FRANK’S CUTTING ROOM FLOOR FOR WEDNESDAY, 10/28:

My “Cutting Room Floor” plays are the situations I considered the closest to being worthy of investment but did not make the “final cut” for my official plays today for subscribers. The last play on my cut list for this afternoon in UEFA Champions League play is on Barcelona with the goal-line versus Juventus. Cristiano Ronaldo will not be available for Juventus after testing positive once again for COVID. Juventus may have defeated Dynamo Kiev by a 2-0 score last week in their opening Champions League match but this team is still struggling. They have settled for draws in three of their last four Serie A matches — and they rank 10th in the league in expected goals (xG) despite not having yet played the better defensive clubs in the league. Barcelona is also struggling after losing their rivalry match with Real Madrid on Saturday in a 3-1 loss. But this remains a very talented roster led by Lionel Messi — and they crushed Ferencvaros last week by a 5-1 score in their opening Champions League match. Barcelona’s decline this season takes them out of winning a Champions League title this season — but this is still one of the top ten rosters in the world. The Juventus slide is more significant. Take Barcelona with the goal-line. Best of luck — Frank.

Frank Sawyer’s Hollywood Sports DELIVERED their 25* UEFA Champions League Match of the Month last week with Liverpool’s win over Ajax to further both a RED HOT 10 of 12 (83%) Champions League run along with a long-running 46 of 74 (62%) Soccer run! Now Frank spots a LIVE DOG with this 25* UEFA Champions League Underdog of the Month at 4 PM ET! DO NOT MISS OUT!

At 4:00 PM ET on Wednesday, we will be playing RB Leipzig (224325) plus the goal-line versus Manchester United (224326) in Group Stage play of the UEFA Champions League. THE SITUATION: RB Leipzig defeated Istanbul Basakehir last Tuesday in Champions League action. Manchester United upset Paris Saint-Germain last Tuesday by a 2-1 score in their opening match in the Champions League.

REASONS TO TAKE RB LEIPZIG PLUS THE GOAL-LINE: Man United has been maddeningly inconsistent this season. After their surprising victory over a PSG team that lost to Bayern Munich in the Champions League finals over the summer, they then played to a listless 0-0 draw at home to Chelsea in their English Premier League match on Saturday. The deeper analytics suggest they were fortunate to get the win against PSG as they generated only 1.47 expected goals (xG) but allowed 1.59 expected goals (xGA). In their draw with the Blues, they put up a meager 0.78 xG. The Red Devils have some cohesion issues right now as they incorporate some new players they acquired from the transfer window. The enigmatic Paul Pogba is sulking. Manager Gunnar Solskjaer seems over his head at times. The attacking talent is there for this team — but their backline is another matter. Man United is W2-D1-L2 in the EPL so far this season with a bad 3-1 loss to Crystal Palace and a humiliating 6-1 loss to Tottenham on their resume. They are 17th in the league in net expected points differential. They are allowing their opponents to generate 1.98 xG. Furthermore, in their last three matches at home at Old Trafford, they are producing just 1.03 xG. RB Leipzig is not only one of the best sides in the Bundesliga but they have proven themselves on the international stage by reaching the semifinals of the Champions League over the summer where they lost to PSG. They have one of the best managers in the world in Julian Nagelsmann who has ensured his team did not miss a beat this season after losing Timo Werner to a mega-contract signing with Chelsea. Die Roten Bullen followed up their victory last week in the Champions League with a 2-1 win over Hertha Berlin whee they generated 2.70 xG while holding them to just 0.78 xG. RB Leipzig has won five of their last six matches across all competitions with a 1-1 draw with at a quality Bayer Leverkusen side in the Bundesliga representing their only blemish to that run. The Red Bulls sit atop the German top-flight table. They are averaging 2.18 xG in league play so far this season — but it is perhaps their 0.76 xGA that is more impressive given the high-scoring that takes place in the Bundesliga.

FINAL TAKE: Man United tends to play its best against teams that are aggressive in the attack. But generating offense from the counter-attack is also RB Leipzig’s bread-and-butter. Those are the teams that give Solskjaer’s team problems. A draw is likely — but don’t be surprised if the Red Bulls pull the upset with the better manager and far better team cohesion right now. 25* UEFA Champions League Underdog of the Month with RB Leipzig (224325) plus the goal-line versus Manchester United (224326). Best of luck for us — Frank.