Champions League last 16 lowdown...
CITY are into the last 16 of the Champions League once again.
It is the seventh successive season that City have qualified for the knockout rounds, and here’s what Blues fans need to know about the draw. WHEN IS IT?
The draw for the last 16 of the Champions League takes place on Monday, December 16, in Nyon, at 11am, UK time.
WHO HAS QUALIFIED?
PSG, Bayern Munich, Juventus are all through as group winners. Tottenham and Real Madrid have also qualified as runners-up. The other clubs will be confirmed following the conclusion of matchday six.
HOW DOES THE DRAW WORK? The pots for the Round of 16 will be split in half, with the group winners seeded and facing one of the eight sides that finished runner-up in the group stages. Seeded teams play the second leg of the next round at home.
However, no side can play against the team that was already in their group and they also cannot be drawn against a team from the same nation so there will be no all-Premier League clashes in the next round. KNOCKOUT STAGES? February 18/19 & 25/26: Round of 16 - first leg
March 10/11 & 17/18: Round of 16 second leg
April 7/8: Quarter-finals - first leg April 14/15: Quarter-finals - second leg
April 28/29: Semi-finals - first leg May 5/6: Semi-finals - second leg May 30: Final, Istanbul
PEP Guardiola has told his City players they can’t afford to lose any more Premier League games if they are to haul in Liverpool at the top of the table.
The Blues boss insists he isn’t thinking about winning the Premier League title at the moment, but did admit that his side can afford no more major slip-ups if they’re to chase down Jurgen Klopp’s side, who are currently nine points clear.
City are now in the heart of their busiest stretch of the season and they face another defining week in the title race, with trips to Newcastle tomorrow,
Burnley on Tuesday and then the derby against United at the Etihad on Saturday.
“I know we cannot lose games. I’m not thinking about winning the Premier League right now,” Guardiola said of his side’s position in the table.
“The target is the next one when you have games every three days.”
The next one is a trip to St
James’ Park tomorrow, a ground where City turned in their worst performance of last season to lose 2-1, having taken the lead inside the first minute. Guardiola was disappointed with the performance of his team in that game at the end of January, but City responded to win 14 successive Premier League games and claim the title by a point from Liverpool. Ahead of a return to the north east the City boss insists that defeat is now consigned to the past, in part because of the response that followed and a return to the qualities Guardiola had come to expect from his side.
“It’s forgotten. We played slow, didn’t attack. We forgot to attack,” he said.
“We’ve learned from that and spoke about it. We had a bad afternoon. It wasn’t the way we are. We have to be ourselves.”
City boss Pep Guardiola