WE ARE just one week into the Champions League first stage proper and already it feels like the new format has largely fallen flat. between Atalanta and Arsenal was the latest in a series of opening-round matches that felt like exhibition games. With over 20 minutes (including stoppage time) remaining and the game scoreless, Mikel Arteta substituted Bukayo Saka.
Had it been a match the Gunners needed to win, it seems unlikely the manager would have made this move. The visitors registered just two shots on target in the 90 minutes and seemed happy enough with the 0-0 draw. The relative apathy and lack of intensity often on display this week is not a new phenomenon.
For years, the early stages of the Champions League have felt like a non-event. In the old group-stage format, you could usually predict with at least a 90% accuracy the teams who would advance to the next round. Supporters of sides like Man City and Liverpool may have enjoyed seeing their teams routinely demolish patently weaker outfits.
But casual fans or neutrals would have been tempted to tune out of this formality and belatedly start paying attention during the knockout stages. So change was needed, but the revamped Champions League only exacerbates the original problem. Firstly, a summary of how it works.
Each team plays eight games — four home and four away — against different sides from other countries. The results count towards a 36-team table. 24 of the 36 clubs will advance to the knockout stages.
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