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.
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Denver Broncos quarterback Paxton Lynch said Tuesday his future is on his mind and he’s trying to hang on to his roster spot after falling to No. 3 on the depth chart headed into Thursday’s preseason finale against the Arizona Cardinals.
Lynch, whom the Broncos traded up to select in the first round of the 2016 draft (26th overall), had lost back-to-back training camp battles with Trevor Siemian in the previous two summers. And this time around he has slid to No. 3 on the depth chart, behind Case Keenum and Chad Kelly, as the Broncos approach Saturday’s deadline to reduce rosters from 90 to 53 players.
“Obviously you think about it, you’re not happy about it, but I’ve got to do what I’ve got to do with the hand that’s been dealt to me,” Lynch said. “And that’s what I’m doing, I’m working my tail off.”
Broncos quarterback Paxton Lynch said he’s doing what he can to save his roster spot after falling to No. 3 on the depth chart. Dustin Bradford/Getty Images
Broncos president of football operations/general manager John Elway has often professed his preference to use just two roster spots at quarterback. However, Siemian played well enough in the preseason in 2015 for the Broncos to keep him as a rookie No. 3 behind Peyton Manning and Brock Osweiler.
The Broncos also kept three quarterbacks, after Siemian was injured, on the roster for much of last season.
Also, neither Elway nor coach Vance Joseph has ruled out bringing in a veteran quarterback as Keenum’s backup. Elway said when training camp opened he would consider it if neither Kelly nor Lynch showed he was ready. However, Kelly has played so well in the preseason the Broncos would likely now, at minimum, have to keep him as the No. 3 if they did sign another veteran passer because the seventh-round pick, who missed his rookie year in 2017 on injured reserve, might not clear waivers if they tried to get him to the practice squad.
For his part Lynch said he is trying to simply focus on Thursday’s game.
“I’m not worried about anything past the next day, which is (Wednesday), we come out here and have our practice and then travel to Arizona and then have our meetings there,” Lynch said. “That’s what I’m focused on. I’m focused on going out and playing well on Thursday.”
Kelly is 28-of-41 passing in three preseason games (68.3 percent) for 340 yards to go with three touchdowns and an interception. Lynch has struggled much of the time in his three outings — two of those against largely third-string defenses with largely the Broncos’ third-teamers in the formation around him — and is 14-of-29 passing (48.3 percent) for 102 yards to go with one interception.
Lynch was asked after Tuesday’s practice if he would like to remain with the Broncos, even if it meant he was the team’s No. 3.
“Absolutely, I love it here, I’ve said that since day one, I wanted to be the guy here,” Lynch said. “I’ve gone through some things, I’ve struggled, haven’t played well at times and at times I have played well. I’ve just got to find that consistency, constantly playing well and I know I can get there.”
Joseph said this week Kelly would play at least a half Thursday against the Cardinals and that Lynch would finish out the game.
Lynch also addressed what was a bit of a social media frenzy from this past weekend when he posted a photo of a “For Sale” sign posted in a yard. Many presumed it was a sign in front of Lynch’s house and an indication of what he thought of his future.
However, Lynch said his girlfriend is a realtor and he took the picture because her name was on the sign.
“I was proud of her, I posted a picture of it,” Lynch said. ” … I didn’t know about (the attention) until my parents had called me and said something about it — ‘Did you post a picture of a “For Sale” sign or something like that’ and I said ‘Yeah I did’ and I seen all these articles start popping up.”
Kiev, Aug 28, 2018 (AFP) – Supporters of Dynamo Kiev and Dutch side Ajax clashed in the Ukrainian capital before a Champions League playoff on Tuesday, leading to nine arrests.
“Police ended the fight,” a police statement said, adding the trouble had broken out in a bar near the Olympic Stadium.
Nine “active participants” were taken to a police station.
Video of the incidents on social media showed dozens of young men running towards a cafe in an otherwise deserted road and sounds resembling shots could he heard.
Around 1,500 police and soldiers were on patrol in Kiev for the match, which ended in a goalless draw, with Ajax reaching the group stages thanks to a 3-1 win in the first leg.
ASHBURN, Va. — The Washington Redskins’ offense, which hasn’t been together in full this preseason, should receive a boost for the regular-season opener. Tight end Jordan Reed and third-down back Chris Thompson are on pace to play Sept. 9 at Arizona.
Redskins coach Jay Gruden said both players, who fill important roles on offense, should be available. Thompson is recovering from a broken fibula; he also tore a ligament and had screws inserted into his leg. Reed played only six games last season and needed surgery to repair both of his big toes.
Thompson appears a little further ahead than Reed.
“Chris looks fantastic,” Gruden said. “He’s been great — his pass blocking and obviously his routes, and he’s hitting the hole. He looks great. He’s ready to go. Jordan is getting there. The more he works and more he runs … he had a great day today, just getting in and out of his cuts, getting a feel with [quarterback Alex Smith] and the different formations. He’s on pace to be ready.”
The Redskins’ running-back position has been hit with injuries this summer. Rookie Derrius Guice suffered a torn ACL in the preaseason opener, taking away one of Washington’s playmaking hopes. Backups Samaje Perine (ankle) and Byron Marshall (knee) then were hurt in the second game. Though Perine is now back practicing, Marshall remains sidelined.
Because of those injuries, the Redskins signed Adrian Peterson, who is expected to start the season opener. But Thompson plays a crucial role for Washington. Before getting hurt in Week 11, Thompson had rushed for 294 yards and gained another 510 receiving. There was some concern earlier in camp about how much work he could handle early in the season, but Thompson said Monday he can resume a full workload in the team’s third-down packages.
Reed has been practicing with the starters for several weeks, gradually increasing his snaps. But, like Thompson, he hasn’t participated in a preseason game. His toe injury led to other leg issues last season, limiting him to a career-low 27 receptions and two touchdowns. With Reed, the Redskins are dangerous in their two-tight-end package. His presence enables Vernon Davis to get more favorable matchups. Last season, Davis averaged 22.25 yards on 12 catches in games played with Reed and 12.7 yards when Reed wasn’t available, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
