Real Madrid News
Official: Real Madrid’s three opponents for Champions League group stages
With the group stages of the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League set to kick off in a short time, draws to place teams in groups took place on Thursday in Istanbul, Turkey.
Real Madrid were placed in Pot 1 of the draw, given their status of being the winners of the UEFA Champions League as well as the La Liga champions last season.
The Merengues were alongside the likes of Manchester City Bayern Munich, PSG, AC Milan, FC Porto, AFC Ajax and Eintracht Frankfurt, meaning they would not be drawn against any of them.
Real Madrid were placed in Group F after they were the sixth name drawn from Pot 1.
Atletico Madrid, Barcelona and Sevilla, who were in Pot 2, were also not in question as teams from the same league cannot be paired together in the group stage.
It left Los Blancos with Chelsea, Liverpool, Juventus, RB Leipzig and Tottenham as possible opponents from Pot 2. And it was RB Leipzig who were drawn against the reigning champions of Spain and Europe.
And, as has become customary in recent seasons, Shakhtar Donetsk were once again allocated in the same group as Real Madrid from Pot 3, with Los Blancos avoiding tricky opponents like Inter Milan, Napoli and Borussia Dortmund.
Finally from Pot 4, Real Madrid were drawn against Scottish champions Celtic, in what will be an exciting match-up and a huge occasion for the Bhoys.
Group F: Real Madrid, RB Leipzig, Shakhtar Donetsk, Celtic
Draw in full:
Group A: Ajax, Liverpool, Napoli, Rangers
Group B: Porto, Atlético, Leverkusen, Club Brugge
Group C: Bayern, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Viktoria Plzen
Group D: Frankfurt, Tottenham, Sporting CP, Marseille
Group E: Milan, Chelsea, Salzburg, Dinamo Zagreb
Group F: Real Madrid, RB Leipzig, Shakhtar Donetsk, Celtic
Group G: Man. City, Sevilla, Dortmund, Copenhagen
Group H: Paris, Juventus, Benfica, Maccabi Haifa
Real Madrid are looking towards a heavy splurge in the coming summer transfer window. After all, they do not even have another option given the sheer number of player departures already finalized.
Los Blancos have lost the services of Karim Benzema, Marco Asensio, Mariano Diaz, and Eden Hazard over the past week. While three of the four players predominantly featured on the bench, their presence in the squad gave Carlo Ancelotti’s side much-needed depth and a cushion of sorts.
The forward unit is, thus, the most prioritized department ahead of the transfer window. However, pieces are beginning to fall apart on other fronts and could potentially put the club in a difficult situation.
According to reports from Gianluca Di Marzio, Juventus are eyeing Lucas Vazquez and hope to sign him in the coming month. Contacts between the two parties have begun and the transfer fee discussed appears to be around the €6 million to €8 million ballpark given that he has just one year left on his contract.
The player, for his part, is willing to sign for the Italian giants given his relative lack of minutes at the Santiago Bernabeu. At 31 years of age, he understandably does not want to play a second-fiddle role.
Vasquez played part in 23 of Real Madrid’s 38 La Liga games last season, starting only on 12 occasions. Even in his few appearances, he averaged a mere 50 minutes per game.
The veteran completed the season with four goals and an assist to his name. Further, he averaged five defensive actions and a key pass in every game and feels hard done by his limited role.
Vazquez’s departure would place the club in a tricky situation as it would leave Real Madrid with only Dani Carvajal as a natural right-back option. Nacho Fernandez could, in theory, serve as the backup but a new signing for the position cannot be ruled out.
