The Favorite Teams on 2022’23 UEFA
UEFA Champions League 22/23: The Teams Favored to Win
Thirty-two of the best football sides in the world competed in eight groups, but only 16 progressed to the next round. Since the commencement of the World Cup in Qatar, the Champions League group stages have been condensed and squashed into a very short space of time, adding to the fun and resulting in much faster turnaround times for teams and players alike.
There are 16 sides left in the competition, all competing to be the best of the best in European football, so how does one choose who to favor? The talent level is so high this year that it will be a tough choice, that’s for sure. Our most educated guess is that the teams in the last round, and eventually the winner, will come from the elite who already rule the world of European football.
It is true that there’s a dark horse and a surprise winner in every tournament; a good example is the 2019 Ajax uprising when the team almost went all the way. Though we can’t predict the future, we have five championship favorites on our minds that we believe have the most potential to take it all the way to the top. Let’s learn a little about each of them.
Real Madrid
This is the season for Real Madrid to make an attempt at winning their 15th European crown. It’s not as though this will come as a surprise to many Euro fans. Real Madrid is the almost undisputed king of European football as it is; they’ve snatched wins from the jaws of practically inevitable failure more times than we can count and made golden runs from start to finish as well.
Their defeat of Liverpool in last season’s final showed the world that you could go far, as far as winning, even if you don’t have flashy tactics or a hipster style of play. Their team has a tonne of talent waiting in the wings and has signed some good players this season, making them an unstoppable force that looks unlikely to falter at the highest level. Don’t sleep on Madrid – they’re coming for it!
Manchester City
Though Man City has yet to elevate itself to the point of winning the UEFA cup in its current format, their closest brush to this level of victory was last year when Kai Harvetz’s lone goal proved to be their undoing in their match against Chelsea. They’ve done everything asked of them, everything apart from winning the biggest trophy at club level, despite spending a fortune.
Since 2008, when the club was passed into the capable hands of Sheikh Monsour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, City has become a regular contender both domestically and on the continent. Though they’ve had enormous success in the Premier League, they have yet to replicate this at the UEFA level. We believe the time is ripe for their newest attempt at going for gold.
Bayern Munich
There has yet to be a season in which this German giant is not a serious contender for the crown, and this year is no different. Despite still failing to really get going under young manager Julian Nagelsmann, they’re still top of the Bundesliga and look able to switch it on when it matters most, even if they lack the same level of dominance they had with the likes of Lahm, Basti, and Robben.
The opening games so far suggest that they’ve put the departure of one Robert Lewandowski firmly behind them; they’ve been in good form so far this campaign, and Sadio Mane is proving that he was a worthy acquisition. They aren’t quite the force they once were, that much is clear, but they’re still the strongest team in Germany and look dangerous in transition.
Paris Saint-Germain
Another transformation due to significant investment from the Middle East, Paris Saint-Germain has enjoyed significant dominance in Ligue 1 thus far, with eight league titles under their belts. The Holy Grail of Euro football has eluded them so far, but are their fortunes about to change? They’re under real pressure to finally obtain the elusive European Cup and complete their rise to the top.
2020 saw them come close when they made it all the way to the final in the midst of the recent health crisis, only to be beaten by Bayern Munich in Lisbon. PSG fans and experts believe that Messi, Neymar, and Mbappe have enough firepower between them to successfully down any defence but that will depend on whether Neymar can stay fit and if Messi doesn’t depart in January.
Liverpool
Though their domestic campaign started off a little slow, they’re currently highly favored to take home the crown next year. Liverpool will be playing at the scene of one of the most epic comebacks in Champions League history, which will add fuel to the fire currently burning underneath them to play as well as they possibly can. They’ll want to put their 21/22 heartbreak behind them.
Darwin Nunez looks to finally be finding his groove after a rocky start to the season and if they can keep their midfield fit, as well as add some quality in January, Liverpool have every chance of once again sneaking their way to the final. They don’t look anywhere near as dominant as they were in years gone by but that doesn’t matter. When they switch it on, there’s nobody who can stop them.