Author: Crazy

Graham Potter’s Chelsea have been paired with Champions League holders Real Madrid in the quarter-finals, while Pep Guardiola faces a reunion with former club Bayern Munich for Manchester City.

Both Premier League sides will meet each other in the semi-final, should both Chelsea and City advance through their last-eight ties.

Meanwhile, there will be an all-Italian derby in the quarter-finals as Serie A champions AC Milan face current leaders Napoli, while Inter Milan will take on Benfica.

Champions League quarter-final draw in full:

First legs on April 11 or April 12, second legs April 18 or April 19

Real Madrid vs Chelsea

Benfica vs Inter Milan

Manchester City vs Bayern Munich

AC Milan vs Napoli

Champions League semi-final draw in full:

First legs on May 9 or May 10, second legs May 16 or May 17

AC Milan or Napoli vs Benfica or Inter Milan

Real Madrid or Chelsea vs Manchester City or Bayern Munich

The first legs of the quarter-finals will take place on April 11 and 12, with the return fixtures on April 18 and 19.

Meanwhile, the semi-final first-legs are due to happen on May 9 and May 10, with the return legs on May 16 and May 17.

Chelsea beat Borussia Dortmund 2-1 on aggregate in their last-16 tie, but now face a major task to reach the last four against holders Real.

The Blues exited last season’s Champions League to Real at the same stage – losing the first-leg 3-1 at Stamford Bridge before putting in a valiant outing at the Santiago Bernabeu,

Chelsea, then managed by Thomas Tuchel, went 3-0 up to lead the tie but goals from Rodrygo and Karim Benzema – the latter strike coming in extra-time – saw the Blues crash out 5-4 on aggregate.

Meanwhile, Man City manager Guardiola will face a familiar foe in former side Bayern – the club he won seven major titles with between 2013 and 2016, including three Bundesliga titles.

City and Bayern also have a connection through Joao Cancelo, who will be able to play against his parent club after moving on loan to the German side, with an option to make the deal permanent for around £60m.

Should Chelsea and City go on to meet each other in the Champions League last four, it will lead to six meetings between the two clubs in this season alone.

Both Premier League clubs were paired against each other in the third rounds of the FA Cup and Carabao Cup earlier this season.

Potter excited by Madrid test but focused on Everton

Chelsea boss Graham Potter is excited by the prospect of facing reigning champions Real Madrid in the last eight but insists his focus is firmly on this weekend’s Premier League clash with Everton.

The Blues were drawn against the reigning champions in Friday’s draw, with the winners facing Manchester City or Bayern Munich in the semis.

It follows footage of Potter earlier this week drawing cheers from Chelsea supporters at a fan event by saying they would try to “win the ******* Champions League”.

“Well, I said we would try to win the Champions League and that’s the same I’m sure for the other seven clubs as well,” he said at his press conference.

“The other clubs will say you can lose in the quarter-final, because that’s the nature of the Champions League.

“We’ll focus on Real Madrid when we get there but at the moment it’s Everton.

“The feeling is excited but as I said, I’d rather speak about Everton because that game is tomorrow and the other stuff is a long way away.”

Can Cancelo face Man City?

Manchester City have confirmed that Cancelo is eligible to face them.

Cancelo joined Bayern Munich on loan in January after becoming dissatisfied with his number of minutes at City.

Since moving to the Allianz Arena, the Portuguese international has started four out of Bayern’s six Bundesliga matches – but only played 49 minutes of their two-legged victory against Paris Saint-Germain in the last-16.

Opta stats on Chelsea and Man City draws

• Chelsea have only lost one of their seven games against Real Madrid in European competition – indeed, they have the lowest percentage of losses against Real Madrid (14%) of any side to have played them 5+ times in Europe.
• Chelsea’s only defeat in seven matches against Real Madrid in Europe came in their most recent one at Stamford Bridge, losing 1-3 in the 2021-22 quarter-final first leg.
• Real Madrid have won their last four UEFA Champions League ties against English sides, beating Chelsea in last season’s quarter-final, Manchester City in last season’s semi-finals and Liverpool in last season’s final and this season’s round of 16.
• All six previous meetings between Man City and Bayern Munich came in the UEFA Champions League group stages (2011-12, 2013-14, 2014-15), with each side winning three times.
• This will be Pep Guardiola’s first meeting with Bayern Munich since leaving the club. His only managerial games against them came in the 2008-09 Champions League quarter-finals, knocking them out with Barcelona en route to lifting the trophy.
• Man City have progressed from all four of their previous UEFA Champions League knockout ties against German clubs, including one quarter-final (2020-21 v Borussia Dortmund).

Inter Milan reached the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time in more than a decade after surviving a late barrage of pressure at Porto to escape with a 0-0 draw which took them through 1-0 on aggregate.

It was a disappointing night for the home fans at a sold-out Dragao stadium as the Portuguese champions tried in vain to wipe out the narrow deficit from the first leg in Italy.

A disciplined Inter side seemed content to hold onto their lead and did not face a serious threat until added time.

Porto struck the woodwork twice within 30 seconds before Pepe was sent off for a second yellow card as Inter joined city rivals AC Milan in the quarter-final draw.

How Inter edged past Porto…

In the end, Romelu Lukaku’s goal four minutes from the end of the first leg was enough to see Inter through to their first Champions League quarter-final since 2011.

Mehdi Taremi came within inches of forcing the tie to extra time when he rattled the crossbar in the closing stages.

The Portuguese side were reduced to 10 men in the seventh minute of injury-time when winger Pepe was shown a second yellow card.

On-loan Chelsea striker Lukaku came on for Inter 20 minutes from time, replacing Edin Dzeko who had come closest to scoring for Simone Inzaghi’s side with a low effort that was saved by Diogo Costa.

Napoli could make it three Serie A clubs in the last eight on Wednesday, holding a 2-0 lead over Eintracht Frankfurt from the first leg.

Opta stats: Inter reach quarter-finals for seventh time…

• Inter Milan have booked their place in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League for the seventh time overall and for the first time since 2010-11 when they were knocked out in the last eight by Schalke.
• Inter have kept three consecutive clean sheets in UEFA Champions League knockout games for the first time since April 2010.
• Porto have now been eliminated from seven of their eight two-legged UEFA Champions League knockout ties after losing the first leg, only progressing from this position in 2018-19 against Roma.
• Porto have won just two of their last seven UEFA Champions League knockout games on home soil, drawing one and losing four.
• Porto mustered 21 shots against Inter tonight, the joint-most without scoring by a team in a UEFA Champions League game this season, along with Atletico Madrid vs Club Brugge on October 12 and Chelsea vs Borussia Dortmund on February 15.
• No side has picked up more red cards in this season’s UEFA Champions League than Porto (3, level with Sporting Lisbon).
• Inter midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan made his 50th appearance in the Champions League, the first Armenian player to reach that milestone in the competition.

When is the draw?

The draws for the quarter-finals and semi-finals take place at 11am UK time on Friday, March 17 in Nyon, Switzerland at UEFA’s headquarters.

The eight last-16 winners are involved in an open quarter-final and semi-final draw.

There are no seedings and no country protection, so clubs can face opposition from the same country. They can also draw teams they previously played in the group stage.

A final draw will also take place to determine the ‘home’ side for administrative reasons for the showpiece event in Istanbul, Turkey on June 10.

You can follow the draw with Sky Sports’ live blog, so you can keep across everything right here.

With Chelsea guaranteed a Champions League quarter-final spot, and with Manchester City and Liverpool still battling to make it through, find out when the draw for the last eight and the semi-finals will take place, and who will be involved.

Chelsea are the only English side through to the quarter-finals so far after overcoming Borussia Dortmund 2-1 on aggregate in the last 16.

Manchester City and Liverpool are the other Premier League teams who can still reach the quarters, with both teams playing their second legs this week.

City face RB Leipzig on Tuesday at the Etihad Stadium after Pep Guardiola’s side were held to a 1-1 draw in Germany in the first leg.

Liverpool, meanwhile, face a Herculean task in their bid to overturn a 5-2 first-leg deficit against defending champions Real Madrid, with the second leg taking place on Wednesday at the Bernabeu.

But Tottenham will not be involved in the draw after limping out to AC Milan 1-0 on aggregate.

Bayern Munich and Benfica are also through, with Inter Milan or Porto and Eintracht Frankfurt or Napoli hoping to join them in the last eight.

Here’s all you need to know ahead of the quarter-final and semi-final draws…

When are the quarter-final and semi-final draws?

The draws take place at 11am UK time on Friday, March 17 in Nyon, Switzerland at UEFA’s headquarters.

You can follow the draw with Sky Sports’ live blog, so you can keep across everything right here.

How do the draws work?

The eight last-16 winners are involved in an open quarter-final and semi-final draw.

There are no seedings and no country protection, so clubs can face opposition from the same country. They can also draw teams they previously played in the group stage.

A final draw will also take place to determine the ‘home’ side for administrative reasons for the showpiece event in Istanbul, Turkey on June 10.

Who will be in the quarter-final and semi-final draws?

• AC Milan
• Bayern Munich
• Benfica
• Chelsea
• Manchester City or RB Leipzig (1-1 after first leg)
• Napoli or Eintracht Frankfurt (2-0 after first leg)
• Porto or Inter Milan (0-1 after first leg)
• Real Madrid or Liverpool (5-2 after first leg)

When are the quarter-finals?

The first legs of the quarter-finals will be played Tuesday, April 11 and Wednesday, April 12.

The second legs will be played Tuesday, April 18 and Wednesday, April 19.

When are the semi-finals?

The first legs of the semi-finals will be held on May 9 and 10, and the second legs on May 16 and 17.

When is the final?

The final takes place on June 10 at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey.

Romelu Lukaku came off the bench to give Inter Milan a 1-0 win over Porto in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.

The Belgium international struck with four minutes remaining to secure victory at San Siro after the visitors had seen midfielder Otavio sent off for a second bookable offence.

In a tight first half, Inter striker Lautaro Martinez might have done better with an early header and Porto ‘keeper Diogo Costa had to tip over Hakan Calhanoglu’s audacious attempt from an improbable angle.

However, the visitors grew into the game and threatened when Marko Grujic forced a 37th-minute save from goalkeeper Andre Onana before Galeno headed the rebound wide, leaving the sides locked together at the break.

Nicolo Barella went close to the opening goal for the home side when he volleyed just wide after running on to Milan Skriniar’s raking 52nd-minute pass, but Onana had to save from Mehdi Taremi twice and Zaidu as the Portuguese side
responded.

Barella only just missed the target once again with 21 minutes remaining, before Otavio was shown a second yellow 12 minutes from time.

Substitute Lukaku finally made the breakthrough to give Inter a slim advantage to defend in Portugal.

What’s next?

Inter Milan return to Serie A action on Sunday with a trip to Bologna on Sunday; kick-off 11.30am. The Italian side then host Lecce on Sunday March 5; kick-off 5pm.

Porto are back in Primeira Liga action on Sunday at home to Gil Vicente; kick-off 8.30pm. The Portuguese side then travel to Chaves on Sunday March 5; kick-off time to be confirmed.

World Cup winner Lautaro Martinez continued his roaring start to the year as he set Inter Milan on the way to a 1-0 victory over AC Milan in the Derby della Madonnina

Martinez has been in fantastic form since helping Argentina win the World Cup in December and he netted his seventh goal in his last eight matches as Inter consolidated second spot in Serie A with a second win over its fierce rival in less than three weeks.

It was Martinez’s 12th league goal of the season, putting him four behind leading Serie A goalscorer Victor Osimhen, who scored another two on Sunday to help runaway leader Napoli win 3-0 at lowly Spezia.

Inter are 13 points behind Napoli and three points above third-placed Roma. Inter are five points above Lazio, Atalanta and Milan, who have slipped to sixth after a woeful start to the year. Milan’s winless run extended to seven matches.

Inter almost took the lead in the 10th minute but Martnez headed just wide of the right upright. Martinez did better in the 34th minute as he got away from Simon Kjaer at the near post to get his head to a corner and it took a deflection off the Milan defender on the way in.

Romelu Lukaku thought he had scored his first league goal since August, late on, but the whistle had already gone for a foul by him on Malick Thiaw. Martinez later had a goal ruled out for offside.

Barca thrash Sevilla to extend LaLiga lead

Barcelona extended their LaLiga lead to eight points thanks to second-half goals by Jordi Alba, Gavi and Raphinha that gave them a 3-0 home win against Sevilla.

The locals were in control from the beginning but managed to score only after the break when substitute Franck Kessie set up Alba inside the box to slot in a first-touch strike to the goalkeeper’s left.

Raphinha got down the right and delivered a perfect low cross to Gavi who tapped in to make it 2-0 a little over 10 minutes later.

Raphinha got the third goal in the 79th minute with a point-blank strike from an Alba cross.

Barca top the table on 53 points, eight ahead of second-placed Real and 14 above third-placed Real Sociedad. Sevilla, who have won only five of their 20 LaLiga games this season, are 16th on 21 points, two above the relegation zone.

Champions Real Madrid suffered a shock 1-0 loss at Mallorca earlier on Sunday after a bizarre own goal by defender Nacho early in the first half.

Nacho left his team-mates stunned as he tried to clear a cross in the 13th minute and headed the ball high over his own goalkeeper and into the net.

Real dominated the match but missed several chances and wasted a golden opportunity to equalise in the 59th minute when Mallorca goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic saved a poor penalty from Marco Asensio.

Bayern hold on despite Kimmich red card

Bayern Munich held on despite Joshua Kimmich’s sending off to beat Wolfsburg 4-2 and return to the top of the Bundesliga.

Kimmich was sent off with his second yellow card in the 54th minute but Wolfsburg were unable to make their dominance count as the visitors delivered a lesson in efficiency.

Kingsley Coman scored twice and Thomas Muller and Jamal Musiala added two more while Bayern also needed goalkeeper Yann Sommer at his best to secure the teams first Bundesliga win of the year.

“The result was important, the victory matters above all else,” Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann said.

“We were too careless after the third goal, not concentrated enough and we allowed a bit too much. But we can be positive looking ahead with these three points.”

Earlier on Sunday, second-half goals from Jens Stage and Marvin Ducksch earned Werder Bremen a 2-0 win at Stuttgart for the visitors’ second consecutive victory.

It lifted promoted Bremen to eighth while Stuttgart dropped back into the relegation zone. Stuttgart have not won a game since mid-November.