards progressing to the last 16. A trip to the Wanda also brings back happy memories for the Reds as that is where they won their last Champions League trophy.

Man City's trip to Club Brugge has also taken on added importance as Guardiola's men sit third following defeat to PSG. That means it is a must win game for Man City in Belgium. Other matches include Real Madrid, who were shocked by Sheriff, travel to Shakhtar Donetsk, Man Utd host Atalanta and Ajax take on Dortmund. With so many high quality matches at the same time, you could do with multiple televisions!

As well as watching the action, many people like to enjoy a bet on the action and there are many betting opportunities. One of those is the booking points market. Every yellow card is worth 10 points and straight reds or second yellows are worth 25 points. The aim is to predict how many booking points there will be and looking at referee stats is useful if you are betting as you can study whether the match official is strict or not. This will increases your chances of making a profit.

Despite the introduction of the VAR, referees received unwanted headlines back on matchday two as AC Milan and Wolfsburg both expressed their anger at alleged mistakes in their games with Atletico and Sevilla respectively. The Italian media even reported that the Turkish officials were suspended after their poor performances at the San Siro. Hopefully the action on the field takes centre stage on matchday three. Enjoy the matches and good luck if you decide to place a bet!