Champions League power ranking: The odds for Europe, as Premier League heavyweights look to dethrone Real Madrid

The Champions League is back this week and Europe’s premier club competition has a brand new format to boot.

Gone is the familiar group stage, replaced by a new ‘league phase’ that sees all 36 teams lumped together into a unified table, with each club playing eight different opponents, four at home and four away. The top eight in the table will qualify automatically for the last 16, with those finishing between ninth and 24th facing two-legged play-offs to join them.

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