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The draw was kind to Liverpool and Arsenal, but Manchester City and Aston Villa do not have it so good
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Global — Oliver Hopkins and Ali Tweedale
The draw was kind to Liverpool and Arsenal, but Manchester City and Aston Villa do not have it so good
The 36 clubs in the Champions League know who they will play in the league phase , but which team has the kindest draw and who has the toughest assignment? Each side knows their eight opponents but, given that no two teams face the same set of opponents, this is not a level playing field. We have used the Opta power rankings – which rank 16,000 teams from across the world on the same scale – to find out who did best in the draw.
The 36 clubs in the Champions League know who they will play in the league phase , but which team has the kindest draw and who has the toughest assignment? Each side knows their eight opponents but, given that no two teams face the same set of opponents, this is not a level playing field. We have used the Opta power rankings – which rank 16,000 teams from across the world on the same scale – to find out who did best in the draw.
This report is published with credit to The Guardian. The wire sent a summary; open the original for any extra context. Read on The Guardian →
Source: The Guardian · Oliver Hopkins and Ali Tweedale. Published 28 Aug 2026, 02:00 pm.
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