Champions League returns with blockbuster PSG-Bayern and Liverpool-Madrid matches

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The Champions League is being dominated by Europe's established giants and four of them are in direct confrontation on Tuesday.

Defending champion Paris Saint-Germain hosts Bayern Munich and Real Madrid visits Liverpool in a couple of blockbuster matchups to kick off the fourth round of games in the league stage.

PSG-Bayern is a meeting of the top two in the 36-team standings. They have both won their first three matches and are the top scorers in the competition, with 13 and 12 goals, respectively.

While PSG has been spreading the goals around, Harry Kane is undoubtedly the main scorer for Bayern — netting 22 for a team that has won all 15 of its matches in all competitions.

A subplot to the match at Anfield is the return of Trent Alexander-Arnold, who left Liverpool to join Madrid during the offseason. Some Liverpool fans were unhappy the right back ran down his contract, therefore not letting the club get so much money for one of its star assets, though Madrid did end up paying 10 million euros ($11 million) to acquire Alexander-Arnold slightly earlier ahead of the Club World Cup.

Arsenal, the Premier League leader by six points, is also among the Champions League favorites and visits Slavia Prague seeking a fourth straight win to open the first stage. That is one of the two early games, along with Napoli at home to Eintracht Frankfurt.

Later, there's also Atletico Madrid-Union Saint-Gilloise, Bodø/Glimt-Monaco, Juventus-Sporting Lisbon, Olympiakos-PSV Eindhoven and Tottenham-FC Copenhagen.

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Steve Douglas is at https://twitter.com/sdouglas80

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer