Champions League remix – different format, same drama

As the best club football competition enters a new era, some Champions League fans have wondered, why change something that isn’t broken? In the previous iteration of the UEFA Champions League, 32 teams were drawn into eight groups of four. The top two teams from each group would progress to the knockout stages. This format was in place from 1992-1993 until 2023-24.

One of the reasons for the change was that, at times, games lacked jeopardy. The format meant that sometimes neutral fans were unlikely to tune in, such as when Panathinaikos played Rubin Kazan in a dreary 0-0 draw in October 2010.

The new format means that bigger teams will play each other more often earlier in the competition, and every game will matter in the grand scheme of things. There are now 36 teams, and the group format has made way for a single league table. Each team will play eight games instead of six, with half of the matches played at home and the other half away. Opponents are drawn from four seeding pots, with two teams from each pot selected to determine the fixtures.

Confused? Yes. But as the competition continues, we’ll begin to understand this new and intriguing format as the action unfolds.

In match week 1 of this season’s Champions League, the reasoning behind the format change is immediately evident, with Premier League champions Manchester City facing off against last season’s Scudetto winners, Inter Milan. This is a repeat of the 2023 UEFA Champions League Final, where Man. City were victorious with a 1-0 win against the Nerazzurri.

Inter Milan face tough test

Inter will be looking for a more favourable outcome this time, traveling to Manchester in good form after an unbeaten start to the Serie A season, with two wins and two draws: 2-2 against Genoa, convincing 2-0 and 4-0 wins against Lecce and Atalanta respectively, and a disappointing 1-1 draw against Alessandro Nesta’s AC Monza.

Manchester City, on the other hand, have started the Premier League season in incredible form, yet to drop a point with four wins from four games. Erling Haaland has already racked up a mind-blowing 9 goals, including two hat-tricks against newly promoted Ipswich Town and all three against West Ham United. Guardiola will be hoping his Norwegian machine will be firing on all cylinders when the Nerazzurri come to town.

Inter captain Lautaro Martínez has been in worrying form ahead of the clash, with manager Simone Inzaghi opting not to rest the Argentine, unlike most of the starting XI for their game vs Monza. Thankfully for the Nerazzurri, Frenchman Marcus Thuram scored four goals in the first three matches before the international break.

Injury-wise, Manchester City will be without Oscar Bobb and Nathan Aké. Inter Milan have been hit with an injury blow, as reports from Italy suggest key player Federico Dimarco has suffered a thigh strain and will be out for a couple of weeks. They’ll also be missing Tajon Buchanan but will be boosted by the return of Davide Frattesi and Stefan de Vrij. Nicolo Barella will be back in contention after being rested against Monza.

Manchester City are favourites to make a winning start to their Champions League campaign, but Inter Milan will be looking to kickstart their underwhelming start to the season.

Manchester City vs Inter kicks off on Wednesday 18 September 8pm BST at Etihad Stadium

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