It’s fair to say that FC Bayern haven’t enjoyed a particularly good start to their season. A loss to Borussia Monchengladbach, followed by a last minute win against Wolfsburg, the 2009/10 finalists couldn’t have dreamed of a less impressive preparation for a tough tie that could make or break their season.

A series of niggling injuries hampered their ability to build on their 09/10 successes and almost everyone will be expecting them to qualify for the latter stages of the competition, let alone the Group Stage. There is no doubting the fact that Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben will be intrinsic in any success they might enjoy this season. However, both players continue to suffer from a mixture of overconfidence and lack of fitness. The fear any sane Bayern fan will have is that their side will underestimate their opposition and expect the win without putting the effort in, something which can lead to disastrous consequences in knock-out football.

FC Zurich are exactly the kind of side that FC Bayern would underestimate. They finished second in last season’s Swiss Super League, but are more than capable of mixing it with the big boys, as they proved in 09/10. Their last appearance in the Champions League Group Stages saw them hold Milan to a draw and limit Real Madrid to a meagre 1-0 victory.

That said, their fans have got to be realistic and whilst a win over Bayern might be a dream come true it seems unlikely that they will be able to keep the wolf from the door for a full 180 minutes. They made hard work of Standard Liege in the Third Qualifying round, winning just 2-1 on aggregate and chances of progression will rely on them performing above ability, just as much as Bayern performing below ability.

Malmo enjoyed a lot of publicity in the UK when they humbled Ally McCoist’s Rangers side in the Second Qualifying Round. Rangers were big favourites for the tie and some bookmakers were giving odds of over 9/1 for Malmo to progress. It’s difficult to say whether those odds were overestimating Rangers or underestimating Malmo, perhaps a little of both.

The former European contenders finished runners up in the 1979 final of the European Cup, however their league form, never-mind European form, has been poor in recent seasons and this is their first season competing in Europe for five years. Winning their domestic title last term is a step in the right direction and their state of the art Swedbank Stadion deserves to host the European elite.

Dinamo Zagreb won their sixth Championship in a row last season and did so with an amazing seventeen point advantage over their nearest rivals Hadjuk Split. Despite their domestic success they have continued to struggle in Europe. It’s a full twelve years since they last qualified for the Group Stages, falling during preliminary qualifying rounds on five occasions during that time.

Wins against Azerbaijan’s Neftchi Baku and Finland’s HJK Helsinki have done much to steady Croatian nerves going into this must win tie. A draw away from home to Neftchi did raise a few eyebrows amongst the Modri faithful. I for one would love to see Dinamo in the Group Stage. Casting my eye over the next wave of talent likely to pass through their doors and onto the world stage; the Champions League is the perfect shop window for them.

Israeli team versus Belgian team and you would expect to know which way this tie is likely to go but predict the obvious at your peril. Maccabi Haifa are aiming for their third appearance in the Group Stages, the first Israeli side to qualify for the Champions League proper and their fans will be expecting a repeat of 2009-10 when they hosted the likes of Bayern Munich and Juventus.

That European season didn’t end well for The Greens, on the receiving end of defeats in all six of their group games, but it’s the experience and prestige that matters. Good wins over decent opposition in Slovenia’s NK Maribor and Bosnia’s Borac Banja Luka in the earlier rounds have given them a good standing to build on and they are bound to push Genk all the way.

Last season’s Jupiler League champions, Genk, are aiming to make a first appearance in the Group Stages since the 02/03 season. Their performances in Europe since then have been nothing short of woeful. They’ve failed to progress past the Play Off stage of either competition on no less than five different occasions, including a 7-2 humbling to Andre Villas-Boas’ Porto side last year.

They were drawn against very capable opposition in the Third Qualifying round, navigating past Serbian side Partizan Belgrade, which they did without much fuss. However, the big concern for the club and the fans is the fact they are currently without a manager. Franky Vercauteren, the man who masterminded last season’s title success moved on earlier this month.

Odense BK stunned Greek giants Panathinaikos in the Third Qualification round, storming to a 5-4 aggregate win, including a 4-3 away win in Greece. Perennial runners up in their home country, they have benefitted from Denmark’s jump in co-efficients. Thanks largely to FC Copehagen’s wonderful performance last season, second place in the Danish league has been given a chance to progress via qualification rounds.

English fans will recognise Eric Djemba-Djemba as that infamous Alex Ferguson signing who was rumoured to be so bad that they named him twice and Bernard Mendy who enjoyed spells with Bolton Wanderers and Hull City. The fans had a taste of minimal European success when they qualified for the Europa League Group Stage last season and that experience should stand the team in good stead and whatever happens over the next two games they are bound to be delighted to be guaranteed European football heading into Autumn and Winter.

Villarreal’s European experience and pedigree couldn’t be in starker contrast to Odense’s. Champions League Semi Finalists in the 2006 and Europa League Semi Finalists in 2004 and 2011, not to mention a La Liga runner up spot in 2008 they have become something of a household name around Europe in recent times and will be considered potential Knockout Stage participants, nevermind Group Stage participants.

They lost Santi Carzola to the Qatari millions of Malaga, but otherwise they have managed to go another transfer window without losing any of their star players and have strengthened in key areas. Holding on to players like Giuseppe Rossi, Nilmar and Marcos Senna might be considered something of a coup, especially considering so many big European sides were rumoured to be interested in them. In Christian Zapata they have signed one of Europe’s most talked about central defenders and he will go some way towards strengthening the one area of the team that has obviously needed strengthening in recent seasons.

Wisla Krakow don’t need a reason to be annoyed with their rivals in the Ekstraklasa. The league has suffered from a lot of negative press in recent times and the fans in particular are fast becoming notorious for all the wrong reasons. Perhaps it’s jealousy in Wisla’s case? The side has failed to qualify for the Group Stages on eight occasions to date, meanwhile their biggest rivals have enjoyed a place alongside the big boys. Could this season be the one in which they match their foes?

They came mighty close in 2008 when they managed a shock 1-0 victory over Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona side during qualifying, falling short after a 4-1 loss in the return leg. This year they made light work of Latvia’s Skonto FC and Bulgaria’s Litex Lovec and given what stands in their way this evening, you have to say that this is a golden opportunity to achieve what has eluded them for so long.

Ivan Jovanovic’s Apoel Nicosia side are hoping to make the Group Stages for the second time in three seasons. In 09/10 they welcomed the likes of Atletico Madrid, Chelsea and Porto to the GSP Stadium and managed an impressive three draws on their way to finishing bottom of the group.

Having sampled the big time their fans will be desperate for more and wins against Skënderbeu Korçë of Albania and Slovan Bratislava of Slovakia mean that they are just 180 minutes away from reliving those dreams. Their merry band of foreign journeymen will be more than ready to help them along their way, their squad includes no less than sixteen non Cypriot players.