The end of the suspense. The draw for the group stage of the Champions League will be held on Thursday August 25 at 6 p.m. in Istanbul (Turkey). OM and PSG will know their opponents from the group stage, among the 30 other qualified European teams. Only two French teams are in the race, Monaco having failed to extricate themselves from the play-offs during the summer. Follow our live.
Mistrust for PSG. Placed in the same hat as Real Madrid (defender), Manchester City, AC Milan and Bayern Munich, PSG guaranteed not to meet them in the group stage. But there are still a few big pieces in hat 2: Liverpool (winner in 2019 and finalist in 2021), Chelsea (European champion in 2021) or even FC Barcelona, who would see themselves returning to the top after a promising transfer window. In Pot 3, PSG will look to avoid Inter Milan, Napoli or Borussia Dortmund. Despite his lack of experience in this competition, coach Christophe Galtier is full of hope and can count on three stars in great shape: Kylian Mbappé extended until 2025, Neymar who has regained form and Lionel Messi finally well integrated. .
OM in the group of death? The second qualified French club finds itself in the last hat (number 4) and fears, more than PSG, to find itself in a group with all the best European clubs. His previous appearances in the group stages have left the Marseille club bitter: one victory and five defeats in 2020-2021 and six games lost in 2013-2014. A great challenge for the new coach Igor Tudor, also a novice in this event, while the Marseille workforce has been largely overhauled after the departure of coach Jorge Sampaoli.
A frantic pace. The European fixture schedule is accelerated this year, with the World Cup taking place in December 2022 in Qatar. On the program: 6 meetings in 9 weeks, from September to November. A crazy pace that promises to spice up the competition, whose final is scheduled on June 10, 2023 at the Ataturk Stadium in Istanbul.