Thursday, August 26, 2021
BVB in the CL draw in luck
Demanding lot for Bavaria, Leipzig caught group of death
The preliminary round groups for the new Champions League season are fixed – and RB Leipzig is clearly facing the most difficult task of the four Bundesliga clubs. While FC Bayern caught an attractive group, Borussia Dortmund also emerged as favorites from the UEFA draw.
FC Bayern Munich can expect a demanding but feasible group in the group stage of the Champions League. The German record champions meet in Group E against FC Barcelona, which is entering its first season after leaving club icon Lionel Messi. The other opponents are Benfica Lisbon and Dynamo Kiev. That was the result of the UEFA drawing in Istanbul.
“This is of course a different team without Messi. But they have good players in their ranks. It will be a nice duel,” said Bayern’s sports director Hasan Salihamidzic looking ahead to the duel with Barça. Benfica is “a traditional club, a well-known name and a really good club. That is an interesting task.” Kiev should not be “underestimated” either.
The most difficult draw, however, caught runner-up RB Leipzig. For the Saxons it is in Group A against the final losers of the past two years – Manchester City and Paris St. Germain. Both clubs have massively upgraded their squads this summer, the French landed the biggest coup with the signing of Messi. For City and PSG, the only thing that counts is the title, for Leipzig, given the seemingly overwhelming opponents, even making it to the round of 16 would be a huge success. The group is completed by Club Bruges from Belgium.
In comparison, Borussia Dortmund got a positive group. The Westphalia meet in Group C against Sporting Lisbon, Ajax Amsterdam and Besiktas Istanbul. “We can’t complain, it’s a very balanced group. We have a good chance of making it to the round of 16 once again,” said managing director Hans-Joachim Watzke.
The fourth German representative in the highest European club competition is VfL Wolfsburg, who have legitimate hopes for advancement. In Group G, Lower Saxony will face French champions OSC Lille, FC Sevilla and RB Salzburg.
Meanwhile, Group F has a special duel in store – in the preliminary round there will be a new edition of the most recent final of the Europa League between winners Villarreal and Manchester United. Atalanta Bergamo and German national player Robin Gosens will also face these two teams, as well as Swiss representative Young Boys Bern.
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