The Champions League makes its anticipated return this week after a months-long hiatus, with a tweaked format offering an exciting twist on Europe’s preeminent club competition. Below, we take a look at 10 key talking points as we prepare to dive back into the tournament.
Unsurprisingly, the congested fixture list after the restart of Europe’s top leagues led to a slew of injuries as some players simply started breaking down physically. They’re not machines, after all. Those ailments have left various managers with big decisions to make.
Paulo Dybala, Lorenzo Insigne, and Antoine Griezmann are in a race against the clock to feature in their teams’ games after suffering leg injuries. Sergio Aguero is unlikely to return in time after undergoing knee surgery in June. Most notable of all, Paris Saint-Germain manager Thomas Tuchel said it would take a “miracle” for superstar Kylian Mbappe to overcome a nasty ankle sprain ahead of their anticipated clash with Atalanta.
Despite facing an uphill task after losing the first leg of their last-16 tie with Manchester City – at home, no less – belief remains high inside the Real Madrid camp that they can overturn their 2-1 deficit. On paper, missing your captain and visiting an uber-talented Pep Guardiola-led side isn’t exactly an enviable position. But this is Real Madrid we’re talking about.
After winning four of the last six Champions League titles on offer – including a run of three in a row – there’s an inherent belief that they can overcome any obstacle in this tournament. By hook or by crook, they always find a way.
Maurizio Sarri’s first season in Turin wasn’t the rousing success he hoped it would be. Yes, Juventus captured yet another league title, but they did it in unconvincing fashion, limping over the finish line after the restart.
There were flashes of the quick, incisive “Sarri-ball” that the veteran Italian promised to bring with him, but it came at the cost of the defensive solidity that has long been Juventus’ hallmark. Particularly down the stretch, Juve were downright flimsy at the back; they conceded 17 goals in their last eight games. Trailing 1-0 going into the second leg of their matchup with Lyon, giving up even one goal at the Allianz Stadium would likely end their hopes of reaching the quarterfinals. No pressure, then.
If Napoli bow out of the tournament this week, they’ll look back with huge regret. They were in complete control of the first leg against Barcelona in February, crafting chances seemingly at will and putting their decorated opponents on the back foot after taking a first-half lead. They couldn’t find a second goal at the San Paolo, though, and ultimately conceded a crucial away goal despite Barca only mustering two shots on target.
“They didn’t hurt us. They barely tickled,” Gennaro Gattuso said after that 1-1 draw in Naples. That little tickle may yet be enough for an underwhelming Barcelona side to advance at the expense of the Italian team.
The book might as well already be closed on Chelsea’s season. Yes, crazier things have happened in the Champions League – just ask the likes of AC Milan and PSG – but only a comeback for the ages can save the Blues heading into the second leg of their tie with German titans Bayern Munich.
Bayern, arguably the best, most talented team on the continent, boast an enormous 3-0 advantage after running Chelsea ragged at Stamford Bridge earlier this year. It could have been worse, too; the gulf in quality was striking. Bayern have somehow looked even better since then, while Chelsea stumbled across the finish line and are now dealing with significant absences in the squad. Frankly, they’ll do well just to keep the scoreline within reason.
There’s a very real path to the Champions League final for Atalanta. What a sentence that is. A quarterfinal clash with PSG is no small task – far from it – but we’re also talking about a PSG team that’s played two competitive fixtures in the last five months. It’s unlikely they’ll be up to speed right away. Atalanta, who only play at a breakneck pace, should have the edge, especially if they come flying out of the gate. After that, who knows what’s possible?
Modest means and an unyielding devotion to their buccaneering style has turned Gian Piero Gasperini’s team into the new darling of European football. Unless you have a horse in the race, you’re almost certainly rooting for Papu Gomez, Duvan Zapata, and Co. to shock the world.
If PSG are going to hold off the Atalanta freight train, Neymar will need to be the central figure. His time in the French capital hasn’t exactly gone to plan since his world-record move from Barcelona; on-pitch shenanigans have led to continued questions over his maturity, while the meteoric rise of teammate Mbappe has dimmed his star somewhat.
But the Brazilian remains one of the sport’s most astonishing pure talents. When he’s on – and fully fit – Neymar is more than capable of taking over games and winning them on his own. Perhaps the bubble-like tournament setting in Lisbon will provide the perfect stage for the 28-year-old to remind everyone of that.
Remember Atletico Madrid? The team that rolled into Anfield, scored three goals, and sent reigning champions Liverpool crashing out of the tournament. Yeah, those guys. They’re still around. Their chances aren’t exactly being talked up – what else is new? – but Diego Simeone’s feisty team is well-placed to make yet another appearance in the final four.
A quarterfinal date with RB Leipzig – who have already waved goodbye to leading scorer Timo Werner, remember – is all that stands between Atleti and the semis. After that, what’s to say this defensively solid side, if not quite vintage, can’t frustrate more celebrated opposition en route to a maiden Champions League trophy. Would you bet against them?
The two best teams remaining in the tournament are barreling toward a tantalizing semifinal affair; the draw teased neutral onlookers by placing Bayern Munich and Manchester City on the same side of the bracket. Should they meet in a one-off contest, the sheer talent on the field at the same time would be staggering. These types of heavyweight tilts sometimes fail to deliver, but you get the sense that wouldn’t be the case here.
The mini-tournament, single-elimination format for this season’s competition – born out of necessity due to the pandemic – adds an additional layer of intrigue ahead of this potential encounter. Guardiola, whose tactical tinkering in the Champions League has famously backfired in the past, would have one shot to get it right. Against his former team, no less. It’s a perfect script.
As outlined above, all signs suggest both Barcelona and Juventus are in very tough to make a run to the latter stages of the competition; aside from the respective squad issues hampering each team this season, the presence of both Manchester City and Bayern Munich on the same side of the bracket is daunting, to say the least.
If, by some minor miracle, they can each overcome those odds to reach the semifinals, it would mean one more opportunity – potentially the last one – to see Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo go head to head on a grand stage. Naturally, their generational tussle lost some steam after Ronaldo left Spain and moved to Italy, but this would certainly ignite the duel once more.
Finally, the Champions League is back.
Nearly five months after the final whistle blew on the campaigns of Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund, Europe’s flagship competition will be revived on Friday as the remaining second legs in the round of 16 kick off.
Here, theScore runs down the 20 players who’ve made it worth the wait.
Di Maria was Paris Saint-Germain’s most consistent player over the 2019-20 Ligue 1 term. He logged twice the number of key passes managed by Neymar, counted a league-best 14 assists, and was fourth for completed dribbles across the whole division at the age of 32. He also opened PSG’s Champions League campaign with two goals in a 3-0 defeat of Real Madrid.
Varane’s composure and decisiveness set him apart from his peers, and he’s often the hardest working Real Madrid player on the pitch. The defender’s medal haul is, quite frankly, ridiculous: one World Cup, four Champions Leagues, three La Liga titles, four Club World Cups, three UEFA Super Cups, one Copa del Rey, and three Supercopa de Espanas. He’s only 27 years old.
Gomez seemingly cashed in on his career at just 25 when he joined Metalist Kharkiv, but he refused to return for his second season with the Ukrainian side amid warfare between the country and Russia. Now 32, he’s helped drag Atalanta from relegation battles to the knockout rounds of the Champions League under Gian Piero Gasperini. Gomez’s tirelessness, technical ability and acceleration chime perfectly with Duvan Zapata’s finishing.
Saul is one of the most complete midfielders in world football and a huge reason why Atletico Madrid habitually enter the later rounds of the Champions League. His tactical intelligence and work ethic have led him to be deployed in every position across the midfield and at left-back this season, and he’s thrived in each role. It’s impossible to pick out a weakness in Saul’s play.
There are plenty of reasons why Napoli reportedly value Koulibaly at €90 million. He’s the imposing general of the Campanian side’s backline, an impeccable reader of the game, and rarely gets caught in possession. He was struggling for form earlier in the season but is returning to his imperious best under Gennaro Gattuso.
It’s been a season to forget for Hazard. “It’s true, I cannot lie, if I’m on holiday, then I’m on holiday,” the Belgian said in January of last summer’s 11-pound gain. And when he’s not in the treatment room, Hazard has done little to ingratiate himself with the Santiago Bernabeu support, notching a single goal across all competitions this season. Real Madrid need to see Hazard’s Chelsea form soon.
Kante doesn’t seem to fit into Frank Lampard’s plans at Chelsea, so he may need to seek a transfer this summer. He won’t be short of any potential suitors. The Frenchman is still the master of breaking up opposition play from the base of midfield: in the Premier League, he averages nearly twice the amount of interceptions mustered by celebrated Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson.
Never write him off. Muller was getting phased out of the first-team picture by Niko Kovac but, after Hansi Flick took the managerial reins in November, the veteran won back his regular starting spot and made history. Muller broke Kevin De Bruyne’s record for assists in a single Bundesliga season with 21 helpers and added eight goals of his own as Bayern Munich won yet another league title.
Thiago’s tactical know-how allows him to manipulate space and dictate play from the heart of Bayern Munich’s lineup. He completed more take-ons per 90 minutes (3.6) than anyone else in the Bundesliga – and that includes fast, fleet-footed teammates like Alphonso Davies and Kingsley Coman – while averaging 75 successful short passes per match, which was second to only Bayer Leverkusen defender Jonathan Tah.
Benzema could be on course for his most prolific season in front of goal for four years, and has offered a generous eight assists in La Liga play. “A player improves all the time and that’s what’s happening with Karim,” Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane said after Benzema’s backheel assist for Casemiro in a win over Espanyol in June. “He’s at a good age; at around 32 or 33, if you look after yourself as he does, they’re your best years of football.”
Maurizio Sarri admitted he found it difficult to play Dybala and Ronaldo at the same time while maintaining the balance in his Juventus side. But, gradually, the forwards have struck up a strong understanding. Dybala has thrived playing centrally in attack – most effectively as a striker with Ronaldo playing to his left – and racked up 11 goals and six assists in the league en route to being named Serie A’s Most Valuable Player.
Gabriel Jesus is likely to lead the forward line in Friday’s second leg against Real Madrid, but Manchester City will be hoping Aguero can shake off his knee injury if they reach the quarterfinals in Lisbon. The Argentine’s scoring never relents – he’s notched 23 goals in 32 outings this season – and, although he isn’t as versatile as Jesus, Aguero’s contribution to other facets of play away from finding the back of the net has improved tremendously with Pep Guardiola’s guidance.
Sterling rediscovered his form while City were plotting an assault on the later rounds of the Champions League. The winger hadn’t rippled the onion bag since December until he crammed in 10 goals over 11 appearances following the resumption of English football in mid-June. The scary thing about Sterling is that, at 25, there’s still time for him to further hone his skills and become even sharper in front of goal.
Kimmich is a world-class player at both right-back and central midfield, the latter of which has been his regular posting at Bayern Munich over the 2019-20 campaign. Kimmich’s versatility is the result of having no deficiencies in his game: his vision and technique are better than most No. 10s, his positioning and anticipation is better than most defensive-minded players, he has the agility and footwork to rival most wingers, and his range of finishing belongs to a top-tier striker.
Sometimes, it feels as if Neymar’s off-the-pitch escapades get more coverage than his tormenting of defenders across Europe, and that’s unfair. The Brazilian forward is often unstoppable, eviscerating the likes of Galatasaray and Borussia Dortmund in Europe and making a mockery of domestic rivals in France. Paris Saint-Germain taking on fellow attack-obsessive Atalanta in the quarterfinals is going be sheer bedlam.
Ronaldo made more league appearances in the 2019-20 campaign than he had in each of his previous three seasons, despite turning 35 back in February. The Portuguese superstar is older than the likes of Lukas Podolski, Burak Yilmaz, and Geoff Cameron, but is still out-pacing and outfoxing players over a decade younger than him. He finished the Serie A term with 31 goals and will look to add to his two Champions League tallies against Lyon on Friday.
Mbappe registered his 19th Champions League goal when he was still 20. Lionel Messi was 22 when he reached that sum, while Ronaldo was 24. The Paris Saint-Germain forward seems set to obliterate records throughout his career and is currently part of one of the most feared frontlines in European football. Could Mbappe add a Champions League medal to his World Cup success and numerous French crowns this month?
Guardiola prefers his team to not risk possession but makes an exception for his Belgian playmaker. De Bruyne had the second-worst passing accuracy of City’s outfield players over the 2019-20 Premier League term, but his count of 136 key passes is almost 50% more than the top rung’s runner-up in that category, Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish. The weight and spin on the Gent product’s probing passes is mesmerizing.
There’s no debate over the identity of the best striker on the globe. Lewandowski is top scorer in each of the three club competitions he’s featured in this season: the Bundesliga (34 goals), DFB-Pokal (seven), and the Champions League (11). The Pole hasn’t suffered a longer goal drought than two matches – and that happened just once. Lewandowski would’ve been a strong contender for the Ballon d’Or if the ceremony wasn’t canceled last month.
Messi is the only Barcelona player in this list. That’s because he’s Mr. Everything: the club’s main creator, goal-scorer, and voice for a dressing room that is increasingly disenfranchised by the rudderless stewardship of president Josep Maria Bartomeu. At 33, Messi still overwhelms his Champions League contemporaries for completed take-ons and is the only person in world football to carry a whole squad on his back every weekend.
Honorable mentions: Alphonso Davies, Frenkie de Jong, Matthijs de Ligt, Marquinhos, Fabian Ruiz, Bernardo Silva
Swiss authorities opened a criminal investigation Thursday against FIFA president Gianni Infantino regarding secret meetings he held with the country’s top lawyer.
The government appointed special prosecutor Stefan Keller to review allegations of criminal conduct against attorney general Michael Lauber and Infantino.
Lauber and Infantino had met twice in 2016 and 2017 as Swiss authorities conducted a sweeping investigation into widespread corruption at FIFA.
“As President of FIFA, it has been my aim from Day 1, and it remains my aim, to assist the authorities with investigating past wrongdoings at FIFA,” Infantino said in a statement. “FIFA officials have met with prosecutors in other jurisdictions across the world for exactly these purposes.
“People have been convicted and sentenced, thanks to FIFA’s cooperation, and especially in the United States of America, where our cooperation has resulted in over 40 criminal convictions. Therefore, I remain fully supportive of the judicial process, and FIFA remains willing to fully cooperate with the Swiss authorities for these purposes.”
Lauber offered to resign last week over complaints he lied about the details of the June 2017 meeting with Infantino in Bern. Lauber and Infantino said they couldn’t recall the discussion that took place, and the attorney general neglected to take notes.
“On the basis of general life experience, such a case of collective amnesia is an aberration,” the federal court ruling said, according to The Associated Press.
Lauber faced intense criticism of his handling of the corruption case after German publication Der Spiegel published an expose in November 2018 suggesting favorable treatment toward Infantino, who had complained about the number of investigations that had been opened against FIFA officials.
Infantino promised to clean up FIFA when he succeeded Sepp Blatter as president of the organization in 2016. Infantino was re-elected last year for a second term.
Swiss authorities have failed to land a single conviction since FIFA officials were arrested at a hotel in Zurich in May 2015. Blatter and ex-UEFA boss Michel Platini were also charged with “suspicion of criminal mismanagement and suspicion of misappropriation.” That investigation focused on a $2-million payment Blatter had made to Platini.
More charges were brought against former FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke and Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi. Valcke, who’s already serving a 10-year ban from world soccer, is suspected of accepting bribes over World Cup television rights. Bribery charges against Al-Khelaifi were dropped after an out-of-court settlement.
