Manchester City have learned who they will face in the revamped League Phase of the Champions League.
The 2023 European champions were the first-ever team to be drawn in the new-look format, which will see 36 teams entered into one giant table, rather than 32 teams split into eight groups of four as has been the case in years gone by.
Pep Guardiola’s men will open their campaign at home to the team they beat in the 2023 final, Inter Milan, while their highlight away trips include Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus.
Manchester City 2024/25 Champions League fixtures
Inter Milan (H)
PSG (A)
Club Brugge (H)
Juventus (A)
Feyenoord (H)
Sporting Lisbon (A)
Sparta Praha (H)
Slovan Bratislava (A)
New Champions League format
As mentioned, the Champions League has been revamped this season. Instead of the traditional 32 teams split into eight groups of four, there’s now a single 36-team table, referred to as the ‘league phase’.
Teams will no longer play three opponents twice. Instead, each club will face eight different teams, with four home matches and four away.
To make the draw, teams were sorted into four seeding pots, and each club was drawn to play two opponents from each pot, with one game per pot at home and the other away.
The top eight teams from this league phase will automatically advance to the last 16, while teams ranked ninth to 24th will compete in a two-legged playoff round for the remaining spots.
Teams finishing 25th or lower will be eliminated from European competition entirely, rather than moving to the Europa League as has happened in previous seasons for teams finishing third in the group stage.
From the last-16 onward, the knockout rounds will proceed as normal.
Source link : https://www.caughtoffside.com/2024/08/29/manchester-city-2024-25-champions-league-fixtures/
Author : CJ
Publish date : 2024-08-29 16:58:57
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