The wait is finally over. The draw for the UEFA Champions League group stage was made in Monaco on Thursday evening. The four German sides come away with mixed feelings after being placed in either very tricky or favourable groups.
The record champions Bayern Munich – competing in the Champions League for the 19th time – have been drawn in Group F with familiar and beatable opponents. A World Cup winners’ reunion as the likes of Manuel Neuer and Thomas Müller face their DFB-Teammates Mesut Özil and Per Mertesacker of Arsenal. Pep Guardiola’s side will also come up against Olympiakos and Dinamo Zagreb.
Bundesliga runners-up and DFB Cup winners VfL Wolfsburg, in the Champions League for only the second time – the last occasion being in 2009 – have been drawn in Group B with PSV Eindhoven, Manchester United and CSKA Moscow.
Champions League new boys Borussia Mönchengladbach in Group D seem to have been given the most difficult task. Awaiting Lucien Farve’s team are last year’s finalists Juventus, as well as Manchester City and Sevilla.
After only securing qualification for the group stage with a 3-0 second-leg win against Lazio on Wednesday, Bayer Leverkusen have drawn the toughest opponent of all in the shape of title holders Barcelona with Germany international goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen. Leverkusen will also have to return to the Italian capital to face AS Roma. Their third opponents in Group E are Bate Borisov from Belarus.
Kroos and Mustafi face interesting encounters
There will be another German clash in Group A, where the French Champions’ Germany youth international keeper Kevin Trapp faces Toni Kroos and Real Madrid. Meanwhile, Shkodran Mustafi’s Valencia in Group H have a very achievable task ahead of them, they will come up against Zenit St. Petersburg, Olympique Lyon and KAA Gent. Lukas Podolski’s Galatasaray are in Group C with Benfica, Atletico Madrid and FC Astana.
The first fixtures of the group stage will be played on 15th and 16th September. This year’s final takes place on 28th May at the San Siro in Milan.
Reactions to the draw
Matthias Sammer (FC Bayern München chairman): "We want to win the group, that goes without saying. We need to be in good form and approach the games with concentration and take our opponents seriously. I think that we and Arsenal are the favourites."
Philipp Lahm (FC Bayern München): "It’s nice that we’ll be coming up against Per Mertesacker and Mesut Özil, two old friends from the national side, when we play Arsenal. We’ve got tough away games waiting for us in Zagreb and Piräus as well as in London, in front of great crowds."
Manuel Neuer (FC Bayern München) "We’ve come up against Arsenal a few times already in the Champions League, and I’m especially looking forward to seeing my World Cup winning teammates Per Mertesacker and Mesut Özil. I’m not too familiar with the other teams, I’ve never played against Olympiakos or Dinamo Zagreb."
Thomas Müller (FC Bayern München): "It’s without doubt a strong group, in which we need to take every team seriously. I’m particularly excited to play against my Germany international teammates Per Mertesacker and Mesut Özil. We’re expecting another terrific atmosphere, especially in London, but the other two teams also have their qualities."
Jerome Boateng (FC Bayern München): "We can be pleased with the draw, it could be worse. I’m glad we’ve got different opponents from last time."
Max Eberl (Borussia Mönchengladbach sporting director): "This is the group of death, in which all the top leagues in Europe are being represented. Welcome to the Champions League, I guess. We’re coming up against the best teams in the world, we couldn’t have had a tougher draw."
Michael Schade (Bayer Leverkusen chief executive): "For the fans there’s a few nice holiday destinations; for us, it’s an extremely difficult task. We’ll give everything to try and get through to the last 16. We have a 50-50 chance of getting second place."
Klaus Allofs (VfL Wolfsburg sporting director): "I’m pleased with our group. Manchester United are the clear favourites, but it’s all to play for. I’m optimistic – it’s an attractive group that will test our footballing qualities."
André Schürrle (VfL Wolfsburg): "We can be happy with the draw. It’s a difficult group, but it could also have been a lot worse."
Antonio Rüdiger (AS Roma): It’s an exciting group to be in in my first Champions League season. Kicking it all off in the Nou Camp will certainly be something special. As defending champions, Barcelona will obviously go into the competition as favourites – and of course they’ll be expected to win the group. And then to play against a German team that has just knocked out Lazio – as a Germany international, I can’t complain about that."
The full draw for the group stage
Group A: Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Shakhtar Donetsk, Malmö FF
Group B: PSV Eindhoven, Manchester United, CSKA Moscow, VfL Wolfsburg
Group C: Benfica, Atletico Madrid, Galatasaray, FC Astana
Group D: Juventus, Manchester City, Sevilla FC, Borussia Mönchengladbach
Group E: FC Barcelona, Bayer Leverkusen , AS Roma, Bate Borisov
Group F: Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Olympiakos, Dinamo Zagreb
Group G: Chelsea, FC Porto, Dynamo Kiev, Maccabi Tel Aviv
Group H: Zenit St. Petersburg, Valencia CF, Olympique Lyon, KAA Gent