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Europe’s top leagues: 5 storylines to watch for this season

By Clemente Lisi

TURIN, ITALY - JULY 31: Cristiano Ronaldo of Juventus during a Juventus training session on July 31, 2018 in Turin, Italy. (Photo by Valerio Pennicino - Juventus FC/Juventus FC via Getty Images)
TURIN, ITALY - JULY 31: Cristiano Ronaldo of Juventus during a Juventus training session on July 31, 2018 in Turin, Italy. (Photo by Valerio Pennicino - Juventus FC/Juventus FC via Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 05: Vincent Kompany of Manchester City lifts the trophy during the FA Community Shield between Manchester City and Chelsea at Wembley Stadium on August 5, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Offside/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 05: Vincent Kompany of Manchester City lifts the trophy during the FA Community Shield between Manchester City and Chelsea at Wembley Stadium on August 5, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Offside/Getty Images) /

Manchester City and the Champions League

Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City broke all domestic records last season in the Premier League. Now what? The natural next step for a club with such a large payroll (and even larger ambitions) is to win the Champions League. It won’t be easy. While they remain the team to beat in England (watch out for Liverpool and possibly even Manchester United), they’ll find, once again, that it isn’t easy competing for European glory.

Knocked out by Liverpool in the quarterfinals last season, Manchester City have done little this summer (Riyad Mahrez was the only big-name signing). The Champions League has eluded Manchester City and Guardiola, who hasn’t won the trophy since 2011. Their focus on the Champions League could open the door for another team to win the Premier League.

Again, the pitfalls are many, but the rewards even greater should Manchester City capture more than one trophy. There’s even confidence heading into this season that Manchester City can do something special on a bigger stage.

“I think step by step we’re getting closer,” Leroy Sane told ESPN when asked about the upcoming Champions League. “It’s still hard that we couldn’t achieve more than we did last season. Like always this will be our target to be better in this competition.”

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