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Champions League Power Rankings: Who will lift the trophy in Istanbul?

With club football having returned with a bang following the international break, the stage is set for the final stages of this season's Champions League.

After some thrilling last-16 ties, eight teams remain in the hunt for Europe's premier club competition.

So which teams are now shaping up as potential favourites to win the whole tournament, and who is unlikely to make it past the quarter-finals?

Goal power ranks the teams left in this season's competition...

Porto

Porto

They may have caused the shock of the last 16 by knocking out Juventus, but Porto remain huge outsiders to go all the way in this season's competition.

Sergio Conceicao's side are on a four-match winning run in Liga NOS, but with key players suspended for Tuesday's first leg against Chelsea, they face an uphill battle to take down Thomas Tuchel's team in the quarter-finals.

 

Borussia Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund

Following Saturday's defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt, Dortmund's best route into next season's Champions League now looks to be going all the way this time around.

Drawing Manchester City in the quarter-finals, then, is not what the Bundesliga outfit would have wanted, and Erling Haaland will likely have to play out of his skin if a BVB team with just one win from their last five are to stun Pep Guardiola's side over the course of the next 10 days.

Liverpool

Liverpool

Are Liverpool back? Probably not all the way, but the signs are that Jurgen Klopp's side are starting to find some self-belief following a disastrous start to 2021.

The Reds' last-16 win over RB Leipzig provided some respite and those wins, coupled with recent victories over Wolves and Arsenal, mean the Premier League champions go into their tie against Real Madrid confident of gaining revenge for their 2018 final defeat.

Paris Saint-Germain

Paris Saint-Germain

After seeing off Barcelona in the last-16, PSG would have been forgiven for believing that they were well placed to go one better than their finish as runners-up in 2020.

However, the draw was not kind to Mauricio Pochettino's side, with a quarter-final against Bayern Munich potentially set to be followed by a meeting with Manchester City should they reach the final four.

Saturday's loss to Lille suggested all is not well at Parc des Princes, and though they will not have to worry about Robert Lewandowski against Bayern, the defending European champions still have plenty of weapons that can hurt their French opposition.

Real Madrid

Real Madrid

Whisper it quietly, but Real Madrid are yet again are finding form at the right time of the season when it comes to fighting for Champions League glory.

Karim Benzema's return from injury has helped Zinedine Zidane's side stretch their unbeaten run to 11 games in all compeitions, and though they may not be the best team in Europe right now, the majority of their players know how to win the competition.

The loss through injury of Sergio Ramos for their quarter-final against Liverpool is undoubtedly a blow, but they find themselves on the 'easier' side of the draw and in form. Never write off Real Madrid.

Chelsea

Chelsea

When Frank Lampard was sacked in January, the thought of Chelsea potentially winning the Champions League seemed as far-fetched as the Blues losing 5-2 at home to West Brom, and yet both could happen in the space of two months.

Certainly that loss to the Baggies will have raised eyebrows around Europe, with Thomas Tuchel having previously instilled his new side with defensive discipline and a winning mentality that were both on show in their last-16 win over Atletico Madrid.

Before that West Brom game they were arguably the favourites to reach the final from their half of the draw, and though there will be some who now doubt their credentials, they mere fact that they were drawn to face Porto in the quarter-finals means that they have an advantage on the rest.

Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich

With the Bundesliga title all-but wrapped up now following Saturday's win over RB Leipzig, Bayern's focus switches to defending their European crown, though they could not have wished for worse luck in the past two-and-a-bit weeks.

First, they were drawn in the toughest half of the draw, with Paris Saint-Germain and likely Manchester City standing in their way of making it to Istanbul this summer.

Then last week, they were hit with the body blow that talismanic striker Robert Lewandowski faces four weeks out with injury, meaning he is unlikely to play any part in the quarter-final against PSG.

If they can come through the tie without the Poland international, then their confidence of going back-to-back will skyrocket.

Manchester City

Manchester City

Is this finally Manchester City's year in the Champions League?

The Premier League leaders arguably have their best chance to break their European Cup duck this term, with Pep Guardiola's side the form team in Europe while having all of their star men fit and firing.

Despite their shock quarter-final exits in the last three seasons, the Etihad Stadium outfit will fancy their chances of seeing off an out-of-form Borussia Dortmund this time around, and from there few would back against them going all the way.

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