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• Simeone wary of PSG threat but calm about Atleti's Champions League struggles

  Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone is wary of the challenge his team will face against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday, despite the French giants' Champions League travails.

  Atletico and PSG have both struggled in the competition's new-look league phase, with Los Colchoneros taking three points from three matches to sit one behind PSG.

  They have won nine of their 16 fixtures against French opposition in Europe's elite club competition but have never crossed paths with Ligue 1's most successful side.

  "I didn't know that," Simeone told reporters when that face was highlighted at Tuesday's pre-match press conference. 

  "We need to stay calm, compete like in every match and do our best.

  "I love the way PSG play, they have a very good game, they are dynamic and are marked by their coach.

  "They have young, dynamic players, who we don't know where they're going to go, and some fixed points to pin people down in defence. From there they can grow.

  "They have a lot of guys moving around in different positions from midfield and they play the kind of football that Luis Enrique has always played."

  Atletico are coming off two defeats against Lille (3-1) and Benfica (4-0) after they won their Champions League opener 2-1 against RB Leipzig.

  "It is still early, we are just starting, the season is long and the numbers are done at the end," Simeone said.

  "It is normal to be worried, but we have to wait for the objectives, to be able to give a correct opinion. It will be a tough match, that is for sure."

  Atletico will face the French champions without suspended defender Jose Maria Gimenez as well as Robin Le Normand, who continues to recover after a clash of heads with Real Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni in their 1-1 derby draw last month.

  "We have quite a few casualties in the defence," Simeone added.

  "The team is competing and trying to find the tools to compete as that's what we have to do. We will try to do it in the best way with the boys who will have to come on." 

• Kompany targeting Champions League top eight despite stuttering start

  Vincent Kompany is eyeing a place in the top eight of the new Champions League format with Bayern Munich despite back-to-back losses in the competition. 

  Bayern welcome Benfica to the Allianz Arena on Wednesday, hoping to recover from defeats to Aston Villa and Barcelona, the first time they have failed to win consecutive games in the competition since April 2017. 

  Kompany's started their Champions League campaign with a 9-2 thrashing of Dinamo Zagreb, but have since plummeted down the new league table. 

  They find themselves 23rd after three matches. However, they have fared better in the Bundesliga, sitting three points clear at the top of the table after nine games. 

  "What we know is you have to win around six (of eight) games to reach the top eight," Kompany said. 

  "You have to win three games and that should be enough for the playoffs. My goal is to reach the top eight."

  Bayern last failed to reach the Champions League knockout stages in 2002-03, finishing bottom of a group that featured Deportivo La Coruna, Lens and Milan. 

  But despite their stuttering start in the competition so far, Kompany said the new format plays no role in the team's planning. 

  "I don't want to think too far ahead because we have enough games," Kompany said.

  "We have to win against Benfica. I don't want to spend too much time thinking about what could happen in January.

  "No one knows how it will work. We only know we want to win tomorrow. We play at home. That is my only goal."

  Bayern, however, have every confidence of getting their European campaign back on track, with the German outfit boasting an impressive record against Benfica. 

  They have played 12 major European matches against Benfica and have never lost (W9 D3). 

  But Bruno Lage's side will be looking to buck that trend, having beaten Atletico Madrid and Red Star Belgrade so far, but they did lose to Feyenoord last time out. 

  "We have a lot of confidence going into this game. We will always adapt and take the steps that are right for the team," Kompany said. 

  "But to say we will change everything is not serious. We just want to win again at home. 

• Benzema: Mbappe must adapt to Madrid role and forget 'best in world' Vinicius

  Kylian Mbappe must learn to play as a central striker at Real Madrid because he cannot displace Vinicius Junior on the left wing.

  Those were the words of Los Blancos' second-highest scorer of all time, Karim Benzema. 

  Mbappe has scored eight goals in 14 appearances in all competitions for Madrid since his move from Paris Saint-Germain, but has failed to score in his last five games. 

  The 26-year-old has been deployed in a more central role since under Carlo Ancelotti, as opposed to the wide role where he enjoyed success with the Parisiens. 

  "The problem, in my opinion, is that [Mbappe] is not a central striker, even with the national team, every time he plays as a number nine he doesn't feel right, because that's not his position," Benzema said on Spanish television show El Chiringuito.

  "On the left, he's got a guy who's at the same level as him, Vinicius, so there is a problem.

  "You can't play Vinicius as a number nine or on the right, because when he plays on the left he makes the difference in every game.

  "Mbappe isn't a real number nine. People ask a lot of him and he's under a lot of pressure, this isn't Paris Saint-Germain."

  The France captain has underperformed his expected goals (xG) figure in LaLiga by 1.75 this term, recording a shot conversion rate of just 18.18% from his 33 total attempts.

  He has also missed seven big chances, with only Real Betis duo Abde Ezzalzouli and Vitor Roque (both eight) and Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski (11) wasting more in LaLiga. 

  In Madrid's last game, a 4-0 Clasico defeat, Mbappe recorded just 27 touches. Only Aurelien Tchouameni (24) registered fewer among those who started the encounter.

  Benzema also endured a difficult start to life in the Spanish capital, netting just nine goals in his 33 appearances in all competitions in his debut season after his move from Lyon.

  He would, however, go on to become one of Madrid's best ever players, scoring 354 times in 648 outings, a total that puts him behind only Cristiano Ronaldo (450) in the club's history. 

  Benzema won 25 major honours during his time at the club, also scooping the Ballon d'Or in 2022, and had some advice for his compatriot moving forward. 

  "Don't give up, because I don't think he's going to push Vinicius to move. He's the best player in the world at the moment," Benzema added. 

  "Mbappe needs to get it into his head that today he's a number nine, and forget about the left flank for a while."

  Mbappe will be back in action for Madrid on Tuesday when they face Milan in the Champions League.