Who Won the Champions League Draw?

The football gods smile upon Manchester but aren’t so kind to Europe’s biggest cities

Brandon Anderson
Aug 24, 2017 · 9 min read

Group A — Typical United

Benfica, Manchester United, Basel, CSKA Moscow

The last time Manchester United made Champions League two years ago, their group draw included PSV, Wolfsburg, and CSKA Moscow. The year before that it was Galatasaray, Cluj, and Braga. Before that was Benfica ,Basel, and Otelul Galati in 2011; Rangers, Valencia, Bursaspor in 2010; Besiktas, Wolfsburg, CSKA Moscow in 2009; Villarreal, Aalborg, Celtic in 2008… listen you get the point. Manchester United’s draws are a complete joke.

Winner & runner-up: Manchester United & Benfica

Group B — Two Slightly Overrated Giants

Bayern Munich, Paris St Germain, Anderlecht, Celtic

Munich and Paris will battle, and it will be glorious. Both teams come into the year a little overrated. Bayern are slowly going backwards in European football. After finally winning the Champions League in 2013, they went out in the semifinals three straight years before crashing out in last year’s quarterfinals. PSG seems to be moving in the other direction, especially now that they’ve signed Neymar. Both of these clubs will be looking to make an early statement in a couple Whose Is Bigger games.

Winner & runner-up: Bayern & PSG

Group C — Low Key the Most Interesting Group

Chelsea, Atletico Madrid, Roma, Qarabag

This is probably the hardest group to predict. Chelsea dominated in England last year but are off to a questionable start and failed to reinforce their squad much over the summer. There are some Antonio Conte questions already, and maybe there should be for a man who is running his same 11 into the ground. Will Chelsea be able to manage a war on two fronts now that they’re back in Europe?

Winner & runner-up: Atletico Madrid & Roma

Group D — Two Familiar Giants

Juventus, Barcelona, Olympiakos, Sporting

Barcelona and Juve are quite familiar with one another of late. The two met in the 2015 final with Barcelona notching a 3–1 victory, but Juventus got their revenge with a dominant 3–0 win across two legs this spring as Barcelona was eliminated in the quarterfinals.

Winner & runner-up: Juventus & Barcelona

Group E — Welcome Back Liverpool

Spartak Moscow, Sevilla, Liverpool, Maribor

Liverpool opened up a can on Hoffenheim the last two weeks to coast into the group stage, a Champions League level they haven’t escaped since 2009. If that streak extends another year, something has gone horribly wrong. This is the weakest draw in the draft with a bottom two team from both of the top two pots of teams, and the Reds are in perfect position to benefit. Sadio Mane and Mo Salah should dominate on the wings, with or without Philippe Coutinho. Liverpool could not have asked for a kinder draw, and they’ll have revenge on their mind when they face Sevilla after a 3–1 loss in the Europa final in 2016.

Winner & runner-up: Sevilla & Liverpool

Group F — Lots of Open Entertaining Soccer

Shakhtar Donetsk, Manchester City, Napoli, Feyonoord

As a City fan myself after years of group draw frustration, I couldn’t be happier with this one. City are a heavy favorite to win this group after spending the summer buying 17 fullbacks and half of Monaco. Guardiola’s boys love to attack, and you won’t find any dominant defenses here so the goals should pour in. City and Napoli play some of the most entertaining and exciting football in Europe, and Shaktar are always a tough, underrated club who will punish one of these teams for overlooking them. Expect goals in Group F.

Winner & runner-up: Manchester City & Napoli

Group G — Everyone’s Favorite Draw Next Round

Monaco, Porto, Besiktas, Leipzig

You’re not going to get many of these games on TV, which is actually a shame because there should be some entertaining football here… even if it feels a lot more like a Europa quarterfinal group than Champions League football.

Winner & runner-up: Monaco & Besiktas

Group H — THE GROUP OF DEATH

Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Tottenham Hotspur, Apoel

Oh, Spurs. Poor, poor Spurs. Liverpool got Spartak and Maribor, and Spurs got this. Tottenham is loaded and might have the best starting 11 in the Premier League but may not have the depth to compete in Europe. Looks like we’re not going to find out this season since Spurs are far outclassed in this group.

Winner & runner-up: Borussia Dortmund & Real Madrid

The Unprofessionals

Relentlessly honest opinions on all things sports and entertainment.

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Brandon Anderson

Written by

Sports, TV, NBA, NFL, culture. Words at SI's Cauldron, Grandstand Central, others @wheatonbrando ✞

The Unprofessionals

Relentlessly honest opinions on all things sports and entertainment.

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