Manchester City have been placed as favourites to win the Champions League, according to data experts - who also claim rivals United have less than one per cent chance of lifting the trophy.
The knockout stages for the competition begin this week with the round of 16 commencing on Tuesday night and data group FiveThirtyEight have come up with their own formula to work out who will be champions in May.
The group claims United are not favourites to win their first knockout round tie with Atletico Madrid, which starts next week, but their journey to the Saint Petersburg final has little chance of even if Ralf Rangnick's side do progress to the quarter-finals.
Pep Guardiola's City, who were beaten finalists in last year's final against Chelsea, have a 25 per cent chance of going one step further this season, according to the data.
The Premier League leaders face Sporting Lisbon in the last-16 first-leg on Tuesday, with the data group claiming City have a 92 per cent chance of progressing to the next round.
Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool, who face Inter Milan in their last-16 clash which starts on Wednesday, are deemed as third favourites with a 15 per cent chance of winning the Champions League, with German giants Bayern Munich behind City in the data tally.
Meanwhile, Dutch giants Ajax - who face Benfica in the first knockout round - are a surprise pick for fourth favourites, even though they have not won the competition since 1995.
The closest Ajax have come to appearing in a Champions League final is when they reached the last four in 2019, losing to that year's beaten finalists Tottenham, but they have a 26 per cent chance of completing that accomplishment this term.
Ajax's 13 per cent chance of winning the trophy puts them ahead of reigning champions Chelsea, Lionel Messi's PSG and 13-time winners Real Madrid. Erik ten Hag's side have the competition's top scorer in their squad in Sebastian Haller.
Thomas Tuchel's Chelsea went all the way last season but the data predicts it has less than a 50 per cent chance of reaching the semi-final stage, even though they are 90 per cent likely to beat Lille and reach the quarter-finals.
Liverpool also are not backed to reach the last four this season, with a 46 per cent chance they will not make that stage, with only City and Bayern Munich odds-on to get to the last four.
Real Madrid and PSG are less than 75 per cent likely to make it to that same stage, though both teams - who are top of their respective divisions in Spain and France, play each other in the last-16 stage of the competition.
And alongside Rangnick's United, the only other teams with a less than one per cent chance of winning Europe's premier club competition are Juventus, Red Bull Salzburg, Benfica, Sporting Lisbon and Lille.