Champions League draw LIVE: Man City and Chelsea discover quarter-final fate
Follow live updates from the Champions League draw as the quarter-final and semi-finals ties are set. Holders Real Madrid and Manchester City are the clear favourites, with Napoli and Bayern Munich also looking strong, which sets up an intriguing draw with the contenders all hoping to avoid each other.
Conversely, the likes of Chelsea, AC Milan, Inter Milan and Benfica could be handed an opportunity to progress to the last four. Chelsea have twice won the Champions League after sacking their manager mid-season. Could Graham Potter’s side repeat the trick this campaign?
Madrid and City both produced statement performances in the last 16, with the holders thrashing Liverpool at Anfield and Erling Haaland scoring five goals in the destruction of RB Leipzig. Will they be able to avoid each other as the path to Istanbul is made?
Follow live updates from the Champions League draw, below:
Champions League draw
The draw takes place at 11am GMT on Friday 17 March at the Uefa headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.
Manchester City and Chelsea are the only English clubs left in the competition
Real Madrid and Bayern Munich among favourites to win competition
Three Serie A clubs make up the last-eight
Bayern Munich among the favourites?
09:52 , Michael Jones
It’s been a near faultless campaign for Bayern Munich so far.
Six wins from six in the group stage, followed by two victories over a star-studded Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16. The Bavarians have only had one breach to their defence and there are echoes of the 2019/20 season when they won this competition.
Thibaut Courtois accepts Premier League power but says Spanish clubs can reign
09:48 , Michael Jones
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois believes the club’s continued success in Europe can offset the power of the Premier League.
For the fifth time in six seasons England’s top flight will have at least two representatives in the quarter-finals of the competition the Spanish giants have won a record 14 times.
Six Premier League teams have featured in the last five finals – two were all top-flight occasions – and Liverpool and Chelsea have won one apiece, which is the same number Real have won over the same period after three in four years from 2014-17.
So while English clubs may have the financial might, the LaLiga giants have shown they are still the side to be reckoned with at Europe’s elite level and a 6-2 aggregate victory over Liverpool put them into the last eight again.
Thibaut Courtois accepts Premier League power but says Spanish clubs can reign
Europa League draw
09:46 , Michael Jones
Following the Champions League draw, the draw for the Europa League’s final rounds will take place too.
Manchester United are the only English team left in the competition after sweeping Real Betis aside 5-1 on aggregate.
Arsenal suffered a heartbreaking exit last night. They drew 3-3 on aggregate with Sporting CP but lost 5-3 in a penalty shootout at the Emirates Stadium.
Sporting went through and joined heavy hitters Juventus, Roma and Sevilla in the quarter-finals. Bayer Leverkusen, Union Saint-Gilloise and Feyenoord complete the line-up.
Serie A resurgence
09:43 , Michael Jones
After a few years of being seen as the weakest of the big five European leagues, Serie A has come back with a bang this season. The Italian top flight has the most clubs in the Champions League last-eight with both Milan sides and Napoli making it through.
Inter Milan defeated Porto in the round of 16 while AC Milan edged past Tottenham 1-0 on aggregate.
Napoli, meanwhile, are lighting up both their domestic league and the European top flight. They have an 18-point lead over Inter in Serie A and have scored the most goals in the Champions League this year with 25.
When are the Champions League quarter-finals and semi-finals?
09:40 , Michael Jones
The two-legged Champions League lquarter-final ties will be held on 11/12 April and 18/19 April.
The semi-finals will take place on 9 and 10 May (first legs) and 16 and 17 May (second legs).
Who is left in the draw?
09:36 , Michael Jones
AC Milan
Bayern Munich
Benfica
Chelsea
Inter Milan
Manchester City
Napoli
Real Madrid
How to watch the Champions League draw
09:32 , Michael Jones
The Champions League quarter-final draw will take place at 11am GMT on Friday 17 March. It will be held at the Uefa headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.
Viewers in the United Kingdom will be able to watch the draw live on BT Sport, the television home of Champions League football in the country.
Subscribers can stream the proceedings via the BT Sport app or website, while Uefa will also show the draw live online via YouTube and the organising body’s website.
Champions League draw
09:27 , Michael Jones
Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s coverage of the Champions League quarter-final draw.
Manchester City and Chelsea are one step closer to the Champions League final after progressing through the round of 16. Today they will find out who their opponents in the quarter-final stage will be as the draw is held to determine the next round of fixtures.
Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and AC Milan are all viable opponents and there is the possibility that the two Premier League sides could face each other. There is no seeding for teams at this stage meaning clubs from the same country and group could meet again in the competition.
The semi-final draw will immediately follow the deciding of the last eight ties, along with determining which side will be the home team for the final, meaning all remaining teams will be aware of their potential route through to the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul.
Elsewhere, Manchester United are the only English team to make it into the last-eight of the Europa League and they will discover their potential route to the final as well.
