With the UEFA Champions League group draws all done and dusted, it's time to have a glance at Group D - which has been called the Group of Death. Premier League giants Manchester City, Serie A champions Juventus, Europa League winners Sevilla and five-time Bundesliga champions Borussia Mönchengladbach feature.
Juventus
Juve won the double last season and could have won the treble if they had defeated Barcelona in the Champions League final. During the summer, Massimiliano Allegri took a huge risk in letting Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal and Carlos Tévez leave the Old Lady but have brought in the likes of Juan Cuadrado (loan), Paulo Dybala, Mario Mandzukic and Roberto Pereyra amongst others. Will the new arrivals be able to reproduce the performances of the departures to pull off another long run in the European competition?
The Italian club have completed some fantastic business this transfer window, unfortunately most signings are just long-term options. Against Manchester City, you'd expect Manuel Pellegrini's men to take advantage of a weakened side and prevail over the two fixtures - but at the same time, it'd be a surprise if they finished anywhere below second in the group itself.
Manchester City
The English giants have spent the most in the Premier League this season with £82.5million pounds - and with reports suggesting a move for Kevin de Bruyne is almost complete, that'll move their spending to around £135million too. Manuel Pellegrini will enjoy having a large squad to be able to rotate the team around when they play two games every week, the Chilean has successfully improved the team in every are. Now, there's no better way of them proving to the biggest European sides that they're not intimidated by the challenge of Europe's elite; finishing first with maximum points would be a statement of intent.
The quality they have in each area, the Citizens should be aiming to reach the quarter-finals at least. Anything below this should be classed as a failure for both the manager and his players, given the depth and talent within the first-team ranks. If they manage to top the group, they'll be given a favourable opponent in the knock-out stages, which could easily kick off an ambitious run for the ultimate prize.
Sevilla
After another successful season in winning the Europa League, Sevilla have broken the record to become the fifth Spanish side competing in the Champions League - which no country had done before this calendar year. Sevilla, just like Juventus, have let their star players Aleix Vidal and Carlos Bacca leave and have done well to bring in Fernando Llorente, Ciro Immobile and some other new faces to make sure their losses will not be particularly missed much as they re-build and strengthen.
The Los Hispalenses, will most likely find it difficult playing Italian champions Juventus and an over-powered Manchester City side, so Europa League seems like the likely end-result of the group stage. If they could manage to pull off a draw or win against the other two teams, the group standings will have an interesting end and will turn out much better than plenty of critics have suggested recently.
Borrusia Mönchengladbach
The German club and their coach Lucien Favre, were really impressive last season in the Bundesliga finishing in third place, and were defensively fantastic too only conceding 26 goals in the whole season - just eight more than the eventual champions Bayern Munich. They also had a tough window with key players Max Kruse and Christoph Kramer leaving the club, but have wasted no time at all to bring in some quality players as a result. Josip Drmic, Lars Stindl and Thorgan Hazard - the latter of which enjoyed a successful loan spell last term, and has since signed permanently.
Unfortunately for them, the season hasn't started the way they have planned. Two defeats in two matches mean they find themselves currently at the foot of the league in Germany. You'd naturally expect the other three sides in the group to be too strong for them, but there is a possibility of snatching the Europa League spot if they manage to compete for as long as possible and do not turn out to be pushovers.
Key player: David Silva
Last season was undoubtedly Silva's best in terms of goals and assists - he netted twelve and created fourteen in all competitions last season, despite often being deployed on the wings. The introduction of Raheem Sterling, as well as the partnership between the talented youngster and Aleksandar Kolarov on the left has naturally given the Spaniard more freedom to roam in midfield ahead of Fernandinho and Yaya Touré, which means he can play in a more central role suited to him.
Always looking for a team-mate in space, the 29-year-old magician continues to get better year-upon-year and he loves to pull the strings with ease. Playing alongside fast team-mates such as Raheem and Sergio Agüero allows him to flourish and create chances galore especially given his integral role within the first-team squad. It's a joy to see him play, and he'll be essential to City's success as per usual.
The interesting fixture: Sevilla - Borussia Monchengladbach
It'd be a surprise to see City finish anywhere below first, given all the talent at their disposal. Juventus are good, but not as strong as they were last season, so they'd most probably finish as group runners-up. If the prediction goes correctly, the only real competitive encounters would be the other two sides to determine who qualifies for the Europa League knock-out rounds. These two fixtures will happen on the first and penultimate matchday, so whoever manages the most points will ultimately prevail.
Prediction
1st: Manchester City
2nd: Juventus
3rd: Sevilla
4th: Borussia Monchengladbach