It’s been three months since Real Madrid lifted the prestigious Champions League trophy at the San Siro Stadium in Milan, and after four rounds of qualifying which began in June this year, Champions League is back once again.
Over the years there have been many big football teams who had the players, the money and even resources but haven’t been fortunate when it came to winning the Champions League trophy. Failing to emulate the kind of success clubs like Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich have been able to amass since the inception of the European cup.
This season could be their best chance in a long time to get their hands on the Champions League trophy.
Let’s take a look at a few big teams who are desperate to win the Tournament.
1) Arsenal
No other team in England has ever come under such massive criticism for not winning the Champions League than Arsenal. In fact, the club has not been able to get past the round of 16 in each of their six campaigns. “The Invincibles” as they were once labelled for remaining unbeaten in the 2003-04 English League campaign have a big task of answering their critics.
Apart from Paris Saint-Germain, Arsenal should be fairly pleased with the Champions League draw as they avoided most of the big European giants, giving them a real good chance at winning the group. Having said FC Basel and Ludogorets Razgrad are teams that should not be underestimated, both teams gave Liverpool a very tough time, the last time they played Champions League.
Arsene Wenger has come under immense scrutiny for not making any world class signings apart from Granit Xhaka in the transfer window, questioning the Frenchman’s lack of ambition.
But the Gunner’s manager pulled a rabbit out of the hat, with the signings of Shkodran Mustafi from Valencia CF and Lucas Pérez from Deportivo de La Coruña.
This could very well be Wenger’s final season as in charge of Arsenal FC and he would want nothing less but to go out on a high. But what needs to be seen is, if Arsenal can put on a Champions League title challenge particularly with only these two signings.
2) Paris Saint-Germain
Despite winning 31 titles in its history, and being one of the most successful clubs in French football, Paris Saint-Germain still couldn't get a hold of the Champions League trophy. It’s no secret that,PSG’s most important goal is winning the Champions League title .
Paris Saint-Germain will be fighting it out with Arsenal to win the group, but Basel and Ludogorets Razgrad have the potential to surprise the French champions.
But in recent times the club has fallen short of their expectations after a succession of quarter-final exits, despite a huge cash inflow and World class players like Angel di Maria, David Luiz, Edinson Cavani and Thiago Silva.
The French football club has dominated domestically but failed miserably in Europe. The club had parted ways with Laurent Blanc in June under whom the club had won 11 trophies including the Ligue 1 title in each of his three seasons in charge and have recently appointed a new manager in Unai Emery who has the experience of winning not one, not two but three Europa League titles with Sevilla FC.
Can Unai Emery help Paris Saint-Germain’s dream of winning the one elite trophy they have been craving for? We will only have to wait and see.
3) Borussia Dortmund
Having won the Champion League trophy only once in the past in 1996/97, the German Giants will be looking to edge their names on the trophy once again this time around. The club came ever so close to winning the trophy once again in 2013, under the leadership of the charismatic Jurgen Klopp but eventually lost out to their arch rivals, Bayern Munich that was held at Wembley stadium.
Real Madrid and Dortmund have already met ten times in the Champions League, including two semifinals, the famous one being Dortmund’s 4-1 triumph over Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid in 2012/13. Sporting Lisbon and Legia Warsaw couldn’t have hoped for worse.
Dortmund had a hard run for a small period of time in the past and the departures of many of their most valued players in recent times like Robert Lewandowski, Ilkay Gundogan and Mats Hummels did not particularly help their campaign.
But this time, under the management of Thomas Tuchel Borussia Dortmund can dream big, especially with in-form players like Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and other super stars like Marco Reus and the returning Mario Gotze, the club will be looking to add another Champions League trophy to their cabinet.
4) Juventus
After a really long time Juventus are in a group they should comfortably win, with all due respect to their other opponents and Sevilla who won three straight Europa League titles in a row and a club that should not be underestimated.
The French club Lyon finished 2nd in Ligue 1 last season and with the in-form Alexandre Lacazette they could fling a few surprises. Dinamo Zagreb maybe the Croatian champions but they barely stand a chance in this group.
The club might have enjoyed their successful spell under Antonio Conte but with his departure to Chelsea, Juventus need to set themselves for a bigger challenge.
The Italian champions, the most successful club in Italian football history have certainly a point to prove, especially since the defeat to Barcelona in the Champions League 2014/15 final.Juventus will be aiming to win the tournament and to recover their reputation as a force in Europe.
The Old Lady might be one of the best teams in the world but being the best isn’t enough to win the tournament, the club’s new manager Massimiliano Allegri will want his team to be in top condition as and when the games arrive.
Juventus spent big time in the transfer window to acquire the services of Gonzalo Higuain who had a stellar season at Napoli, and with the likes of Dani Alves, Miralem Pjanic and Giorgio Chiellini, the Italian giants will be hoping to be one of the favourites to win the tournament.
5) Atlético Madrid
Diego Simeone is a manager who likes to do things the hard way and absolutely relishes a challenge. Being drawn with Bayern Munich might have been very upsetting Atlético Madrid in the past, but the Spanish club has been through a major transformation under Diego Simeone.
In less than three years, The Argentinian took Atlético Madrid from 10th place in La Liga to winning the Europa League, Copa Del Rey, Super Cup and a La Liga title and will be looking to finally get their hands on the Champions League after two painful final defeats to their Madrid counterparts.
With an incredible backline and an improved attack, Atletico Madrid will be surely making up for their mistakes in the past. Atletico’s ability to grind out victories and their mad pace on the counter makes them a huge threat for any team in the tournament.
Put together the frontline of Antoine Griezmann, Fernando Torres, Yannick Carrasco, Koke and their new signing Kevin Gameiro, who recently helped Sevilla win their third straight Europa League title, and Atletico Madrid might finally get to lift the Champions League trophy.
Coming to the Champions League draw, Atletico Madrid will be relishing the opportunity to play Bayern Munich in the Champions League, and PSV Eindhoven who successfully defended the Dutch title two years in a row will also fancy their chances to qualify from the group stage. FC Rostov can only hope for a miracle.
Come 3 June 2017, the world will find out if any of these clubs dream of winning the Champions League Trophy will become a reality.
