Liverpool are preparing for another demanding Champions League campaign as the draw for the competition's league phase approaches, with a host of familiar and intriguing opponents potentially awaiting Arne Slot's side.
The Reds head into the new European season under scrutiny after last term's exploits, when they impressed throughout the league phase before falling short in the knockout rounds. Liverpool topped their group performances by winning six of eight matches, finishing third overall behind Arsenal and Bayern Munich, before their run was ended by eventual champions Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-finals.
Manager Andoni Iraola now faces the challenge of matching or bettering that campaign as Liverpool enter the draw seeded in Pot 1, a reflection of their strong standing in UEFA's coefficient rankings, where they currently sit eighth among Europe's elite clubs.
Under the competition's format, each side will be drawn against eight different opponents, two from each of the four pots. Domestic rivals are excluded from the league phase, meaning Liverpool cannot be paired with Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City or Aston Villa. Additionally, no club can face more than two teams from the same national association.
From Pot 1, Liverpool's possible opponents include Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. A meeting with Inter would carry extra significance, as it would bring Liverpool face to face with former midfielder Curtis Jones, who departed Merseyside for the Nerazzurri this summer.
In Pot 2, potential opponents include Borussia Dortmund, Roma, Sporting CP, Porto, Club Brugge, Real Betis and PSV Eindhoven — a group offering a mix of proven European heavyweights and ambitious challengers.
Pot 3 presents a broader spread of clubs, among them Feyenoord, Lille, Bodo/Glimt, Napoli, RB Leipzig, Villarreal, Galatasaray and Shakhtar Donetsk, the latter set to play their home European fixtures at Stamford Bridge again this season due to ongoing circumstances in Ukraine. The final Pot 3 slot will be filled by either Fenerbahce or Lyon, pending the outcome of qualifying ties.
Pot 4 remains partially unresolved, though several clubs have already secured their places: Slavia Prague, Stuttgart, LASK, Como, Lens and Sabah. They will be joined by the winners of play-off ties involving Slovan Bratislava or Celje, Dinamo Zagreb or Viking, and Levski Sofia or AEK Athens.
Once the draw is complete, Liverpool will discover the exact shape of their European campaign, though the broader calendar has already been confirmed by UEFA. The league phase is scheduled to run across eight matchdays, beginning with Matchday 1 on September 8-10, followed by fixtures on October 13/14, October 20/21, November 3/4, November 24/25, December 8/9, and concluding with Matchday 7 on January 19/20 and Matchday 8 on January 27.
For Liverpool, the draw represents both an opportunity and a fresh test of their European credentials. Having already shown last season that they can compete with the continent's best across the extended group format, the challenge now will be translating that consistency into a deeper run in the knockout stages — potentially setting up renewed meetings with clubs who have previously proven their undoing, or offering emotionally charged reunions such as a possible clash with Jones and Inter Milan.
Based on reporting from standard-football.