Champions League Group Stage Draw: Debutants Leicester City Pitted Against Porto, Man City Inevitably Face Pep’s Old Team

Chris Wright

25th, August 2016

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leicester-champions-parade

As you may be aware, Leicester City won the Premier League title last season.

As a direct result, they found themselves lumped into Pot 1 for the Champions League group stage draw alongside the likes of established heavyweights Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Juventus and PSG.

After the obligatory and ever extending period of pre- and mid-draw UEFA guff, the balls were plucked from the perspex pots of destiny and the Foxes’ reward for storming the big boys’ table is a group consisting of themselves and Porto, Club Brugge and Copenhagen. No bother.

The Champions League 2016/17 group stage draw in full…

Group A: Paris Saint-Germain, Arsenal, FC Basel, Ludogorets.

Group B: Benfica, Napoli, Dynamo Kiev, Besiktas.

Group C: Barcelona, Man City, Borussia Monchengladbach, Celtic.

Group D: Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid, PSV Eindhoven, Rostov.

Group E: CSKA Moscow, Bayer Leverkusen, Tottenham, Monaco.

Group F: Real Madrid, Dortmund, Sporting Lisbon, Legia Warsaw.

Group G: Leicester City, Porto, Club Brugge, FC Copenhagen.

Group H: Juventus, Sevilla, Lyon, Dinamo Zagreb.

If Leicester acclimatise quickly to the pomp and circumstance of the Big Cup™, there’s no reason for them not to squeak through from that group. Their draw really couldn’t have been much more favourable if it had been rigged.

Obviously, Barca-Man City will be insufferable for ‘Pep narrative’ reasons, while Arsenal and Spurs shouldn’t have much trouble finishing second in their respective groups – thus ensuring they both go out in the second round as nature intended.

Any thoughts on this year’s draw, Pies fans?