It is another season of Europe’s premier club competition and there are a few new faces, a few old faces and a chance for Barcelona to do the impossible – take back-to-back titles.
Each group has a surprise package and even the most hardened Champions League veterans will have to be on their toes.
Group A – Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Shakhtar Donetsk, Malmo FF
Real Madrid and PSG will be eyeing qualification for the next round, so it will most likely come down to their home and away matchups to decide who finishes at the top of the table. Complacency is something that both teams will want to avoid. Shakhtar Donetsk progressed to the knockout stages last season and will do everything they can to try and knock off one of these football giants. Madrid will also be looking to unleash their superiority on Group A. Rafael Benitez knows the pressure that comes with coaching Los Galacticos and needs to put up a good performance this term if he hopes to keep his job. PSG have been strengthened by the signing of Angel Di Maria and will be keen to take top spot. Zlatan Ibrahimovic will also be facing off against his hometown club Malmo.
MFF in Champions League. One day I hope to experience the Champions League in Malmö on the pitch. Congratulations! pic.twitter.com/ZJ5CAMPBNH
— Zlatan Ibrahimović (@Ibra_official) August 26, 2015
The game to watch: Paris Saint-German vs Real Madrid Group B – PSV Eindhoven, Manchester United, CSKA Moscow, VfL Wolfsburg It has been one long season since Manchester United played in a European competition but they are back and eager to win. Louis van Gaal already has a Champions League title to his name but looks ready to fight for another with a host of new signings including Memphis Depay, who will face off against former club PSV Eindhoven. United need to keep on the lookout for their group rivals who have the ability to upset the three-time champions. CSKA Moscow beat Manchester City in the group stages last season and the Russian Premier League runners-up will have no qualms taking three points from the other side of Manchester. Wolfsburg are also a major threat, not only to this group but in the latter stages as well. It is only the second European campaign for the Wolves but coach Dieter Hecking will take this opportunity by the scruff of the neck. PSV have lost their star Depay to United and getting into the knockout rounds would be a monstrous task but not impossible. The game to watch: VfL Wolfsburg vs Manchester United Group C – SL Benfica, Atletico Madrid, Galatasaray SK, Astana Group C is an interesting one. Each team is worthy of progressing so it will be a fascinating arm-wrestle to see who progresses. Atletico Madrid may miss Arda Turan’s presence on the field but they will not let go of their Champions League dreams after re-signing sought-after coach Diego Simeone until 2020. It seems that Benfica and Galatasaray are going to be fighting it out for second spot on the table but both teams are perfectly capable of besting Atletico. As for Astana, it is looking quite bleak for the Kazakhstan Premier League champions. Astana are up against some of the best teams in Europe and will need to scrape as many points as they can to try and earn a Europa League berth or even have a chance at reaching the knockout stages. As the old adage goes: in football, anything can happen.
The game to watch: SL Benfica vs Atletico Madrid Group D – Juventus, Manchester City, Sevilla, Borussia Monchengladbach This is the one ladies and gentlemen – Group D is the group of death. To the undiscerning eye, the Italian champions and English runners-up should be qualifying for the next stage but Europa League champions Sevilla and rising German power Monchengladbach will not let Juventus and City progress without having their say. Sevilla earned their spot with a fourth Europa League title and have proven that they are worthy of competing in such a prestigious competition. Gladbach were Germany’s best team in the second half of last season, conceding only 10 goals in that time. When The Foals have a full strength squad, coach Lucien Favre will have his side ready to cause some upsets. The top dogs in Group D are not as untouchable as many would think. The Old Lady have been severely weakened by losing ace midfielder Arturo Vidal, lethal marksman Carlos Tevez and youngster Kingsley Coman, while the Citizens have an underwhelming record in the Champions League. Massimo Allegri has done a fantastic job with Juventus but losing the previous edition’s final will galvanise the players to try and go one better this season. A coach with less job security is Manuel Pellegrini. Manchester City are desperate for European glory and the Chilean knows if he does not deliver an improvement on last season then he could find himself out of work. Each team has everything to play for and have equal chance of progressing. Do not take your eyes off this one. The game to watch: Manchester City vs Juventus Group E – FC Barcelona, Bayer Leverkusen, AS Roma, BATE Borisov Barcelona kick off their title defence in an interesting group. Robbie Kruse’s Leverkusen are a regular in Europe but would be disappointed in their recent campaign, getting knocked out by Atletico on penalties. The German side have strengthened by picking up Christoph Kramer as he returns from his loan spell and Roger Schmidt will be eager to progress. Roma have signed veteran striker Edin Dzeko and are no doubt hurting from their collapse in the group stage last term against Manchester City. BATE, the only Belarusian team to qualify for the Champions League, do not have much hope in this group but a few points here and there could see them scrape a Europa League spot. The game to watch: Bayer Leverkusen vs AS Roma Group F – Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Olympiacos, Dinamo Zagreb It is tough luck for the Gunners as they draw Bayern yet again. With Pep Guardiola in the final year of his contract, the Bavarians are expected to go all the way, but Arsenal could cause an upset. The men from Munich welcome a runner-up from last season in Arturo Vidal. The Copa America winner is a force in the midfield and will be one of Bayern’s key players in their title tilt. Arsenal have not lost pace in the market either, picking up 2012 Champions League winner Petr Cech. After years of poor performances in Europe, Arsene Wenger and his squad will be hungry to prove their worth in Europe and where better to start than against the record German champions? Olympiacos upset Juventus and Atletico last season but were unlucky not to qualify for the next stage. Bayern and Arsenal will have to be on high alert in Greece as the Greek champions will be looking to knock them off their perch. Dinamo Zagreb are also worthy competitors but are unlikely to progress. They will be hoping to collect a Europa League entrance. The game to watch: Arsenal vs Bayern Munich Group G – Chelsea, FC Porto, Dynamo Kyiv, Maccabi Tel-Aviv The English Champions will want to stamp their authority on this group in classic Jose Mourinho style. Mourinho is still chasing an elusive Champions League title with Chelsea and will be keen to ensure progression as early as possible with new signing Pedro. The Special One’s harsh exterior may be broken down as he faces a potentially emotional return to the club that he brought European success with in FC Porto. In the stands he will be welcomed as a hero, but on the pitch Porto need to work double time to get ahead of Chelsea. If that was not enough to incite this rivalry then the presence of Iker Casillas could make this tie very interesting. Porto picked up Casillas after he became surplus to requirements at Real Madrid and the World Cup winner would love nothing more than to finish above the man who had created endless conflict with him at the Bernabeu. Maccabi Tel-Aviv upset Swiss champions Basel to progress to the group stages for the first time in 11 years. It is a tough ask to overcome two prior competition winners but the Israeli champions, along with Dynamo Kyiv, will battle it out for the Europa League spot. The game to watch: FC Porto vs Chelsea Group H – Zenit Saint Petersburg, Valencia, Olympique Lyonnais, Gent Maty Ryan and his new club Valencia have their work cut out for them in Group H. The Australian number one will be tasked with keeping out Brazilian star Hulk and Ligue 1 player of the year Alexandre Lacazette. Zenit, Lyon and Valencia all possess the qualities of a team that deserve to progress but there can only be two; this group is wide open. The matches between these three will be enthralling and the race to progress could go to the very last matchday. Gent should not be underestimated, however. The Belgian champions are a high-quality team, but they will need six excellent performances if they have any hope of progressing.
Valencia keeper @MatyRyan gives his reaction to the #UCLdraw pic.twitter.com/JsI2ZJT9p3 — Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) August 27, 2015
The game to watch: Valencia vs Olympique Lyonnais
If these group matchups are anything to go by, we could be on the verge of one of the most exciting Champions League seasons in recent memory. Can Barcelona go back-to-back? Only time will tell.
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