It’s the stage on which the very best players in the world strut their stuff, the pinnacle of a head coach’s career, and the most memorable fan experiences under the floodlights.
For sheer pageantry and drama, the Champions League is up there with the biggest sporting events on the planet and for certain clubs, it’s the most coveted silverware which has yet to adorn their trophy cabinet.
Before football came to an abrupt halt back in March, a look at the Champions League 2020 betting odds here at SBOBET would have revealed most of the usual suspects.
At the top end of the odds list, you would see Barcelona and Juventus with seven Champions League titles between them. But then there are three other teams with the combined total of none.
Two of these three are under increasing pressure to deliver on the European stage by virtue of their billionaire status, while a third has lived in the shadow of its illustrious neighbour for far too long.
Manchester City
Having given up on the 2019/20 Premier League, it seems that Manchester City’s focus is now on the Champions League.
Head coach Pep Guardiola won the trophy twice as manager of Barcelona. But in his fourth season at the Etihad with the backing of Sheikh Mansour, he is yet to win the European crown for City.
The Sky Blues were agonisingly close to breaking their European duck last season but were denied by the away goals rule and VAR in a semifinal against Spurs.
At 4-4, City thought they had won the tie in a dramatic finish but Raheem Sterling’s goal was ruled out by the technology.
Spurs went on to surrender meekly to Liverpool in the final while Manchester City fans were left wondering what might have been as their team scooped the domestic treble.
The last time City won a European trophy was half a century ago when they beat Polish outfit Gornik Zabrze in the 1970 UEFA Cup Winners Cup.
Since then, they have watched neighbours Manchester United win the Champions League twice and this season’s competition has taken on more significance still as the Sky Blues prepare to fight a ban from next year’s Champions League due to allegations of financial irregularities.
Paris Saint – Germain
Like Manchester City, PSG is a rich club owned by Qatar Sports Investments – the vehicle of Qatar ruler Tamin bin Hamad Al Thani. The cash flowed in at the start of the 2011/12 season and by the end of 2019, the Paris club had the fifth highest revenue in the football world.
Thomas Tuchel’s side has already been awarded the Ligue 1 title, the seventh such triumph in the Qatari era. But they have yet to win Europe’s major prize, settling again like City, for a Cup Winners Cup triumph in 1996.
They have struggled to break through a glass ceiling at the last eight stage. They reached four consecutive quarter-finals, losing every time, and have failed to reach that stage in recent seasons.
Just before the competition stopped in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the Parisians advanced to the quarterfinals for the first time in four years with a 3-2 aggregate victory over Borussia Dortmund. Neymar scored the opener and then Juan Bernat delivered the winner in first half stoppage time.
Take a look at the PSG squad. Alongside Neymar, Tuchel can play 2018 World Cup sensation Kylian Mbappe and the team is littered with talent with Thiago Silva, Edinson Cavani, and Thomas Meunier.
It’s time for the Parisians to finally deliver.
Atletico Madrid
Diego Simeone’s Atletico have lived in the shadow of Real Madrid for decades as Los Blancos have helped themselves to a record 13 Champions Leagues, and two of them at Atleti’s expense.
In the 2014 final, Los Rojiblancos faced Real and led deep into injury time before Sergio Ramos equalised, and then they eventually lost 1-4 in extra time.
In 2016, they faced their neighbours again and this time Diego Simeone’s side lost on penalties after a 1-1 draw. They are having another go in this campaign having already dumped champions Liverpool out of the cup in the Round of 16.
With the Reds 2-0 up in the second half Los Rojiblancos suddenly found another gear. Marcos Llorente scored twice and Alvaro Morata added a third as Atleti rounded off a spectacular evening at Anfield. That was one of the biggest Champions League 2020 results of the campaign and might just push the Madrid side on to another final.
Fans in Manchester, Paris, and Madrid might all think that this might just be their time. Los Rojiblancos and PSG are already in the last eight and the Sky Blues have the upper hand in their Round of 16 tie against Real Madrid.
Could 2020 be the year for a new champion?
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