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Champions League draw favours the Big Four
United face trips to Turkey and Russia but English clubs avoid the big guns in group stages
The Premier League's 'Big Four' avoided the danger teams in the Champions League group stage draw, although Manchester United face trips to Turkey and Russia.
United, along with Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool were all seeded in the top group of clubs, meaning they could not draw each other. Yet Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Juventus and Rangers all featured in the second pot.
In the event Manchester United were drawn against CSKA Moscow, Besiktas and German champipons Wolfsburg; Chelsea are in a group with Porto, Athletico Madrid and Apoel Nicosia; Arsenal got AZ Alkmaar, Olympiakos and Standard Liege; and Liverpool drew Lyons, Fiorentina and Debrecan.
Group C seems the toughest, featuring AC Milan, Real Madrid, Marseilles and FC Zurich.
Champions Barcelona face Inter Milan, Dynamo Kiev and Rubin Kazan. Rangers are in a group with Seville, Stuttgart and Romanian outfit Unirea Urzicen. The other group features Bayern Munich, Juventus, Bordeaux and Maccabi Haifa.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING:Mark Ogden, Daily Telegraph: "With United facing round-trips of more than 3,000 miles to both Moscow and Istanbul for encounters with CSKA and Besiktas respectively, plus a double header against German champions Wolfsburg, Ferguson concedes that last season's beaten finalists have little room for error as they aim to reach a third successive Champions League final."
Scott Rutherford, Times: "Ferguson's mood will not have been lightened by the knowledge that United face two big Premier League clashes after their long trips — they are at home to Manchester City after travelling to Turkey and away to Liverpool four days after their Moscow trip."
Matt Lawton, Daily Mail: "Good fortune has not followed John Terry across Europe these past few years but the Chelsea captain got lucky for all four English teams in the Champions League draw. After receiving the award for the best defender in the competition for the third time, Terry was asked to pluck the balls from the bowl for the second-seed teams... The England skipper served his country well." ·
