It has to be only a matter of time until Paris Saint-Germain make their mark in the Champions League.

The French giants have won five of the last six Ligue 1 titles on offer, one of which they strolled to with a whopping 31-point margin over second-place Lyon.

Thomas Tuchel has hit the ground running at the Parc des Princes and boasts a perfect record five matches into his tenure.

It’s no less than we’ve come to expect from PSG since they were acquired by Qatar Sports Investments in 2011, but a strong start could more important this season than any other.

However, the Parisians haven’t yet replicated their domestic form on the European stage and it’s no doubt becoming a source of frustration for the club owners.

PSG fell at the round of 16 in both of the last two campaigns, and while there’s no shame in losing to Barcelona and Real Madrid as they did, the amount invested in the club demands otherwise.

Despite being in a tough group alongside Liverpool, Napoli and Red Star Belgrade, Dani Alves believes his side has what it takes to fulfil their ambitions this time around.

"To achieve the goal that this club wants is not so complicated," the Brazilian said, per Marca.

"But you need different things, to do different things, a different spirit, have a different mentality.

"This year I have a good feeling, things are improving here and they are doing well, there are things that are changing and people are understanding a bit of what this game is about."

WHO CAN STOP REAL MADRID?

Any club planning on winning the Champions League will likely have to deal with Real Madrid along the way.

Los Blancos are strong candidates to secure a fourth successive crown and, interestingly, Alves thinks the 13-time champions are actually even more dangerous without Cristiano Ronaldo.

"It's not going to be so easy against Madrid.

"I think that, contrary to what everybody else says, Madrid are more of a team without Cristiano, and now it's a little more difficult than it was before - at least because of how I see football and my concept of this game.

"Though it's obvious that him leaving is a brutal loss, Madrid are Madrid.”

It’s certainly an interesting take given Ronaldo’s 450 goals account for a huge portion of Madrid’s overall tally during his nine years in the Spanish capital.

But then again, some of his former teammates at the Santiago Bernabeu have echoed Alves’ claim about playing as more of a unit since he left for Juventus.

It seems the veteran full-back could well be onto something.

Are Madrid a better team without Ronaldo? Let us know what you think by leaving a comment.