And so, with the conclusion of the playoffs and the group stage draw last Thursday night in Monte Carlo, we now stand at the precipice of yet another exciting season of UEFA Champions League action. Last season could be described as a little uneventful, despite many upsets and shocks (most of them by Ajax and Tottenham Hotspur), yet Liverpool's rise to glory was an easily predictable outcome, especially since they managed to overcome the obstacle known as Barcelona. This season many of the European greats such as the Catalans, Bayern Munich and Juventus will want to prove that they've returned to form, yet at the same time there's the sensation in the air that the constant expectation from the fans for continuous wins by the larger teams could leave them in a vulnerable position for an upset by some of the so-called smaller ones. Olympiacos' unbeaten run to reach the group stage all the way from the second qualifying round is definitely worth mentioning, while Salzburg, Leipzig, and Lille are all capable of great things. Inter Milan and Valencia also have their own point to prove after quite a few years of absence from the later stages of Europe's most prestigious tournament.
Let's take a look at the groups one by one to see for a more in-depth analysis of what we can expect:
In Group A there's the clear favorites of French champions Paris Saint-Germain and 13-time European champions Real Madrid, alongside Belgian giants Genk and Turkish club Galatasaray. The situation with Neymar seems to be a cause of upset within the French dressing rooms at the moment and the longer he remains, the more they'll be in turmoil. However it doesn't seem to be affecting them all that much on the pitch as Thomas Tychel's side will once again remain highly dependent on the inspirations of their offensive force of Edinson Cavani and Kylian Mbappe. On the other hand, things aren't looking too good for Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid, with the club still searching for its identity after the departure of heavyweight Cristiano Ronaldo. In fact, there have been rumors regarding the French coach's future at the "Bernabeu" if the team's performances don't show significant improvement in the next few weeks. The "merengues" will be expecting a lot from new signing Eden Hazard. Club Brugge appear as the least threatening side of this group, with Galatasaray edging close to a deal with Colombian striker Radamel Falcao, after having already secured the services of Ryan Babel and Jean Michael Seri. There could be a few upsets in this group.
Group B might also be a source of unexpected results, as Bayern Munich and last season's finalists Tottenham Hotspur are joined by Greek casuals Olympiacos and Red Star Belgrade. The German giants are in a bit of a transitional phase, with the departure of their two wingers Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery and the arrival of Philippe Coutinho from Barcelona. Niko Kovac is under constant surveillance at the "Allianz" and any poor result (such as last weekend's 2-2 result at home against Hertha) could lead to sudden changes at the club. Tottenham seem to be in a similar situation. Despite having reached the final last season, manager Mauricio Pochettino has openly criticized his men for a lack of unity. Christian Eriksen could depart the team at any time and that seems to be creating friction inside the dressing rooms. Olympiacos on the other hand annihilated anyone who stood in their path to reach the group stage and showed that they are prepared to punish those who underestimate them. Although they have lost their captain Kostas Fortounis for quite a while, former French international Mathieu Valbuena showed he's more than capable of taking his place, while a solid back line comprised of many experienced players will not be easy to break down. Red Star may lack that experience but they too showed what they're capable of in their home ground last season by beating eventual title-holders Liverpool 2-0. This group may get complicated.
In Group C, things seem a little more fleshed out. Manchester City are the clear favorites, then there's a match up of Shakhtar Donetsk, Dinamo Zagreb and Atalanta. The Ukrainians are a highly competitive side that have been dominating their league for the past few seasons, while their squad is a mixture of local players and high-quality Brazilians from overseas. Dinamo Zagreb had a lot of issues reaching this point from the qualifying stages and showed a lot of weaknesses in defense and it's doubtful if they can remain competitive on a higher level, while Atalanta are a team that like to put the pressure on their opponents and strike on the counter attack, an ideal style for an Italian side. Personal prediction is that second place will be played between Atalanta and Shakhtar. Dinamo will not be able to hold them off.
Usually in these types of draws there's a group full of highly competitive sides that gains the moniker "the group of death". That title undoubtedly belongs to Group D. Juventus, Atletico Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen and Lokomotiv Moscow are all incredibly strong clubs that anyone would hope to avoid and they've been pitted against each other. Of course, such a group could serve as a perfect trial for newly-appointed coach Maurizio Sarri's "Vecchia Signiora", who made several signings in the recent transfer period (Matthijs De Ligt, Aaron Ramsey, Adrien Rabiot) and have now set their sights on the trophy. Of course, Diego Simeone's Atletico can also be considered a strong contender to top the group, especially after they gave a significant amount to acquire the services of Benfica's top scorer, Joao Felix, while Bayer Leverkusen are enjoying a return to form under manager Peter Bosz. Lokomotiv are one of the traditional powerhouses of Russian football and besides their strong team, anyone who goes to face them in their home ground will also have the harsh weather conditions to deal with. A very interesting group!
In Group E we have the European champions themselves, as Liverpool take on a renewed Napoli, an always dangerous Salzburg and the unpredictable Genk. Jurgen Klopp's squad has started the season right where they left off, with the players looking like they enjoy their football and the "Anfield" loving every minute of it. But three-time Champions League winner Carlo Ancelotti's arrival in Naples could be the start of something great for the "partenopei", as he has brought with him Roma's defensive powerhouse Kostas Manolas to tighten that back line. Salzburg however are a constant threat on the European side, going on to reach even the semi-finals of the Europa League a couple of years ago and will definitely be making their presence felt throughout the group stage, especially to those travelling to Austria. Genk will also be looking to take a few points for themselves in an attempt to at least seal that third spot that will see their European journey continue beyond the end of the year.
Group F contains three title-holders and one rookie. Barcelona, Borussia Dortmund and Inter Milan will all duke it out to see who qualifies, while logic dictates that Slavia Prague will try to take whatever points they can get out of such a difficult group. Ernesto Valverde and his men will hope to go that extra mile this season and secure the trophy, which is the reason why they've acquired the services of Atletico Madrid and French international powerhouse Antoine Griezmann. With him, Suarez and Lionel Messi in their frontline, it's hard to imagine any defense being able to cope. Yet Dortmund have their own goals to achieve, such as repeating the triumph of 2013, which is why they've acquired players such as Thorgan Hazard, Julian Brandt and the return of their captain, Mats Hummels. 2010 champions Inter are also looking to make their own presence felt, as they've being one of the most active clubs during this transfer window, bolstering their squad with the talents of Manchester United duo Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanches plus former Atletico Madrid captain Diego Godin. Slavia performed admirably in the qualifiers to get to this stage but sadly, against these sort of football titans, there doesn't seem to be much they can do. A lot of entertaining encounters coming out of this one!
Group G could perhaps be described as the most balanced group in the competition. Zenit of St. Petersburg are joined by two-time European champions Benfica, Olympique Lyonnais and Leipzig. There really isn't much separating these four teams, as the Russian champions are nothing like the team of the past (that was only capable of reaching the round of 16 a few times, even at their best), while Benfica and Lyon are both enjoying a type of "renaissance" within their individual leagues and Europe. Under Bruno Lage, the "eagles" were able to de-throne FC Porto, while newly-appointed manager Sylvinho doesn't seem to be making a lot of changes, depending heavily on French international Moussa Dembele and his ability to cause trouble for opposing defenses. Julian Nagelsmann's Leipzig are an outfit that is constantly featured within the top three teams of the Bundesliga, relying not on any single individual players but on the team's efforts and thus should not be taken lightly. It wouldn't come as a shock if by the end of day six, this group was turned upside down (with Leipzig first and Zenit right down the bottom).
Finally, Group H could be described as the ultimate riddle. There's Europa League winners Chelsea, who pose as the favorites, but then there's last season's semi-finalists Ajax (who didn't play very convincingly in either of their qualifying rounds, especially against the Greek champions PAOK), a renewed Valencia and a strong ROSC Lille. Chelsea are under new management, with Frank Lampard coming in to try and turn things around a little. Yet, considering this is his first job as manager of anything, he could have chosen a less demanding role to gain some experience first. The fact that he's willing to dive right into the deep end could prove to have catastrophic effects for the Londoners, something the other clubs in this group will be sure to take advantage of. The "blues" have also lost much of their attacking force after the departure of Eden Hazard to Real Madrid, so that's one more thing to worry about. On the other hand, Ajax have had departures of their own (Matthijs De Ligt and Frenkie De Jong being the most notable among them), yet they still maintain their identity and could create trouble for many clubs throughout the season. But it remains doubtful if they can repeat last season's journey. Marcelino leads a very disciplined Valencia side, with his team looking to break the stronghold of Barca, Real and Atletico in Spain but also make it as far as they can in Europe. Perhaps they don't possess the squad depth they had back in 2000 when they reached the final, but still, their unity makes them a threat for anyone visiting the "Mestalla" and with an attacking force spearheaded by the likes of Kevin Gameiro, they're not going to make it easy on anyone. Lille are also a side not to be trifled with, despite losing last season's Ligue Une top scorer Pepe to Arsenal, as they have already begun the year on the right foot and will look to make their name heard. Second only to Lyon in France, they have a lot of experience in top-level football. All in all, this one's a tough nut to crack and could really go any which side. It wouldn't be surprising.
And that's the beauty of Champions League football. The high level of competitiveness, some teams fearing a disgraceful early end to their season while others looking at it as an opportunity to prove themselves to the entire world, all this creates the ideal stage for many upsets, a lot of fantastic stories and some great football! Let's see what this season has in store for us!
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