The Champions League play-off draw delivered a heavyweight showdown as the reigning champions, Real Madrid, face 2023 winners Manchester City in the standout tie of the round. This marks the fourth consecutive season the clubs have met in the knockout stages, with Real winning in a tense penalty shootout during last year’s quarter-finals. City narrowly qualified after finishing 22nd in the league phase under the competition’s new format avoided Bayern Munich but faced another tough challenge.
Guaira will host the first leg before traveling to Madrid for the decisive return match. “It feels like a derby already,” Guardiola said, who concedes that even this early into the tie, the intensity is there. Real Madrid director Emilio Butragueno echoed the same view, referring to City as “a great team with experience in those battles” but calling the Bernabeu a fortress in the second leg.
The rivalry’s recent history is full of drama. Real Madrid beat City in the 2022 semi-finals to go all the way to lift the trophy, and City reclaimed revenge in 2023 as they won their first title. Their contests were first played in 2016, and both teams have traded knockout-stage victories over the course of time.
Elsewhere, Celtic’s return to the knockout stage after 12 years puts them against Bayern Munich. Paris Saint-Germain faces domestic rivals Breast in an all-French tie, Juventus meet PSV Eindhoven, and Feyenoord take on AC Milan. Atlanta, last season’s Europa League winners, face Club Brugge while Sporting Lisbon clash with 2023 runner-up Borussia Dortmund.
The eight play-off winners will join Liverpool, Barcelona, Arsenal, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen, Lille, and Aston Villa in the last 16. Teams like Liverpool, who topped the league phase, await opponents determined by the play-offs. The draw for the knockout stages resumes on February 21, with the final set for May 31 at Munich’s Allianz Arena.