Chelsea and Liverpool have been dealt tricky Champions League last-16 ties against Atletico Madrid and RB Leipzig, while Barcelona have been drawn against Paris Saint-Germain in a mouth-watering showdown.
Elsewhere, Manchester City have been paired with Borussia Monchengladbach as they bid to reach the quarter-finals for a fourth-straight season.
Out of the English clubs, Chelsea face the toughest task against a high-flying Atletico Madrid – which will see the return of former fan favourite Diego Costa back at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues have already faced Spanish opposition in the competition this season – drawing at home to Sevilla before thumping them 4-0 away en route to topping Group E.
Atletico only won twice in Group A as they finished as runners-up behind Bayern Munich. However, Atletico are enjoying a brilliant domestic campaign so far. They sit joint-top of LaLiga and have two games in hand on Real Sociedad too.
On top of that, Frank Lampard will be wary of Atletico’s threat as they demonstrated their guile to knock out Liverpool in the last 16 last season.
The Reds will be hoping to fare better though 12 months on when they face RB Leipzig.
The German outfit have reached the last-16 courtesy of their 3-2 win over Manchester United in their Group H decider – a result that saw Liverpool’s great rivals crash out.
It’s England versus Germany once more in the shape of City against Borussia Monchengladbach. For the Bundesliga outfit, it’s unknown territory as they have never progressed beyond the group stages of the Champions League until now.
Away from English eyes, Barcelona vs PSG is the standout fixture.
PSG were finalists last season but will have bad memories of facing Barca in 2017, when their 4-0 first-leg lead was overturned in a dramatic 6-1 defeat at the Nou Camp.
It will also see Neymar return to the Nou Camp for the first time since leaving Barca for PSG in the summer of 2017 for a world-record
£198million.
This is fitness-permitting after he suffered a potentially severe ankle injury in their 1-0 defeat by Lyon on Sunday night. Barcelona are in a mess on-and-off the pitch at present and the focus will be on Lionel Messi. The wantaway Argentine wants out of the Spanish giants – with PSG among his suitors.
Elsewhere, defending champions Bayern Munich face Italian outfit Lazio, while Cristiano Ronaldo returns to his native Portugal with Juventus to take on Porto. The other two ties see Sevilla take on Borussia Dortmund, while 13-time winners Real Madrid face Atalanta. – Daily Mail.
