UEFA

Who: Arsenal vs Bayern Munich
What: Matchday 5, League Phase, UEFA Champions League
Where: Emirates Stadium, North London, England, UK
When: Wednesday at 8pm (20:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 17:00 GMT in advance of our text commentary stream.

English Premier League leaders Arsenal host the German Bundesliga’s top-ranked team Bayern Munich in a heavyweight UEFA Champions League (UCL) matchup of the two frontrunning European mega clubs on Wednesday.

The sides are also ranked No 1 and No 2 in the current UCL standings, with both clubs protecting perfect records in the League Phase of the competition.

Here is all to know ahead of their top of the table clash at Emirates Stadium:

Who have Arsenal and Bayern Munich beaten so far in the UCL League Phase?

After four matchdays in the League Phase, Bayern Munich sits top of the standings with four wins and a maximum 12 points against Chelsea (3-0), Pafos (5-1), Club Brugge (4-0) and most recently, a victory over reigning UCL champions Paris Saint-Germain (2-1) away in France on November 4.

Arsenal is second on the table, equal with their German rival on points (12) and goal difference (+11). Their four wins have come against Athletic Bilbao (2-0), Olympiacos (2-0), Atletico Madrid (4-0) and Slavia Praha (3-0).

The only other team remaining in the competition with a perfect 4-0 record is Inter Milan.

Will Odegaard play against Bayern Munich?

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard is a strong possibility to play against Bayern Munich in what would be his first match since injuring his knee in early October.

The Norwegian midfielder participated in training on Tuesday afternoon and is expected to be in the squad.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta confirmed Odegaard is under consideration for Wednesday’s fixture.

“He [Odegaard] was very close for the previous game. We are hopeful that tomorrow [Wednesday] he can be in the squad as well.”

Where did Arsenal and Bayern Munich finish in last season’s Champions League?

The Gunners reached the semifinals of the Champions League for the first time since 2008–09, upsetting Real Madrid in the quarterfinals (5-1 on aggregate) before losing to eventual champion Paris Saint-Germain.

Bayern Munich’s UCL campaign came to an end at the quarterfinal stage with a closely contested defeat to Inter Milan (4-3 on aggregate).

Form guide: last five matches

Arsenal: W-W-W-D-W (Premier League, most recent result last)

Bayern Munich: W-W-W-D-W (Bundesliga, most recent result last)

Head-to-head: Arsenal-Bayern Munich

The sides last played on April 17, 2024, with Joshua Kimmich’s 63rd-minute header handing Bayern Munich a 1-0 quarterfinal victory (3-2 on aggregate) over Arsenal in the Champions League, sending the Germans through to the last-four of the 2023-24 competition.

In total, the sides have played against each other 14 times, with Bayern dominating the historical matchup:

• Bayern Munich – 8 wins
• Arsenal – 3 wins
• Draws – 3

Arsenal’s team news

Arsenal will line up against Bayern without a recognised striker, with Kai Havertz (knee) and Viktor Gyokeres (hamstring) still rehabbing injuries.

Gabriel Jesus will also be held back from the Champions League fixture, although the Brazilian forward is back in full training after undergoing knee surgery.

“He is quite close, to be fair, and earlier than we expected,” Arteta said.

“In the next few days, he is going to have another step to make with a game that we are going to organise for him. After that, he is just going to be knocking on the door.

Arsenal’s possible starting XI

Raya (goalkeeper); Timber, Saliba, Hincapie, Lewis-Skelly; Eze, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Merino, Trossard

Bayern Munich’s team news

Kimmich, the player who buried Arsenal the last time they played back in 2024, was a question mark at the beginning of the week after sustaining a knock picked up during the FIFA international break, but is believed to be ready to play on Wednesday.

Explosive winger Luis Diaz is suspended for the Arsenal clash. The Colombian might be replaced by rising 17-year-old star Lennart Karl, who became Bayern’s youngest-ever Champions League scorer when he started against Brugge on October 22.

Injured duo Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies will be unavailable for selection.

Bayern manager Vincent Kompany will again lead the line with English international Harry Kane, who returns to his home city of London for this fixture.

Bayern Munich’s possible starting XI:

Neuer (goalkeeper); Laimer, Upamecano, Tah, Guerreiro; Pavlovic, Kimmich; Olise, Karl, Gnabry; Kane

Who: Chelsea vs Barcelona
What: League Phase, UEFA Champions League
Where: Stamford Bridge, London, UK
When: Tuesday at 8pm (20:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 17:00 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream.

Chelsea will host Barcelona at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday in a hugely consequential Matchday 5 League Phase clash in the UEFA Champions League (UCL).

Chelsea and Barcelona, both former Champions League winners, head into this highly anticipated showdown with an identical seven points from their opening four fixtures, making this match pivotal as both sides aim to climb the standings in search of automatic top-eight qualification into the last-16 of the competition.

The star-studded clubs are riding recent hot streaks with Chelsea, bolstered by a trio of recent wins against Tottenham, Wolves and Burnley, closing in on the Premier League’s top spot behind table-topping Arsenal, while reigning La Liga champions Barcelona are again competing with archrival Real Madrid for the domestic title.

Here is all to know before their epic clash at Stamford Bridge:

What happened in Chelsea’s last Premier League match?

Goals from Pedro Neto and Enzo Fernandez earned Chelsea a 2-0 victory at lowly Burnley on Saturday.

The result moved the Blues past Manchester City and into outright second on the English Premier League (EPL) table behind leaders Arsenal.

Enzo Maresca’s side will clash with the Gunners next Sunday in a top-of-the-table premiership showdown at Stamford Bridge.

What happened in Barcelona’s last La Liga match?

Barcelona secured a dominant 4-0 victory over 10-man Athletic Bilbao on Saturday in their first match back at their home venue Nou Camp since May 2023.

Ferran Torres had two goals for Barca with Robert Lewandowski and Fermin Lopez also adding to the scoresheet.

Athletic lost midfielder Oihan Sancet to a red card in the 54th minute after he was sent off for a crude challenge on Lopez.

Lewandowski, who scored the opener, said he will remember kicking the first goal at the team’s rebuilt Nou Camp stadium “forever”.

“Today was a special day, not only for me but for everyone. Because of this I’m very happy that I could score the first goal, coming back to the Nou Camp,” Lewandowski told Barca One.

“I have so much experience playing in different stadiums, but here is something special. I’m very proud of myself and also of the team because we did a great job today and we won.”

What happened in the last UCL League Phase match for both clubs?

Chelsea were held to a shock 2-2 draw by Azerbaijan side Qarabag in their last outing on November 5, while Barcelona had to rally from a goal down and split the points in a 3-3 result against Club Brugge in Belgium.

Where do Chelsea and Barcelona sit on the UCL League Phase standings?

Barcelona are currently 11th on the UEFA League Phase standings with Chelsea right behind in 12th position. Both sides have two wins, one draw and one loss from their four fixtures.

Teams need to finish the League Phase standings in a top-eight position to secure direct qualification into the round of 16. Those clubs that finish in ladder positions 9-to-24 will enter into a home and away playoffs to reach the last-16.

Where did Barcelona finish in last season’s Champions League?

The Catalan club were widely expected to reach the Champions League final but were eliminated by Inter, who staged a late comeback in the second leg of their record-equalling semifinal.

Palmer out of Barca clash

Chelsea star Cole Palmer is close to returning but will miss the UCL clash with Barcelona before the top-of-the-table Premier League showdown against Arsenal, Maresca said on Monday.

Palmer, who suffered a groin injury in August before returning with back-to-back goals against Brentford and Bayern Munich, was nearing his comeback, but an accident at home delayed his return.

The 23-year-old England international stubbed his toe on a door during the night, resulting in a fracture.

“Cole is wearing a (protective) boot,” Maresca told reporters.

“We don’t know when he will be back but for sure it will be soon. He’s already on the pitch, he’s already touching the ball and the feeling (for him) is good.

“I don’t think he will be available for these two games (Barca and Arsenal), but he is doing well.”

Barca’s Lopez showing summer suitors Chelsea what they missed

Fermin Lopez, 22, is establishing himself as a regular starter for manager Hansi Flick’s side, even though outside of Spain he is not yet a household name.

Chelsea know plenty about Lopez, though, having had a 40-million-euro ($46m) bid rebuffed by Barcelona in the summer. In Tuesday’s Champions League fixture, the attacking midfielder will be one of their main goal threats.

Flick was eager to keep Lopez, while Barca were open to selling him at the right price, which Chelsea did not reach.

“I’m convinced that he will stay, but in the end I don’t know what happens. We have to wait. I am really happy when the market is closed,” said Flick in August, eventually getting his wish.

Despite his improvement and obvious utility for Barca – or maybe even because of it – he is an asset the Catalan giants could cash in.

If he shines at Stamford Bridge, it would be no surprise to see Chelsea’s interest in the midfielder reawaken and his price tag rise further.

Form guide: last five matches

Chelsea: W-L-W-W-W (Premier League, most recent result last)

Barcelona: W-L-W-W-W (La Liga, most recent result last)

Head-to-head: Chelsea-Barcelona

The two clubs have faced each other 14 times, with both teams winning four times while six ended as draws.

The sides last met at the round of 16 in the 2017-2018 Champions League with Barcelona progressing to the quarterfinals 4-1 on aggregate. Argentinian superstar Lionel Messi was the standout in the second leg with two goals – including his 100th UEFA Champions League goal – on the night.

Chelsea’s team news

Oft-injured Reece James was taken off at halftime of Saturday’s EPL fixture at Burnley, but the Chelsea captain’s early finish was preplanned and not the result of a new injury, according to Maresca, so he is expected to be available for team selection.

“The idea was to manage Reece,” said Maresca. “This is the reason why he played 45 minutes [only]. It was planned.

“It’s not easy, because me personally, I would like Reece to continue, but we need to protect Reece.”

French centre-back Wesley Fofana, who was omitted from the matchday squad against Burnley, is believed to be match fit ahead of the Barca clash.

Levi Colwill (knee), Dario Essugo (thigh) and Romeo Lavia (thigh) all remain sidelined for the Blues.

Chelsea’s possible starting XI

Sanchez (Goalkeeper); James, Adarabioyo, Chalobah, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Neto, Pedro, Garnacho; Delap

Barcelona’s team news

On-loan Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford missed Barca’s 4-0 victory over Bilbao on Saturday with illness but was back on the training pitch the following day, prompting rumours that he might suit up against Chelsea on Tuesday.

First-choice goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen will miss the fixture as he continues to recover from a back issue. Joan Garcia will stand in for the German.

Pedri (hamstring) and Gavi (knee) are unavailable for the La Liga champions.

Dynamic winger Raphinha, who returned on the weekend from a hamstring injury, is a strong possibility to regain his starting role against the Blues.

Barcelona’s possible starting XI

J. Garcia (goalkeeper); Kounde, Araujo, Cubarsi, Balde; Casado, De Jong; Yamal, Lopez, Torres; Lewandowski

Follow the build-up, analysis, and live text commentary of the game as Spain and Turkiye vie for top spot in Group E.

The Football Association of Ireland has called for Israel’s immediate suspension over the Israeli FA’s violation of UEFA’s statutes in occupied Palestinian territory.

Members of Irish football’s governing body have approved a resolution instructing its board to submit a formal motion to UEFA requesting the immediate suspension of Israel from European competitions, the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) said.

The resolution passed by the FAI members on Saturday cites violations by Israel’s Football Association of two provisions of UEFA statutes: its failure to implement and enforce an effective antiracism policy and the playing by Israeli clubs in occupied Palestinian territory without the consent of the Palestinian Football Association.

The resolution was backed by 74 votes, with seven opposed and two abstentions, the FAI said in a statement.

UEFA considered holding a vote early last month on whether to suspend Israel from European competitions over its genocide in Gaza, but the voting did not take place after a US-brokered ceasefire took effect on October 10.

The Irish resolution follows calls in September from the heads of the Turkish and Norwegian football governing bodies for Israel to be suspended from international competition.

Those requests came after United Nations experts appealed to FIFA and UEFA to suspend Israel from international football, citing a UN Commission of Inquiry report that said Israel had committed genocide during the war in Gaza.

‘Israel is allowed to operate with total impunity’

In October, more than 30 legal experts called on UEFA to bar Israel and its clubs.

The letter highlighted the damage that Israel is inflicting on the sport in Gaza. At least 421 Palestinian footballers have been killed since Israel began its military offensive in October 2023, and the letter explained that Israel’s bombing campaign is “systematically destroying Gaza’s football infrastructure”.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino brushed aside the calls by indirectly addressing it as a “geopolitical issue” at the FIFA Council on October 2.

“We are committed to using the power of football to bring people together in a divided world,” Infantino said.

The apparently preferential treatment given to Israel’s football team was an extension of the “total impunity” the country has enjoyed amid the two-year war, according to Abdullah Al-Arian, associate professor of history at Georgetown University in Qatar.

“Sporting bodies often mirror the broader power politics that are at play [in the world] and so they’re only doing what we’ve seen happen across all walks of political life, in which Israel has not been held to account,” Al-Arian told Al Jazeera.

“It [Israel] has been allowed to operate with total impunity throughout this genocide and has enjoyed this impunity for many decades.”

In 2024, the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) presented arguments accusing the Israel Football Association (IFA) of violating FIFA statutes with its war on Gaza and the inclusion of clubs located in illegal settlements on Palestinian territory in its domestic football league.

The PFA wanted FIFA to adopt “appropriate sanctions” against Israel’s national side and club teams, including an international ban.

It called on FIFA to ban Israel, but the world body postponed its decision by delegating the matter to its disciplinary committee for review. Al-Arian termed that “a move to keep the bureaucratic machinery moving without making any real progress”.

“Ultimately, it’s a political decision being made at the highest levels of the organisation,” he said.