Real Madrid will be happy overall with the draw for the Champions League group as they avoided some of the big guns in the other pots including the likes of Dortmund, Manchester City, Roma and Monaco.
Instead, they have been drawn with Liverpool, Basle and newcomers to the competition Ludogorets of Bulgaria. The Reds, five time winners of the Champions League, will provide the glamour ties in the group, while Carlo Ancelotti and his players should in theory not have too much difficulty with the others.
Realmadridnews.com looks at the three other teams in Group B along with Real Madrid.
LiverpoolManager: Brendan Rodgers
Qualified: Runners-up in the Premier League
Liverpool have long been considered one of the biggest teams in Europe and have big pedigree in this competition having won it five times – the last time that famous comeback against AC Milan in 2005 when they won on penalties having been 3-0 at half-time.
This season marks a return for The Reds to the competition after a four-year absence. In 2009-10 they actually knocked Madrid out, beating Los Blancos 4-0 at Anfield.
It’s been a busy summer for Liverpool, who finished runners-up in the Premier League last season. Star striker Luis Suarez was sold to Barcelona for 85 million euros, but Brendan Rodgers has spent big on a host of new players including Mario Balotelli, Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren and Rickie Lambert.
Anfield will, as ever, be a fortress, with the fans creating that famous atmosphere under the floodlights and singing the famous song You’ll Never Walk Alone.
FC Basel
Manager: Paolo Sousa
Qualified: Champions of Swiss League
Swiss side Basle have beaten some big names in the past so this could be a potential banana skin for Los Blancos. They narrowly missed out on reaching the last 16 last season, and beat Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea home and away. They’ve also beaten the likes of Manchester United in the past too.
The club is famous for its youth system, and has produced the likes of Xherdan Shaqiri, Alexander Frei, Fabian Frei and Ivan Rakitic. Mohamad Salah left for Stamford Bridge, but star striker and captain Marco Streller remains at the club. There is also plenty of European experience in the likes of Fabian Frei, Philipp Degen and former Real Madrid defender Walter Samuel.
Having said that, Carlo Ancelotti and his players will expect to take six points off Basle with the squad they have at their disposal.
PFC Ludogorets Razgrad
Manager: Georgi Dermendzhiev
Qualified: Runners-up in Bulgarian League
Real Madrid will be heading into something of the unknown when they take on Bulgarian outfit Ludogorets. They qualified in extraordinary circumstances this week, with defender Cosmin Moti taking his place in goal for the penalty shoot out against Steau Bucharest in the qualifiers after the keeper was sent-off and they had already made three subs. He saved two penalties and scored one himself.
Ludogorets play at the intimate 8,000-seater Ludogorets Arena. The Real players won’t have played in those sort of surroundings since their youth days when they were making their break through in football.
Former Celta winger Dani Abalo and Brayan Angulo, of Granada and Deportivo are possibly the only two vaguely familiar faces in the squad. Having lost to Valencia in the Europa League and indeed to Basel, Real should see them off easily.
hala madara
Madrid should be quite comfortable in that group. the only team that would give them some trouble is liverpool