Champions League 2020-21: All you need to know

There is no bigger cup competition in European club football than the UEFA Champions League. The 2020–21 Season is the 66th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organized by UEFA.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic:

All qualifying matches were played behind closed doors.

Following the partial return of fans at the 2020 UEFA Super Cup, UEFA announced on 1 October 2020 that matches from the group stage onward could be played at 30% capacity if allowed by the local authorities.

Five substitutions were be allowed from 24th September 2020 instead of 3 & the number of players allowed on the match sheet was increased to 23.

Group Stage:

A total of 32 teams from fifteen countries played in the group stage.

The 2020-21 UEFA Champions League season saw four teams - Krasnodar, Midtjylland, Rennes, and Istanbul Basaksehir - making their debuts in the group stage.

It also became the first season in the history of the Champions League in which three Russian clubs played in the group stage.

Knock Out Stage:

16 teams qualified for the Knock Out Stage. Last year's runner-up Paris Saint Germain (PSG) knocked out Barcelona in the Round of 16 following up by eliminating the last year's Champions Bayern Munich on Away Goals in the Quarters before losing the steam in the Semis against Manchester City.

13-time European Champions, Real Madrid eliminated Liverpool in the Quarters before losing to Chelsea in the Semis thereby resulting in a third consecutive all-Premier League UEFA Champions League Final.

Key Performers:

Nobody has kept more clean sheets in the Champions League this season than Chelsea's Goal Keeper Edouard Mendy. He has kept a mind-boggling eight clean sheets in 11 games en-route to the final in Europe's most elite tournament.

With 10 Goals in 8 matches, Borussia Dortmund's Erling Braut Haaland is the leading Goal Scorer in the 2020-21 UEFA Champions League.

Juventus' Juan Cuadrado has the most assist (6) followed by Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne (4).

Final:

The 2020-21 Champions League final will take place on Friday, May 29, 2021. Manchester City and Chelsea will contest the 2021 Champions League final.

The final will take place at Istanbul's Atatürk Olympic Stadium, which had been due to stage the 2020 decider. Saint Petersburg, the prospective 2021 host, will now stage the 2022 event.

However, due to the recent COVID-19 outbreak in Turkey, UEFA is considering changing the venue.

Finalist:

After winning the Carabao Cup, an assured Premier League Title & making their way to the Champions League final, Manchester City, are on the verge of winning the treble. However, the European Title has been elusive for Manchester City, with their best performance coming in 2015 when they reached the Semi-Finals only to be beaten by Real Madrid, who went on to win the tournament that year.

However, with the defensive solidarity added to their attacking brilliance, this year they look like a different team. After winning Group C, they posted home and away wins in all their knockout matches against Gladbach, Dortmund & Paris Saint Germain.

This will be the third UEFA Champions League final for Manchester City's manager Pep Guardiola, and his first since the two wins with Barcelona in 2009 and 2011.

The second finalist, Chelsea have been beaten only twice since Thomas Tuchel took charge mid-season. Tuchel is the first man to lead two different clubs to successive UEFA Champions League finals. Last year, he lead Paris Saint Germain (PSG) to the finals where they lost to Bayern Munich.

Chelsea's campaign in Champions League 2020-21 has been flawless and they have been growing in confidence with every victory. After beating the stubborn Atlético Madrid convincingly in the round of 16, they saw off FC Porto in the Quarters before overcoming 13-time champions Real Madrid in the semis.

Should they win the Finals, it will be their second Champions League title, having last won in 2012.

Interestingly, Tuchel's Chelsea has already beaten Manchester City twice in recent weeks – the FA Cup semi and the Premier League encounter in Manchester.

Who do you think will go on to win the UEFA Champions League 2020-21.

Did you know?

UEFA Champions League trading card game collection 2020/21 Bonanza Pack contains 225 cards, including assured 9 Limited Editions & 5 Supersized cards, Collector Binder, and Game mat.

Order now and get closer than ever to your heroes with players like Messi, Haaland, Mbappé, Neymar, Sancho & Sterling waiting to be found.

It's time to Collect, Swap & Play.

Know more - https://toppsindia.com/match-attax

 Buy here - https://www.amazon.in/stores/page/7D5B8BDC-A0B9-4409-849D-516F99873A41?ingress=0&visitId=8a91363f-7f5c-4bae-96e0-92c59d5afd3c&ref_=bl_dp_s_web_3857853031