Champions League has to be REDRAWN after Man Utd controversially land PSG with original last-16 draw declared void
The Champions League last 16 fixtures had to be REDRAWN after an almighty balls-up by Uefa.
Uefa chiefs had to pick the eight clashes again after Manchester United were denied the chance to play Atletico Madrid.
Instead they were drawn against Paris Saint-Germain, setting the stage for a blockbuster clash between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
But it was back to the drawing board after Man United’s ball appeared to be left out of the pot in the draw to face Atletico.
Things had already started shakily for the Red Devils in Nyon as they waited to find out who they would face in the next round.
They were initially drawn against Villarreal – something that should not have happened as they were both in Group F and therefore not eligible to meet in the last-16.
Instead a redraw was ordered and United’s crosstown rivals Man City were selected to play Unai Emery’s side.
Crucially, United were not then put back in the mix to face Atletico – with another group-stage foul-up adding to Uefa’s woes.
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Liverpool WERE stunningly included in the draw to face Diego Simeone’s side, even though they too had faced each other in Group B.
The farce spares United from a tough tie against PSG, and two former stars were happy with the news
Michael Owen, speaking on BT Sport, said: “I can’t see a fairer thing. It’s disappointing but if something was fundamentally wrong, you just have to do it again.”
And Owen Hargreaves added: “United will be delighted. Let’s see what comes up. Some fans are going to be delighted but some will be very annoyed.”
Man City boss Pep Guardiola said: “You want an assessment about the draw? It is going to happen again.
“It is fair. It was a mistake. These things can happen, to managers, players and Uefa too. It is fair. It would be a mistake not to repeat, there would suspicions.”
FAN ANGER
Fans online demanded a redraw as some cheekily called for VAR to step in after the string of Uefa shockers.
Fan Nabilbaracat wrote on Twitter: “This is the VAR review portion of the #UCL draw…”
And user Reubenish joked: “Now Man United want English Refs and VAR to review the UEFA round 16 draw.”
With Liverpool ruled out as an option, Atletico were drawn to face Bundesliga heavyweights Bayern Munich.
Atleti bosses were fuming as they demanded an explanation from Uefa after being drawn against Europe’s highest-ranked side.
Uefa blamed the mishap on a technical problem with the software of an external service provider that instructs the officials as to which teams are eligible to play each other.
As a result of this, the draw was declared void, Uefa said in a statement published 90 minutes after the draw was done.
Uefa said in a statement: “Following a technical problem with the software of an external service provider that instructs the officials as to which teams are eligible to play each other, a material error occurred in the draw for the UEFA Champions League Round of 16.”
THE REAL DEAL
The redraw was concluded successfully.
Chelsea once again landed Lille, Manchester United swapped PSG for another tough tie with Atletico Madrid.
Liverpool now face Inter Milan while Manchester City will take on Sporting Lisbon.
The redraw most hurt Real Madrid – who went from facing Benfica to PSG.
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