Of the teams in groups E-H that will play on Wednesday evening, only Bayern Munich, Manchester United, Chelsea, and Juventus have assured themselves of a place in the last 16, with Bayern and United the only teams knowing for definite that they will finish top.
Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea, defending their European crown, will be keen to seal their spot in the winner’s circle and avoid some potentially tricky last 16 ties while there are only three points between all teams in Group G.
Manchester United can feel a bit more relaxed and will be eager to get one over on Young Boys who beat them in the first matchday.
Red Devils Set For Strong Ending
While United theoretically have nothing to play for, the squad will be keen to impress new coach Ralf Rangnick.
He secured his first win as boss on Sunday thanks to a late goal by Fred against Crystal Palace and now a first European contest is on the horizon.
Rangnick has been lauded as the Godfather of modern German coaching and United are expected to adopt a disciplined pressing style from now until the end of the season.
"It's important we continue to build the team. Right now, we're playing every three days," Ralf continues.
"It has to happen again. We did that against Crystal Palace, and we will do that before our next games against Young Boys and Norwich."
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) December 7, 2021
Young Boys caused United all sort of issues when they met at the Wankdorf Stadium in September but United under Rangnick already appear to be a sturdier unit.
The Swiss side must win to keep their Europa League hopes alive but United to win to nil is available at 29/20.
Chelsea To Nudge Past Zenit
When Chelsea met Zenit St Petersburg in September, they overcame the Russian side by the narrowest of margins as Romelu Lukaku’s header secured a 1-0 win.
It was a reward for their patience as Zenit performed well at Stamford Bridge but now Chelsea will be eager to secure the three points in order to seal top spot.
Thomas Tuchel’s side have only conceded one goal in this season’s Champions League group stage as Federico Chiesa’s strike was enough for Juventus to beat them in Turin.
Zenit beat Malmo 4-0 at home but have otherwise flattered to deceive and now have nothing to play for after securing their Europa League spot.
Chelsea’s extra intensity should ensure victory and they can be backed at 6/4 to win to nil.
Juve To Overwhelm Malmo
All Juventus can do is win and hope Chelsea slip up in order to top Group H.
Despite not being overly impressive in Serie A, Max Allegri’s side have reserved some good performances for the Champions League, with the 1-0 win against the Blues a particular highlight.
Their last group game is, on paper, the easiest possible finale to the pre-Christmas European schedule.
Malmo have only gained one point from five games and have only managed to find the back of the net on one occasion.
They did actually seal the Allsvenskan title on Saturday so there will be jubilation in the camp but Juventus is a huge step up and they can be backed to score over 3.5 goals at 12/5.
*All odds correct at time of writing
