Paris Saint-Germain can wrap up a spot in the Round of 16 and hold on to the top spot in Group F with a win over APOEL on Wednesday, combined with some help from Barcelona. PSG needs the Spanish side to defeat or draw against Ajax in order to guarantee they'll advance with a win of their own. Their chances are good of taking care of business against the Cypriot side, but given Barca's recent struggles, it's hard to predict if they'll get the help they need.
Athletic Club vs. FC Porto, 2014 UEFA Champions League: Team news and game preview
Porto can basically guarantee themselves a spot in the next round with a win over Athletic
PSG enter the match heavy favorites thanks to the considerable talent gap between the two teams and the Parisians 16-match unbeaten streak. APOEL’s stingy defense doesn’t make a draw impossible, but they’re going to be tested heavily by a PSG attack that has plenty of weapons available, even with Zlatan still out.
PSG’s defense is also fully healthy for the first time in awhile with Marquinhos having made his return over the weekend.
Key Player: Aritz Aduriz (Atheltic Club)
This season has been a struggle for Athletic Bilbao, especially on offense where they've managed only 9 goals in all competitions. This makes Aduriz easily the most important player in the match for Athletic because he's responsible for five of those nine goals. That's an absurd amount of scoring from one player and while the 33-year-old is up to the task, it also makes it somewhat easier for defenses to setup a plan to slow down Athletic. As long as his hamstring cooperates, there will be no secret who Athletic are trying to get the ball too.
Key Matchup: Athletic’s Club attack vs. Their own struggles
We know Athletic can defend, though they’ll be tested heavily by Porto. The key to the game, and to Atheltic’s chances of salvaging this UCL campaign is the attack. They have to start scoring more goals. Not a ton, not Real Madrid-like numbers, but something to help support their defense. Aduriz also cannot do it by himself, he’s gonna need help and if no one starts stepping up, Athletic will not only be out of the UCL, they’ll probably miss the Europa League as well.
Athletic Club injuries and suspensions
Out: Aritz Aduriz (hamstring)
Porto injuries and suspensions
Out: None
Athletic's impotent offense could be further hindered by Aritz Aduriz's hamstring injury. He's scored four of the teams' seven total goals in league play and half of their UCL goals as well. He played on the weekend against Sevilla, so chances are good he'll start, but you never know with muscle injuries.
Match Date/Time: Wednesday 8:45 p.m. local, 2:45 p.m. ET
Venue: San Mamés, Bilbao, Spain
TV: DirecTV, FOX Soccer Plus (U.S.), Sky Sports Red Button (U.K.), Sport TV2 (Portugal), C+ Liga de Campeones 2/HD (Spain)
Online: FOX Soccer 2Go, WatchESPN/ESPN3 (U.S.), Sportsnet World Now (Canada), SkyGo (U.K.)
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