Real Madrid, the defending champion, begins a new era in the European Champions League football competition, with a difficult test today, at home against Stuttgart, the runner-up of the German league, while the “San Siro” stadium will host a fierce confrontation between Milan of Italy and its guest Liverpool of England in a replay of the 2005 and 2007 finals.
The new season of the continental competition will witness a radical change, as participation has expanded from 32 teams to 36, with a single group system in which each team plays eight matches against eight different teams, four matches at home and four away.
Before the draw, which was conducted electronically, the clubs were divided into four levels, each containing nine teams.
The best eight teams in the final standings will qualify for the round of 16, while the next 16 teams will advance to a play-off round, and the remaining teams will be eliminated without moving to the Europa League, unlike what used to happen previously.
No team will play another team from the same league, and no team will face more than two opponents from the same league.
Real Madrid, who have strengthened their ranks with French star Kylian Mbappe, will face runners-up Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool, Milan, Atalanta, Salzburg, Lille, Brest and Stuttgart, who will face the Madrid giants for the first time in the competition since losing 0-4 in the second leg of the last 16 against fellow Spanish giant Barcelona on March 17, 2010.
At the San Siro stadium, Milan will face Liverpool with memories of the 2005 Istanbul final, when the Italian team led 3-0 in the first half before the Reds came back in the second half on their way to winning the title on penalties.
The two teams met again in the 2007 final, and Milan emerged victorious 2-1, winning its seventh and final title.
Both teams are entering this season with new coaches, as Portuguese Paulo Fonseca replaced Stefano Pioli in Milan, while Liverpool brought in Dutchman Arne Slot to try to replace German Jurgen Klopp, who decided to leave Anfield.
After missing out on last season’s edition, Juventus return to the competition with a new coach, Thiago Motta, who after an ideal start in the league with two 3-0 victories, his image has been somewhat shaken by two goalless draws. He begins his journey at home today against PSV Eindhoven in a trip that includes Leipzig and Stuttgart from Germany, Lille from France, Aston Villa and Manchester City from England, Club Brugge from Belgium, and Benfica from Portugal.
Also under the leadership of a new coach, Belgian Vincent Kompany, German giants Bayern Munich begin their journey today at home against Croatian Dinamo Zagreb, seeking to continue their perfect start with the former international centre-back who led them to win their first three matches in the local league, in addition to passing the first round of the local cup competition.
The six-time champions will face a tough task after being drawn alongside Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Aston Villa, Benfica, Shakhtar Donetsk, Feyenoord and Slovan Bratislava.
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