Cédric Chasseur, with AFP 8:10 pm, August 26, 2021
The draw for the group stage of the Champions League was made on Thursday evening in Istanbul.
Paris Saint-Germain inherits a complicated group, where they will find Manchester City, Leipzig and Bruges.
For its part, Lille is doing well, with Sevilla FC, Salzburg and Wolfsburg.
Difficult for Paris Saint-Germain, more lenient for the reigning French champion Lille: the draw for the group stage of the Football Champions League, carried out Thursday evening in Istanbul, promises spectacle, suspense and a few beautiful posters.
PSG will notably find Manchester City, the last finalist of the competition, in Group A, while Losc will face Sevilla or Salzburg, for example.
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- UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) August 26, 2021
Revenge in the air
Placed in hat two, Paris Saint-Germain was spoiled for its entry into the competition. He will cross swords with Manchester City, champion of England, for a reunion, just a few months after the semi-final of C1 which opposed the two clubs, and won by the Citizens. This double confrontation will also be an opportunity for Lionel Messi, and Pep Guardiola, his former coach in Barcelona, now in England, to meet again. And it will be totally stunning if Cristiano Ronaldo signs in the coming days on the side of City, where the press announces it. This group A is completed by RB Leipzig, semi-finalist of the event in 2020 (then eliminated by PSG), and Club Bruges.
For its part, Lille was relatively spared by the draw.
The 2020/2021 French champion will face Spanish club Sevilla FC, fourth in Liga last season and winner of six Europa League since the turn of the century.
Arguably the toughest opponent in this group, also made up of Red Bull Salzburg and Wolfsburg.
A mess of shocks
In the other groups, FC Barcelona, orphan of his Argentinian star Lionel Messi, will not have an easy task in Group E. Faced with Bayern Munich, winner in 2020, the Catalans will have bad memories, a little more 'a year after their historic defeat, 8-2 against the "Rekordmeister".
Also in this pool are Benfica Lisbon and Dynamo Kiev.
For defending champion Chelsea, the main opponent will be Juventus Turin. With or without Cristiano Ronaldo, the Old Lady remains a candidate for the title that it will be necessary to rule out for the men of Thomas Tuchel. Present in Group H, Zenit Saint Petersburg and Malmö appear more affordable, suggesting one of the first two places for the two favorites.
Group B will also be the reunion, between Liverpool and Atlético Madrid, after the success of the "Colchoneros" in the knockout stages of the Champions League in 2019-20. Porto and AC Milan will try to blur the hierarchy in this very tough group. Revenge also in Group F, with the remake of the final of the last Europa League between Manchester United and Villarreal, where Atalanta Bergamo will play the role of referee. At the end of last season, the Spaniards defeated the English after an endless penalty shootout (1-1, 11-10 tab). Real Madrid, placed in the N.2 hat, inherited the Italian champions, Inter Milan, Shakhtar Donetsk and Sheriff Tiraspol. Finally, Sporting Lisbon, Dortmund, Ajax and Besiktas make up Group C.