Article body analysed
By HARRY BAMFORTH, LIVE SPORTS COVERAGE REPORTER Updated: 23: 59 AEDT, 27 February 2026 167 View comments Follow Daily Mail Sport's live coverage of the Champions League last-16 draw, with six Premier League teams set to learn which of the two potential opponents they will be facing - and their full routes to the final. 'Famili-famili-famili-familiar. ' That's the lyric that is now stuck in my head after reading this tweet from Opta about Manchester City facing off with Real Madrid. It turns out it was a historic draw; not surprising, I guess. It's mental to be drawn against each other that consistently. Ian Rush, ex-Liverpool striker, speaking to UEFA: Want a reminder of all the knockout fixture dates again? I mean, why not? If you hadn't blocked out your calendar before, you should do so now. While we are yet to find out which fixtures are being played on which of these dates, these are still the days you need to look out for. A bit of a different one for you guys. My colleague Nathan Salt has actually predicted the results of the Champions League all the way to the final. This is what he foresees happening in the competition, and well, if it comes true, we will see Harry Kane facing off against his old enemy in the final. Nathan's predictions: L16: QFs: SFs: FINAL: Right, time for some more Europa League draw updates. Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa have just had their last 16 ties confirmed in the last few minutes. Forest have been given a favourable draw against Danish side Midtjylland, and Aston Villa will face Lille. Villa running it back against Lille is a really intriguing tie - it was brilliant when they faced off in the Conference League a couple of years back. Emilio Butragueno, Real Madrid's vice-president, speaking to Canal +: It's all happening on this fine Friday. They have started the Europa League draw in Nyon, with the Conference League draw to come later. Now, I'm not going to do live updates of it, but I will let you all know who the English teams are drawn against. Hopefully, some cracking matches are in store. Hugo Viana, Manchester City's director of football, speaking to UEFA: I mean, we all knew it was going to happen, didn't we? Manchester City and Real Madrid always face each other in the knockouts, so it was written in the stars. Now, yes, it is a bit boring, but I'm telling you, you should feel excited because this game always brings heaps of goals and entertainment. I've never been bored covering it. They have already faced each other this campaign, with Coty winning 2-1 at the Bernabeu, but it's the previous two-legged ties in years gone by that really show what this fixture is capable of. In their last four knockout ties with each other, the teams have produced 34 goals. Yes, you are reading that right. Los Blancos might not be quite what they once were, but I'm sure it will still be a blockbuster affair. Goal-fest inbound. Gary Mabbutt, former Tottenham defender, speaking to UEFA: I've just had a scan of my X for you page, and well, it seems as though rival fans are not happy with Arsenal. More precisely, they aren't happy with which side of the draw Arsenal have been put on. I mean, it's not their fault they got lucky. Everyone is now already predicting the Gunners to reach the final because of their so-called 'easy' route there. I mean, Barcelona, Newcastle, and Tottenham are still on that side of the draw. And don't forget Bodo/Glimt, they love a giant-killing, don't they? I must say, though, that was a very favourable draw for Mikel Arteta's side. The Arsenal boss will be a happy bunny. David Barnard, Chelsea's director of football: Note to UEFA - we just want the draw. No boring sp. ..
Share what you think
The comments below have not been moderated.
The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of Mail Online.
By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your Mail Online comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to Mail Online as usual. Do you want to automatically post your Mail Online comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to Mail Online as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on Mail Online. To do this we will link your Mail Online account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.