In mild-mannered Italian Carlo Ancelotti, Real Madrid president Florentino Perez may finally have found the man capable of sculpting his expensively assembled squad into a unit capable of delivering an elusive 10th European crown.
IMAGES from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Tuesday.
Title-holders Barcelona will play Arsenal in the quarter-finals of the Champions League as they hope to remain on course for a repeat of last year's final against Manchester United.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday.
Inter Milan battled for more than an hour with 10 men to book their place in next month's Champions League final at the expense of holders Barcelona on a triumphant night for the Italian side's coach Jose Mourinho.
Holders Real Madrid will start their attempt to win a record third straight Champions League title in a group with Borussia Dortmund, Tottenham Hotspur and Apoel Nicosia after Thursday's draw.
Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola still believes in possession-based football and cannot alter his feelings about the way the game should be played, he said after the Champions League holders were hammered by Real Madrid.
Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal is hoping as many Spain players as possible feature in the Champions League final on May 24 so the holders have less time to prepare for their June 13 World Cup Group B clash.
Tuesday's match was the latest masterclass from the South American trio, known in Spain as 'MSN', whose goals have put Barca on the brink of repeating 2009's treble of Champions League and Spanish league and Cup triumphs, the only time a La Liga club have achieved the feat.
Lionel Messi fired Barcelona into the last 16 of the Champions League with two goals in their 3-0 victory at Spartak Moscow on Tuesday but holders Chelsea are walking a tightrope after a crushing defeat by Juventus.
After a week of controversy caused mainly by FIFA president Sepp Blatter's comments about racism, UEFA will hope that action on the pitch dominates this week's Champions League headlines as the group stage reaches crunch time.
England left back Ashley Cole will miss holders Chelsea's Champions League Group E game at home to Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday because of a hamstring injury.
Shakhtar Donetsk led the way for the Champions League underdogs as they beat holders Chelsea 2-1 while former European champions Barcelona and Manchester United came from behind to maintain perfect starts on Tuesday.
Images from the Champions League matches plsyed across Europe on Wednesday.
Holders Inter Milan stared defeat in the face while Manchester United flirted with danger before both teams were able to sigh with relief after reaching the last eight of the Champions League on Tuesday.
Chelsea nervously beat Benfica 2-1 in their Champions League quarter-final second leg at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday to seal a 3-1 aggregate victory and set up a semi-final with holders Barcelona later this month. Real Madrid completed an 8-2 aggregate, thrashing of APOEL Nicosia, in the night's other match.
Holders Barcelona will play Bayer Leverkusen, a team famous for fading in the final straight, while their arch-rivals Real Madrid face a trip to icy Moscow in the Champions League round of 16 following the draw on Friday. Bayern Munich, whose Allianz Arena will host the final, take on FC Basel, the underdogs who spectacularly ousted Manchester United, in another of the top ties.
The three Premier League and three La Liga clubs in the last eight avoided each other, with Manchester City up against Atletico Madrid and Liverpool to face Portuguese side Benfica.
Chelsea survived the dismissal of captain John Terry to eliminate holders Barcelona 3-2 on aggregate and clinch a place in the Champions League final after an action-packed last-four clash on Tuesday in which Lionel Messi missed a penalty.
Borussia Dortmund bounced back after slumping to their fourth straight Bundesliga defeat against Hanover 96 at the weekend, cruising past second tier St Pauli 3-0 on Tuesday to reach the German Cup third round.
Karim Benzema fired Real Madrid to a 1-0 win in the city derby against Atletico Madrid on Saturday which underlined Real's La Liga title credentials. Bayern Munich scored three goals in the opening 26 minutes to defeat Mainz 05 3-1 away on Saturday and go two points clear at the top of the Bundesliga with their sixth straight win.
Group C leaders Barcelona should make it four wins from four matches against pointless Basel on Tuesday in the Champions League, while holders Manchester United can book their last 16 place with victory at Celtic.
Striker Cacau hit four goals to inspire VfB Stuttgart to a 5-1 Bundesliga victory at Cologne on Saturday while Bayern Munich's 13-match winning run ended with a 1-1 draw at Nuremberg.
IMAGES from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Wednesday.
Juventus and Bayern Munich square off in a Champions League match on Tuesday which will end with one of the illustrious pair suffering the same fate as Liverpool and making an early exit from the tournament.
Bayern Munich booked their fifth successive Champions League semi-final spot with a 2-2 draw at Benfica on Wednesday to seal a 3-2 aggregate victory that kept the Germans on course for a treble of titles.
Holders Manchester City cruised into the Champions League quarter-finals for the seventh consecutive season with a 3-1 victory over FC Copenhagen.
For the first time in 10 years, four English clubs have reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League
Arsenal went eight points clear at the top of the English premier league after a 2-0 win over Charlton Athletic.
They should reach the Champions League quarters without many problems but Real Madrid face a tougher test.
The Bayern Munich goalkeeper allowed a long-range free-kick by Real's Roberto Carlos to slip under his body in the Champions League first knockout phase match.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Barcelona took a big step towards the Champions League semi-finals.
Sporting marked the final home game of coach Ruben Amorim's reign in stunning fashion as Viktor Gyokeres' hat-trick saw them come from behind to thrash Manchester City 4-1 and maintain their superb start to the Champions League on Tuesday.
Heavyweight trio Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea kept up their 100 per cent starts to the Premier League season this weekend.
Luka Modric pulled one back for Zinedine Zidane's shellshocked side with a brilliant strike from distance early in the second half before substitute Vinicius Jr reduced the deficit to one goal.
Borussia Dortmund beat Hertha Berlin 3-2 on penalties to reach the German Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday after the match finished 1-1 after extra time.
