By Wednesday night, the UEFA Champions League league phase will reach its midway point, leaving each team just four matches to lock down a place in the knockout stages. After a wild, goal-filled Matchday 3, the upcoming round of fixtures figures to deliver even more excitement, with numerous smaller clubs looking to punch above their weight against some of Europe's giants.
Every match streams live on Paramount+, which carries every Champions League game all season long, along with replays, highlights and studio coverage breaking down the race for the top eight.
Wednesday's schedule is headlined by the game of the day, RB Leipzig against Manchester City, and CBS Sports' panel of writers weighed in with their picks for the contest.
For his player to watch, James Benge singled out Leipzig's Antonio Nusa. With six assists and four goals in the Bundesliga this season, the 21-year-old has the look of a player establishing himself as one of Europe's best young attackers. Benge noted that if Nusa proves what he can do against Matheus Nunes and the rest of the Manchester City defense, Premier League clubs will surely be clamoring.
Francesco Porzio picked Manchester City's Erling Haaland as his man of the match, calling this one of those games when the Norwegian striker delivers. Haaland already faced RB Leipzig multiple times during his spell at Borussia Dortmund before moving to Manchester. He has scored four goals in two Champions League matches this season, and Porzio wrote that he needs to lead his team to victory after a disappointing defeat against Brighton over the weekend at the Etihad Stadium.
Pardeep Cattry predicted a 3-0 win for Manchester City, with Leipzig failing to score. He argued that the German club's rough start to the season makes this meeting very untimely for them. While acknowledging that Enzo Maresca's side are still a work in progress, Cattry wrote that it is unlikely to be an issue on Wednesday, when City should be able to overpower their opponents with relative ease.
Charles Booth's best bet is Haaland to score the first goal at +290. After failing to score against Brighton over the weekend, the striker saw a seven-match scoring streak in Premier League play come to an end, and Booth sees the Champions League as the ideal place to move on from that. Although Haaland did not play against AEK Athens, he has four goals in only two European appearances this season and will be a focal point once again in the away trip to face the German side. With City looking for a fast start, Booth expects the Norwegian to provide it.
