Champions League odds: Man City and PSG the early favourites

The first qualifying round of the 2021/22 Champions League will get underway next week as teams begin their journey to become the best team in Europe.

It’s promising to be another enthralling competition as the best teams in the world battle it out to lift the European Cup and several Premier League clubs are expected to be right in the mix next May.

Looking at the latest Champions League odds we see that Premier League champions Manchester City are the current 7/2 favourites to win their first European Cup this coming season. Pep Guardiola’s men fell just short last year after losing to Chelsea in the final so City will be looking to go one step further this campaign.

The Citizens have already snapped-up Jack Grealish in a British record £100m deal while they’re trying to sign Tottenham striker Harry Kane in a move that would cost in excess of £150m. If they can add Kane to an already formidable squad, then City will take some beating.

Messi’s PSG good value

Their nearest rivals are expected to be Paris Saint-Germain with the French giants currently priced as the 9/2 second favourites with the bookmakers. PSG have enjoyed an excellent summer in the transfer market having signed Gianluigi Donnarumma, Sergio Ramos and Gini Wijnaldum while they’re tipped to secure a sensational free transfer swoop for Lionel Messi.

The Argentinean superstar has left Barcelona and is expected to join PSG on a two-year contract. Should the move go through, PSG would have a formidable frontline of Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe next season which should make them the favourites to win the Champions League.

Defending champions Chelsea are perhaps surprisingly the 10/1 fifth favourites to defend their crown. The Blues have been very quiet in the market this summer but are pushing hard to sign a world class striker with Romelu Lukaku tipped to join from Inter Milan. If Chelsea could re-sign Lukaku then they’d look terrific value at 10/1 to retain the European Cup.

Liverpool endured a poor season last year but with the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Jordan Henderson and Joe Gomez all returning to full fitness following serious injuries, they should be back to their best this coming campaign. Liverpool are currently priced at 9/1 to win the Champions League and they look a solid bet at that price – especially if they can add another top class midfielder to their squad following the exit of Wijnaldum.

Cant’ discount Bayern

Bayern Munich can never be discounted and the German giants are the 8/1 third favourites to win the Champions League this season. A lack of new signings may be a concern for some fans but Bayern will always be a strong outfit and they should be competitive once again this coming campaign.

Manchester United are the fourth English team in the competition and they’re the 12/1 sixth favourites – meaning England’s four teams are all in the top six favourites to win the trophy. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has snapped-up Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane so United should be quietly confident of putting together a decent run in the Champions League.

It’s certainly going to be another exciting competition this season and it will be interesting to see who comes out on top, but given their moves in the transfer market, it looks like Man City and PSG will be the teams to beat.