Summary

Live Reporting

Neil Johnston & Emlyn Begley

  1. Get Involved: 'Human body can only take so much'

    #bbcfootball, text 81111 (UK only - standard rates apply) or WhatsApp 03301231826

    I for one think Rodri has a point. An employer cannot keep adding more work to an employees work load without it affecting their physical (and mental) fitness. If he plays every game this season and City go to the finals of every tournament they are in I read on the BBC he'll play 80+ games. That is not physically possible without a huge increase risk to the body. People saying "they live in a different world"...yes they do. But at the end of the day the human body can only take so much.

    Dom, London

  2. 'Haaland is on fire'

    Man City v Inter Milan (20:00 BST)

    Joe Hart
    Former England & Man City goalkeeper on BBC Radio 5 Live

    Erling Haaland looks like he wants to set every game on fire.

    The frustrating thing for a goalkeeper or a defender is you probably think you can handle him during the game because he is not necessarily getting hold of the ball.

    For 85 minutes you can say 'I've got him in my back pocket'. And then bang...he's walking off with two or three goals.

    It's exceptional what he has done. I love watching him - the power, the pace, the energy. I love his attitude. He has a smile on his face and a hunger in his eyes. You have got to enjoy someone like that.

  3. Stones & Foden on bench
    Breaking

    Man City v Inter Milan (20:00 BST)

    Phil Foden and John Stones start on the substitutes bench, while Erling Haaland and Rodri are named in the starting XI.

    Full team news to follow.

  4. Will Man City rest players before Arsenal?

    Man City v Inter Milan (20:00 BST)

    Manchester City

    It's almost team news time at the Etihad.

    Will Pep Guardiola rest some of his big guns before Sunday's Premier League blockbuster with Arsenal?

    Surely Erling Haaland will start, won't he?

  5. The former Inter Milan winger who played in the FA Cup qualifying rounds

    Man City v Inter Milan (20:00 BST)

    Inter Milan

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    Remember the former Inter Milan winger who received a Champions League winners' medal which he lost - and ended up playing in the FA Cup qualifying rounds?

    After winning Sky's reality TV show 'Football's Next Star', which aired in 2010, Ben Greenhalgh lived the dream after securing a professional contract with Inter.

    As a teenager, he trained alongside players such as Patrick Vieira under the watchful eye of Jose Mourinho, Inter's boss at the time.

    Read his incredible story here.

  6. Get Involved: Limit players to 40 games a season?

    #bbcfootball, text 81111 (UK only - standard rates apply) or WhatsApp 03301231826

    I think we do need to protect players from playing too many games to avoid injuries as we all want to see the best players playing in the big games. I think the emphasis has to be on the clubs though. I would propose that there is a limit of 40 games one player can play in a season to force clubs to rotate their squad.

    James, Kent

  7. Countdown to kick-off

    Man City v Inter Milan (20:00 BST)

    .Getty Images
    .Getty Images
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  8. 'We don't want players getting hurt'

    Man City v Inter Milan (20:00 BST)

    Joe Hart
    Former England & Man City goalkeeper on BBC Radio 5 Live

    We all want to watch great games of football. We want chaos like last night. We don't want players getting hurt for the sake of it, we don't want players doing hamstrings after 60 minutes.

    People are trying to look at players' welfare. It's not just the money men at the top or the TV channels saying 'we don't care - just get on that pitch and entertain us'. There's plenty more things going on in the background.

  9. Elsewhere in Europe

    Victor OlatunjiGetty Images

    Thngs are going very well for Sparta Prague on their Champions League return.

    Victor Olatunji doubled their lead over Salzburg just before half-time. It's 2-0 in Letna at the break.

    Bologna, making their Champions League debut, and Shakhtar Donetsk are goalless - thanks to an early missed penalty from the Ukrainian side.

  10. Could players go on strike?

    #bbcfootball, WhatsApp on 03301231826 or text 81111 (UK only, standard message rates apply)

    BrumBrum: You're free to pick another career. If you earn millions a year you will struggle, quite rightly, to win any sympathy.

  11. 'Burnout issue'

    Man City v Inter Milan (20:00 BST)

    Simon Stone
    BBC Sport's chief football news reporter at Etihad Stadium

    Strike action has been threatened many times in the modern game but rarely has it actually happened - and nothing on the scale envisaged.

    MLS players came within days of walking out prior to the start of the 2010 campaign, but their pay issue was resolved. There are instances of players at individual Spanish clubs refusing to play after their wages weren't paid.

    The issue here is which games would be targeted - Premier League? EFL Cup? Champions League? There are different organisers for every competition. Who would be targeted?

    And while Rodri - at the top of his profession - has a burnout issue, a player at a Premier League club that doesn't qualify for Europe and gets knocked out in the first available round of both domestic competitions only has a maximum 40 games to play.

  12. Odegaard injury 'quite significant'

    Atalanta v Arsenal (Thurs, 20:00 BST)

    Ian Dennis
    BBC Radio 5 Live senior football reporter in Bergamo

    .Getty Images

    Mikel Arteta has confirmed in Bergamo that Martin Odegaard has damaged ankle ligaments following a scan and the injury is “quite significant”.

    He wouldn’t put a timescale on how long he will be missing.

  13. Atalanta v Arsenal (Thurs, 20:00 BST)

    Arsenal

    Mikel Arteta is giving a news conference now before Arsenal's Champions League game with Atalanta on Thursday (20:00 BST).

    And there is some bad news on the injury front...

  14. Could players go on strike?

    #bbcfootball, WhatsApp on 03301231826 or text 81111 (UK only, standard message rates apply)

    Witsend56: This just confirms that footballers live in a different world. Last week it was a player who stated "what other job do you have to take abuse". Well, try working in a shop, school, prison, hospital or the police. Just some of the jobs that get abused every day both physical and verbal. Now they complain about the number of games they have to play. Isn’t that why teams have huge squads?

  15. Shakhtar in yellow and blue

    Bologna 0-0 Shakhtar

    Shakhtar are playing in yellow and blue tonight, the colours of the Ukraine flag. It's the first time they have sported the kit and a poignant visual reminder the country remains at war, with the club saying: "We are proud to be Ukrainians."

    Shakhtar's yellow and blue kitReuters

  16. Get Involved: Your Champions League cult hero

    #bbcfootball, WhatsApp on 03301231826 or text 81111 (UK only, standard message rates apply)

    .Getty Images

    Let us know your Champions League cult heroes - and why.

    Also, what do you think of Rodri's comments that players could strike over the amount of games they play?

    Get in touch the usual way about all things Champions League.

    #bbcfootball, WhatsApp on 03301231826 or text 81111 (UK only, standard message rates apply)

  17. Two Champions League final defeats - but still a cult hero

    MendietaGetty Images

    To celebrate the BBC having Champions League highlights this season, we will look at a Champions League cult hero each week there are games.

    This week it's Valencia icon Gaizka Mendieta, who took the tournament by storm around the turn of the century.

    Click here to read it.

  18. Players 'close' to striking - Rodri

    Man City v Inter Milan (20:00 BST)

    Manchester City

    Will players go on strike over the amount of games they are required to play?

    Rodri caused a real stir on the eve of Manchester City's Champions League game with Inter Milan by suggesting that could happen.

    The expanded Champions League and the Fifa Club World Cup formats, alongside enlarged national team competitions, has made for a greater number of games for top teams and players.

    Rodri is the latest to say the workload is too great.

    "I think we're close to that [striking]," said Rodri. "It's the general opinion of the players, and if it keeps this way, we'll have no other option. I really think it's something that worries us. We are the guys who suffer."

    Read more here.

  19. How does it all work?

    Watch this explainer on how the new Champions League league phase works.

    Basically everyone plays eight different teams, four at home and four away.

    The top eight go into the last 16, the next 16 teams go into a play-off round and the bottom eight are done for.

    Champions League: All you need to know about the new format

  20. 'Fun and high energy'

    Joe Hart
    Former England & Man City goalkeeper on BBC Radio 5 Live

    I enjoyed Tuesday's Champions League games. It was a lot of fun and the energy was really high. It seems everyone is pumped for this new format. Why not sit back and enjoy it. There's plenty of football, plenty of action and some amazing games.

    .Reuters
    .Rex Features
    .Reuters