Who will win the Champions League 2023/24? The favourites - ranked
- Man City favourites to retain the Champions League in 2023/24
- European giants Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Real Madrid have not been convincing
- Arsenal and PSG looking to take advantage and go far
By Euan Burns
The 2023/24 Champions League is reaching its business end.
It's one of the most open tournaments in recent years with plenty of European giants not at their peak.
The quarter and semi-final draws threw up some wild ties in the last eight, with Arsenal, Manchester City, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich all paired on one side while one of Atletico Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona will reach the final at Wembley in early June.
However, no sides can be ruled out from contention in a competition as dramatic as the Champions League.
Here's 90min's ranking of the teams most likely to win this season's competition.
8. Borussia Dortmund
This is hardly a vintage Borussia Dortmund team.
While there is always some unpredictability about them, BVB only managed to draw 1-1 away at PSV in their round of 16 first leg but ended up winning the tie 3-1.
Dortmund have ended up on the kinder side of the draw in the knockout stages, but they'll still have to overcome Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid to reach the semi-finals.
7. Bayern Munich
It looked like Bayern Munich weren't going to make the quarter-finals upon losing the first leg of the tie against Lazio, but they got the job done with an impressive 3-0 win at the Allianz Arena.
Thomas Tuchel has won the Champions League before, but this is a really dysfunctional team that has been ravaged by injuries and would be a pretty surprising winner at this stage.
The Bavarians have ended up on the tough side of the draw, weakening their chances of European glory. A trip to Arsenal in the quarters probably wasn't what Tuchel desired, with his side shipping goals at the worst times.
6. Barcelona
Barcelona comfortably eased past Napoli despite drawing in the first leg.
Xavi's side have put together an unbeaten run since their manager announced he would be leaving at the end of the season and they will be buoyed by the side of the draw they have ended up on.
However, if they do reach the final, they'll take on one of Man City, Real Madrid, Arsenal or Bayern, where they'll be major underdogs regardless of the opponents.
5. Atletico Madrid
Atletico Madrid have had some great patches of form this season and could feasibly finish second in La Liga.
Los Rojiblancos managed to overturn a one-goal deficit against Inter at the Wanda Metropolitano in the last 16 to reach the quarter-finals, which is no mean feat considering how well the Italians have been playing this season.
It's never easy to beat Atletico Madrid over two legs and the stage could be set for some Simeone-ball to lead them into the semi-finals and possibly beyond.
4. Arsenal
Arsenal have been hard to judge on their return to the Champions League.
The Gunners hadn't competed in the competition since 2017 but players like Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice have enjoyed their first appearances in the tournament.
They managed to create some history in their first knockout tie with Porto, reaching the quarter-finals for the first time since 2010 after David Raya's heroics in a penalty shootout at the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal are in electric form and will be the favourites to progress past Bayern despite their worrisome historical record against the Germans, but do they have the nouse to go all the way?
3. Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain's obsession with the Champions League hasn't been the main talking point in France's capital of late.
Their participation in this season's tournament has largely gone under the radar after the departures of Neymar and Lionel Messi but PSG have made the quarter-finals and, in some respects, look more settled than in other campaigns.
Yes, Kylian Mbappe is leaving, but he hasn't gone yet, keeps scoring goals and will be desperate to win the Champions League with PSG before he goes.
Mbappe's goals could power the French giants past Barcelona, but it's difficult to trust the Parisiens to go all the way.
2. Real Madrid
It's hard to know what it would take for Real Madrid not to be taken seriously in the Champions League. Los Blancos sit top of La Liga and managed to knock out RB Leipzig in the round of 16.
With players like Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Junior and Federico Valverde and a coach like Carlo Ancelotti, Madrid are still one of the most feared teams on the continent.
They'll have to do it the hard way, however. Man City are their quarter-final opponents and the winners of that tie will then need to overcome Arsenal or Bayern to reach the final.
1. Manchester City
There's no doubt Man City are the favourites to win the Champions League again. The defending champions have got their best players fit and firing and are in ridiculously strong form.
One thing that could potentially count against them is the Premier League title race looks set to go down to the wire, meaning chances for Pep Guardiola to rotate and rest his players ahead of European ties will be slim.
Beyond that, there's little reason to think Man City won't lift the trophy again this season.
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