The return of the Champions League is looming, with a new continental campaign representing an opportunity for Liverpool to win their seventh European Cup.
After falling short in the 2018 final against Real Madrid, Jürgen Klopp’s “Reds” overcame that setback the following year and defeated Tottenham in the grand final to win the institution’s sixth European title.
In the last two seasons, however, Liverpool have lost to Atlético de Madrid in the round of 16 and Real Madrid in the quarter-finals.
Their priority this season will surely be to regain the Premier League title they lost to Manchester City last season, but Liverpool will also be motivated by Chelsea’s Champions League triumph in 2020/21, which came at the expense of the City in a totally English final.
Here’s everything you need to know about the 2021/22 Champions League group stage draw and who Liverpool could face.
When is?
The group stage draw will take place in Istanbul on Thursday, August 26 at 5pm BST.
How can I see it?
The governing body of European football, UEFA, will broadcast the draw live on its website.
In the UK, BT Sport will also broadcast the draw live on BT Sport 2 HD and the broadcaster’s site.
Drums for the draw
Pot one: Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Atlético de Madrid, Villarreal, Inter Milan, Sporting Lisbon, Lille.
Bombo dos: Real Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus, Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool, Sevilla, Borussia Dortmund.
Pot three: Porto, Ajax, RB Leipzig, Atalanta, Zenit Saint Petersburg.
Pot three or four: Shakhtar Donetsk or Monaco, RB Salzburg or Brondby, Benfica or PSV Eindhoven, Besiktas, Dynamo Kiev, Dinamo Zagreb or Sheriff Tiraspol.
Pot four: Bruges, Young Boys or Ferencvaros, AC Milan, Ludogorets or Malmo, Wolfsburg.
Who can Liverpool face?
Because they play in the same league, Liverpool cannot be paired with Chelsea or Manchester City.
In the same way, he cannot be paired against any team of the same hype so Manchester United, being also a Premier League team, is ruled out.
Pots three and four are not fully defined yet, due to the fact that there are still qualifying heats left for this week. Winners will enter pot three, while losers will fall into pot four.
You could argue that Liverpool’s toughest crossover would be something like: Bayern, Ajax, AC Milan. Meanwhile, your easiest possible draw could look more like: Sporting, Zenit, Bruges.
Read more: Hope Solo accuses Megan Rapinoe of bullying her teammates
How does the giveaway work?
The teams will be divided into four seeded pots. Pot 1 will be made up of the reigning champions of the tournament, Chelsea, the Europa League champion, Villareal and the champions of the six highest ranked nations as neither Chelsea nor Villarreal won their national leagues. Pots 2 to 4 will be determined by the club’s ranking coefficient.
No team may play against a team from its own national league. The drums will be confirmed before the draw ceremony begins.
Various prizes from the 2020/21 edition of the contest will also be awarded.
When is the Champions League group stage played?
Matchday 1: September 14/15
Matchday 2: September 28/29
Matchday 3: October 19/20
Matchday 4: 2/3 November
Matchday 5: 23/24 November
Matchday 6: December 7/8
Who are the favorites to win the competition?
PSG: 16/5
Chelsea: 1/9
Manchester City: 41/10
Bayern Munich: 41/5
–
