UCL: Barcelona to face Atletico Madrid, City draw PSG

Champions League holders Barcelona will play Atletico Madrid in the quarter-finals next month.

The two La Liga sides met in the last eight of the 2013-2014 competition, with Atletico winning 2-1 on aggregate before eventually losing to Real Madrid in that year’s final.

Barca responded with victory in last season’s competition, while Atletico lost out to Carlo Ancelotti’s Real team at the quarter-final stage.

French champions Paris Saint-Germain will take on Manchester City in the other standout tie of the round, with Laurent Blanc’s men continuing their pursuit of four major trophies this season.

First-time quarter-finalists Wolfsburg will play Real Madrid – now managed by Zinedine Zidane – over two legs following Friday’s draw in Nyon.

Meanwhile, Bayern Munich’s reward for their thrilling comeback against Juventus in the last-16 is a tie against Benfica.

Champions League quarter-final draw in full:

Wolfsburg v Real Madrid
Bayern Munich v Benfica
Barcelona v Atletico Madrid
Paris Saint-Germain v Manchester City

Ronaldo leads Real Madrid into Champions League last eight

MADRID: Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo was the scourge of AS Roma again as he inspired the hosts to a 2-0 win and a place in the Champions League quarter-finals on Tuesday, scoring and setting up a goal Rodriguez to seal a 4-0 aggregate victory.

The Portugal forward, top scorer in the competition this season with 13 goals, netted for the sixth time in three games in all competitions by finishing off substitute Lucas Vazquez’s cross at the near post after 64 minutes.

Four minutes later Ronaldo, who put Real on the way to a 2-0 win in the first leg of the last-16 tie with a stunning strike, released Rodriguez with a delicate pass and the Colombia forward prodded the ball between the legs of keeper Wojciech Szczesny.

“It was a difficult game even though some people didn’t expect it would be, but in the end we achieved our objective, which was to go through, and we didn’t concede a goal,” Real coach Zinedine Zidane told a news conference.

Real’s Keylor Navas kept his sixth straight Champions League clean sheet to move ahead of former Manchester United stopper Edwin van der Sar with the second-longest run in the competition without conceding a goal and is now unbeaten in 540 minutes.

Roma coach Luciano Spalletti said before the game that he was “asking for the impossible” from his side as they looked to overturn the deficit surrendered at the Olympic Stadium, but they had two clear chances to take the lead before the break.

Edin Dzeko and Mohamed Salah were each through on goal but shot wide of the near post. In the second half, Navas rushed out to deny Roma defender Kostas Manolas and then went flying to his right to claw away a stinging low strike by Diego Perotti.

“We had our chances and we had to score them. If we had it would have changed our mentality and the game,” Roma coach Luciano Spalletti told a news conference.

“We have thrown away a great chance because Madrid are not in great form, their football is not irresistible.”

Real’s Costa Rica keeper Navas has yet to let in a goal in this season’s Champions League and only trails German Jens Lehmann, who went 853 minutes in Europe’s elite club competition without conceding for Arsenal.

Roma’s Egypt forward Salah missed another chance at the near post in the second period while the game was still goalless, but Ronaldo showed no such mercy at the other end.

The 31-year-old, who scored four times in the second half on Saturday in a 7-1 La Liga mauling of Celta Vigo, fired past a helpless Szczesny after an excellent piece of skill and cross by Vazquez, before teeing up Rodriguez to finish off the Italians.

UEFA moves Europa League Clash between United and LIverpool

 

UEFA has accepted Trafford Council’s request to move the St Patrick’s Day Europa League clash between Manchester United and Liverpool back from its scheduled 6 p.m. kick-off.

Last week’s round-of-16 draw threw up a mouthwatering clash between the bitter rivals — the first time they have faced each other in continental competition.

The first leg takes place at Anfield at 8:05 p.m. on March 10, but the return fixture, on March 17, was slated for an earlier start. It will now also kick off at 8:05 p.m.

The scheduled timing of the St Patrick’s Day fixture has led Trafford Council’s safety advisory board to contact UEFA with a request that it be put back.

A statement from Trafford Council said: “Following an approach from Manchester United, Trafford Council’s Safety Advisory Group have written to UEFA highlighting that it would not be safe to hold this fixture at 6 p.m. with spectators in the stadium.

“This is due to problems with the club being able to ensure that the required numbers of security, stewarding and medical staff would be available due to the proposed early kick-off time.

“The Safety Advisory Group and Manchester United have no concerns with the fixture being played at the alternative time of 8.05pm on the same date.”