Source: Team_Talk
English sides await European fate
All the English sides are guaranteed positions among the eight top seeds meaning they will avoid current European champions Barcelona, but could face Real Madrid, who are one of the eight second-ranked clubs.
There is also another intriguing possibility of Carlo Ancelotti's Chelsea coming face to face with Jose Mourinho's Inter Milan in a group - Inter will also be among the second seeds.
The draw will see 32 teams split into eight groups, each containing a top seed, a second seed, a third seed and a fourth seed.
Bayern Munich, AC Milan and Sevilla are other top seeds, and there are plenty of tough opponents in the other pots. Lyon, CSKA Moscow and Juventus are among the second seeds, while Atletico Madrid, Bordeaux and Stuttgart are in the third pot.
Rangers could also be among the second seeds unless Fiorentina lose at home to Sporting Lisbon tonight, in which case the Scottish champions would be third seeds.
The team to avoid among the eight clubs in fourth pot are Wolfsburg, who were champions of Germany last season. Such is the strength in depth of Europe's elite club tournament, that there is a possibility of any of the English clubs being drawn in a group with Real Madrid, Bordeaux and Wolfsburg.
Big-spending Real Madrid are the bookies' favourites and will view this year's tournament as almost a must-win - apart from the arrival of Ronaldo, Kaka and Xavi Alonso, the final in May will be at their home ground the Bernabeu.
As for last season's beaten finalists Manchester United, their striker Dimitar Berbatov insists most clubs will fear being drawn against the English champions.
He told the club's official website: "When you say the name Manchester United it inspires respect in a lot of people. Nobody will fancy playing us."
Berbatov said the taste of defeat in Rome has intensified the players' desire to go one better this time.
"After what happened in last year's final I think we're even more determined in Europe this time around," he added.
"For me, losing in Rome was doubly frustrating because I wasn't at the club when the team won in Moscow - I've never won the Champions League so losing to Barcelona was very upsetting.
"This year our aim is to make it all the way to Madrid. The Bernabeu is one of the best stadiums in the world and I know we're good enough to make it back there and, this time, win it."
Seedings for Thursday's draw:
Top seeds: Barcelona (Spa) UEFA co-efficient 121.9, Chelsea (Eng) 118.9, Liverpool (Eng) 118.9, Man Utd (Eng) 111.9, AC Milan (Ita) 110.6, Arsenal* (Eng) 106.9, Sevilla (Spa) 100.9, Bayern Munich (Ger) 98.3.
Second seeds: Lyon (Fra) 91.0, Inter Milan (Ita) 87.6, Real Madrid (Spa) 78.9, CSKA Moscow (Rus) 71.5, Porto (Por) 68.3, AZ Alkmaar (Hol) 64.8, Juventus (Ita) 63.5, Rangers** (Sco) 56.6.
Third seeds: Olympiakos* (Gre) 52.6, Marseille (Fra) 48.0, Dinamo Kiev (Ukr) 46.4, Stuttgart* (Ger) 45.3, Fiorentina* (Ita) 42.6, Atletico Madrid (Spa) 41.9, Bordeaux (Fra) 40.0, Besiktas (Tur) 32.4.
Fourth seeds: FC Copenhagen (Den) 26.9*, Wolfsburg (Ger) 21.3, Standard Liege (Bel) 21.1, Maccabi Haifa (Isr) 17.1, FC Zurich (Swi) 14.1, Rubin Kazan (Rus) 9.5, Unirea Urziceni (Rom) 8.8, Debreceni (Hun) 1.633.
* need to qualify tonight ** If Sporting Lisbon beat Fiorentina then they will be second seeds and Rangers drop to pot of third seeds.
Champions League 2009/10 Win Outright: Real Madrid 5/1
