Champions League draw: PSG, Lens and Lille face risk of a group of death

The Champions League draw takes place Thursday evening in Monaco, and PSG, Lens and Lille already know they could emerge with a particularly demanding schedule.

Double defending champions, PSG is in pot 1, which does not protect them from a formidable programme. Since the introduction of the new format two years ago, the Paris club has systematically inherited the most demanding draw, forcing them to go through the playoffs. The single-pool regulation with 36 teams requires each club to face eight different opponents — four at home, four away — with two teams drawn from each of the four pots. With two clubs from the same country unable to face each other, PSG risks seeing their bracket dominated by representatives from Europe’s top leagues.

In the worst-case scenario, PSG could thus face FC Barcelona and Bayern Munich (pot 1), Manchester United and Aston Villa (pot 2), Napoli and Villarreal (pot 3), then Stuttgart and Como (pot 4). A programme that would constitute excellent preparation for the knockout stage, but which would leave little room for error in the league phase.

RC Lens and LOSC, placed respectively in pots 3 and 4 due to a more modest UEFA coefficient, approach the draw in an even more delicate position. The two northern clubs are mathematically assured of facing opponents from the higher pots, without the protection that comes with being seeded.

The reform of the competition, which replaced four-team groups with the expanded pool, mechanically amplifies the probability of a difficult draw for any team. This is precisely what UEFA wanted: more clashes from the first phase, and fewer matches without stakes.