Portuguese giants Benfica have known their Champions League group stage opponents after the draw took place in the Turkish city of Istanbul on Thursday. Benfica sealed their place in the Champions League this season via the playoffs. They had to go through the playoffs after finishing third behind Sporting Lisbon and champions FC Porto in the Portuguese top flight last season.
In the Champions League playoffs this season, Benfica got the better of Ukrainian outfit Dynamo Kyiv over two legs. Gilberto and Goncalo Ramos scored in the first half as Benfica secured a 2-0 away win overDynamo Kyiv in the first leg. In the second leg, Argentine international defender Nicholas Otamendi, Rafa Silva and David Neres also scored in the first half for a 3-0 win at home to Dynamo Kyiv for a 5-0 aggregate victory.
At the end of the latest group stage draw in the Champions League, Benfica were drawn alongside French Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint Germain (PSG), Italian Serie A outfit Juventus and Israeli champions Maccabi Haifa in Group G. Maccabi Haifa are making a return to the Champions League group stage after a long hiatus, while the other three teams are regular participants. Benfica went farthest in the Champions League last season out of the other three teams. As revealed earlier, the Portuguese giants were eliminated by Liverpool in the last eight. Juventus and PSG had left the competition by that time. They were knocked out in the last 16. PSG were eliminated by Real Madrid in the last 16, while Juventus lost out to Villarreal in the last 16.