'Being back in the Champions League is going back to the natural habitat. Manchester United (have been there) season after season'
Photos from the UEFA Champions League last 16 first leg-matches played on Wednesday
Germany midfielder Toni Kroos has eased Real Madrid's injury concerns and could be fit to play in their Champions League match at Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday, coach Zinedine Zidane said.
Arsene Wenger's team look likely to return to Europe's most prestigious competition next season.
Napoli qualified for the Champions League group stage by winning 3-0 at Bologna on Wednesday and two goals from Mario Balotelli kept AC Milan on course for the qualifying round with a 4-0 victory at Pescara.
Wayne Rooney scored twice again as Manchester United cruised into the quarter-finals of the Champions League after a 4-0 win over a feeble AC Milan sent them through 7-2 on aggregate on Wednesday.
Amitabh Bachchan has been signed on as the brand ambassador for the second edition of the Champions League Twenty20, to be held in South Africa from September 10.
Porto have been excluded from next season's Champions League by European soccer's governing body UEFA over the alleged bribery of referees in the 2003-04 season, the Portuguese club said in a statement on Wednesday. Porto said it would try to overturn the decision through the UEFA appeals body. The club gave no further details and its officials were not immediately available to comment.
Thibaut Courtois reckons Chelsea are capable of achieving what the Belgium keeper came agonisingly close to doing at Atletico Madrid last season - winning a European and domestic double.
Paris St Germain are stronger than last season and he is in the best shape of his life, yet Zlatan Ibrahimovic says experienced Chelsea are the hot favourites in the Champions League quarter-final against the French champions.
Pep Guardiola's ManchesterCity will play Romanian side Steaua Bucharest in the Champions League playoff round after the draw was made in Nyon on Friday.
Chelsea and Real Madrid moved into the last eight of the Champions League with minimum of fuss on Wednesday. The former drew 0-0 at home with a battling FC Copenhagen to complete a 2-0 aggregate victory, while the Spanish giants ended a six-year Champions League jinx, crushing Olympique Lyon 3-0 to advance to the quarter-finals for the first time since 2004.
After the Champions League game, Liverpool host Arsenal in the league on Sunday.
Images from the Champions League matches played on Tuesday
Photos from the Champions League matches played across Europe on Tuesday
Atletico Madrid made sure of at least a third-placed finish in La Liga and secured a berth in the Champions League group stages for next season with a 3-1 win away to struggling Celta Vigo on Wednesday.
Prime Minister David Cameron savoured Chelsea's win over German club Bayern Munich in the Champions League final on Sunday after watching the deciding penalty shootout with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at a summit in the United States.
Last season's runners-up Liverpool, big-spending French league champions Paris St Germain and Carlo Ancelotti's Napoli were thrown together in the pick of the groups while holders Real Madrid must face last season's semi-finalists AS Roma.
Manchester City marched into the quarter-finals of the Champions League
Liverpool reached the Champions League after a Dirk Kuyt goal deep into extra time gave them a 1-0 aggregate win over plucky Belgian rivals Standard Liege.
Real Madrid earned their first-ever win over Liverpool with a wondrous Cristiano Ronaldo goal spearheading a 3-0 Champions League victory at Anfield on Wednesday which appeared as classy as it was dominant.
Abhishek Sharma becomes the second batter after David Warner to hit 100 sixes for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League
Barcelona, inspired by the peerless Lionel Messi, delivered a soccer masterclass to overwhelm Manchester United 3-1 in the Champions League final and lift the European Cup for the fourth time on Saturday.
Raphinha hat-trick fires Barcelona past Sevilla at top
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta called on his players to "live in the present" ahead of Sunday's visit to local rivals Tottenham Hotspur in a battle to stay ahead in the title race after their lead was cut short by successive Premier League draws.
Sarfaraz Ahmed highlights the importance of trust and clear communication with players as he takes on the role of Pakistan's Test format head coach, ahead of the series against Bangladesh.
Left with no room to manoeuvre its calendar again, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has barred its county teams from participating in this year's Twenty20 Champions League, as the revised dates clash with the end of its domestic season. In a memo circulated to the counties, the ECB announced it was "with great regret" that the Friends Provident T20 finalists would be unable to participate in the Champions League.
Lamine Yamal's second-half goal secured a 1-0 victory for Barcelona against Athletic Bilbao, extending their lead in La Liga.
Inter, Liverpool sweating on last-16 spots
A tainted AC Milan side, 2005 winners Liverpool and last season's finalists Arsenal will top the bill when the Champions League final qualifying round gets underway this week.
Manchester City, who crushed Gladbach 4-0 at home in September, are in second place in the group on seven points, three ahead of the Germans, and can wrap up qualification with victory in Germany.
Juventus will be hoping to make it 11 victories out of 11 against French teams in knockout ties when they face AS Monaco in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday.
Malaga gave themselves an excellent chance of qualifying for the Champions League for the first time by beating Panathinaikos 2-0 at home in the first leg of their playoff on Wednesday.
The 38-year-old defender became only the fifth player, and first Italian, to notch up 100 Champions League appearances.
Premier League Chelsea have moved into profit for the first time since Russian Roman Abramovich bought the soccer club in 2003, reporting a small surplus after winning the Champions League.
A touch of romance has returned to the Champions League quarter-finals with seven countries, including Cyprus, represented in this week's first legs with AC Milan-Barcelona topping the bill.
Former Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh encourages cricketers to play golf from a young age to alleviate stress and enhance their primary sport, highlighting its accessibility and benefits.
Shares in the Dutch club, in contrast, surged to a record high as it advanced to the semi-final of the lucrative competition for the first time since 1996/97.
Novak Djokovic is still working through the injury problems that forced him to miss recent tournaments in Miami and Monte Carlo and said on Friday that he will not feature at next week's Madrid Open, one of the last stops before the French Open.
There is never a dearth of drama in European football and here is proof...
