UEFA Champions League last 16 draw: Manchester City v Real Madrid AGAIN, Chelsea handed Paris Saint-Germain blockbuster, Newcastle meet Barcelona
By Ben Snowball
Updated 27/02/2026 at 12:53 GMT
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FIFA Club World Cup winners Chelsea will lock horns with holders Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League last 16, while Newcastle face La Liga giants Barcelona. That is not all though. Manchester City meet Real Madrid for the fifth season running. Elsewhere, Arsenal will play Bayer Leverkusen and Tottenham Hotspur will have to tackle Spanish side Atletico Madrid.
Watch: Why have Arsenal been so good in the Champions League this season?
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This will be the fifth season in a row that the two iconic sides will go head-to-head in Europe’s elite competition, with Los Blancos coming out on top across two legs in the knockout phase play-offs last term.
Madrid beat Benfica 3-1 on aggregate in this year’s play-offs to reach the last 16, while City progressed automatically from the league phase after an eighth-place finish in the table.
City are not the only English side to have received a tough draw for the next stage of the competition, with Chelsea set to face off against defending champions Paris Saint-Germain.
PSG thrashed Inter Milan 5-0 in last year’s final, but they failed to finish in the top eight of the league phase table, meaning they had to beat Ligue 1 rivals Monaco 5-4 over two legs to cement their place in the last 16.
However, Chelsea finished sixth in the league phase and stunned PSG in the final of the inaugural FIFA Club World Cup in the summer with a 3-0 victory.
The winner of that mouth-watering tie will face either Premier League champions Liverpool or Turkish side Galatasaray in the quarter-finals.
Liverpool booked their place in the last 16 of the Champions League by finishing third in the League Phase, while Galatasaray - beat the Reds in Istanbul in their league phase meeting - had to navigate a tricky play-off against Juventus.
They stormed to a 5-2 first-leg lead over their Italian rivals, but needed extra time to progress after a thrilling second leg.
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Highlights: Galatasaray fend off momentous Juventus comeback in five-goal thriller
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The other clash on that side of the draw will see Bayern Munich face the only Italian team left in the competition, Atalanta.
Atalanta prevented a Klassiker meeting in the last-16 as they battled back to beat Borussia Dortmund in the play-offs, while Bayern finished in second place in the league phase.
Whoever comes out victorious in that tie will face the winner of City’s clash with Madrid.
Premier League leaders Arsenal will face Bayer Leverkusen in the last-16.
Leverkusen edged past Olympiacos in the play-offs, but they will now have to contend with a Gunners side that finished top of the standings.
Awaiting the victor of that clash will be the winner of Bodo/Glimt's tie with Sporting CP in the quarter-finals.
Bodo/Glimt have been one of the surprise packages of this season’s Champions League, finishing 23rd in the league phase before stunning last year’s losing finalists Inter Milan in the play-offs.
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Highlights: Bodo/Glimt make history with stunning victory over Inter
Video credit: TNT Sports
They will go head-to-head with Portuguese giants Sporting CP in the hope of producing another remarkable upset.
Sporting will be the favourites after an impressive seventh-place finish in the league phase.
Arsenal's north London rivals Tottenham with play Atletico Madrid in the last-16.
Spurs may have struggled in the Premier League this season, but they stormed to a fourth-place finish in the Champions League league phase.
The winner of that tie will face either Newcastle or Barcelona.
The Magpies navigated a difficult play-off with Qarabag, but now they will have to beat one of European football's most successful sides to reach the quarter-finals.
Champions League R16 ties
- Real Madrid v Manchester City
- Bodo/Glimt v Sporting CP
- PSG v Chelsea
- Newcastle v Barcelona
- Galatasaray v Liverpool
- Atletico Madrid v Tottenham Hotspur
- Atalanta v Bayern Munich
- Bayer Leverkusen v Arsenal
Champions League knockout phase dates
Last 16: March 10/11 and March 17/18
Quarter-finals: April 7/8 and April 14/15
Semi-finals: April 28/29 and May 5/6
Final: May 30
Stream the Premier League, Men’s and Women’s FA Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League and more on TNT Sports and discovery+
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