Real Madrid to face La Liga rivals in exciting UEFA Champions League round-of-16 draws

Following the Champions League Round of 16 draws, Real Madrid will face La Liga rivals Atletico Madrid in the next knockout games. Los Blancos are coming off the back of a 6-3 aggregate win over Manchester City across two legs in the playoffs.

Due to the format of the draws, the Spanish giants knew they would face either their Rojiblancos neighbors or Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen in the round of 16. They have been handed a tough draw against Atleti, with Leverkusen set to face fellow German giants Bayern Munich, who beat Celtic in the playoffs.

If Real Madrid can beat Atletico Madrid in the Round of 16, they will face either Arsenal or PSV Eindhoven in the quarter-finals of the competition. The English and Dutch sides have been drawn together for the round of 16 games.

Elsewhere, Premier League giants Liverpool will face French champions Paris Saint-Germain, while Catalan giants Barcelona will take on Portuguese outfit Benfica. Inter Milan are the only Italian side left in the UEFA Champions League currently, and they will take on Dutch outfit Feyenoord.

Aston Villa will face Club Brugge, while LOSC Lille will take on last year's finalists Borussia Dortmund.

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Carlo Ancelotti expects Real Madrid to "go very far" in the UEFA Champions League

Carlo Ancelotti expects current holders Real Madrid to "go very far" in the UEFA Champions League this season. This comes after Los Blancos beat Manchester City in the playoffs to reach the round of 16.

While the holders will be understandably concerned that they failed to make the top eight in the group stage, Ancelotti has urged them to go the distance. Speaking to the press, he stated (via Sports Illustrated):

"We repeated the good things we did in the first leg. It was a complete game in all aspects: defensively, offensively with and without the ball. When the team works well without the ball, the quality up front is very high and there are many opportunities."

"We had a very high-quality team in front of us and we found the balance between attack and defence. We are in the fight for the Champions League and we have the chance to go very far in this competition," Ancelotti added.

Real Madrid are currently chasing the LaLiga title, the Copa del Rey, and the Champions League, opening the stage for a continental treble.