1 month ago
25
Based on market values
©TM/IMAGO
The Champions League returned last week with 36 teams aiming to progress past the league phase into the knockout rounds. It’s the most prestigious club tournament in the world and is viewed as the pinnacle by players. PSG famously won the trophy for the first time in their history last season after thrashing Inter Milan 5-0 in the final, but they’ll face fierce competition to retain their crown.
Arsenal, Liverpool, Barcelona and Real Madrid all hold realistic ambitions of lifting the famous trophy with nine of the top ten most valuable clubs in the world participating. While the biggest clubs will battle to win the famous trophy, other clubs are merely overjoyed to be dining at Europe’s top table. The finances on offer will bolster their bank balances but their players will be able to share a pitch with some famous players. But which are the biggest mismatches in Champions League history? We’ve analysed the biggest gaps in market values between two opponents in Champions League history.
The biggest mismatches in Champions League history
Real Madrid’s clash against Kairat Almaty tonight will be the biggest disparity in market values in Champions League history. Los Blancos will travel to Kazakhstan to face the minnows and it is a true David and Goliath story. Xabi Alonso’s squad has a market value of €1.4 billion with Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellingham their most valuable players at €180m. Contrastingly, Kairat’s total market value is just €12.73m, which is a difference of €1.38m.
Interestingly, all but three of Real Madrid’s first team squad are more valuable than Kairat’s total squid value. Manchester City occupy the other nine places in the top ten with Pep Guardiola’s squad valued substantially higher than some of their opponents in recent years. Several other fixtures will break into the top ten this season, like Arsenal vs Kairat, but these squad values will be adjusted during upcoming market value updates, so they’ve not been included.
