Man City will discover their Champions League league phase opponentsplaceholder image
Man City will discover their Champions League league phase opponents | AFP via Getty Images
Manchester City are involved in the Champions League draw on Thursday and this is who they could face.
Manchester City will hope for an improved showing in the Champions League this season as they wait to discover their opponents for the revamped league stage of the competition.
Pep Guardiola's side finished a staggering 22nd in the Champions League league phase last season and were knocked out of the competition by Real Madrid in a play-off round. City will hope their new look side can enjoy a huge improvement in Europe, but the weekend defeat to Tottenham suggests they are still very much a work in progress.
Each team will play eight different fixtures, four at home and four away, and the top eight teams will automatically progress into the round of 16. Teams in ninth place through to 24th must compete in the play-offs to determine the final eight places. The Blues will discover their eight opponents when the draw is made on Thursday evening, and here is a look at the best and worst-case scenarios.
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Man City potential Champions League opponents
Champions League rules state clubs cannot face opponents from the same country and they can only be drawn against a maximum of two teams from another association. It means City will not be able to face any of the other Premier League sides in the league phase of the competition, while they could only face two of the five La Liga sides that have qualified.
Every team will face two sides from each of the four pots, which means City are certain to have two mammoth matches in the league phase, and a couple that should be a lot more favourable.
Pot 1: PSG, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Inter, Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona
Pot 2: Bayer Leverkusen, Atletico Madrid, Benfica, Atalanta, Villarreal, Juventus, Eintracht Frankfurt, Club Brugge
Pot 3: PSV, Ajax, Napoli, Sporting CP, Olympiacos, Slavia Praha, Bodo/Glimt, Marseille
Pot 4: Copenhagen, Monaco, Galatasaray, Union SG, Qarabag, Athletic Club, Pafos, Kairat Almaty
Man City dream Champions League draw
Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund, Frankfurt, Club Brugge, Slavia Praha, Bodo/Glimt, Kairat Almaty, Pafos.
In a dream scenario, Inter Milan and Borussia Dortmund would appear to be the two weakest options to face from Pot 1, though even then, they are the respective runners-up from the previous two iterations of the competition. Frankfurt and Club Brugge are two of the weaker clubs from Pot 2, while Slavia Praha and Bodo/Glimt stand out from Pot 3.
City should really fancy their chances against any of the Pot 4 sides, with Kairat Almaty and Pafos both debutants in the competition this season. As aware Bodo/Glimt, for that matter.
Man City nightmare Champions League draw
PSG, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Juventus, Napoli, Marseille, Galatasaray, Qarabag.
In a nightmare scenario, Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona would be the two teams to avoid from Pot 1, though Real Madrid and Bayern Munich don’t sound much better either. There are a couple of big-hitters in Pot 2 as well, with Atletico Madrid and Juventus both seasoned veterans of the Champions League.
Napoli are the standout team from Pot 3 after their Serie A victory last season and the summer signing of Kevin de Bruyne, with Marseille another side that has reinforced their squad well in the transfer window. Galatasaray and Monaco look to be the toughest opponents in Pot 4, though Qarabag and Kairat Almaty would be tricky opponents if they are drawn as away matches.
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