A Champions League return and a few thoughts which the opening week has done little to dispel.
- The Champions League 2025 betting odds will vary fairly significantly between now and the end of the group phase.
- At this stage it hardly matters if you lose your first game, such is the format introduced 12 months ago which appears designed to help the bigger clubs with the best squad depth reach the knockout stages.
- Only one of seven teams can realistically lift the trophy in Hungary next May.
One of them are the holders Paris St Germain who, fresh from their brutal five-goal evisceration of Inter Milan in late May, picked up where they left off with a clinical dispatching of Atalanta.
Sure, the Italians will badly miss their inspirational coach Gian Piero Gapserini who decided to move onto pastures new in May following nine years with the club.
As a team he transformed from perennial relegation battlers to regular contenders for European qualification, there was no tougher start for his successor, one-time Southampton boss Ivan Juric, than at the Parc des Princes.
The man who lifted the trophy in May, captain Marquinhos, opened the scoring just three minutes in, an advantage doubled six minutes before the break with a solo goal from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia who ran at the visiting defence before firing home from 18 yards.
Nuno Mendes fired home from a tight angle shortly after the restart and the ‘coup de grace’ was applied in injury time when substitute Goncalo Ramos intercepted a backpass and finished calmly.
If that bodes well, what of this SBOTOP scribe’s tip to lift the trophy this term.
Certainly, German champions Bayern Munich were far too strong for Chelsea with a double from England skipper Harry Kane spearheading a 3-1 success in Munich.
The west Londoners may not have helped themselves defensively at times but this was a night in which it showed how much they have to do to make the leap from Europa Conference to the biggest European stage of all.
Bayern and PSG may have been made satisfying starts but it’s Liverpool who are widely regarded as tournament favourites and the big-spending Merseysiders opened up with a late 3-2 win at home to Atletico Madrid, courtesy of a Virgil van Dijk header.
In truth, Los Rojiblancos deserve credit for fighting back and the home side will know they should never have been in that position after leading 2-0 inside six minutes.
And what of last season’s beaten finalists? Just how would the Italians of Inter Milan begin the slow road back from hurt against Ajax.
Fresh off back-to-back league defeats in Serie A, the Rossoneri responded well and produced some Champions League 2025 highlights of their own in the Dutch capital.
Marcus Thuram was the hero as he netted either side of half-time, the French forward heading home on both occasions from Hakan Calhanoglu corners to maintain his rich vein of form early in the campaign.
Thuram has now registered five goals in four games in all competitions and his efforts provided Inter with the perfect start to as they attempt to banish memories of their thrashing in the showpiece.
While there has been a change in the dugout, with former coach Simone Inzaghi departing in the aftermath, current boss Cristian Chivu fielded eight of the side that started in Munich four months ago.
The other two matches on Wednesday night saw contests between four clubs, two of which were making their debut at this level.
In previous formats, Cypriot champions Pafos and Norwegians Bodo/Glimt – who reached the Europa League semi-finals last term – may have had a fighting chance of qualifying for the knockout stages.
Not this time. They can’t legitimately compete against the big boys over eight games and five months.
They can be proud of their opening gambits though with 10-man Pafos holding out for a goalless draw at the Greeks of Olympiakos, despite playing a man short as early as the 26th minute when right back Bruno Felipe received a second yellow card.
As for Bodo/Glimt, a 90th minute leveller from Sondre Fet earned them a battling point at Slavia Prague.
They had trailed 2-0 thanks to a brace from defender Youssoupha Mbodji.
Yet Daniel Bassi sparked the comeback for the Norwegian side when he finished in the 78th minute, before fellow substitute Fet smashed in a rocket effort in off the crossbar to seal a dramatic draw.
Going back to my original point, who are the only seven clubs that can realistically win it this year.
Well, I’ve named three of them and Spanish duo Real Madrid and Barcelona and, English contingent Manchester City and Arsenal complete my line-up.
It’s not rocket science.
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