The last time Aston Villa and Bayern Munich faced each other was in the 1982 European Cup final, where the English side won 1-0 to take the title. It has been more than 42 years since the two teams met again in a continental tournament.
Villa were 3-0 winners on their Champions League debut against Young Boys in Bern. In addition to their remarkable domestic rise under Unai Emery, Villa impressed by winning six home games en route to the semi-finals of the UEFA Conference League last season.
Emery has extensive experience in Europe, having beaten Bayern Munich twice and lost just three of his 20 Champions League group stage games. However, one of those defeats came against Bayern in 2017, when he was in charge of Paris Saint-Germain.
On the other side, Bayern Munich are having an impressive start under new captain Vincent Kompany. In their Champions League opening match, the Gray Tigers won 9-2 against Croatian champions Dinamo Zagreb.
Bayern are now the only team to score nine goals in a Champions League match, while also having 19 shots on target - also a tournament record.
The Bavarians have scored 30 goals in their last seven games, and despite doubts in the summer, recent results have given fans renewed confidence that they can compete in the competition next year.
In the Champions League, the six-time European champions have won 37 games since September 2017. They have reached the quarter-finals in 12 of the last 13 seasons. They are a formidable opponent and Villa will probably have a tough time, even at home.
Expected lineup
Aston Villa: Martinez; Konsa, Carlos, Torres, Digne; Onana, Tielemans; Bailey, Rogers, Ramsey; Watkins.
Bayern Munich: Neuer; Guerreiro, Upamecano, Kim, Davies; Kimmich, Pavlovic; Olise, Musiala, Gnabry; Kane.
