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On Thursday in Monaco, the draw for the 2006/07 UEFA Champions League took place, dividing the 32 strongest European teams into 8 groups.
Also, during the distinguished ceremony, the best footballers of the previous season were awarded. The best goalkeeper was Jens Lehmann of London's Arsenal and the German national team, who surpassed Gianluigi Buffon and Grégory Coupet. Interestingly, all the other laureates are from Barcelona club.
The best defender was named Carles Puyol, the captain of Barcelona club, leaving behind Emmanuel Eboue and Fabio Cannavaro.
Another player from the Catalan club, Deco, was named the best midfielder. In the rankings, he defeated Juninho Pernambucano and Juan Román Riquelme.
The best forward in the rankings was the Cameroonian Samuel Eto'o, also defending the honor of Barcelona team. He surpassed Thierry Henry and Ronaldinho. However, the latter was not left without an award, he was recognized as the best UEFA Champions League player.
UEFA Champions League group stage draw:
Group A Barcelona (Spain) Chelsea (England) Werder Bremen (Germany) Levski Sofia (Bulgaria)
Group B Inter Milan (Italy) Bayern Munich (Germany) Sporting Lisbon (Portugal) Spartak Moscow (Russia)
Group C Liverpool (England) PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) Girondins Bordeaux (France) Galatasaray (Turkey)
Group D Valencia (Spain) Roma (Italy) Olympiacos Piraeus (Greece) Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine)
Group E Real Madrid (Spain) Lyon (France) Steaua Bucharest (Romania) Dynamo Kyiv (Ukraine)
Group F Manchester United (England) Celtic Glasgow (Scotland) Benfica Lisbon (Portugal) Copenhagen (Denmark)
Group G Arsenal (England) Porto (Portugal) CSKA Moscow (Russia) Hamburg (Germany)
Group H AC Milan (Italy) Lille (France) AEK Athens (Greece) Anderlecht Brussels (Belgium)
