Can an English team with the Champions League this season?

It’s strange to remember that it was only earlier this year that Leicester City played in a Champions’ League quarter final, and were in with a chance of making the semis until the final whistle.

Weirder still is that with their exit, they were still the English team that got furthest in the 2016/17 tournament.

This season, thanks to Manchester United’s Europa League win, there are five English Champions League participants rather than the usual four. Each of them is looking much better than last year’s crop, with four group leaders and 56 goals scored between them. For now, let’s look at how each team has been doing so far this year, and rate their chances of the trophy on a scale of one (it’s not happening) to five (someone buy the celebratory balloons).

Group A: Manchester United

Three-time winners, United have got off to the Jose Mourinho version of a barnstorming start: four games played, four wins, ten goals scored, and only one conceded. Admittedly, their pool was a pretty forgiving draw, but it’s still impressive. Ultimately, it looks like United will be in the last 16, seeded as group winners, and with Jose Mourinho in control, they’ll be hard to beat.

Likelihood To Win It? They can, certainly, but they have firepower issues that could sink them as the tournament progresses.  3/5

Group C: Chelsea

Fourth in the Premier League and second in a Champions’ League group that features Roma and Atletico Madrid may not sound like a crisis to 99 percent of football fans, but for Chelsea, it is. In Europe, the Blues have a home tie with Atletico and a trip to Azerbaijan (to beat Qarabag 3-0, probably) to get the three points needed to secure qualification for the next round. If other results go their way, Chelsea could yet win the group; they’ll certainly make the last 16.

Likelihood To Win It? Not great. If they lose Eden Hazard or Alvaro Morata for any prolonged period, they start to look pretty ordinary. They could be out in the next round. 2/5

Group E: Liverpool

What looks like a strong position for Jurgen Klopp’s men — they’re top of the group at present — hides a tricky path to the last 16. The two wins Liverpool have achieved so far came against Slovenia’s Maribor, Group E’s “happy just to be here” team. They still have to go to Seville, where a loss will see them slip behind the Spanish side. Liverpool’s last game will be at home to Spartak. Not the hardest opponents they could face, but the Reds are guaranteed nothing.

Can They Win It? Winning the Champions’ League from the last 16 involves at least 630 minutes’ worth of steely concentration and minimal defensive errors, so no. 2/5

Group F: Manchester City

The presence of Napoli in City’s group made their route seem tricky before the games started. Then City beat the Italian side 2-1 in Manchester and 4-2 in Naples, and all of a sudden it’s looking like smooth sailing. A trip to Ukraine to play Shakhtar and a home fixture against already-eliminated Feyenoord remain, the latter of which City could win in their sleep. On the continent, as at home, they look like they could cut through any team at will.

Can They Win It? They have the players, the manager, and the style of football to do it. They just need to keep their heads and it’s there for the taking. 4/5

Group H: Tottenham

On paper, their group featuring Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid looked intimidating. On grass it’s been anything but. The Curse Of Wembley™ has been well and truly laid to rest, with thrilling 3-1 wins over the aforementioned opponents. A 3-3 draw in Madrid was almost as impressive. They look great right now, they have Harry Kane, and their toughest games are out of the way.

Can They Win It? They beat last year’s winners to a pulp just a few weeks back. Add a decent result in Dortmund to the inevitable win over APOEL and they win the group. From there, they’re a good bet to be in the semis, at least. 4/5