Champions League winner decided as Man City, Real Madrid and Bayern do battle
The house lights have gone down, the floodlights have gone up and that familiar music is about the blare out. The Champions League is back with us.
After Manchester City finally got their hands on the crown they spend plenty of money trying to claim last season, the Premier League champions are joined by Arsenal, Manchester United and Newcastle this time around as we see a change in the English contingent.
City's biggest challengers are likely to come from abroad though, albeit with heavy English influences, with Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham already stamping their impressive authority all over Bayern Munich and Real Madrid respectively.
Who will be crowned this season's champions of Europe then? We asked our team what they think.
Nathan Ridley - Bayern Munich
Yes, I know Man City are good, and yes they'll win it if Pep Guardiola gets his side firing on all fronts. But let's make it interesting.
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Bayern Munich are my pick, led by a manager who knows exactly what it takes to win the Champions League and a striker desperate to silence his critics on the biggest club stage of all. Thomas Tuchel might still be bemoaning his lack of a natural No.6, but by the time the knockout stages roll around after the January transfer window, I fancy the German to have figured out a well-oiled system from his abundance of talent.
Harry Kane will add to Bayern Munich's firepower (Getty Images)Harry Kane has already slotted into Tuchel's attack seamlessly and will provide Bayern with the much-needed focal point they were lacking last season following the departure of Robert Lewandowski. Of course, the team behind him needs to be fine-tuned and Kim Min-jae alone won't be enough to shore up their defence, but this feels like another campaign in which Bayern calmly go about an assault on Europe and come out on top.
Tom Victor - Manchester City
It will be Manchester City again. Some will argue that winning last season's trophy will leave squad members less determined, while others will point to the summer departures of experienced pros like Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez.
City still have the best squad in Europe, though, and now they'll be going in without the mental block of never having done it before. There will be some competition, of course. Bayern Munich are boosted by the arrival of Harry Kane, while they also have a full campaign with Champions League winner Thomas Tuchel in the dugout, while Real Madrid are still Real Madrid. Perhaps they're even more Real Madrid than they were before, with Jude Bellingham giving them extra star power.
It'll be City, though. And then people will quickly get sick of their dominance, just like they did when Pep Guardiola's Barcelona won two from three and were suddenly there to be shot at by Chelsea, Fernando Torres and Gary Neville's involuntary noises.
David McDonnell - Bayern Munich
Manchester City are the favourites to retain the Champions League, having won it for the first time last season. With such a strong squad, bolstered by a glut of impressive signings this summer, it's easy to see why they are so fancied to make it back-to-back titles.
But winning it in successive seasons is a tall order - only Real Madrid have done so in the competition's current format - and City may struggle to repeat that feat.
Bayern Munich, made even stronger by the arrival of Harry Kane and his prolific goalscoring prowess, are my favourites to rule Europe this season. It is hard to find a weakness in Thomas Tuchel's side, with Kane joined by fellow summer arrivals Min-Jae Kim and Konrad Laimer, to bolster an already formidable squad.
The only question mark over Bayern is in goal, where Sven Ulreich continues to fill in for Manuel Neuer, who has not played for 10 months since suffering a serious leg injury skiing. Neuer is back in training and expected to make his return in the coming weeks. If he suffers no setbacks following his lengthy spell out, Bayern can certainly conquer Europe.
Mike Walters - Manchester City
Welcome back to the UEFA Who's Got The Most Money League - those cashiers down the bank have missed you over the summer.
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Now the colossal tedium of the Champions League group phase is upon us, it must be autumn. That means the TV schedules will be full of D-listers on Strictly, Z-listers on I'm Not Famous Any More, Get Me Out Of Here! and the unmissable thrill of pretending it won't be the same old quarter-finalists in the Moneyball Cup this season.
Manchester City are heavy favourites to retain their crown (Jose Breton/NurPhoto/REX/Shutterstock)If you can remember the last time one of European football's relative minnows reached the business end of the competition, you've got a longer memory than an elephant. When we're down to the knockout stages in the New Year, you won't see Smorgasboard Rovers, Herdy-Gerdy Argyle or Transylvania Park Rangers for dust - because they will all have been crushed by the usual convoy of juggernauts.
Leicester reached the quarter-finals in 2017 mainly because they had a favourable draw - which is not their fault - but it would be a huge surprise if Manchester City, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona (common denominator: stinking rich) didn't reach the last 16.
Now that City have finally won the holy grail once - and heaven knows how they managed it on such a small budget - they are equipped to follow Liverpool and Nottingham Forest into the pantheon of English clubs who win it two years running. And why should we be surprised if they do it?
Darren Lewis - Manchester City
If anything, the defending champions are even stronger than last season. Five straight Premier League wins, 14 goals scored and just three conceded tell their own story.
Erling Haaland has trained on - even when he doesn't play that well, he scores - the players that have come in have impressed. Jeremy Doku looks outstanding and has added both competition for Jack Grealish and a fresh X-factor that teams will have to get to grips with. Phil Foden has the ability to flourish in the no.10 position without Kevin de Bruyne and the brilliant Belgian is likely to be back for the latter stages of the competition.
Nobody even speaks about the £77million defender Josko Gvardiol who has slotted into the City defence as though he has played there all his life.
Josko Gvardiol has improved Manchester City defensively (Shaun Brooks/Action Plus/REX/Shutterstock)Bayern will be formidable now that Harry Kane has his feet under the table and scored in three of their four Bundesliga games so far. Barcelona will be powerful with Robert Lewandowski, the man who shot them to the La Liga title last season, leading the line for them in the elite European competition.
And, of course, Real Madrid will be thereabouts again with Jude Bellingham in imperious form. But it is hard to see past City whose young team could keep the trophy in Manchester for quite some time.
Colin Millar - Manchester City
There is no point in forcing a contrarian viewpoint that denies the reality that Manchester City are once again the favourites to win the Champions League. However, they have been favourites to lift the trophy in each of the past five seasons and have delivered it just once – showing the unpredictability of knockout competition.
It is tough to see any other Premier League side as an obvious major contender; Arsenal will be focusing on Premier League glory and this group of players are untested at this level. Newcastle and Manchester United are strong enough to reach the knockouts but both have clear flaws.
Real Madrid are the European kings and Jude Bellingham is as good as any player in Europe right now, but they have not replaced Karim Benzema while Thibaut Courtois and Eder Militao have long-term injuries. Barcelona have perennially struggled in Europe of late; they are a functional side with a handful of standout young stars who should record a knockout finish, but are unlikely to be a major contender.
A Harry Kane-led Bayern Munich and new-look, Mbappe-powered PSG will go deep into the tournament, but Italian sides are once again not to be underestimated. Beaten finalists Inter are cup specialists, while Napoli retained the stars of their historic title. But stopping Pep’s winning machine? That will take something special.
Alan Smith - Manchester City
There has been no hangover from last season’s escapades and, if anything, Pep Guardiola’s team are shaping up to be even better. They have added depth and quality to last season’s squad - headlined by Josko Gvardiol and Jeremy Doku. Most importantly they no longer have the questions and doubts around the ability to get over the finish line after beating Inter in Istanbul in June.
Even with Kevin De Bruyne out injured City have looked irrepressible in the early weeks of the Premier League season and only two things can stop them from going all the way in Europe again: a cruel run of injuries to several key players all at once or a one-off stinker in a knockout tie.
Avoid both traps and it is hard to see anyone with the capability to stop them from becoming the first team not called Real Madrid to win back-to-back European Cups since Milan in 1990.
Jude Bellingham has slotted in seamlessly at Real Madrid (Irina R Hipolito/REX/Shutterstock)Kieran King - Real Madrid
I think Carlo Ancelotti's side will get back on top of European football - and Real's success will be determined by one man.
That is Jude Bellingham, who has all the qualities and credentials to become a Ballon d'Or winner one day, and I believe he can spearhead Real's Champions League push this season.
A midfield department of Bellingham, Federico Valverde, Aurelien Tchouameni, Eduoard Camavinga, Luka Modric and Toni Kroos represents arguably the best in Europe and I don't think it can be matched.
Although Real lost top scorer Karim Benzema in the summer, I believe Real will be better off as a team, with Vinicius Jr, Joselu and Rodrygo giving them the firepower at the top end of the pitch.
Manchester City will no doubt also be challenging once again, but I think Real's midfield will overpower every team, with Bellingham the main man in Ancelotti's armoury after scoring four times in his first five La Liga matches.
Bayern should not be counted out, either, with Harry Kane expected to take them to the next level. And with Thomas Tuchel in charge, I think the German champions will be a formidable force, although they do face a tough start against Manchester United.
Jack Lacey-Hatton - Bayern Munich
Unless your name is Real Madrid, it's a tricky business retaining the European Cup. So although they will again produce a deep run I don't see Man City lifting the old big ears trophy at Wembley.
Instead I think we'll see a return to the pinnacle of the European game for Bayern Munich. Thomas Tuchel knows how to win this trophy and with a revitalised Harry Kane leading the attack, Bayern will be very tough to stop.
Kim Min-jae's arrival from Napoli will also help beef up the Bundesliga Champions' defence. He was underrated in Gli Azzurri's Scudetto triumph last season and like Kane is a smart signing.
Thomas Tuchel lifted the Champions League with Chelsea in 2021 (Tom Weller/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)Drawn alongside Copenhagen, Galatasaray and an inconsistent Man Utd in Group A means Bayern should navigate their way to the last 16 relatively comfortably. From then on Tuchel's game management could give them the edge needed to get back to the final.
But regardless of who wins, as this the final season before UEFA tear up the perfect tournament format, let's enjoy one more season of prime Champions League.
Neil McLeman - Real Madrid
Only Jude Bellingham or Harry Kane can stop Manchester City retaining their Champions League title at Wembley in May.
Pep Guardiola’s side are rightly favourite again this season after reinvigorating the squad with Josko Gvardiol, Jeremy Doku and Matheus Nunes. But Real Madrid are the only club to win back-to-back Champions Leagues this century - they won a hat-trick of titles between 2016-2018 - and the 14-time winners will be City's biggest rivals this season
It is hard to imagine a side improving after the departure of Karim Benzema but Bellingham has made a stunning instant impact in a team which can still call on the experience of Luka Modric and Toni Kroos. And Real Madrid have started with five consecutive wins despite Vinicius Jr being out since last month.
Kane has made a similarly sensational scoring start in Germany. Thomas Tuchel arrived too late to save the Champions League campaign last season - and he was lucky to win an 11th consecutive Bundesliga title - but the former Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain boss is a European specialist after winning the title and reaching the final in consecutive seasons.
PSG are the wildcard this season without Lionel Messi and Neymar and a younger team built around Kylian Mbappe.
Felix Keith - Real Madrid
Manchester City are the favourites - and for good reason - but retaining the Champions League is an extremely difficult task. If they can successfully wrap Erling Haaland in cotton wool for an entire campaign then I could see them following in Real Madrid's footsteps. But logic dictates it will likely be one of the other giants of European football.
As much as it would be amusing for Paris Saint-Germain to finally break their duck in the season after they waved goodbye to Lionel Messi and Neymar, I can't see it. Bayern Munich have the best striker in the competition in the form of Harry Kane and Thomas Tuchel, a man who has been there and won it before, but their squad looks a little thin.
Carlo Ancelotti has vast experience in the Champions League (Jose Breton/NurPhoto/REX/Shutterstock)In contrast, powered by a superhuman Jude Bellingham, Real Madrid look very strong currently. They have successfully phased in replacements for the ageing Toni Kroos and Luka Modric, while retaining their experience, and with Carlo Ancelotti aiming for a fifth trophy, I'm sold on their chances.
They've won four of the past eight competitions and have the nous, experience and quality to make it five.
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