Aston Villa UEFA Champions League fixtures: Villans to face Bayern Munich and Juventus

The inaugural league phase draw of the UEFA Champions League has seen Aston Villa drawn against Bayern Munich and Juventus.

It will be Aston Villa's first foray into top-level European competition since the 1982/83 season, when they were knocked out in the quarter-finals by eventual runners-up Juventus, who boasted the likes of Michel Platini, Paolo Rossi, Zbigniew Boniek, Gaetano Scirea, Marco Tardelli and Dino Zoff.

And although their currently line-up may not be quite as formidable, Villa will face a stern test from the Italians this time around.

Of course, a little like Newcastle last season, there's a sense that Villa fans will largely be glad to be there without too much expectation, but failing to at least reach the top 24 at least will be a huge disappointment considering the calibre of some of the lesser teams in the league phase.

Unai Emery's men will likely need 10 points to achieve that, and with games against Club Brugge, Celtic and Young Boys, they should feel confident of at least making the knockout phase play-offs.

Should the Villans finish 9th-16th, they will likely be drawn against inferior opposition, giving them every chance of making the last-16.

Aston Villa UEFA Champions League fixtures

Check out the latest UEFA Champions League outright odds.

Liam Williams

• Aston Villa F.C.
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