Key player: Franck Ribéry
After pricing him beyond the budget of even Chelsea and Real Madrid, Bayern held on to their prize asset this summer only for Van Gaal to dilute his value by switching him into an uncomfortable central role. At his best the Frenchman has the speed, trickery and sheer unpredictability to torment any defence. Photograph: Joerg Koch/AFP/Getty Images
Key player: Diego
The Brazilian was brilliant in the Bundesliga for the last three years and winning the race to sign him from Werder Bremen was a coup. Juventus see him as the long-term replacement for Del Piero but hope, for one season at least, that the two can conjure together. Photograph: Massimo Pinca/AP
Key player: Yoann Gourcuff
This ingenious playmaker and scorer of breathtaking goals has such vision, strength and trickery that he has been compared to Zinedine Zidane - by Zidane himself. In a misjudgement that Carlos Ancelotti surely regrets, Milan last season lent him to Bordeaux, where his displays were so enchanting that the Italians spent the rest of the season pleading in vain with the French club not to take up their option to sign him permanently. Photograph: Bob Edme/AP
Key player: Vladimir Dvalishvili
Israeli league rules permit clubs to hire only five foreign players so they have to choose them wisely and Maccabi appear to have done so this summer by signing the Georgia international from Skonto Riga. It's early days but he averages almost a goal a game for his new club. Photograph: Ariel Schalit/AP
Key player: Dimitar Berbatov
With the midfield likely to contribute fewer goals than during Ronaldo's reign, the onus will be on the enigmatic Bulgarian to produce greater consistency than last season and forge a prolific partnership with Wayne Rooney. Photograph: John Peters/Man Utd via Getty Images
Key player: Alan Dzagenov
The 19-year-old was Russia's young player of the year in 2008 after excelling in a role just behind the striker Vagner Love. Zico has tried shifting him to the left to compensate for the loss of Zhirkov but that ploy has not yet worked. The player must adapt or the manager must adjust if CSKA are to progress. Photograph: Epsilon/Getty Images
Key player: Nihat Kahveci
After seven prolific seasons in La Liga, the striker returned this summer to the club at which his career began. Not yet 30, he is the main reason Besiktas are approaching their European campaign with optimism. Photograph: Murad Sezer /Reuters
Key player: Grafite
The striker was just another Brazilian journeyman until he exploded last season at Wolfsburg following an unremarkable stint at French side Le Mans. Unpredictable to defenders, he enjoys a fruitful understanding with striker-partner Dzeko and Wolfsburg were the only German side last season for whom two players scored more than 20 goals. Photograph: Vladimir Rys/Bongarts/Getty Images
Key player: Alexandre Pato
Exceptionally fast and wonderfully tricky, the 19-year-old appears to have everything he would need to become one of the game's greats. In tight games he is the player Milan will look to for something special. Photograph: Alberto Pellaschiar/AP
Key player: Pepe
The Portuguese centre-back is currently injured but once he returns should ensure that Madrid do not leak more goals than they score. Photograph: Matthew Childs /Action Images
Key player: Brandao
The 29-year-old Brazilian striker has decent technique but it is his enormous power, speed and tenacity that mark him out as exceptional. A nightmare for defenders and a dream for team-mates, 'The Beast', strangely still uncapped by Brazil, covers huge amounts of ground in matches and claims more assists than goals. Photograph: Gerard Julien/AFP/Getty Images
Key player: Johann Vonlanthen
Lost his way for a few years after being tipped for greatness as a teenager. Now 23, the striker is back in his homeland on loan from Red Bull Salzburg and already back among the goals. Photograph: Miro Kuzmanovic/Reuters
Key player: Didier Drogba
Nicolas Anelka and Salomon Kalou will be rotated according to opponents and venues, but Drogba will be a regular fixture. Has started the season in formidable form and will have to continue that either side of the African Nations Cup. Photograph: Mike Egerton/EMPICS Sport
Key player: Fernando
The 22-year-old Brazilian anchors the midfield alongside Portugal international Raul Meireles and keeps the team ticking over with relentlessly tidy passing. Photograph: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Key player: Sergio Agüero
The fiancé of Diego Maradona's daughter is a chip off the old block-in-law and keeping him at the club despite interest from a host of illustrious suitors was quite a feat. His ability to find holes in even the tightest defence may yet give those suitors cause to regret not pursuing him more vigorously. Photograph: Michael Regan/Getty Images
Key player: Konstantinos Charalambides
After unsuccessful spells abroad, including a fruitless trial at Cardiff City a couple of years ago, the Cyprus international has returned home and become a clever passer in the heart of Apoel's midfield. Photograph: Philippos Christou/AP
Key player: Fernando Torres
A thoroughly modern striker, as deadly in front of goal as he is dynamic all around the final third. As his club's only top class striker the Spaniard carries a heavy burden on the back of a hectic season which was bookended by Euro 2008 and the Confederations Cup. Photograph: Tony O'Brien/Action Images
Key player: Lisandro López
A £20m summer recruit from Porto, the Argentinian international has already helped the Lyon faithful forget Benzema. He blends a Carlos Tevez-like dynamism with immaculate dribbling and finishing, and is also a mean free-kick taker. Photograph: Thierry Roge/Reuters
Key player: Stevan Jovetic
A Montenegrin international for the past two years, the 19-year-old counts Manchester United and Real Madrid among his admirers and may provide the moments of magic that the team has lacked. Photograph: Claudio Villa/Getty Images
Key player: Leandro
The left-sided defender/midfielder won titles with Paranaense in Brazil before moving to Hungary seven years ago. Following naturalisation he has become a Hungary international and an importance influence on his club, both in defence and going forward. Photograph: Attila Kisbenedek/AFP/Getty Images
Key player: Andrés Iniesta
Identified by Wayne Rooney as the best player in the world, the diminutive midfielder's velvet touch, unerring passing and canny bursts enable him to both provide cohesion to his own team and unhinge opponents. Photograph: Darren Staples/Reuters
Key player: Wesley Sneijder
Inter have long lacked a playmaker to thread the disparate elements of the side together and the Dutchman was signed from Real Madrid this summer to address that failing. Photograph: Claudio Villa/Getty Images
Key player: Artem Milevskiy
The tall, dexterous forward has been described as the Ukranian Zlatan Ibrahimovich and that comparison seems apt not only because he has a wide repertoire of skills but also because he has a tendency to go Photograph: Ergey Dolzhenko /EPA
Key player: Sergei Semak
The club captain's career was presumed to be waning when he moved to Kazan last year but his excellence as a midfield anchor since joining has earned him an international recall. Now 33, he probably does not have much of a future with his country but remains pivotal to his club. Photograph: Getty Images
Key player: Álvaro Negredo
After somehow resisting the appeal of Hull, the striker left Real Madrid to become Sevilla's record signing and perhaps the solution to their goal-scoring problems. Photograph: Cristina Quicler/AFP/Getty Images
Key man: Kris Boyd
Specialist predators are a dying breed in modern football and accommodating this one is something many managers, including Smith, have been reluctant to do. But a side of limited creativity needs someone who can be relied upon to convert the few chances they muster and Boyd is usually that man. Photograph: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images
Key player: Pavel Pogrebnyak
Stuttgart bought the tall Russian to replace last season's top scorer Mario Gómez, who was lured away to Bayern Munich. The early indications are it was an astute investment, as the striker marked his first start with a powerful performance topped off with a fine goal. Photograph: TORSTEN SILZ/AFP/Getty Images
Key player: Antonio Semedo
Petrescu's success has been based on improving players who were unheralded elsewhere and he has high hopes of turning this Portuguese winger, who flopped at Steaua last year, into a vital attacking presence. Photograph: Daniel Mihailescu/AFP/Getty Images
Key player: Cesc Fábregas
Still only 22, the Spaniard is the linchpin of Arsène Wenger's team. His relentless accuracy allows them to monopolise possession for long periods, and, in more even matches, his eye for an incisive early pass is crucial for triggering counter-attacks. Photograph: Chris Ratcliffe/AFP/Getty Images
Key player: Moussa Dembele
A brilliant dribbler and fine finisher, the Belgian striker was instrumental in last season's title charge after returning from an early-season injury. Photograph: Ed Oudenaarden/AFP/Getty Images
Key player: Dudu
Since joining from CSKA Moscow last year the Brazilian has become the heart of the team's midfield. A tough tackler and energetic runner, he is as effective defensively as he is going forward, where his long-range shooting and excellent heading ability make him a threat. Photograph: Dumitru Doru/EPA
Key player: Stefan Defour
Already a regular in the national team, the 21-year-old captain is one of the best young players in Europe. A small frame contains huge dynamism and a wide repertoire of passes, and it is not hard to believe the Belgian rumours that he was the player with whom Rafael Benítez wanted to replace Xabi Alonso before he was priced out of a bid. Photograph: Yves Herman/Reuters
