Phil McNulty
BBC Sport chief football writer at Anfield

On a night of stars, one of the biggest sporting superstars of all time is here. The great Rafa Nadal has just taken his seat at Anfield, having ended his glittering tennis career at The Davis Cup last week.

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Juan Castro
Marca football journalist on BBC Radio 5 Live

Kylian Mbappe's start has been good but not as good as Real Madrid fans imagined in August. He is getting better in terms of goals but the performances are not there yet. It has not been good enough.

Tonight is a night for big players and Jude Bellingham is definitely one of those for Real Madrid.

Liverpool

Liverpool manager Arne Slot speaking to TNT Sports: "If we want to win against Real Madrid we have to do many things really well for the whole game. Real Madrid is known for if every time your concentration slips, they can do you harm. We have to be on the top of our game for every second.

"I always pick the strongest team for the next game. Sometimes it does mean that if someone played 90 minutes then sometimes you need to change it."

On Mohamed Salah blocking out the outside noise: "I think he has shown that many times already this season. He has been in the media for ever since he is a professional footballer so he is used to it. If he doesn't have a good game tonight - it will be because of the quality of Real Madrid and not his comments. But I expect it to be the same Mo Salah that he has been for the last many years.

"These are the two clubs who have dominated European football. But we need to show up. If we show up, the fans can be a good influence for us tonight."

Rory Smith
Chief Soccer Correspondent for The New York Times, on BBC Radio 5 Live

It strikes me as Mo Salah wants to make it clear to the Liverpool fans that he wants to stay and if he doesn't it is not due to any lack of intent on his part. The one thing to caveat it is that there is a slight chances to the rhetoric that came from Salah after the Manchester United game in September.

He talked about how it might be his last game at Old Trafford for Liverpool. Then it was there is no talks. This is 'I have not received an offer' which indicates to me that there are talks going on but Salah haven't received a firm offer as yet.

The problem will be his age and whether Liverpool are hueing about looking at any potential resale value of a player who is now 32.

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Chris Sutton
Former Premier League striker on BBC Radio 5 Live

Cetic go into this match off the back of the game against RB Leipzig with real confidence, and they have a great chance of qualifying.

The truth is that before a ball was kicked in this campaign I thought it would be a tall order, but they are a team playing with good confidence. The rest of the league phase is set up nicely for them.

Alan Hutton
Former Scotland defender on TNT Sports

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Performances have not been up to the standards for Aston Villa recently.

They need to depend on the experienced players like John McGinn and Emiliano Martinez in these situations. The youngsters just need to get the basics right and then you are going to get those performances.

When you play with freedom, everything else comes naturally.

Thomas Hitzlsperger
Former Aston Villa midfielder on BBC Radio 5 Live

Aston Villa are going through a very difficult patch at the moment, similar to the situation with Man City. Unai Emery has his idea and focus but it is not coming off at the moment.

The players are struggling at the moment because what worked so well in the past season is not coming off, they are thinking a lot and being punished on transition and set pieces where they were not before.

Chris Sutton
Former Premier League striker on BBC Radio 5 Live

The way that Liverpool have started the Premier League season, the way that they have started this Champions League campaign - they are flying high on confidence and are the favourites.

Having said all that some of the players Real Madrid have can hurt any team on their day. It is a tricky one to call.

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Thomas Hitzlsperger
Former Aston Villa midfielder on BBC Radio 5 Live

Liverpool can't get any better than they are right now. I think that they might have peaked too early in the season. It is such a long season.

For them to maintain this run of form and the results in particular throughout an entire season, to make it all the way to the Champions League final and so on, I'm not so sure.

Gareth Bale
Former Real Madrid and Tottenham winger on TNT Sports

I think for me, even just being there you learn quickly that we don't worry about this part of the season. It is when you lead into where the trophies are belonging and you find form.

The manager will keep everyone calm and they'll be ready to go. Every Real Madrid fan expects them to win this (the Champions League) and it is in their DNA.

Steve McManaman
Former Real Madrid and Liverpool winger on TNT Sports

The atmosphere is normally rocking, under the lights here at Anfield.

Liverpool's record against Real Madrid is not good.

Real Madrid have had a hosts of injuries.

Their schedule is off the scale and they are down to the bare bones. That's why Liverpool are hot favourites.

Phil McNulty
BBC Sport chief football writer at Anfield

Mohamed Salah is out warming up and it would be hard for him to miss the banner now being brandished at the front of The Kop on a regular basis, reading "He Fires A Bow. Now Give Mo His Dough".

It comes just days after Salah revealed he has yet to receive a contract offer from the club, with his current deal expiring at the end of the season.

Chris Sutton
Former Blackburn striker on BBC Radio 5 Live

If Liverpool win the Premier League this season then it will be largely down to Mo Salah and his form. You think that the fact that he is physically in great shape, he will go on and be such an important player for another couple of season. Why are Liverpool letting this situation rumble on?

Clearly something is amiss and that will not be good for Liverpool and Liverpool supporters at this time, when the season has gone so swimmingly well.

Now there is an undercurrent and he is putting the club under pressure.

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This is a repeat of the 1981, 2018 and 2022 finals. Liverpool won the first one but Real won the others.

Real are 15-time champions, with Liverpool winning it six times.

Liverpool have lost seven of their last eight meetings (all in this tournament), drawing the other.

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Bologna will aim to record their first win in this season's Champions League as they host Lille.

The Serie A club lost to Liverpool, Aston Villa and Monaco and are looking to avoid becoming the first Italian side to lose four matches in a row during a single Champions League campaign.

"We have to give everything to try to pick up points. We're still in it and here we'll try with all our ability and will. We will need to be at our best and hit the ground running," said Bologna head coach Vincenzo Italiano.

Lille, meanwhile, bounced back from an opening defeat to Sporting with wins against Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid before holding Juventus to a 1-1 draw last time.

But, the build-up to the game has been marred by a knife attack on Lille supporters in the Italian city.

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It's a clash between two sides that claimed their first win last time out, as PSV and Shakhtar Donetsk face each other in Eindhoven.

PSV eased past Girona 4-0 to make it 12 matches unbeaten at home in Europe, and they have scored 12 goals and conceded none in their last three matches across all competitions.

"There's something extra about your home games. You want to win them but it's not that easy. You don't just turn up and pick up the points," said PSV boss Peter Bosz.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainians came back from behind to defeat Switzerland's Young Boys for their first victory.

"PSV are an absolute top team with a recognisable playing style, so it is a challenge for us. But, as Johan Cruyff once said, the best way to defend is to take the initiative and attack," said Shakhtar head coach Marino Pusic.

Chris Sutton
Former Blackburn striker on BBC Radio 5 Live

Going into the Euros everyone was really excited about Jude Bellingham's form and he dipped a little bit, as did a lot of England players.

When you are as high profile a player as he is then you come to be judged by your performances and maybe he didn't hit the level that people have come to expect. I don't agree with him that he was scapegoated but that is his opinion.

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Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham says he has got his smile back after "feeling a bit like the scapegoat" for England's failure to win Euro 2024 in the summer.

Bellingham scored England's first goal of the tournament in a 1-0 victory against Serbia, before scoring a 95th-minute overhead-kick equaliser against Slovakia to save Gareth Southgate's side from elimination in the last 16.

England were eventually defeated 2-1 by Spain as they lost their second European Championship final in three years.

England were accused of playing too conservatively in Germany, with Bellingham in particular the target of what he described as a "pile-on" from critics.

"I lost my smile a lot playing for England after the Euros as I felt I was a little mistreated compared to what I contributed," Bellingham said before Real Madrid's Champions League meeting with Liverpool.

"[The] smile is back [now].

"I think it was a bit harsh on me. I felt a bit like the scapegoat. Maybe I felt a bit sorry for myself.

"I felt I contributed some pretty big moments, but it felt like the whole world was crumbling down on me, especially in the three days after the final. It wasn't a nice feeling."