Leipzig are playing with no out-and-out central striker tonight but are packed full of quality. Dani Olmo is class, for one.

Stephen Warnock
Ex-Aston Villa and Liverpool defender on BBC Radio 5 Live

The negativity around Thiago for me is understandable because of the way he's played. I was really excited when he came in - I thought he was the type of player that Liverpool needed - a ball-playing central midfielder when defences sat deep. But what teams have done this year is attack Liverpool and let men go forward. The fear element has gone - Thiago doesn't have the athleticism to cover the ground in midfield - his pressing has been poor.

What he's used to playing in is a dominant Barcelona team and a dominant Bayern Munich team. He looks a bit off the pace to me. He is a great player, and he will adapt to play in Jurgen Klopp's style but at the moment we're not quite seeing that.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Leipzig boss Julian Nagelsmann: "Liverpool have struggled at times this season but they will try to press us very high, attack us very high. Our build-up game has to be quick and we have to make the right decisions. We also have to play some long balls into the deep space.

"There will be big phases where we have to defend deep because what they do is world class. Their three forwards are very dangerous and very good.

"Our performance has to be very good to win the game. A very important part of being a manager is to study the opponents."

Read more from Nagelsmann's BBC Sport interview here

• This is the first competitive encounter between RB Leipzig and Liverpool. However, this is Leipzig’s third English opponent in the Champions League since the start of 2020, eliminating Tottenham in last season’s round of 16 (4-0 on aggregate) and finishing ahead of Manchester Utd in this season’s group stages (5-0 defeat away and 3-2 win at home).

Pedri in the Potteries in a few years?

Barcelona

Pedri (18y 83d) is the second-youngest player to start a Champions League knockout match for Barcelona, after Bojan (17y 217d vs Schalke in April 2008).

Image source, Getty Images

La Liga giants Barcelona are still able to "compete with the best teams in Europe", insists boss Ronald Koeman.

The Catalans are mired in uncertainty with star man Lionel Messi's contract expiring in the summer and presidential elections due to take place next month.

Barca have lost just one of their past 18 games - against Sevilla in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final - and go into the meeting against PSG on the back of a 5-1 thrashing of Alaves at the weekend.

Koeman said: "The team is doing better, the team is playing good, on a high level, physically the team is on a high level and we still have fantastic players.

"That means we can beat everyone. That's what we like to show, that we can compete with the best teams in Europe."

Liverpool

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said "nobody has to worry about me" as he dismissed social media rumours that he is ready to quit the club or take a break.

"Nobody has to worry about me. I might not look like this because the weather is not cool, the beard gets more and more grey and I don't sleep a lot but I'm full of energy. The situation is a challenge.

"I'm ready and the boys are ready and we give our absolutely everything to sort it. Thanks for all the support. I'm very grateful but they can think about other things because nobody has to worry about me."

Julien Laurens
French football expert on BBC Radio 5 live

Liverpool are in crisis. We never thought Liverpool would be so bad going into a game like this when the draw was made.

It's student against master. There's a case for Julian Nagelsmann trying to outsmart Klopp tactically. It's a fascinating battle.

Three changes for RB Leipzig from the 2-1 win over Augsburg on Friday.

Dayot Upamecano comes back into defence, with Willi Orban dropping to the bench. Captain Marcel Sabitzer starts in midfield, as does Tyler Adams. Marcel Halstenberg and top-scorer Yussuf Poulsen drop out.

RB Leipzig: Gulacsi, Mukiele, Klostermann, Upamecano, Angelino, Sabitzer, Haidara, Kampl, Nkunku, Olmo, Adams.

Subs: Orban, Konate, Poulsen, Hwang, Sorloth, Samardzic, Kluivert, Halstenberg, Martinez, Hartmann, Henrichs.

Image source, .

Liverpool make just one change from the side that lost to Leicester at the weekend.

It is the same one they were forced to make in the first half at the King Power Stadium, with Thiago coming in for James Milner in midfield.

Liverpool: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Kabak, Henderson, Robertson, Jones, Wijnaldum, Thiago, Salah, Firmino, Mane.

Subs: Adrian, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Tsimikas, Shaqiri, Origi, Davies, Rhys Williams, Phillips, Kelleher, Cain, Clarkson, Neco Williams.

Image source, .

• None of RB Leipzig’s 22 Champions League games has ended goalless – that’s more than any other side in the history of the competition.

Speaking of Manchester City - they are favourites for the Champions League before the start of the last 16. In UK bookmakers that is, anyway.

Richard Browne: With the squad where it's at I think Liverpool would be best served just trying to get top four. It would be impossible to win the CL without our first XI, same with the Premier League. Don't have a City squad.

Image source, Getty Images

All three English teams have been handed a boost this week - from a sporting point of view at least - after their away legs were moved to neutral venues.

RB Leipzig v Liverpool and Borussia Monchengladbach v Manchester City will take place in Budapest, Hungary. That is a 1,000- and 1,500-mile round journey respectively for the German clubs' 'home' games.

• How well do you remember the Champions League groups?

Atletico Madrid's game with Chelsea next week will now be in Bucharest. The Romanian capital is actually closer to London (1,500 miles) than Madrid (2,100 miles).

Those changes are all because of international travel being restricted between the UK and other countries because of the Kent variant of coronavirus.

As things stand all the second legs are in England but that could yet change.

Barcelona failed to top a Champions League group for the first time since 2007. Things appear to be improving for them since then though. They are unbeaten in La Liga in 12 games, winning 10 of those.

This could be their final chance to lift the Champions League trophy a fifth time with Lionel Messi - if the club legend does leave the Nou Camp this summer.

They are also boosted by the absence of their former player Neymar tonight.

Barcelona make five changes to the side that thrashed Alaves 5-1 at the weekend.

The big news sees defender Gerard Pique returning to the team following three months out with a knee injury.

Jordi Alba, Sergino Dest, Pedri and Ousmane Dembele also come in.

Oscar Mingueza, Junior Firpo, Ilaix Moriba, Rique Puig and Franciso Trincao drop out.

Barca XI: Ter Stegen, Dest, Pique, Lenglet, Alba, Busquests, De Jong, Pedri, Dembele, Messi, Griezmann.

PSG make two changes to the side that beat Nice 2-1 last time out. Alessandro Florenzi and Marco Verratti come in, with Thilo Kehrer and Julian Draxler making way.

On-loan Everton striker Moise Kean keeps his place in the side.

PSG XI: Navas, Florenzi, Marquinhos, Kimpembe, Kurzawa, Gueye, Paredes, Kean, Verratti, Mbappe, Icardi.

Liverpool are going through a bit of a blip (to use everyone's word of the moment) when it comes to the Premier League - so can they pull something out of the bag tonight against RB Leipzig?

Text and tweet us your thoughts as always - don't forget to add your names for a shout out!

Image source, Get

Image source, Getty Images

Two behemoths of games, three giant clubs and an upstart. What a night:

Barcelona v Paris St-Germain (20:00 GMT)

RB Leipzig v Liverpool (20:00 GMT)

Liverpool

There's just one change for Liverpool from the team which was beaten by Leicester - Thiago comes in for James Milner.