After a three week slog through the international break, dominated by the headlines surrounding Manchester City’s conviction by the Premier League, the Champions League quickly returns to the calendar for Matchday 2.
Here, the Faculty looks back on our [predictions](https://thefootballfaculty.com/2026/09/08/champions-league-preview-arsenal-a-lock-villa-facing-an-early-exit/) from Matchday 1, shares predictions for the week, and looks ahead to the top matches of the week.
The first week of the campaign largely followed expectation, as all pot one teams, except those facing each other, came away with wins. Como glittered on their Champions League debut, with their dynamic midfield duo leading the way. Martin Baturina opened the scoring before assisting on the second, while Nico Paz set up the final two goals on the way to a 4-1 win over Leipzig.
Elsewhere, Aston Villa overcame their sluggish start to the Premier League season with a 3-2 win over Club Brugge, while Liverpool took down Atletico Madrid 2-1 thanks to a second half screamer from Alexis Mac Allister.
The Faculty started strong, with both Ollie and Josh getting a correct scoreline or result in 11 of the 18 matches. Josh edges Ollie by two points after round one thanks to max points for exact results from two matches (Arsenal 1-0 in Napoli, PSV 1-1 Shakhtar) to Ollie’s one (Fener 1-1 Roma).
**Josh**
**Ollie**
Exact Scores (3 points)
2
1
Correct result + margin (2 points)
3
3
Result only (1 point)
6
7
**_Total Points_**
**_18_**
**_16_**
_Josh_ **Manchester United at Atletico Madrid** (Tuesday, 21:00 CET)
The controversy surrounding their neighbors at the Etihad lightened the pressure on Michael Carrick over the international break, but it returned in force after a poor draw against Spurs over the weekend. Carlos Baleba was a bright spot, making an instant impact on his debut, and will be looking for his first ever UCL action alongside Youri Tielemans and Bruno Fernandes in the United midfield. Atletico escaped with a 2-1 win at Alaves on the weekend thanks to a late Cristian Romero header, his first goal for the club. I’m expecting the pressure to continue to mount on Carrick & Co against a well-drilled and fiery Atletico side – let’s go with a comfortable 2-0 victory for Diego Simeone’s side at the Metropolitano.
_Manchester United 0 – 2 Atletico Madrid_
_Ollie_ **Borussia Dortmund at Bodø/Glimt** (Wednesday, 21:00 CET)
This tie might fly under the radar on MD2, but Dortmund’s trip north of the Arctic Circle has the makings of a classic. Bodø/Glimt, who have not lost on home turf since May, will be looking to bounce back from a 5-0 thrashing at the hands of Bayern Munich on MD1. Dortmund’s narrow 3-2 win over Villarreal will give the Norwegians plenty of hope, while Bodø’s reputation for pressing high should leave space for Dortmund to exploit in transition. If last season’s 2-2 draw in Germany is anything to go by, goals should be plentiful – cue a dull 0-0.
_Borussia Dortmund 3 – 2 Bodø/Glimt_
**Ollie**
**Josh**
Sporting CP at Lens
2 – 1
2 – 2
Slavia Praha at Sabah
3 – 1
1 – 1
Lille at Arsenal
0 – 2
0 – 1
Manchester United at Atletico Madrid
1 – 3
0 – 2
Club Brugge at Inter
1 – 1
0 – 2
Barcelona at Galatasaray
2 – 1
3 – 1
PSV Eindhoven at Leipzig
0 – 0
1 – 2
Bayern Munich at Viking
3 – 0
4 – 0
Napoli at Villarreal
1 – 1
1 – 1
Como at Feyenoord
3 – 1
2 – 1
Liverpool at LASK
3 – 0
2 – 0
Real Madrid at Roma
3 – 1
2 – 1
Fenerbahce at Aston Villa
2 – 1
1 – 1
AEK Athens at Shakhtar Donetsk
1 – 1
0 – 1
Borussia Dortmund at Bodo/Glimt
3 – 2
3 – 1
Paris Saint-Germain at Manchester City
1 – 1
3 – 1
Porto at Real Betis
1 – 2
1 – 3
Stuttgart at Slovan Bratislava
1 – 0
3 – 2