Winners and losers in Thursday’s Champions League draw

The UEFA Champions League group stage draw has been made and it has thrown up some interesting matchups despite the arguable lack of a true "group of death." Group F with Paris Saint-Germain, Borussia Dortmund, Milan, and Newcastle United is probably the pick of the bunch but even then you feel that it could still have been worse for pretty much everyone involved.

There is no shortage, though, of seemingly straightforward routes to the knockout phase with Arsenal, Real Madrid, Manchester City, and Barcelona likely to be very happy with their draws.

We look at some of the winners and losers from Thursday's big event at Grimaldi Forum in Monaco.

Full UCL 23-24 groups

Group A: Bayern Munich, Manchester United, Copenhagen and Galatasaray.

Group B: Sevilla, Arsenal, PSV Eindhoven and Lens.

Group C: Napoli, Real Madrid, SC Braga, and Union Berlin.

Group D: Benfica, Inter, Red Bull Salzburg and Real Sociedad.

Group E: Feyenoord, Atletico Madrid, Lazio and Celtic.

Group F: Paris Saint-Germain, Borussia Dortmund, Milan and Newcastle United.

Group G: Manchester City, RB Leipzig, Red Star Belgrade and Young Boys.

Group H: Barcelona, Porto, Shakhtar Donetsk and Antwerp.

Winners: Arsenal

Mikel Arteta's men will feel satisfied with Sevilla, PSV, and Lens with the UEFA Europa League champions arguably the biggest threat for top spot in Group B.

The Gunners, over the home and away games, really should finish in the top two here, although they should beware of what tricky away days against PSV and Lens could mean. In any case, even if points are dropped, Sevilla struggled at this level last year before finding themselves more comfortable in the UEL.

Arsenal are favorites to advance from this group and for good reason -- their pedigree remains stronger than the other three at this level despite a few years away.

Losers: PSG

It is difficult to convincingly argue that there is a "group of death" this season yet it is equally tough to judge Group F as "easy" for serial chokers PSG. Borussia Dortmund might not be the force they once were which can also be said of Milan but the narrative-rich clash between the Qatar-owned Parisien club and Saudi-backed Newcastle was one of the storylines we had you watching for pre-draw.

Now that it has come to pass, USMNT captain Christian Pulisic will find himself up against not only Kylian Mbappe but also Sandro Tonali who left the Italian giants for Tyneside this summer.

Factor in four magnificent venues each worthy of Champions League brilliance and it is actually a pretty attractive package.

Winners: Manchester City

The titleholders will be very happy with their lot given that their biggest concern so far is going up against RB Leipzig for a third consecutive edition after last year's round of 16 meetings

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Pep Guardiola's men will not be losing sleep about Red Star Belgrade or Young Boys, although both could be trickier propositions away from home than at Etihad Stadium. Regardless, even if something were to go wrong in one or two games, there is still enough of a chasm in quality that City should make it through as one of the top two in the absolute worst-case scenario.

Losers: Antwerp

On the face of it, Group H with Barcelona, Porto, Shakhtar Donetsk, and Antwerp does not look like the most difficult of groups -- unless you are the Belgian debutants. The Portuguese and Ukrainian giants might not be as formidable as they once were and the same could be said of Barca, perhaps, but that will be of no consolation to Mark van Bommel's Belgian champions. Third place ahead of possibly Shakhtar might be seen by some as Antwerp's best-case scenario but Porto could also be gettable if the Great Old can make away days at Bosuilstadion difficult for the trio with plenty of continental pedigree.

Winners: Barcelona

From Barca's point of view, though, it is hard to feel that this will not be welcomed as something of a dream scenario with none of Porto, Shakhtar, or Antwerp likely to cause the Catalan giants to lose sleep. Compared with last year when Bayern Munich and Inter came out of the hat, this feels like a walk in the park and will probably be viewed as one at Camp Nou.

Losers: Celtic

Unsure of their seeding until the final hours, the Scottish giants will probably feel like they have been handed a tall order with Feyenoord, Atletico Madrid, and Lazio all very tough places to go on the road. Celtic themselves are not exactly an away day to relish in Europe, but their home form is less likely to be as strong as their Dutch, Spanish, or Italian counterparts.

Winners: Real Madrid

It has probably felt as if problems are mounting for Carlo Ancelotti and the Spanish giants in recent weeks with Thibaut Courtois, Eder Militao, and Vinicius Junior all lost to injury, but a fairly straightforward Champions League group should lighten that load. Group C with Napoli is not exactly easy, but Los Blancos will be delighted to have seen Braga and Union Berlin added to the group which now looks like a nailed-on top-two berth.

Losers: Borussia Dortmund

We mentioned PSG earlier and how Group F could get tricky for them, but Borussia Dortmund are equally vulnerable in what is a fairly evenly-balanced selection even if the French giants are arguably the strongest side in there. With Milan and Newcastle, though, the Germans cannot afford to slip up and their early season form in the Bundesliga is not exactly encouraging. Could this be a year where BVB slips into the Europa League or worse?