Born in the south east of Ireland, Simon put his life-long love of football to good use when he started a successful independent blog in 2010. That opened up an alternative route to a career in journalism, and having had work published across a number of sites and publications, Simon joined the staff at Spotlight Sports Group in 2018.
After an arduous 12-month journey that saw 116 games played and 379 goals scored, just four of the 79 teams that embarked on a Champions League adventure last year are still standing.
This week, the competition’s final four – RB Leipzig, PSG, Lyon and Bayern Munich – will be reduced again by half as the tournament reaches its climax for 2019/20.
With silverware in sight, Champions League winning dreams are close to being realised, though all but one of the remaining teams will ultimately fall short.
RB Leipzig and Lyon have upset the odds to reach the semi-final stage of the competition following impressive runs, and while perennial underachievers PSG and a formidable Bayern Munich are favourites to progress, the Champions League’s habit for producing the unexpected means all four clubs will be eyeing a place in the Final.
Below, we’ve compiled the latest betting odds, team news and details about where you can watch each game this week live on TV or via stream, and remember – you can also check out all our Champions predictions for the upcoming semi-final contests here.
How to watch the Champions League Semi-Finals
Broadcaster BT Sport have rights to screen the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League in the UK, and they will be covering every minute of the action exclusively across their package of channels including BT Sport, BT Sport 2, BT Sport 3 and BT Spot Extra.
Tuesday, August 18
20:00 – RB Leipzig v PSG (BT Sport 1 / BT Sport Extra 1 / BT Sport Ultimate)
Read our expert’s analysis and betting tips for the game in our RB Leipzig vs PSG predictions.
Wednesday, August 19
20:00 – Lyon v Bayern Munich (BT Sport 1 / BT Sport Extra 1 / BT Sport Ultimate)
You can find a detailed look at the game along with free betting tips in our Lyon vs Bayern Munich predictions.
Champions League team news and betting odds
Tuesday, August 18
RB Leipzig vs Paris St. Germain team news
French centre-half Ibrahima Konaté is out injured for RB Leipzig, thoug the youngster – considered a back-up option – wouldn’t have started if fully fit.
New signings Hwang Hee-Chan and Benjamin Henrichs are both ineligible and won’t feature, though Julian Nagelsmann has a full complement of players to choose from elsewhere.
Dayout Upamecano and Marcel Halstenberg are expected to pair up in central defence again, while energetic duo Kevin Kampl and Konrad Laimer look certain to reprise their roles in central-midfield.
Quarter-final match winning sub Tyler Adams is pushing to start however, though Nagelsmann could choose to keep faith with the starting XI that played so well against Atletico.
RB Leipzig predicted line-up: Gulacsi – Klostermann, Upamecano, Halstenber, Angelino – Laimer, Kampl – Sabitzer, Olmo, Nkunku – Poulsen
Left-back Layvin Kurzawa is out injured and won’t feature for PSG, while key midfielder Marco Verratti and keeper Keylor Navas could also miss out.
Kylian Mbappe, who came off the bench in the Parisians’ quarter-final win against Atalanta should come back into the XI, while Angel Di Mari is also available again having served a suspension.
PSG predicted line-up: Rico – Kehrer, Silva, Kimpembe, Bernat – Marquinhos, Gueye, Di Maria – Neymar, Mbappe, Icardi
RB Leipzig vs PSG betting odds
RB Leipzig: 10/3
Draw: 16/5
PSG: 8/11
Check out our exclusive 20/1 #OOT special for RB Leipzig vs Paris St. Germain here!
Wednesday, August 18
Lyon vs Bayern Munich team news
Rudi Garcia has a full squad to choose from for Lyon’s massive semi-final clash with Bayern Munich, and the Les Gones boss will likely field the same XI that performed so impressively in their quarter-final triumph against Man City.
That would mean that Karl Toko Ekambi would keep his place up front, with goalscoring hero Moussa Dembele kept in reserve to unleash in the second half as a fresh option.
Lyon predicted line-up: Lopes – Denayer, Marcelo, Marcal – Dubois, Caqueret, Guimaraes, Aouar, Cornet – Ekambi, Depay
Benjamin Pavard returned to training this week, though the Frenchman is unlikely to be drafted back into the Bayern team after Joshua Kimmich’s masterclass from right-back against Barcelona.
Hansi Flick will almost certainly field the same team that disantled the La Liga giants with such ruthlessness in the quarter-finals, and that should see Kingsley Coman and Philippe Coutinho continue on the bench.
Bayern Munich predicted line-up: Neuer – Kimmich, Boateng, Alaba, Davies – Goretzka, Thiago – Gnabry, Muller, Perisic – Lewandowski
Lyon vs Bayern Munich betting odds
Lyon: 11/1
Draw: 13/2
Bayern Munich: 1/5
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