Monaco (AFP)
Group of death, dream poster or distant travels? Paris SG, Lyon and Lille, the three French clubs in the Champions League, will meet their opponents in the group stage on Thursday from 6 pm on the occasion of the draw by UEFA in Monaco.
. Paris and the ogre Real Madrid
Finally the return of the European Cup for PSG. After six months of squalor since the pitiful elimination in the last 16 against Manchester United, on March 6, the Paris club will finally be able to project on the 2020 edition with a spirit of revenge.
Thanks to its status of champion of France, it appears in the hat 1, that of the seeded heads. Which means he will not meet in the first round either the title holder of the event, Liverpool, nor the winner of the Europa League, Chelsea, nor the other cadors Manchester City, Barcelona, Bayern and Juventus, all crowned in their countries.
From there to ensure an easy draw? To see the list of potential opponents, like Real Madrid Zinedine Zidane, author of an incredible triplet in the event from 2016 to 2018, Atletico Madrid, winner of the Europa League 2018, or Tottenham, finalist last year, Thomas Tuchel's team is almost certain to find a big piece.
But who cares, the Parisians will aim again this year the first place of the group, supposed to offer a more favorable 8th finals. Even if last season a Manchester United badly in point and deprived of many holders had inflicted them an unimaginable "remontada" (defeat 2-0 in the first leg, victory 3-1 in return) ...
For that, they will have to make their debut in the European queen competition, whose first day is scheduled for September 17 and 18, without its formidable attacking trio "MCN". Kylian Mbappé and Edinson Cavani, injured against Toulouse on Sunday, will be absent for at least three weeks, while Neymar remains pending starting until September 2, the closing date of the summer transfer window.
. Heavy for Lyon and Lille?
If he stays in Paris, "Ney" will in any case be suspended for the first three days of the Champions League, because of his insults on social networks against the referee of PSG Manchester United.
Lyon and Lille, on the other hand, will be able to count on all their strengths, just like their recruits Thiago Mendes and Renato Sanches.
But their presence in other hats may expose them to a very difficult draw, including the 16 representatives of the four main European Championships. Especially since two representatives of the same country can not meet during the group stage.
Mathematically, this increases the chances of falling against a Spanish team (FC Barcelona, Real, Atletico, Valencia), England (Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham, Chelsea), Germany (Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen, RB Leipzig), or Italian (Juventus Turin, Naples, Inter Milan, Atalanta Bergamo). Often very heavy!
Beyond the French formations, the 2020 edition will be marked by the attempt to double Liverpool, who dreams of returning to Istanbul, host of the final, 15 years after his magical night in the Olympic Stadium Atatürk against AC Milan . But also by the return of Zidane on the bench in Madrid in his favorite competition, more than a year after his last triumph in Kiev.
In addition to Pep Guardiola's unfinished quest with Manchester City and Lionel Messi's long European scare with Barça, will Cristiano Ronaldo make a successful bid for Juventus? The best scorer in the history of the competition, who dreams of raising the "Cup with big ears" with a different third club, can count this time on a five-star workforce (Matthijs Ligt, Adrien Rabiot, Gianluigi Buffon, .. .) to achieve this.
Pot 1
Liverpool (ENG, defending champion)
Chelsea (ENG, winner of the Europa League)
Barcelona (ESP)
Manchester City (ENG)
Juventus (ITA)
Bayern (GER)
Paris SG (FRA)
Zenith St. Petersburg (RUS)
Other qualified teams (ranked according to the UEFA coefficient):
Real Madrid (ESP)
Atlético Madrid (ESP)
Borussia Dortmund (ALL)
Naples (ITA)
Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR)
Tottenham Hotspur (ANG)
Ajax Amsterdam (NED)
Benfica (POR)
Lyon (FRA)
Bayer Leverkusen (ALL)
Salzburg (AUT)
Olympiakos (GRE)
Club Bruges (BEL)
Valencia (ESP)
Inter Milan (ITA)
Dinamo Zagreb (CRO)
Moscow Lokomotiv (RUS)
Genk (BEL)
Galatasaray (TUR)
RB Leipzig (ALL)
Slavia Prague (CZE)
Red Star of Belgrade (SRB)
Atalanta Bergamo (ITA)
Lille (FRA)
© 2019 AFP