The perfect midfield: It starts with never passing the ball to Ronaldo.

In the head coach's office at the Gaya training base, Pereira looked at the densely packed Portuguese Cup schedule, feeling a bit overwhelmed by the Portuguese League Cup schedule.

Competing on four fronts, including the Champions League, is simply unrealistic; it's impossible to win all of them.

He first looked at the team's current sixteen-game winning streak;

I glanced at the statistics again: eleven unbeaten games and ten consecutive wins in the league.

Finally, they quietly pondered their position at the top of the Champions League Group A standings.

Two red circles appeared on the whiteboard.

The league and the Champions League are the focus.

The weight of domestic cup competitions has been reduced to ensure players' physical fitness and form.

For the top five leagues with fierce competition, Porto's advantage in the Champions League is that they can compete with less pressure.

Three days later, Porto made significant changes to their lineup and were eliminated from the Portuguese Cup, ending their winning streak of 16 games.

In the 11th round of the Portuguese Primeira Liga, Porto secured a victory against their opponent and continued to lead the standings, but Benfica remained close behind, with the point difference between the two teams still at 2 points.

In the midweek Champions League match, Porto played a defensive game at the Parc des Princes and, although they lost 0-2, they firmly secured first place in the group.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic's invitation to Mario was completely ignored.

The furious Swedes were speechless. With a 3-point advantage and a 9-goal lead, no coach would dare to fight tooth and nail against their opponents.

...

With the conclusion of the sixth round of matches, the results for the groups where qualification was still uncertain have been determined.

Juventus in Group E eliminated defending champions Chelsea;

Celtic dominated Benfica in Group G;

Galatasaray edged out CFR Cluj in Group H to become one of the final three teams to qualify for the knockout stage.

The top 16 teams have now been officially determined.

Group winners: Porto (Portugal), Schalke 04 (Germany), Malaga (Spain), Borussia Dortmund (Germany), Juventus (Italy), Bayern Munich (Germany), Barcelona (Spain), Manchester United (England)

Second place in the group: Paris Saint-Germain (France), Arsenal (England), AC Milan (Italy), Real Madrid (Spain), Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), Valencia (Spain), Celtic (Scotland), Galatasaray (Turkey)

La Liga has the most teams, with all four clubs advancing.

The Bundesliga teams are the strongest, with all three clubs advancing as group winners.

Manchester United and Arsenal advanced from the Premier League, while Chelsea and Manchester City were eliminated.

Juventus and AC Milan from Serie A have secured their places in the Round of 16, while one team each from Ligue 1, the Portuguese Primeira Liga, the Scottish Premiership, the Turkish Super League, and the Ukrainian Premier League has advanced to the Round of 16.

-----------------

On the afternoon of December 20, 2012, Mario, sitting in front of the television, saw UEFA General Secretary Gianni Infantino presenting him with an award.

This time, he was the host of the draw ceremony for the Round of 16 of the 2012-13 UEFA Champions League.

The event in Nyon, Switzerland, was attended by a host of prominent figures, including guests, club representatives, and award recipients.

As the draw date approached, the tension intensified. The stage, adorned with the giant Champions League logo, resembled a judge's bench, where the fate of sixteen European powerhouses would be decided.

In the live stream, the commentator's voice sounded casual: "Dear viewers, the draw is about to begin."

"Our guests for drawing the lots today are Czech legend Nedved and England legend McManaman."

"Let's see how fate arranges these teams' matchups!"

The barrage of comments began to surge:

Please don't touch Barcelona! Please don't touch Bayern Munich!

- [The person upstairs is overthinking it. Manchester United are first in their group, they won't face Barcelona.]

- [In the simulation the day before yesterday, Manchester United played against Real Madrid. Good luck to you guys!]

- [Haha, Cristiano Ronaldo is returning to Old Trafford?]

Arsenal finished second in their group; hopefully they'll draw a team like Porto!

- [Dream on, Nana is only good at drawing Barcelona fans~]

On site, Nedved reached his hand into the glass tank, and the first ball was quickly removed.

Galatasaray.

Immediately afterwards, McManaman drew their opponent:

Schalke 04.

A German team will face a Turkish team.

There might be more Turks than Germans at Schalke 04's home ground.

Mario, sitting in front of the TV screen, felt that Porto's chances of drawing a top team had increased, as there were teams like Milan, Arsenal, and Real Madrid among the second-placed teams in the group.

"The Celtics."

Juventus.

-【This is absolutely the best fortune slip for the old woman!】

- [A Scottish team beat Barcelona at home; Juventus should be careful not to suffer an upset!]

- [Don't panic, Juventus' defense and Celtic's attack are just too much to handle. It's enough to give Scottish Premiership teams a headache!]

- [With a significant disparity in strength, Juventus are the absolute favorites to advance!]

The draw continues.

"Donetsk miners".

When Nedved drew the third name, there was a stir in the stadium. Compared to the three second-placed teams from the top five leagues, Shakhtar Donetsk was still easier to beat.

McManaman quickly stirred the contents of the vat with his hand.

"Borussia Dortmund".

- [The top seed from the group of death is a pretty good draw, considering the benefits!]

- [A moment of silence for the five groups that came in first place!]

- [Brothers, why are these three matchups just like in the simulation?]

Pereira, sitting in the audience, frowned slightly. According to UEFA's draw rules, teams from the same group or association should avoid each other.

The probability of Porto facing Arsenal, Real Madrid, or AC Milan has increased dramatically!

The fourth matchup was about to begin.

"real Madrid!"

The air seemed to freeze instantly. The representatives of the remaining group winners held their breath; no one wanted to face Real Madrid in the Champions League Round of 16.

"Manchester United!" McManaman unfurled the ball, the words on it causing a stir in the stadium.

The comments section went completely crazy:

- [Cristiano Ronaldo is home!!!]

The biggest script ever is here! Ferguson vs. Mourinho!

-【Damn, it's just like the simulation!!】

Manchester United's defense probably can't withstand the onslaught of Ronaldo, Özil, and Di Maria!

Unlike neutral fans who are simply enjoying the spectacle and the clash between two powerhouses, the fact that these two teams met so early has driven fans of both sides a bit crazy.

Porto and Malaga fans were equally frustrated. They had finally secured first place in their group and advanced, but it seemed like the draw was not much different from the second-place team's.

Before they could think too much, the La Liga teams were the first to be hit.

Paris Saint-Germain vs Malaga

Pellegrini vs. Ancelotti: a duel between two masters of adapting their strategies to the situation.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic almost burst out laughing. Although he hadn't secured first place after the group stage, he had won the draw.

Who would have thought that Malaga, in their first year participating in the Champions League, would be able to top their group ahead of AC Milan and Zenit?

The sixth draw followed immediately. Upon hearing the club's name, the Arsenal representative mentally chanted Porto's name, as he didn't want to face either Bayern or Barcelona so early.

McManaman reached into the glass tank, took it out, and unfolded it.

Bayern Munich.

- [The second-place finisher from the group of death, still a death sentence...]

- [The King of London is making a comeback and will become the King of all Europe!]

- [Feels like it's going to be round of 16 again, oh well, I'm used to it!!]

- [It's over. This is the result of the simulation. No need to draw anymore!!]

-【？？？？】

-【Aren't there still two groups left?】

- [With teams from the same association avoiding each other, Barcelona can only play against Milan, while Porto and Valencia are just rookies fighting each other~]

- [A brace? They just finished last season, and here they are again!!!]

UEFA: All I want is traffic!

The complete matchup list has been released on the public chat.

AC Milan vs Barcelona

Valencia vs Porto

Although they were drawn last, Porto's luck was pretty good. Facing Valencia from La Liga is much more comfortable than facing Arsenal, Milan, and Real Madrid!