What to look out for on UEFA Champions League Matchday 2 Wednesday

The UEFA Champions League continues on Wednesday with the second round of matches in Groups E to H.

We pick out some key talking points ahead of the conclusion of the second round of fixtures.

13 September
Group A: Liverpool 2-1 Ajax
Group B: Porto 0-4 Club Brugge, Leverkusen 2-0 Atlético
Group C: Plzeň 0-2 Inter, Bayern 2-0 Barcelona
Group D: Sporting CP 2-0 Tottenham, Marseille 0-1 Frankfurt

14 September
Group A: Rangers vs Napoli (rescheduled)
Group E: AC Milan vs Dinamo Zagreb, Chelsea vs Salzburg
Group F: Shakhtar vs Celtic, Real Madrid vs Leipzig
Group G: Man City vs Dortmund, Copenhagen vs Sevilla
Group H: Juventus vs Benfica, Maccabi Haifa vs Paris

What to look out for

Haaland welcomes Dortmund to Manchester

Erling Haaland said his farewells to Dortmund's fans in May after negotiating a move to Manchester City, the Norwegian having hit 86 goals in 89 games for the German club. Haaland's two goals at Sevilla on Matchday 1 took his City tally to 12, and he may not be inclined to hold back when he faces his old team-mates.

However, having seen star strikers like Lewandowski, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Ousmane Dembélé pass through their ranks, BVB are accustomed to seeing their biggest stars shine elsewhere, CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke conceding: "Sometimes, players are at Borussia Dortmund for one, two, three years." However, after a comprehensive 3-0 defeat of Copenhagen last time out, Edin Terzić's side will be looking to upstage their old team-mate in Manchester.

Déjà vu for Celtic when Shved returns?

Shakhtar's 4-1 victory at Leipzig was one of the more eye-catching results from Matchday 1 and their next opponents, Celtic, will have noted two of the goals were scored by their former player Marian Shved. Should the 25-year-old star again in Warsaw, it would not be the first time the Scottish side have been tormented by an ex-Bhoy – Rosenborg's Harald Brattbakk scored twice against them in 2001 and Henrik Larsen found the net for Barcelona three years later. The Glasgow side failed to make it out of their section in either season as a result.

Shakhtar coach Igor Jovićević was keen to talk up Shved and his attacking options after their stunning success at Leipzig. "I've known Shved for a long time: he made his debut under my management at Karpaty seven years ago. I remembered him the same way he was today. He has become more impressive and motivated. He and Mudryk are two our enforcers. It is a priority to have two players for each position and we have Petriak, and Zubkov too. We have this and it is a luxury for me."

Further ahead
• With Cristiano Ronaldo absent from the group stage, Lionel Messi has the chance to close the 15-goal gap on his long-term rival in the all-time top-scorer standings. Below them, Lewandowski has moved three clear of Karim Benzema since the start of the 2022/23 campaign: the pair ae on 89 and 86 goals respectively. 

• Anfield will be the place to be on Matchday 3 as Liverpool welcome Rangers for the first instalment of their Group A double-header. Amazingly, the British duo have yet to meet in UEFA competition.

• Graham Potter replaced Thomas Tuchel as Chelsea manager in the wake of their 1-0 Matchday 1 loss to Dinamo Zagreb. The Blues welcome Salzburg on Matchday 2 before taking on AC Milan at home and away.

Where is the 2023 UEFA Champions League final being played?

The 2022/23 Champions League season will conclude at Istanbul's Atatürk Olympic Stadium on 10 June 2023.

Built to support Türkiye's bid to stage the 2008 Olympic Games, the venue opened in 2002 and is home to the Turkish national team. Situated in the Başakşehir area of the city, west of the Bosphorus, it boasts a seated capacity of over 75,000.