BERN, October 18 (Reuters): A condensed version of the Champions League group stage finally gets under way on Tuesday, with COVID-19-related disruptions an ever-present threat hanging over the competition. The 32-team contest will start one month later than usual, a knock-on effect of the pandemic interrupting last season for three months, although the group stage will finish as usual in early December with six matchdays squeezed into a 50-day period. It kicks off with a hea

VIENNA, October 4 (Reuters): Austrian side Salzburg have ordered a "team quarantine" and barred their players from taking part in national team matches over the next two weeks after three of them tested positive for COVID-19. Salzburg said in a statement on Sunday that the positive results showed up in the first round of tests carried out after they faced Israeli side Maccabi Tel Aviv in a Champions League playoff match on Wednesday. The club did not name the playe

SALONIKA, Greece, Septemebr 16 (Reuters): Former European Cup winners Benfica crashed out of the Champions League third qualifying round after a shock 2-1 defeat at PAOK Salonika on Tuesday as Serbia winger Andrija Zivkovic scored against his former club a week after leaving them. Dynamo Kiev also advanced to the playoff round with a 2-0 home win over Dutch side AZ Alkmaar, as did Belgians Gent after they beat visitors Rapid Vienna 2-1. PAOK'S reward is a two-legged

(Reuters): Former England skipper Wayne Rooney believes Paris St Germain have the speed and skill to exploit Bayern Munich's high defensive line in Sunday's Champions League final and punish them in a way Olympique Lyonnais could not. Lyon forwards Memphis Depay and Karl Toko Ekambi missed gilt-edged opportunities in the opening 16 minutes of their 3-0 defeat by Bayern in the semi-final on Wednesday and Rooney has warned that PSG's front three of Neymar, Kylian Mbap

LISBON, August 23 (Reuters): Paris St Germain striker Kylian Mbappe says he wants to make history for France by winning the country's first Champions League title in 27 years in Sunday's final against Bayern Munich. PSG beat Atalanta and RB Leipzig in the "final eight" in Lisbon, and Mbappe is feeling relaxed about the test against Bayern and the significance for French football. "This is exactly why I came here," he told reporters on Saturday. &q

LISBON, August 19 (Reuters): Kylian Mbappe said he is feeling similar vibes as during France's World Cup winning campaign in 2018 after Paris St Germain reached the Champions League final with an emphatic 3-0 win against RB Leipzig on Tuesday. "I feel the same vibes because we managed to create a group where everyone knows their importance and everyone do their job," the France striker told a news conference. "We do a lot of activities outside the pitch, m

LISBON, August 19 (Reuters): RB Leipzig had no chance against Paris St Germain in their Champions League semi-final on Tuesday, Leipzig coach Julian Nagelsmann said, as the German side's 3-0 loss sent them out of the competition. Leipzig, who had eliminated Tottenham Hotspur and Atletico Madrid to reach the last four, hardly got a chance throughout the game with the French champions in complete control. "We have to accept the result because we weren't able

LISBON, August 19 (Reuters): Paris St Germain reached their first ever Champions League final with a convincing 3-0 win over RB Leipzig on Tuesday, finally delivering the reward of the biggest game in European football for their Qatari backers. Goals from Marquinhos and Angel Di Maria put PSG 2-0 up at the interval and Juan Bernat added the third in the 56th minute for what was a comfortable victory at the Estadio da Luz. The French club, celebrating the 50th anniversary of

LISBON, August 19 (Reuters): Angel Di Maria's career had been in danger of fizzling out when Thomas Tuchel took over at Paris St Germain two years ago, but the German coach has found a way to get the 32-year-old to enjoy his best years last. The winger delivered a demonstration of his class and quality on Tuesday as he guided PSG into the final of the Champions League with a 3-0 win over RB Leipzig. The Argentine created two goals and scored one himself as PSG proved to be to

LISBON, August 17 (Reuters): Perhaps the Champions League has, inadvertently, found the right formula for the Netflix era. Rather than having to wait two weeks for the second episode of two-legged knockout games, allowing for distractions and loss of attention, fans have been binge watching the action every night. The COVID-enforced final eight mini-tournament in the Portuguese capital has delivered real drama, with unexpected plot twists in every instalment. The only pit

LISBON, August 16 (Reuters): Olympique Lyonnais manager Rudi Garcia said winning the tactical battle with Pep Guardiola's side had been the key to his team's surprise 3-1 win in the Champions League quarter-final on Saturday. The victory sends Lyon, who finished seventh in the French league, into a clash with German champions and tournament favourites Bayern Munich in Lisbon on Wednesday. "With Pep, you can expect anything. We knew that Pep could concoct somethi

LISBON, August 16 (Reuters): With the millions they have invested in top players and with the most respected coach of his generation in charge, Manchester City should be doing much better than going out of the Champions League in the last eight. But after their shock 3-1 defeat by Olympique Lyonnais on Saturday that is exactly what City have done in the last three years. Guardiola was brought into the club, by their Abu Dhabi based owner Sheikh Mansour, after his predecessor

LISBON, August 14 (Reuters): Atletico Madrid again paid a heavy price for defensive tactics in the Champions League with a 2-1 defeat by unfancied RB Leipzig in the quarter-finals on Thursday as they passed up a golden opportunity to claim Europe's top prize. With their bete noire Real Madrid out of the competition and having avoided favourites Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Barcelona in the draw, everything seemed to be falling the way of Atletico, who knocked holders

(Reuters): Manchester City need to win the Champions League to truly establish themselves as European powerhouses, defender Kyle Walker has said. City have won four Premier League titles in the last decade but have failed to progress beyond the semi-finals of the Champions League during that period. Pep Guardiola's side eliminated 13-time champions Real Madrid in the last 16 and are firm favourites heading into Saturday's quarter-final clash against Olympique Lyonnai

LISBON, August 14 (Reuters): RB Leipzig stunned Atletico Madrid, with a 2-1 victory in their Champions League quarter-final on Thursday, to reach the competition's last four for the first time in their club's short history. With two minutes of normal time remaining, United States midfielder Tyler Adams snatched victory with a deflected shot from outside the box to set up a semi-final clash with Paris St Germain. The German side had taken the lead in the 51st minute w

LISBON, August 14 (Reuters): Europe's old guard meet on Friday when Barcelona face Bayern Munich at the Estadio da Luz in the highly anticipated pick of the Champions League quarter-finals. Much of the build-up to the mini-tournament has focused on the challenge from the 'nouveau riche' clubs. Paris St Germain were the first to book a semi-final place with Wednesday's win over Atalanta and Manchester City are looking to progress on Saturday against Olympique

BARCELONA, August 9 (Reuters): A fired-up Lionel Messi led Barcelona to a 3-1 win at home to Napoli on Saturday for a 4-2 aggregate victory which took the club into the Champions League quarter-finals for the 13th consecutive season where they face Bayern Munich. The Catalans had a shaky start but took the lead in the 10th minute with a powerful header from a corner by Clement Lenglet before Messi scored a superb second in the 23rd, seeing off four defenders to curl the ball into th

MUNICH, Germany, August 9 (Reuters): Robert Lewandowski struck twice and set up two more goals as Bayern Munich cruised past Chelsea 4-1 on Saturday to reach the Champions League quarter-finals with a 7-1 aggregate victory and remain on course for a treble of titles. The Bavarians will be on an 18-game winning streak across all competitions as they head into next week's Final Eight tournament in Lisbon, where they will face Barcelona. "We're already excited. Bar

TURIN, Italy, August 8 (Reuters): Cristiano Ronaldo scored a brace, including an unstoppable long-range goal, to give Juventus a 2-1 win over Olympique Lyonnais in the Champions League on Friday but it was not enough as the French side reached the quarter-finals on away goals. After both sides converted contentious penalties in the first half, Ronaldo struck from out of the blue on the hour but Lyon clung on for a 2-2 aggregate draw to set up a quarter-final with Manchester Cit

MANCHESTER, August 8 (Reuters): Manchester City marched into the Champions League quarter-finals by beating visitors Real Madrid 2-1 for a 4-2 aggregate triumph on Friday, with scorers Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus taking advantage of two dreadful errors by Raphael Varane. Having beaten the 13-times European champions home and away, City will now head to Lisbon for the 'final eight' tournament where they will face Olympique Lyonnais, who progressed on away goals against