The Champions League is off to a flying start! The premier competition on the continental scene, the C1, which begins this Tuesday, is reinventing itself.
A new suspense format
Now united in a single league of 36, the clubs of the European elite will battle to grab one of the first eight places directly qualifying, or failing that a ticket for the play-offs by placing from 9e at 24e place.
The table of the knockout rounds, starting from the 8it is final, comes from the final positions of this “league phase”, so suspense is guaranteed at all levels, until the last day.
But each club has its own personalized program of eight matches against eight different opponents: two in each pot, one away, one at home. A sporting logic that does not have unanimous support among observers, as will probably not be the reorchestration of the popular anthem of the competition.
Tantalizing oppositions
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin humorously took a jibe at Zlatan Ibrahimovic in a presentation clip in August when the big Swede was about to say the name “Super League”.
Because the barely veiled aim of this new format of the premier club competition is to cut the grass from under the feet of the promoters of a competition limited to the biggest European clubs.
Just for this first day, exceptionally scheduled over three evenings to popularize the new formula, the matches are mouth-watering: AC Milan – Liverpool on Tuesday, Manchester City – Inter Milan on Wednesday, Atlético Madrid – Leipzig and Monaco – FC Barcelona on Thursday. But the gourmet can also choose to follow Kylian Mbappé's Real Madrid against Stuttgart (Tuesday), Juventus of former Parisian Thiago Motta, now coach, against PSV Eindhoven (Tuesday) or even the impressive Bayer Leverkusen of Xabi Alonso away to Feyenoord Rotterdam (Thursday).
French clubs in the deep end
Four Ligue 1 clubs will be taking part in the star-studded race, with very different destinies. PSG is aiming for the top 8 but has been handed one of the most difficult draws. On Wednesday at the Parc des Princes (9pm), it will be able to gauge its position against a novice team at this level, Girona, who lost 4-1 against Barcelona on Sunday.
The Catalan giant will challenge Monaco on Thursday (9 p.m.) at Louis-II, a tough first match for the team coached by Adi Hütter. Brest, surprising 3e Ligue 1 last season, begins with perhaps the most affordable of all its matches, the reception of Sturm Graz on Thursday (9 p.m.).
Lille, qualified in extremis after having passed two rounds of accession to the C1, immediately have a difficult trip to Lisbon (Tuesday 9 p.m.) against Sporting Portugal, who have just won five of their first five league matches. It remains to be seen whether this new formula will bring luck to our French clubs.
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