8. Borussia Dortmund
ARSENAL MAY HAVE broken Dortmund’s 100% Champions League record, but the German side were already guaranteed a passage into the next round and had little — other than the faint prospect of losing top spot in the group — to play for.
Granted, they are struggling in the Bundesliga with just 11 points from 12 games, but they have been forced to cope with the loss of key personnel, such as Mats Hummels, through injury.
They are undoubtedly an outside bet this year, but given the German club’s excellent record in the competition and countless players with experience at elite level, it would be foolish to rule them out entirely.
7. Juventus
Although it looked at one point as if Olympiakos may pull off a shock qualification, normal order in Group A appears to have resumed.
The Serie A leaders last night won 2-0 away in Malmo to all but secure their passage into the next round.
The quality of Italian football may not be as high as it once was, but Massimiliano Allegri’s side have been consistently the best team in the league for some time now, and are consequently well overdue a run in Europe.
6. Paris St Germain
Paris St Germain need just a point on the final day — albeit away to Barcelona — to guarantee top spot in the group.
They have already beaten the Catalan side in the reverse fixture, however, and are playing relatively well in Ligue 1, as they find themselves just a point behind leaders Marseille.
They were unlucky to lose out to a late Demba Ba strike against Chelsea in the quarter-finals last year, and similarly, pushed Barcelona close at the same stage the season before that.
Nevertheless, with quality players such as Zlatan Ibrahimović and Blaise Matuidi throughout the team, they deserve to be considered among the favourites.
5. Atlético Madrid
The Spanish side were famously mere moments away from winning the competition last year, until a Sergio Ramos equaliser broke their hearts and ultimately, their spirit.
Having lost key players in the summer, it is tempting to suggest they have gone backwards.
Yet Atlético have still managed to show the kind of admirable resolve in the face of lowered expectations that has become their trademark of late.
Not only are they continuing to perform well in La Liga, but last night, a Mario Mandzukic hat-trick secured their passage into the next round of the Champions League with a game to spare.
The other Spanish sides are arguably better placed to win this year’s competition, but then Atlético are making a habit of upsetting the odds lately.
4. Chelsea
Defensively at least, Chelsea are ostensibly the most solid team in this year’s Champions League.
It is virtually unthinkable, for instance, that they would suffer the kind of collapse that Bayern Munich experienced at the hands of Man City the other night.
Moreover, they may well have a considerable advantage over other teams — such is their dominance in the Premier League that come February or March, it is not unreasonable to think that they’ll have opened up so wide a gap in the table that they will comfortably be able to rest their stars for domestic clashes.
3. Barcelona
They may not be the force they once were collectively nowadays, but any side with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez has to be considered favourites for any competition they enter.
They haven’t exactly made life easy for themselves in this year’s Champions League — they need a win against PSG on the final day to avoid a dreaded runners-up finish, meaning they’d have a much tougher prospective progression to the final.
They also looked a little undercooked in the most recent El Clasico, which Real Madrid won 3-1.
But should they belatedly gel — and they have been undoubtedly improving lately — then it would be no surprise to see Luis Enrique lifting the prestigious trophy come May.
2. Bayern Munich
Don’t be fooled by their 3-2 loss to Man City, Bayern remain strong candidates in this year’s competition.
Despite having to play a considerable portion of the game with 10 men, Pep Guardiola’s side looked the better team for much of the contest, and would have comfortably prevailed were it not for the brilliance of Sergio Aguero.
Like Chelsea, their dominance domestically is so stark that they can afford to focus slightly more intensively on Europe compared with most sides.
But on the other hand, it’s also arguable that this lack of a serious title challenger could cause a sense of complacency in their performances at every level.
1. Real Madrid
With even their somewhat less heralded players such as Luka Modric showing career-best form, it’s difficult to see how anyone can stop Real Madrid at the moment.
The results both in Europe and domestically speak for themselves — in the Champions League, they are the only team to still boast a 100% record, while they are also flying high at the top of La Liga, with 10 wins and just two losses.
Of course, no side have ever won back-to-back Champions Leagues, but Madrid are doing everything they possibly can to silence the doubters.
