2019-20 Champions League winner is impossible to predict

Most of the big clubs are contending for the Champions League, but the poor form that many of them are in is making the competition unpredictable this year.

We are now halfway through the Champions League round of 16 ties, and almost all of the big clubs are still in with a shout of winning Europe’s ultimate football prize.

Liverpool, despite losing their first leg to the ever-present Atletico Madrid and being in some questionable form, are still among the front-runners. Whoever gets out of the Manchester City/Real Madrid tie will also be a favourite, alongside Barcelona, PSG, Bayern Munich, and Juventus, providing they all come out of their ties victorious.

The issue is that there are no guarantees that any of them will escape their ties, except maybe Bayern Munich. Barcelona drew to Napoli in the 1st leg, while PSG and Juventus both lost their 1st legs in embarrassing fashion to Dortmund and Lyon respectively.

This, along with Liverpool’s loss, has shown us quite clearly that while there are many contenders for the Champions League this year, which might normally indicate a high level of competitiveness, it’s the subpar performances of all the top teams that are actually causing the even playing field.

If you look at the top 5 league tables, you will see Liverpool far ahead of the pack in the Premier League, Real Madrid and Barcelona tussling for the title in Spain, Juventus near the top of Serie A, and Bayern and PSG both atop their respective leagues as well. This might make you think that these clubs are all in strong form, but that isn’t true whatsoever.

Take Juventus for example. The Bianconeri are challenging for the Serie A title, yes, but their performances all season long have been less than impressive, with Cristiano Ronaldo seemingly carrying them through many fixtures single-handedly with his timely goals. Sarri’s overly-structured style of football has not translated well to the Juventus squad, and although they signed Ronaldo to get them over the line in the Champions League, they don’t look anywhere near good enough to complete that task.

Liverpool are probably still the strongest team in the Champions League, as they essentially refuse to lose at home and have some impressive winning mentality. However, they have struggled over the last few weeks, losing to Atletico Madrid in the UCL round of 16 1st leg, losing to Watford in embarrassing fashion in the Premier League, before getting knocked out of the FA Cup by Chelsea.

They are lacking in confidence and quality for the first time since their loss to Barcelona in the 1st leg of last year’s semi-finals, and this could make them vulnerable in this competition.

Klopp’s team could realistically get knocked out in this round itself by Atletico too, if they don’t get their act together before the 2nd leg.

Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Manchester City are all in a similar sort of boat. They have quality, that isn’t debatable, but they also have some serious deficiencies and have been struggling with injuries all season long to key players. None of these teams has truly looked like a Champions League-winning team this season, but due to the lack of quality among the rest of the pack, they one or two of them will likely contend.

At the moment, the team in the best form is Bayern Munich, and they could certainly rise to the top of the favourites list if they continue their run, and especially if Liverpool gets knocked out. Robert Lewandowski is in the form of his life, and the supporting cast of Thiago, Gnabry, Davies, and the rest of the gang are playing out of their skins as well.

There is also the potential for a surprise Champions League winner this year, as clubs like Dortmund, Atalanta, Atletico Madrid, Spurs, Leipzig, and Lyon look to take advantage of the weakened playing field this year. Don’t be surprised to see an Ajax-esque cinderella run from one of these teams – Atalanta in particular.

So there you have it – the Champions League is impossible to predict this season. While all the top teams are still present in the competition, they are all having some sort of issue and none of them is really having a flawless season. This year’s Champions League title will likely go to the club that is in the best form towards the end of the season.