Champions League predictions podcast: Favourites, underdogs and teams who will flop | OneFootball

Squawka have released our predictions for the 2024/25 Champions League.

Europe’s premier club tournament gets underway on September 17 and there are several intriguing ties on matchday one with new faces mixing it with the established ones.

This year’s Champions League will feature a new format. Instead of 32 teams being divided into eight groups of four, all 36 teams will form a single league. Each team will play four games at home and four away, making eight fixtures – two more than in the previous format. These eight matches will be against eight different opponents. This is known as the ‘Swiss Model’, most commonly used in chess

Watch the full podcast above or read on for a breakdown of what to expect.

Can Inter break Man City’s home streak?

Manchester City have started their Premier League defence in such impressive fashion, and now Pep Guardiola’s men turn their attention to Europe, where they’re unbeaten in their last 23 games in the Champions League (16 wins and seven draws). If they avoid defeat in their first two games of 2024/25, they will equal the longest unbeaten streak by a team in European Cup/UEFA Champions League history (25 games by Manchester United, September 2007-May 2009).

The first side looking to break their Herculean run is Inter Milan, whom City beat in the 2023 Champions League final. While acknowledging the Italian champions’ strengths, Squawka’s Dean Smith is “struggling to see anything other than a City win.”

Mohamed Salah to increase his already impressive Champions League tally

The international break came at the wrong time for Liverpool, who suffered their first Premier League loss of the 2024/25 campaign upon resuming domestic action. It also came days before Arne Slot’s bow in the Champions League at AC Milan, with whom the Reds have previous history.

Newly appointed Roseneri boss Paulo Fonseca will be wary of Liverpool’s talisman Mohamed Salah, who has scored 41 goals for Liverpool in the Champions League, the most ever by a player for an English club in the competition. Since his first season at the club in 2017-18, only Robert Lewandowski (54) and Kylian Mbappé (42) have outscored Salah (41) in the UEFA Champions League.

“He had two in two against Milan in the 2021/22 group stage and scored eight in 14 against Italian opposition in the Champions League,” host James Lorenzo added.

Will Aston Villa win their debut match?

Aston Villa will become the 11th different English club to compete in the Champions League, and the first English newcomer since Leicester City in 2016/17 (won 3-0 in their first game versus Club Brugge).

Unai Emery’s side will visit Young Boys in Bern who have only won one of their previous six games against English opponents in the Champions League (D1 L4), losing home and away to Manchester City in the competition last season.

Saka to build on impressive debut campaign

Arsenal’s ‘star boy’ Bukayo Saka was involved in eight goals in nine Champions League appearances for Arsenal in 2023-24 (four goals and four assists), the most by an Englishman in their debut season, breaking the record set by Lee Bowyer for Leeds United in 2000-01 (six goals and one assist). “He turns up on those big Champions League nights,” Dean said. “Up against Isak Hien, I think he’ll be too quick and too skilful for him.”

2024/25 Champions League overall predictions

There were somewhat varied results when it comes to picks regarding the underdog team for the competition, the player to watch/breakout star, and the team to flop, with Paris Saint-Germain nominated twice in the latter category. Debutants Girona have been picked to surprise Europe’s elite, while Borussia Dortmund winger Jamie Bynoe-Gittens is one to keep an eye on.