All eyes will be on Pep Guardiola in this season’s UEFA Champions League group stages. He will lead his new club against the club where he revolutionized football.  Even though the two giants, Barcelona and Manchester City will be the favourites to go through, it wouldn’t be a walk in the park for them.

Borussia Mönchengladbach and Celtic on their day are tricky teams to play against. It would be interesting to see if these two manage to pull off major upsets in the coming months.

Predicted standings: Barcelona (1), Manchester City (2), Borussia Mönchengladbach (3) and Celtic (4).

Clubs

Barcelona

The Catalan giants have strengthened their already strong squad this summer. They are certainly one of the favorites to lift the famous old trophy having secured the services of Paco Alcacer, Denis Suárez, André Gomes, Lucas Digne, Samuel Umtiti and Jasper Cillessen.

Messi-Suarez-Neymar is the most lethal forward line in the game right now. The trio was the key to them winning the competition in 2014/15. It would be fair to say that if they are to win it again this year, it would still be the case.

Last season: Quarter-finals

Best performance: Winners (1991/92, 2005/06, 2008/09, 2010/11, 2014/15)

Manchester City

Manchester City were knocked out in the semi-finals of last year’s competition. They would hoping to force their way to European glory, which has not been achieved in the past with Pep Guardiola at the helm.

They have strengthened their team attacking options massively with Nolito, Leroy Sané and Gabriel Jesus. Defensive options have also been improved with City getting Barcelona’s Claudio Bravo and Everton’s John Stones. İlkay Gündoğan has also joined the squad.

Pep Guardiola being under the spotlight could help ease pressure on the City players. They are very much capable of beating Barcelona and topping the group. It remains to be seen if they actually manage to do that or not.

Sergio Aguero and Kevin De Bruyne will be the key players if City are to achieve their Champions League ambitions this term.

Last season: Semi-finals

Best performance: Semi-finals (2015/16)

Borussia Mönchengladbach

The German outfit will be the dark horse in the group. They are very much capable of causing an upset or two in this group. Having finished 4^th in the Bundesliga, they should not be taken lightly.

Despite having lost Granit Xhaka this summer, they look decently strong. The midfield powerhouse, Mahmoud Dahoud, who was heavily linked with a move this summer, has a big season lying ahead of him. He’ll be the key man in the middle of the pitch. Thorgan Hazard, Andreas Christensen and Patrick Herrmann will also be key players for the German outfit.

Last season: Group stage

Best performance: Runners-up (1976/77)

Celtic

Everyone remembers the famous win that Celtic pulled off against Barcelona in 2012. They go into the group stage as the weakest team on paper. But games aren’t won on paper, are they?

The Scots would be hoping to take big strides in the coming seasons having hired former Liverpool manager, Brendan Rodgers. This group would be a very tough one for them. A third place finish and an entry to the knockout stages of the Europa League might keep them happy.

Scott Sinclair and Leigh Griffiths will be the key men for Brendan Rodgers’s men.

Last season: Play-offs/UEFA Europa League group stage

Best performance: Winners (1966/67)

Key fixtures

Barcelona and Manchester City are the favourites to progress from this group. The battles between these two teams would decide how easy or difficult the road will be for them. It is almost impossible to penetrate through Barcelona at Camp Nou, but the former Barcelona manager surely has some tricks up his sleeve when visiting his former employers.

Barcelona vs Manchester City at Camp Nou on 19th October is likely to play a more crucial role in deciding which team will finish on top of the group.