Man City, the champion, will host the first leg on Feb. Madrid won a record-extending 15th European title last season. The winner over two legs advances to the round of 16 to face either Atletico Madrid or Bayer Leverkusen, who placed in the top eight of the new team league standings that ended Wednesday. Teams that finished from Nos. Madrid placed 11th and Man City barely qualified in 22nd, after rallying to beat Club Brugge in a must-win game. By finishing 22nd, Man City knew it would face either No.
Munich was drawn to face 21st-place Celtic, in a matchup featuring a Canadian connection, with Canada captain Alphonso Davies, of Edmonton, playing for Bayern and fullback Alistair Johnston, from Aurora, Ont.
Davies is recovering from a muscle strain in his left hamstring, however. The winner moves on to the round of 16 in the elite European club competition. Seedings decided by the team standings means Madrid and Man City already know the winner of their two-leg blockbuster will be drawn then to face No. UEFA makes the round of 16 pairings on Feb.
The tennis-style knockout bracket in the fresh competition format also now allows teams from the same country to face each other before the quarterfinals. That was not possible for the past two decades when the round of 16 opened the knockout phase.
Monaco was left to face Benfica. Check out Village Report - the news that matters most to Canada, updated throughout the day. Or, subscribe to Village Report's free daily newsletter : a compilation of the news you need to know, sent to your inbox at 6AM.
