The Champions League returns for matchday 3 on Tuesday 20 October, and its two marquee ties come on consecutive nights. Holders Paris Saint-Germain host Barcelona at 21:00 CEST on Tuesday, then Bayern Munich host Arsenal at 21:00 CEST on Wednesday.

Almost everything else kicks off at 21:00 CEST too. The exceptions are Fenerbahçe v Slavia Praha and Sabah v Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday, and Como v Manchester United and Lille v Galatasaray on Wednesday, all at 18:45 CEST.

Six clubs sit on 6 points

After two matches, Barcelona, PSG, Arsenal, Liverpool, Real Madrid and Stuttgart each have 6 points from two wins. Bayern have 4, after a 5-0 win over Bodø/Glimt and a 3-3 draw at Viking. Manchester City and United have 3 each, Roma have 1 and Inter have none.

Those points matter. According to Anadolu Agency, the top eight in the 36-team table go straight to the round of 16, 9th to 24th enter a two-legged playoff, and 25th to 36th are eliminated.

PSG v Barcelona is the pick of Tuesday

Both clubs arrive with two wins. PSG beat City 4-2 at the Etihad on Wednesday 14 October, after a 6-1 win over Slovan Bratislava, which makes 10 goals in two matches. Barcelona have scored 9, beating Feyenoord 5-1 and winning 4-1 at Galatasaray. Our report on City’s defeat has the detail on how PSG got there.

City are in action on Tuesday too, at home to AEK Athens. The Greek champions are in their first Champions League campaign since 2018/19, according to City’s official site, and the match kicks off at 20:00 UK time, which is 21:00 CEST. Liverpool host Villarreal, who lost 3-2 at Dortmund and beat Napoli 3-1. Liverpool beat Atlético Madrid 2-1 and won 6-3 at LASK. Roma host Slovan Bratislava, and Stuttgart host Atlético.

Bayern v Arsenal tops Wednesday

Bayern have scored 8 goals in two matches and conceded 3, all of them at Viking. Arsenal have scored 4 and conceded none, winning 1-0 at Napoli and 3-0 against Lille.

Real Madrid, on 6 points after beating Inter 2-1 and winning 4-3 at Roma, host Leipzig, who have 3 after a 4-1 defeat at Como and a 1-0 win over PSV. Our report from Roma covers that win. Inter, with no points after a 3-4 defeat by Club Brugge, host Shakhtar Donetsk, who have 4.

United have 3 points after a 4-0 win over Sabah and a 2-0 defeat at Atlético, which we previewed here. They travel to Como, whose Champions League debut was a 4-1 win over Leipzig on 10 September. For the previous round, see our matchday 2 preview.