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After three wins from three in the Premier League including a demolition job on Manchester United at Old Trafford, Tottenham have arguably never been in with a better chance of winning major silverware under Mauricio Pochettino. Ambitious as it may be, their targets will include success in the Champions League.

Last season’s foray into the knockout stages of the competition ended in hair-rending frustration when, having fought hard for a draw in Italy, Spurs lost to Juventus at Wembley and were dumped out at the Round of 16. If Tottenham are going to make it that far again – or indeed even further – they will first have to navigate the thorny maze of the group stage.

With the Champions League group stage draw now complete, here are the teams.

Group B in full

Barcelona

Tottenham

PSV Eindhoven

Inter Milan

Fixture schedule

18/19 September: Group stage, matchday one
2/3 October: Group stage, matchday two
23/24 October: Group stage, matchday three
6/7 November: Group stage, matchday four
27/28 November: Group stage, matchday five
11/12 December: Group stage, matchday six

(More information TBC)

The opponents

(More information TBC)

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With two errors from Loris Karius the difference between Champions League glory and heartbreak for Liverpool last term, Jurgen Klopp and co will have their sights set firmly on the greatest prize that European football has to offer this season.

That said, having dropped down into Pot 3 for the Champions League group stage draw after Benfica beat PAOK in qualifying on Wednesday evening – this owing to Uefa’s coefficient system – many speculated that Liverpool could end up in a ‘group of death’ before the draw was announced.

As it turns out, they were right. Liverpool may have been a whisker away from winning the competition in May, but they will have to pass several stern tests if they are going to get through the group at the expense of these teams.

Group C in full

Paris Saint-Germain

Napoli

Liverpool

Red Star Belgrade

Fixture schedule

18/19 September: Group stage, matchday one
2/3 October: Group stage, matchday two
23/24 October: Group stage, matchday three
6/7 November: Group stage, matchday four
27/28 November: Group stage, matchday five
11/12 December: Group stage, matchday six

(More information TBC)

The opponents

With Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani smashing goalscoring records in the group stage last season, PSG need no introduction. Winners of a domestic quadruple last term with 108 Ligue 1 goals to their name, watching their attack go up against Liverpool’s will be genuinely exhilarating.

Napoli were rated as one of the best sides in Europe last season, despite going out of the Champions League early and then ceding the Serie A title to Juventus late on. Now managed by Carlo Ancelloti rather than Maurizio Sarri, they have a canny European operator at the helm. Red Star Belgrade, meanwhile, are an unremarkable but hardy team.

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After an ugly start to their Premier League campaign which has seen Jose Mourinho’s relationship with the fans and club hierarchy fray down to a few strings of bare thread, the Champions League was meant to provide some relief for Manchester United.

Instead, the Champions League group stage draw has only added to their difficulties. They have been thrown into a group which, while not the definitive ‘group of death’, will nonetheless pose them serious problems.

Here are the teams.

Group H in full

Juventus

Manchester United

Valencia

Young Boys

Fixture schedule

18/19 September: Group stage, matchday one
2/3 October: Group stage, matchday two
23/24 October: Group stage, matchday three
6/7 November: Group stage, matchday four
27/28 November: Group stage, matchday five
11/12 December: Group stage, matchday six

(More information TBC)

The opponents

(More information TBC)

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Having stormed to the Premier League title last season and smashed numerous records along the way, the logical next step for Manchester City is to go all out for the Champions League.

Last season’s European exploits came to a premature and disappointing end against Liverpool, with the eventual finalists beating City emphatically home and away. This season, Pep Guardiola will be desperate for his side to reach the final and – going one better than Liverpool – emerge victorious.

First up, they have the knotty problem of the group stage to contend with. With the Champions League group stage draw done and dusted, here are the sides they will face in their bid to reach the knockouts.

Group F in full

Manchester City

Shakhtar Donetsk

Olympique Lyonnais

1899 Hoffenheim

Fixture schedule

18/19 September: Group stage, matchday one
2/3 October: Group stage, matchday two
23/24 October: Group stage, matchday three
6/7 November: Group stage, matchday four
27/28 November: Group stage, matchday five
11/12 December: Group stage, matchday six

(More information TBC)

The opponents

(More information TBC)

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The Premier League‘s four-strong contingent learn their Champions League fate at the group stage draw in Monaco on Thursday.

The first round of fixtures in this season’s competition will be played on Tuesday 17 September and Wednesday 18 September.

Atletico Madrid’s Wanda Metropolitano will be the venue for the final on Saturday 1 June 2019.

Here are the eight Champions League groups in full:

This page will be updated as the draw continues…

Group A: 

• Atletico Madrid

Group B:

• Barcelona

Group C:

• Paris Saint-Germain

Group D: 

• Lokomotiv Moscow

Group E:

• Bayern Munich

Group F: 

• Manchester City

Group G: 

• Real Madrid

Group H: 

• Juventus

Season calendar

18/19 September: Group stage, matchday one
2/3 October: Group stage, matchday two
23/24 October: Group stage, matchday three
6/7 November: Group stage, matchday four
27/28 November: Group stage, matchday five
11/12 December: Group stage, matchday six

17 December: Round of 16 draw
12/13/19/20 February: Round of 16, first leg
5/6/12/13 March: Round of 16, second leg
15 March: Quarter-final & semi-final draw
9/10 April: Quarter-finals, first leg
16/17 April: Quarter-finals, second leg
30 April/1 May: Semi-finals, first leg
7/8 May: Semi-finals, second leg

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More football

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While the thought of a third tier for European football may well horrify any fans who have watched their side slog through the turgid early stages of the Europa League, the prospect of a sub-Europa competition just got a whole lot more real.

According to Bild, at a meeting of football bureaucrats from across the continent ahead of the Champions League draw on Thursday evening, it was decided that a third tier of European football could be launched from 2021 onwards. The Associated Press reported way back in 2015 that another continental club competition was on the cards, and it seems that Uefa have taken the idea and are ready to run with it.

The new competition, currently without a name, would reportedly consist of 32 teams from smaller domestic leagues whose clubs rarely qualify for the Europa League group stages. The idea is that this would improve the quality of the Europa League, which would be reduced from 48 participant clubs to 32 rather than being increased to 64 as had previously been suggested.

Analysis

This would, in fairness, make the Europa League a lot more maneagable, even if the quality of football offered by a European third-tier will inevitably be called into question. The sheer number of fixtures involved, especially for teams who have to go through qualifying, has been one of the main complaints levelled at the Europa and has led some clubs to treat the competition as an unwanted burden.

Speaking to the AP back in 2015, Scottish Football Association chief executive Stewart Regan said that a new competition would also allow teams to “maintain European football throughout the autumn and perhaps into the new year”.

With considerable football fatigue among supporters already, that may not be a universally attractive selling point. If the new competition helps to make the Europa League a more enjoyable experience, however, it could well be a good thing.

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