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The Champions League proper is about to get under way – but it’ll be unlike anything we’ve seen before. The group stage has been replaced by a league phase that will see 36 teams (up from 32) play eight games against eight different teams (four at home, four away) to see who progresses directly to the last 16, who ends up in the play-off round, and who ends being eliminated from continental competition completely.
Tournament organisers UEFA believe that the ‘Swiss Model’ will provide more excitement and meaningful matches than ever before, and while such claims have provoked scepticism among some supporters, what we do know for certain is that this year’s competition is stacked with heavyweight contenders and potential surprise packages.
So, how are all of the participants shaping up ahead of the opening matches on Tuesday, Wednesda and Thursday? GOAL has ranked all 36 teams, from familiar faces such as Real Madrid, Manchester City and Bayern Munich to newcomers Bologna, Brest and Girona…
Previous update: August 29, 2024.
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Getty36Slovan Bratislava ↔️
Arguably the story of the tournament so far, Slovan Bratislava had never previously managed to make it into the group stage. Now they’re in the league phase after coming through four rounds of qualification – and without losing a single game.
The Slovakian side made light work of Struga, Celje and APOEL, but showed their mettle in beating Danish champions Midtjylland 4-3 on aggregate, with Marko Tolic and Tigran Barseghyan each netting in the final eight minutes of the second leg to see Slovan through. It’s unlikely they’ll pick up many – if any – wins from here on but, truth be told, they’ve done incredibly well to get this far.
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Getty35Red Star Belgrade ⬇️
Red Star’s hopes of reaching the league stage were hanging by a thread midway through the second half of the first leg of their play-off round clash with Bodo/Glimt, with the Serbian side 2-0 down in Norway. However, Ognjen Mimovic pulled a crucial goal back with 15 minutes to go and Vladan Milojevic’s men took care of business at the always formidable Marakana, winning 3-2 on aggregate thanks to goals from new striker Bruno Duarte and Uros Spajic.
Still, it’s difficult to see Red Star making any waves in the Champions League league phase, given they picked up just one point in last season’s group stage, against Young Boys.
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Getty Images Sport34Girona ⬇️
The brutal reality of being a feeder club hit Girona hard this summer. Michel led the Catalans to an extraordinary third-placed finish in La Liga last season (they were even top of the table going into February), but Savinho was snapped up by sister club Manchester City, while Aleix Garcia and Artem Dovbyk were sold to Bayer Leverkusen and Roma, respectively.
Abel Ruiz and Yaser Asprilla are among those to have arrived in their stead, but Girona don’t look capable of reaching the knockout stage of the Champions League – unless Michel pulls off another miracle. Still, at least they have some big games to savour.
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Getty33Sturm Graz ⬆️
Sturm Graz qualified for the Champions League proper for the first time in 24 years after pulling off something close to a miracle under Christian Ilzer by winning the Austrian Bundesliga to claim just their fourth title – and prevent Red Bull Salzburg from winning their 11th in a row.
The draw has been kind, but a deep run in the Champions League, nonetheless, looks beyond a team that were outclassed in last season’s Europa League,. Denmark Under-21 international Mika Biereth is one to watch, however, having completed a permanent move to Graz from Arsenal over the summer.
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AFP32Brest ⬆️
After spending more than a decade working as either a pundit or sporting director, Eric Roy returned to coaching at Brest in January 2023 and led the club into the Champions League for the first time ever by finishing third in Ligue 1 last season, which saw him rightly named Manager of the Year.
Unfortunately, Brest were not in a financial position to splash the cash during the summer, spending just €10m in total and relying predominantly on loan moves to strengthen elsewhere. Even more worryingly, defensive lynchpin Lilian Brassier has joined Marseille on loan, while Martin Satriano and Kamory Doumbia have returned to their parent clubs. Consequently, Brest are set to struggle on their tournament debut.
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Getty31Dinamo Zagreb ⬇️
Dinamo Zagreb were devastated after falling to AEK Athens in last year’s qualifying round before then losing to Sparta Prague in the Europa League play-offs. Still, they eventually managed to reach the last 16 of the Conference League, eliminating Real Betis along the way, and will return to the Champions League proper this season brimming with belief after winning all of their competitive games so far this season, including both legs of their play-off with Qarabag, whom they routed 5-0 on aggregate.
In terms of players to watch, Sandro Kulenovic is in fine form up front, while winger Marko Pjaca has returned to Dinamo eight years after leaving for Juventus and scored in both legs against Qarabag.
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Getty Images30Sparta Prague ⬇️
The loss of manager Brian Prinske to Feyenoord was a big blow for Sparta Prague, but their decision to promote the Dane’s assistant, Lars Friis, to the top job is already looking like a masterstroke. The Czech title-holders have yet to taste defeat in a competitive game under their new head coach and knocked out Shamrock Rovers, Steaua Bucharest and Malmo to reach the Champions League proper.
Ladislav Krejci, who has joined Girona, is likely to be missed, but Sparta do have plenty of European experience and made it to the last 16 of last season’s Europa League. However, their 11-2 aggregate loss to Liverpool underlined that they’re a level or two below the game’s elite.
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Getty29Club Brugge ⬇️
Club Brugge’s decision to sack Ronny Delia and replace him with Nicky Hayen after the conclusion of their Belgian Pro League regular season campaign paid off spectacularly, with the 44-year-old leading the club to the title thanks to a 10-game undefeated run in the play-offs.
Unfortunately, Brugge sold key attackers Igor Thiago and Antonio Nusa over the summer, to Brentford and RB Leipzig, respectively, and they’ve made a poor start to the new season, losing three competitive clashes already. Hayen’s side will, therefore, be up against it in the Champions League.
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Getty Images Sport28Celtic ⬆️
Celtic won their third consecutive Scottish title last season, but their Champions League campaign was a disaster, with the Bhoys failing to even secure Europa League football after Christmas by finishing bottom of their group.
However, they’ve managed to avoid most of the really big boys in the draw and while the loss of Matt O’Riley, last season’s top scorer in the Premiership, to Brighton is a major setback, they have at least landed Adam Idah on a permanent basis.
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Getty Images27Young Boys ⬆️
Young Boys made a worryingly poor start to their Swiss Super League title defence under new boss Patrick Rahmen and appeared to have their work cut out reaching the Champions League proper after being pitted against Galatasaray in the play-off round, especially with the second leg in Istanbul. However, after battling their way to a 3-2 win in Bern, Young Boys stunned Gala at the Ali Sami Yen Stadium, triumphing 1-0 thanks to Alan Virginius’ brilliant breakaway goal.
Reaching the knockout stage looks a tall order for a squad that hasn’t really been improved over in the summer, but it is worth remembering that Young Boys put in some creditable performances against the likes of Manchester City in last season’s group stage.
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Getty Images26Monaco ⬇️
Monaco are back in the Champions League proper for the first time since 2018 after an impressive second-placed finish in Ligue 1 in what was Adi Hutter’s first year in charge at the Stade Louis II. The obvious question now is how an intriguing squad, which is led by midfielder Denis Zakaria and features the likes of Aleksandr Golovin, Takumi Minamino, Breel Embolo, will cope with the burden of playing every three days.
It’s also imperative that one of Monaco’s forwards fills the void left by last season’s top scorer, Wissam Ben Yedder, who parted company with the club during the summer, so it would be nice if Folarin Balogun belatedly proved his worth to the club.
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Getty25Red Bull Salzburg ⬆️
Red Bull Salzburg have responded well to the shock of losing their Austrian title to Sturm Graz last season, with Jurgen Klopp’s former assistant at Liverpool, Pep Lijnders, making a mightily impressive start to his tenure. Salzburg are flying domestically and managed to eliminate both Twente and Dynamo Kyiv without losing a game to reach the Champions League proper.
Losing Strahinja Pavlovic to AC Milan is unquestionably a major issue for the defence, but Takumu Kawamura, Bobby Clark and Stefan Bajcetic should prove very useful additions to the midfield. Salzburg could, then, spring a surprise or two in this season’s Champions League.
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Getty Images Sport24Bologna ⬆️
Bologna didn’t get long to bask in the glory of qualifying for the Champions League for the first time ever. Within a couple of months of finishing fifth in Serie A, the Rossoblu lost their coach (Thiago Motta), best defender (Riccardo Calafiori) and No.9 (Joshua Zirkzee), while loanee Alexis Saelemaekers has returned to AC Milan.
With Bologna having made no signings of proven quality and Lewis Ferguson still out injured, getting out of the league phase is going to be a colossal ask for new coach Vincenzo Italiano, but they’ll be really looking forward to their trip to Anfield.
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Getty Images23Shakhtar Donetsk ⬇️
Shakhtar’s attempts to make a big splash in the Champions League will be once again hindered by the fact that they are still not in a position to play in Ukraine, which continues to be ravaged by the war with Russia. Consequently, their home games will be held in Gelsenkirchen.
Still, Shakhtar did manage to beat Barcelona in last season’s group stage and will be eyeing further upsets under coach Marino Pusic, who has done a fine job since taking over last October, especially since the highly-rated Georgi Sudakov remains within their ranks.
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Getty Images22Lille ⬇️
Few teams have had to fight as hard for their Champions League spot as Lille, who needed an injury-time winner from Edon Zhegrova to defeat Fenerbahce in their qualifying-round clash in France, and only progressed past Jose Mourinho’s men thanks to a nerveless 118th-minute penalty from star forward Jonathan David in Istanbul. Zhegrova and David were also then responsible for all of Lille’s goals in their hard-fought 3-2 aggregate win over Slavia Prague in the play-offs.
Expectations around Lille will be low, especially as the prodigiously talented centre-back Leny Yoro has left for Manchester United, but they’ve made a strong start to life under Bruno Genesio, who has replaced Paulo Fonseca at the helm, and they did reach the Champions League last 16 in 2022.
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Getty Images Sport21Stuttgart ⬆️
Sebastian Hoeness has overseen a remarkable transformation at Stuttgart, whom he took from the precipice of relegation to a runners-up finish in the Bundesliga in just over a year. Consequently, one of Germany’s great under-achievers is back in the Champions League for the first time since reaching the last 16 all the way back in 2010.
The good news is that they’ve managed to sign Deniz Undav from Brighton on a permanent transfer after his impressive loan spell, but the terrible news is that Serhou Guirassy, Waldemar Anton and Hiroki Ito all left during the summer.
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AFP20Benfica ⬇️
Benfica fans were devastated when their club cashed in on Joao Neves this summer, but while president Rui Costa insisted that he was just upset by the academy product’s sale, he explained that PSG’s €70m (£59m/$78m) offer was just too good to turn down. It was a similar story with David Neres, who has just joined Napoli.
On the plus side, the Eagles have managed to retain the services of the highly-rated Antonio Silva and Orkun Kokcu, while the hope is that new striker Vangelis Pavlidis can replicate his AZ Alkmaar form at Benfica. But coach Roger Schmidt will also be praying that a return to the Estadio da Luz can help Renato Sanches – who was part of the Neves deal – get back to something like his best.
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AFP19Aston Villa ⬇️
The last time Aston Villa played in the European Cup, they were the defending champions – which illustrates the scale of Unai Emery’s achievement in qualifying for the Champions League with pretty much the same set of players that predecessor Steven Gerrard had left languishing just above the Premier League’s relegation zone.
Villa’s hopes of going far will largely hinge on inspirational goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez and star striker Ollie Watkins, but it’s also imperative that new arrival Amadou Onana helps fill the considerable void left by Douglas Luiz, who has been sold to Juventus. A reunion with Luiz is on their schedule, as are home games against Bayern Munich and Celtic, which should be superb occasions.
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18Feyenoord ⬆️
Feyenoord lost beloved coach Arne Slot to Liverpool during the summer, but have replaced him with Brian Priske, who did a wonderful job at Sparta Prague, winning back-to-back league titles with the Czech outfit, as well as leading them into the last 16 of last season’s Europa League.
Feyenoord didn’t make any major moves during the transfer window while Brighton snapped up key midfielder Mats Wieffer, but the fans are delighted that Santiago Gimenez is still at De Kuip after his impressive goal-scoring exploits over the past few seasons. As usual, Feyenoord, who beat PSV on penalties to win the Johan Cruyff Shield, will be a tough team to beat in Rotterdam
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Getty Images Sport17RB Leipzig ⬇️
Leipzig gave Real Madrid an almighty scare in last season’s round-of-16 clash at Santiago Bernabeu, and they could prove just as problematic for Europe’s elite this time around. Dani Olmo may have been sold to Barcelona, but the inconsistent attacker might not be missed too much, particularly as Leipzig have brought in the very promising Antonio Nusa.
The loan signing of Arthur Vermeeren could also prove an inspired move, but the big news is, of course, Xavi Simons returning for another season at the Red Bull Arena. With Lois Openda and Benjamin Sesko also staying put, Leipzig remain capable of troubling any defence.
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AFP15Sporting CP ⬆️
Sporting fans feared the worst when Ruben Amorim was strongly linked with Liverpool following Jurgen Klopp’s announcement that he would be stepping down at the end of last season. There was a real risk that the coach would not only end up at Anfield, but take a few of his Portuguese title-winners with him.
However, Amorim is still in Lisbon and so too are Viktor Gyokeres, Goncalo Inacio, Morten Hjulmand and Pedro Goncalves. Consequently, Sporting will rightly be targeting a place in the knockout stage of this season’s Champions League.
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Getty Images14AC Milan ⬆️
Stefano Pioli led AC Milan to a runners-up finish in Serie A, but allowing city rivals Inter to clinch the Scudetto at San Siro, coupled with a dismal group-stage exit from the Champions League, led to the likeable coach losing his job. Unimpressed fans effectively blocked the club’s attempts to hire Julen Lopetegui as Pioli’s successor, meaning they’ve instead ended up with Paulo Fonseca, who’s won just one of his first four league games in charge.
Milan have some good players, including Christian Pulisic, and Strahinja Pavlovic is already looking like a good signing, but Alvaro Morata cannot be relied upon for goals and, most worryingly of all, Rafael Leao looks unsettled.
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Getty Images Sport13Atalanta ↔️
The best pound-for-pound team on the planet finally got their hands on the trophy their incessant over-achievement so richly deserved when they overwhelmed the previously unbeaten Bayer Leverkusen to lift the Europa League trophy in May. However, while the loss of star striker Gianluca Scamacca to injury has been offset by the arrival of Mateo Retegui, key midfielder Teun Koopmeiners has been sold to Juventus.
The brilliant Gian Piero Gasperini is, of course, used to working wonders on a small budget, but he’s not happy at all with Atalanta’s summer window even with Ademola Lookman eventually staying put, which has reduced their hopes of replicating their remarkable run to the last eight of the 2019-20 Champions League.
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AFP12Atletico Madrid ⬇️
One of the busiest clubs during the summer transfer window, Atletico Madrid will be expecting to not only challenge for this season’s Liga title, but also go deep in the Champions League. They should certainly carry a greater attacking threat this term, with Julian Alvarez and Alexander Sorloth joining the evergreen Antoine Griezmann in attack, while Conor Gallagher has the requisite mix of technique and tenacity to thrive in a Diego Simeone midfield.
Robin Le Normand will also strengthen a backline that rather uncharacteristically let Atleti down last season, most notably in Dortmund, but they do still lack depth in defence. All things considered, the Rojiblancos are a team to watch.
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Getty Images11Paris Saint-Germain ⬇️
Kylian Mbappe may be gone, but that might not be such a bad thing for Paris Saint-Germain, whose focus has shifted from signing superstars to recruiting youngsters of enormous potential, such as Joao Neves and Desire Doue. The addition of Neves is particularly exciting, as he will add so much control and creativity to an already formidable midfield, while Bradley Barcola is perfectly placed to take his game to a whole other level.
The big question, though, is where the goals will come from, with Mbappe gone and Goncalo Ramos having been ruled out of action for three months. PSG really need Randal Kolo Muani to step up to get through some seriously rough fixtures.
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Getty Images10Juventus ⬆️
Massimiliano Allegri secured a return to the Champions League for Juventus via a third-placed finish in Serie A, while he also lifted the Coppa Italia, but the Bianconeri board still decided to get rid of the coach because of his atrocious brand of football and replace him with the far more progressive Thiago Motta. The former Bologna boss has already made a big impact in Turin, with Juve having started their league season by scoring six unanswered goals.
Juve are clearly a work in progress, but they’ve seriously strengthened their midfield by signing Douglas Luis, Khephren Thuram and Teun Koopmeiners, while Dusan Vlahovic is enjoying a new lease of life under Motta.
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Getty Images9Borussia Dortmund ⬆️
Can Dortmund repeat last season’s remarkable run to the Champions League final? It appears highly unlikely, given the degree to which BVB punched above their weight to make it all the way to Wembley.
Key players Mats Hummels, Jadon Sancho, Ian Maatsen and Niclas Fullkrug have also all departed in the interim. Still, former crowd favourite Nuri Sahin is an intriguing choice to replace Edin Terzic as coach, Serhou Guirassy is coming off the back of a sensational season at Stuttgart, while Jamie Bynoe-Gittens looks like another star-in-the-making.
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AFP8Bayer Leverkusen ↔️
Bayer Leverkusen came within one game of a historic undefeated treble last season, with Xabi Alonso’s fantastic side upset in the Europa League final by an inspired Atalanta after winning a domestic double. It will, therefore, be fascinating to see how they fare in the Champions League.
The good news is that they’ve held onto all of their best players and, far more importantly, much-coveted coach Xabi Alonso, who was courted by Liverpool and Bayern Munich. Aleix Garcia should also prove a good addition to the midfield.
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Getty Images7Inter ↔️
No major moves from Inter during the summer, with the arrival of Mehdi Taremi on a free transfer from Porto their most notable signing. The main thing is that they’ve managed to keep their Scudetto-winning squad intact and, for that reason, the Nerazzurri will be once again optimistic of reaching the knockout stage of the Champions League, particularly with Lautaro Martinez in the form of his life.
Simone Inzaghi should certainly have learned a lot from last season’s desperately disappointing last-16 loss to Atletico Madrid.
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Getty Images Sport6Liverpool ⬇️
Jurgen Klopp led Liverpool back into the Champions League but has since been replaced at the helm by former Feyenoord boss Arne Slot. Surprisingly, the Reds waited until the final week of the transfer window to make any signings, with Federico Chiesa having arrived at a bargain price. However, Martin Zubimendi rejected the chance to resolve the Reds’ long-standing No.6 problem, while key trio Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah are all out of contract at the end of the season.
Despite those concerns, Slot’s side made an impressive start to the new Premier League season – albeit one that was tarnished by Saturday’s loss to Nottingham Forest – and have so much talent in attack that they’re bound to do some damage in Europe this season, even if they have tough games against Real Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen on their schedule.
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5Barcelona ⬆️
Another summer of uncertainty has drawn to a close in Catalunya, with Barcelona making just the single big-money signing in Dani Olmo. The Spain international is a talented and versatile attacker, as he proved with goals in each of his first three Blaugrana matches, but it’s clear that Barca’s preference was to sign a proper left winger in Nico Williams instead.
Having to let serial winner Ilkay Gundogan return to Manchester City for nothing purely for financial reasons also cannot be portrayed as anything but embarrassing. Still, Lamine Yamal is the game’s newest superstar and Robert Lewandowski is looking sharp, so if new coach Hansi Flick can keep the likes of Gavi and Pedri fit, Barca should easily make the knockout stage.
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AFP3Arsenal ↔️
Arsenal’s return to the Champions League ended in surprisingly feeble fashion, with Mikel Arteta’s exciting young side eliminated in the last eight by a Bayern Munich team in turmoil under Thomas Tuchel.
The Gunners have added greater depth to their defence by signing the versatile Italy international Riccardo Calafiori, while midfielder Mikel Merino has arrived from Real Sociedad. However, even though Kai Havertz has improved his output, Arsenal might still end up counting the cost of their lack of a No.9.
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(C)Getty Images2Manchester City ↔️
Can Pep Guardiola win a second Champions League title with Manchester City in what could be his final season at the Etihad? It’s a distinct possibility.
The very useful Julian Alvarez may be gone, but Savinho is already looking like a superb addition to the City attack, while the return of treble-winning captain Ilkay Gundogan is also a big boost. As usual, it will take something special to stop Erling Haaland & Co.
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Getty1Real Madrid ↔️
The reigning champions may have lost the hugely influential Toni Kroos, but they’ve added Kylian Mbappe and Endrick to an already stellar attack.
Fitting all of their superstars into the same starting line-up will not be easy, of course, but who better than Carlo Ancelotti to keep them all happy? Real Madrid remain the team to beat.
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