The Champions League quarter-final draw threw up no shortage of intrigue – particularly for Pep Guardiola.
The Manchester City manager will face Bayern Munich for the first time since leaving Germany in 2016.
But that is not the only reunion in the last eight as Carlo Ancelotti again goes back to Chelsea 12 months on from an epic tie at the same stage last season.
It might not be Ancelotti's last meeting with a former side either, potentially facing Bayern in the semi-finals and then Napoli or Milan in the final.
The Madrid coach has a mixed record facing sides he has previously coached, however, while Guardiola has some painful memories to get over.
Stats Perform looks at how the most dominant coaches of the modern era have fared against former teams...
Carlo Ancelotti (P14 W3 D5 L6)
The Italian eliminated two of his former employers en route to winning the Champions League in 2021-22, with dramatic comebacks against both Paris Saint-Germain in the last 16 and Chelsea in the quarter-finals.
And Ancelotti's first European crown as a coach came courtesy of Milan beating Juventus on penalties in the 2003 final.
There was another victory against Juventus while in his first stint with Madrid back in 2013-14, winning at the Santiago Bernabeu in the group stage.
Yet after that match, Ancelotti went nine without a win in the Champions League against clubs he had previously coached, finally ending that run with the second-leg victory against PSG last season.
That miserable sequence included a semi-final loss to Juve in 2015 when Madrid were defending champions, along with crashing out at the quarter-final stage against Madrid while in charge of Bayern in 2016-17.
In September 2017, Bayern lost 3-0 to PSG, prompting Ancelotti's sacking. It is fair to say he has bounced back.
Pep Guardiola (P4 W2 D0 L2)
Guardiola may be set to face Bayern for the first time since joining City, but he has already endured a pair of rough returns to Barcelona.
His first Champions League trip back to Camp Nou, where the Catalan coach had so many happy memories, was in the 2014-15 semi-finals.
Guardiola's Bayern were blown away by eventual champions Barca, losing 3-0 in a game best remembered for Lionel Messi's mesmerising second goal that left Jerome Boateng in a spin. Bayern's 3-2 home victory in the second leg was too little, too late.
Yet that tie does not even include Guardiola's heaviest defeat to the Blaugrana, taking City back to his former home in the 2016-17 group stage and losing 4-0 as Messi hit a hat-trick.
City at least responded with a 3-1 win at home, but Guardiola will hope this latest reunion is far more enjoyable.
Jose Mourinho (P8 W5 D1 L2)
Guardiola's great rival Jose Mourinho has had far more joy facing former friends, although he has had the benefit of taking on Porto – the underdogs he remarkably led to the 2004 title – with some big hitters.
Porto were still reigning European champions when Mourinho's Chelsea faced them in the 2004-05 group stage, splitting the two matches as the sides won their home games.
Mourinho's second stint at Chelsea also included a double-header against Porto in 2015-16, in which they again won one game apiece, but the now Roma boss revels in knockout ties.
Chelsea beat Porto over two legs in the last 16 in 2006-07, before the Blues saw one of these encounters from the other side in 2009-10. Mourinho's Inter dumped Chelsea out in the first knockout round, going on to win the competition.
Zinedine Zidane (P3 W2 D0 L1 – versus Juventus)
Despite persistent speculation, Zinedine Zidane has still only coached one club – albeit over two spells – in Madrid.
But the former France midfielder played for Juventus before joining Madrid, and the Bianconeri proved accommodating opponents during his time as coach at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Zidane and Madrid won three Champions Leagues in three years between 2016 and 2018, beating Juve en route to the second two successes.
The Madrid boss's first meeting with Juve as a coach was in the 2017 final in Cardiff, where Los Blancos swatted their Serie A opponents aside 4-1.
It was a rather closer and more controversial affair the following season, when Madrid were coasting after Cristiano Ronaldo's first-leg overhead kick in a 3-0 away win in the quarter-finals, only for Juve to rally in Spain.
At 3-0, the tie was heading for extra time, before a remarkable finale saw Gianluigi Buffon sent off as Ronaldo scored from the penalty spot. Rarely has a 3-1 loss been so celebrated.
Kane fit to play for England in Nations League
Bayern Munich confirmed Harry Kane did not suffer a serious injury against Eintracht Frankfurt and will be available for England in the international break.
Kane, who has already netted 10 goals in nine appearances for Bayern in all competitions this season, was substituted in the 72nd minute of their 3-3 draw with a suspected thigh injury.
The England captain was assessed by the Football Association's (FA) doctors on Monday, with the German side announcing no "structural injury" was found.
Kane, who made his 100th appearance for England during their last match against Finland, will be available for the return leg in Helsinki, and their match against Greece at Wembley prior to that.
While the striker has been given the all-clear for international action, Dayot Upamecano and Mathys Tel have both withdrawn from their respective France squads.
Upamecano scored against Frankfurt but was subsequently taken off in the second half after also sustaining a thigh problem, while Tel is suffering with a shoulder injury.
'We are lucky to have him' - Guardiola admits Ederson exit was close
Pep Guardiola admitted that Ederson came close to leaving Manchester City in the transfer window but stayed because a fee could not be agreed.
The Brazilian was linked with a move to the Saudi Pro League in the off-season, with both Al-Nassr and Al-Ittihad both reportedly interested in his signature.
Since joining the club in June 2017, Ederson has kept 113 clean sheets in 257 Premier League appearances, more than any other goalkeeper in the competition since his debut.
He has won 15 major trophies with City, including six Premier Leagues, two FA Cups and a Champions League title, as well as the UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup.
Ederson has played in all seven of City's Premier League matches so far this season, keeping just one clean sheet and conceding eight goals from an expected goals on target (xGoT) of 8.54.
Guardiola is delighted that he was able to keep hold of Ederson, who continues to play a pivotal role in the team.
"He is an important figure with our team," Guardiola told the club's website.
"We are lucky to have him, and I hope he is happy. Eddy knows us really well and what we have to do.
"He knew from day one that I didn't want him to leave. The truth is the offer didn't come. The real offer.
"They make an offer but the keeper, who won four Premier Leagues in a row, he has a value and a price. Otherwise, he cannot leave.
“If the offer did come, maybe he should not be here. This is the truth.
"Ederson is so strong, but when he changed his mind, in one second he said he is here, and he is going to do his best."
Netherlands legend Neeskens dies aged 73
Netherlands and Ajax legend Johan Neeskens has passed away at the age of 73, the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) has announced.
Neeskens played a key role in the Ajax and Netherlands teams credited with popularising "total football" in the 1970s, playing alongside Johan Cruyff for club and country.
Neeskens scored 17 goals in 49 appearances for his nation, helping them reach two World Cup finals in 1974 and 1978, only for West Germany and Argentina to beat them in those showpiece matches.
The midfielder scored the opening goal from the penalty spot in the first of those finals, only for goals from Paul Breitner and Gerd Muller to hand West Germany their second title.
He also helped Ajax win back-to-back Eredivisie crowns in 1971-72 and 1972-73, as well as three straight European Cups in 1971, 1972 and 1973, a feat that has only been replicated by Bayern Munich (1974 to 1976) and Real Madrid (2016 to 2018) since then.
Neeskens followed Cruyff and coach Rinus Michels to Barcelona in 1974, winning the Copa del Rey and the European Cup Winners' Cup in five seasons at Camp Nou.
A KNVB statement released on Monday read: "The KNVB was deeply saddened to learn of the unexpected death of Johan Neeskens.
"Johan was one of our greatest. We will miss him tremendously. We wish his wife Marlis, his children Christian, Tamara, Bianca and Armand, his grandchildren Djoy and Lovee, relatives and friends much strength in bearing this great loss. Rest in peace, Johan."
Following his retirement, Neeskens had a spell as the Netherlands' assistant manager under Guus Hiddink and Frank Rijkaard, also assisting the latter at Barcelona from 2006 to 2008.
He also spent four years in charge of Eredivisie side NEC Nijmegen, leading them to UEFA Cup qualification via a fifth-placed league finish in 2002-03.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
