2021/22 UEFA Champions League Group Stage Predictions: Who's Through?

THE CHAAAAMMMPIOOOONNSSSSSS!! It’s back, and the 2021/22 edition will feature teams from England, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Turkey, Russia, Portugal, Belgium, Austria, the Netherlands, Ukraine, Switzerland, Sweden and even Moldova. Today, I’ll be predicting the final placements of each team in each group, previewing some of the most coveted and exciting matches in the world. I’ll also include some predictions for the latter stages of the competition, including the winners, finalists and semi-finalists, top scorer and best player.

Group A-

Manchester City

Paris Saint-Germain

RB Leipzig

Club Brugge

Widely considered this season’s “group of death,” Group A features two of the strongest squads in world football in PSG and Manchester City as well as German side RB Leipzig and Belgian outfit CLub Brugge. As two heavy favorites to win the competition, I have picked City and PSG to progress to the knockout stages comfortably. With their prized manager, key center back, and captain now at Bayern, main competition to PSG and City, RB Leipzig, will struggle in their matches against the two favorites in the groups and will find themselves with a serious task if they hope to progress. Brugge will pose no threat to City or PSG at the top of the group and may not even be able to earn a result against Leipzig in their two matches. In all, I’ve picked City to finish top of the group; their squad depth is undoubtedly the best in the world and they will be able to effectively rotate their squad for the competition. As well as this, I doubt PSG will have a full strength side for the groups, with Neymar injury prone around this time of year. As well as this, PSG will take time to settle in as a group; the many new faces obviously bolster the squad, but only time will tell how the new players gel with each other and the manager’s tactics. I predict City will take the home leg against PSG and draw away; it’ll be the only separation between the two at the top.

Group B-

Liverpool

Atlético Madrid

AC Milan

FC Porto

This was by far the most difficult group to predict for me. Liverpool are my favorites to advance and finish top of the group; but, with the standards of the other sides in the group, it will be far from simple. Spain’s defending champions Atlético Madrid knocked the Merseyside club out of the competition two seasons ago and will hope to repeat their performances in this edition. I have picked the team from the Spanish capital to finish second in the group, just ahead of AC Milan and just behind Liverpool. In terms of points, this group will be decided by fine margins. AC Milan and Porto are no pushovers and could easily find themselves in position to advance from the group with a few good early results. However, their squad weaknesses are what tip the scales in favor of Liverpool and Atlético Madrid. AC Milan are still reliant on an almost 40 year-old Zlatan Ibrahimovic, freshly off knee surgery, while Porto’s tough-nosed defensive style may not earn them enough points to even make the Europa League place. I predict Liverpool safely atop this group, with Atléti just squeezing through to the knockouts with a number of uninspiring draws dragging them close to the danger zone of third place.

Group C-

Borussia Dortmund

AFC Ajax

Sporting CP

Beşiktaş J.K.

This was another very difficult group to predict, but for the opposite reason as the previous. Other than clear favorites for progression Borussia Dortmund, each team in this group has a very good chance of snatching the second qualifying spot and each team has clear weaknesses. Even Dortmund aren’t safe; their fragile defense leaves them vulnerable in big games even with their superb attacking talent. I chose Ajax as the second qualifying team; their European pedigree and experience will serve them well against the smaller sides. Manager Erik ten Hag had guided previous Ajax sides as far as the semi-finals in this competition and will hope to see another knockout stage this year. Portuguese champions Sporting CP make their return to the Champions League after their inspiring title win last season and will finish ahead of Turkish giants Beşiktaş J.K. to take third place and the Europa League place. Beşiktaş will have good performances; with an experienced squad and one of the best home atmospheres in the world, they could pop up with a shock result, but don’t expect much from them.

Group D-

Real Madrid

Inter Milan

Shakhtar Donetsk

Sheriff Tiraspol

While attempting to predict Group D, I found it pretty straightforward. Inter Milan and Real Madrid will advance from this group; who finishes first is another question. After a very disappointing group stage exit from Europe last season, Italian champions Inter Milan will be out to prove a point this season. They’ve lost a number of key players as well as manager Antonio Conte, but this may provide the motivation for the squad to find top gear in Europe this year. However, it is because of Inter’s loss of personnel that I’ve picked Spanish giants Real Madrid as the team to finish first in this group. It’s almost the same exact group that made the Champions League semi-finals last year with a few changes, notably the loss of captain Sergio Ramos and the addition of young star Eduoardo Camavinga. However, it is the maturation of young players such as Vinícius Júnior and Federico Valverde as well as contributions from veteran stars Karim Benzema and Luka Modric that will make the difference for Los Blancos. They’ll finish top with Inter right behind, while Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk will take the Europa League third place. Moldovan minnows Sheriff Tiraspol will be happy to be there; don’t expect them to rip up any trees.

Group E-

Bayern Munich

S.L. Benfica

Barcelona

Dynamo Kyiv

This is my hot take of the day; Barcelona won’t make the knockout stages of the Champions League this season. The club’s downfall has been well documented, but even the thought of the Catalonian outfit not making it out of a group consisting of clubs from Germany, Ukraine, and Portugal has been unthinkable in the past. But, without Messi and with the state of the current squad, it is a very distinct possibility. Bayern Munich will finish this group comfortably top of the pile and are up there as favorites to win the entire competition. I predict Benfica will be the ones who are able to pull together enough results to grab the second knockout stage place; they have plenty of top level experienced pro’s in their squad and have looked rejuvenated by a managerial change this season, winning all 5 of their opening matches in the Portuguese Liga Nos and only conceding 2 goals. It will still be a difficult task for Benfica, but I believe it will be them in place of the struggling Barcelona who make the group stages from Group E. Ukrainian side Dynamo Kyiv will not be an easy matchup for any of the other three in the group and could earn a surprise result or two in their home fixtures.

Group F-

Manchester United

Villarreal CF

Atalanta BC

Young Boys

Group F could end up being the most volatile of all this year. Manchester United will be clear favorites to top the group, though their competitors have their own reasons to be optimistic going into the first matchday. With United’s clear issue being depth, mid-week games against “lesser” competition could end up being trap games for the Red Devils. Despite this, I picked United to finish top with Spain’s Villarreal in second. Villarreal will hope to build on their performance in Europe last season, where they beat Manchester United to win the Europa League. The Yellow Submarine are experienced, have a clear system, and will be confident off the back of last year’s Europa League triumph. In third I have Italian side Atalanta, a pick that I truly don’t feel comfortable making. The Bergamo side are explosive and exciting; manager Gian Piero Gasperini has his players constantly motivated and driving forwards to score goals. However, what I predict will hurt La Dea is their ambition on the home front; with no clear title favorite in Italy, I assume they will prioritize what could be the club’s most obvious title chance instead of continental competition. Swiss club Young Boys could play spoiler in this group, as a poor result for the other three teams against the YB could be the difference between advancing to the knockout stage or not.

Group G-

Sevilla

Vfl Wolfsburg

Red Bull Salzburg

LOSC Lille

Group G will be the most competitive group of them all this year. No one team is clearly better than the others and no one team is clearly worse. The group includes the champions of both France and Austria, yet I picked neither side to advance to the knockout stages. I have French champions Lille in last in the group; their disastrous summer window saw them lose key players as well as their manager, leaving them in a state of chaos heading into this season. I doubt the world’s premier competition will be the place for Lille to find themselves. In third I have the champions of Austria, Red Bull Salzburg. Though not possessing the pedigree of the other clubs in their group, the Red Bull system has proven time and again their ability to unearth young talent and put together competitive European sides. I could easily see them grabbing a knockout stage place, but I have chosen instead to put them third, in line for Europa League qualification. In second, I have what I consider to be the most underappreciated side in Europe last season, Wolfsburg. They quietly have constructed a very strong side capable of earning results against any opposition, and I predict them to finally show this to the football world this season in the Champions League. Finally, I have Spanish side Sevilla finishing top of the group. Sevilla mounted a respectable title challenge in Spain last season and proved themselves as the third best team in the country. Expect them to make a statement in the groups of this competition.

Group H-

Chelsea

Juventus

Zenit St. Petersburg

Malmö FF

Group H was an easy group to predict for me. Chelsea are the defending European champions and have added one of the most lethal goalscorers on the planet in Romelu Lukaku to their ranks. I’d consider them among my favorites for this season as they attempt a repeat. Juventus are a big side with plenty of talent; but, they are obviously a rebuilding project far off challenging for the Champions League. Ironically, it is the loss of Ronaldo to Manchester United this summer that confirmed this fact, as they claimed when they signed the player that it was the “push over the top” that would get them the trophy. Zenit will finish third. That, however, is mostly because Malmö will finish fourth. The Swedish minnows are making just their third appearance in the Champions League in their history; I’m not sure they’ll be able to get more than a point at best.

Semi-finalists: Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain

Finalists: Bayern Munich, Chelsea

Winners: Bayern Munich

Top Scorer: Robert Lewandowski

Best Player: Joshua Kimmich

As evidenced by my Bayern-dominated predictions, I still believe that the Bavarians are the best team in Europe. They were unlucky to be dumped from the competition last season; I believe that if Robert Lewandowski had been fit, they would have gone past PSG as well as Manchester City and Chelsea in the ensuing ties to win the tournament. However, Robert Lewandowski, who has been the best striker, and arguably the best player in the world over the past two years missed that tie that would have put them on the path to repeating their triumph from the Covid-19 affected 2020 tournament.

They’ve added to their squad intelligently this season, reinforcing their midfield with Marcel Sabitzer and strengthening their defense with young French star Dayot Upamecano. They’ve also brought in the most highly-rated young manager in world football in Julian Naglesmann from their direct competitors, RB Leipzig. If the Bayern squad adapts well to Naglesmann’s robust high press tactics, they will be a force in Europe. They have one of the most talented as well as one of the deepest squads in the world, littered with world class players. Lewandowski has been the best player in the world for the past two years, scoring goals at a fiery rate. In midfield, Joshua Kimmich has seamlessly made the transition back from right back, solidifying himself as one of the top midfielders in the world. His versatility and all-around world-class ability, along with Lewandowski’s goals, will be the difference for Bayern. When this squad is fit and firing, they have the highest ceiling in the world, and I back them to return to the top of the perch this season.