Chelsea striker hoping to face Real Madrid in UEFA Champions League | OneFootball

The UEFA Champions League draw for the league phase of the competition is set to take place in less than an hour and the excitement could not be any higher.

Real Madrid, as always, enter the draw as one of the favourites to win the competition. They will, however, not have it easy with several elite competitors popping up in recent years.

Last season’s defending champions PSG, local rivals Barcelona and the Premier League dominating Liverpool are amongst the biggest threats to Los Blancos, and the league phase format means Real Madrid could face some of them as early as the first stage.

Chelsea striker hoping to draw Real Madrid

Speaking to Chelsea’s official social media ahead of the much-awaited draw, Chelsea striker Joao Pedro was asked which team he would like to face this season in the league phase.

The star striker did not bat an eyelid and instantly had his list of two clubs he would like the London-based team to draw in the lots later today.

“Who do I want to face in the UCL? Real Madrid and PSG.”

The new format of the UCL draw sees clubs placed in four groups, and every club will draw two teams from each of the four groups. Such an arrangement ensures a fair draw and equitable distribution of opponents of different levels.

Real Madrid, placed in the top pot, will draw two of PSG, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Inter Milan, Chelsea or Borussia Dortmund and a possible clash against the Blues can arise only on the draw from this tier.

On the second pot are threatening oppositions including the likes of Arsenal, Atalanta, Juventus and Bayer Leverkusen.

The third pot has formidable names like Tottenham Hotspur, Napoli and PSV Eindhoven while the fourth pot is highlighted by Monaco amongst other names.