Barcelona playmaker Deco believes Manchester United are strong contenders to lift this season's Champions League trophy.
The Portuguese international is sure Sir Alex Ferguson's summer signings have done much to strengthen United's campaign to succeed in Europe's elite competition.
Deco also admits reigning champions AC Milan are always likely to be a threat, while he is intrigued to see how Arsenal's youngsters cope with a testing European campaign.
"United are strong," he told Champions magazine. "They have improved since last season with their new signings.
"AC Milan are always the same. They seem dead in the water, seem to be playing badly but in the final stages they become too strong. And Real Madrid signed pretty wisely in the summer.
"I am curious about Arsenal, to see if they can keep going until the end of the season. And we have to see what is to be of Chelsea."