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Manchester City have been drawn to face Real Madrid in the Champions League playoff round, the fourth season in a row that the two clubs have met in the tournament’s knockout stages.
Elsewhere, Bayern Munich will face Celtic, while Paris Saint-Germain will play fellow Ligue 1 side Brest.
City and Madrid met in the quarterfinals last season, drawing both legs before the Spanish giants eventually went through on penalties and went on to lift the title against Borussia Dortmund. The year before, City won 5-1 on aggregate in the semifinals before beating Inter Milan in the final to complete a historic treble.
However, the context is slightly different this time round. City have struggled for their typically imperious form this season, managing only three wins in the Champions League league phase and falling behind in the Premier League title race.
Meanwhile, Madrid also made a shaky start to the season, although Carlo Ancelotti’s side, including star Kylian Mbappé, have found better form of late.
The first legs of the playoff round will take place between Feb. 11-12. The return legs will be staged the following week, between Feb. 18-19.
Friday’s draw did not including the top eight finishers from the league phase — such as Liverpool, Barcelona, Arsenal and Aston Villa. They have already been advanced through to the round of 16 which will be drawn on Feb. 21.
