Champions League: Juventus draw Man Utd, Liverpool vs PSG •Modric beats Ronaldo, Salah to UEFA Player of the Year Award

News Express |30th Aug 2018 | 2,408
Champions League: Juventus draw Man Utd, Liverpool vs PSG •Modric beats Ronaldo, Salah to UEFA Player of the Year Award

Manchester United will face a reunion with Cristiano Ronaldo after drawing Serie A champions Juventus in the Champions League group stage.

Ronaldo, who was at United between 2003 and 2009,joined Juve for £99.2min July after nine years at Real Madrid.

Valencia and Young Boys are the other teams in Group H.

Tottenhamhave been drawn in a tough group to face Barcelona, while last season's runners-upLiverpoolface Paris St-Germain and Napoli.

Eredivisie champions PSV Eindhoven and Inter Milan complete the line-up in Spurs' Group B and Red Star Belgrade are the other team to play Jurgen Klopp's side in Group C.

Premier League championsManchester Citywere drawn in Group F alongside Shakhtar Donetsk, Lyon and Hoffenheim.

Last season's winners Real Madrid, who have won the competition for the past three years, are in Group G with Roma, CSKA Moscow and Viktoria Plzen.

Meanwhile,Luka Modric of Real Madrid and Croatia on Thursday received the accolade of UEFA Player of the Year in Monaco after his Champions League exploits.

Modric, whose success sets him up as a favourite to win the Ballon d’Or world player of the year accolade, saw off former Real teammate Cristiano Ronaldo and Liverpool’s Egyptian striker Mohamed Salah for the overall award.

“My father always pushed me to fight for my dreams, I owe him a lot for everything,” said Modric, whose silky midfield skills helped Real to a third straight European crown and then propelled Croatia to the World Cup final.

“It’s an incredible moment for me, I feel really excited and proud of this great award,” said the 32-year-old, who started out at Dinamo Zagreb and then had four years with Tottenham before Real prised him away six years ago.

Real Madrid’s achievement in winning the Champions League for the third season running was further recognised as Modric also won the UEFA award for the best midfielder of last season.

His clubmate Sergio Ramos was named best defender while Real shot stopper Keylor Navas won the best goalkeeper prize.

Ronaldo, who did not appear at the ceremony, was awarded the award for best striker chosen by Champions League and Europa League coaches from last season and journalists.

The award “recognises the best players, irrespective of nationality, playing for a club within the territory of a UEFA member association during the past season. Players are judged on their performances in all competitions – domestic, continental and international”.

Danish international Pernille Harder, of German club Wolfsburg, won the UEFA women’s player of the year prize.

Wolfsburg lost to dominant French outfit Lyon in the Champions League final in Kiev in May.

There was also an award for David Beckham, the former Manchester United, Real Madrid and England star collecting the UEFA President’s Award for his achievements in the game and his work since retiring as a player.

Champions LeagueGroup stage draw in full:

Group A:Atletico Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Monaco, Club Brugge.

Group B:Barcelona, Tottenham, PSV Eindhoven, Inter Milan.

Group C:Paris St-Germain, Napoli, Liverpool, Red Star Belgrade.

Group D:Lokomotiv Moscow, Porto, Schalke, Galatasaray.

Group E:Bayern Munich, Benfica, Ajax, AEK Athen.

Group F:Manchester City, Shakhtar Donetsk, Lyon, Hoffenheim.

Group G:Real Madrid, Roma, CSKA Moscow, Viktoria Plzen.

Group H:Juventus, Manchester United, Valencia, Young Boys.

Group stage match days

Match day one:18-19 September

Match day two:2-3 October

Match day three:23-24 October

Match day four:6-7 November

Match day five:27-28 November

Match day six:11-12 December

•Based on reports by BBC and AFP. Photo by Valery HACHE / AFPshowsReal Madrid Croatia’s midfielder Luka Modric (C) receiving the UEFA Men’s Player of the Year award from UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin (R) during the draw for UEFA Champions League football tournament at The Grimaldi Forum in Monaco on August 30, 2018.

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