Real Madrid to face PSG in leading Champions League tie

Real Madrid versus Paris SaintGermain. Cristiano Ronaldo versus Neymar. Historic achievement versus burning ambition.

Two-time defending Champions League winner Madrid were drawn yesterday to play the tournament’s standout team in the last

16, made possible because the

12-time champions finished second in their group while PSG won their group.

‘‘They [PSG] are really very strong in every department of the field,’’ Madrid director Emilio Butragueno said. ‘‘But I have to underline, we are the holders and our players, they always rise to the occasion.’’

PSG bought Neymar from Barcelona for a record €222 million (NZ$379 million) fee in the offseason with a specific aim of winning

a first European title.

Madrid won six European Cups before the French club was even formed, in 1970.

‘‘As I always say, we must be ready to play any team and we will be ready,’’ PSG president Nasser al-Khelaifi said in a statement on the club’s website.

Neymar scored in five straight wins as PSG finished ahead of Bayern Munich in its group, finishing with a competition record of 25 goals in the group stage.

Ronaldo scored in all six of Madrid’s matches to set another Champions League record.

Barcelona, which leads the Spanish league unbeaten despite the loss of Neymar, was drawn to face Chelsea in a meeting of recent champions. The English club is one of the few opponents Argentine superstar Lionel Messi has failed to score against.

With eight former winners in the lineup, another clash of European champions pits fivetime winners Liverpool against Porto.

The final will be played at the Olympic Stadium in Kiev, Ukraine, on May 26.