Europe’s top clubs learned their Champions League fate in Monaco on Thursday, August 24th, where the group draws for the 2017-18 competition was taken place.
Real Madrid, coming off a second straight Champions League triumph, faces a difficult road from the start, drawing Borussia Dortmund and Premier League side Tottenham in its group.
Barcelona and Juventus will renew acquaintances again in Group D, while Bayern Munich and PSG will go head-to-head in group play as well.
The 32 teams have been split into eight groups of four, with the opening stage commencing on September 12 and 13. From there, the top two finishers advance to the knockout stage, where two-legged ties are carried out until the one-off final in Ukraine’s capital city of Kiev on May 26, 2018.
Manchester United Boss, Jose Mourinho believes Benfica, Basel and CSKA Moscow pose a tough challenge for Manchester United in the Champions League.
Manchester United face a tough return to the Champions League this season after being drawn with Benfica, Basel and CSKA Moscow, according to Jose Mourinho.
United’s Europa League triumph in Stockholm in June secured their path to the group phase of Europe’s elite club competition for the first time since 2015.
The early Premier League pacesetters were placed in Group A during Thursday’s draw for this season’s competition, and Mourinho expects a difficult test to finish in the top two.
“I think it’s a dangerous group,” he told a media conference ahead of Saturday’s league clash with Leicester City.
“If you go to the recent history of United, United lost against Basel, United couldn’t beat Benfica in two matches, I think also against CSKA Moscow the last time was 0-0 or 1-0 or something.
“I know the three places, I never played against Benfica in the Champions League but of course, I know the dimension and the quality.
“I played a few times against CSKA, I played against Basel too, I know the places. It’s not going to be easy.”
Also at the event, UEFA handed out awards for its Women’s (Lieke Martens – Barcelona, Netherlands) and Men’s players of the year (Cristiano Ronaldo – Real Madrid, Portugal) in addition to its best players of the UCL season (Goalkeeper of the Season: Juventus’s Gianluigi Buffon; Defender of the Season: Real Madrid’s Sergio Ramos; Midfielder of the season: Real Madrid’s Luka Modric; Forward of the season: Ronaldo) and the President’s Award, which went to Roma legend Francesco Totti in honor of his exemplary, one-club career.
Anthony Nlebem
