Fans fear Champions League ‘fix’ as two sides can play out bore draw and guarantee qualification in final match
EYES will be on one game in particular as the Champions League group stage comes to an epic conclusion next week.
The revamped tournament sees a mammoth 18 matches take place on a single night.
24 teams will make it through to the knockout stages following the bumper evening of action.
And, so far, only Liverpool and Barcelona have definitely secured their spot in the round of 16.
A host of clubs - including Aston Villa, Bayern Munich and holders Real Madrid - are guaranteed a place in the playoffs.
But some fans are fearing two sides could come to agreement that will see them BOTH go through.
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Stuttgart and Paris Saint-Germain face each other next week at the MHPArena in Germany.
The Bundesliga side beat Slovan Bratislava 3-1 last week and currently sit 24th in the standings, the final qualifying spot.
They are level on points with the Ligue 1 champions, who have a slightly superior goal difference.
And all that means a draw will guarantee both teams make it through to the playoffs - barring a miraculous goal swing.
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Dinamo Zagreb would require an epic seven-goal victory against AC Milan to leapfrog either Stuttgart or PSG, should they draw their game.
Fans were quick to notice the anomaly and have speculated the two teams will "fix" a draw, similar to claims made ahead of Romania and Slovakia's 1-1 stalemate at Euro 2024.
One fan wrote on X: "Wait till Stuttgart and PSG fix their game and play a draw."
Another joked: "Can’t believe you’re just writing off Zagreb winning 11-0."
One team in real danger of crashing out are Manchester City.
Pep Guardiola's men need to beat Club Brugge at home to make sure of a place in the playoffs.
Should City beat Brugge and Stuttgart draw with PSG, all three would head through to the knockout stages at the expense of the Belgian side.
New Champions League format is a snorefest
By Dan King
UEFA sold the idea of expanding the Champions League from 32 to 36 teams, with each playing eight games instead of six in the opening phase, as a way of creating more competitiveness and excitement.
The biggest clubs would have two matches against their peers, rather than having to wait until the knockout stage to meet.
The smaller clubs would meet teams of a similar level twice and have a chance of tasting victory that was so hard to achieve if you were the bottom seed in a group of four.
Ignoring for a moment the fact that the real motivation was the simple equation of more games = more money, the theory itself already looks flawed.
None of the matches between European giants has delivered a compelling contest yet.
And why would they? At the start of the long season with more matches in it, why would any team with ambitions to win things in the spring, go out all guns blazing in the autumn?
Especially when they know they have six games NOT against big sides to make sure they accrue enough points to qualify at least for the play-off round (and even more games).
There is even less jeopardy than before.
Read the full column on the Champions League format fail and why everyone - including YOU - needs a rethink.
Stuttgart boss Sebastian Hoeness has rubbished claims his side will settle for a point and has instead indicated they will be aiming for all three on Wednesday.
He said: "So far, we have always done quite well by sticking to ourselves and focusing on our tasks.
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"And this time, too, we will try to implement our game and our strategy. Of course, we know the possibilities.
"For both teams, including Paris, it's about progressing. And that's exactly how we're approaching the game."