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Paris SG, finalists of the last Champions League, will face Manchester United again in the group stage of the 2020-21 edition, while Marseille will meet Manchester City, according to the draw made Thursday in Geneva. Lionel Messi’s FC Barcelona will face Juventus Turin.
Paris SG, finalist of the last Champions League, will find Manchester United, their executioner of the round of 16 in 2019, in the group stage of the 2020-21 edition, according to the draw made on Thursday 1is October in Geneva.
Neymar and Kylian Mbappé’s team did not fall on FC Barcelona, but on Manchester United, whose last visit to the Parc des Princes, in March 2019, had been a nightmare for him.
In 8is of final return, a penalty in the stoppage time of Marcus Rashford (3-1) had offered a miraculous qualification to the “Red Devils”, beaten 2-0 in the first leg, and covered with humiliation the Parisians. PSG-Manchester United is also the return of the Blues Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial to their region of origin.
Reunion with RB Leipzig
His second opponent, RB Leipzig, evokes much better memories for coach Thomas Tuchel: it is the team he had swept away in the semi-final in August (3-0) in Lisbon. The Germans, where former Parisian Christopher Nkunku and French international Dayot Upamecano play, have a quick opportunity to get their revenge.
The last team in Group H, Istanbul Basaksehir, are new to the competition, but the club, known for their closeness to President Erdogan, won the last edition of the Turkish league.
Dense groups for OM and Rennes
Marseille will also have the right to matches of high emotional value in Group C: against FC Porto, the club at the heart of its coach André Villas-Boas, or Manchester City, where its former defender Benjamin Mendy plays.
OM can hope to grab a place for the 8is, behind that promised to the “Citizens” of Pep Guardiola, but he will also have to beat the Greeks of Olympiakos Piraeus, of his former playmaker Mathieu Valbuena.
Rennes, for its first participation, also feared the worst. But he inherited one of the most affordable seeds, Europa League winners Sevilla FC, as well as another novice, the Russians in Krasnodar.
Chelsea is, on paper, its most solid opponent, especially as the “Blues” managed a full transfer window, recruiting striker Timo Werner, former PSG captain Thiago Silva … as well as the former – Rennes goalkeeper Édouard Mendy.
The Barça – Juventus shock
Lionel Messi’s FC Barcelona, in search of redemption in the Champions League, will face Cristiano Ronaldo’s Juventus Turin during a shock rich in Ballons d’Or.
The group G poster between the teammates of Messi, six times Ballon d’Or, and the partners of Ronaldo, five times winner of the prestigious individual trophy, is one of the main shocks of the draw made in Geneva, with also a confrontation between holding Bayern Munich and Atlético Madrid (group A).
The schedule of meetings will be unveiled on Friday. The first day of the group stage is scheduled for October 20-21.
With AFP
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