Yahoo Sports Champions League: Who can Manchester United face in group stage?
Manchester United came agonisingly close to securing European silverware last season, only to lose a dramatic penalty shootout 11-10 against Villarreal in the Europa League final.
United’s run to that match followed the Premier League club’s group-stage elimination from the Champions League, where they had been drawn with Paris Saint-Germain, RB Leipzig and Istanbul Basaksehir.
FOLLOW LIVE: Champions League draw takes place as Premier League clubs learn opponents
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side beat PSG 2-1, demolished Leipzig 5-0 and thrashed Istanbul 4-1 along the way, but a shock away defeat by Istanbul and a loss to PSG at Old Trafford left United needing a result against Leipzig in their final group game – a game the Red Devils lost 3-2 to exit the tournament.
Although they came up short in the Europa League final, United secured their spot in this season’s Champions League with a second-placed Premier League finish behind rivals Man City.
Here’s everything you need to know about the 2021/22 Champions League group-stage draw and who United could face.
When is it?
The draw for the group stage will take place in Istanbul on Thursday 26 August at 5pm BST.
How can I watch it?
European football governing body Uefa will stream the draw live on their website.
In the UK, BT Sport will also air the draw live on BT Sport 2 HD and the broadcaster’s site.
Group-stage draw pots
Pot one: Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Atlético de Madrid, Villarreal, Inter Milan, Sporting, Lille
Pot two: Real Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus, Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool, Sevilla, Borussia Dortmund
Pot three: Porto, Ajax, Leipzig, Atalanta, Zenit Saint Petersburg, Benfica, Shakhtar, Salzburg
Pot four: Brugge, Young Boys, AC Milan, Malmo, Wolfsburg, Sheriff Tiraspol, Besiktas, Dynamo Kiev
Who can Man United draw?
Due to playing in the same league, United cannot draw Chelsea or Man City from pot one.
They cannot play any teams from their own pot, and Liverpool would have been ruled out anyway due to being another Premier League club.
It could be argued that United’s toughest draw would be something like: Bayern, Ajax, AC Milan. Meanwhile, their easiest possible draw might look more like: Sporting, Zenit, Sheriff.
How does the draw work?
The teams will be split into four seeding pots. Pot 1 will be made up of the holders (Chelsea), the Europa League winners (Villarreal) and the champions of the six highest-ranked nations – given neither Chelsea nor Villarreal won their domestic leagues. Pots 2 to 4 will be determined by club coefficient rankings.
No team can play a side from their own domestic league. The pots will be confirmed before the draw ceremony begins.
A number of awards from the 2020/21 edition of the competition will also be handed out.
When does the Champions League group stage take place?
Matchday 1: 14/15 September
Matchday 2: 28/29 September
Matchday 3: 19/20 October
Matchday 4: 2/3 November
Matchday 5: 23/24 November
Matchday 6: 7/8 December
Who are the favourites to win the competition?
PSG: 16/5
Chelsea: 9/1
Man City: 41/10
Bayern Munich: 41/5
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