Real Madrid have been dealt an instant rematch with José Mourinho’s Benfica in the Champions League playoffs. The Portuguese club will seek a repeat of Wednesday’s astonishing 4-2 victory against the Spanish giants, when their goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin scored deep into injury time to send them through, and host the first leg in Lisbon.
It is the headline tie in a draw that also gives Newcastle a 3,000-mile journey to Azerbaijan for a first leg against Qarabag. Eddie Howe’s side will feel confident after an impressive display in holding Paris Saint-Germain, last season’s winners, to a 1-1 draw at Parc des Princes on Wednesday, although they will be aware that the Azeri champions, beaten 6-0 at Liverpool, held Chelsea to a 2-2 draw on home soil in November. They will face Barcelona or, in an all-Premier League clash, Chelsea if they go through.
PSG, who lead Ligue 1, must overcome familiar opponents in the form of Monaco, who sit 10th in the domestic standings. Monaco will play at home first and can take encouragement from a 1-0 league victory last time the sides met on 29 November.
Bodø/Glimt, the Champions League’s surprise package, will feel confident of giving Inter a scare when Christian Chivu’s side visit the Arctic Circle for their first leg. The Norwegian team turned their league phase campaign around in dramatic fashion with wins against Manchester City and Atlético Madrid in their last two games.
Galatasaray face Juventus in the pick of the other ties, with Club Brugge taking on Atlético and Borussia Dortmund playing Atalanta. Olympiakos play Bayer Leverkusen. The first legs will be contested on 17/18 February, with the return fixtures on 24/25 February.
The clubs who have already secured safe passage to the last 16 must wait to discover their potential opposition. Arsenal, who romped to the top of the league phase, will face either the winner of the Olympiakos v Leverkusen tie or whoever prevails out of Borussia Dortmund and Atalanta. For Manchester City, a clash with Real Madrid, Benfica, Inter or – again – Bodø/Glimt awaits.
Liverpool will take on the winners of Galatasaray v Juventus or Club Brugge against Atlético, with Tottenham playing the other. PSG or Monaco join Newcastle and Qarabag as Chelsea’s potential opponents. Local rivals Sporting Lisbon are among the possible obstacles for Mourinho and Benfica if they stun Real again.
Meanwhile, Nottingham Forest and Celtic both face stern tests if they are to progress from the Europa League playoffs.
Forest must get past Fenerbahce, who are second in Turkey’s Super Liga, and will travel to Istanbul for the first leg. Celtic were drawn to play Stuttgart, fifth in the Bundesliga, and will play at home first. The ties will be played on 19/26 February.
Should Forest win, they will play Real Betis or Midtjylland, who won at the City Ground four months ago, in the last 16. Celtic will take on Braga or Porto if they come out on top. Aston Villa, who have qualified automatically for that stage, will play the winner of either the tie between Paok and Celta Vigo or that between Lille and Red Star Belgrade.
