2022-23 UEFA Champions League Predictions, Part One
The 2022-23 UEFA Champions League Group Stage is set. Is your team one of the 32 remaining for a chance at European glory?
The UEFA champions league is the most look forward to football competition every single season, except for maybe a World Cup year. One team will be crowned as champions of Europe at the highest level this season and sure enough, there is a crowded field heading into this year’s group stage. As Real Madrid will look to defend their European title from last season, while 31 other teams will be out on the hunt to capture the UEFA champions league trophy. We can’t forget about Frankfurt either, who won last year‘s Europa League and earned an automatic spot in this year‘s group stage.
In total we are down to four English Premier League clubs, five German Bundesliga clubs, two French and four Italian as well as four Spanish clubs coming from the top five leagues in Europe. Outside of the top five Porto, Sporting CP, and Benfica are alive. While Ajax is still around as well. Club Brugge, RB Salzburg, and Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk made the group stage as well. Both Celtic and Rangers, the Scottish giants are alive and Coppenhagen from Denmark is here as well. Rounding out the groups are Israel’s Maccabi Haifa, Croatia’s Dinamo Zagreb, and Czech Republic side Viktoria Plzen.
UEFA Champions League Groups
Group A
Ajax
Napoli
Rangers
Liverpool
Group A is certainly one of the more interesting groups as it features Dutch champions Ajax, Italian side Napoli, Scottish giant Rangers, and English Premier League runner ups from last season Liverpool. While I think it is clear that Liverpool is going to top this group, the fight for second place is going to be interesting. In the end I think it will be Rangers that shocks everyone and ends up in second, and Ajax shocking Napoli and finishing in third then heading to the Europa League.
Group B
Porto
Atletico Madrid
Bayern Leverkusen
Club Brugge
This is an interesting group because in reality it’s wide-open, as any of these for teams could grab a top two spot. However, in the end I think it’ll be Atletico Madrid and Bayern Leverkusen that advance from Group B. While I expect Club Brugge and Porto to put up a good fight I don’t think they have the players necessary to get them through in this group. When it is all said and done I think it’ll be Atletico Madrid that tops this group, with Bayern finished second, Porto third, and Brugge in last.
Group C
Bayern Munich
Barcelona
Inter Milan
Viktoria Plzen
Group C in my opinion is a group of death as it features three of the most historic teams in the history of the game. It almost certainly guarantees that Viktoria Plzen will be finishing in last place of this group as well. When it comes to the top two I think it’ll be Inter Milan and Bayern Munich to get through to the knockout rounds as I look for Barcelona to enter the Europa league for the second straight year.
Group D
Frankfurt
Tottenham
Sporting CP
Marseille
Group D is another interesting one outside of the top spot as it seems obvious that Tottenham is going to claim the top spot in the group. As for the second spot I think it will end up being the defending Europa League champions Frankfurt. In third place I look for it to be Sporting CP and in fourth I have French side Marseille.
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