Monaco vs Barcelona

Stade Louis II sets the stage for a handsomely-looking Champions League day-one meeting between Monaco and Barcelona.

Monaco’s impressive first season under German boss Adi Hutter has earned them a return to the Champions League main phase for the first time since 2018/19, as they finished runners-up to PSG in Ligue 1 last term. Despite facing high-flying Barcelona in their opening fixture, the French giants will take the field in high spirits amidst a four-game unbeaten league start (W3, D1), capped off by a 3-0 rout of Auxerre at the weekend. With more high-profile clashes against Arsenal and Inter Milan waiting down the road, Les Monégasques must start on the front foot, and history backs them to do just that. Indeed, Monaco’s outstanding run of just one defeat across their last nine home encounters against Spanish visitors (W7, D1) can inspire confidence within Hutter’s camp, with Monaco facing long odds in this blockbuster showdown.

There’s no margin for error against an unforgiving Barcelona side. Hansi Flick’s men take this trip in rip-roaring form, having won all five La Liga matches this season by an aggregate score of 17-4, most recently dispatching fellow Catalan rivals Girona 4-1 at the weekend. However, that victory came at the expense of Dani Olmo’s injury, which will keep the illustrious playmaker out of action for at least four weeks. Los Blaugranas will have to defy their poor traveling record in France, where they’ve claimed just two wins on their last nine visits (D2, L5), without the Euro 2024 winner. A goal-glutted contest could be in store, not least because 17 of Barcelona’s 24 previous Champions League clashes against French opposition have seen both teams on the scoresheet.