Man City and AEK Athens Team News

DAILYMAIL.COM • 1h ago

By HARRY BAMFORTH, LIVE SPORTS COVERAGE REPORTER and LUKE POWER, SPORTS REPORTER Updated: 19:02 20 Oct 2026

Follow Daily Mail Sport’s live coverage for the latest updates as Liverpool host Villarreal and Manchester City face AEK Athens in the Champions League group phase, plus updates from PSG vs Barcelona.

There was real worry when he withdrew from Netherlands international duty that he could be sidelined for a while because he was almost snapped in half during a game with Serbia.

But it has taken Gakpo almost no time at all to regain fitness and tonight he returns to the Liverpool starting line-up.

He was in fine fettle before the injury, picking up assist after assist in the Premier League.

But will he continue where he left off tonight? Let's see.

This is their first season back in the Champions League proper since 2018-19, when they lost all six of their group stage games to Bayern Munich, Benfica, and Ajax.

They've had a decent return so far, having defeated LASK 1-0 in their opening match before losing 2-1 to Shakhtar Donestk at Stamford Bridge.

The Greek capital club made Anthony Martial their highest-paid player a couple of years back, but they have no such names now.

Luka Jovic is probably their biggest name, with the Serbian forward having previously had a failed stint at Real Madrid.

You might recognise a few of their names from international football – the likes of Croatian defender Domagoj Vida, Albanian goalkeeper Thomas Strakosha, and Hungarian forward Barnabas Varga have done the rounds for years.

They're minnows compared to Manchster City but expect passionate support.

Erling Haaland makes the bench for Manchester City in what is a boost given he was a doubt due to injury.

And what a special night for 17-year-old Floyd Samba, who makes his Champions League debut.

Man City starting XI: Donnarumma, Lewis, Khusanov, Dias (C), Gvardiol, Anderson, Fernandez, Allan, Cherki, Foden, Samba

Subs: Rulli, Bettinelli, Guehi, Ndiaye, Haaland, Doku, Ait-Nouri, Reis, Bouaddi, McAidoo, Braithwaite

Cody Gakpo returns to action for Liverpool this evening as Andoni Iraola makes six changes to the side that beat Brentford.

Lewis Koumas and Rio Ngumoha join him in the front three while Kostas Tsimikas, Trey Nyoni and Ryan Gravenberch return. Victor Munoz misses out through a knock.

Meanwhile, former Red Peter Gulacsi starts against his old side, just a week on from being the subject of an armed robbery. Brave man.

The Manchester City striker limped off following City's 3-2 win over Ipswich at the weekend, sparking fears about his fitness ahead of tonight's clash.

Now, Enzo Maresca has said that Haaland should be available this evening after training on Sunday, but was coy on whether he would be involved from the start.

The team news is just moments away from being revealed, so keep your eyes peeled for his big man's name.

I'd personally be surprised if he did get the nod to start…

It doesn't get much better than this.

The holders vs the challengers. Luis Enrique vs Hansi Flick. Ousmane Dembele vs Lamine Yamal. It's, of course, PSG vs Barcelona.

Are they two better teams in Europe right now? I don't think so. PSG and Barcelona are certainly the two most exciting sides to watch in club football at this moment in time.

PSG showed against Manchester City last week that when they are on their A-game, they are still the very best. Some of their football in the first half of their win over City was stupendous; the best I've seen in a very long time.

Meanwhile, Barcelona are pretty much battering anybody that is in their way this season. Their fluid and ever-changing attack is simply electric, with Yamal leading the charge.

These two met at this very stage last season, with Enrique's side edging a 2-1 win – Flick and Barcelona will be out for revenge at the Parc des Princes.

Expect goals. Expect entertainment. It's going to be very fun.

Champions League football is back at the Etihad Stadium and Manchester City will hope to fare better than last week.

Enzo Maresca's men were beaten 4-2 at home by Paris Saint-Germain last Wednesday but in truth the margin could have been wider.

They were bullied from the first whistle and 3-0 down within 32 minutes, with PSG making it look like a walk in the park.

City were so far off the pace and their blushes were only spared by Erling Haaland, who bagged a second-half brace to soothe the scoreline.

They are heavy favourites for tonight against Greek champions AEK Athens, but you never know with these European nights.

Liverpool's are very much enjoying life in Europe this season.

They may be enduring a bit of a rollercoaster start in the Premier League, but in the Champions League, it is certainly a different story for Andoni Iraola and his squad.

The Reds have won their opening two games in the league phase, beating Atletico Madrid in their opener before smashing six past LASK away from home last week.

But it's not only the results that have been impressive, but it is also their performances, too. They seem to be stepping it up a level in this competition compared to the league.

Florian Wirtz and Bradley Barcola have both saved their best performances this term for the Champions League, with the latter bagging a hat-trick in Linz six days ago. Their style of football just suits this tournament so well.

Now, we are expecting Iraola to make a whole host of changes this evening after the win over Brentford at the weekend, but whatever team he does put out, they will be oozing confidence.

The question is: can Liverpool make it three wins from three? Let's see.

Before we get our teeth stuck into the build-up, let's take a look at the top eight in the Champions League group phase.

Why just the top eight? Well, there are two reasons. One, the top eight teams at the end of the group phase will automatically qualify for the round of 16. And two, the full table is just miles too long to put in this post – it looks daft.

But what you can see in this top eight is that PSG and Barcelona, who square off tonight in Paris, are very much leading the way at the top of the pile. Aston Villa, who play tomorrow, aren't far behind them.

Liverpool are fifth and will look to continue their fine start tonight, but there is no Manchester City to be seen here. They are all the way down in 17th.

That's not to say Enzo Maresca's men won't jump back up near the top by the end of the night, though.

You know how much we love the Champions League here; it always provides such entertainment.

And I'm sure tonight will be no different; it's yet another stacked evening of fixtures in Europe.

It feels like football is non-stop at the minute, doesn't it? The Premier League weekend only came to a close yesterday evening at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, and no, it's already time for a voyage back into Europe.

The Champions League is back for the second week on the spin with both Liverpool and Manchester City set to take to our screens, and of course, the pitch this evening.

The Reds are looking to make it three wins from three in the Champions League as they hosts Villarreal at Anfield, while City are looking to bounce back from defeat to PSG last week as they take on AEK Athens at the Etihad.

Our focus will predominantly be on the two English sides, but we will also be keeping an eye on the mammoth match between holders PSG and perhaps their biggest challengers this season, Barcelona.

That is set to be an unreal watch, isn't it?

So, without further ado, it feels like the perfect time to get this cracker of a show on the road.

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