UCL draw: Man City, Madrid get favourable ties

Share this with Email Share this with Facebook Share this with Twitter Share this with Whatsapp

Open Extended Reactions

Advertisement

Holders Manchester City will play FC Copenhagen in this season's Champions League round of 16, while 14-time winners Real Madrid face RB Leipzig.

Copenhagen, who earned a memorable win against Manchester United on their way to finishing second in Group A, are the lowest-ranked side left in the competition.

- Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)
- The race for five places in next season's Champions League

Elsewhere, Barcelona were drawn to face Napoli, notable for being two former clubs of late Argentina legend Diego Maradona.

United States stars Ricardo Pepi and Sergiño Dest will face international teammate Giovanni Reyna with Borussia Dortmund and PSV Eindhoven drawn against each other.

Arsenal, in their first appearance in the round of 16 since 2016-17, face two-time winners FC Porto, while Bayern Munich were handed clashes with Lazio.

Paris Saint-Germain, who finished runners up in Group F behind Borussia Dortmund, drew Spanish side Real Sociedad.

The 2024 final will be held at Wembley. Marcio Machado/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images

Madrid's clash with Leipzig comes as they were dealt another major injury blow, as defender David Alaba tore his ACL in their 4-1 LaLiga win over Villarreal on Sunday.

The club's director of institutional relations Emilio Butragueño said they are unsure if they will replace the defender in the upcoming January transfer window.

Advertisement

"As Carlo [Ancelotti] said, we'll see in the next few days what we decide [to do]. The team has showed it's capable of facing any challenge. We'll wait over the next few days and see what we do," he said.

"We're facing a difficult situation, it's surprising to have so many injuries, and serious ones. [Thibaut] Courtois, [Eder] Militão, and Alaba will be out now. Despite that we're in a fantastic moment. But obviously the injury to Alaba is a setback, we'll have to work together to overcome it."

The round of 16 kicks off with group winners hosting the first-leg matches, which will be played on Feb. 13-14 and 20-21.

Return legs will be played on March 5-6 and 12 -13.

This is the final season of the traditional format, before it becomes a 36-team competition with one knockout bracket based primarily upon final positions.

The final will take place on June 1 at Wembley Stadium in London, England.

Full UCL round of 16 draw

Porto (Portugal) vs. Arsenal (England)
Napoli (Italy) vs. Barcelona (Spain)
Paris Saint-Germain (France) vs. Real Sociedad (Spain)
Inter Milan (Italy) vs. Atletico Madrid (Spain)
PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) vs. Borussia Dortmund (Germany)
Lazio (Italy) vs. Bayern Munich (Germany)
Copenhagen (Denmark)vs. Manchester City (England)
RB Leipzig (Germany) vs. Real Madrid (Spain)

Source: espn.co.uk