Who Can Still Win the 2019-20 Champions League? Part 2
Atalanta
A debut Champions League campaign that started with three defeats and a draw has somehow evolved into a fairytale season for Atalanta, who now find themselves in the quarter-finals after beating Valencia 8-4 on aggregate in the Last 16. Free-scoring and at times defensively reckless, the Italian side have scored 16 and conceded the same number in their 8 European fixtures so far, with Josep Ilicic scoring 4 in the 2nd leg against Valencia. Frailties at the back will make Atalanta the team everyone wants to play against by the time the quarters come around, but their 70 goals in 25 league games so far this season should act as a warning to all those who believe two legs against the Nerrazurri will be a walkover.
Lyon
Once the dominant force in French football, Lyon have endured a disastrous season after selling most of their best players last summer. Former Manchester United flop Memphis Depay has continued the revitalisation of his career with 14 goals in 18 games, but the return of club legend Juninho as director of football and his former Brazil team-mate Sylvinho as manager did not have the desired effect, with the latter already being moved on after failing to qualify for Europe next season. The Champions League has been Lyon's saving grace with group stage wins over Benfica and Leipzig followed up with a shock 1-0 first leg win over Juventus, although a lack of creativity from midfield means the French side will still be the underdogs for the return leg in Turin.
Barcelona
It says a lot about how much Barcelona want to win the Champions League that Ernesto Valverde was sacked despite successive league triumphs for his inability to guide Barca to European glory. Admittedly, the manner in which the Catalan giants have been eliminated from the last two campaigns has been the cause of great embarrassment, blowing 3-goal first leg leads to Roma and Liverpool respectively, and the successes of their Madrid-based rivals has done little to ease the pain. Despite dropping points to Slavia Prague in the group stage they were still able to top a group containing Inter Milan and Borussia Dortmund, although Barca struggled in the first leg of their last 16 tie with Napoli, drawing 1-1 in Naples. Despite only joining in January, manager Quique Setien's days already seem to be numbered after failing to capture the hearts of the Nou Camp faithful, but Lionel Messi's 25 goals and 18 assists so far this season, as well as a return to fitness for Luis Suarez and the solid defensive partnership formed between Gerard Pique and Clement Lenglet just before the break, means that Barcelona should still be considered a favourite to win their first Champions League title in five years.
Bayern Munich
Ever since Hansi Flick replaced Niko Kovac as manager in November, Bayern have been relentless, winning 26 and drawing 1 of their last 29 matches, and scoring 50 goals in Flick's first 16 league games. Victory against Dortmund in May all but secured their 8th straight Bundesliga title, and the whole of Europe was put on notice by their 7-2 away drubbing of Tottenham in the group stage in October. A comprehensive 3-0 win over Chelsea in the Last 16 first leg, again away from home, means they are virtually already in the quarters, and such is the strength of their squad this season they will likely be the team everyone else wants to avoid. Robert Lewandowski has hit new heights with 45 goals in 39 games, including 11 in the Champions League, while Serge Gnabry has evolved into one of the scariest wide players in the world, with Canadian wing-back Alphonso Davies not far behind at just 19. Thomas Muller has enjoyed a mid-career resurgence with with a league-high 20 assists, while a return to form for Manuel Neuer has made the Bavarians more solid at the back. A possible chink in the defensive armour could be down the flanks, with right-back Benjamin Pavard not adverse to an error and Davies yet to fully master the art of defending, but if Bayern can maintain their fast and furious style of play for the remainder of the season then they will be very hard to beat.
Napoli
A disappointing domestic campaign that will likely see Napoli miss out on qualification for next season's Champions League means that Genaro Gattuso's side will want to make the most of this year's European venture. Gattuso only became head coach in December following the sacking of Carlo Ancelotti but was able to guide his side to a 1-1 home draw against Barcelona, although Napoli did score first and had several chances to double their advantage before Antoine Griezmann equalised against the run of play. Centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly has become one of the best defenders in the world in the last two years amidst constant rumours linking him with a big-money move to Man United, while at the other end of the pitch serial goalscorer Dries Mertens was able to put an end to similar rumours surrounding his future by signing a new contract in May. Mertens' 6 goals in 7 Champions League appearances this season helped Napoli beat Liverpool and a Haaland-led Salzburg in the group stage but at 33 the Belgian is not able to deploy the blistering pace that once made him one of Europe's highest-scoring strikers, while the erratic nature of goalkeeper David Ospina and a midfield with just 5 goals to their name this season means that Napoli are certainly one of the weaker teams left in the competition, and will struggle against Barcelona in the second leg, even in an empty Nou Camp.
PSG
A team who dominates their domestic league so much that their entire season is defined by their Champions League performance has endured a very poor last few seasons through their own warped perspective, as consecutive Last 16 eliminations to Man Utd, Real Madrid and Barcelona have severely affected the club's aim of becoming a powerhouse in Europe. PSG were finally able to break the curse this season with a 3-2 aggregate win over Dortmund, but with all French football cancelled until September will be desperately short of match fitness unless France's strict lockdown rules on sporting events are lifted. Despite this, a front three of Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Mauro Icardi is good enough to rival any attack left in the competition, and a 3-0 group stage win over Real Madrid in September suggests the French champions finally have a defence and midfield to go with their star-studded forward line-up. Centre-back Marquinhos' newfound ability to push up into central midfield has provided PSG with more grit and resolve in times of crisis, although defensive cracks do remain, as exhibited by a 4-4 draw with 19th-place Amiens shortly before football was postponed. PSG should be more of a factor in the later stages of the competition than previous years, but a persistent failure to perform in European knockout ties means a collapse is always on the cards, making a first ever Champions League crown almost impossible to predict.
A debut Champions League campaign that started with three defeats and a draw has somehow evolved into a fairytale season for Atalanta, who now find themselves in the quarter-finals after beating Valencia 8-4 on aggregate in the Last 16. Free-scoring and at times defensively reckless, the Italian side have scored 16 and conceded the same number in their 8 European fixtures so far, with Josep Ilicic scoring 4 in the 2nd leg against Valencia. Frailties at the back will make Atalanta the team everyone wants to play against by the time the quarters come around, but their 70 goals in 25 league games so far this season should act as a warning to all those who believe two legs against the Nerrazurri will be a walkover.
Once the dominant force in French football, Lyon have endured a disastrous season after selling most of their best players last summer. Former Manchester United flop Memphis Depay has continued the revitalisation of his career with 14 goals in 18 games, but the return of club legend Juninho as director of football and his former Brazil team-mate Sylvinho as manager did not have the desired effect, with the latter already being moved on after failing to qualify for Europe next season. The Champions League has been Lyon's saving grace with group stage wins over Benfica and Leipzig followed up with a shock 1-0 first leg win over Juventus, although a lack of creativity from midfield means the French side will still be the underdogs for the return leg in Turin.
It says a lot about how much Barcelona want to win the Champions League that Ernesto Valverde was sacked despite successive league triumphs for his inability to guide Barca to European glory. Admittedly, the manner in which the Catalan giants have been eliminated from the last two campaigns has been the cause of great embarrassment, blowing 3-goal first leg leads to Roma and Liverpool respectively, and the successes of their Madrid-based rivals has done little to ease the pain. Despite dropping points to Slavia Prague in the group stage they were still able to top a group containing Inter Milan and Borussia Dortmund, although Barca struggled in the first leg of their last 16 tie with Napoli, drawing 1-1 in Naples. Despite only joining in January, manager Quique Setien's days already seem to be numbered after failing to capture the hearts of the Nou Camp faithful, but Lionel Messi's 25 goals and 18 assists so far this season, as well as a return to fitness for Luis Suarez and the solid defensive partnership formed between Gerard Pique and Clement Lenglet just before the break, means that Barcelona should still be considered a favourite to win their first Champions League title in five years.
Ever since Hansi Flick replaced Niko Kovac as manager in November, Bayern have been relentless, winning 26 and drawing 1 of their last 29 matches, and scoring 50 goals in Flick's first 16 league games. Victory against Dortmund in May all but secured their 8th straight Bundesliga title, and the whole of Europe was put on notice by their 7-2 away drubbing of Tottenham in the group stage in October. A comprehensive 3-0 win over Chelsea in the Last 16 first leg, again away from home, means they are virtually already in the quarters, and such is the strength of their squad this season they will likely be the team everyone else wants to avoid. Robert Lewandowski has hit new heights with 45 goals in 39 games, including 11 in the Champions League, while Serge Gnabry has evolved into one of the scariest wide players in the world, with Canadian wing-back Alphonso Davies not far behind at just 19. Thomas Muller has enjoyed a mid-career resurgence with with a league-high 20 assists, while a return to form for Manuel Neuer has made the Bavarians more solid at the back. A possible chink in the defensive armour could be down the flanks, with right-back Benjamin Pavard not adverse to an error and Davies yet to fully master the art of defending, but if Bayern can maintain their fast and furious style of play for the remainder of the season then they will be very hard to beat.
A disappointing domestic campaign that will likely see Napoli miss out on qualification for next season's Champions League means that Genaro Gattuso's side will want to make the most of this year's European venture. Gattuso only became head coach in December following the sacking of Carlo Ancelotti but was able to guide his side to a 1-1 home draw against Barcelona, although Napoli did score first and had several chances to double their advantage before Antoine Griezmann equalised against the run of play. Centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly has become one of the best defenders in the world in the last two years amidst constant rumours linking him with a big-money move to Man United, while at the other end of the pitch serial goalscorer Dries Mertens was able to put an end to similar rumours surrounding his future by signing a new contract in May. Mertens' 6 goals in 7 Champions League appearances this season helped Napoli beat Liverpool and a Haaland-led Salzburg in the group stage but at 33 the Belgian is not able to deploy the blistering pace that once made him one of Europe's highest-scoring strikers, while the erratic nature of goalkeeper David Ospina and a midfield with just 5 goals to their name this season means that Napoli are certainly one of the weaker teams left in the competition, and will struggle against Barcelona in the second leg, even in an empty Nou Camp.
A team who dominates their domestic league so much that their entire season is defined by their Champions League performance has endured a very poor last few seasons through their own warped perspective, as consecutive Last 16 eliminations to Man Utd, Real Madrid and Barcelona have severely affected the club's aim of becoming a powerhouse in Europe. PSG were finally able to break the curse this season with a 3-2 aggregate win over Dortmund, but with all French football cancelled until September will be desperately short of match fitness unless France's strict lockdown rules on sporting events are lifted. Despite this, a front three of Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Mauro Icardi is good enough to rival any attack left in the competition, and a 3-0 group stage win over Real Madrid in September suggests the French champions finally have a defence and midfield to go with their star-studded forward line-up. Centre-back Marquinhos' newfound ability to push up into central midfield has provided PSG with more grit and resolve in times of crisis, although defensive cracks do remain, as exhibited by a 4-4 draw with 19th-place Amiens shortly before football was postponed. PSG should be more of a factor in the later stages of the competition than previous years, but a persistent failure to perform in European knockout ties means a collapse is always on the cards, making a first ever Champions League crown almost impossible to predict.
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