Back in 1998, the legendary German sweeper Franz Beckenbauer waved his hands over a crystal ball and foresaw: “I can see a time, not that far into the future, when all the biggest games will be between clubs, not countries.”
No competition more emphatically proves Der Kaiser’s point than the Champions League. The realm in which Europe’s premier clubs duke it out resumes on Tuesday and Wednesday evening with the first half of the round of 16 first legs.
After more than three months spent gathering dust while the World Cup did its best to stake a claim for international football’s superiority, here’s everything you need to know about how to gorge on the Champions League’s return.
Reigning Serie A champions Milan host Tottenham Hotspur at San Siro on Valentine’s Day. Spurs manager Antonio Conte, should he continue his recovery from gallbladder surgery, will return to the scene of his last league title, finishing a yawning 12 points clear of Milan with fierce rivals Inter in 2021.
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In a rematch of the 2020 Champions League final, Paris Saint-Germain face Bayern Munich on Tuesday night. This will be the fourth time in six seasons that the perennial champions of France and Germany have met. Although, familiarity has hardly bred any friendliness in what promises to be a spiky and star-studded affair.
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Two former classmates go head-to-head as Edin Terzic’s frugal Borussia Dortmund hosts Graham Potter’s costly assortment of acquisitions on Wednesday evening. The two managers formed a friendship after studying for their Pro Licence on the same FA coaching course in 2018. “I have my fingers crossed for him for every game,” Terzic said of Potter, “with the exception of the two against us.”
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Scott Parker will be thrown into the deep end for his first taste of Champions League football as a manager when he leads Club Brugge into the last 16 against a Benfica side that has lost once all season. Parker has also only lost once since taking over from Carl Hoefkens in the new year. However, his Brugge side has only won once, drawing five of his first seven matches at the helm.
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