Manchester City’s draw against Porto on Tuesday saw the Sky Blues win Group C in this season’s UEFA Champions League.
The result means that Manchester City will move onto the Round of 16. How do pairings work in the Round of 16?
Teams that finish first in their group are paired with the runners-up of these groups. Teams from the same group cannot face one another in the Round of 16, and teams that hail from the same country cannot compete against each other in the Round of 16. For example, City finished first in Group C while Porto finished second, however, these two teams cannot face each other in the Round of 16. Similarly, should Manchester United finish second in Group H, the Red Devils could not be paired with the Sky Blues as they are from the same country. The country barrier is lifted when the competition progresses to the quarter-finals.
With this in mind, who will City avoid in the first round of the knockout stages? Who could City face in the Round of 16?
Teams Man City Will Avoid:
Group A: Bayern München
Group D: Liverpool
Group E: Chelsea
Group H: Manchester United
More from Champions League
- My Manchester City UCL Group Stage predictions
- Manchester City’s Submitted UCL Squad Confirmed
- Man City’s 23/24 UCL group decided
- UCL Draw : Who are Man City’s possible opponents?
- Manchester City’s busy transfer week rounded-up
Teams Man City Could Face:
Group A: Atlético de Madrid or RB Salzburg
Group B: Borussia Mönchengladbach, Shakhtar Donetsk, Real Madrid, or Internazionale
Group D: Atalanta or Ajax
Group E: Sevilla
Group F: Borussia Dortmund, Lazio, or Club Brugge
Group G: Barcelona or Juventus
Group H: Paris Saint-Germain or RB Leipzig
For the first time in recent years, several teams will be fighting for a place in the UEFA Champions League’s Round of 16 on Matchday 6 in the group stages. This will make for an exciting and entertaining series of games. Who will progress to the UEFA Champions League’s knockout stages?
Man City Square will provide a follow-up to this piece next week after the completion of the UEFA Champions League group stages.