Champions League power rankings as Premier League sides prepare for last-16
The Champions League is back, and you know what that means.
Thirty-two teams have been whittled down to 16 for the start of the knockout rounds, and despite some up and down form domestically, all four Premier League combatants have made it this far.
But before we start, a reminder.
Our Champions League power rankings are NOT necessarily a rank of the best teams in Europe right now, but more where they all stand in relation to the draw and their probability of progression.
So here's a reminder of the last-16 ties:
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Paris Saint-Germain vs Bayern Munich
AC Milan vs Tottenham
Club Brugge vs Benfica
Borussia Dortmund vs Chelsea
Liverpool vs Real Madrid
Eintracht Frankfurt vs Napoli
RB Leipzig vs Manchester City
Inter Milan vs Porto
Let the ranking commence!
16. Eintracht Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt are currently sixth in the Bundesliga (Getty Images)There's always someone who has to get the short straw, and this time around it is Eintracht Frankfurt.
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The German side, last season's Europa League winners, have been handed one of the toughest tests in Europe against a vibrant Napoli, and they'll need to take some form of first leg lead to Naples if they are to have any chance of progression. Probably a healthy one.
Results like Sunday's 3-0 hammering at mid-table Cologne don't suggest that's possible though, and a chastening exit looks likely.
15. RB Leipzig
Timo Werner is now back at RB Leipzig (Getty Images)Another one of Germany's representatives and another one that has been given a huge task, with RB Leipzig standing in the way of a Manchester City side the bookies are making heavy favourites for the tournament.
Leipzig have some fine players, and all eyes will be on Chelsea's past and future in attack in Timo Werner and Christopher Nkunku.
Josko Gvardiol is a fine defender too, as we saw at the World Cup, but trying to keep out City could leave him as dazed and confused as the time he chased Lionel Messi.
14. Club Brugge
Scott Parker has gone from a Premier League relegation battle to the last-16 of the Champions League (Belga/AFP via Getty Images)Yes, that really is Scott Parker.
Last seen getting beaten 9-0 at Anfield and lashing out at anyone and everyone he could see in frustration, Parker has, like Colin Farrell, pitched up In Bruges where he takes over the Belgian side who are unusually off the pace in their domestic league.
His seven league games since arriving have yielded just the one victory, which doesn't exactly bode well for taking on an attack-minded Benfica side who outscored PSG to take top spot in their group.
13. Porto
Porto are perennial last-16 competitors (AFP via Getty Images)Back again, Porto do love reaching this stage of the competition, but they very rarely go much further.
Sure, there is the odd quarter-final appearance should they get a kind last-16 draw, but they won't be seen as favourites by many when they take on Inter Milan, even though they'll play the first leg in Italy.
Five points off Benfica in the league, they don't quite have the calibre of player to take them too far this time around, although goalkeeper Diogo Costa is a star.
Who will win the Champions League this season? Have your say in the comments section
12. Tottenham
Harry Kane will obviously be a key figure for Spurs (Getty Images)From beating Manchester City one week to losing 4-1 at Leicester the next, you really don't know what you're going to get with Tottenham from week to week, sometimes day to day.
Antonio Conte has had a tough trot of things of late, but the growing expectation that he will leave the club come the end of his contract in the summer can't be helping anyone, and although there is great individual talent there you do wonder if they can keep it together over 180 minutes against AC Milan.
The loss of Rodrigo Bentancur to injury is also a huge blow.
11. Dortmund
Jude Bellingham will have English eyes on him in the last-16 (AFP via Getty Images)At this stage of any season the most pertinent Borussia Dortmund question is usually just how far they are behind Bayern Munich in the league, and the answer this time around is only three points, with a competitive finish expected in the Bundesliga.
They are third though, also behind plucky upstarts Union Berlin, and there is nothing plucky or upstarting about their Champions League opponents Chelsea.
It could be a good time to play the Blues though, with Jude Bellingham expected to lead the fight as he's eyed by many across the continent and Chelsea still struggling for cohesion or indeed to know everyone's names.
Dortmund will need a good first leg, and probably a lead to take to Stamford Bridge, but Chelsea might see them as the perfect opponents for everything to click into gear.
10. AC Milan
Olivier Giroud is still going strong for Milan (AFP via Getty Images)Last season's Serie A champions are way off the pace in the league this time around, but they've got enough knowhow to fancy themselves to get past Spurs.
Indeed, there are a couple of Tottenham's ghosts of campaigns past in the Milan attack in form of the ex-Arsenal and Chelsea man Olivier Giroud and 2019 Champions League final goalscorer Divock Origi.
Enough firepower to win the tournament? No. But to be favourites for this tie? Probably.
9. Benfica
Benfica have only lost once across the league and Champions League this season (AFP via Getty Images)A bit like Dortmund in Germany, you can often judge how well Benfica are doing in Portugal by where they are in relation to the other teams, and so the answer is well. Very well.
Roger Schmidt's side are five points clear at the top of the table and, having pipped PSG to the post in their Champions League group, get the reward of a winnable last-16 tie with Club Brugge.
They'll be quarter-final underdogs should they progress, but although the loss of Enzo Fernandez isn't ideal you get the sense they won't mind that.
8. Inter Milan
Inter are the best of the rest in Italy behind a dominant Napoli (AFP via Getty Images)Being second to an all-conquering Napoli team is no shame right now, and Inter do look to have marginally established themselves as the best of the rest in Italy.
Simone Inzaghi's side put up a strong fight before going down to eventual finalists Liverpool in the last-16 last season, but they'll be happier with the draw against Porto, and a real chance of progression.
7. Chelsea
The new faces have been rolling in at Chelsea (Chelsea FC via Getty Images)It's not a case of what you definitively know will happen, but more what *could* happen.
Chelsea *could* find any combination of their vast array of talented players and build a team that is capable of going far in the Champions League, starting with a last-16 win over Dortmund for which they really should be favourites.
Graham Potter *could* find the magic formula to unleash players such as Enzo Fernandez and Joao Felix, with both full of the talent needed to go far in this competition.
Will it happen? Probably not. But it'll be fun finding out if it does.
6. Liverpool
Virgil van Dijk is one of the Liverpool players returning from injury (Liverpool FC via Getty Images)The bookies have stuck with Liverpool, with the Reds still around fifth favourites for the Champions League despite their mess of a season which has left them way off the pace in the Premier League.
We all know what they think of this competition though.
After September's 4-1 defeat to Napoli which has got more acceptable with each passing week, Liverpool went and won their next five group games to sail into the last-16, although now there it'll be a rematch against Real Madrid, which isn't easy.
With players returning to fitness and a squad desperate to recover the sheen they once had a grand victory is possible though, although maybe unlikely.
5. Napoli
Napoli are riding high this season (AFP via Getty Images)As you may have spotted in previous references to them in this article, Napoli are very good.
They are riding high at the top of the Serie A table, so high in fact that they can probably regarded the title as pretty much won by now. Which isn't good news for the rest of the Champions League.
Eintracht Frankfurt look like lambs to the slaughter in the last-16, and whoever they play in the quarters won't be looking forward to it.
Who will win the Champions League this season? Have your say in the comments section
4. Bayern Munich
Bayern face the tough test of PSG in the last-16 (Getty Images)Ultimately the team that lost out the most from Benfica pipping PSG to top spot in their group was Bayern Munich, with the German giants drawn against the galaxy of Parisian stars in the first knockout round.
They'll be up for the fight obviously, and whoever wins will delight in both progression and in knocking a big fish out of the bowl, but Bayern look a little weaker than their opposition and will need a good first leg result.
3. Paris Saint-Germain
Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi are both set to face Bayern (AFP via Getty Images)Had both Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi not returned to PSG training on Monday then Bayern might well have leapfrogged their French opponents here, but with the World Cup final combatants both back then PSG have the edge.
Just.
They'll need to avoid the type of collapse that saw them exit the tournament to Real Madrid last time out, but if they can battle past Bayern then belief could grow.
2. Real Madrid
Real picked up the Club World Cup last weekend (Getty Images)The serial course and distance specialists, Real Madrid are back following last season's scarcely believable triumph when they came back from the dead to beat Chelsea, PSG and Manchester City before outlasting Liverpool in the final.
The newly crowned club world champions quite simply know what to do in this competition, and it would be no surprise if they picked off a Liverpool side in transition before becoming the big beasts everyone has an eye on in the quarters.
1. Manchester City
Manchester City are the bookies favourites (Getty Images)With everything hanging over them and a siege mentality kicking in, could this finally be Manchester City's year in Europe? The bookies certainly think so.
City are as short as 7/4 favourites in some quarters having been given a much kinder draw than many of their main rivals for the competition, with RB Leipzig surely set to be swatted aside in the last-16.
From there anything can happen, and with anger as their main motivation it could be a glorious ending.
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