UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Round of 16: Real Madrid ended up paying the highest price for UEFA’s botched Champions League draw.
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Madrid was paired with Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16 on Monday after UEFA had to redo the entire draw following a big mistake the first time around. The Spanish club had initially been drawn against Portuguese club Benfica but now instead faces PSG’s superstar attack of Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé and Neymar.
Atlético and Man United were then paired in the second draw.
Only one of the eight pairings came out the same in both processes: defending champion Chelsea playing Lille.
Bayern Munich will now face Salzburg, making its debut at this stage, instead of its original opponent Atlético.
Liverpool had been paired with Salzburg but was later drawn to face Inter Milan.
Also, it was: Sporting Lisbon vs. Manchester City, Benfica vs. Ajax, and Villarreal vs. Juventus.
First-leg games are played over two midweeks from Feb. 15-23. Return games are from March 8-16. Read less
Confirmed group winners (seeded): Ajax (NED Bayern (GER Juventus (ITA Liverpool (ENG LOSC Lille (FRA Manchester City (ENG Manchester United (ENG Real Madrid (ESP
Confirmed group runners-up (unseeded): Atlético (ESP Benfica (POR Chelsea (ENG Inter (ITA Paris Saint-Germain (FRA Salzburg (AUT Sporting CP (POR Villarreal (ESP)
Absolutely unprecedented scenes tonight. Which draw was better?
So there will be no Messi vs Ronaldo encounter in the round of 16 after all. Meanwhile, Man City will face Sporting CP for the first time since the 2011-12 Europa League last 16, with the Portuguese side winning on away goals back then.
The big match feel -
Chelsea have won each of their last four meetings with French sides in all European competitions (including twice vs Lille), having won just five of their first 16 such games.
Benfica v Ajax
Sporting CP vs. Manchester City
FC Salzburg vs. FC Bayern
Meanwhile, the UEL draws continue and the big news coming in is that Barcelona face Napoli in Europa League as Rangers land Borussia Dortmund.
UEFA to redo Champions League draw for round of 16, voiding initial pairings after mistake.
UEFA will have to redo the Champions League draw for the round of 16 after mistakingly placing Manchester United's name into the wrong pot. UEFA voided the initial results of Monday's draw, which had created another matchup between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi after Manchester United was paired with Paris Saint-Germain. However, United had initially been paired with Villarreal even though the English club’s name should not have been in that pot since the two advanced from the same group.
UEFA blamed the mishap on “a technical problem with the software of an external service provider that instructs the officials as to which teams are eligible to play each other.”
Draw will take place at 1500 CET that is 7.30 PM IST(More on the UCL draw controversy)
UEFA issues statement-
Why was Manchester United there twice?
Ok so there is a bit of drama here- seems like all is not over! This was after Manchester United appeared to be placed in the wrong pot. At the official ceremony in Nyon, Switzerland, Villarreal's name was drawn and then former Arsenal star Andrey Arshavin picked out United's ball. According to the rules two sides cannot face one another as they had already competed in the same group, with United finishing top and Villarreal coming second.
And PSG. And as usual, it's Manchester United. And it's Ronaldo vs Messi again.
Champion Chelsea has been drawn and who will they draw? Chelsea face Lille.
Sporting Club wil face? And Juventus has come out of the pot.
Who will Inter face now? Here's the draw. And the opponent for Inter are Ajax.
Now FC Salzburg. They will face Liverpool.
Next up Atletico Madrid. And they will face FC Bayern Munich.
Villareal is the second team drawn. They will take on Manchester City
First team drawn is Benfica. Who will they face? And they face Real Madrid.
Andrey Arshavin arrives. He will assist in the draw, it has been revealed. He talks about what it means for St Petersburg to host the Final. Arshavin talks about that game against Barcelona where he scored the goal.
Giorgio Marchetti, the deputy general secretary of Uefa, arrives. He is talking about the history of the UCL and how competitive European football is. Before that, we were shown some of the highlights from the group stages.
Buckle up your seatbelts. The draw is about to get underway. Are you ready? It's time to get down to UCL business.
As we wait for the RO16 draws, here's all the top goals from the group stages that is sure to take your breath away.
Here's where, when and how you can check out the UCL RO16 draw in India: ?
READ MORE: UCL RO16: Everything you need to know
Hello and welcome to the live commentary of the UEFA Champions League RO16 draw. With the UCL group stage finally over, it’s time to find out who Bayern Munich, Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool and all the other teams will face in the Round of 16. The Ro16 draw is rather unique because it happens in December, while the games take place in February. This gives the teams involved a unique chance to assess their opponents strengths and weaknesses, and plan specifically for them. You don’t get that luxury in the later rounds of the UCL, where the draws and games are usually only separated by a few weeks.