Latest News: Champions League draw — Chelsea to face PSG, Man City drawn with Real Madrid and full last-16 map

The latest news from the Champions League draw has produced a high-stakes last-16 lineup: Chelsea will play holders Paris St-Germain while Manchester City meet Real Madrid, with Arsenal facing Bayer Leverkusen and a string of notable continental rematches to follow. The draw matters for routes to the final, competitive history between several pairs and a clutch of Premier League clubs all represented in the knockout phase.

Latest News: Key last-16 ties and Premier League presence

Six Premier League clubs have qualified for the last 16, yet the draw produced no all-English ties. Arsenal, Newcastle United, Liverpool, Tottenham, Chelsea and Manchester City all feature in the knockout stage, and their rivals are all at home for their second leg having qualified for the last 16 automatically. The first legs are scheduled for 10 and 11 March, with second legs on 17 and 18 March.

Chelsea v PSG — rematch after Club World Cup final

Chelsea, the current holders of the Fifa Club World Cup, will face Paris St‑Germain, the current holders of the Champions League. The tie is a rematch of last year's Club World Cup final in New Jersey, when Chelsea beat the European champions 3-0. Chelsea's director of football, David Barnard, said the draw is tough but not frightening and urged a game-by-game focus, calling PSG a strong opener to face.

Man City v Real Madrid — familiar knockout rivals

Manchester City will meet Real Madrid in the knockout stages for a fifth straight season. City’s win in Madrid in December was part of an extended recent sequence: that victory was their ninth meeting with Real since April 2022, and the two legs in this knockout tie will bring their meetings since to 17. City’s director of football, Hugo Viana, described the tie as a big game for both teams and likened it to a final; City have won seven of their last eight matches in all competitions. Real Madrid have recently sacked Xabi Alonso and are described in the coverage as a side of superb individuals who have not yet fully gelled. Liverpool ambassador Ian Rush noted Liverpool’s advantage of a second leg at home and highlighted the Anfield atmosphere as a potential factor.

Other headline ties and club form

• Arsenal will face Bayer Leverkusen after finishing top of the league phase as the only side to win all eight games; Bayern Munich finished three points behind in second.
• Newcastle United will meet Barcelona, with Newcastle at home for the first leg.
• Liverpool take on Galatasaray; Tottenham were drawn against Atletico Madrid.

If Arsenal get past Leverkusen they will face either Sporting or Bodo/Glimt in the quarter-finals. The route to the final is already mapped: if Newcastle and Tottenham both progress they would meet in the quarter-finals, while Chelsea and Liverpool would meet in the other half of the draw. The final is set for the Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary, on Saturday, 30 May.

Tie-by-tie notes: form, history and predictions

PSG’s recent form has been described as indifferent: they were forced into the playoff round after a defeat by Sporting and a draw against Newcastle in their final two league-phase games, then advanced by a narrow 5-4 aggregate win over Monaco. Analysis of the Liverpool–Galatasaray tie notes Liverpool have won only one of five previous meetings with the Turkish club; their league-phase defeat in Istanbul in September was singled out as a low point in a difficult autumn. Galatasaray displayed both strong and weak sides in their playoff round against Juventus, excelling in the second half of the first leg at home but wobbling badly in the second leg and losing discipline and self-belief, even when the opposition were down to 10 men. Victor Osimhen was noted as potentially offering a physical edge against Liverpool’s defence.

Bayern Munich are presented as the Premier League’s most likely continental obstacle: they have lost just once in the Bundesliga this season and are averaging more than 3. 5 goals per game. Harry Kane has scored 43 goals in all competitions this season and his tendency to drop deep is complemented by Michael Olise, Serge Gnabry and Luis Díaz running beyond him. Bayern finished the league phase second behind Arsenal, with their only dropped points coming at the Emirates where they lost 3-1.

Atalanta staged a comeback in the playoffs to overturn a 2-0 first-leg deficit against Borussia Dortmund, but commentary notes they are not the same side they were when they won the Europa League in 2024 and currently lie seventh in Serie A. For Newcastle fans, mentions of Barcelona recall Faustino Asprilla’s hat-trick in a 3-2 win in 1997; Newcastle have lost all four meetings since, including the 2-1 defeat at St James’ Park in the league phase in September. The remainder of a sentence in the provided context is unclear in the provided context.

Probabilities, favourites and final lookahead

Statistical ratings name Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal as favourites to win this season’s competition by some distance: they are given a 27. 40% chance of being crowned European champions for the first time, with Bayern Munich ranked next best at 14. 28%. This latest news frames an intriguing knockout phase where recent form, deep historical rivalries and the mapped route to Budapest will shape every second-leg strategy.