The Champions League group stage is now within touching distance as the pots for Thursday’s draw were confirmed after the conclusion of the playoff round.

Benfica, PSV, and Red Star Belgrade were the final three teams to seal their spots in the competition’s main draw Wednesday by emerging victorious against PAOK, BATE, and Red Bull Salzburg, respectively.

Each pot is made up of eight teams. Pot 1 consists of defending champions Real Madrid, UEFA Europa League winners Atletico Madrid, and the champions of the six highest-ranked nations – Spain, Germany, England, Italy, France, and Russia – while Pots 2 to 4 are determined by UEFA’s club coefficient rankings.

Benfica sealed the final available spot in Pot 2 by virtue of their 4-1 second-leg win over PAOK. Had the Portuguese side been knocked out, Liverpool would have stolen that berth; as it stands, the Reds drop into Pot 3, thus potentially facing a considerably tougher grouping.

Here is the breakdown in full:

Pot 1: Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain, Lokomotiv Moscow

Pot 2: Borussia Dortmund, Manchester United, Porto, Napoli, Roma, Tottenham Hotspur, Shakhtar Donetsk, Benfica

Pot 3: Schalke, Lyon, AS Monaco, Ajax, CSKA Moscow, Liverpool, PSV, Valencia

Pot 4: Inter, Club Brugge, Galatasaray, Young Boys, Hoffenheim, AEK Athens, Red Star Belgrade, Viktoria Plzen

Thursday’s draw takes place at 12 p.m. ET in Monaco.

Clubs from the same country cannot be drawn in the same group, which could lead to some of Europe’s heavyweights being pitted against one another; a quartet consisting of Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool, and Inter Milan is a possibility, for example.

The group stage kicks off on Sept. 18.

The brother of Abdelhak “Appie” Nouri, an Ajax youngster who sustained permanent brain damage after suffering a cardiac arrhythmia attack during a match in July 2017, has confirmed marked improvements in the 21-year-old’s condition and communication.

Nouri, touted as a future star after impressing for the Amsterdam side’s reserve side Jong Ajax, collapsed during a friendly against Werder Bremen last summer and was placed in an induced coma. Ajax subsequently announced the former Netherlands youth international had suffered “serious and permanent” brain damage and that there was no chance of a full recovery.

However, speaking to Dutch outlet NOS, as reported by CNN, Abderrahim Nouri provided a positive update on his brother’s condition, revealing Appie has awoken from his coma and has been able to communicate with family members.

“Not in the beginning, he was just in the coma and had his eyes closed. Slowly, he was waking up a bit more and more. But, since December and January, his awareness has become a little better and there is a form of communication. When you asked him something, he opened his mouth or confirmed he understood by raising an eyebrow …

Neurologically, he is much better than before. Physically, it’s a little more difficult and we see a little deterioration but that’s pure(ly) because he is not moving. Sometimes, he comes out of bed to sit in his wheelchair. That was more difficult before. But he has ups and downs. His resistance and immune system are very low. It swings a lot.

Since day one, there has been a difference from when we see him compared to the doctors. In the beginning, it was true that we were not allowed to stay with him for a long time, as these are the hospital’s rules. But the doctors saw that we as a family had a lot of influence on Abdelhak. He became calmer, he recognized us, and he was quieter with us than with the doctors. You reassure him, he hears a familiar voice, especially if my mum and dad are with him. We’re staying 24/7 with him, because it does him good …

Of course, I believe in science and I believe in what I see, but if we talk about the future, I think: time will teach us. We believe he is capable of anything. Nothing is difficult for him. And we keep our hopes up. For people from outside that won’t understand: you just need to keep hope.”

Nouri, named the Dutch second division’s Player of the Season in 2017 after his stellar season with Jong Ajax, played 15 league and cup games for the senior team in 2016-17, scoring his first Ajax goal in a Dutch Cup tie.

In June, club general manager Edwin van der Sar admitted the club’s liability for Nouri’s condition. “We recognize our responsibility and liability for the consequences of this,” the former Manchester United goalkeeper said. “For a long time, we were convinced that Abdelhak had received the best possible care on the field.”