Manchester City and Real Madrid will renew their familiar rivalry after being drawn together in the UEFA Champions League knockout phase for the sixth time since the 2019-2020 season, following Friday’s draw for the last 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals.
The two heavyweights have already crossed swords once this campaign, with City mounting a comeback to beat record 15-time European champions Real Madrid 2-1 in December’s league-phase match.
It also marks the first time in Champions League history that two teams will play each other in the knockout stages in five consecutive seasons.
Holders Paris St Germain will face Chelsea in a repeat of last year’s ill-tempered Club World Cup final in which the Premier League side came out on top.
Arsenal play Bayer Leverkusen and the Premier League leaders have avoided the tournament’s heavyweights after their perfect record of eight wins put them top of the standings in the league phase.
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Bayern Munich, who were second in the league phase, play Atalanta, who knocked out German side Borussia Dortmund in the playoffs thanks to a stoppage-time penalty, with a quarter-final against Real or City to follow.
Newcastle United face Barcelona again after the Spanish side won their league-phase opener and Liverpool were paired with Galatasaray.
Premier League strugglers Tottenham Hotspur face Atletico Madrid while Norwegian upstarts Bodo/Glimt — who have beaten City, Atletico and Inter Milan this season — take on Portugal’s Sporting.