They're too strong — Liverpool legend snubs Arsenal, names big favourites for UCL

McManaman, a two-time UCL winner, believes Arsenal will just miss out in the end, backing Barcelona and PSG as the two strongest sides.

Speaking on TNT Sports, McManaman said: “PSG are the favourites, of course, as they have won it for the last two years.

“I believe Barcelona are very strong; they have performed excellently in La Liga. They appear capable of scoring every time they advance, and they currently have six forwards, which is advantageous.

“They are certainly contenders, having improved from last year, so they will be in contention.”

Arsenal, who reached the final last season before losing to PSG on penalties, made a solid start to their campaign with a hard-fought 1-0 victory away at Napoli on Wednesday, Martin Odegaard scoring the decisive goal.

Despite their strong showing and continued investment under Mikel Arteta, McManaman did not include the Gunners among his top picks.

PSG underlined their credentials with a dominant 6-1 win over Slovan Bratislava in their opening group-stage match, while Barcelona signalled their intent with a 5-1 thrashing of Feyenoord.

That performance took Barcelona's tally to 22 goals in 5 games, making them comfortably the highest scoring team in Europe to start the season.