The Champions League draw is later today and the potential for highly volatile ‘Groups of Death’ is everywhere especially with the very high possibility of the domestic champions of Spain, Italy, England and Germany/France being drawn in one group.
So let’s have a look at potential groups for our teams and how good or bad things could get.
The potential Group of Death everyone is talking about looks like this...
Real Madrid, Manchester City, Juventus, Borussia Dortmund...
...which would not suit City, especially after failing to advance from a similar group last season.
But the other English teams should not feel too comfortable despite sitting in pot one as the draw could throw them a similarly difficult challenge...
Chelsea/Manchester United/Arsenal, Valencia, Juventus, Borussia Dortmund.
Although they will hope a group will look a little more like this...
Chelsea/Manchester United/ Arsenal, Braga, Galatasaray, FC Nordsjaelland.
Whilst Manchester City will also hope to avoid Barcelona in their group draw with the pick of the Pot 1 sides perhaps being a draw against Porto.
Pot Two have dangerous sides in the form of Eastern powerhouses Shakhtar and Zenit; whilst Benfica are never pushovers.
Pot Three contains French spenders Paris Saint-Germain along with Italian champions Juventus.
And despite the obvious minnows in Pot Four the likes of the previously mentioned Borussia Dortmund, French champions Montpellier and Spanish club Malaga will provide stern opposition.
But with all this talk of a Group of Death what about the potential for a rather more easy group, as has happened in the past. Porto will be hoping so in a group that could look like this...
Porto, Schalke, Olympiakos, FC Nordsjaelland.
As for FC Nordsjaelland, BATE Borisov and Dinamo Zagreb; this is the sort of Group they will be hoping for to avoid early elimination as the competition minnows.
The draw takes place today at 5pm...
Who do you want to get, and who do you want to avoid?
image: © Jan S0L0
Mathew Nash
@hitcmathewnashGoogle+more stories from Mathew Nash
I’m Mathew Nash a 23 year old graduate in Sports Studies and I have an insatiable love for sport. With a particularly keen interest for the madcap world of football I have always been known amongst friends as a beacon for bizarre sporting trivia and knowledge. My other passion is for writing and hopefully combining the two will create a superb and entertaining marriage that will create, divide and share opinion.
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