NYON, Dec 18: Defending champion Manchester City was handed the most benign draw for the round of 16 in the Champions League after being picked to play Copenhagen, the Danish champion making its first appearance at this stage since 2011.
The draw was made Monday at UEFA’s headquarters, with the standout matchup being Napoli vs. Barcelona.
Paris Saint-Germain wasn’t punished as hard as it could be for finishing second in its group, with the French team facing a Real Sociedad team playing in its first Champions League season in a decade.
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Real Madrid, seeking a record-extending 15th European Cup title, will play Leipzig while Inter Milan, last season’s beaten finalist, plays Atletico Madrid.
It’s also Porto vs. Arsenal, PSV Eindhoven vs. Borussia Dortmund and Lazio vs. Bayern Munich.
In the last 16, teams cannot play an opponent from their own country or a team they already faced in the group stage. There’s no country protection after that.
The two-legged round-of-16 matchups will be played from Feb. 13-14. (AP)
