The Champions League has finally returned.
Pregame narrative: Matchday 1 begins on Tuesday, September 17 and runs through Thursday, with all 36 teams getting in on the action. Gone is the group stage, replaced with a re-vamped “league stage” where every team plays eight times before being seeded for the knockout round.
Check out the best Champions League picks for the upcoming week.
Champions League picks
Prediction: Leverkusen vs. Feyenoord: Over 3.5 total goals
When: Sept. 19: 12:45 p.m.
Full Champions League Matchday 1 betting markets
Leverkusen has had no trouble scoring in its opening three matches, similar to how it closed last season.
All nine goals scored have come against sturdy opposition in Leipzig, Monchengladbach and Hoffenheim. Despite the scoring, it had some defensive lapses themselves which could lead to another high-scoring game in the midweek.
Feyenoord has scored nine goals in its four league matches and maybe most importantly, held onto striker Santiago Gimenez, who was on the radar of Nottingham Forest during the transfer window.
It has largely the same side that came up short in the Champions League group stages last season when it scored in all but one of six matches, bagging nine in total.
Both teams have plenty of attacking talent and this has the makings of an up-and-down Champions League contest between two sides that have never played each other.
Leverkusen may control possession, but Feyenoord has the speedsters to score once or twice on the counter, which could lead to a high-scoring UEFA match.
Champions League picks: Back BVB
Prediction: Dortmund over Club Brugge
When: Sept. 18: 3:00 p.m.
This isn’t a shock on paper with Dortmund clearly the stronger team coming off last season’s run to the Champions League final.
It has started the season with two wins and a draw, producing 42 shots in those three matches while controlling more than 60 percent of possession. With a seemingly deeper team following the additions of Serhou Guirassy at forward and Waldemar Anton on the back line, Dortmund seems primed for another Champions League run.
Club Brugge had a shaky start to their campaign, but it’s stabilized and won its last four in league play, including back-to-back 3-0 victories.
Brugge’s biggest issue Wednesday will be defending against the quick attack of Dortmund with speedsters like Donyell Malen, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and Karim Adeyemi all able to score off the counter in a matter of seconds.
Keeping clean sheets in the Belgian league is nice, but the Dortmund attacking line is another level and is plenty in form, scoring three goals in the first half last Friday against Heidenheim.
While this match is in Bruges, the away team will be well represented with Dortmund only a four-hour drive away.
It’s a step up in competition for Brugge and after missing out on the Champions League last season, this will be a tough spot to overcome. At close to even odds, Dortmund is a solid play as a road favourite.
Matchday 1 SGP
Prediction: Liverpool to beat AC Milan and Liverpool over 1.5 goals
When: Sept. 17: 3:00 p.m.
Liverpool opened the season well under new boss Arne Slot, highlighted by a massive 3-0 win at Manchester United before the international break.
The transition from former manager Jurgen Klopp has been seamless at times, as Slot adopted similar tactics on both ends of the pitch, though some issues brewed up in Saturday’s home loss to Nottingham Forest.
On the bright side, this is a bounce-back spot for Liverpool coming off a disheartening loss in which it controlled the match.
It hasn’t been as pretty for Milan, but it had no trouble dispatching Venezia over the weekend. It secured its first clean sheet in eight Serie A matches, something that’ll be a bit more difficult in this spot, as Liverpool is a bit more threatening than Venezia.
Playing in Milan in the Champions League is never an easy task, but Liverpool has an endless array of talent and will be looking to pounce on a struggling defensive unit.
Liverpool is favoured for a reason and unless something changes defensively, the likes of Mohamed Salah and Co. could be headed for numerous goals and an important three points to open the Champions League.
Player to pop: Harry Kane
Bayern Munich has a fairly easy matchup in their Champions League opener against Dinamo Zagreb and is one of the biggest favourites on the slate.
Kane should have plenty of chances to impose his mark, especially as the top scorer in Europe after winning the European Golden Shoe last season with 36 goals.
Through the opening three Bundesliga matches, he has four goals from 14 shots and two assists on eight chances created. In last season’s Champions League, he had 12 goal contributions in 12 appearances, posting only three games without a contribution.
Zagreb is running through the Croatian league, but this is an extreme step up in competition for its first match, especially playing in Munich.
In the Champions League two seasons ago, Zagreb managed four points from six matches, allowing 11 goals in those contests. Kane figures to be the prime benefactor in a great matchup for Bayern with multiple goal contributions a good bet.
