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Since the draw on August 30th in Monaco, pundits, analysts and fans alike have been predicting the outcomes of each group. Who'll go home? Who'll go through? Which teams will surprise people and which will disappoint? With round 1 already here, it's time everyone's theories are put to the test.
Group A: Atletico Madrid (Spain), Club Brugge (Belgium), Borussia Dortmund (Germany), AS Monaco (France)
Prediction:
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- Atletico Madrid
- Borussia Dortmund
- AS Monaco
- Club Brugge
Based on previous experience, this group promises to be very exciting. Off the back of a strong La Liga campaign in which the finished second only to Barcelona's near-invincibles and buoyed by a host of summer signings including Thomas Lemar (Monaco, 70 million euros), Rodri (Villarreal, 20 million euros) and Nikola Kalinic (Milan, 14.50 million euros), Los Rojiblancos are expected to top the group.
Though they disappointed last season by crashing out of the group stage, they are still spearheaded by French international and now World Cup winner Antoine Griezmann who rebuffed Barcelona in favor of an extension at the Wanda Metropolitano, and judging by their recent European pedigree (2 finals, 1 semi-final and quarter-final within the last 5 seasons), they could easily make a splash in Europe this season.
The 2nd and 3rd places are far less certain, as both Dortmund and Monaco have the potential to beat one another. The ever-shrewd German side, after a 4th-place finish in the Bundesliga, have again made a number of low-risk, high-reward deals by notably bringing in Axel Witsel (TJ Quanjian, 20 million euros) and Thomas Delaney (Werder Bremen, 20 million euros) to sure up the midfield and by signing Achraf Hakimi and Paco Alcacer from Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively, both on loan.
The loss of Sokratis to Arsenal might prove a problem at the back, but Abdou Diallo (Mainz, 28 million euros) should be able to fill that hole.
Following another 2nd-place finish in Ligue1, the principality club have been busy this window as well, with the additions of highly-rated Aleksandr Golovin (CSKA Moscow, 30 million euros), Benjamin Henrichs (Leverkusen, 20 million euros) and William Guebbels (Lyon, 20 million euros) giving them a significant boost.
However, the loss of several key players, such as the official sale of golden boy Kylian Mbappé to PSG, Thomas Lemar to Atletico Madrid as mentioned before, Joao Moutinho to Wolves and Fabinho to Liverpool will most likely prove too difficult to overcome, thus Die Borussen having a slight edge.
Club Brugge, champions of the Belgian league, will have little chance against the other, much larger clubs in the group.
Group B: Tottenham Hotspur (England), FC Barcelona (Spain), PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Internazionale (Italy)
Prediction:
- FC Barcelona
- Internazionale
- Tottenham Hotspur
- PSV Eindhoven
Group B could very well be this year's "group of death". As usual, Barcelona, using their new big signings in Arturo Vidal (Bayern Munich, 18 million euros), Malcom (Bordeaux, 41 million euros), Clement Lenglet (Sevilla, 36 million euros) and Arthur (Gremio, 31 million euros), are the heavy favorites to win the group.
Looking to exorcise the demons of last season's dramatic loss to Roma and coming off a nearly unbeaten season in La Liga where they suffered only 1 loss in the process, any team showcasing an attack featuring Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Coutinho should be contending for the trophy, let alone the group.
As in group A, the two spots beneath the top are up for grabs. Inter Milan have really impressed this summer by making important signings all over the pitch in the form of Radja Nainggolan (AS Roma, 38 million euros), Lautaro Martinez (Racing Club, 16 million euros), World Cup finalist Sime Vrsaljko (Atletico Madrid, on loan), Stefan de Vrij (Lazio, free) and Keita Baldé (AS Monaco, on loan).
After finishing 4th in Serie A, they've strengthened their squad immensely and could even contend for the league title this season if Juventus slip up. Tottenham, meanwhile, have really hit their stride domestically as of late, finishing 3rd in the Premier League in 2016, 2nd in 2017 and 3rd again last season.
Led by World Cup golden boot winner Harry Kane, they've shown they can compete with the best of Europe's elite (as shown by last season's draw vs eventual champions Real Madrid). The problem is, however, that they haven't gotten any better. For the first time since the transfer window's introduction in 2003, they are the first English team to make no signings of any kind.
Rounding off the group would be PSV Eindhoven. After winning the Eredivisie again, PSV have shown they truly are the best team in the Netherlands. Headlined by Mexican starlet Hirving Lozano, they are no push-overs and could take some potential scalps, but the lack of quality in the rest of the squad, when compared to other teams in the group, will probably put in them in last place by the end of the group stage.
Group C: SSC Napoli (Italy), Liverpool FC (England), Paris Saint-Germain (France), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia)
Prediction:
- Paris Saint-Germain
- Liverpool FC
- SSC Napoli
- Red Star Belgrade
Paris Saint-Germain are poised to take Europe by storm. Though recent years have seen them be written off as "choke artists (let's not forget the calamitous 6-1 loss to Barcelona), this could finally be the year it all comes together.
Boasting what could be the continent's deadliest attacking trio in Brazil talisman Neymar Jr., World Cup champion, best young player and European Golden Boy Kylian Mbappé and Uruguay striker Edinson Cavani, they should be able to take the group.
Combining solid veterans and leaders like Thiago Silva and Gianluigi Buffon with some of the world's best young stars like Timothy Weah and the aforementioned Mbappé should be a recipe for amazing success. After winning 5 of their last 6 domestic titles, the French champions' focus lies almost solely on the Champions League.
Next up are Liverpool, last year's UCL runners-up and the Premier League's 4th-place finishers. Arguably the Premier League's best team along with Manchester City, the trio of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mané is up there with PSG's own fearsome trident.
The summer additions of Brazil number 1 Alisson Becker (AS Roma, 62.50 million euros), Naby Keita (RB Leipzig, 60 million euros), Fabinho (AS Monaco, 45 million euros) and Xherdan Shaqiri (Stoke City, 14.70 million euros) make them even stronger than they were during 2017/18's run to the final, giving them the potential to even upset PSG if they play to the very best of their abilities.
Napoli finished second in Serie A yet again last season, and though their squad consisting of namely Lorenzo Insigne, Dries Mertens, Marek Hamsik and Kalidou Koulibaly would certainly be good enough for at least 2nd in most groups, luck wasn't on their side. The losses of manager Maurizio Sarri and pivotal midfielder Jorginho are also big blows to the Partenopei.
Poor Red Star Belgrade. The last time they competed in the Champions League was in 1991, back when it was still called the European Cup. They'll almost certainly be facing a swift exit this time around.
Group D: FC Porto (Portugal), Galatasaray SK (Turkey), Lokomotiv Moscow (Russia), Schalke 04 (Germany)
Prediction:
- FC Porto
- Schalke 04
- Lokomotiv Moscow
- Galatasaray SK
This is probably the most balanced group in the whole competition. No superclubs, no minnows, and just a quartet of solid football teams. Based on first team quality alone, Porto looks a solid choice to finish on top. Yacine Brahimi, Hector Herrera and Vincent Aboubakar are among the best players in the group.
After some seasons of domestic struggle where they haven't won the league since 2012/13, last year's title-winning campaign will motivate even further, although there is plenty of wiggle room in this lot and nothing is really certain.
Normally, Schalke would have been the favorites here. Perennial European competition participants, a dismal 2016/17 season saw them finish 10th in the Bundesliga, yet they came back strong and were runners-up last year. However, the major losses of Leon Goretzka, Max Meyer and Thilo Kehrer with the arrival of Sebastian Rudy (Bayern Munich, 16.50 million euros) as their only notable addition will severely hamper them in the near future.
Lokomotiv Moscow, bolstered by their first Russian Premier League win since 2004 and the arrivals of Russia star Fedor Smolov (Krasnodar, 9 million euros), Benedikt Howedes (Schalke, 5 million euros) and Grzegorz Krychowiak (PSG, on loan) could give them a decent chance at making it into the next round.
Meanwhile, Turkish Super Lig title holders Galatasaray, who are no strangers to Europe's premier competition, are on paper the weakest team. They no longer have the marquee players like Didier Drogba and Wesley Sneijder that made them dark horses, but the equal nature of this crop of teams might still allow them to cause some kind of a stir.
Group E: Bayern Munich (Germany), Ajax (Netherlands), AEK Athens (Greece), SL Benfica (Portugal)
Prediction:
- Bayern Munich
- Ajax
- SL Benfica
- AEK Athens
No surprise here. 6 German titles in a row, 4 UCL semi-finals in the last 5 seasons and what possibly could be the world's deepest squad just got deeper, as they now also have Canadian 17-year-old prodigy Alphonso Davies (Vancouver Whitecaps, 10 million euros), Germany midfielder mainstay Leon Goretzka (Schalke 04, free) and both Renato Sanches and Serge Gnabry returning from their loans. Die Roten could easily have a go at winning the whole thing.
Ajax's young core of Matthijs de Ligt and Hakim Ziyech coupled with their summer signings Daley Blind (Manchester United, 16 million euros) and Dusan Tadic (Southhampton, 11.40 million euros) should make up for the departure of Justin Kluivert, putting them over the hump after another 2nd place finish in the Eredivisie.
Their second place counterpart over in Portugal, Benfica, have conversely lost ground in the summer market, losing key midfielder Joao Carvalho to Nottingham Forest and sending Anderson Talisca out on loan again.
Winners of the Greek league, AEK Athens return to the Champions League for the first time since 2006, though barring a marvelous performance on their part, they are mainly there to make up the numbers.
Group F: Olympique Lyonnais (France), Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), 1899 Hoffenheim (Germany), Manchester City (England)
Prediction:
- Manchester City
- Olympique Lyonnais
- 1899 Hoffenheim
- Shakhtar Donetsk
As with group E, this looks like a rather straightforward pairing. Manchester City are leagues above the other 3 clubs, coming off a record-breaking 100 point title-winning season in the Premier League and filling out their already packed roster with record signing Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City, 67.80 million pounds).
It is a testament to their depth that World Cup bronze medalist and star player Kevin De Bruyne's injury will have little impact on their ability to win the group.
Finishing behind them should be Lyon, led by talisman and World Cup winner Nabil Fekir whose services they retained this window despite fierce interest from elsewhere. Breakout starlet Hassem Aouar will be eager to make his Champions League for Les Gones, as will new boy Moussa Dembélé (Celtic, 22 million pounds).
Hoffenheim's meteoric rise through the echelons of German football led them to their highest ever finish last season: 3rd place (they were playing in the 4th division as recently as 2001). Front-lined by Croatian sensation Andrej Kramaric, an upset could be in the cards if it all comes together for them, with young, fresh coach Julian Nagelsmann (he's only 31!) pulling the strings.
Shakhtar Donetsk, one of the best teams outside of the top 5 leagues as of late, are heading to uncharted waters. Though they've won 6 out of the last 8 Ukrainian Premier League trophies, they've lost all the key players that made that happen. Luiz Adriano, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Alex Teixeira have all moved on to greener pastures since then, with Fred leaving as well this summer to Manchester United, leaving gaping holes in the squad that have yet to be plugged.
Group G: CSKA Moscow (Russia), Real Madrid (Spain), AS Roma (Italy), Viktoria Plzen (Czech Republic)
Prediction:
- Real Madrid
- AS Roma
- CSKA Moscow
- Viktoria Plzen
Let's address the elephant in the room. Real Madrid have lost their all-time leading goal scorer, 5-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo. Will they be able to cope? Yes, easily. Though Ronaldo's individual brilliance led them to an unprecedented 3 Champions League trophies in a row, he often overshadowed his other immensely talented teammates.
Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema are enjoying a renaissance of sorts in La Liga now that they are the team's primary attacking option. Benzema alone has already scored 4 goals in 4 games (he scored 5 in 32 last season!). Luka Modric, meanwhile, is in the midst of his greatest ever year, winning both the UEFA Player of the Year award and the World Cup Golden Ball. Though they might not be able to make it 4 consecutive titles, they should be able to make it their first group win since 2015.
Last season's surprise package Roma wound up in the semi-final after an unforgettable 4-4 aggregate win versus Barcelona, which included a 3-0 drubbing at the Stadio Olimpico. Revamping their attack and midfield by replacing Radja Nainggolan and Kevin Strootman with World Cup victor Steven Nzonzi (Sevilla, 26.65 million euros), Javier Pastore (PSG, 24.70 million euros) and Dutch prodigy Justin Kluivert (Ajax, 17.25 million euros) would put them in an even better position than last year if not for the departure of Alisson Becker to Liverpool.
Russian heavyweights CSKA Moscow will be heading into their 6th consecutive season of Champions League football, but they simply lack the necessary pedigree to make it in the competition, as they haven't made it out of the group stage 2012. However, if their Russian core of Igor Akinfeev, Mario Fernandes and Alan Dzagoev perform the same miracles they did at the World Cup, they might stand a chance. The losses of Aleksandr Golovin and Vitinho, two of their best players, will hurt though.
Viktoria Plzen, who are currently enjoying the most fruitful spell in club history with 5 Czech league titles since 2010 and several Europa and Champions League appearances to show for it, will most likely find themselves outclassed by the other teams in the group.
Group H: Juventus (Italy), Manchester United (England), BSC Young Boys (Switzerland), Valencia CF (Spain)
Prediction:
- Juventus
- Manchester United
- Valencia CF
- Young Boys
Cristiano Ronaldo's 117-million euro move from Real Madrid to Juventus is the most important transfer in football since well, Cristiano Ronaldo's move from Manchester United to Real Madrid. The competition's all-time leading scorer and joint-top scorer in every year's edition since 2012, he more than makes up for Gonzalo Higuain leaving the club.
He's already won it all with both the Red Devils and Los Blancos, the question remains: can he do it all with a 3rd club? If the answer is yes, the Old Lady will be on track to win their first Champions League since 1996, in addition to a potential 8th consecutive Serie A title. If only Buffon were here to see this.
Over in England, the hot seat at Old Trafford just keeps on getting hotter. From the glaring hole in their defense due to their highly-maligned center-back chase to Jose Mourinho's press conference meltdowns, things aren't looking too good. Still, the quality in their squad is such that even under these less than perfect conditions, they should make it to the knockout stage comfortably.
Ronaldo's homecoming will be one of the group stage's best match-ups. Should the Mancunians falter, Valencia will be quick to pounce. Rodrigo's out-of-nowhere ascent, combined with strong new signings in Goncalo Guedes (PSG, 40 million euros), Geoffrey Kondogbia (Inter, 25 million euros), Michy Batshuayi (Chelsea, on loan) and World Cup standout Denis Cheryshev (FC Villareal, on loan), could make life very difficult.
Champions League debutantes Young Boys, meanwhile, have just won their first Swiss title since 1986, and their first in the Swiss Super League era. Unfortunately for them, they are much more interesting off the pitch than on it, as their solar-powered stadium, rookie coach and artificial turf make them an interesting organisation, whereas their actual players might be lacking the quality to compete against some of the world's best teams.
