The group stage of the UEFA Champions League kicks off Tuesday with no less than eight matches taking place across the continent.
Here are five key story lines to keep an eye on.
Tuesday programming alert: Watch Real Madrid v Manchester City on Sportsnet, AC Milan v Anderlecht on Sportsnet ONE and Montpellier v Arsenal on Sportsnet World. Live coverage begins at 2:30 pm ET/11:30 am PT
Wednesday programming alert: Watch Chelsea v Juventus on Sportsnet, Barcelona v Spartak Moscow on Sportsnet ONE and Manchester Utd v Galatasaray on Sportsnet World. Live coverage begins at 2:30 pm ET/11:30 am PT
Ibrahimovic starts anew with PSG
Zlatan Ibrahimovic has won league titles everywhere he’s played, but the one honour that has eluded the super Swede is the Champions League.
Having fallen short with Ajax, Juventus, Inter Milan, Barcelona and AC Milan, Ibrahimovic will try it again, this time with Paris Saint-Germain.
This could be the Swede’s best chance to lift aloft the Champions League trophy. PSG spent nearly 160 million euros on new players in the off-season (aside from Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva and Ezequiel Lavezzi signed with the Parisian club), significantly bolstering PSG’s chances at European glory.
After a massively expensive rebuild project conducted over the past two summers, PSG now has to come good on the club game’s biggest stage, and anything less than a lengthy run in the competition could cost manager Carlo Ancelotti his job.
Central to PSG’s chances is Ibrahimovic, the mercurial Swede who can break open a game in the blink of an eye with an individual piece of brilliant skill. Look for him to exert his influence against visiting Dynamo Kiev on Tuesday to help PSG begin their campaign on the right note.
What’s wrong with Real Madrid?
No doubt about it: the Real Madrid-Manchester City clash is the marquee match-up on Tuesday.
But the Spaniards enter this game in the midst of a small crisis, having recorded just one win in their first four matches of the La Liga campaign. On top of that, the team’s unity is being questioned after Cristiano Ronaldo’s public pouting and Jose Mourinho recently called out some of his players.
Mourinho has been at a loss to explain Madrid’s stumbling start to the Spanish season but looks set to field a familiar looking line-up against the English champions.
"I will try to field the team that I think will show up," Mourinho told the Associated Press. "I’m convinced that (Tuesday) I’ll have a team out there. Maybe we won’t be as relaxed, or filled with the same conviction and confidence we usually have against an opponent like City, coming off a game which was terrible.
"I’m sure we’ll be at our best. I could be wrong, but that’s what I think."
Giroud returns to Montpellier
French striker Olivier Giroud is set to return to his old stomping grounds when Arsenal pays a visit to Stade la Mosson to take on his old club Montpellier.
Giroud shot to fame last season when he finished as the joint top scorer in Ligue Un with 21 goals, playing a starring role in guiding Montpellier to its first French league title.
Anticipating Robin van Persie’s move away to Manchester United, Arsenal paid Montpellier big bucks to lure Giroud to London where he is expected to directly replace the flying Dutchman.
But it hasn’t quite worked out that way. While Arsenal’s other high-profile newcomers, Santi Cazorla and Lukas Podolski, have acclimated themselves to their new club, Giroud has struggled – he has yet to score and was dropped by Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger for Saturday’s home game against Southampton.
A strong performance (and a goal!) could set Giroud on his way at Arsenal, while another limp outing might further stunt his progress.
Dortmund looks to make amends
Looking at the 32-team field, perhaps no side has more to prove than Borussia Dortmund.
Boasting an exciting and attacking roster full of young prospects, Dortmund was expected to make a statement in last season’s Champions League. Instead, Jurgen Klopp’s side failed to advance to the knockout round, and didn’t even have the consolation of Europa League play after finishing last in their group.
The two-time defending German champions mark their return to the group stage when they host Ajax on Tuesday, eager to make amends for last season’s failure.
It’ll be interesting to see how Dortmund progresses without influential Japanese playmaker Shinji Kagawa, sold to Manchester United in the off-season. Kagawa was key to Dortmund’s success the past two seasons, but Klopp still has a number of talented players to call upon, most notably the dynamic German duo of Marco Reus and Mario Gotze.
With Real Madrid and Manchester City also in the group, Dortmund needs to take maximum points at home against the Dutch – otherwise their Champions League campaign could be over before it really gets started.
Serious questions being asked of Milan
On paper, AC Milan’s home game against Anderlecht appears to be a mismatch.
But considering their current woes, the rossoneri can’t take it for granted that they’ll be able to collect three points against the modest Belgian side at San Siro.
Milan enters this contest on the back of a pair of home losses, the first time the Italians have lost their first two home fixtures of the Serie A season in 82 years.
Also, Brazilian forwards Alexandre Pato and Robinho are coming off injuries, and might not be available against Anderlecht. That’s potentially bad news for a Milan side whose attack is struggling to click without Zlatan Ibrahimovic, now at Paris St. Germain.
With Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva gone, Milan gives off the appearance of being a spent force, with many critics questioning their credentials. But a strong showing in the group stage would go a long way to proving they remain a team to be reckoned with.
POLL:
Which club will finish first in Group D of the Champions League?
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