Man Utd to face Celtic in all-British matchup

By Mike Collett

MONACO (Reuters) - Holders Manchester United will face familiar foes Celtic in this season's Champions League group stage.

United, who beat Chelsea on penalties to lift the European Cup for the third time last May, were also drawn on Thursday with Villarreal of Spain and Champions League debutants AaB Aalborg of Denmark in their opening matches in Group E.

Chelsea will face AS Roma of Italy, Girondins Bordeaux of France and Romanian debutants CFR Cluj in their opening games in Group A.

European giants Real Madrid and Juventus were drawn together in Group H along with UEFA Cup holders Zenit St Petersburg and BATE Borisov of Belarus, who are both playing in the competition for the first time.

Liverpool, five time European champions, who survived a scare before beating Standard Liege of Belgium 1-0 in extra time on Wednesday to qualify for the group stage, will face PSV Eindhoven, Atletico Madrid and Olympique Marseille.

The competition proper starts on Sept 16-17 with the final in Rome on May 27 next year.

John Reid, the chairman of Celtic said he was "absolutely delighted" to be drawn against United with the first game scheduled for Old Trafford on October 21 and the return at Celtic on November 5.

"The clubs go back a long way and many Celtic fans have a soft spot for United, but of course they won't when we play them," he said.