Champions League draw sim: Liverpool to face European giants, Arsenal get tough away trips

The Champions League is back again and football fans all over the world are buzzing with excitement. The tournament that every player dreams about, the stage that has created legends, heartbreaks, miracles and unforgettable nights is once again ready to deliver drama. This season’s draw feels even more important because it is still a new system and teams are still trying to adapt to the league phase format that UEFA introduced last year. The old group stage has been scrapped, and now thirty-six teams will fight in one big league, each playing eight matches against opponents from different pots. It is not just about luck anymore, it is about facing a wide variety of challenges across Europe, testing every squad’s depth, mentality and ability to travel and perform in hostile grounds.

For the English clubs, the simulation of this season’s Champions League draw has thrown up some interesting fixtures. Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Newcastle and Tottenham Hotspur will all be representing the Premier League, and each of them knows that no game in this competition is ever easy. Fans of these clubs are already looking at the simulated fixtures with mixed emotions – some are excited, some ae nervous, some are already predicting nightmare away trips that could define their season.

Liverpool, who were crowned Premier League champions last season, are again one of the teams everyone will be watching closely. Jurgen Klopp may have left but the club has built on his legacy, and their European pedigree cannot be ignored. According to the simulated draw, Liverpool will have to face Atalanta at home, Real Madrid away, Bodo Glimt at home, Club Brugge away, Union Saint-Gilloise away, Borussia Dortmund at home, Pafos at home, and Marseille away. On paper, that looks like a fair draw but nobody in Liverpool is smiling just yet because everyone remembers what happens when you step into the Santiago Bernabeu. Real Madrid and Liverpool is one of the biggest fixtures in world football. It is history, it is rivalry, it is pain and revenge all mixed together. Liverpool have suffered heartbreaks against Real in recent years, losing finals and key knockout ties, and now the Reds will once again have to make that dreaded trip to Spain. Fans already know that game could be the one that defines the tone of their entire campaign.

But Liverpool will also feel confident because they have winnable matches too. Atalanta at Anfield is tough, but the atmosphere at Anfield on a Champions League night is something special. Bodo Glimt will be tricky but manageable. Club Brugge and Union SG are good Belgian sides but Liverpool will expect to take points there. Dortmund at Anfield will be a night of fire, and the emotional reunion with a German club will bring back old memories for fans. Marseille away is also a test but not one that Liverpool will fear. Overall, their path looks solid, but in the Champions League nothing ever goes as simply as it looks on paper.

Arsenal’s simulated fixtures tell a different story. The Gunners, who reached the semi-finals last season, have been handed a draw that mixes comfort with chaos. They will play Pafos at home, PSV Eindhoven away, Villarreal at home, Borussia Dortmund away, Napoli away, Real Madrid away, Copenhagen at home, and Club Brugge away. Straight away, Arsenal fans will notice something – those away trips are brutal. Napoli away, Real Madrid away, Dortmund away, PSV away. These are the kinds of fixtures that test the soul of a squad. You don’t just need talent to survive those trips, you need mentality, you need warriors. Last season, Arsenal shocked Europe by beating Real Madrid in the quarter-finals. Now the simulated draw puts them in a position where they must go back to Madrid again, this time in the league phase. That is not just football, that is destiny calling them again.

The scary part for Arsenal is having to play Napoli and Real Madrid back-to-back away from home. Napoli, the champions of Italy, are ruthless at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. The atmosphere is electric, the city breathes football, and for Arsenal to go there before heading straight to the Bernabeu is a nightmare scenario. But sometimes nightmares create heroes, and Arsenal’s young squad might use these games to prove once again that they are no longer just a project but a true European force. Pafos at home should be simple, Villarreal at home will be about breaking down Spanish discipline, Copenhagen and Club Brugge are games they can win, but all eyes will be on those blockbuster away trips.

Manchester City, the team that always dreams of winning the Champions League but keeps finding new ways to suffer heartbreak, have once again been handed a set of fixtures that will test them from start to finish. According to the simulation, City will face PSG away, Benfica at home, Monaco away, Slavia Prague away, PSV Eindhoven away, Inter Milan at home, Athletic Club at home, and Bayer Leverkusen away. Straight away, the PSG clash in Paris jumps out. Holders against former winners, Messi may be gone but PSG are still PSG. The Parc des Princes will be buzzing and for Pep Guardiola’s men, that is the perfect but dangerous way to begin their campaign.

City’s rivalry with PSG has grown over the years, and every time they meet, the world stops to watch. Add Benfica, Monaco, Inter Milan, and Bayer Leverkusen into the mix, and you can see why fans say City always get tough paths in Europe. Pep Guardiola will not be happy but he knows his squad is deep. Yet, everyone remembers what happened last season – a massive disappointment. This season they must prove themselves again.

Chelsea, after missing out before, are back in the Champions League and their fixtures in the simulated draw will make fans both smile and worry. Villarreal at home, Qarabag away, Napoli at home, Juventus away, Kairat at home, Sporting away, Bayern Munich away, and Barcelona at home. At first, it looks kind. Qarabag and Kairat are fixtures Chelsea should win. Villarreal at home is winnable. But then you see the end – Bayern Munich away and Barcelona at home. That is how their league phase will end, with two giants. Imagine Chelsea needing points at that stage, and then having to face those monsters. It could be dramatic, it could be heartbreaking, or it could be legendary.

Newcastle United, the team that has returned to the Champions League stage with ambition, face a tough road. Galatasaray away, Marseille at home, Sporting away, Qarabag at home, Bayern Munich at home, PSG away, Juventus away, and Atletico Madrid at home. For Newcastle fans, this is what they dreamed of when they became rich – big nights against big teams. But these are no ordinary fixtures. Galatasaray away is a nightmare for any team. The fans in Istanbul create one of the most intimidating atmospheres in world football. That is where Newcastle’s journey will begin. From there it only gets harder – Bayern, PSG, Juventus, Atletico Madrid. This is the definition of baptism of fire.

And finally, Tottenham Hotspur. Spurs are back and they will be hoping to write new history. Their fixtures in the simulated draw are Bodo Glimt at home, Copenhagen away, Inter Milan away, Bayer Leverkusen at home, Barcelona at home, Ajax away, Union SG at home, and Benfica away. Spurs fans will look at this and feel hopeful. They avoid too many monsters in a row. Barcelona at home will be huge, Inter away will be massive, but they also have games against sides they can realistically beat. If the real draw ends up like this, Spurs fans will feel they have a real chance to go far.

The schedule for the Champions League has already been set. Matchday one begins September 16–18, then continues September 30–October 1, October 21–22, November 4–5, November 25–26, December 9–10, January 20–21, and January 28. After that, it is straight into the knockout rounds. By the time May 30, 2026 arrives and the final is played in Budapest, the world will have seen months of drama

Every English side has a different path but one thing is clear – there will be no easy road. Liverpool will have to fight giants again, Arsenal must survive a brutal away schedule, City must prove they can bounce back from disappointment, Chelsea must be ready for late drama, Newcastle will live through fire, and Spurs will look to finally break their curse in Europe.

Fans are already talking, dreaming, predicting. Some believe this could be Liverpool’s year again, some say Arsenal’s young stars will shock Europe, others believe City will finally deliver or Chelsea will rise again. But in the Champions League, everything is possible. That is why people love it, that is why legends are born here

This simulated draw is only a preview of what could come, but it has already made football fans restless. The real draw in Monaco will decide the truth, but one thing is sure – the Champions League is ready to take us on another unforgettable journey.