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We are barely a few fixtures into the regular season and we’ve been treated to a feast of surprises already from the best leagues across the continent. Some teams have fired up in their respective campaigns with incredible starts, while others have failed in their attempts to burst out of the blocks, but football fans everywhere still no doubt crave for the greatest club competition in the world – the UEFA Champions League.
Nothing can match the vicious hostility of a Wednesday night in Europe, the goosebumps that rattle through players at the sound of the Champions League anthem or the perplexing unpredictability the tournament throws up on a weekly basis.
These factors and much more only intensify the anticipation ahead of this season’s edition and, following this Thursday’s group stage draw, it seems impossible to keep European football off the mind.
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Predicting the outcomes of the group stages is a difficult task but I have tried my best to come up with suitable victors.
Group A
The hosts of the Champions League Final of 2018/19, Atletico Madrid are joined by Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund, Ligue 1 side AS Monaco and Club Brugge from Belgium.
The first two names on the sheet promise a lot of goals coming into the competition with Atletico Madrid being hot favourites to win the group after heavy investment in the summer transfer window.
Atletico are so well prepared for the upcoming season that they could finally also challenge the El Clasico rivals for the Spanish league title.
Borussia Dortmund as always, present a tough challenge to teams in the group stages but expect them to finish second place in their group with their match against AS Monaco a potential decider as to who goes forward in the competition
AS Monaco have lost quite a few of their most talented players but are still a force to be reckoned with. Club Brugge are sure to be on the receiving end of quite a few goals by the heavyweights in their group.
Final Standings Predicted
1 - Atletico de Madrid
2 - Borussia Dortmund
3 - AS Monaco
4 - Club Brugge
Group B
Spanish champions FC Barcelona will have North London side Tottenham Hotspur, PSV Eindhoven and Italian giants Internazionale for company in Group B.
This group promises suspense and thrill on equal levels. Five time winners and one of the favorites for the cup, FC Barcelona will have quite a task on their hands to finish as group champions as they have done for the past 11 consecutive seasons.
Barcelona have invested significantly in the past few transfer windows and have also improved their bench strength significantly, something that was lacking in the past few seasons.
Tottenham Hotspur didn't make any new signings in the summer but made a statement after crushing Manchester United 3-0 in the Premier League. They are the biggest threat to Barcelona for the top spot, but expect them to just put the pressure on the leaders.
Internazionale is a side that is threatening Italian powerhouse Juventus for the Serie A title but their weaknesses can be exploited if they don't tread with caution. PSV Eindhoven are expected to be the whipping boys for the group, but again, you simply can't rule out surprises.
Final Standings Predicted
1 - FC Barcelona
2 - Tottenham Hotspur
3 - Internazionale
4 - PSV Eindhoven
Group C
The 'group of death' comprises of Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain, Italian League runners-up SSC Napoli, last year's Champions League finalists, Liverpool, and Crvena Zvezda from Serbia.
Oh what a group we have on our hands this season. Qatar backed Paris Saint-Germain are itching to be a part of European royalty after spending tonnes of money on assembling an elite squad, but they have failed to live up to the expectations so far.
Napoli is a side that is coached by the elite manager Carlo Ancelotti, who knows a thing or two about winning the Champions League, having done so on multiple occasions.
Liverpool is a side that has strengthened massively from their campaign last year after they brought in Alisson, Fabinho, Naby Keita and Xherdan Shaqiri. Expect trademark Klopp styled, fast-paced, heavy metal football from the only side capable of challenging City for the Premier League title.
Crvena Zvezda or Red Star Belgrade are going to get slaughtered in this group and would only hope for the matches to end as fast as possible, even the slightest of surprises from the Serbian team will not be a possibility in this group.
Final Standings Predicted
1 - Liverpool FC
2 - Paris Saint-Germain
3 - SSC Napoli
4 - Crvena Zvezda
Group D
Russian champions Lokomotiv Moskva are joined by Portuguese side FC Porto, German side FC Schalke and Turkish giants Galatasaray.
How this group is going to play out is just anyone's guess at the moment. FC Porto are guaranteed to finish top of the group after recent performances in the Liga NOS.
FC Schalke and Turkish champions Galatasaray will be fighting for the 2nd place with the Germans having an edge over the side from Turkey. Schalke under the tutelage of manager Domenico Tedesco defied expectations when the finished runners-up in the Bundesliga last term. They have recently signed Sebastian Rudy from Bayern and also have a pretty fresh squad aside him to compete in Europe.
Lokomotiv Moskva, despite being the Russian champs, have the least potent squad on paper, although the weather will play a huge part in deciding their home games.
Final Standings Predicted
1 - FC Porto
2 - FC Schalke
3 - Galatasaray
4 - Lokomotiv Moskva
Group E
German powerhouse Bayern Munich are joined by Portuguese side SL Benfica, AFC Ajax from the Netherlands and AEK Athens from Greece.
Expect Bayern Munich to plunder goals on all their group members after retaining star striker Robert Lewandowski.
With the top spot in the group out of option, the real fight will take place for the 2nd place in the groups. Benfica and AFC Ajax are two teams that are brimming with talented youngsters at every position but expect Ajax to win their decisive match against Benfica to claim the 2nd place.
AEK Athens would be taking the scenic route out of the competition.
Final Standings Predicted
1 - FC Bayern Munich
2 - AFC Ajax
3 - SL Benfica
4 - AEK Athens
Group F
Group F has Premier League centurions and one of the favourites to win the competition, Manchester City. They will be joined by Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk, Olympique Lyonnais from France and 1899 Hoffenheim from the Bundesliga.
It should be an easy ride for Pep Guardiola's men as they would very likely demolish their companions in the group.
Manchester City seem to have not skipped a beat from last season and have picked up from where they left. Sergio Aguero and Co. will be looking to give Guardiola his third Champions League trophy.
Although Shakhtar Donetsk create a very hostile environment in their home games, they would be no match to a Lyon side brimming with confidence. 1899 Hoffenheim are expected be the punching bags for the other heavyweights in the group.
Final Standings Predicted
1 - Manchester City FC
2 - Olympique Lyonnais
3 - Shakhtar Donetsk
4 - 1899 Hoffenheim
Group G
13-time Champions League winners and the first team to win the Cup in three consecutive seasons, Real Madrid will have last year's surprise semi-finalists, AS Roma, CSKA Moskva from the Russian League and FC Viktoria Plzeň from the Czech First League.
The group plays out perfectly for Real Madrid CF as they would like to make it 4 in a row.
Losing Cristiano Ronaldo to their direct Champions League rivals, Juventus, will obviously make Madrid miss the insane number of goals that he scored for the Spanish Club. They haven't signed a superstar replacement for their star man but expect them to cruise through the group unscathed.
AS Roma would definitely take the second spot after their heroics from last season. Losing Alisson to Liverpool was a big hit for the Stadio Olimpico outfit but the economics of the operation were sound enough for Sporting Director Monchi to work his magic.
CSKA Moskva will be satisfied with the 3rd place and a shot at the Europa League.
Final Standings Predicted
1 - Real Madrid CF
2 - AS Roma
3 - CSKA Moskva
4 - FC Viktoria Plzeň
Group H
It is now or never for Juventus FC. They have shown their dominance in the domestic league but have always slipped in the Champions League owing to Barcelona and Real Madrid. They will be joined by Manchester United, Spanish giants Valencia FC and BSC Young Boys from Switzerland.
Juventus is the team to beat this season after they added the likes of CR7, Emre Can, Joao Cancelo and also kept hold of Miralem Pjanic and Alex Sandro. Their only weakness if any is their goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny who became the number one keeper after club legend Gianluigi Buffon left for Paris.
Manchester United are in a state of turmoil after lacklustre performances and hefty defeats already. With fans looking for a fall guy in Jose Mourinho and/or Woodward, a bad campaign for the reds in Europe's elite competition might just result in the Portuguese manager getting sacked.
Valencia are looking to rebuild from the ashes. Once a club with a lot of potential, they spiralled down in debt after mismanagement all these years. Expect heavy competition for the 2nd place in the group.
Final Standings Predicted
1 - Juventus FC
2 - Manchester United FC
3 - Valencia FC
4 - BSC Young Boys
Agree with our predictions? Disagree? Let us know in the comments below!
