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[ianholyman]

Fifty-four points last night...thank you Raheem Sterling! Who’ll be my top points scorer tonight? Come on Victor!! Get me another goal or two! Tweak your #UCLFantasy squads while you still can!

[ianholyman]

Jonathan Bamba says the Lille squad are aware tonight’s game could be “a turning point” because “we made a bad start with the loss to Ajax.” The France U21 international will be one of the men to provide the forward momentum for the hosts.

[uefaen]

‘Osimhen can do everything’ says L’Equipe of the Lille striker, who is the French league’s joint-top scorer with six goals. The hosts need his clinical streak tonight.

[uefaen]

Lille boss Christophe Galtier was furious his team did not “play to win” in Saturday’s league draw at Nice. As for his team’s approach against Chelsea, he says, “You have no chance if you don’t play.” We can expect the hosts to be positive this evening.

[uefaen]

Jonathan Bamba says the Lille squad are aware tonight’s game could be “a turning point” because “we made a bad start with the loss to Ajax.” The France U21 international will be one of the men to provide the forward momentum for the hosts.

[ianholyman]

It seems Ben Arfa is just waking up to the reality that Rennes need him to provide a creative spark…too late, I fear.

[ianholyman]

Still just one goal…but instead of taking them through, it'll mean Rennes will force extra-time.

[ianholyman]

Gelin, Le Siliki and Hunou out to warm up — a defender, a midfielder and a versatile midfielder-cum-forward. Difficult to see the who, what, where and why of that for the moment.

[ianholyman]

A UEFA Champions League group stage debut for defensive midfielder Leonardo Bertone as the visitors look to flood the midfield - I think that answers your question, Paolo. They will try to stifle the hosts in the centre of the pitch.

[ianholyman]

No doubt that YB have had much of their sting drawn by those two first-half goals. Shame, because they were causing United untold difficulties.

[ianholyman]

Both defences have been just a touch away from being breached in the last minute: Rashford stood on the ball, Hoarau's ball for Assalé was too strong. Otherwise, both men would have been through on goal. Is the opener not far away?

[ianholyman]

‘Full steam ahead against the passing machine’ writes Basler Zeitung, noting City set a group-stage record of 3996 passes, an average of 666 a game, while Basel made just 1811 in comparison. They add that Basel are “outsiders, who - on paper - don’t stand a chance. That is their greatest chance.”

[ianholyman]

Marco Streller admits seeing Old Trafford makes him "regret my retirement", which he took in 2015 after a wildly successful career with his hometown club that brought him eight Swiss titles.

Now 36 — only slightly older than Zlatan Ibrahimović — Basel's sporting director admitted he would struggle if he were on the pitch tonight.

"On the national level, my experience could perhaps still help me do something," said the former Switzerland international striker. "Internationally, however, it just wouldn't be enough any more."

[ianholyman]

Ian Holyman, Nice reporter Nice Matin calls on Mario Balotelli and Co. to ‘Make history’. The local Cote d’Azur paper says pipping Napoli to the group stage would be “a feat so spectacular that it would mark the club’s history. Forever.”

[ianholyman]

Ian Holyman, Nice reporter

‘Nice cracked’ says lequipe.fr, describing Lucien Favre's men as "powerless" and now needing to "spring a surprise in the second leg."

[ianholyman]

Back page on the Neue Zürcher Zeitung goes to Granit’s elder brother, Taulant, ‘the last of his kind’ as the headline states, referring to him as Basel’s only youth academy product in the first team. 

The two Xhaka brothers already faced each other when Taulant’s Albania met Granit’s Switzerland at UEFA EURO 2016. But Tuesday’s Matchday 6 encounter between Basel and Arsenal at St. Jakob-Park will be the first time the pair have met in their hometown. It’ll be a big night in the Xhaka household.

[ianholyman]

Tuesday's goalless draw means FCK need to win in Bruges on Matchday 6 and hope Leicester City, who have already clinched top spot in Group G, can get at least a draw in Portugal to propel the Danish champions into the Last 16.

BT focus on the fact FCK may have first-choice strikers Andreas Cornelius and Federico Santander back for their game in Belgium on 7 December.

Both missed Tuesday's match through injury: Santander with a thigh problem and Cornelius with a hamstring complaint that was expected to keep him out until 2017.

"I would think that Santander can be ready for the game, but he should play once or twice before we go there, because he does not have a body that I can just throw into such a contest," FCK coach Ståle Solbakken explained.

"Cornelius is a mystery. I was told that he would be out for six weeks, but he was out running on Tuesday. I don't know what happened. I don't think Cornelius will be ready for Bruges, but there is a fair chance Santander might get a game before we have to go there."