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Manchester United could face a potential group of death in next season’s Champions League.
The Red Devils confirmed their qualification into the competition on Thursday evening after comfortably beating Chelsea 4-1 at Old Trafford.
United secured a Premier League top four finish and ended their two-year absence from Europe’s elite football tournament.
But fans should ready themselves for a challenging set of group stage fixtures with PSG, Inter Milan and Barcelona all possible opponents.
Man United are one of 19 sides to have already booked their Champions League place for next season with teams split into four pots.
Ranked seventh on UEFA’s club coefficients list, a system based upon clubs recent performance in European matches, are now guaranteed a place in Pot 2 alongside fellow Premier League side Arsenal.
However, the two clubs wouldn’t meet until the knockout phase because two English teams cannot face each other in the group stage.
Pot 1 is where the many dangers lie for United and includes the champions of the seven biggest European leagues.
The likes of Barcelona and Napoli are already confirmed with Paris Saint-Germain, Benfica and Bundlesiga winners all becoming potential matchups. The Europa League title holders will also enter Pot 1 meaning either Jose Mourinho‘s Roma or La Liga side Sevilla will be part of the draw.
All of which means that United could potentially face off against one of Barcelona, Napoli, Feyenoord, PSG and Benfica plus the German league champions. There is also the potential to be grouped alongside AC Milan, who will feature in Pot 3.
The worst possible draw could see United face Barcelona, AC Milan and Real Sociedad.
Yet there is hope at Old Trafford of a more favourable draw. The Red Devils could instead end up in a group with sides such as Feyenoord, Celtic and Zagreb.
United must wait a while longer before discovering their fate with the Champions League draw taking place on August 31st.
