In the 2024 quarterfinals, a penalty shootout was required to separate the sides. Madrid triumphed in both years to lift the Champions League, while City bested Madrid in 2023.
City defender Ruben Dias also downplayed any negative feelings about Madrid's absence at the awards, emphasizing that he was focused on celebrating Rodri's achievement.
City spent over $200 million, which also saw Egypt's Omar Marmoush join for $73 million, along with defenders Abdukodir Khusanov from Lens and Vitor Reis for a combined $77 million.
Ahead of a Champions League playoff against Real Madrid, Manchester City survived a scare at third-tier Leyton Orient to advance to the fifth round of the FA Cup. City hosts Madrid on Tuesday in the first of a two-legged playoff. And while Pep Guardiola's team eventually fought back to win 2-1 against Orient on Saturday, it will likely need a much-improved performance to overcome Champions League holder Madrid. Orient threatened to pull off a famous upset when it led 1-0 at halftime against Guardiola's four-time defending Premier League champion. It took goals from substitutes Abdukodir Khusanov and Kevin De Bruyne to secure victory for City at Brisbane Road. It was impossible to control, Guardiola said. We played with character, and we are in the next round and it's always nice. Orient went ahead in spectacular fashion when Jamie Donley's shot from just past the halfway line hit the bar and rebounded off the back of City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega in the 16th minute. It was offici
One of the most anticipated matchups in the playoffs pits English Premier League champions Manchester City against defending Champions League winners Real Madrid.
Despite their longstanding dominance, both teams have had their struggles in the competition's new format, which expanded to 36 teams this season.
The draw took place at the House of European Football in Nyon, Switzerland and involved teams that finished from ninth to 24th position in the new format of the UEFA Champions League group stage.
After a frantic last round of action Wednesday, the inaugural 36-team league phase in Champions League history is over. Here's a look at some of the numbers that tell the story of how the first season in the new-look format has gone: 144: The number of games in the 36-team league phase, up from 96 last year in the old 32-team group format. 3.27: Goals per game in the new format, up from 3.09 per game in last season's group stage. 9: Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski and Borussia Dortmund's Serhou Guirassy are joint top scorers with nine goals each. 28: The number of goals scored by Barcelona, six more than any other team in the league phase. Manchester City led the way with last season with 28 goals in its entire Champions League campaign, including knockout games. 7: Liverpool's winning streak stopped at seven games with a 3-2 loss at PSV Eindhoven. That loss meant there were no unbeaten teams in the league phase. Six teams qualified unbeaten from their groups last season. 23: The
For teams finishing in 9th to 16th place, they will enter the knockout round play-offs, where they are seeded and face unseeded teams from 17th to 24th in a two-legged encounter.
Meanwhile, the teams that finished outside the automatic qualification spots have now confirmed their places in the knockout phase play-offs.
All 18 final matches of the Uefa Champions League will be available to live stream on the Sony LIV app and website in India
Only Liverpool and FC Barcelona have booked their place in the next round so far
Hansi Flick is keeping Wojciech Szczesny in goal for the final match of the league phase of the Champions League on Wednesday. Iaki Pea had been Barcelona's starter since Marc-Andr ter Stegen sustained a serious knee injury last year, but Szczesny who was added to the squad after Ter Stegen's injury played last week in the come-from-behind win over Benfica in the Champions League and in last weekend's rout of Valencia in the Spanish league. My job is to make decisions, Flick said Tuesday ahead of the home match against Atalanta. "They are two great 'keepers and with my team we have opted for Szczesny, and that's it. Iaki has done a great job, but have gone for Tek (Szczesny). I try to do the best for the team, and that's what I have done. Szczesny had only played three other matches this season, one in the Copa del Rey and two in the Spanish Super Cup won by Barcelona in Saudi Arabia. Barcelona, in second place in the 36-team standings, has already clinched a spot in the round of
Liverpool will give some star players including Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk a rest for the Champions League game at PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday. The Reds have already advanced to the round of 16, so manager Arne Slot opted to take a second-string squad to the Netherlands. Along with Salah and Van Dijk, the other players who were left in Merseyside were Trent Alexander-Arnold, Alisson Becker, Ibrahima Konate, Ryan Gravenberch, Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister and Luis Diaz. Liverpool is in first place and can finish no lower than second in the league phase of the Champions League. On Tuesday, Slot said with the packed schedule it was a chance for players to get some freshness back. The Premier League leaders play at seventh-place Bournemouth on Saturday.
If City fails to win, it will mark their first early elimination from the Champions League in 12 years, leaving fans wondering if their once-dominant European campaign is losing steam.
Feyenoord supporters have been banned by French authorities from traveling to Lille for next week's final Champions League group game between the two clubs. In an order published Wednesday, France's interior ministry said there was a real and serious risk of confrontation between fans of the two teams. Lille hosts Feyenoord on Jan. 29 at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy. The French authorities said Feyenoord's travels are often marred by public order disturbances due to the violent behavior of certain supporters or individuals claiming to be supporters of this team, and they cited several examples of fan violence. Justifying its decision, the ministry added that 3,600 fans 500 of whom were identified as being dangerous had planned to travel to Lille, although only 2,600 seats had been allocated to the Dutch club. Of the 1,000 supporters who have nevertheless planned to travel without a stadium admission ticket, it is feared that some will try to force their way into the stadium, it ...
Premier League leaders Liverpool are also leading the charts of the Champions League this season with an unbeaten run so far in the competition
Manchester City captain Kyle Walker said he was subjected to vile, racist and threatening abuse after the team's loss to Juventus in the Champions League and called Thursday on social media platforms to do more to stamp out the problem. City condemned the abuse, calling it disgusting and saying the club will be offering Kyle our full support. Walker posted one of the racist messages on his Instagram Stories, and wrote underneath: Instagram and the authorities need to stop this happening for the sake of all who are suffering this abuse. It is never acceptable. England's account on social media platform X said: "We are incredibly disappointed that Kyle has been subject to such abhorrent abuse on social media. Discrimination of any kind is completely unacceptable. We support strong action by the authorities and social media companies. City was beaten 2-0 by Juventus and has won just one of its last 10 games in all competitions, an improbably poor run of results for the winner of the
Manchester City plunged deeper into trouble in the Champions League by losing 2-0 at Juventus, the latest setback in a scarcely believable run of poor results for the ailing English champions. City dropped to 22nd place in the 36-team standings, with only the top 24 advancing. Progressing to the next round of the new-look format looked a certainty before the season for a team that was European champion in 2023 and has won the last four Premier League titles. But not anymore as City manager Pep Guardiola battles injuries and an apparent loss of belief among his players. City has won just one of its last 10 matches in all competitions, with goals by Duan Vlahovic and Weston McKennie inflicting the latest defeat and igniting Juventus' qualification hopes. City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan described the team's problem as a "mental issue." Opponents "are able to break our rhythm with the smallest of things," Gundogan said on Wednesday. "They don't even need to do much and it has such a b
The race for the top 8 spots that will earn automatic qualification into the knockouts has intensified and each point will count from here on.