Toni Kroos: Barcelona not going to win the Champions League

Barcelona are still riding the wave of their Spanish Supercup success at the weekend, which saw them defeat Real Madrid 3-2 in Saudi Arabia. The Catalans are on course for another positive season, and with confidence high, they have many chances to claim titles in La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the Champions League.

The latter is the one most desired by Barcelona, given they last won the Champions League 11 years ago. They are among the favourites despite an underwhelming league phase thus far, but not everyone is backing them.

As per Sport, former Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos dismissed Barcelona’s chances of winning this season’s Champions League when speaking on his “Einfach mal Luppen” podcast.

“Barça are still very happy with the Spanish Supercup, but now the Champions League is coming for Barcelona where they play against top-level opponents. They are not going to win any continental title, at least I think so.”

Can Barcelona win this season’s Champions League?

Barcelona will certainly be aiming to win the Champions League this season, but first and foremost, the aim is to finish inside the top 8 of the league phase. They are currently two points outside these places, but with matches against Slavia Prague (away) and FC Copenhagen (home) to come, they will fancy their chances.

The knockout stage is where Barcelona will need to be on it, but if they can avoid injuries to key players, they have every chance of bettering their semi-final run from last season. The likes of Pedri, Lamine Yamal and Raphinha are among the best in the world in their positions, which gives the Catalans a good advantage.

The key will be in defence. They have struggled to keep the goals out for much of the season, although they have been better in recent weeks. If the likes of Pau Cubarsi and Ronald Araujo can return to their best level, Barcelona are more than in with a shout.