PSG again? Best and worst league phase draws for Liverpool in 2026/27 Champions League – opinion
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We’ve assessed the best and worst possible outcomes for LFC, with the following criteria set out by UEFA: Teams from the same national association can’t meet in the league phase Teams will face two clubs from each pot (one at home, one away), but can only face a maximum of two clubs from the same national association A specific fixture cannot be repeated in the league phase for more than two seasons in succession, which precludes Liverpool from having a home match against Real Madrid for the third year in a row (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)Which teams are in which pot for the Champions League draw? Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4 Paris Saint-Germain Borussia Dortmund Feyenoord Slavia Prague Bayern Munich AS Roma Lille Slovan Bratislava Real Madrid Sporting Lisbon Bodo/Glimt Stuttgart Liverpool Aston Villa Napoli AEK Athens Inter Milan FC Porto RB Leipzig LASK Manchester City Manchester United Villarreal Como Arsenal Club Brugge Fenerbahce Lens Barcelona Real Betis Shakhtar Donetsk Viking FK Atletico Madrid PSV Eindhoven Galatasaray Sabah Best-case scenario for LiverpoolBarcelona (H), Inter (A), Porto (H), Brugge (A), Bodo/Glimt (H), Shakhtar (A), Sabah (H), LASK (A)Barcelona coming back to Anfield would obviously bring back special memories of that night in May 2019, while Liverpool have won at the San Siro in each of the past two seasons (Milan 2024/25, Inter last year), so they won’t fear another away clash against the Nerazzurri.Porto were familiar opponents for us during the Jurgen Klopp years, with six matches yielding five wins for the Reds and just one draw (which came after we’d won the first leg 5-0), so Iraola’s team would fancy their chances against them at Anfield.
As for Shakhtar away, that’d ordinary be a hellish trip for English teams, but the Ukrainian side are playing their ‘home’ games at Stamford Bridge this season, so logistically that’d be favourable for the Reds in the Champions League.Sabah from Azerbaijan are the lowest-ranked team in the league phase, and we thumped their compatriots Qarabag 6-0 at home in this tournament back in January. Another trip to Austria to face LASK would be welcomed by Kopites who made the journey to Linz for a Europa League tie in 2023, although their shock elimination of Celtic serves as a warning not to take them lightly.Alright then…what about the worst-case scenario?PSG (H), Real Madrid (A), PSV (H), Roma (A), Napoli (H), Galatasaray (A), Lens (H), AEK (A)Reigning champions PSG have wreaked enough havoc on us over the past 18 months and are going for a third successive Champions League triumph, so let’s avoid them if we can!
Also, we’ve had more than enough of Real Madrid in the past decade, so here’s hoping the supercomputer doesn’t send us to the Bernabeu.PSV at home doesn’t seem overly daunting, but the PTSD from their 4-1 romp at Anfield last November is still raw. Roma at the Stadio Olimpico might hold happy memories from 1984 and 2018, but it’s also the kind of intimidating European trip that Liverpool could do without.We’ve beaten Napoli three times at Anfield since 2018 (in contrast to our awful record at their place), but we’d rather not come up against them once again.