Real Madrid will play Liverpool in the round of 16 of the Champions League in a rematch of last season’s Paris final.
Real beat Liverpool in both the 2018 and 2022 finals and the two giants will meet again in February after being paired in Monday’s draw, which also pitted Paris St-Germain against Bayern Munich. That’s a repeat of the 2020 final, which the Germans won.
“This is a tie that speaks for itself and one that we should all be excited about,” said Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp of his club’s draw.
“Real’s European record is the best around. We know this. But we also know that ours is not too bad. On top of this, we know that we have Anfield and everyone knows what this means.
“It is a really good draw. A really exciting draw. The games themselves are still a few months away, but it does not take a great deal of imagination to think what the atmosphere will be like at both games.”
“They are two historic teams and the tie is going to be electric, fascinating for the fans,” said former Real Madrid great Emilio Butragueno.
PSG got a blockbuster draw at this stage for the second straight season. The French champions’ quest for a first European title was ended in March by Karim Benzema’s stunning late hat trick for eventual champion Madrid.
“It’s really motivating for us to play this match,” said PSG sports director Luis Campos.”It’s a great opportunity to take a revenge, many players played the (2020) final against Bayern.”
Lionel Messi is one PSG player who did not play in the final two years ago. Then with Barcelona, Messi was on the receiving end of Bayern’s 8-2 rout in the single-leg quarterfinals, which was the last time he faced the German champions.
“PSG are a tough opponent. They won’t be looking forward to facing us. We have a while to go before the game, with the World Cup in between still, but can already look forward to it,” Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann said.
PSG were unseeded and left exposed to facing Bayern because a stoppage-time goal for Benfica in a 6-1 win last week at Maccabi Haifa meant the Portuguese club topped their group.
Benfica were rewarded with a pairing against Club Bruges, a rare Belgian entrant in the knock-out stages.
Seven-times winners AC Milan were drawn with Tottenham, who qualified with a tense last-day win in Marseille.
In a pair of Premier League-Bundesliga clashes Manchester City face Leipzig, and Chelsea meet Borussia Dortmund.
Napoli, the top scoring team in the group stage, will play Eintracht Frankfurt, while Inter Milan and Porto, both of whom won the competition under Jose Mourinho, also meet.
First-leg games are played from February 14-22. Return games are from March 7-15.
The unusually long wait of more than three months between the group and knockout stages is caused by the World Cup in Qatar being played in November and December.
Draw in full:
RB Leipzig v Manchester City
Club Bruges v Benfica
Liverpool v Real Madrid
AC Milan v Tottenham Hotspur
Eintracht Frankfurt v Napoli
Borussia Dortmund v Chelsea
Inter Milan v Porto
Paris St Germain v Bayern Munich
(first-named team hosts first leg)
© AAP
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