The Official Champions League 2013-14

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This Thursday in Monte Carlo, delegates of Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Champions League holders Bayern Munich will take their seats for the draw for the group stages of the 2013-14 competition. Such is the predictability of things these days, not more than one of those traditionally strong European teams will be disappointed following proceedings because Uefa has ensured that as smooth a path as possible is laid on for the top seeds.

Those clubs, Uefa darlings in the biggest television markets, have things put in their favour come draw time. It is neither just nor fair. Too often the group stages of the Champions League are a procession for top-ranked clubs who stroll to qualification after 66 per cent of the match days.

Complacent and under-performing 'elite' sides never find out what life is like for a team in pot 3 or 4 when they are only deserving of that place. For accuracy and fairness, Uefa must alter the criteria for working out which teams rank highest or else consider a free draw right from the off.

There is an insurance policy for the traditional elite which belies any notion of meritocracy for qualifying teams which stretches, even, to needlessly keeping sides representing the same national association apart until the quarter-finals. As national associations at the top end of Uefa's coefficient ranking are the ones which supply multiple Champions League teams, the favouritism in the draw is preserved.

"There has never been a club from pot four winning the Champions League," Borussia Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke bluntly pointed out when his side drew Real Madrid and Manchester City in the group stage of last year's competition.

To cut three or four seasons from the coefficient totals would be one place to start. The Champions League ranking, based on each qualified team's performances over the past five terms, simply does not accurately reflect the strongest clubs on the continent. It offers too easy a ride for those clubs who have banked 'coefficient credit' over a long number of seasons but whose progress has recently slowed.

There were 14 teams which fared better than both Arsenal and Man United last season in Europe according to the Uefa ranking for 2012-13. A season prior, that figure was 10 for Arsenal. It was 28 for Manchester United. Arsenal, who are likely to scamper through the playoff round with victory over Fenerbahce, are in pot 1 for the draw. That is illogical. A team who qualified by the skins of their teeth should not be a pot 1 team.

If it is not going to reward those clubs who should be in the top end of the draw based on merit then Uefa may as well have a free draw for all qualified teams. It would ensure that the conventional handicapping would cease. If Manchester United, for example, are truly worthy of a top rank in the group stage then they can prove it the old fashioned way. Currently, no matter what sort of dips in European form United and Arsenal, as well as Chelsea, Real Madrid and Barcelona, may endure they will be able to absorb it and be assured of the best possible chance of qualification from the groups.

So long as they measure out two bad performances with three good ones over the course of five years they will remain buoyant. For clubs striving to the top it is proving hard to crack the hegemony.

[Halfbreed07]

inside

[Morpheus]

Een!

[kurpal_v2]

Herrow

[TriniAutoMart]

Mia San Mia

[1UZFE]

Glory glory united....

[shake d livin wake d dead]

eeeenside

[rfari]

Mia San Mia

This.

in here gonna start to look like


in a few

[BrotherHood]

That is all!

[<=xjemler=>]

CL draw 11:30 am today


Seeding is calculated on performance in all European competitions over a five-year period.

Pot One: Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Manchester United, Arsenal, FC Porto, Benfica.

Pot Two: Atletico Madrid, Shakhtar Donetsk, AC Milan, Schalke, Marseille, CSKA Moscow, PSG, Juventus

Pot Three: Zenit, Man City, Ajax, Borussia Dortmund, Basel, Olympiakos, Galatasaray, Leverkusen

Pot Four: FC Copenhagen, Napoli, Anderlecht, Celtic, Steaua Bucuresti, Viktoria Plzen, Real Sociedad, Austria Vienna


With big-spending Napoli in pot four another group of death seems likely, and City will be eager to avoid that for a third successive season. The nightmare scenario would see City drawn against Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid or Paris Saint-Germain, and Napoli. The holders will also want to avoid such a tough draw.

But Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal are also in danger of getting that group of death, should one of those teams be drawn to play Atletico or PSG, Borussia Dortmund and Napoli.

The worst case for Barcelona and Real Madrid would see one of the Spanish giants face PSG, Man City or Borussia Dortmund, and Napoli.

[jusme]

FORZA MILAN

[Morpheus]

FORZA MILAN

Inter?



*runs

[JoKeR1980]

thuh chammmppeeeeeeeoooonnnnnnnnsssssssss

[rfari]

Draw about to start...

[rfari]

1. Bayern- grp D
2. Cska moscow
3. Lol@manc
3. food :s

[AllTrac]

grp B - Juve, Real Mad

[AllTrac]

my team need ah juju man yes, is years now milan study falling in de same group as barca. Revenge is ours this CL

[rfari]

my team need ah juju man yes, is years now milan study falling in de same group as barca. Revenge is ours this CL

ask manc and celtic. ollur could do a group buy on a few bucks

GROUP A
Man. United(ENG)
Shakhtar Donetsk(UKR)
Leverkusen(GER)
Real Sociedad(ESP)

GROUP B
Real Madrid(ESP)
Juventus(ITA)
Galatasaray(TUR)
København(DEN)

GROUP C
Benfica(POR)
PSG(FRA)
Olympiacos(GRE)
Anderlecht(BEL)

GROUP D
Bayern(GER)
CSKA Moskva(RUS)
Man. City(ENG)
Plzeň(CZE)

GROUP E
Chelsea(ENG)
Schalke(GER)
Basel(SUI)
Steaua(ROU)

GROUP F
Arsenal(ENG)
Marseille(FRA)
Dortmund(GER)
Napoli(ITA)

GROUP G
Porto(POR)
Atlético(ESP)
Zenit(RUS)
Austria Wien(AUT)

GROUP H
Barcelona(ESP)
Milan(ITA)
Ajax(NED)
Celtic(SCO)

http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague ... index.html

[pioneer]

United get ah hard group as usual

Small thing we does make it out

Dunno bout arsenal doh

[dean_spleen09]

yea jed . shaktar is a hard side.
chelsea hadda fightup against basel .
seeing an early exit into europa again

[Dizzy28]

GROUP A
Man. United(ENG)
Shakhtar Donetsk(UKR)
Leverkusen(GER)
Real Sociedad(ESP)

RVP is ready!!!!!!

[LikaStick]

my team need ah juju man yes, is years now milan study falling in de same group as barca. Revenge is ours this CL

Ajax would feel the same way, always in our group and now end up with barca

[BrotherHood]

Barca, Milan, Ajax and Celtic???

[Morpheus]

Barca, Milan, Ajax and Celtic???

And double

[Ronaldo95163]

Barca + Milan FTW

Ronaldinho's teams <3

[pioneer]

I don't expect barca to make it out of group stage, they are very weak.

[Morpheus]

True dat.....

[star scream]

group F looks interesting, looks like the most unpredictable group.

[dean_spleen09]

groups a,b,c,d


groups e,f,g,h

[christopherwilliams2]

Arsenal is my team and I like Dortmund too. We will make it out, I support my team from am to pm.