UEFA Champions League 2023/24 Season

[Jody.Drummer]

Mikel Arteta's squad has developed rapidly since last season.
Their financial resources have allowed them to buy the best players at the highest level.
Arsenal are more mature and solid now, but Arsenal have still conceded a silly goal. That has to stop.
Porto themselves are used to playing in this competition because they play in the Champions League every year and are known as a team that can often spring a surprise in the Champions League.
And yeah, this game will be very competitive, and all the fans will enjoy every moment.

From what has been seen this season, it is true that Arsenal is more solid than last season in terms of strength, but I also agree with what you say that Arsenal must be able to handle conceding ridiculous goals in every important match. And in the Champions League, all rounds must always be considered important by any team if they still have the desire to get the Champions League trophy this season so that the match is quite likely to be very competitive.

In the Champions League they must be able to minimize mistakes as small as possible, because the risk is that they will be eliminated. In the Premier League, maybe they can still improve in the next match, because they have more matches there, but here if they make a mistake they can be eliminated at any time, and it could be in this round.
Overall, each season they look more mature, but this is not without shortcomings and weaknesses, which they must correct as soon as possible. Last season they also experienced a situation where they had to be removed from the championship competition because they were declining. This season they also showed the same signs. Maybe they still need time, but I think they should be able to learn from previous experiences.

[redsun114]

The betting market favors Barcelona because Napoli is also experiencing the same problem, up to now Napoli has not found its best performance and the problems faced by Napoli are slightly different from Barcelona.
The team coached by Xavi Hernandez this season experienced many problems which resulted in their performance declining and being inconsistent, especially the injury problems which many Barcelona players experienced which made it difficult for Xavi to maintain the Barcelona team's best performance.

So for the possibility of Barcelona or Napoli beating each other in the last 16 of the Champions League this season, I think it is still quite balanced because currently both teams are quite equal in strength.

The teams have different problems, Napoli cannot find their game because they were left without Spalletti, after that everything changed and the team became completely different. And Barecelona is faced with the problem of injured players, and the losses are very significant for the team, I’m almost sure that Barcelona will stop conceding so many goals as soon as Ter Stegen returns to the team.

Xavi can be understood, it is difficult for him to work under constant pressure, not every coach could withstand it. Maybe everything will work out, it just takes time. And if we compare Napoli and Barcelona, it seems to me that Barca is still stronger, especially since Ter Stegen should return for the match with Napoli.

No doubt Napoli is down from the grace just because of Spalletti who left this team after winning title, and now they have two coaches change but nothing positive happening with things are going the worst day by day but their Champions League performance were much better which allow them to stay at the better spot, but now things are completely different with they are going to face another struggling side which is better in quality from them, and they need to do harder job if they want to stay into this event with their current performance.

Barcelona is surely having other problems with their too many players injured, and they are not able to bring suitable replacements which can give them better results so now we have few days left who could be victorious it's big question which is looming around but nothing is predictable for anyone.

[hahay]

Arsenal are in the Champions League after the last time they joined it - 2016/17 season. It must be a really exciting run for the team and fans both so far.    They were lucky to have a comfortable group draw also and their luck hasn't run out yet. Because they have drawn Porto in this round you know. What do you think?

I'm expecting a decent performance from Arsenal. Porto struggled against Barcelona in the group stage. I think Arsenal are in much better condition than Barcelona now. Arteta's system has been working smoothly and Arsenal should be able to reach the quarter finals. Porto are strong in the Liga Portugal but not so much in the Champions League. 

Obviously, Porto is not a weak team at all because after all, at least Porto also always plays in the Champions League every season . Therefore, it is clear that Porto is not a new team to compete in the knockout phase of the Champions League and thus, surely Porto will also be able to play well and can provide difficult resistance to Arsenal later. Indeed, because Arsenal play in the Premier League then that factor at least make Arsenal looks to have better quality compared to Porto. But still, the teams that play in the knockout phase of the Champions League will basically play in the best way and therefore, there is still no definite guarantee for Arsenal to qualify.

[el kaka22]

Everyone is too focused on the Napoli vs Barcelona game. However, if you are not certain about it, or if the public looks to be not certain about it, we could just look at other games as well. There are simpler games as well, like how City will play Copenhagen and I am expecting them to have an easy win on both games for that one.

Real Madrid is playing Leipzig and even though Leipzig is a good team, they are no match for Real Madrid so that should be an easy win for both games as well. PSG is playing Sociedad, and I would be shocked if there would be even a single goal by Sociedad in either game, so that one is quite easy as well. Bayern playing Lazio should be easy too. Arsenal in theory should be able to beat Porto too, but I have a small doubt about that one.

[Weawant]

From what has been seen this season, it is true that Arsenal is more solid than last season in terms of strength, but I also agree with what you say that Arsenal must be able to handle conceding ridiculous goals in every important match. And in the Champions League, all rounds must always be considered important by any team if they still have the desire to get the Champions League trophy this season so that the match is quite likely to be very competitive.

I agree with you that Arsenal do look solid this season but then they still don't possess the potential for the champions league if they are able to get pass the round of sixteen I personally will still doubt their ability to get to the quarter finals but then if they do it will be pretty much a good achievement in their side.

The pressure coming from Manchester city and Real Madrid is such that I don't see Arsenal been able to manage through the tournament that's if they get pass the quarter finals unto the semi finals and happen to meet either of Manchester city of Real Madrid. I know that the last time Manchester city met Arsenal in the premier league it was a tough one but they we had KDB absent but this time I'm sure the full squad will be on ground as guardiola will not be willing to risk anything at that stage of the league so he will most definitely go all in with the full squad having haland, doku and KDB.

[doomloop]

Barcelona performance doesn't follow suit in for Real Madrid and Girona this season. The problem of the club, ofcourse it's not Xavi Hernandez but points out to be the players and the board that have ruined the good flow of energy. Now the club's suffered from big loss, and this scenario will continue till the board worked on this problem. I also miss the good old days when Barcelona was the main trend in every competition they featured in. You wouldn't dare compare the performance of Barcelona to any other club, not even Real Madrid, they didn't have a style of play against the Blaugrana and always plays safe and defend.

Yes, I I do not expect that if Barcelona continues to experience a downturn this season, they failed to win the title in the domestic competition, remaining competition the La Liga and also the UCL, but I doubt that Barcelona can win the title with their current performance and Xavi Hernamdez is not the only one who deserves to be blamed. , even though being a head coach has to carry a big responsibility regarding the team, Barcelona's main problem is financial and Xavi has done the best he can with the current condition of the team but unfortunately that alone is not enough. Xavi needs financial support to be able to improved the performance of Barcelona players.

As things are going into Barcelona they are having on and off the field issues which are preventing them from having better results as they are completely failed to bring new players due to financial issues which are surely worst for them just because of this all now Xavi Hernández is also announced he will leave the club at the end of this season because he is understanding how things will be gone in coming days but sadly no one can do anything because debit is very high, and their income is not as this which can give them relief so hopefully we will have something better for them with most chances they will keep their fourth spot in La Liga and chances are also high for them to go into last eight because Napoli is also on decline and things are going worst for them in this season which is surely ideal for the Barcelona to progress into next round of the Champions League.

[puloweh555]

Mikel Arteta's squad has developed rapidly since last season.
Their financial resources have allowed them to buy the best players at the highest level.
Arsenal are more mature and solid now, but Arsenal have still conceded a silly goal. That has to stop.
Porto themselves are used to playing in this competition because they play in the Champions League every year and are known as a team that can often spring a surprise in the Champions League.
And yeah, this game will be very competitive, and all the fans will enjoy every moment.

From what has been seen this season, it is true that Arsenal is more solid than last season in terms of strength, but I also agree with what you say that Arsenal must be able to handle conceding ridiculous goals in every important match. And in the Champions League, all rounds must always be considered important by any team if they still have the desire to get the Champions League trophy this season so that the match is quite likely to be very competitive.

Arsenal this season has indeed performed well in terms of player material with Porto. But don't celebrate too early because beating Porto won't be easy, they have also beaten Arsenal before at Porto's home ground. Apart from that, Porto has won the Champions League twice, Arsenal has never won, maybe this doesn't have much of an impact but for me this has an effect on the players' mentality.

So the round of 16 match, could be worse for Arsenal. I also wouldn't be surprised if Porto got an easy draw, so not an easy game. If Arsenal want to win this game they can't make silly mistakes like you say.

[ShowOff]

Mikel Arteta's squad has developed rapidly since last season.
Their financial resources have allowed them to buy the best players at the highest level.
Arsenal are more mature and solid now, but Arsenal have still conceded a silly goal. That has to stop.
Porto themselves are used to playing in this competition because they play in the Champions League every year and are known as a team that can often spring a surprise in the Champions League.
And yeah, this game will be very competitive, and all the fans will enjoy every moment.

From what has been seen this season, it is true that Arsenal is more solid than last season in terms of strength, but I also agree with what you say that Arsenal must be able to handle conceding ridiculous goals in every important match. And in the Champions League, all rounds must always be considered important by any team if they still have the desire to get the Champions League trophy this season so that the match is quite likely to be very competitive.

It seems I don't completely agree with your assumption. Arsenal are not better than last season even though they have actually qualified for the last 16 of the Champions League this season. You will definitely understand what I mean, or if not then pay attention to their record in the Premier League.

Arsenal's journey and struggle in the Champions League this season is of course very interesting. Arteta and his team will work hard to make progress and qualify for the next round. Qualifying for the quarter-finals or semi-finals is a good achievement for Arsenal, but I'm not sure they can make it to the final this season. Porto may not be a very strong opponent, but Porto also has the possibility to beat Arsenal.

[Dzwaafu11]

The performance of both teams is almost the same. Talking about the past history of Barcelona is not what we are needing; it clearly shows that the Barcelona defence is faulty and needs some attention. That might be a hope for Napoli to use that opportunity to score the game, but from observation, Barcelona are the old bees in the Champions League, and they have more experience than Napoli. Even though their performance is poor, I still think that they can beat Napoli in the game, or the game might end in a draw.

More effort will be seen in this game because Napoli will like to win and Barcelona won’t allow them to do that, so predicting this game cannot be done to me. But let's just wait and see who wins the game between the two teams.

Seriously, Barcelona's performance is poor this time around; they are currently not in good form, and you know that Napoli are in better shape than Napoli. Although Barcelona may claim to win the game, since they have more experienced players than Napoli, if we consider performance, then I think it will be a tough game for Barcelona given that their performance is not that good. Furthermore, the Barcelona defence is not good, so what do you think will happen in this game when their defence is weak? I believe Napoli will use their weak point to beat them; however, let’s wait and see how the game goes.

For me, I think this game will be easy to predict, and if I risk my money to predict this game, I’ll predict a draw because both teams are going to be very serious in this match.

[Ndabagi01]

Mikel Arteta's squad has developed rapidly since last season.
Their financial resources have allowed them to buy the best players at the highest level.
Arsenal are more mature and solid now, but Arsenal have still conceded a silly goal. That has to stop.
Porto themselves are used to playing in this competition because they play in the Champions League every year and are known as a team that can often spring a surprise in the Champions League.
And yeah, this game will be very competitive, and all the fans will enjoy every moment.

This match will not be easy for either team because they are both top-tier teams with a strong competitive spirit; they will fight to the end before either can claim the victory. Even when it comes to small teams, Champions League games are always intriguing and competitive. Arsenal used to be the team that represented the Champions League year after year before they began to perform poorly and have been unable to qualify for the Champions League competition for quite some time. Porto has a lot of experience in the Champions League and has been dominating it from their end. The match is going to be a very tough one but I expect Arsenal to claim victory here which will depend on what they’ll play in this match when they meet.

[rahmad2nd]

Mikel Arteta's squad has developed rapidly since last season.
Their financial resources have allowed them to buy the best players at the highest level.
Arsenal are more mature and solid now, but Arsenal have still conceded a silly goal. That has to stop.
Porto themselves are used to playing in this competition because they play in the Champions League every year and are known as a team that can often spring a surprise in the Champions League.
And yeah, this game will be very competitive, and all the fans will enjoy every moment.

From what has been seen this season, it is true that Arsenal is more solid than last season in terms of strength, but I also agree with what you say that Arsenal must be able to handle conceding ridiculous goals in every important match. And in the Champions League, all rounds must always be considered important by any team if they still have the desire to get the Champions League trophy this season so that the match is quite likely to be very competitive.

Please explain, I don't understand what kind of ridiculous conceding you mean. In the Premier League, Arsenal conceded 21 in their 22 matches. Meanwhile, City conceded 23 of their 21 matches. in the Champions League, City conceded 7 goals. Meanwhile, Arsenal only conceded 4 goals. I know that in some cases Arsenal is not performing as well as usual. However, in some cases, Arsenal's defenders sometimes make mistakes, including David Raya, who made blunders in several matches. after all, sometimes Arteta rotates his players and plays second-string players. or, because of injuries to several of their defense players. So for me, the problem of conceding goals depends on how we look at the situation and conditions.

Talking about the match against Porto, so far I can't speculate too far. I enjoy their matches more in the Domestic League first. However, if we refer to the betting market, for the time being, Arsenal is superior even though the first leg match will be held at home to Porto. Arsenal with @1.84, while Porto with odds @4.20. At the very least, Arsenal has a chance to beat Porto if we refer to the betting odds options. although in reality, the result will be determined when the match is held later. Let's just wait for this competition to start, that way we can watch the real match.

[tbterryboy]

Arsenal are in the Champions League after the last time they joined it - 2016/17 season. It must be a really exciting run for the team and fans both so far.    They were lucky to have a comfortable group draw also and their luck hasn't run out yet. Because they have drawn Porto in this round you know. What do you think?

I'm expecting a decent performance from Arsenal. Porto struggled against Barcelona in the group stage. I think Arsenal are in much better condition than Barcelona now. Arteta's system has been working smoothly and Arsenal should be able to reach the quarter finals. Porto are strong in the Liga Portugal but not so much in the Champions League. 

Now things are completely changed with Arsenal which was in troubling time fighting back and having two wins which bring their confidence back hopefully on Sunday we will have another positive result for them against Liverpool which will bring back this title race back for the three teams instead of two and Arsenal is having good youngsters which are also quality players their game against Porto could be not easy but with their current performance and Porto's group stage performance things can go into their favour, and they can go into last eight which will be good achievement for them and their moral could be also better with this win.

Arteta is doing too many experiments which are creating problems for them, hopefully now with this recent bad results he will try to keep things on positive mode, and they will be also able to give their best against top teams which will be brought good chances for them.

[Leviathan.007]

Everyone is too focused on the Napoli vs Barcelona game. However, if you are not certain about it, or if the public looks to be not certain about it, we could just look at other games as well. There are simpler games as well, like how City will play Copenhagen and I am expecting them to have an easy win on both games for that one.

Real Madrid is playing Leipzig and even though Leipzig is a good team, they are no match for Real Madrid so that should be an easy win for both games as well. PSG is playing Sociedad, and I would be shocked if there would be even a single goal by Sociedad in either game, so that one is quite easy as well. Bayern playing Lazio should be easy too. Arsenal in theory should be able to beat Porto too, but I have a small doubt about that one.

I can't believe I'm saying this regarding the game between Barcelona and Napoli but considering the current situation of Barcelona, I think there much higher chance for Napoli to beat Barcelona and it is worth to even betting on Napoli for this match.
Currently, Xai is about to leave to get fired from the team and there are many injured players there also there is not a good atmosphere in Barcelona at all.

[KTChampions]

Historically Porto is clearly better than Arsenal, because the Portuguese representatives have two UCL trophies in their cupboard while Arsenal have none. In terms of mentality, it is clear that Porto is better than Arsenal, but things have now changed and Arsenal has better bargaining power than Porto. Reasonably enough, Arsenal has better attributes and squad depth than Porto, Arteta spent big last summer. However, Arsenal and Porto are not favorites to win this season, because clubs like Madrid, Man City and Bayern have better strengths.

On paper, I'm pretty sure Arsenal can get through to the round of 16 by beating Porto, even though we realize that Porto is not a team that can be underestimated. In the group phase Arsenal suffered one defeat, while Porto experienced it twice, maybe this can be a reference if you want to bet on their match. So far Arsenal have been considered consistent in the EPL, and in my opinion they have a chance to reach the semi finals this season.

Historically, many can be called strong, for example, Crvena Zvezda or Steaua - both of these clubs won the Champions League, but in today's realities they cannot be favorites even in the Conference League. Likewise, Porto are clear underdogs in games against Arsenal. Here are the odds for the first game:

4.31 - 3.58 - 1.78

Even away, Arsenal are favorites. Taking into account the fact that this is the most convenient scheme for a two-game confrontation (first an away game then at home), I don’t think that there can be any surprises here. Even if Porto somehow manages to win in the first game, Arsenal will solve all the issues in the return game.

[Obari]

Mikel Arteta's squad has developed rapidly since last season.
Their financial resources have allowed them to buy the best players at the highest level.
Arsenal are more mature and solid now, but Arsenal have still conceded a silly goal. That has to stop.
Porto themselves are used to playing in this competition because they play in the Champions League every year and are known as a team that can often spring a surprise in the Champions League.
And yeah, this game will be very competitive, and all the fans will enjoy every moment.

From what has been seen this season, it is true that Arsenal is more solid than last season in terms of strength, but I also agree with what you say that Arsenal must be able to handle conceding ridiculous goals in every important match. And in the Champions League, all rounds must always be considered important by any team if they still have the desire to get the Champions League trophy this season so that the match is quite likely to be very competitive.

Arsenal this season has indeed performed well in terms of player material with Porto. But don't celebrate too early because beating Porto won't be easy, they have also beaten Arsenal before at Porto's home ground. Apart from that, Porto has won the Champions League twice, Arsenal has never won, maybe this doesn't have much of an impact but for me this has an effect on the players' mentality.

So the round of 16 match, could be worse for Arsenal. I also wouldn't be surprised if Porto got an easy draw, so not an easy game. If Arsenal want to win this game they can't make silly mistakes like you say.

With the way Arsenal play,and how they defend,it might not look easy,but I think they are going to eliminate FC Porto from the round of 16.I know Porto is good,but they aren't as good as Arsenal team now.They qualified on top of their group,they currently seat third on the premier league table,and their pattern of play is really good and can be compared to that of City.If Arsenal wingers are in form,it is going to be an easy game for Arsenal players because they can get many goals as possible,which can push their opponent away from the road very fast.
I see Arsenal past this stage already,and they will get through to the quarter final of the tournament.

[marcous]

Everyone is too focused on the Napoli vs Barcelona game. However, if you are not certain about it, or if the public looks to be not certain about it, we could just look at other games as well. There are simpler games as well, like how City will play Copenhagen and I am expecting them to have an easy win on both games for that one.

Real Madrid is playing Leipzig and even though Leipzig is a good team, they are no match for Real Madrid so that should be an easy win for both games as well. PSG is playing Sociedad, and I would be shocked if there would be even a single goal by Sociedad in either game, so that one is quite easy as well. Bayern playing Lazio should be easy too. Arsenal in theory should be able to beat Porto too, but I have a small doubt about that one.

I think Napoli and Barcelona attract more attention due to their ups and downs in performance, therefore most football fans are curious about the conditions experienced by these two clubs. We know that at domestic level Napoli and Barcelona are the defending champions, but now both have very low chances of retaining it. The impact that could result from their inconsistency in domestic competitions might spread to the UCL, in my opinion it will more or less affect their future matches in the round of 16.

Apart from that, I agree with your prediction in several other matches in the round of 16. Man City, Madrid, PSG, Bayern and Arsenal can finish their matches and advance to the quarter finals. On paper, these these clubs are superior teams facing non seeded teams, which makes it easy for us to predict the final results they can get. This is different from the match between Napoli and Barcelona, a match that is difficult to predict because both of them experienced a decline in performance.

[Oluwa-btc]

Even though PSG has great financial strength, it is still not enough to compete with big clubs in the Champions League, especially Real Madrid which has great strength in the Champions League competition. Manchester City also has great strength in terms of finances and also in terms of performance player and coach factors are the most important thing for clubs in building good cooperation. If they are not able to build good cooperation then they will not be able to achieve success in winning the title. Financial factors are not a problem for PSG, but they must have strong cooperation between players and coaches.

Yes, currently Barcelona's condition is different from last season, this season Barcelona seems to be having difficulty competing in the domestic league and also the Champions League because Barcelona's squad is decreasing and its performance is decreasing. Sooner or later if Barcelona's finances don't improve soon, it's not impossible that it will end up like Chelsea. Currently, the Premier League continues to experience setbacks, even though Chelsea was originally a big EPL club.
Luis Enrique is one step better than the previous coach but it cannot be said to be completely good if he cannot bring PSG to the Champions League title, even though it sounds impossible, PSG still has a chance because the squad that PSG has also has good potential if Luis Enrique hones their skills well good.

PSG need European success and the key to that is proper investment and evaluation of the team by the owners and coach because without evaluating the team they’ll keep placing responsibilities on the shoulders of a player and he could probably get tired soon from shouldering those responsibilities.

 They need to use their financial power to be able to get some better replacements for Mbappe incase he gets tired of playing for the club. They need to build a team with enough squad depth so as to be able to compete with clubs like Man City and Real Madrid. Financial state of a club is key and that’s what Barca is suffering at this point and it’s making their form decline daily even some EPL giants like Chelsea and Manchester United. Well PSG should use their finances to their advantage else they’ll keep being termed Local Champions.

It took Manchester City some failures and some lessons to be learnt, some loses during the Champions League finals which happened severally or should I just say twice? Against Chelsea in the finals and also against Real Madrid quarter finals?
Finally, last season it paid off, they have what it takes to assemble a good squad, a good coaching staffs and also the management and fans to back them. Best believe in the next two years they'll make up something good!!

Luis Enrique already has experience with this Champions League Competition. If the right players are assembled they could makeup a competitive squad to challenge for the Champions League gradually.

[tiCeR]

...

If the situation is like this, Barcelona will automatically not fire Xavi because Barcelona doesn't want to spend money to pay Xavi for their decision. Barcelona will wait until the end of this season to look for a new coach for Barcelona next season. I'm pessimistic that Xavi will be able to work more optimally after he announces his resignation.
He will look more relaxed in coaching Barcelona because there is no more pressure after the announcement of his resignation at the end of this season.

From Barcelona side they will continue to be patient in the second half of this season to stay with Xavi. Yes, Xavi must also be respected because he was successful in bringing the title to Barcelona last season. He deserves to be a successful coach at Barcelona because he coached for just 2 seasons and was able to bring trophies for Barcelona.

Well this is what I described what happens when a club fires the coach or when the coach steps back himself. If the latter is the case, the coach forgoes a lot of money because the club would owe him the salary until his contract officially ends or they agreed upon a lump sum that would have to be paid if the coach gets sacked at a certain point in time.
But from that standpoint Xavi got my respect because if he says he will leave the club as it doesn't make any sense anymore, at least the club doesn't owe him the money and he did them a favor if their plan was to sack him anyway.

[Kristiyana]

Manchester City has solid composition between their main and reserve players, in phase group matches Pep Guardiola losses many main players but its not problem for him how the same level with reserve players and The Citizen easily manage group standings position. I think has opportunity for Manchester City for defending their UEFA Champion League tittle in this season but depend on drawing match schedule on quarter final until semifinal round.

I doubt with Bayern Munich performance in Champion League this season, seems less opportunity for winning Champion League actually after looking their inconsistency performance in Bundesliga. Has easy opponent team in 16 round against Lazio but doubt chance for Bayern when facing Man City or Real Madrid in quarter final or semifinal round.

[TelolettOm]

Mikel Arteta's squad has developed rapidly since last season.
Their financial resources have allowed them to buy the best players at the highest level.
Arsenal are more mature and solid now, but Arsenal have still conceded a silly goal. That has to stop.
Porto themselves are used to playing in this competition because they play in the Champions League every year and are known as a team that can often spring a surprise in the Champions League.
And yeah, this game will be very competitive, and all the fans will enjoy every moment.

I agree that Arsenal squad this season is better than the last season. However, Arsenal strikers performed worse this season, Gabriel Jesus even only could score 4 goals from 17 matches in EPL. But he looks better in UCL, he scored 4 goals from 5 matches in UCL. I really expect Gabriel Jesus can maintain the good performance in UCL.

I don't know about Arsenal finance, but it looks good because they could sign an expensive player like Declan Rice. Arsenal midfield line have a great progress, it is stronger than the previous season. The current problem of Arsenal is the inconsistency of their attackers. If Arteta wants to play in the final of UCL, he must ensure that there is a good progress in Arsenal attacking. They must increase the productivity in scoring goals.