So then, intriguing stuff.

There'll be a lot of eyes on Lionel Messi's first start for PSG, many of them tear-filled ones in Barcelona.

Kevin de Bruyne is back, Liverpool are resting players. Interesting.

There is a bit of history tonight as Sheriff Tiraspol become the first Moldovan team to ever play in the Champions League.

Their game with Shakhtar Donetsk kicked off at 17:45 BST and the score is 1-0 to Sheriff with (not that) Adama Traore scoring.

It's not all it seems with that team though.

Sheriff play in Trans-Dniester (also called Transnistria), an unrecognised breakaway state in Moldova who want to join Russia.

It has a reputation for corruption, organised crime and smuggling.

The team are owned by the Sheriff Company, who dominate everything from food retail to banking, from the media to politics.

Read more about it here.

Image source, .

Kevin de Bruyne makes his first Manchester City start of the season - one of four changes from the XI that started last time out.

De Bruyne has been struggling with an ankle problem and has only played 11 minutes this season.

Also back in the side are Nathan Ake, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Riyad Mahrez. Zinchenko is also making his first start of the campaign.

There is no Aymeric Laporte, while Kyle Walker, Gabriel Jesus and İlkay Gundogan all drop to the bench.

Man City XI: Ederson, Cancelo, Dias, Ake, Zinchenko, De Bruyne, Rodri, Silva, Grealish, Torres, Mahrez.

Image source, .

RB Leipzig - last season's Bundesliga runners-up - include former Manchester City defender Angelino in their side.

Former Liverpool keeper Peter Gulacsi, who was part of the Hungary squad at Euro 2020 - also starts.

RB Leipzig XI: Gulacsi, Klostermann, Orban, Mukiele, Angelino, Laimer, Adams, Olmo, Forsberg, Nkunku, A Silva

Lionel Messi makes his first ever Paris St-Germain start tonight.

And for the first time ever, Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe play together.

Full team news to follow.

Team news is starting to filter through. For Liverpool, there is a first start of the season tonight for Joe Gomez and Divock Origi. Sadio Mane and Virgil van Dijk are on the bench.

Full team news to follow shortly.

Image source, Getty Images

Manchester City are, of course, embarking on a campaign having lost last season's final, and boss Pep Guardiola is "pretty sure" his side can use that final defeat as motivation.

City finally reached their first Champions League final, 13 years after their Abu Dhabi takeover - but lost to Chelsea.

"The players have feelings and soul and you know it hurts when you cannot achieve," Guardiola said.

"For them now it's a new, new challenge to try. When these guys win three Premier Leagues in the last four years, and every year we have the feeling that we can do better - we reached the final of the Champions League - yes, it's a motor. They want it.

"The people can say Manchester City was a failure. OK, that's your opinion.

"But it was an incredible achievement we did last season - of 13 games, we won 11, drew one and lost one unfortunately, the last one."

You actually join us just as the game between Besiktas and Borussia Dortmund reaches the break.

And it's the Jude Bellingham show in Istanbul.

The England teenager scored the opener with a lovely control and finish - and then set up Erling Braut Haaland for Borussia Dortmund's second.

So, Liverpool v AC Milan at Anfield.

And Manchester City are in action too. They're at home against RB Leipzig in Group A, which also includes a game between Club Bruges and PSG (with Lionel Messi?).

Inter Milan host Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid face Porto are two other highlights.

BBC Radio 5 Live will have live commentary of the Liverpool game. We'll do all we can to bring you the action from both games featuring English sides and the best of the rest.

It would be fair to say that Liverpool and AC Milan have a bit of Champions League history.

In 2005, Steven Gerrard turned the tide (singlehandedly so the myth-making goes) to bring Liverpool back from 3-0 down to win the final on penalties. A night never to be forgotten by those who witnessed it.

Two years later, Filippo Inzaghi fired the Italians to their revenge as they claimed a seventh (and last to date) European crown.

Tonight, the pair meet again, not in the grand finale but a high-profile curtain-raiser.