Filed under: Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United, Champions League, Football
Manchester United and Manchester City experienced mixed fortunes in the draw for the group stages of the Champions League with Sir Alex Ferguson's side handed a relatively straight-forward route into the knockout rounds while their near neighbours face a testing challenge on their first appearance in the competition.United, beaten finalist last season, will face Benfica, Basel and Rumanian newcomers Otelul Galati in Group C whilst Roberto Mancini's side are set to meet Bayern Munich, Villarreal and Napoli in Group A,
Andre Villas-Boas will be confident of steering Chelsea through Group E which also includes Valencia, Bayer Leverkusen and Genk.
Arsenal's relief at coming through the qualifying round on the back of an impressive win at Udinese was slightly tempered by the pedigree of their opponents in Group F that also includes Marseille, Olympiakos and the Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund.
United face the least daunting test of all the top seeds. Benfica will no doubt prove to be stubborn opponents and any meeting between the two clubs inevitably revives memories of the 1968 fina, but Basel have failed to qualify from the group stage on four previous occasions while Otelul Galati are novices at this level having won the Rumanian
championship for the first time last season.
Speaking to Sky Sports News, United chief executive David Gill said: "I think Sir Alex will be happy with that."
City's task is much harder. Any draw that pitches a team against opponents from La Liga, the Bundesliga and Serie A is a tough one and while Napoli have not enjoyed the same high European profile as Villarreal and Bayern Munich, they will be difficult to beat, particularly at home.
The group will provide a clear measure of how far City have come under Mancini and after another summer of transfer activity, including the £38 million arrival of Sergio Aguero, they will be expected to go through.
Aguero's presence at Napoli where his father-in-law Diego Maradona transformed the club in the mid-eighties will provide a sideshow during the campaign. City's focus, will be trained elsewhere though, and they can ill afford to demonstrate any inexperience at this level.
Juan Mata faces an immediate reunion with his former Valencia teammates following his £26 million move to Chelsea while former Stamford Bridge favourite Michael Ballack will return to west London with new club Bayer Leverkusen. Genk are unlikely to press for a top two finish but points dropped against the Belgian side could prove costly for the three strongest sides in the group.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger might have wished for a more forgiving draw following the recent turmoil at the club although he will draw confidence from his side's win in Udine.
Last season, the Gunners were outstanding at home, less impressive away. This year they face three challenging away games placing even more pressure on their form at the Emirates Stadium.
Overall though, all four Premier League clubs have reason to be satisfied. Even City's draw could have been much worse and having been placed amongst the clubs in the third seeded group, they will be relieved to have avoided the possibility of being drawn F with Barcelona and AC Milan
The opening round of group games with be staged on September 13 and 14 with the final staged in Munich on Staurday May 19.
Group A:
Bayern Munich, Villarreal, Manchester City, Napoli
Group B:
Inter Milan, CSKA Moscow, Lille, Trabzonspor
Group C:
Manchester United, Benfica, Basel, Otelul Galati
Group D:
Real Madrid, Lyon, Ajax, Dinamo Zagreb
Group E:
Chelsea, Valencia, Bayer Leverkusen, Genk
Group F:
Arsenal, Marseille, Olympiakos, Borussia Dortmund
Group G:
Porto, Shakhtar Donetsk, Zenit St Petersburg, Apoel
Group H:
Barcelona, AC Milan, Bate Borisov, Viktoria Pilsen
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