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Welcome to a fresh night of exciting European Cup soccer. 9 fixtures are planned for tonight, including three English teams in play. Chelsea face Barcelona in the standout match of the night, whilst The Magpies travel to Marseille and Manchester City host Leverkusen.

Current Standings

We're at the halfway point of the league phase, meaning the table is starting to take shape. Each of the six English teams are currently in the top 12, but there are only 2 points between fifth and 16th place, thus there's a hint of volatility about the entire situation. It’s all up for grabs.

This Evening's Games

Here are this evening's matches, all kicking off at 8:00 PM except where noted:

• Ajax 0-1 Benfica (5.45pm)
• Union SG and Galatasaray level at 0-0 (5.45pm)
• Juventus face Bodo/Glimt
• Chelsea v Barcelona
• Dortmund v Villarreal
• Leverkusen visit Man City
• Newcastle travel to Marseille
• Napoli v Qarabag
• Athletic Bilbao clash with Slavia Prague

Squad Updates

Wesley Fofana, Moises Caicedo, Garnacho, Malo Gusto and Estevao join the Chelsea team. Excluded are Tosin Adarabioyo, Andrey Santos, Gittens, Pedro and Delap.

Yamal is in the starting lineup for Barcelona; Marcus Rashford is among the substitutes.

Chelsea (possible 4-3-3) Robert Sanchez; Reece James, Wesley Fofana, Chalobah, Marc Cucurella; Malo Gusto, Moises Caicedo, Enzo; Estevao, Neto, Alejandro Garnacho.

Substitutes: Kjell Scherpen, Adarabioyo, Benoit Badiashile, Delap, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, Santos, Pedro, Hato, Leo George, Acheampong, Marc Guiu, Facundo Buonanotte.

Barcelona (probable 4-2-3-1): Joan Garcia; Kounde, Ronald Araujo, Cubarsi, Alejandro Balde; Eric Garcia, Frenkie de Jong; Lamine Yamal, Lopez, Torres; Lewandowski.

Substitutes: Wojciech Szczesny, Kochen, Raphinha, Rashford, Christensen, Marc Casado, Gerard, Olmo, Bernal, Dario Fernandez, Roony Bardghji.

Referee Slavko Vincic (Slovenian).

Previous Encounters

The sole past encounter between Newcastle and Marseille was the Europa League semifinal of 2003-04, claimed by an rising superstar from Côte d'Ivoire. Bayer Leverkusen and Manchester City have never met before. Chelsea and Barcelona have some past encounters.

Initial Game Reports

Just one goal during the opening period of the two early games. Dahl's 6th-minute sizzler has given Benfica under Mourinho a one-nil lead away to Ajax.

Marseille v Newcastle Preview

Although Newcastle traveled to the south of France coming off their restorative two-one home English top-flight victory against City on the weekend, and having beaten Union SG, the Portuguese side and Athletic Bilbao in the European Cup, their only away win since the start of April came in Brussels at Union Saint-Gilloise.

It's not that Howe was eager to talk about the psychological aspect of this away form issue. “The European Cup is different to domestic games,” said the coach, whose side are sixth in the Champions League standings, with nine points from a possible 12 and automatic qualification to the knockout phase nearly secured. “I don’t know if you can compare them.”

A dedicated live feed is available for Barcelona vs Chelsea. Scott Murray, the MBM equivalent of Maradona is handling for that.