With 18 games over three days, there will be something for everyone in the first round of the Champions League this season.
The new format kicks off with a handful of big ties, including AC Milan v Liverpool and Manchester City v Inter, as the road to Munich begins for 36 European hopefuls.
Here are ten things to keep in mind during the first week of play.
Juventus ushered in the era of manager Thiago Motta this summer, having dazzled in his exploits with Bologna.
He may have overachieved with Bologna, but the expectations in Turin are different, and Tuesday’s clash with a PSV Eindhoven side that have scored 20 goals in their first five games of the campaign will be a major test for Motta and Juventus.
Juve come into the game on a two-match winning streak, but fans will be calling for a return to winning ways.
If your team is looking to sign a new striker, chances are you are very familiar with the names of Viktor Gyokeres and Jonathan David.
The pair will go head-to-head when Sporting CP host Lille, battling to prove who should be the top transfer target for Europe’s elite sides.
Gyokeres already has eight goals to his name this season, while David, who is in the final 12 months of his Lille contract, scored twice in qualifying as his side faced Fenerbahce and Slavia Prague .
Erling Haaland has 99 goals to his name Manchester City and will hope to reach 100 when Inter travel to the Etihad on Wednesday.
If Haaland scores in this one, he will break Cristiano Ronaldo’s record fewer matches needed to reach a century for a club. The former Real Madrid star did it in 105 games for the Spanish team, and Haaland currently has 103 games.
This next outing will be his last chance to claim the record for his own, and you just know he’s going out like a man possessed.
After a bitterly disappointing 2023/24 campaign, Bayern Munich they have stirred Vincent Kompany is in the dugout, Michael Olise struts his stuff on the touchline and Matthijs de Ligt has been sent to Manchester United.
Three wins from three to start the season has helped build some momentum, but European eyes will be keen to see how they fare on the international stage.
Bayern face a tricky Dinamo Zagreb side that features 21-year-old midfielder Martin Baturina, a target for Man Utd and Real Madrid.
Real Madrid they haven’t been very good this season, despite what 11 points from five games might suggest. Kylian Mbappé’s start to life in Spain has hardly gone according to plan.
As we all know, though, Madrid are a different animal in the Champions League, and they may need to be to avoid an upset at home to Bundesliga-topping Stuttgart.
The German is still finding his feet after losing most of his top talent in the summer, but Sebastian Hoeness is a fantastic young manager who will love his chances of exploiting the holes in Madrid’s shaky squad.
For years, Pep Lijnders was synonymous with Jurgen Klopp, but the first Liverpool The assistant has now spread his wings and is back for another stint in management with Red Bull Salzburg.
The Austrian team is always a popular team among neutrals, many of whom are watching to see if their favorite Football Manager wonderkids can live up to the hype in real life.
All eyes will be on Oscar Gloukh, Amar Dedic, Mads Bidstrup, Lucas Gourna-Douath and Bobby Clark, as well as Liverpool loanee Stefan Bajcetic.
Many feared for Paris Saint-Germain after Mbappé’s summer exit, but the French side wasted little time in changing their image and coming back with a bang.
His young side have been cooking under Luis Enrique, winning four from four thanks to dazzling performances from Bradley Barcola and Joao Neves, and they will be keen to show they can compete for this trophy even without Mbappe in the ranks.
Girona will head to Paris on Wednesday with the intention of recovering from an overwhelming 4-1 defeat against Barcelona.
Diego Simeone fought and fought and fought for Conor Gallagher to join Atletico Madrid Chelsea this summer, and the midfielder has quickly lived up to the hype.
Given a hero’s welcome, the 24-year-old has already won over fans at his new club and even scored his first goal for Atlético in the weekend’s 3-0 win over Valencia.
Gallagher will lead out his new side on Thursday for a potentially tricky clash with RB Leipzig.
Barcelona they are without a doubt the fit team in Europe. They have absolutely flown under Hansi Flick and quickly returned to the pre-tournament favorites list to go all the way this season.
Their first test under the Champions League lights comes at Monaco, who are unbeaten in Ligue 1 and boast a poor defense that has conceded just once in four games this season, and that was a penalty.
With Dani Olmo missing due to injury, Lamine Yamal will have to step up and put in one of his best performances to guide Barça in this one.
arsenal will welcome Declan Rice back into the squad after serving his domestic ban, but the Gunners are without the injured Martin Odegaard and Mikel Merino. There are even fears that Bukayo Saka may be on the sidelines.
An away trip to last season’s Europa League winners Atalanta on Thursday will be a huge test for a strained squad, especially as Mikel Arteta must also keep an eye on Sunday’s clash of titans against Manchester City.
Arteta will need all his tactical acumen to navigate this tricky period and keep his biggest names healthy for what could easily be a season-defining four days.
