Pep Guardiola came through his first European test in August unscathed, successfully navigating the potentially awkward Champions League playoff with Romanian side Steaua Bucharest by recording a 6-0 aggregate win. The real adventure begins on Tuesday as Manchester City kickoff their group-stage campaign against German side Borussia Monchengladbach.
With Spanish giants Barcelona and Scottish champions Celtic also in Group C, it's crucial that City get off to a good start and Guardiola described the game as "more important than the Manchester Derby." City reached the semifinals of the Champions League last season under Manuel Pellegrini before being knocked out by Real Madrid.
It was the first season that they had made any real progress after failing to get beyond the round of 16 in the previous four seasons.