UEFA Champions League draw: media reaction
Friday, August 26, 2016
Article summary
Real Madrid v Dortmund, Barcelona v Manchester City and Atlético v Bayern are the standout ties as group-of-death-specialists Manchester City and Gladbach awake to Groundhog Day.
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England
"Manchester City left to hanker for the beginners' luck of Leicester," says The Guardian. The consensus in England is that all four Premier League sides will be confident of advancing to the knockout stage, but yet again it is City who have had all the bad luck of the draw.
Barcelona, Gladbach and Celtic look formidable enough, if not insurmountable, and many outlets note that Josep Guardiola has never failed to reach the semi-finals of Europe's premier competition.
Spain
The mouth-watering match-up between Guardiola's old team and new also captures the attention of the Spanish press. "Barça and Manchester City – a celebration of football," says Sport. Mundo Deportivo focuses on the former room-mates at the helms: "intimate enemies" Guardiola and Luis Enrique.
Marca picks out Real Madrid v Dortmund, Sevilla v Juventus and Atlético v Bayern as ones to watch too, though the draw is relegated to second behind Cristiano Ronaldo's coronation as UEFA Best Player in Europe. "He is the king," the lead headline proclaims.
Portugal
Ronaldo's award is also celebrated in his homeland, as is the prospect of the Madrid man facing former club Sporting CP. Returning favourites is a theme: Benfica's pairing with Beşiktaş means a reunion with Ricardo Quaresma and Talisca, who is on loan from the Eagles. O Jogo reckons Porto have the most favourable draw, with Leicester, København and Club Brugge in the offing.
Germany
The German press are pretty unanimous in their dual assessments. The Bundesliga v Madrid fixtures – Bayern v Atético and Dortmund v Real – will be a treat, "two monster tasks" according to Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. And yet again Mönchengladbach are in the group of death. "Groundhog Day for Gladbach" is Der Spiegel's summary.
Italy
"Better than this ... impossible," goes the headline in Gazzetta dello Sport as it ponders a draw in which Serie A's representatives seemingly got the rub of the green. Corriere dello Sport concurs, adding that having "avoided the big teams, they can dare to dream". Which is precisely what Corriere is doing – installing Juventus among the favourites to lift the trophy in Cardiff next June.
Russia
Sport-Express runs the headline "CSKA go to Vágner, Rostov go to the stars". The draw reunites CSKA with one of their most productive ever forwards, Vágner Love, while debutants Rostov take on the might of Atlético and Bayern. "Rostov will become the sixth Russian club to contest the UEFA Champions League group stage," points out columnist Igor Rabiner.
France
"Fate was kind to the three French sides," according to L'Équipe. They reckon Paris are favourites in Group F with Arsenal and are convinced that Lyon and Monaco can joined them in the last 16.
Ukraine
"Benfica together with Leicester were the most favourable options for Dynamo Kyiv from Pot 1," says Sport-Express (they got Benfica). "But Turkish giants Beşiktaş, with newly-crowned European champion Ricardo Quaresma, and Napoli with Marek Hamšík among their half-dozen stars are worthy of great respect."