Where is the upper limit for Champions League newcomer Paphos? Thirteen years ago, a dark horse reached the quarterfinals of the Champions League, also from Cyprus

There are four potential dark horses in the Champions League this season. Of course, it is not that other teams cannot become dark horses, but because these four teams have one thing in common - they are all teams that have been shortlisted for the Champions League for the first time in team history, that is, the Champions League newcomer.

San Giros United in Belgium, Bode in Norway shines, Paphos in Cyprus, Kerat in Kazakhstan. Just looking at the national team behind it, Belgium is first-class in Europe, Norway is second-class in Europe, while Cyprus and Kazakhstan may even be hard to do in Europe's third-class in Europe. In every World Cup and European Cup, they are bullied. Of course, Kazakhstan has improved recently, but the upper limit is not high. Specifically for the four new Champions League teams, San Giros United is the new Belgian king. In recent years, it has surpassed the veteran powerhouse Anderlecht. Their performance is indeed worth looking forward to. Bode Shine had proved himself in the Europa League last season. They reached the semi-finals and eliminated Lazio on the way. Paphos and Keilat seem to be the new army among the new army, and their strength may be the weakest among the top 36. Let's look at Paphos alone. This team is participating in the Champions League for the first time. Where is the ceiling? No one dares to say anything. Considering that they are going to play against Bayern, it seems that a big score is about to come out. But sometimes, the more weak the team looks, the more powerful it can burst out with. Paphos doesn't need to underestimate himself. As early as thirteen years ago, there was a dark horse that played Paphos. They reached the quarterfinals of the Champions League - that was their first time in the history of the Champions League. Moreover, like Paphos, they also came from Cyprus. Do you still remember the Greek competition in the Champions League season 11 to 12? The Greeks' competition is not the Greek Super League team, but the Cyprus team. Cyprus and Greece are closely linked, and it is not inconsistent to have such a club. At that time, Greeks actually won the top spot in the group, which was shocking. Although there are no top giants in the group, Porto, Zenit, and Donetsk miners are obviously more powerful than the Greeks and have more background in the Champions League. Just say that the chickens are pecking each other, but the Greeks are indeed the strongest chicken. What's even more awesome is that after the Greeks reached the top 16, they were not immediately beaten back to their original form as many people expected, and they actually eliminated Lyon. Although Lyon had already passed its peak at that time, his strength was definitely not comparable to Greeks' skills. Of course, the Greeks' competition was also a hit. They and Lyon each won 1:0 at home. In the end, the penalty shootout was the last laugh. It was not until they reached the quarterfinals that the Greeks' dark horse path to compete ended. They were crushed by Real Madrid 0:3, 2:5 in two rounds and finally stopped here. But as a Cyprus team, what else can you ask for to reach the Champions League quarterfinals? It is no exaggeration to say that since the reform of the Champions League, although there have been countless dark horses, and even more so, like Monaco and Porto, they met in the finals; but Greek competition may really be positioned as the biggest dark horse after the reform of the Champions League. Because, when evaluating, their origin must be taken into account. Greeks can give Paphos a similar match to the team of the same country in thirteen years. Perhaps, the Champions League quarterfinals are the upper limit of the Cyprus team. Of course, this requires extreme luck. Now, the Champions League adopts a new competition system, and there is no group stage, and it is replaced by a powerful melee of 36. If Paphos can grasp the four home courts well and get as many points as possible, it is not ruled out that they can reach the top 24. Of course, it’s still the same thing. Any miracle requires luck that is rare in a century.