Liverpool’s Champions League group is set after today’s draw handed Jürgen Klopp’s and his Reds dates against Ajax, Napoli, and Rangers for the 2022-23 edition of Europe’s premier club football competition.
It’s neither the toughest nor the easiest path to the knockout rounds that the Reds could have been given, and it will somewhat surprisingly mark the first occasion Liverpool have faced Scotland’s Rangers in a competitive match.
The two sides played a friendly in the summer of 2008, but despite the short trip that will be on offer for travelling fans this is a brand new pairing. On the other hand, Ajax and Napoli are more known opponents.
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Ajax is a relatively unique side to draw, as they faced off in the group stages of the 2020-21 Champions League—with Liverpool winning both games 1-0—but before that haven’t played each other in Europe since 1967.
Napoli are the most familiar face, with the Reds facing off against them regularly in recent years, with the Italian side often giving them troubles under Carlo Ancelotti—though this will be the first meeting against them under Luciano Spalletti.
It’s also a side in transition, having lost Lorenzo Insigne, Arkadiusz Milik, Dries Mertens, and Kalidou Koulibaly over the summer, which could add up to a rather different opponent than the ones Reds fans are used to.