UEFA Champions League Draw 2012/13 : Chelsea Face Juventus While Madrid Fights Off City And Dortmund

UEFA Champions League draw threw up a gamut of emotions with some clubs getting off easy while others facing an uphill battle. Former legends Dennis Law, George Weah, Ruud Gullit and Fabio Cannavaro graced the occasion and helped in forming the groups for this year’s Champions League. TheHardTackle presents an analysis of the draw.

The UCL Groups

Group A

FC PortoAi??(POR)

FC Dynamo KyivAi??(UKR)

Paris Saint-Germain FCAi??(FRA)

GNK Dinamo ZagrebAi??(CRO)

Group A can easily be called the ‘Dynamo‘ group, due to the presence of Dynamo Kyiv and Dinamo Zagreb.Portuguese champions Porto, who made it to the Europa League after finishing third in the group stages, will be looking to improve their performance this time around. However, the biggest talking point in this group will be presence of the big-money spenders – PSG. Paris Saint-Germain full-back Christophe Jallet was heard as saying : “It would have been tricky with some of the big fishes in this draw. We have avoided them. We can progress but beware of Porto; Portuguese clubs are tough for French ones. FC Porto are favourites, but we have a shot.” With PSG buying everything and everyone, there will be enormous pressure on them to qualify. However, their job will not be made any easier as they have to face Dinamo Zagreb, who went out in the group stages last year.

Group B

Arsenal FCAi??(ENG)

FC Schalke 04Ai??(GER)

Olympiacos FCAi??(GRE)

Montpellier HAi??rault SCAi??(FRA)

The champions from Greece and France – Olympiacos and Montpellier will have their hands full when they face the might of Arsenal and Schalke. Arsenal has lost quite a few players in this transfer window, yet they have a squad which on any given day can produce a world-class performance. Their exit from the Round of 16 last year hurt Wenger and he will be looking to make amends this time around. Schalke finished third after a frantic race for the Bundesliga title and after their disappointment last year, will throw everything they have at Olympiacos and Montpellier. For the French champions, this will be a whole new experience. Having pipped PSG to the title last year, Montpellier has been the talk of French football. Now it remains to be seen if they are as good as the press say they are.

Group C

AC MilanAi??(ITA)

FC Zenit St PetersburgAi??(RUS)

RSC AnderlechtAi??(BEL)

MA?laga CFAi??(ESP)

The Russian and Belgian champions meet the runners-up from Italy and a newcomer in group C. Milan were hoping for an easier draw and seemed to have got their wish. Zenit has been an excellent side over the last couple of years but were knocked out in the group stages last year. On the other hand, Anderlecht has qualified for the Champions League for the first time since 2006/07 season. Lukaku’s former club might find it difficult in this group where Milan and Zenit are expected to advance if everything goes according to plan. Newcomers MA?laga qualified for this year’s Champions League via play-off. Although little is expected from this club, they can turn out to be the surprise element in this group.

Group D

Real Madrid CFAi??(ESP)

Manchester City FC (ENG)

AFC AjaxAi??(NED)

Borussia Dortmund (GER)

Real Madrid_Jose Mourinho — Can he lead Madrid to glory this time?

This is undoubtedly the group of death for this year’s Champions League. No one in their wildest dreams would have imagined the four champions from Spain, England, Netherlands and Germany to share the same group. ‘D’ has become ‘Death’ for these teams. With such an array of exceptionally talented squads, there will not be a dull match in this group. Mourinho, having won the Champions League in Portugal and Italy is desperately looking to reclaim the trophy with Madrid. However, the rise of City over the past two seasons cannot be ignored just like that. They snatched the English Premier League in extra-time last year and have been a force ever since. The other teams in the group – Ajax and Dortmund have had an excellent 2011/12 season and will be looking to stop Madrid and City from running riot. It cannot be predicted who will top this group, but Mancini will be hoping with crossed fingers for his side not to self-destruct like last year. Champions League

Group E

Chelsea FCAi??(ENG)

FC Shakhtar DonetskAi??(UKR)

Juventus (ITA)

FC NordsjAi??llandAi??(DEN)

Chelsea enter group E as favorites alongside Juventus. With two league champions in the group – Shakhtar and Juventus, this might turn out to be the most open group of the draw. Chelsea has bolstered their squad this season and while Juventus too has spent a lot, they have not been able to match the wealth of Chelsea. Should the new players click at the Bridge, it will be difficult to stop the Londoners from progressing. Juventus returns to the big stage after a long time and this will test their squad to the limit. Newcomers NordsjAi??lland find themselves in a tough group and it should not come as a surprise if they get whacked by pretty much everyone else.

Group F

FC Bayern MA?nchenAi??(GER)

Valencia CFAi??(ESP)

LOSC LilleAi??(FRA)

FC BATE BorisovAi??(BLR)

A tasty draw in Group F, wherein on paper, Bayern and Valencia are the best bets to qualify to the knock-out rounds.Bayern tasted bitter defeat last year when they were defeated by a resurgent Chelsea side led by Didier Drogba. With the loss at the Allianz stadium fresh in their minds, Bayern begins their group stages looking to decimate one and all. Bate, the champions from Belarus, who knocked out in the group stages last year find themselves in a tough group having to contend with not only Valencia but also Bayern. Bayern sporting director Matthias Sammer was heard saying : “Itai??i??s a semi-tough draw. Our goal is clear – qualify for the next round as group winners. If we are in good shape, we will prevail. If we are not in good shape, we could run into problems. Valencia are a top club in Spain, we will have to prepare ourselves well.” Lille is likely to offer strong resistance at home and might turn out to be the group decider.

Group G

FC BarcelonaAi??(ESP)

SL BenficaAi??(POR)

FC Spartak MoskvaAi??(RUS)

Celtic FCAi??(SCO)

Three runners-up and the champions of Scotland forms group G. Barcelona failed to defend their Champions League crown last year and with a group like this, will have every opportunity to reclaim their position as the best team in Europe. However, to qualify, Barcelona has to travel all across Europe – from Portugal to Russia to Scotland. Celtic has qualified after a gap of 4 years and will be looking to fight it out for the second spot in the group. Benfica, who was knocked out in the quarter-finals last year, has the know-how on how to progress from such a group. However, Spartak Moskva cannot be ruled out so easily. The side from Russia dominated last season and they have every reason to believe that they can qualify for the knock-out stages. Neil Lennon, the Celtic manager was heard saying : “Delighted to be here. Barcelona are a real glamour club and the other two are huge teams in their own countries.“

Group H

Manchester United FCAi??(ENG)

SC BragaAi??(POR)

Galatasaray AAzAi??(TUR)

CFR 1907 ClujAi??(ROU)

This will be the 21st time Manchester United has qualified for the UEFA Champions League – a record in itself. In this group, they face Turkish champions Galatasaray and Romanian champions Cluj. The draw has been kind on United since now they have a realistic chance of qualification for the knock-out stages after being eliminated by Basel in the Group Stage last year. Braga, who finished third in Portugal last year will be dark horse and will look to cause all sorts of upsets. Barring any major mishap, United should top this group; however, who follows them into the second round will depend a lot on Braga. Nonetheless, Galatasaray looks like a formidable force in this group having qualified for the first time since 2006/07 season.