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The Group Stage of the Uefa Champions League is often considered something of a formality.

It will throw up the odd shock from time to time, but for the most part it simply serves the purpose of whittling away the “smaller” sides. Give them enough to foster a vague sense of inclusion, but not enough to truly matter.

Of the 16 sides to advance to the 2020/21 knockout round, 15 are drawn from Europe’s top five leagues.

A straight knockout format all the way through will, of course, never happen again. Cash rules everything, and the level of unpredictability that would foster is the very enemy of a reliable cashflow.

The most we can do, then, is celebrate what is offered. The Group Stage saw some notable African involvements, both good and bad. So Goal runs the rule over the good, the bad, and the ugly from the continent’s stars in the Champions League.

Rennes would ultimately see their inexperience count against them, as they finished bottom of Group E with one draw and five defeats. Julian Stephan’s side were far from embarrassed, however, and a lot of that owed to the excellence of Senegal international Alfred Gomis in goal.

The departure of Edouard Mendy to Chelsea may have seemed like a hammer blow, but Rennes’ remedy for a potentially crippling situation was almost amusingly straightforward: recruit his international compatriot. Gomis’ performances since have been an ode to the genius of simplicity, and the trip to the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan was perhaps the pick of the lot.

Sevilla fired off 23 shots at the French side’s goal (16 from inside the penalty area), hit the target with 10 of them, and troubled the woodwork twice. Overall, the hosts fashioned four big chances, but they found Gomis in inspired form, withstanding and repelling everything thrown at him.

The highlight: a superb fingertip save that diverted a stinging Munir El Haddadi volley onto the crossbar.

Honourable mentions: Amadou Haidara vs Manchester United (H); Sadio Mane vs Atalanta (A); Chancel Mbemba vs Olympiacos (H)

The exception to the procession of top five league clubs into the Champions League Round of 16 was Porto, who racked up 13 points to finish second in Group C.

Their progress, however, owed a great deal to a defensive solidity that kept opponents to three goals over the course of six games. At the heart of this resistance was DR Congo international Chancel Mbemba.

The 26-year-old was a dominant presence at the back, helping the Portuguese champions to five straight clean sheets during the Group Stage. He was an ever-present too, a factor that gives him an edge over other prospective candidates for ‘Star Player’.

The highlight, without a doubt, came when Manchester City rocked up at Estadio do Dragao. What followed was a stirring rearguard action: despite 68 percent possession and a total of 18 shots, Pep Guardiola’s side could not find a way through, and Mbemba was at his impassable best, winning seven duels from seven and racking up 13 clearances.

Honourable mentions: Edouard Mendy, Zaidu Sanusi, Sadio Mane, Ze Luis

There is some sympathy here for the 22-year-old, given the inscrutability of Antonio Conte’s decision-making on Champions League nights.

The former Juventus and Chelsea boss continues to divine new ways to fall short on the big stage; this time, it was a bottom-place finish in Group B, behind both Shakhtar Donestsk (a side they soundly trounced in the semi-final of last season’s Europa League) and Borussia Monchengladbach.

That said, it is still true that Inter paid a sizeable fee to bring Hakimi to San Siro, and he was expected to seamlessly integrate into a system geared toward bringing the best out of wing-backs. However, over the course of five appearances, the Morocco international only managed one assist, and by the end of the Group Stage, he finds his place in the starting lineup under threat from Matteo Darmian.

In back-to-back meetings with Real Madrid in November, Hakimi did little to indicate his hometown club had erred in letting him go. There is no doubting his potential, and the incompetence at Inter is pervasive, but his own individual performances fell well short of the billing.

One assist and zero goals might not exactly leap off the page, but Koita is a special player whose performances during the Group Stage are worthy of mention.

Even as Red Bull Salzburg finished third in Group A, the Guinea youngster thrived with mature, intelligent performances as part of a front two.

Koita is, simply put, a chance creation machine. His low centre of gravity and flair allow him to thrive in small spaces, and he produced strong showings against Lokomotiv Moscow and Bayern Munich.

He is a breath of fresh air: in a bid to meet European demand, African football has pretty much stopped exporting players in his mould. Watching him pirouette past challenges has been a highlight, and there is room for more still.

The classic case of ‘if you can’t beat them, join them’, perhaps.

Last season, Choupo-Moting was a part of the Paris Saint-Germain side that contested the final with Bayern Munich.

This season, he is turning out for the Bavarian side, taking some of the load off Robert Lewandowski. The reigning champions are likely to go all the way once again, even allowing for the loss of the influential Thiago Alcantara.

There is just so much quality there, and they have brought their best to the Champions League once more, only dropping points to Atletico Madrid – and that after qualification had already been secured.

Choupo-Moting pitched in too, scoring in the routine 2-0 win over Lokomotiv Moscow on Wednesday night. With Bayern Munich going strong, it could be second time lucky for the Cameroon forward.

Victor Osimhen has been ruled out of Napoli’s Europa League clash with Real Sociedad on Thursday evening.

The 21-year-old suffered a shoulder dislocation during Nigeria’s 4-4 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Sierra Leone and subsequently missed the Blues’ last five encounters versus AC Milan, Rijeka, AS Roma, AZ Alkmaar and Crotone.

However, the former Lille man has been undergoing physiotherapy since returning to Stadio Diego Armando Maradona and on Monday, he trained alone as Gennaro Gattuso’s men stepped up their preparations of the Spanish elite division side.

“Victor Osimhen worked on the pitch, in the gym and had physiotherapy,” read a statement from the club website.

“The squad was split into two groups for the session, with those who started Sunday’s game at the Stadio Ezio Scida doing recovery work in the gym.

“The remainder of the squad began with a warm-up and some passing drills, then focused on tactics, technique, building play and shooting, before finishing with a mini-match and a gym circuit.”

Nevertheless, he did not make the cut for the crucial game against Imanol Alguacil’s side. Senegal international Kalidou Koulibaly and Algeria's Faouzi Ghoulam are part of the 20-man squad that has Chelsea loanee Tiemoue Bakayoko, David Ospina and Lorenzo Insigne.

With 10 points from five games, the Serie A outfit lead Group F and a draw defeat could cost them a place in the next round provided Dutch outfit AZ Alkmaar defeat Croatia’s HNK Rijeka at the Stadion Rujevica.

After an impressive spell with Lille, Osimhen was snapped up by Napoli for a club record fee of €80 million.He has since scored two goals for the team across all competitions in the 2020-21 campaign.

In the first leg that ended in favour of the Italians, the Nigeria international was shown a red card by referee Craig Pawson in the third minute of added time for a second caution.

After replacing Andrea Petagna a minute after the hour mark, he was first cautioned in the 81st minute before he was given his marching orders 12 minutes later after elbowing Robin Le Normand while trying to control David Ospina’s goal kick.

SQUAD IN FULL

Meret, Ospina, Contini, Di Lorenzo, Ghoulam, Koulibaly, Maksimovic, Manolas, Mario Rui, Demme, Elmas, Lobotka, Fabian Ruiz, Zielinski, Bakayoko, Lozano, Mertens, Petagna, Politano, Insigne.

Former Manchester United star Dimitar Berbatov has recounted his memories of Cristano Ronaldo, and how every training session was like a “war” with the young Portugal star.

Since the pair teamed up at Old Trafford during the 2008-09 season, Ronaldo has since gone on to Real Madrid and Juventus, winning all of club football’s biggest titles.

According to the Bulgarian, it was Ronaldo’s formidable attitude that set him apart, and that was aided by the incredible competitiveness of the United squad at the time.

“Training sessions were like a war sometimes, people in that squad hated to lose, it was a great environment to feed determination and hunger to win,” he told Betfair.

“You could see how competitive he was by just looking at his training schedule, he trained so hard, he was determined to be better than everyone else.

"You could also see it in the small training games we had or in matches if he missed a chance or the side was losing, he was always determined to be a winner. We all had this side to us, that's why we played for United.

“I was lucky to play alongside Ronaldo for a season. He was 100% professional, on the training pitch and off it. I don't remember him ever being late for training. He was always preparing in the gym, after training he would stay and do extra work like working on his shooting, then he would go swimming and go to the gym again.

“Away from the pitch, Ronaldo would make jokes, he'd laugh at himself and he was friendly to everyone. I remember at the players' Christmas party he was fun, one of the boys, but he didn't drink and that was him all over - totally focused and professional.”

At the age of 35, Ronaldo continues to post incredible numbers and showed his talents on Wednesday as he helped Juventus to a 3-0 win away to Barcelona in his first on-field meeting with rival Lionel Messi since he departed the Bernabeu.

With Juve this term, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner has scored 12 games in only 10 outings in all competitions.

Last weekend’s Turin derby, which Juventus won 2-1, was the first time he had not posted either a goal or an assist in a match this term.

The South Africa national team will enter the new year unchanged on the Fifa world rankings from the 71th position they ended 2019 on.

In a year where international football was disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic, Bafana Bafana managed to play just four matches.

They first drew 1-1 with Namibia, before losing 2-1 to Zambia in October’s international friendly matches, results that saw them slid a rung down to position 72.

But after beating Sao Tome e Principe 2-0 and 4-2 in back-to-back Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifiers, South Africa then returned to number 71, the same standing they ended the year 2019 on.

Those results against the islanders saw them remain on second position in Group C which is led by Ghana with whom they have the similar number of points, but undone by head-to-head record.

They will enter 2021 ranked 13th in Africa as Senegal lead Caf standings, followed by reigning African champions Algeria.

Bafana will now seek to improve their standings in March next year when they host Ghana and then visit Sudan in Afcon qualifiers.

A positive result against the Black Stars who are ranked 52 in the world and eighth in Africa will certainly earn South Africa a good position.

Also likely to boost their global placing are the results from the bid to book a ticket for the 2022 Fifa World Cup.

Dates for the quest to qualify for Qatar 2022 are yet to be finalised but Bafana are in Group G where they will again meet Ghana.

Zimbabwe and Ethiopia complete this pool which is likely to provide a stern test for coach Molefi Ntseki and his men.

What could motivate South Africa to claim good results is that they last qualified for the World Cup in 2002, while they had an automatic place in 2010 as hosts.

Frank Lampard is relishing a reunion with Carlo Ancelotti when Chelsea head to Everton in the Premier League on Saturday.

Blues legend Lampard played in 60 of Ancelotti's 76 top-flight matches at the Stamford Bridge helm, when the Italian averaged 2.07 points per game, aided by the midfielder's 32 goals.

Everton boss Ancelotti led Chelsea to league glory in 2009-10 but will be looking to put a dent in their hopes of repeating the feat this term when the sides meet at Goodison Park, where his tenure in charge of the Blues ended in 2011.

Lampard's men sit third, just two points off the summit and five clear of an Everton team who have suffered a loss of form, with the Chelsea head coach nonetheless still full of praise for his old mentor.

"I was heavily influenced by him as a player and a man," said Lampard. "He is right at the top when I speak about the managers I've worked with for everything about him, the huge success he has had at a number of clubs.

"One to one I found him to be a great coach, a great man and I look forward at all times to seeing him and speaking to him."

Everton made a fine start to the season but have won just one of their previous seven matches, sliding into mid-table as a result.

However, the Toffees have triumphed in their last two Premier League home games against Chelsea – including a 3-1 win under Duncan Ferguson's tutelage in the corresponding fixture last season – and, in 11-goal striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin, boast the division's top scorer.

Lampard, whose team cruised to a 4-0 win over the Toffees at Stamford Bridge in March in their final game before a three-month, coronavirus-enforced break, has some sympathy for how Everton's fortunes have changed.

"That's the nature of the Premier League, they started very well and have quality players, and have a fantastic manager who is one of the best in the world," he said.

"The Premier League is unforgiving. We all have patches where results are challenging but it doesn't change my thoughts about how I approach Everton.

"They are a very good side, with quality individuals, who can win games. I'm focusing on their strengths and dangers when we go there."

As for his own side's hopes of competing for the ultimate prize, Lampard added: "We're happy where we are but there's a long way to go. Words aren't important at this point."

Chelsea have kept a clean sheet in six of their last eight Premier League meetings with Everton, losing both games in which they conceded.

The man the hosts, who have leaked top-flight goals this term, will need to watch out for is Olivier Giroud, who has scored in each of his last six Premier League starts for Chelsea – only Mark Stein (seven between December 1993 and February 1994) has scored in more consecutive starts for the Blues in the competition.

Arsenal boss has backed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to rediscover his scoring form but is adamant his captain is not "undroppable".

Since the commencement of the 2020-21 Premier League season, the 31-year-old has not scored from open play – with his penalty strike against Manchester United on November 1 his major contribution in his 888 minutes of action.

Aubameyang has not travelled with the squad for Thursday’s Europa League dead-rubber clash versus Dundalk as the North Londoners have booked a place in the next round of the tournament.

When asked if the former Borussia Dortmund man was undroppable in the Premier League, the Spaniard told club media: “No one is undroppable. At the end of the day, we have to find the right players to win football matches.

“But we cannot forget what Auba has done for this club and what he has done in recent months, not years ago.

“As well, I see how he's training and how he's behaving, how much he wants to turn this situation around.

“When I see that type of hunger, it's about supporting the player as well as the status he has in the team because of the performances he has provided for this football club.”

On whether his morale has dropped and if it is important to keep him positive, Arteta continued: “Listen, today and this week, the response that I've seen from the players and the reaction I saw from the players after the match [against Tottenham Hotspur], I cannot be any prouder.

“Because I know how difficult it is for everybody at the moment. After losing a derby you can be completely down and I saw a completely different team, a team that wants to fight, that has a big belief in what they are trying to do and they want to push themselves and push each other harder and harder.

“Auba was one of the main guys there and today he was walking around the place with an energy that wouldn't be associated to a team or a player that is suffering at the moment and that is for me the way we have to approach it.”

After their game against the Irish team, Arsenal welcome struggling Burnley to the Emirates Stadium on Sunday. As it stands, the Gunners are 15th in the English log having accrued 13 points.

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Manqoba Mngqithi says they are limiting game minutes for captain Hlompho Kekana so as to reserve him for the later stages when he will “be very important for” Masandawana.

Kekana has started just three out of five Premier Soccer League (PSL) games this season, unusual for the 35-year-old midfielder who extended his contract by four years in March.

He made cameo appearances coming off the bench against Cape Town City and AmaZulu while lasting 58 minutes against Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila.

He played 71 minutes in the 3-0 win over Kaizer Chiefs but lasted the entire game in their last outing away at Maritzburg United as well as the MTN8 quarter-final  defeat by Bloemfontein Celtic.

But Mngqithi said they would need Kekana’s full services and experience when the PSL campaign gets tougher.

“When it comes to our captain, the skipper is one boy who deserves everything that comes his way because he is the true professional,” said Mngqithi as per Sowetan Live.

“We have won many trophies with him, I think 11 of them. He is a machine and he works very hard. Others are looking at him, those who are not playing at the moment. They think maybe he reached his sell-by date. But we know what we are doing.

“We are trying to freshen him up because we know at a certain point in the league he is going to be very important for us. When that time comes, he must be very fresh because if you check in the past few seasons, he has been playing almost all the matches."

Kekana has been instrumental in Downs’ success in the past seasons and his performances has gained global recognition.

He has been nominated for the 2020 Fifa Puskas award after being listed for the same gong in 2016.

Mngqithi says he will not be pleased if Kekana does not win the Puskas award.

“I wish Hlompho could win one of these awards, more especially the Puskas because it is not the first time he gets selected,” Mngqithi.

“It will be sad for me if Hlompho does not get such recognition because if you were to look at the goals that he has scored, [they are] goals that are at the same magnitude as the goal that has taken him to this Puskas award [nomination].”

Manchester United may have to sell Paul Pogba but he "won't be a miss" if he carries on playing like he has started the 2020-21 season, according to former Red Devils striker Dimitar Berbatov.

Pogba’s agent Mino Raiola offered an explosive interview on Monday as he declared his client’s time at the club was over. United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer then started the midfielder from the bench in their crucial Champions League clash with RB Leipzig the following day, which they lost 3-2.

The French midfielder has long been linked with leaving Old Trafford, and Berbatov feels now is the time to cut ties after Raiola's "embarrassing" intervention.

Berbatov told Betfair: "Mino Raiola's comments about Paul Pogba being unhappy were very poorly timed, right before a massive match in the Champions League. That isn't ideal and I'm sure it would have been felt in the dressing room before the game.

"I don't think Pogba would have known what Raiola was about to say, which is embarrassing for the player. At the end of the day the agent is working for the player, so the agent should do what the player tells him, it doesn't matter who you are - you work for the player.

"It was the wrong way to do things, it created a big fuss which was totally unnecessary before a match. On the other hand, if Pogba did tell his agent to say those things then it's obvious that something isn't quite right.

"I can understand if Paul is not happy, I bet he isn't because he isn't playing, it's obvious, when he comes on as a sub and has very little game time he won't be happy.

"If this situation continues then I think it's best if they part ways because, in the last few games, Solskjaer's lack of confidence in Pogba has been clear.

"At the same time, we do have to take into account that he is coming back into the team after testing positive for coronavirus, so this could also be a factor, but if he is genuinely unhappy and he continues to be left out of the starting XI, then I think it's best for him to move on.

"If he is in his best condition and in his best form then United will miss him, but if he continues in the form he is in then he won't be a miss at Old Trafford."

The loss in Leipzig leaves United in the Europa League, a competition they won in 2017. Berbatov feels they should not regard it as a lesser trophy.

He said: "For me that competition should be up there with the others in their list of priorities. They are sixth in the league now, although they are climbing up the table and still have a lot of games to play. They have a chance to surprise people by making good on what they have in front of them to play for.

"People should take the Europa League seriously because at the end of the day it's a trophy that a team can win, I'm sure when United won it last time the feeling was great."

Simba SC forward John Bocco and Ruvu Shooting head coach Boniface Mkwasa have been picked as November best player and best coach respectively.

The duo has been awarded after seeing off rivals in a contest that was decided by the Premier League Competition’s Committee on Thursday.

Bocco won the award that was also being contested by Deus Kaseke of Young Africans (Yanga SC) and Abdulrahman Mussa of Ruvu Shooting.

Mkwasa, on the other hand, saw off competition from Mecky Maxime of Kagera Sugar and Flugence Novatus of Gwambina FC.

Under Mkwasa, Ruvu Shooting picked points that saw them rise from the 10th position to the fourth position during the month as they won three matches and picked draws in another two.

The club registered more points in that period than any other side in the league.

Prince Dube of Azam FC, who is now injured, and Mukoko Tonombe of Yanga are the players who won the September and October player of the month awards respectively.

Before November, Aristica Cioaba then of Azam, and Cedric Kaze of Yanga won the coach of the month awards in September and October respectively.

Tanzania Football Federation (TFF) has been organising the monthly awards for players and coaches and will also conduct another ceremony at the end of the season to award outstanding individuals.

The Mainland Premier League has now seen 14 matches played by the majority of the clubs since it started in September.

Yanga are the only side yet to be defeated and are leading with 34 points. Azam started off with some good performances but faltered before the eighth matchday. The deteriorating results saw the club make some technical changes which saw Cioaba mutually leave as the head coach.

Cioaba was replaced by the former Yanga and Zesco United coach George Lwandamina who was recently handed a one-year deal.

Simba have lost two games that came in the hands of Ruvu Shooting and Tanzania Prisons.

The consecutive losses forced Wekundu wa Msimbazi to sack the team manager Patrick Rweyemamu and the goalkeeping coach Muharami Mohamed.

JKT Tanzania, Mwadui FC and Ihefu FC are at the bottom of the table. The three clubs are yet to register a single win as the season edges closer to the half-way mark.

The team that will be called FAM-MSN Project Squad will be competing in the 2021 Premier League as Football Association of Malaysia looks to the reincarnation of ‘Harimau Muda’, a youth national team project that was discontinued in 2015.

This collaboration will see former Kelantan head coach Yusri Che Lah being given the task of manning the team to compete against 10 other teams in the second tier of the professional league in Malaysia. A total of 30 players will be selected from the National Football Development Programme (NFDP) graduates, Youth Cup as well as President’s Cup players.

“This was a fruitful program in the past that was stopped not least because of financial reasons. This is a formula that we see can help us to unearth players for the national team. When these NFDP players graduate, a lot of them will be secured by clubs but there are also a lot of who left by the wayside and this presents a second chance for them in football.

"If we look at the results in the past with Harimau Muda, that was the springboard for us to win the SEA Games gold medal in 2009 and subsequently the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup. But even when the program was disbanded, we have showed that at age-group level, we can beat teams like South Korea (2018 Asian Games).

"So hopefully the revival of this program can give us the same impetus and eventually these players can rise to the occasion and take the senior national team to an even greater level," said Dato’ Sri Subahan Kamal, the Deputy President of FAM during the launch on Thursday evening.

The team will be based at the National Sports Council (NSC) where they will be provided accommodation with FAM serving as the technical voice within the partnership. The players will also be given a chance to pursue higher education in institutions that will be decided later.

Aiming to breach the gap between NFDP and the professional game and more than most, acting as a second lifeline to the players that have not been picked up by the professional teams, the project squad will consist of Under-20 players to start with. However FAM is adamant that the team need to be considered separately from the current Malaysia U-19 squad.

"We are doing this to create more teams and that means more choice for the players. With the team competing in the Premier League, we hope to see many more experience players coming out from the project in a few years time. They will be separate from the U19 team that will compete in the AFC U19 Championship in Uzbekistan as that is only a one-off tournament," explained Dato Hamidin Mohd Amin, the president of FAM.

There are still details to be ironed out for this project squad, such as the home venue of their matches and those information will be released in due course.

Nigeria’s senior national team has ended 2020 as the 35th best football playing country in the world.

Gernot Rohr’s Super Eagles remain unmoved in December’s ranking released by Fifa on Thursday morning.

The three-time garnered a total of 1474 points to stay as the fifth-best team in Africa behind Senegal, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco.

In a year inundated by the coronavirus pandemic which crippled football-related activities global, Nigeria played four games. Their first match of 2020 ended on a 1-0 defeat to Algeria in an international friendly. This was followed up with a 1-1 draw against Tunisia in another international warm-up game staged at the Jacques Lemans Arena, Austria.

Nigeria’s double-header Africa Cup of Nations qualifier versus Sierra Leone ended 4-4 and 0-0 respectively.

Senegal are ranked first in the continent and 20th in the world with 1558 points, while the Carthage Eagles are 26th in the world and second in Africa after amassing 1503 points.

Belgium claimed the team of the year for the third consecutive time having won six of their eight matches played in 2020.

Their three immediate chasers – France (2nd), Brazil (3rd) and England (4th) – retain their respective rankings. The only change in the top five compared to 2019 is the appearance of Portugal in fifth place.

The team with the most progress in 2020 were Hungary (40th), after a gain of 44 points and 12 places allowed them to end the year in the top 50. In eight matches played in 2020, the Magyars lost just once (to Russia), a sequence of results that enabled them to secure a berth at Uefa Euro 2020.

Other notable climbers include Ecuador (56th, + 41 points compared to December 2019), Malta (176th, + 32 points), Brazil (3rd, + 31 points), and Equatorial Guinea (134th, + 31 points). Burundi (138th), meanwhile, picked up 29 points and made the most significant move in terms of places, ascending 13 positions.

2022 Fifa World Cup hosts, Qatar boast of a striking 1391 points over the course of a year to finish fifth in Asian and 58th in the world.

The next Fifa/Coca-Cola World Ranking will be published on 18 February 2021.

The 2020-21 Champions League group stage has concluded, paving the way for the highly-anticipated knockout round to take place in a few months.

This year's Champions League group stage saw some mouth-watering ties, with Barcelona facing off against Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain clashing with Manchester United.

Some sides confirmed their spots in the Champions League last 16 early, while others needed results on the last day of group fixtures to seal their fate.

With the draw for the last 16 round nearing, Goal rounds up everything you need to know about when the draw takes place, how to watch it, which teams are involved and more.

Contents

When is the draw for the Champions League last 16?

The draw for the 2020-21 Champions League knockout phase will take place on Monday December 14, 2020 at 11am GMT / 6am ET.

It will be held at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.

Group winners will be seeded and the runners-up will be unseeded.

Teams from the same group cannot be drawn against each other, while clubs from the same national association (such as the Premier League or La Liga) cannot be drawn against one another.

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How can I watch the Champions League last-16 draw in UK & US?

The draw for the Champions League last 16 will be livestreamed online for free on UEFA's official website.

You can also follow the draw livestream taking place on Goal or follow Goal's official Twitter pages for all comprehensive updates.

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When will the Champions League last-16 games take place?

The last 16 round will take place over two legs, with the first legs played February 16 & 17 and the second legs played on March 9 & 10, 2021.

Which teams have qualified for the Champions League last 16?

The likes of Bayern, Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea all qualified relatively early as their respective group winners.

They have been joined as by Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain, who all won their groups.

Barcelona finished second to Juve in group G, while Atletico Madrid took the runners-up spot in group A behind Bayern. Borussia Monchengladbach, Porto, Atalanta, Sevilla, Lazio and RB Leipzig are the other qualified teams.

In terms of representation, the 16 teams hail from England, Spain, Germany, Italy, France and Portugal. There are three Premier League clubs, four from the Bundesliga, four from La Liga, three from Serie A, one from Ligue 1 and one from Primeira Liga.

Group winners will be seeded, while runners-up will be unseeded.

There were some shock eliminations from the competition, including Manchester United, who finished third in Group H and will now enter the Europa League. Antonio Conte's Inter finished bottom of their group, with Shakhtar Donetsk progressing to the Europa League instead.

Bayern Munich CEO Karl-Heinze Rummenigge has praised the contribution of striker Robert Lewandowski to his team over the past year, saying the club do not need to consider signing Erling Haaland from rivals Borussia Dortmund while they already have the deadliest No.9 in world football.

The Poland international striker scored 55 times in 47 matches last season as Bayern dominated both the domestic and European scene. He has continued that remarkable form into the 2020-21 campaign, with 15 goals coming in 15 games plus five assists.

His efforts have led Bayern to a succession of titles, including the Champions League, which was sealed with a 1-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain.

Haaland, meanwhile, has burst onto the scene as another of Europe's top attacking talents, first with Red Bull Salzburg and then with Dortmund in the Bundesliga and Champions League.

It is likely that Haaland will eventually leave Dortmund at some point in his career and while Rummenigge is a big admirer of the young Norwegian, he says the presence of their Polish front man means they won't be in the market for the 20-year-old just yet.

Rummenigge told Tuttosport of Lewandowski: "We don’t need Haaland as we have Lewandowski, but he’s an animal, he’s scoring a lot of goals, he deserves the Golden Boy [award]."

Lewandowski joined Bayern in 2014 from Dortmund and has since established himself as a club legend by scoring 261 times in 304 games for the Allianz Arena club.

Rummenigge is worried the coronavirus crisis, which caused the cancellation of the Ballon d’Or this year, will overshadow the forward’s achievements.

"Robert was the best of them all in 2020," he said. "He scored a lot of goals and won five trophies. It was really impossible to do better than him.

"I called Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA, and point out that it’s not nice that in 2020, without the Ballon d’Or, there will be a hole in the roll of honour for the best player in the world.

"The most important leagues, despite the coronavirus, have come to an end and the strongest players have made a difference even during the time of Covid-19. Lewandowski most of all."

Rummenigge also moved to play down suggestions that Juventus forward Paulo Dybala is another target to strengthen Bayern's attacking options.

He said: "We’ve never opened talks with Dybala’s agent. I’ve heard some rumours but it’s false. We’re not working to sign Dybala from Juventus."

Bayern remain the team to beat as 2020 draws to a close. They are top of the Bundesliga, having suffered a single defeat in their first 10 matches of the season, while they cruised through in the Champions League, sealing top spot in their group after just four matches.

Ghana ends the year 2020 as the 52nd best men's national football team in the world, according to the latest Fifa Rankings.

Released on Thursday on Fifa's official website, the new table sees the Black Stars, sandwiched between Greece (51) and Costa Rica (53), locked on their position from last month, also with no change in the total accumulated points.

The lack of movement, which was generally the case of all other nations on the ranking, is a result of the team's activity since the last ranking was announced in November.

Ghana produced a mixed bag of results in their last set of international assignments, beating Sudan 1-0 in the 2022 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifier in Cape Coast courtesy of an Andre Ayew double but fell 1-0 away in the reverse fixture in Omdurman as Mohamed Abdelrahman struck late to win all three points for his side.

The scores saw the CK Akonnor's side drop down by four places on the November edition of the rankings.

At continental level, Ghana still hold eighth position, just above Mali (57) and Burkina Faso (58) in Africa's Top 10. Senegal (20) continue to lead the pack, followed by Tunisia (26), Algeria (31), Morocco (35), Nigeria (35), Egypt (49) and Cameroon (50).

The mixed results against Sudan also saw Ghana move from sixth to eighth on the continent in the November ranking.

Back on the world table, there was no change among the top 57 countries due to the only two recognised international matches played across the globe since the last update.

Belgium are still top of the table, their third straight time of finishing the year as leaders, while France, Brazil, England and Portugal hold the second, third, fourth and fifth positions respectively. Spain, Argentina, Uruguay, Mexico and Italy, in that order, sit sixth to tenth.

Ghana returns to action on March 2021 with an Afcon 2022 qualifying double-header against South Africa (away) and Sao Tome and Principe (home) to conclude the series. The 2022 World Cup qualifiers will then take centre stage for the rest of the year.

According to Fifa, the next edition of the world rankings will be announced on February 18, 2021.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s sister Elma Aveiro has posted a picture of Lionel Messi worshipping her brother following Juventus’ 3-0 win over Barcelona in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Ronaldo scored twice from the penalty spot in that encounter to help the Turin side to an emphatic victory that saw them overhaul Barcelona at the top of the standings and qualify in first place.

The Portuguese subsequently claimed that he has never seen the Argentine as a rival, but his sibling clearly does as she took to her social channels to praise her brother.

"My king. The best ever. The pride of my life," she posted, alongside a picture of Messi bowing at the feet of the Juve ace.

The rivalry between Messi and Ronaldo peaked when the pair were playing for Barcelona and Real Madrid respectively.

They have dominated the world game for over a decade, with Ronaldo having claimed five Ballons d’Or in comparison to Messi’s six.

The Portuguese, however, has the edge in terms of Champions League titles won, having won five, including a quartet at the Santiago Bernabeu, compared to Messi’s four.

Ronaldo has also enjoyed greater success on the international stage, having famously led Portugal to the European Championship title in France back in 2016. Messi has not won a major crown with Argentina.

Tuesday’s match at Camp Nou was the first time that the pair had taken to the field together since Ronaldo left Spain in the summer of 2018.

Barca’s fortunes have plunged since that time, with Ronald Koeman’s side struggling in the middle part of the Liga table and suffering from financial difficulties.

While Ronaldo remains settled at Juventus, Messi’s future at Barcelona appears far less certain. The Argentine’s contract is up at the end of the season and the presidential election in January could be pivotal in terms of his next move.

Manchester City have been linked with the player as a potential reunion with Pep Guardiola is touted.

Neymar, however, has said that he wants to team up with Messi again next season, which has sparked speculation that the Barca star could make a free move to Paris Saint-Germain in the summer months.