Celtic were today rewarded for their first ever qualification for the group stages of the Champions League by being pitted against Italian giants Juventus. Marcello Lippi’s men, bolstered by the summer recruitment of Lillian Thuram and Gianluigi Buffon, undoubtedly represent the strongest threat to Celtic, who can confidently claim to be at least the equal of other group members Porto and Rosenborg.
Liverpool are also making their first appearance in the tournament’s group stages and they face three tricky opponents in the form of Germany’s biggest spenders, Borussia Dortmund, Portuguese champions Boavista, and perennial participants, Dynamo Kyiv.
While Kyiv appear to be on the wane, Dortmund are intent on emulating their 1997 success in the Champions League and, having bought stars such as Jan Koller, Tomas Rosicky, and Amoruso, have begun their domestic season in devastating fashion. Odds on a 0-0 draw will be very short when Gerard Houllier's troops travel to the home of Boavista, whose great strength is their defensive stubbornness.
Manchester United have perhaps been handed the toughest task of the three English teams. Alex Ferguson’s final season in charge will see his side take on last year’s quarter-finalists Deportivo de la Coruna, plus Greek champions Olympiakos. They also must find a way past French upstarts Lille, who last night eliminated Parma. Vahid Halilodzic’s players finished third in the French first division last season, having just won promotion the previous season. Rigidly organised, and slick going forward, Lille are well capable of shocking the English champions.
Arsenal, meanwhile, will renew acquaintances with Real Mallorca, who they beat 2-0 in a pre-season friendly. Schalke 04 should prove less daunting opponents, since their confidence appears to have been shattered by the traumatic loss of the Bundesliga title in the final minute of last season. The trip to Panathinaikos will, however, be a lot less straight-forward.
Group A will probably pick up the inevitable "Group of Death" tag. It hosts the champions of Spain, Italy, and Belgium, as well as Russian runners-up Lokomotiv Moscow, who are already well into their domestic season. The full draw is:
The full draw is:
Group A:
Real Madrid
Roma
Lokomotiv Moscow
Anderlecht
Group B:
Liverpool
Borussia Dortmund
Dynamo Kyiv
Boavista
Group C:
Arsenal
Mallorca
Schalke 04
Panathinaikos
Group D:
Lazio
Galatasaray
PSV
Nantes
Group E:
Juventus
Porto
Rosenborg
Celtic
Group F:
Barcelona
Lyon
Leverkusen
Fenerbache
Group G:
Manchester United
Deportivo de la Coruna
Olympiakos
Lille
Group H:
Bayern Munich
Spartak Moscow
Feyenoord
Sparta Prague