Reigning champions Chelsea will begin their defense of the UEFA Champions League title today in one of the best match-ups of the group stage as they play host to Italian champions Juventus.
The Blues have gotten off to a strong start to the season in England and will look to halt a Juve side coming off an unbeaten season in Serie A last season. Juventus is playing without suspended manager Antonio Conte, who is serving a suspension for his alleged role in a match-fixing scandal (his role being to have alledgedly failed to inform authorities of being offered a bribe to fix a match). Andrea Pirlo and Frank Lampard should put on a good battle of ageless midfield stars.
Manchester United will be looking to erase the bad memories of last year's failed Champions League run when they open their new campaign at home against Turkish giant Galatasaray. Returning Champions League finalists also faces a tough opening match, with a home date against Spanish side Valencia.
U.S. national team defender Michael Parkhurst and Danish champions Norsdjaelland face a difficult opening group match against high-flying Shakhtar Donetsk. It is a match-up that should test Parkhurst's defensive skills and allow him to showcase his recent impressive form.
If you will be watching today's UEFA Champions League action, please feel free to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below.
Enjoy the action (Today's UEFA Champions League schedule is after the jump):
TODAY'S UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SCHEDULE
2:45pm-Fox Soccer Channel- Chelsea vs. Juventus
2:45pm- Fox Soccer Plus- Manchester United vs. Galatasaray
2:45pm- MSG Plus- Barcelona vs. Spartak Moscow
2:45pm- DirecTV- Bayern Munich vs. Valencia
2:45pm- DirecTV- Braga vs. CFR Cluj
2:45pm- DirecTV- Celtic vs. Benfica
2:45pm- DirecTV- Lille vs. BATE Borisov
2:45pm- DirecTV- Shakhtar Donetsk vs. FC Nordsjaelland