Champions League is here! This is the 26th season of UEFA's biggest competition. 32 teams, divided into eight groups, will play in this year's Champions League. Current Champion Real Madrid will try to win the title for the third year in a row and become the only team to ever do that. Every year, the Champions League's group stage gives us a couple of great matches. This year, we will see Bayern and PSG face off, we'll see a Dortmund vs Real Madrid match, Atletico Madrid will face Chelsea etc. Soccer fans around the world are excited and can't wait to see their favorite players in action.
Tonight, we will see teams from groups A, B, C, and D face off.
Group A: Manchester United returns to Champions League
Two-time European champion Manchester United will return to the Champions League after being absent for the last two years. Jose Mourinho's team will face Basel in the first match of the group A. Manchester United started the season very well, winning their first three matches in the Premier League before playing to a 2-2 draw against Stoke City. Basel started their season very poorly and are currently ranked 3rd in the Swiss soccer league, winning only 11 points in the first seven weeks. Manchester United is a huge favorite to win this match and the first place in the Group A.
In the other Group A match, Benfica will host CSKA Moscow. Benfica is playing very well this season and is expected to win in this match.
Group B: Neymar makes his Champions League debut as a PSG player
Group B will give us one of the best matchups of this year, but we will have to wait a couple of weeks before we see Bayern play against PSG.
This season, PSG is stronger than ever, having acquired Mbappe and Neymar the previous summer. They plan to win the Champions League title and they begin their campaign against Celtic. PSG is a huge favorite against the Scottish league's champs and anything other than a safe victory for the French team would be a big surprise.
In the other match of group B, Bayern Munich will face Anderlecht. Both teams aren't playing very well at the beginning of the season and are looking for a win to improve their confidence. The German team is expected to win in this match, but Anderlecht won't go down without a fight.
Group C: Atletico Madrid goes to Italy to face AS Roma, Chelsea returns to the Champions league
Atletico Madrid has been one of the best teams in the world over the past couple of years. The only thing that kept them from the Champions League title is Real Madrid, who defeated them in the last year's semi final and two times in the final. They start their Champions League campaign against AS Roma. Both teams aren't playing their best football at the beginning of the season, but they are very talented and it just a matter of time before they start playing better.
Atletico is the favorite in this game, but Roma will try and surprise Diego Simeone's team. English Premier League's champion Chelsea will host Quarabag and anything other than a win would be catastrophic for Chelsea.
Group D: Barcelona hosts Juventus in the rematch of the last year's quarter final
Leo Messi and his team will host Italian champions Juventus in the most interesting match in week 1 of the Champions League. Last year, Juventus easily defeated Barcelona and advanced to the semi final. This year, the Spanish team is very motivated to get back at the Italians, especially after losing Neymar this Summer. They have improved their play recently after starting the season poorly and are ready to face the Italians with their newest acquisition Ousmane Dembele.
Juventus, who will be without Cuadrado and Khedira, is playing very well this season and have won their first three matches of this year's Serie A. Barcelona is the favorite in this match, but Juventus has shown they can beat them. In other Group D match, Olympiacos will host Sporting. The Champions League is here and is looking as interesting as ever!
