20 Reasons to Be Excited for the 2011-12 UEFA Champions League

It is finally that time of year again as Europe's top clubs prepare to battle it out for a spot in final in Munich in May.

But May is a long time away and in a span of ten months, fans of European club soccer will be in awe of and disappointed with the performances handed in by each club.

Beginning with the playoff round on Tuesday and Wednesday, the heavy hitters in Europe begin to appear in the competition with the likes of Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Lyon and Benfica trying to claim spots in the group stage.

This slideshow is your guide to what to look forward from now until May in the UEFA Champions League.

Barcelona Looking to Become First Repeat Champion in 20 Years

There is no doubt that Pep Guardiola has built a dynasty at Barcelona and after winning the Champions League title last season at Wembley, the Catalans will look to become the first repeat champions since AC Milan did it in the 1988-89 and 1989-90 seasons.

Alexis Sanchez and Cesc Fabregas have been added to squad and 20 year old Thiago Alcantara, who has moved his way up through the Barca ranks, will be big time players alongside the names we already know like Messi, Xavi, Iniesta and others.

Old Faces in New Places

With a new season comes plenty of players on the roster for a new club and this year is no different.

Sergio Aguero, Cesc Fabregas, Gervinho, Nuri Sahin and Manuel Neuer are just some of the names debuting for their new squads in the Champions League this season.

But the biggest switch of clubs may not be from a player but a manager.

Andre Villas-Boas won the Europa League and Portuguese Liga with FC Porto and has moved to Chelsea to help Chelsea back to the promised land, just like fellow countryman Jose Mourinho did.

Manchester City's Stars Finally Taking Place on Europe's Big Stage

Since the day Manchester City was purchased by the Abu Dhabi United Group in 2008, City fans have waited for their opportunity to play in the Champions League and after finishing third in the Premier League last season, they no longer have to wait.

With the additions of Sergio Aguero, Gael Clichy and Stefan Savic to the squad that already has plenty of big names, City will be looking to make a splash in the Champions League.

Roberto Mancini's side will most likely progress to the round of sixteen, and then it will get interesting to see how far this star studded club will go in Europe's top club competition.

Lille's Young Talent on Display

Despite losing the services of Gervinho and Yohan Cabaye to the Premier League, the French champions boast a squad chock full of talent, especially two attacking players, Moussa Sow and Eden Hazard.

Both Sow and Hazard were targeted by top European clubs for transfers this summer but decided to stay at the Stade Metropole for another season to defend the Ligue 1 title and play in the Champions League.

Hazard, a 20 year old Belgian, has already recorded 20 caps for his national team and for his club scored twelve total goals last season.

Sow is breaking onto the European scene at 25 years of age and the Senegal international netted 25 Ligue 1 goals in his first season with Lille a year ago.

Shakhtar Donetsk and Their Bid for Another Quarterfinal Place

The Ukrainian champions have once again made into the Champions League group stage and remain one of Europe's most underrated clubs.

With a mix of Brazilian and Croatian players alongside domestic stars, Shakhtar made a run to the quarterfinals last season after winning Group H over Arsenal and taking down Roma convincingly in the round of sixteen before being knocked out by Barcelona.

Mircea Lucescu will once again have his club chock full of experience, with former Arsenal man Eduardo and current Gunners target Jadson as well as veterans Darijo Srna, Dimitry Chygrynskiy and Fernandinho to rely on. Shakhtar could make another deep run into the knockout stage this season.

Will Winter Break Help Eastern European Sides Stay Fresh?

For the newest edition of the Champions League, three, possibly four clubs from Eastern Europe have a chance to qualify for the knockout stage.

The clubs, Shakhtar Donetsk, Zenit St. Petersburg, CSKA Moscow and maybe Rubin Kazan, if they beat Lyon in a playoff round, will have off during the winter months due to the harsh cold in their respective countries. With this break comes the chance to rest tired players and when the knockout stage starts in February, these clubs could have fresh legs.

These four clubs are no stranger to going far in Europe with Donetsk reaching the quarterfinals last season and CSKA Moscow the year before. Two sides from Eastern Europe, Dynamo Kiev and Spartak Moscow, made the Europa League quarterfinals as well.

If history repeats itself, one of these four clubs will reach the quarterfinals.

Will Any Club's Domestic Form Suffer from Champions League Play Like Schalke?

Last season, Schalke made a surprising run into the semifinals before being knocked out by Manchester United but the Bundesliga club finished 14th in domestic play.

This season, there are concerns for a few teams that could perform well in Europe but poor domestically.

Specifically, Lille in Ligue 1 and Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga, both play in very competitive and even leagues where any team can win finish from top to bottom, as was the case with both clubs last season as they both won their respective leagues.

Keep an eye also on Napoli as they enter the Champions League from Serie A, but with a hungry Juventus club playing only domestically this season, Napoli could face stiff competition from the Old Lady.

The Talented Players from Uruguay

Uruguay has burst back onto the international scene as a powerhouse once again in international football this summer after winning their record 15th Copa America and some European clubs are benefiting from the talent the South American country has produced.

Although the top two names in Uruguayan soccer, Diego Forlan and Luis Suarez will not be competing in the Champions League this season, many of their talented countrymen will be.

The most talented player not named Forlan or Suarez is Edinson Cavani, who plays for Napoli in Serie A alongside countryman Walter Gargano.

Also leading the Uruguyan comeback to prominence are midfielders Alvaro Pereira and Cristian Rodriguez, who are apart of the Porto squad.

National team captain Diego Lugano plays for Fenerbahce, Maxi Pereira is a part of the Benfica side playing in the playoff round and Nicolas Lodeiro plays for Dutch side Ajax.

The Emergence of Ajax Back onto Europe's Top Stage

Ajax, the most historic club in Dutch football, returned to Champions League play last season and finished third in Group G.

Now, one of Europe's most successful clubs will look to make an impact on the Champions League once again.

Just like past Ajax teams, the club has utilized young talent and development of homegrown players to lead them to success.

With a strong back line led by captain Jan Vertonghen, Gregory van der Wiel and Toby Alderwiereld, as well as top striker Miralem Sulejmani the club has many talented players on the squad.

But the most talented player may be 19 year old Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen, who is poised to have a breakout season. Last season was the Dane's first full season in the Eredivisie and has already had Europe's top clubs chasing his signature and this season he will look to improve on his form from last season.

Bayern Munich's Quest to Play in Home Arena for Champions League Final

Assuming the 2009-10 finalists get past FC Zurich in the playoff round in the next few weeks, Bayern Munich will be entered in the group stage and start their march towards playing the final at home.

The Bundesliga club will look to become the third club in the history of the European Cup/Champions League to win the final at home and the first since 1964-65 when Inter beat Benfica at the San Siro.

Manuel Neuer is the new keeper for the club and with veterans Franck Ribery, Arjen Robben and Bastian Schweinsteiger and more along for the ride, Bayern is looking to impress the home fans after finishing third last season in the Bundesliga.

Oh, and Bayern just happens to have this guy named Mario Gomez, who is known to score a few goals each season.

Mourinho's Second Year Syndrome

There is no doubt Jose Mourinho is a managerial genius.

And there is something about his second year at a club that gains him the most success.

The current Real Madrid boss won the Champions League twice in his second year at a club in 2004-05 with Porto and 2009-10 with Inter.

Mourinho has also won the domestic league title with Porto, Chelsea and Inter in his second year with each club.

Now in his second year at Real Madrid, the question is will the trend continue with Los Blancos?

What Midfield Wesley Sneijder Will Be a Part of

Wesley Sneijder is one of the top players in Europe and could soon have a new club.

His current club, Inter Milan, is looking to sell players since they are in debt.

The Dutch international has been rumored to be going to both of the top clubs in Manchester, England

Both Manchester United and Manchester City are in the race to get the 2010 World Cup runner up's signature before August ends.

Regardless, Sneijder will be playing in the Champions League this season.

New Replacing Old at Manchester United

Manchester United was very active in the transfer window has they had to replace goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar, defender Gary Neville and midfielder Paul Scholes after all three retired.

The answer to the question of who would replace the trio came in form of David De Gea from Athletico Madrid to take van der Sar's spot. Phil Jones comes in from Blackburn to replace Neville and Ashley Young takes over on the wing as Ryan Giggs may move inside or Michael Carrick could step up to play in the center of midfield.

United's young players will also have a huge impact on their success this season with the Da Silva twins, Chicharito, Tom Cleverley. Chris Smalling and Danny Welbeck all expected to get first team time in the Champions League.

The Third Team from Spain

Even though the chance of an underdog winning the Champions League this season, there always is a slim possibility, so we have to preview it.

Last season, Schalke fulfilled that role and went to the semifinals before losing to Manchester United.

This season, any number of teams can fulfill that role but in particular is worth watching, Valencia.

The third placed club in La Liga last season has rebuilt their squad after losing David Villa and David Silva last summer to fellow Champions League participants Barcelona and Manchester City.

Unai Emery's club found a prolific striker in Roberto Soldado, who scored six goals in seven Champions League matches last season. Also, the club has strong presence in midfield thanks to Juan Mata.

This Spanish club may not got the press that the top two clubs in La Liga do, but they will make a long run this season in the Champions League.

Giuseppe Rossi Leading the Yellow Submarine

Giuseppe Rossi, one of the most sought after forwards in soccer looks to be staying put with Villarreal for another season after Juventus, Barcelona and Tottenham tried to retrieve the signature of the Italian.

Villarreal, who are known as the yellow submarine because of their bright yellow jerseys, play Odense in the playoff round and should get past the Danish club and advance into the group stage.

There is a possibility that all four La Liga teams will advance to the knockout round and if Juan Carlos Garrido's club do it is because of Rossi, who netted 32 goals last season, 11 of which were in European competition.

The Rebuilding of Arsenal

Arsenal has officially begun to rebuild around another group of young players as Gael Clichy and Cesc Fabregas left the squad this summer and Samir Nasri and Emmanuel Eboue also being rumored to be out of the Emirates Stadium.

Arsene Wenger did acquire the services of Gervinho from Lille and has to bring a few more new signings but for the first playoff round match against Udinese on Tuesday, he has his young talent to rely on.

Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey and Marouane Chamakh are among those who, alongside captain Robin van Persie, will have to produce goals for the Gunners in the young midfield.

In defense, it is not young but shaky. Manuel Almunia has known to blow a few big plays and with Wojciech Szczesny waiting on the bench, the Spainiard's starting days could be numbered. The back four is inconsistent too, and Wenger may have to bring in a new face or two to solidify that position as well.

Interesting Playoff Round Matchups

The real action of the Champions League begins in the playoff round where some of Europe's big clubs have to enter because of a third or fourth place finish domestically the year before.

This year, a few matchups draw a ton of interest.

Portuguese side Benfica takes on Twente from the Eredivisie, a club who just found recent success.

Arsenal faces a tough Udinese club, who could take advantage of the Gunners not being at full strength.

Also, perennial Champions League group stage members Lyon have to earn their spot this season as they face Russian club Rubin Kazan.

All of these six clubs are worthy of the group stage but only three will advance and the other three get the reward of playing the grueling schedule of the Europa League.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo

Messi and Ronaldo are considered by many to be the top two players in the world, and once again they take their talents to the Champions League.

Messi and Barcelona are looking for their third title in four years while Ronaldo and Real Madrid are looking for Champions League success under Jose Mourinho.

There is no doubt that whenever both of these midfield magicians take the pitch they are the best in the world and what better stage to showcase that then the UEFA Champions League.

Prolific Goal Scorers

With Europe's biggest club competition comes the best goal scorers in Europe as well.

Last season, talents like Gareth Bale, Raul and Marco Borriello made a mark in the Champions League, unfortuneately we will not see them in this year's version of the competition.

Players we will see this season are Messi, Ronaldo, Mario Gomez, Chicharito, Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, David Villa and many others.

Look for Messi, Ronaldo and Gomez to vie for the most goals scored this season.

Stellar Goalkeeping

The Champions League is not all about the goal scorers; the keepers that are playing in this season's tournament have pretty good resumes as well.

Starting with Iker Casillas and Victor Valdes, who are the top two keepers in the competition from Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Also to be considered one of the top keepers this year is newcomer Joe Hart from Manchester City, who has made some spectacular saves in his young career.

Julio Cesar from Inter and Bayern Munich's Manuel Neuer are also part of the five best keepers in the tournament.