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Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo and Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski
The new UEFA Champions League season gets underway on Tuesday and the excitement in the footballing world has reached a fever pitch. Last year's edition was largely played in the absence of fans and as such, players and supporters are equally excited to return for Europe's elite competition.
Chelsea won the UEFA Champions League last season after toiling their way past several biggies like Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid and Manchester City. It was hard to predict a winner at all stages of the competition. We expect the 2021-22 Champions League to not be very different from last year's.
It has been quite an absorbing summer in the world of football. The transfer window has seen several high-profile moves and it's hard to deny the fact that there's a power shift taking place.
Here, we make five bold predictions for the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League.
#5 Three Premier League sides to make UEFA Champions League top 4
The Premier League sides that are in the UEFA Champions League this season are some of the strongest in Europe. Manchester City and Chelsea were the finalists last term. Both sides took stock of the weaknesses in their squads and strengthened where they've needed to.
While Manchester City have brought in Jack Grealish, Chelsea have signed Romelu Lukaku to address their goalscoring woes. Liverpool have added Ibrahima Konate to their backline. The Merseysiders already have some excellent footballers on their payroll.
Manchester United have finally buffed up and now they truly look like a European giant. Over the past couple of seasons, the Red Devils have gone about adding some world-class players to the squad. Credit also goes to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer for improving the young players in the squad as well.
The likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Jadon Sancho, Raphael Varane, Bruno Fernandes, Paul Pogba and Luke Shaw make United worthy contenders this time. There's every chance that the Premier League sides will make it far in the UEFA Champions League this time around.
#4 Robert Lewandowski to be the top scorer ahead of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
Let's face it. As good as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are despite being well into their 30s, Robert Lewandowski is the superior goalscorer at the moment. The Polish international has scored 20 goals from 16 UEFA Champions League appearances over the last couple of seasons.
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are both settling down at new clubs. Ronaldo might have returned to Manchester United but it's a whole different side to the one he left in 2009. While he is expected to do big things, outscoring an in-form Lewandowski is going to take some doing.
Messi also has an incredible amount of quality all around him. For that reason, we believe that PSG's goals are going to be scattered among several individuals and the former Barcelona man might not be extremely prolific.
#3 Paris Saint-Germain not to win the Champions League
"Too many crooks spoil the broth." It would be hyperbolic to suggest that a team with the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe, Angel Di Maria, Marco Verratti and Achraf Hakimi won't play some great football.
But that doesn't mean that they can do it on a consistent basis. While having so many creators and goalscorers on the team looks great on paper, it does not always translate to success on the pitch. There is the obvious question of where Angel Di Maria might play now that Messi has arrived.
Di Maria has been key to PSG's exploits in Europe in recent times. Messi has also not seemed keen about dispensing his defensive duties in recent times. So he is likely to be a fixture in PSG's frontline. This will disrupt the partnership that Neymar has with Mbappe.
Pochettino has quite a few things to figure out before letting his star-studded ensemble take to the pitch in the Champions League. Unless he can work out a one-of-a-kind blueprint, PSG won't win the Champions League this term despite being the favourites.
#2 Borussia Dortmund to be the darkhorses
At this point, having Erling Haaland on the team is a cheat code. Several European giants have acknowledged that fact and that's why they were all ready to queue up for his signature in the summer.
But Borussia Dortmund held on to their prized asset and for good reason. The Norwegian international has got off to a great start to the 2021-22 season as well. He has already scored eight goals in six appearances across all competitions.
Haaland has a terrific supporting cast to aid him. There's the world-class Marco Reus and the excellent Julian Brandt playing right behind him. A midfield of Axel Witsel, Jude Bellingham and Mahmoud Dahoud can go toe-to-toe with the best in the business.
Dortmund are drawn in Group C with Besiktas, Ajax and Sporting Lisbon where they are the favourites to emerge as the toppers. While the matches could be entertaining, Dortmund seem to be the superior side in the group.
#1 Jack Grealish to be the best player
This summer, Manchester City went on to sign Jack Grealish, one of the most creative players in the Premier League. He has already created 13 chances from open play in the Premier League in just four appearances. No player in Europe's top 5 leagues have created more.
He is still settling down at the new club and once he hits his stride, the sky is the limit for the Englishman. Grealish is a technically refined attacking midfielder who loves taking defenders on. His directness will add an edge to Manchester City's attack.
Alongside Kevin De Bruyne, Grealish is expected to form a combination that could be as deadly as the one the Belgian formed with a certain David Silva. Manchester City are expected to have a great run in the Champions League and Grealish will be at the heart of it all.
