We are in the UEFA Champions League group stage for the fifth time in a row. The draw was made by former internationals Eric Abidal (FC Barcelona and others) and Joe Cole (Chelsea and others), together with Giorgio Marchetti, Deputy General Secretary of UEFA, in Monaco's Grimaldi Forum:
Benfica (POR/pot 1)
Stadium: Estadio da Luz
Coach: Roger Schmidt
Did you know? The 38-time Portuguese champions (more than any other club) are guided by former Salzburg coach Roger Schmidt and enjoyed a great past season, winning their domestic title and impressing in the UEFA Champions League. The club with an estimated market value of 365 million Euro were knocked out by fellow Group D opponents Inter.
Inter Milan (ITA/pot 2)
Stadium: Giuseppe Meazza Stadium
Coach: Simone Inzaghi
Did you know? The Milan side with an estimated market value of 513 million Euro finished third in Serie A last season and made the UEFA Champions League final. The team coached by Simone Inzaghi played the Red Bulls in a friendly at the start of August and won a dramatic encounter 4-3. They have a well-known Austrian player in their ranks in Marko Arnautovic.
Real Sociedad (ESP/pot 4)
Stadium: Estadio Anoeta
Coach: Imanol Alguacil
Did you know? The Basques finished the past season with a great fourth placed finish and are probably one of the most difficult opponents in the fourth pot. Real Sociedad (market value of around 400 million Euro) are back in the Champions League for the first time in ten years.
Schedule
The Champions League group stage schedule is already planned, with exact fixtures to be confirmed by UEFA in the coming days. Matches will kick off at 18:45 CET or 21:00 CET. The final takes place on 1 June 2024 at Wembley Stadium in London.
Matchday 1: 19/20 September 2023
Matchday 2: 3/4 October 2023
Matchday 3: 24/25 October 2023
Matchday 4: 7/8 November 2023
Matchday 5: 28/29 November 2023
Matchday 6: 12/13 December 2023
Views
Bernhard Seonbuchner on the quality of the group:
This is the Champions League and it has the best teams Europe has to offer. We have to assume that it will not be easy in such an ambitious group, as we are playing real top teams. We want to play our Salzburg playing style again in these matches, hopefully in front of full houses at home. With the best possible support behind us, we will aim to be in Europe next spring. It's a big challenge, but we believe that we can do it.
Gerhard Struber on the opponents in Group D:
We are facing a very exciting trio of teams, with two teams in Benfica and Inter who went very far in the Champions League last season and made a good impression. Benfica have a coach in Roger Schmidt who achieved incredible things in Salzburg and who has developed a very particular style with his teams. We have a tough challenge ahead in Inter too - a team with lots of experience and tactical know-how. They were over here recently. We saw that we can make our mark against those kinds of opponents when we go to our limits. We are facing a team from pot 4 in Real Sociedad that has a squad market value of over 400 million Euro and also has plenty of experience and cleverness. The great thing is that we will face three teams our very young team has a chance to develop against by playing their typical style and trying to spring a surprise.
Andreas Ulmer on Benfica, Inter and Real Sociedad:
I think that we have a really strong and really good group. We can believe that we have what it takes when we manage to play our own style. Our aim in this difficult group is to stay in Europe next spring.
I am pleased to be able to see Roger Schmidt again. I'm also looking forward to meeting Marko Arnautovic. He is a really good striker, he showed that last season in the Italian league. If he is fit, he will be a very tough opponent to face.
Loyalty pays: Champions League tickets on sale on Monday
The sale of three-match packages for UEFA Champions League group stage matches starts on Monday 4 September 2023 and is restricted to season-ticket holders initially under our loyalty pays motto.
