From the World Cup to the Champions League, from the Ballon d'Or to the Golden Boot, it's going to be an epic year in the world of football
Germany to become world champions… again
International football can be tough to predict because teams are generally hostage to whatever talent is available to their managers. Plus, World Cup final tournaments are so short that luck can make all the difference.
But if Germany were to win it all in Russia it would be the logical culmination of their work since winning it in 2014.
Their shadow squad won the Confederations Cup with the first team on holiday last summer and their under-21s are also continental champions. They are so stacked with options and Joachim Low so canny and at ease with his system that Germany are a long, long way ahead of the chasing pack.
AdvertisementNapoli to end Juve's winning run
This season Marek Hamsik became the only player to score more goals for Napoli than Diego Maradona. And later on in 2018 the captain could lead them to their first title since the glory days of the late 1980s.
Serie A is the only title race worth watching given the gaps in the other elite European leagues and Napoli are looking to hold off challenges from six-time consecutive champions Juventus, Inter and Roma.
Their football under Maurizio Sarri has been bountiful and there is no reason to think that this couldn’t be the year the hoodoo ends.
GettyGet ready for Pep's Quad Squad
The records are already tumbling for Pep Guardiola and Manchester City. They’ve long since eclipsed the record for the best-ever start to a Premier League season and, with their draw against Crystal Palace, they have equalled the biggest-ever lead at the end of a calendar year in a season.
City have won 20 of their 22 league matches thus far and vanquished all of their top-six opponents along the way. It’s impossible to see where City are going to slip up. You would assume that they might be forced into a bad result on a day when they’re not at their best but under Pep there is no chance of that.
Add to that their form in domestic cups. It’s no exaggeration to say that Pep – who has tamed the Premier League – could well be the first man to coach a team to a domestic treble and maybe even a quadruple overall.
It is shaping up to be a surprisingly open field for the Champions League. There is no one outstanding candidate to take the title with most of the top teams suffering some stuttering form at one time or another.
Barcelona – despite their imperious form – might well be more vulnerable than they were in their peak years while defending champions Real Madrid are facing a tricky two-legged tie against Paris St-Germain.
Bayern Munich meanwhile are undergoing a season of transition. It all means that – perhaps – a new name could be etched on the trophy. Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani are powerful in the PSG frontline but Pep’s City loom over the lot.
He has got their identity clear both at home and in Europe and there doesn’t appear to be a better-equipped side for the ultimately glory.
Miguel RiopaCould we see a new name on the Ballon d'Or?
Let’s leave Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to one side for a second and pretend there is another player in the running for the Ballon d’Or.
It’s a World Cup year and therefore the possibility of one of the top players in the winning team being crowned the best player in the world grows.
If Germany do indeed go all the way then maybe Toni Kroos might be rewarded for his consistency. Joshua Kimmich might cap his dizzying rise with the top individual honour.
It would be a long shot for any Manchester City player to go all the way even if they end up dominating the lot but depending on Belgium’s performance in Russia then Kevin De Bruyne could be an outside shot.
Neymar will also be up there while Harry Kane’s relentless consistency will be hard to ignore if he matches his 2017 output this year.