It's time once again for the best of the best in club football. The UEFA Champions League. Even if you are as horrified as I am that Chelsea raised the trophy last season, you should still get excited from watching the video above. Matchday 1 for the group stages begin this upcoming Tuesday/Wednesday and it's time for some predictions for who will make it to the knockout stages. It should be another wonderful season of Champions League football.
Group A: FC Porto, Dynamo Kiev, Paris Saint-Germain, Dinamo Zagreb
Often regarded as the weakest Pot 1 team, FC Porto looks to shake up the disappointment of a group stage exit from last year's Champions League. Won't be easy after selling Hulk and being paired with an underrated Dynamo Kiev club and the team that can buy the world in PSG. Dynamo Kiev outlasted Borussia Monchengladbach to qualify for the Champions League and has plenty of recognizable names including former Spur Niko Kranjcar, and Ukrainian Andriy Yarmolenko. PSG boasts plenty of recognizable names after their summer spending spree with Zlatan Ibrahimovic leading the front line and Thiago Silva patrolling the back line. Talent wise, the Parisians are the team to beat but their lack of UCL experience could make them vulnerable. In the end, their talent will win over and PSG tops the group. Porto takes another step in the wrong direction as Dynamo Kiev claims second.
1. Paris Saint-Germain
2. Dynamo Kiev
3. FC Porto
4. Dinamo Zagreb
Group B: Arsenal, Schalke 04, Olympiakos, Montpellier
The Gunners were given a much easier group than last campaign including Olympiakos for what seems to be the sixth straight year (only three of the last four). Montpellier won Ligue 1 last season but their leading goal scorer, Olivier Giroud, now calls North London home. Schalke 04 reached the semifinals two seasons ago and have some offensive talent with Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and budding young midfielder Julian Draxler. They should cause the most problems for Arsenal but the Gunners depth in the midfield and impressive back line will be the reason they win this group even if they are struggling to score.
1. Arsenal
2. Schalke 04
3. Olympiakos
4. Montpellier
Group C: AC Milan, Zenit St. Petersburg, Anderlecht, Malaga
Yikes. This group is pretty weak. AC Milan are not the same team that made the quarterfinals last season after selling Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva to PSG. They still have the talent to qualify for the knockout stages, but first place should not be assumed. Zenit St. Petersburg showed they are a team to be taken seriously after scooping up Hulk and Axel Witsel at the deadline of the transfer window. The Russian club is a team on the rise and already has success of getting to the knockout stages. Malaga could have been a threat in this group if they had kept Santi Cazorla and Salomon Rondon but they should be on the outside looking in with Anderlecht.
1. Zenit St. Petersburg
2. AC Milan
3. Malaga
4. Anderlecht
Group D: Real Madrid, Manchester City, Ajax, Borussia Dortmund
If Manchester City thought they had it rough last season, what do they think of this group? Sheesh. Without a doubt Group D is the group of death. All four of these teams are of knockout stage qualify but only two will move on. Real Madrid are class of the group and despite its challengers, Mourinho's bunch should finish first even if Cristiano Ronaldo is "sad". With all due respect to Ajax, that leaves Manchester City and Borussia Dortmund to fight for second position. Manchester City has the more dynamic offensive attack but Dortmund's back line is superior with Mats Hummels and Neven Subotic. A huge factor for who finishes in second place could be the schedule. The Sky Blues start at Real Madrid and end at Dortmund. Advantage: Borussia Dortmund.
1. Real Madrid
2. Borussia Dortmund
3. Manchester City
4. Ajax
Group E: Chelsea, Shakhtar Donetsk, Juventus, FC Nordsjælland
Chelsea won the Champions League last season. Man, it even hurt to type that. Roman Abramovich "found his holy grail" (credit Martin Tyler) last May and spent money this offseason to revamp the Chelsea attack so they won't have to park the bus to win against big clubs anymore. Good thing he did because the Blues were paired with two big clubs in Serie A champions Juventus and Ukrainian champ Shakhtar Donetsk. I know he's looked strong so far in the EPL, but Fernando Torres still needs to prove he can do it on a major club stage for Chelsea for me to fully believe he's back to his best form. Juventus is back as a European power and have the stage to prove it against Chelsea. They have a deep squad and if their strikers perform to their ability, I like them to pull a minor shocker and top the group over Chelsea. Over/under -16 GD for FC Nordsjælland?
1. Juventus
2. Chelsea
3. Shakhtar Donetsk
4. FC Nordsjælland
Group F: Bayern Munich, Valencia, Lille, BATE Borisov
The goat in last season's Champions League final, Bayern Munich looks to take it one step further in this campaign. The Bavarians received a much easier group this season and shouldn't face any problems until the knockout stages come calling. Valencia and Lille will be the two clubs battling for second. Los Che have a very good back four even after selling Jordi Alba to Barcelona and an excellent finisher in Roberto Soldado. Lille did as best they could to replace Eden Hazard, but that's easier said than done. Bayern takes the group easily and Valencia nips Lille for second.
1. Bayern Munich
2. Valencia
3. Lille
4. BATE Borisov
Group G: Barcelona, Benfica, Spartak Moscow, Celtic
The group stages. Also known as the tune-up stage for FC Barcelona. Barca won't face too much competition in Group G and are close to a lock to take the maximum points. Benfica was a bit of a surprise last season winning a group that contained Manchester United and making it all the way to the quarterfinals. Unfortunately for them, they aren't the same team after selling Axel Witsel to Zenit and Javi Garcia to Manchester City. Those losses can't be overlooked. Spartak Moscow qualified for Champions League football after outlasting Fenerbahce in the qualifying round. It's never easy to play a team in Russia due to the lengthy travels. With Benfica a bit down in this campaign, Spartak finishes a distant second to Barca.
1. Barcelona
2. Spartak Moscow
3. Benfica
4. Celtic
Group H: Manchester United, Braga, Galatasaray, CFR Cluj-Napoca
This time last year, everyone was looking at Manchester United's group of Benfica, FC Basel, and Otelul Galati and saying they had the easiest group. Well, United didn't show up and finished an embarrassing third place in the group and failed to make the knockout stages. You can bet Sir Alex Fergurson won't take this group lightly. The Red Devils and their embarrassment of riches up front will run away with Group H leaving Braga and Galatasaray to fight for second. The Turkish side are the stronger squad with Uruguayan keeper Fernando Muslera and the striker tandem of Johan Elmander and Burak Yilmaz. Galatasaray will join United in the knockout round.
1. Manchester United
2. Galatasaray
3. Braga
4. CFR Cluj-Napoca
For everyone who made it this far reading, enjoy the best club competition in the world and the beautiful theme song that comes with it. Tony Britten for the win.
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