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I can't fully evaluate the new format of the Champions League yet, but my first impression is that I don't really like how everything is going. It's unusual to see one leader in the table, while before we had many groups and each had its own leader, this is what created the impression that many leaders of their countries were playing in this tournament, but now everything has been compressed into one table and this is losing its scale for the Champions League, that's my opinion for now.
Although the old format seems better, it is obvious that the new format brings excitement. It is exciting when strong teams play each other many times. Otherwise, we were expecting the teams leading the group to match each other. Now we watched the Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund match. However, we saw this match in the final last year. We saw very high quality this year. I think the new format is better for the audience.
On the one hand, what you said is true, the new format brings more surprises, so fans feel more enthusiastic. But on the other hand, the new format is less liked by most managers, because of the increase in the number of matches they have to play, including the play-off round. We know that the tight match schedule always makes players vulnerable to injury, and of course it will make it difficult for most contestants to create consistency.
Thanks to the new format, we can watch matches like semi-finals or finals faster, I think it is one of the most interesting this season. Sure enough, the competition for the trophy has become more competitive, as evidenced by several elite Champions League teams even having difficulty breaking into the top 8 of the standings. Teams that avoid the storm of injuries will be very lucky, because that is the main and most decisive key to winning every match.