The draw for the Champions League group stage has been made and newcomers Manchester City have probably been handed the toughest tasks of all the English sides.
The Citizens will face German giants Bayern Munich, Spanish side Villarreal and Italian club Napoli.
Death
This definitely looks like the group of death in this seasons Champions League. Every team in that group could beat every other team. There isn’t really a real whipping boy in this group. Its anybodies guess who will qualify for the knockout stages.
Non-Champions
None of the teams in the group finished last season as champions of their domestic league. Bayern were the biggest disappointments last season finishing third in the Bundesliga. Napoli finished third in Italy’s Serie A and have an exciting forward line.
Spanish La Liga side Villarreal are now seasoned European campaigners, having been near perennial qualifiers for Europe’s elite competition in recent seasons.
Tough
Although none of their opponents are domestic champions it will still be tough for City to get the better of them. Bayern Munich have made some big additions to their squad with Jerome Boateng arriving from City and Manuel Neuer also joining from Schalke.
However the biggest addition has to be that of returning coach Jupp Heynckes. In his previous spell at the club he claimed two Bundesliga titles and became a favourite at the Bavarian club. His return could galvanise the club as a whole.
Napoli were fantastic in Serie A last season. Their attacking trio of Marek Hamsik, Edinson Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi is rated as one of the most exciting in Europe. All three stars are highly-rated and its surprising that the men from Naples have kept hold of them.
The club have a fervent support and the Stadio San Paolo is a difficult stadium for any opposition team to visit and it won’t be any different for Manchester City.
Villarreal enjoyed something of a return to glory last season finishing fourth in La Liga under home grown boss Juan Carlos Garrido. The Yellow Submarine have lost key midfielder Santi Cazorla to Malaga but still have some outstanding individuals.
Their main man is former-Manchester United striker Giuseppe Rossi. The Italian international was in devastating goalscoring form last season scoring 32 goals in all competitions. His form led to interest from some of the top clubs in Europe. However the club have managed to hold onto their talisman from last season.
Rossi has formed a good partnership with Brazilian international striker Nilmar and the pair will be a danger to every defence they come up against.
Experience
The likes of Bayern Munich and Villarreal are experienced in Europe’s elite competition. However Napoli and Manchester City as clubs are less experienced in Europe in recent years.
Manchester City do have players who have played at the top level of football though. In fact their squad is now full of players who have plenty of European experience.
Progression
Manchester City have spent an absolute fortune assembling a squad capable of making it to the Champions League. They should have enough quality to qualify for the knockout rounds but they definitely haven’t been handed an easy task.
Away trips to El Madrigal, the Allianz Arena or the Stadio San Paolo won’t be easy. This group will be a good test to see just how far Manchester City really have come. If they come through it then we will know that Manchester City are truly ready to become a force in European football.
If they don’t qualify then serious questions will be asked about Manchester City and their manager Roberto Mancini.
Having seen the quality of player that has arrived at City this summer I would expect City to qualify for the knockout stages. I’m sure most at the Etihad Stadium will be confident of qualification from this difficult group.
Will Manchester City qualify from their Champions League group?
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