Inspired Milan bid to keep top spot with win over PSV
Last weekend’s 3-1 triumph against Serie A leaders Juventus has inspired Carlo Ancelotti’s men, who reduced the gap to just two points.
Andriy Shevchenko is back after three games out with injury.
But Ancelotti will wait until the last minute before deciding on whether the Ukrainian striker will play from the start. Milan will be without the injured Cafu and Massimo Ambrosini.
PSV coach Guus Hiddink has doubts over Alex (knee) and Ibrahim Afellay (groin).
In the group’s other game Schalke 04 manager Ralf Rangnick admits their home tie with Turkish giants Fenerbahce is a must-win game with their season threatening to fall apart by Christmas.
Rangnick is under extreme pressure after Eintracht Frankfurt crushed his side 6-0 in the German Cup on Tuesday and SV Hamburg won 1-0 on Saturday to leave last season’s runners-up 10 points behind leaders Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga.
David Beckham and Michel Salgado were both named in Real Madrid’s squad to face Rosenborg in their Group F match, despite the pair carrying injuries. Beckham has back and calf problems while Salgado has a hairline fracture of his left cheek bone.
Real are still without the injured trio of Ronaldo, Julio Baptista and Zinedine Zidane.
The Spaniards thrashed Rosenborg 4-1 when the two teams met in Real’s Santiago Bernabeu stadium two weeks ago.
Kings of France, Lyon, travel to Greek side Olympiakos on Tuesday to defend their lead in Group F without the burden of an unbeaten record in all competitions.
After three straight defeats in Greek domestic play and Champions League, Olympiakos coach Trond Sollied changed his 3-6-1 system to 4-3-3 and had a better result on Saturday though the team still struggled to beat Kalamarias 2-1 to regain top spot in the league.
Sitting out the Kalamarias match due to injury were keeper Antonis Nikopolidis, defenders Michalis Kapsis and Grigoris Georgatos, plus midfielder Rivaldo. All are expected to be available for the Lyon game.
In Group H, Rangers striker Dado Prso has urged his team-mates to push themselves to the limit against Artmedia Bratislava as the club attempt to salvage their season.
The trip to Slovakia provides welcome respite from the turmoil of a turbulent Scottish Premier League campaign, which sees the champions in fourth place and 10 points adrift of both Celtic and Hearts.
He said that while Rangers “need luck” on their side, the team was “quite confident” they could qualify for the next round.
Defender Jose-Karl Pierre-Fanfan will miss the trip to Bratislava because of a hamstring injury but on the plus side, Sotirios Kyrgiakos (knee), Julien Rodriguez and Francis Jeffers (both hamstring) are all fit again.
Inter are hoping to have star striker Adriano at his best when they play host to FC Porto and aim to avenge their 2-0 defeat conceded at the Dragao stadium two weeks ago. The victory, Porto’s first after three games played, allowed the 2003 European Champions to get back in the race.
Despite their slip on Portuguese soil, Inter lead their group, two points clear of Artmedia and Rangers, and know the importance of taking maximum points at the San Siro.
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