'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
#1 Manchester City
Pep Guardiola's side are the clear favourites for this year's competition. They may have just lost their first game of the season, but it was a dead rubber which was made clear by the team selection. They have been the best attacking side in Europe this season and have beaten the record for most consecutive wins in a Premier League season. Everton are the only side in the league to take points off them.
Trending
It took him a while, but Guardiola seems to have finally translated his ideas fully across to the City team. They are fluid at the front, dominant in the middle and solid at the back. To put the Catalan's philosophy into such simplistic notions does it a disservice, but they are clearly getting the fundamentals right.
The scary part of this for opposition sides is that this is sustainable throughout the season as well as into the future. City's core is young and Pep's coaching is transforming them into intelligent footballers to complement their obvious technical ability.
Players such as John Stones, Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling, Leroy Sané and Gabriel Jesus all have the potential to be world-beaters. That's only a brief summary because they have plenty of other talented players as well. This depth means that they can be kept fresh through rotation which allows them to compete on multiple fronts.
They do have weaknesses such as Fabian Delph playing in the left-back role, due to Benjamin Mendy's injury. Ederson also has to cover a lot of ground behind the defence due to the high defensive line that they employ in order to limit space between the lines and control the game. However, the composure on the ball that the majority of the squad have allows them to control games in key moments and they employ an effective counter-press when out of possession.
This is a truly cohesive unit working within an aggressive and exciting attacking philosophy. The knockout nature of the Champions League means that luck is a bigger factor than in the league, so various factors such as injuries could hamper them. However, it will still be tough for any side to beat them because they seem to have a solution for any potential issue.
Manchester City got a a relatively easy draw as well because they were drawn with FC Basel. The Swiss outfit shouldn't pose too many issues for them.
