Champions League draw: Liverpool handed Curtis Jones reunion and Atletico Madrid test in league phase | OneFootball

Reds handed favourable league phase draw

The Reds reached the quarter-final of the competition last season, losing to eventual winners Paris Saint-Germain and qualified for the competition once again by virtue of a top five Premier League finish.

Their quest to win a seventh European crown includes a showdown with the reigning champions of Italy, which means a reunion with Curtis Jones who joined Inter in the summer transfer window.

Liverpool will take on the Serie A giants at the San Siro, hoping for a repeat of last season’s 1-0 win in the league phase when Dominik Szoboszlai scored a late penalty.

The other headline fixture is a home clash with Atletico. The sides also met in the league phase last season with Virgil van Dijk scoring a late winner in a five-goal thriller at Anfield.

Andoni Iraola’s side have also been handed favourable home fixtures against Porto, Villarreal and Lens, though face a tough trip to Turkey to face a Fenerbahce side that features many former Premier League players including Romelu Lukaku, N’Golo Kante, Nathan Ake and Ederson.

Liverpool also have away games in Belgium and Austria to face Club Brugge and LASK, who produced a stunning comeback in the play-offs to eliminate Celtic, respectively.

Atletico Madrid (H)

Inter Milan (A)

Porto (H)

Lens (H)

LASK (A)

The exact make-up of each week in terms of kick-off times and match dates will be provided by UEFA.

Matchday 1: September 8-10, 2026

Matchday 2: October 13/14, 2026

Matchday 3: October 20/21, 2026

Matchday 4: November 3/4, 2026

Matchday 5: November 24/25, 2026

Matchday 6: December 8/9, 2026

Matchday 7: January 19/20, 2026

Matchday 8: