Champions League 2017-18 season is all set to start, with the group phase draw in Nyon held yesterday. The draw saw some teams getting handed tough group, while others were lucky and avoided tough opponents. So let us take a look.
Group A: Benfica, Manchester United, FC Basel, CSKA Moscow
One of the teams that had it easy is certainly Man Utd. Mourinho’s boys shouldn’t have thought time nabbing the first place, while Benfica and CSKA will eye for the second. Although Basel has a quality team, their fans shouldn’t get high hopes.
Group B: Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain, Anderlecht, Celtic
Bayern and PSG are clear favorites in this group, while Celtic proved last year that it can provide major problems for the bigger teams holding Man City to a draw in both of the clashes.
Group C: Chelsea, Atletico Madrid, Roma, FK Qarabag
This is the group you want to follow closely. Chelsea, Atletico Madrid, and Roma all have high ambitions, but there are only two places that lead out of the group stage. One of these teams will have to be content with Europa League. Quarabag, on the other hand, will look to make the life tougher for all of them and try to go down fighting.
Group D: Juventus, Barcelona, Olympiakos, Sporting CP
This group will offer us once again a duel between Juventus and Barcelona after they clashed in the last season’s semi finals. These two teams will most certainly nab the first 2 positions while Olympiacos and Sporting will have their eyes on the 3rd place which would lead them to Europa League.
Group E: Spartak Moscow, Sevilla, Liverpool, NK Maribor
Liverpool was handed an easy group in which their only true contender will be Sevilla.
Group F: Shakhtar Donetsk, Manchester City, Napoli, Feyenoord
Although Manchester City and Napoli will want nothing short of advancing to the next stage, Shakhtar proved many times it can be a hard nut to crack.
Group G: Monaco, FC Porto, Besiktas, RB Leipzig
Although Monaco and Porto could be viewed as slight favorites, this group could see any of the 4 teams claiming the top spot.
Group H: Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Tottenham, APOEL Nicosia
Another tough group sees Real Madrid face Borussia Dortmund and Tottenham as challengers for the top spot in Group H. After destroying Barcelona in Spanish Super Cup, we are sure these teams will not provide a challenge enough for the reigning champions. Borussia Dortmund and Tottenham matchups will provide the second passenger for the next phase, while APOEL will be a bystander this season.
