Barcelona have been chosen as the favourite to win the Champions League 2024-25, according to Opta’s supercomputer.
The Catalans have emerged as the leading contender for a prestigious triumph following Liverpool’s exit from the tournament on Tuesday.
Arner Slot’s band – who were most likely to lift the trophy before they faced Paris Saint-Germain with 23.9 per cent – saw their elimination from the round of 16 after an unfortunate penalty shootout against an impressive Luis Enrique’s side.
With Liverpool out, Barcelona remain the favourite for the rest of the tournament, with 20.4 per cent – close ahead of the Parisians – after it was decided that Hansi Flick’s men will face Borussia Dortmund in the quarter-finals.
However, in order to even progress to the final stage, in case of a potential victory over the German giants, Blaugrana will face the winner between Bayern Munich and Inter Milan.
PSG, meanwhile, sits in second place with 19.3 per cent, followed by Arsenal, which showed a dominant display over PSV Eindhoven, concluding the game with 9-3 on the scoresheets.
Arsenal have been tipped as the third-favourite team to lift the Champions League 2024-25 trophy, according to Opta supercomputer
Barcelona, meanwhile, top Opta’s list with 20.4 per cent following Liverpool’s exit on Tuesday
The Reds saw their Champions League elimination following a lost penalty shootout against PSG, thought to be the second-favourite team of the tournament with 19.3 per cent
The current title holders, Real Madrid, are closely outperformed by Inter after Simone Inzaghi’s side have confidently outplayed Feyenoord in both ties of the last 16 round.
Carlo Ancelotti’s men endured a challenging second leg at Wanda Metropolitano, as their clash went to extra time – then to a penalty shootout – following Conor Gallagher’s opening goal in the first minute.
However, a controversial decision on Alvarez’s shot, Thibaut Courtois’ save, and four penalties scored by Los Blancos saw them advance to the next phase.
They are set to take on Mikel Arteta’s injury-hit squad, with the first game taking place at the Emirates on April 8.
Despite a confident win over Bundesliga rivals Bayer Leverkusen, Vincent Kompany’s side witnessed an unexpectedly low place in the rating, just ahead of Aston Villa and Borussia Dortmund.
Many fans expected Bayern Munich to be severely outplayed by Xabi Alonso’s side following their draw in the domestic league. Kompany’s men concluded the game without a single shot on target.
However, in addition to several defensive mistakes, the Belgian specialist did his homework and pushed his team to a confident 5-0 victory on aggregate.
Meanwhile, Aston Villa are thought to have only 2.8 per cent of lifting the trophy, an expected increase from a 1 per cent change before the quarter-finals, considering fewer teams are left in the competition.
Jude Bellingham’s Real Madrid, following their challenging win over rival Atletico, sit in fifth place in Opta’s rankings with 13.6 per cent
Bayern Munich and Harry Kane, after confident win over Bundesliga competitors Bayer Leverkusen, are set to face Inter Milan in the quarter-finals
Luis Enrique will certainly need Gianluigi Donnarumma’s heroics once against Aston Villa in April
Dortmund are bottom of the list following their unconfident victory over Lille on Thursday. Their first clash ended 1-1 at Signal Iduna Park.
The German giants are set to face favourites Barcelona, which recorded eight wins, one draw and one loss throughout the tournament.
The Catalans concluded their League Phase with a strong second position, behind Liverpool.
They are thought to have a more straightforward side of the draw, with all their potential opponents falling short of winning their domestic leagues last year.
Flick’s side reached an expected progression to the quarter-finals after they beat Benfica in both ties of the round of 16.
The Catalans’ leader, Raphinha, has scored his 11th goal and tops the Champions League’s goalscoring rankings, followed by Harry Kane, Guirassy and team-mate Robert Lewandowski.
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