Rodri wants to see Manchester City go on the attack again against Bayern Munich in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final, believing they did not finish the job at the Etihad Stadium.

City beat Bayern 3-0 on Tuesday in a dominant display, with goals from Rodri, Bernardo Silva and Erling Haaland putting Pep Guardiola's men in control against his former club.

Rodri's spectacular first-half strike was his first in the Champions League and came "in a moment when we were struggling", he told BT Sport.

It "gave us a bit of confidence to keep going", the midfielder added, and City certainly did that, good value for further goals as they laid siege to Yann Sommer's goal.

Guardiola's side had only 44 per cent of the possession – their fifth-lowest mark of his tenure – but clearly posed the bigger threat, beating Bayern 1.92 to 0.83 on xG.

"Sometimes we have to understand we cannot have 80 per cent of the possession," Rodri said. "They play, too, and have talented players to keep the ball, and we don't feel comfortable with the ball.

"But we understood perfectly where the game was and waited for the moment."

Assessing the tie, the Spain international said: "We don't think it's done. Of course, we know where we're going, we know the team. It's a good result, and we're happy because of the performance. We don't think much on that.

"We're facing now Leicester in the Premier League, and when we face them back at their home, we have to expect another final.

"I think we have to try to win the game if we want to go [through]. We cannot be conservative."

Nicolo Barella and Romelu Lukaku scored as Inter earned a 2-0 victory at Benfica in their Champions League quarter-final first leg on Tuesday.

In a tense affair at the Estadio da Luz, both teams found it hard to create opportunities, though the hosts shaded the first half as they pressed to get their noses in front on home soil.

But a rare moment of attacking quality from Barella put Inter ahead, before substitute Lukaku scored from the spot to clinch the win for the Serie A side.

Simone Inzaghi's men are now very much in control heading into the second leg, set to be played at San Siro next Wednesday.

The first half was a cagey affair with clear-cut chances few and far between, though Rafa Silva nearly punished a defensive mistake when he saw a blasted effort denied by Andre Onana after pouncing upon Federico Dimarco's loose header.

Francesco Acerbi also sent a fierce drive from range just over the crossbar as the game went into the interval goalless, with Inter managing just two touches in Benfica's box in the first half.

But the visitors would take the lead in the 51st minute with their first shot on target, Barella's delightful back-post header nestling in the bottom corner after Alessandro Bastoni's cross picked him out.

The hosts nearly levelled when Rafa saw a shot blocked before an almighty goalmouth scramble ended with Inter finally clearing.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan could, and perhaps should, have doubled his side's advantage after he was played in by Joaquin Correa, but his shot from a tight angle was well saved by Odisseas Vlachodimos.

Inter would add a second goal before the end, though, as Lukaku lashed home a penalty after Joao Mario handled Denzel Dumfries' cross to leave the Portuguese side up against it if they are to reach their first Champions League semi-final in 23 years.

Manchester City took a huge stride towards the Champions League semi-finals with a 3-0 win over Pep Guardiola's former club Bayern Munich in Tuesday's last-eight first leg.

An intense Etihad Stadium encounter pitted Guardiola against Bayern for the first time since leaving Germany, and he comfortably got the better of old foe Thomas Tuchel, whose Chelsea beat City in the 2021 final.

Rodri's spectacular first Champions League strike gave City the edge at half-time, before Bernardo Silva added the second as pressure ramped up on the Bayern goal heading into the final 20 minutes, and Erling Haaland's 45th goal of the season – an outright record for a Premier League player – soon followed.

Guardiola and City have let slip all manner of leads in this competition against weaker opposition than Bayern, but they were rampant by full-time and head into the return match with full command of the tie.

The breakthrough goal came after 27 minutes as Rodri evaded pressure from Jamal Musiala by chopping onto his left foot 25 yards from goal before curling high past Yann Sommer, and City went in pursuit of a swift second.

Both Dayot Upamecano and Sommer failed to deal with a cross from the City right, with the goalkeeper merely helping it into the path of Ilkay Gundogan but responding with an instinctive save.

Although Leroy Sane led a response as his shot wide before half-time was followed by three on target following the restart – the best of them drawing a low stop from Ederson – the mix-ups in the Bayern back line only increased in number as the match wore on.

Sommer saved from Nathan Ake and Ruben Dias in quick succession but failed to get enough on Silva's header after Upamecano had gifted the ball to Jack Grealish to set in motion the City attack.

Another stop from Julian Alvarez looked to have kept Bayern in the tie, yet Haaland got his goal from a John Stones knockdown to leave the Bundesliga giants an almighty task back in Germany.

Frank Lampard is excited for the "amazing challenge" he faces when Chelsea tackle Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-finals.

Chelsea legend Lampard guides his team into Wednesday's first leg at Santiago Bernabeu less than a week after returning to Stamford Bridge as interim boss until the end of the season.

The former midfielder may well feel he has unfinished business with the Blues in European competition, having been sacked midway through the 2020-21 season – a campaign that saw the club go on to win the Champions League under successor Thomas Tuchel.

While taking on Madrid appears a daunting task for a coach who was out of the game just a week ago, Lampard is ready to lap up the opportunity.

"This is amazing. I've been fortunate to manage in the Champions League, and to be here as a manager, when a week ago I didn't know I'd be here, is a huge honour," he said at a press conference.

"It's an amazing challenge for me personally and for the club.

"I think we have to understand the strength of the Real Madrid team; we have to be disciplined with our game off the ball, understand the threats, the ways they like to score and how they control the game.

"We also have to show our own strengths in our game. We have to have belief and follow through with what the idea is under pressure."

Chelsea have struggled for consistency domestically this season, languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League table, and Lampard was asked how and why his squad look to have performed better on the European stage.

"I understand the question because I've viewed it from the outside. The Premier League is also one of the greatest challenges in world football," he replied.

"I think in the Champions League it sometimes offer you some escapism, a different speed of game, they can all contribute to it.

"At this stage, you're playing team of the level of Real Madrid. The comparisons are pretty worthless."

Lampard will have Thiago Silva, Mason Mount and N'Golo Kante available for the trip to the Spanish capital, and he feels they, along with the rest of the squad, can respond to their critics.

"They're all fit. The three players are good and they're here," he said.

"It's normal in a season like this that character gets questioned. The only thing the players can do is prove it on the pitch.

"There's a lot we do behind the scenes, and my job is to convey to them the need to train at a level and to have a mentality at a level, and then they have to show it.

"I'm not questioning there is a lot of character, because I've seen the dressing room. Sometimes players can have a lack of confidence."

Luciano Spalletti promised Napoli can beat Milan without Victor Osimhen as he told his team to "enjoy every moment" of the club's maiden Champions League quarter-final.

The first leg at San Siro takes place on Wednesday, just 10 days after Napoli suffered an unexpected 4-0 trouncing at home against Milan in Serie A.

That result came almost out of the blue, with Napoli streaking away at the top of the league, where they now hold a 16-point lead over second-placed Lazio as a first Scudetto since 1990 looms.

Osimhen, their 25-goal striker, has not played for Napoli since before the recent international break due to an abductor muscle injury sustained on Nigeria duty.

He missed the Milan game in the league, from which Napoli bounced back with a 2-1 win over Lecce on Friday, and it remains to be seen whether Osimhen returns for the April 18 home leg against the Rossoneri.

"We have won very important games without Osimhen," Spalletti said. "I expect all my players will rely on their team-mates and their own qualities and abilities so that the most brilliant tactics come out."

Captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo agreed with coach Spalletti, saying: "We feel OK even if Osimhen isn't there tomorrow.

"He's a fundamental player, but we can't rely on him. We will have to face this battle with the players who are available. We will have to take any chances possible."

Napoli headed into this week as the competition's top scorers with 25 goals, with their average of 3.1 goals per game the fifth-best in a single campaign – after Bayern Munich in 2019-20 (3.9), Paris Saint-Germain in 2017-18 (3.4), Real Madrid in 2013-14 (3.2) and Liverpool in 2017-18 (3.2).

It is not only Osimhen who has been scoring for them in Europe either, with his haul of four goals in the Champions League matched by team-mates Piotr Zielinski, Giovanni Simeone and Giacomo Raspadori.

The last Italian team to have as many different players scoring four or more goals in a single edition of the Champions League were 2002-03 finalists Juventus (Del Piero, Nedved, Di Vaio and Trezeguet), so that may bode well.

"We need to have fun. We can't go to the pitch and be afraid," Spalletti said in a pre-match press conference.

"We need to take this chance, enjoy the game, enjoy every moment, even tonight. We're going to have dinner, and we need to enjoy dinner, and after dinner, we need to enjoy those hours before we go to sleep. They have to enjoy every single moment and this will be satisfying as well.

"This expression I use – Christmas Eve – for games like this is part of the idea a match has to be enjoyed in every single moment."

The Milan game from April 2 is one Spalletti says his players can forget about.

"Champions do not regret when they fail," he said. "They just recover, they just stand up again, and this team is made of champions.

"We are about to play a match that could represent a turning point in our future. We are aware of this fact, and we are ready for it."

Milan coach Stefano Pioli is embracing his team's history of fulfilling their dreams as they prepare to face Napoli in the Champions League quarter-finals as underdogs.

With Napoli running away with the Serie A title, sitting 16 points clear already, Milan are generally considered outsiders for their upcoming Champions League duel.

But Milan beat Napoli 4-0 at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona as recently as April 2 in a major shock, and the Partenopei will once again be without talismanic striker Victor Osimhen.

Milan not being favourites is no issue for Pioli, however, as he pointed to their Scudetto success last season as being somewhat out of the ordinary.

Asked what he was expecting from Wednesday's contest at San Siro, Pioli told reporters: "I think we'll see balance.

"It's the first of two matches. It's impossible to repeat matches from in the league – we know we have to play a great game.

"We have to play a great game because the opponents require a great level of play. Napoli are the team with the best attack in the Champions League and who have won the most games after Bayern. They are a very strong team, they have great quality.

"We also need to be attentive. Napoli have great quality and know how to take advantage of every mistake.

"Serie A is another story. I think we have every chance to play and do well in the two games. With the power of our dreams we won the Scudetto last year, so dreaming is good for us."

The absence of Osimhen is a particularly significant boost for Milan, given Napoli had expected him to be fit again for the first leg after sustaining an abductor injury on international duty.

Osimhen has been a huge factor in Napoli's remarkable charge at the top of the Serie A table, with Luciano Spalletti's men closing in on a first Scudetto since 1990.

Osimhen has scored 25 times across all competitions, with none of those goals coming from the penalty spot – among players from the top five leagues, only Erling Haaland (38), Kylian Mbappe (28), Marcus Rashford (27) and Robert Lewandowski (26) have netted more non-penalty goals than the Nigerian.

Nevertheless, the defeat to Milan earlier this month was the only match Napoli have failed to win out of nine without Osimhen this term, and this was not lost on Pioli.

"We're talking about a great centre-forward, he's scored repeatedly both in the league and in the Champions League [but], up until the match against us, Napoli had always won without Osimhen," Pioli told Sky Sport Italia.

"We're talking about a great team that has all the qualities to be fearsome."

He added: "The preparation has always been the same. With Osimhen, Napoli are stronger in depth, without him a little less. We keep everything in consideration, but we go ahead with our own concepts."

Carlo Ancelotti is keen for his Real Madrid side to meet Milan in the Champions League final in Istanbul.

Los Blancos face Chelsea in the quarter-finals of the competition, while Milan are building up for an all-Italian affair against Napoli.

Madrid will be favourites against Chelsea due to the poor season being endured by the Premier League side.

For Milan, the situation is different as Napoli have blown away their rivals in Serie A this season, but they will have the backing of Ancelotti.

Asked what he said to Paolo Maldini in a recent call with the former defender, Ancelotti told Rai Radio 1: "It was above all a wish for Milan, of which I am a fan.

"In reality, Milan-Napoli will be a very balanced and very uncertain match.

"Would it be nice to meet in Istanbul? For Madrid, yes, I think also for Milan, but everyone wants to get to Istanbul."

In his pre-match press conference ahead of the first leg of the quarter-final tie against Chelsea, Ancelotti again outlined a desire to meet Maldini in the final – particularly with the host city not holding fond memories for the pair, who lost in Istanbul against Liverpool in the 2005 final.

"Paolo and Istanbul is not a pretty memory especially in 2005," Ancelotti added. "I have all the love in the world for Maldini, he has been my captain and my partner and if we can see each other on my birthday [the day of the final] it will be very good".

For Milan, the tie against Napoli is a chance to build upon their recent thrashing of the runaway Serie A leaders in a game that is certain to be an emotional one.

Because of this, Ancelotti explained that motivational speeches are not required ahead of the game and pre-match discussions should be purely tactical.

"In these types of games the players are going to feel the pressure, they are going to be very motivated, so you don't have to make motivational speeches," he explained.

"The speech that is going to be made is linked to the strategy of the game, trying to give clear and simple indications to the players, so that they feel involved: it is also a way to take a little off the pressure that these games inevitably put on you."

Carlo Ancelotti is saddened by Chelsea's struggles this season but expects his former side to bounce back under Frank Lampard.

The Real Madrid head coach faces off against the Blues in the Champions League quarter-finals, the first leg taking place at Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday.

While domestic form has not been the best for Madrid, heading into the tie on the back of a 3-2 reverse against Villarreal at the weekend, their form in Europe in recent years has been devastating.

Los Blancos have won the Champions League in five of the last nine seasons, the most recent of which was last year, and boast vast experience.

However, Ancelotti does not believe that will have an impact in the two legs against Chelsea, where he expects the Blues to provide a stern test.

"I'm sad. I have great memories of my time at the club. I spent two very good years there," he said at a press conference when asked about Chelsea's poor season.

"I don't think my experience will change what's going to happen tomorrow. Lampard has been a great player that I coached for two years.

"He knows this type of game well and how to prepare his team. It's been a week, but he's going to do well in the time he's at Chelsea.

"We had a really bad time here [last year] and we have to respect Chelsea. They are not going through a good moment, but they have a very good team.

"Sometimes when you're worse, you bring out the best."

Madrid faced Chelsea at the same stage last year, losing 3-2 at home in the second leg but progressing as 5-4 aggregate victors, while the semi-final against Manchester City was similarly dramatic.

Playing the first game of home this time around allows Madrid to potentially build a lead to defend at Stamford Bridge in the second leg, which Ancelotti highlighted.

"We have to think it's a 180-minute game and try to do well tomorrow. It's not decisive, but we can help manage the second leg better," he added.

"We are looking forward to returning to the Champions League and living a magical night at the Bernabeu.

"We have to take advantage of the fact that we play the first game. I think we played well at home and away last year, we did well in every game and deserved to win the title.

"We had to come back, and we had more energy in the finals. We deserved to win the Champions League last year and we will try to deserve this one if we play better than others.

"They were difficult moments against Chelsea and City but we didn't give up the games and ended up winning the title."

Victor Osimhen has been ruled out of Napoli's Champions League trip to Milan on Wednesday in a massive blow to the Partenopei.

The striker has not played for the runaway Serie A leaders since before the recent international break due to an abductor muscle injury sustained on Nigeria duty.

In their first match without him, Napoli were thrashed 4-0 at home by Milan in the league on April 2, before bouncing back with a 2-1 win over Lecce on Friday.

It was hoped he would be fit in time for the Champions League quarter-final first leg against the Rossoneri, with Napoli in uncharted territory so deep into the competition.

But now it seems the club are targeting the second leg next Tuesday for his return.

"Victor is not in a position to play, unfortunately," club president Aurelio De Laurentiis is quoted as saying by La Repubblica.

"We hope to have him back as soon as possible on the 18th at the [Stadio Diego Armando] Maradona."

Osimhen has been a huge factor in Napoli's remarkable charge at the top of the Serie A table, with Luciano Spalletti's men closing in on a first Scudetto since 1990.

Napoli are 16 points clear at the summit with nine matches left, and they are into the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time ever.

Osimhen has scored 25 times across all competitions, with none of those goals coming from the penalty spot.

Among players from the top five leagues, only Erling Haaland (38), Kylian Mbappe (28), Marcus Rashford (27) and Robert Lewandowski (26) have netted more non-penalty goals than the Super Eagles talisman.

Champions League holders Real Madrid resume their European campaign on Wednesday as they once again go up against English opposition in Chelsea.

Now with Frank Lampard in charge again, Chelsea realistically need to win the Champions League just to qualify for it next season, with the Blues languishing 11th in the Premier League.

But after brushing Liverpool aside in ruthless fashion in the last round, Madrid will be massive favourites in the eyes of most people.

Wednesday's other Champions League duel is almost as intriguing. Serie A rivals Milan and Napoli will tussle in San Siro, with any of the four teams in that side of the draw likely fancying their chances of reaching the final.

Ahead of two potentially engrossing matches, Stats Perform picks out the best Opta pre-game facts.

Real Madrid v Chelsea: Benzema out to continue dominance of Premier League opposition

This season has been perceived as an underwhelming one for Karim Benzema in some respects, with injuries disrupting him – particularly ahead of the World Cup.

But since Qatar 2022, the only player across the top five leagues to register more goal involvements in all competitions than Benzema (24) is Manchester United's Marcus Rashford (25), and the Frenchman has been especially lethal in recent weeks.

He scored hat-tricks in each of his first two games this month and was sensational in Madrid's 6-2 aggregate defeat of Liverpool in the previous round, scoring three times over the two legs.

That haul means each of his last 10 goals in the Champions League have been against English clubs (in order: x4 Chelsea, x3 Manchester City, x3 Liverpool), which is already the longest such streak against clubs from a single nation by one player.

Benzema's form and Chelsea's rather unimpressive current state would have most considering Los Blancos firm favourites on Wednesday, and the Blues would do well to stop their hosts from scoring given they have netted in each of their previous 30 Champions League knockout games at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Chelsea and interim manager Lampard will be grasping to every hint of optimism they can find.

Their record against Madrid might be one such example, as they have the lowest percentage of losses (14 per cent) of any team to have played them at least five times in European competition.

The Blues are also unbeaten against the Champions League reigning champions since 2004-05 (six games), which is a record.

Milan v Napoli: Uncharted territory for the Partenopei

This promises to be a memorable season for Napoli, who are within touching distance of a first Scudetto since 1990.

But their Champions League journey could yet elevate this campaign to hitherto unseen levels for Luciano Spalletti's side.

After all, this will be their first Champions League quarter-final. Considering they were drawn into the side of the bracket that looks wide open, the outlook is promising.

Admittedly, Napoli were remarkably beaten 4-0 at home to Milan at the start of this month, though the Serie A leaders should be a different beast with Victor Osimhen back in the team.

The Nigeria international's brilliance in attack has contributed to Napoli being the top scorers in this season's Champions League with 25 goals, while only Bayern Munich have won more matches (eight to seven).

Furthermore, Napoli's average of 3.1 goals per game is the fifth-best in a single campaign after Bayern in 2019-20 (3.9), PSG in 2017-18 (3.4), Real Madrid in 2013-14 (3.2) and Liverpool in 2017-18 (3.2).

Milan will hope they have the defensive nous to counteract that. And, to be fair, they are one clean sheet away from five successive Champions League shutouts for the first time since 2004-05.

Some might also point to Milan's greater experience in such ties, though this will actually be just their first quarter-final since 2011-12, and they last reached the semis in 2006-07 en route to winning the competition.

For the Rossoneri, even when you take into consideration that freak 4-0 away win on April 2, a positive result on Wednesday is surely a must – Napoli will be aiming to make it four successive wins over Milan at San Siro.

Pep Guardiola's Manchester City offer the highest level of football in Europe, according to Bayern Munich head coach Thomas Tuchel.

The Bavarian side travel to the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday to face an in-form City side in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.

Guardiola's men have won their last seven in all competitions to leave their fans dreaming of a potential treble, hot on the tails of Premier League leaders Arsenal, while they have reached the latter stages of both the Champions League and FA Cup.

Tuesday's game will only be Tuchel's fourth game in charge of Bayern since replacing the sacked Julian Nagelsmann, and his side head into the match as underdogs to progress through the tie despite lifting the famous trophy as recently as the 2019-20 season.

Tuchel lauded Guardiola's influence on City and ranked them as one of the finest teams in Europe, though he also feels that makes the opportunity to dump them out of Europe even more enticing having beat the Citizens in the 2020-21 final while he was Chelsea boss.

"I think you can clearly see that there's six or seven years of Pep in this team, very offensive with and without the ball, extreme high pressing," Tuchel told reporters at his pre-match news conference. 

"I think that Pep proves everywhere that he gives his teams his own touch. I can learn about football by playing against his teams, it makes me a better coach. It's unique what he's doing there. They play much more fluently than in recent years. 

"It's the highest level that European football has to offer. They're showing that in the league too. That makes the task appealing. We have to solve it as a team. Maybe we'll be a bit of the underdog tomorrow, but we have to have confidence in our abilities."

City have been spearheaded by striker Erling Haaland, who has netted 44 goals in all competitions this season in just his first campaign in England since joining from Borussia Dortmund.

Tuchel is wary of the threat Haaland, and the rest of City's forwards, will pose on Tuesday, saying: "The numbers, the athleticism, the hunger for goals is incredibly impressive.

"It's not just him. The game speed is high, they create a lot of chances for Haaland and he has the ambition to score a lot of goals. We will only solve this together."

Defender Matthijs de Ligt will be one of those tasked with trying to keep Haaland quiet at the Etihad, and he feels it will need a complete team effort to do so.

"I think Manchester City is the strongest team of all," the Netherlands international said. "They've won the Premier League four times in the last five years, and now they've also got a striker like Erling Haaland.

"It's important that we organise the defence well, also with the midfielders. We have to put in a top performance to stop a striker like Haaland."

Bayern will be without one of their own strikers as a knee issue means Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, who has scored four Champions League goals this term, will miss out.

Serge Gnabry could be the player Tuchel opts to play up front, with the 49-year-old explaining: "I don't think there's anything wrong with Serge playing on the nine for us. He has a good finish with both feet, good speed and is good at dribbling."

Simone Inzaghi knows Inter must use their "heads and our hearts" against Benfica when the pair meet in the Champions League quarter-finals.

The Serie A heavyweights travel to Lisbon on Tuesday for the first leg of their last-eight clash against the Primeira Liga leaders.

Roger Schmidt's hosts are unbeaten in Europe this season and have lost just three times in all competitions, though they come into the game on the back of a domestic defeat to Porto.

The task in hand for Inter looks a difficult one, particularly amid their own mixed domestic form, but Inzaghi believes they can prevail if they play intelligently.

"We know the importance of this match," he said at Monday's pre-match press conference. "We have had a great, difficult journey [to get here]. They are a quality opponent. It won't be easy.

"It will be a game in which we alternate between attack and defence. Benfica are not obsessed with pressing. We will have to use our heads and our hearts.

"They are a quality team, with technically gifted players. They occupy the spaces well, and they run a lot. We'll have to be good at playing our game.

"They have lost two games this season. They are a team with absolute value. But up against them, there will be an Inter team who know what they want and what they have to do."

Inter arrive looking to break a six-match winless run that includes the second leg of their last-16 win over Porto in the Champions League.

Their indifferent form, including a draw with Salernitana on Friday, has seen them slip to fifth in Serie A and leaves them at risk of missing out on top-tier European competition next season.

Pep Guardiola has made no secret of his love of golf and basketball, so it was perhaps no surprise he made comparisons to all-time greats from both sports when asked about his desire to win the Champions League.

Guardiola will face former club Bayern Munich when his Manchester City side host the Bundesliga champions in the quarter-finals of the Champions League on Tuesday.

Since losing in the last 16 in his first season in charge in 2016-17, City have reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League for six successive seasons.

Yet the trophy continues to elude them, City going closest in the 2021 final when they lost 1-0 to a Chelsea team led by Thomas Tuchel, who was last month appointed by Bayern.

Asked in his pre-match press conference how much he wants to win the Champions League, Guardiola replied: "A lot."

Expanding on his initially brief reply, Guardiola – who spent his Sunday watching Bayern's game with Freiburg and taking in compatriot Jon Rahm's Masters triumph – pointed to the careers of Jack Nicklaus and Michael Jordan as examples of the difficulty of elite sport that has prevented City from claiming European football's top prize.

"We want to try like we tried all the time, but that doesn't mean we're going to win," he added 

"Yesterday they played The Masters. Jack Nicklaus, how many Masters or how many great majors he played in his career, in the 30, 40 years as a golfer... 30 years for four majors, how many, 120 or 130? How many won? Eighteen, wow. Eighteen out of 130, he lost more than he won.

"That is sport. In football, in golf, in basketball. Michael Jordan, the best athlete for me, won six NBA titles. How many years did he play? Sixteen. He lost more than won.

"This game, all games, they are so difficult. It's important to be here and compete well, do our best knowing that tomorrow at nine o'clock we have to be perfect to try to get a good result to go to Germany [for the second leg].

"It's no more than that; I live my profession in that way, and after that, I lose, I lose. What's important is we are still there. My biggest compliment we can do as an organisation, as a team, is still we are there."

City are unbeaten in their last 12 matches and have scored 21 goals in their previous four; however, Guardiola knows that form counts for nothing over the course of a two-legged tie with Bayern.

"In this competition, it's not about the form you are in in the Premier League or FA Cup," he said. "It's about how you perform in these 95 minutes. It doesn't count what you did three days ago.

"In this competition, you have to be perfect. The question is tomorrow night, be ready."

Just eight teams remain in the Champions League, and there is every chance one of Tuesday's quarter-finals could yield the eventual winners.

Manchester City and Bayern Munich tussle in arguably the tie of the round, a contest that has seen the intrigue multiply following the latter's dismissal of Julian Nagelsmann and hiring of Thomas Tuchel.

Of course, Tuchel has won this competition before and boasts plenty of quality in his squad, but City probably go into the tie as favourites because of their greater stability and the 'Erling Haaland factor'.

Tuesday's other game, which takes place on the other side of the draw, pits Benfica and Inter against each other, with both sides surely fancying their chances of a shock run to the final given they will come up against either Milan or Napoli in the semi-finals.

But without any further ado, Stats Perform looks at the pick of the pre-match Opta facts for Tuesday's first legs.

Manchester City v Bayern Munich: Haaland out to finally beat Die Roten

There will certainly be a degree of familiarity surrounding this duel between two giants of the European game.

It will be the seventh meeting between City and Bayern in the Champions League, with both sides alternating victories across the previous six (three each) fixtures.

On top of that, City boss Pep Guardiola is of course a former Bayern head coach, with the Premier League side's only loss in their past three home games against Die Roten coming when he was in charge at Allianz Arena (October 2013).

Guardiola will also be going up against Tuchel once again. He may not publicly admit it, but revenge is surely a target.

Tuchel was in charge of Chelsea when City lost their only Champions League final, and the German has won two of the three matches the two coaches have contested in cup competitions. Guardiola's only victory came via a penalty shoot-out in the 2016 DFB-Pokal final.

Still, Guardiola boasts a tremendous record at this stage of the competition.

He has won 54 per cent of his 72 Champions League knockout games, the best win rate of all managers with at least 30 matches under their belt in such ties. Additionally, Guardiola is the only one of these coaches to have won more than half of these games.

Erling Haaland will also be tussling with some familiar foes.

The Norwegian striker has a solid record against Bayern on an individual level, scoring five times in seven games against them for Dortmund, but he was on the losing side each time.

He will be keen to break that duck.

Benfica v Inter: Eagles close to 33-year high

For some, Benfica might stand out as being almost out of place at this stage of the competition, but it is the second season in a row they have reached the quarter-finals.

Similarly, while one may associate Inter more closely with deep runs into the Champions League, their six quarter-finals this century is only one more than Benfica.

The Portuguese side will not come into this tie intimidated by their opponents either.

Benfica have already beaten Juventus home and away in the competition this term, overcoming something of a psychological barrier that had seen them win only two of their previous 11 games against Serie A sides in Europe's top-tier competition.

Granted, Inter have dealt with Portuguese opposition this season as well, knocking Porto out in the previous round with a slender 1-0 aggregate win. But there was more than a hint of fortune about that success, with the Primeira Liga side's expected goals (xG) significantly higher than Inter's (3-5 to 2.1).

Nevertheless, Benfica need only to look at their own form to inspire confidence. Victory on Tuesday will see them record five successive European Cup/Champions League wins for the first time since a run of six en route to the 1990 final.

There are also reasons for optimism in how the two teams play.

The average starting distance of Inter's sequences of play in the Champions League this term is 38.2 metres from their own goal, with Simone Inzaghi's side recovering possession the furthest away from the opposition goal – on average – of any side involved in this season's quarter-finals.

That could play into Benfica's hands given they have attempted more shots following high turnovers (within 40m of the opposition goal) than any other side in the competition this season (18), and their five goals from such situations is a joint-high with Napoli.

Inter have ridden their luck already this season – Benfica will hope to get the rub of the green at Estadio da Luz on Tuesday to improve their chances of reaching the semi-finals for the first time in 33 years.

against Inter in a fixture that has historical significance for the two sides.

The teams have been drawn together in the last eight, paired in a wide open half of the bracket that also sees Inter's Serie A rivals Napoli and Milan meet.

Any one of those four teams might hope to go all the way to the final – a stage where Benfica have played Inter previously.

The only prior clash between the sides in the European Cup was in the 1965 final, which Inter won 1-0 at San Siro.

Benfica will return to Milan next week but must first play the first leg in Lisbon against an Inter side winless in six across all competitions.

It was put to Schmidt that Inter's form might make Benfica favourites, but the gravity of the game was his primary focus.

"We'll see if it's favourable or not. The draw is the draw," said the Benfica coach. "Both teams have quality and deserve to be here, there's no doubt.

"Just look at their squad. They are experienced players with so much quality.

"It's a very special game, also for the players. What I hope is that my players will be more motivated because it's a big game, but I also expect that of the Inter players.

"They will be ready, they will cause difficulties, and we have to find solutions and accept the history of the game.

"We have to try to play a good game tomorrow and in the second leg in Milan."

Both Benfica and Inter will be boosted by having seen how their opponents fare against domestic rivals. Benfica won home and away against Juventus in the group stage – only their third and fourth European Cup wins against Italian teams – while Inter eliminated Porto in the last 16.

"Of course we considered the games against Porto," Schmidt said. "We analysed the team in their game but not only in those two games.

"Inter are a team with a lot of experience, who know how to play both attacking and defensive football.

"They won the first game [against Porto] at home 1-0 and then came to defend the result in the second leg. It's a bit of the Italian style, and I know they can change that style.

"We are prepared for anything, and we want to play at our best."

Benfica themselves played Porto on Friday, beaten 2-1 at home for just their second Primeira Liga loss of the season, but Schmidt has no concerns.

"It's part of football to lose games," he said. "On Friday, we lost an important game, but I think we had won a lot before.

"We grow with victories and defeats. We can use defeats to grow and create something positive. I saw my team leave behind what happened very quickly, and in the last few days we have been concentrating on Inter."

Schmidt will be without Nicolas Otamendi, but Alex Grimaldo is fit to play, although that was as much information as the Benfica boss was willing to part with at his press conference.

"I'm not going to announce the XI," he said. "If you tell me Inter's starting XI, maybe I can say mine."