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      Lionel Messi and stunning wife Antonela meet Game of Thrones star Kit Harington during PSG’s draw with Benfica

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      LIONEL MESSI and wife Antonela Roccuzzo were pictured with Game of Thrones star Kit Harington at Paris Saint-Germain’s game with Benfica on Tuesday night.The Argentine legend, 35, missed the Champions League clash through injury but was in the stands to support his team-mates.
      Antonela Roccuzzo, left, and Messi, right, pose for a picture with Harrington, centreCredit: Instagram / @antonelaroccuzzo
      Ramos gave Harington his PSG shirt after the gameCredit: Instagram / @sergioramos
      The pair shared a hug as Harington showed his appreciation for the gestureCredit: Instagram / @sergioramos
      And he took the opportunity away from the pitch to pose – alongside his wife Antonela – for a picture with Harington – who is best known for his role as Jon Snow in the hit TV show Game of Thrones.
      But Messi wasn’t the only PSG star that Harington met in the French capital.
      He was also filmed being greeted by Real Madrid and Spain icon Sergio Ramos.
      The centre-back came into the room and handed the actor his PSG shirt.
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      Harington appeared incredibly grateful for the gesture as he shared a hug with the defender.
      Meanwhile, things didn’t quite go to plan for PSG on the pitch at Le Parc des Princes on Tuesday night.
      They did take a slender lead into half-time as Kylian Mbappe tucked away a penalty.
      But Benfica hit back through a spot kick of their own in the second period as Joao Mario earned the Portuguese side a second draw in six days against PSG.
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      The match took place just hours after the Ligue 1 champions had been rocked by news of Mbappe wanting to leave the club.
      The 23-year-old superstar only signed a new lucrative deal with PSG in the summer.
      But his relationship with the club is already said to be “completely broken” and there is thought to be “no way back”.
      Real Madrid and Liverpool have both been linked with a move for the World Cup winner. More

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      Viktoria Plzen 2 Bayern Munich 4: Germans into last 16 with goals from Mane, Muller and two from Goretzka

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      BAYERN Munich cruised past Viktoria Plzen 4-2 on Wednesday, putting them through to the knockout round of the Champions League after punishing the Czech champions during a ruthless first-half display that produced four goals.The victory combined with Barcelona’s 3-3 draw with Inter Milan put Bayern through to the knockout stage while the Czechs, who are bottom of Group C, will exit at the group stage.
      Thomas Muller and Sadio Mane celebrateCredit: AFP
      The Germans, who have now gone a record-extending 32 group matches in the competition without defeat, struck first after 10 minutes when Sadio Mane played a one-two with Leon Goretzka before putting the ball in the net.
      An unmarked Thomas Mueller doubled the visitors’ lead minutes later when he tapped home a cross from Kingsley Coman with only the Plzen keeper near him.
      Goretzka nabbed a brace to round off the scoring for Bayern as the Germans kept a toothless Plzen side largely in check before Adam Vlkanova and Jan Kliment pulled goals back for the home side in the second half.
      Bayern have won all four of their group matches to sit in top spot on 12 points followed by Inter Milan on seven and Barcelona with four. Plzen remain without a point in the competition.
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      Atletico Madrid 0 Club Brugge 0: Mignolet makes last-minute FACE save to send visitors into Champions League last 16

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      FORMER Liverpool keeper Simon Mignolet inspired Club Brugge to hold Atletico Madrid to a 0-0 draw in Spain on Wednesday.And in doing so they become only the second Belgian club to reach the round of 16 of the Champions League – with a last-gasp Mignolet save with his face ensuring their qualification through to the next round.
      Mignolet produced a superb display to deny AtleticoCredit: Getty
      Mignolet took a ball in the face in the 90th minute of the game
      It was a breathtaking display from the ex-Liverpool manCredit: Reuters
      The setback leaves Atletico in a difficult position to advance from Group B.
      Club Brugge moved to 10 points, six more than the Spanish club.
      Porto visits Bayer Leverkusen later Wednesday with both teams sitting on three points.
      It was Atletico’s third straight match without a win in the European competition.
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      Antoine Griezmann started after Atletico and Barcelona reached a deal for his permanent transfer, but the France striker couldn’t give the hosts the spark they needed at the Metropolitano Stadium.
      Griezmann had one of Atletico’s best scoring chances but couldn’t capitalise.
      The hosts also came close with a late close-range shot by Ilvaro Morata that hit the face of Mignolet before going wide, and Matheus Cunha also missed from close range in stoppage time.
      Mignolet made several saves throughout the match to stop Atletico’s attack – much like he did in the 2-0 win against the Spanish outfit last week.
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      He has made 14 saves without conceding against Atletico this season, the most saves on record against an opponent without being beaten in a single season in the Champions League since records began in 2003.
      Griezmann now can play as much as coach Diego Simeone likes after Atletico acquired the France striker for £17.5million plus add-ons.
      He had been playing only after the 60-minute mark because Atletico wanted to avoid paying extra to Barcelona in his loan contract with the Catalan club.
      Griezmann hasn’t scored in nine straight matches for club and country, since a crucial late winner in Atletico’s 2-1 win against Porto in the group-stage opener in September, more than a month ago.
      Club Brugge has been one of the surprises of the group stage so far with three straight victories.
      It needed at least a draw to follow up on Gents qualification to the last 16 in 2015-16.
      Atletico is trying to avoid elimination in the group stage for the first time since 2017-18. It has advanced in eight of the last nine seasons.
      Club Brugge defeated Atletico 2-0 in the previous round for its 14th Champions League win, a record among Belgian teams in the competition, surpassing the mark previously set by Anderlecht.
      Atletico’s other loss was at Leverkusen.
      Club Brugge also won at Porto and against Leverkusen.
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      Atletico had won all three games against Club Brugge at home, including as recently as 2018.
      In the next round, Club Brugge hosts Porto, while Atletico hosts Leverkusen.
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      Napoli 4 Ajax 2: Lozano and Osimhen score as high-flying Italians romp to memorable win and seal place in last 16

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      NAPOLI kept up their 100% record in the Champions League group phase and secured progress to the knockout stages by beating Ajax Amsterdam 4-2 at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium on Wednesday.Early goals from Hirving Lozano and Giacomo Raspadori put the Serie A leaders comfortably ahead by the 16-minute mark and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia added a second-half penalty after Davy Klaassen had pulled one back for Ajax.
      Hirving Lozano celebrates his opening goalCredit: Getty
      The Dutch club made a desperate bid for a share of the spoils as Steven Bergwijn converted an 83rd-minute penalty to bring the score back to 3-2 but a horror defensive error allowed Victor Osimhen to score Napolis fourth in the final minute.
      Napolis 12-point haul means they are guaranteed a top-two finish in Group A, having scored 17 goals in four matches.
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      Mason Mount insists Fikayo Tomori should NOT have been sent off against Chelsea and is ‘gutted’ for AC Milan pal

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      MASON MOUNT has insisted that old Chelsea pal Fikayo Tomori SHOULD NOT have been sent off against his side in the Champions League. Milan defender Tomori was given his marching orders by the referee after pulling back Mount as he burst through on goal and into the penalty area.
      Fikayo Tomori was controversially sent off for a foul on Mason MountCredit: AP
      A clever run from Mount saw him get an extra yard on his fellow Cobham graduateCredit: AFP
      While contact was light between two England international’s the ref deemed Tomori to have denied a clear goalscoring opportunity, thus sending him off and awarding The Blues a penalty much to the protest of Milan.
      And Mount, 23, insisted the sending off was the wrong decision.
      He told Chelsea’s website: “He’s obviously my mate, I’ve known Fik for a very long time and I felt for him in that situation, I was gutted for him. I don’t think it was a sending-off.
      “Was it a penalty? Maybe yes. I’m an honest player and I want to try to score a goal and he pulled me back a little bit, but I feel for him for that decision. It’s a tough one.
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      “I felt him trying to pull me back, but I was running to goal so I wasn’t going to go down and I felt like I could still have an opportunity to score.
      “So I carried on going, didn’t score and then obviously the ref blew up and gave a pen straight away. I was probably a bit surprised at the time because I’ve still gone through and had a shot.”
      Jorginho subsequently converted the penalty before Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang added a decisive second to seal a fourth victory on the bounce for Graham Potter.
      With the result Chelsea also climb to the top of their Champions League group, just seven days after being bottom of it.
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      Mount added: “It was hard to see him get sent off.
      “You still want to be playing 11 versus 11 and going at it with two good teams, so it maybe ruined the game a bit.
      “It was massive for us and we obviously wanted to win the game, which we did, but I still feel for Fik a lot.”
      Meanwhile, Reece James has left Gareth Southgate sweating over his World Cup prospects after hobbling off injured during the game. More

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      Erling Haaland arrives for Man City clash with Copenhagen clutching £10k Louis Vuitton cherry print holdall bag

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      ERLING HAALAND swapped hitting the onion bag for carrying a pricey bag as he arrived for Manchester City’s clash against FC Copenhagen. The striker has been in sensational form on the pitch, and it seems he has rewarded himself with a trendy holdall.
      Erling Haaland sported a cherry-wrapped Louis Vuitton holdallCredit: Getty
      But the 22-year-old did not feature for his team during the gameCredit: Getty
      The rest of his look was low-key with a black-out lookCredit: Rex
      The 22-year-old sported a Louis Vuitton bag complete with a cherry print.
      The bag, popular with celebrities, costs a cool $12,000 (£10,900).

      That is a drop in the ocean for the Norwegian, who earns £375,000 per week at City.
      Earlier this week, reports emerged suggesting Haaland has a release clause in his contract with the club which will activate in 2024.
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      However, the figure for this – it’s claimed – is set at a staggering £175.5million.
      For the first time since his arrival at Man City, Haaland didn’t feature in the 0-0 draw with Copenhagen following a first-half red card for fellow new boy Sergio Gomez.
      Before this, Haaland had become the first City ace since Billy McAdams in 1957 to net in ten successive games.
      He has also bagged 20 goals already this term, in just 12 Premier League and Champions League appearances.
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      Indeed, his electrifying early career goal tally sees him miles ahead of the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo at the same age.
      City will face one of their biggest tests of the season next, with long-term challengers Liverpool in their sights for revenge after they lost the Community Shield. More

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      Chelsea star Reece James gives injury update after being taken off in win at AC Milan amid England World Cup concerns

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      CHELSEA star Reece James is keeping his “fingers crossed” in hope that his injury against AC Milan in the Champions League isn’t serious.James, 22, went down twice at the San Siro on Tuesday until he was substituted on 62 minutes leaving Blues and England fans anxiously waiting to find out the extent of the damage.
      Chelsea star Reece James picked up an injury against AC Milan in the Champions LeagueCredit: Getty
      James issued an injury update ahead of the 2022 World CupCredit: Getty
      The right-back took to Twitter after the match and admitted he doesn’t know how bad things are but thanked the fans for the support they have shown.
      James tweeted: “Fingers crossed it’s not a bad one. Love for all the messages, I appreciate you all.”
      Chelsea manager Graham Potter appeared confident that the England international will be available for selection soon.
      But the West Londoners will have to wait “24 to 48 hours” for a full injury update.
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      Potter said: “We’re hoping he’ll be OK. We’ll need 24 to 48 hours. We’ll know more after that.”
      James’ injury didn’t cost Chelsea as they picked up a comfortable 2-0 victory over Milan thanks to goals by Jorginho and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
      However, England manager Gareth Southgate will anxiously be waiting for an update just six weeks before the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
      Southgate has already found himself with somewhat of an injury crisis in defence.
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      Manchester City right-back Kyle Walker is facing a race against time to recover from groin surgery.
      Liverpool ace Trent Alexander-Arnold also picked up a knock during Sunday’s 3-2 loss at Arsenal. More

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      Pep Guardiola gives hilariously blunt reaction to reporter when asked why Man City are yet to win the Champions League

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      PEP GUARDIOLA gave a hilariously blunt reaction when asked why Manchester City are yet to win the Champions League.The two-time champ with Barcelona led City to the 2021 final before losing to Chelsea.
      Pep Guardiola was hilariously blunt when asked about Man City’s Champions League chancesCredit: Not known, clear with picture desk
      But many are tipping the Premier League holders to finally break the curse this term.
      City look almost unstoppable after a fine summer transfer window, with Manuel Akanji a rock in defence and Erling Haaland already netting 20 goals.
      However, last night saw a rare blip occur as they were held to a 0-0 draw in Denmark by FC Copenhagen.
      City missed a penalty and had a man sent off as they dropped a rare two points.
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      After the match, Guardiola was asked by a reporter why it was so hard to win Europe’s top prize.
      Smiling wryly as the question was delivered, Pep responded in a flash: “Because [Real] Madrid is always there.”
      The Spaniards have the most amount of European Cup wins with 14, and landed their latest last season with victory over Liverpool in Paris.
      They produced a stunning comeback to deny City an all-English final in May’s second-leg semi.
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      But Guardiola is adamant he and City are NOT “obsessed” with becoming champions of the continent.
      He added: “It’s not about that. I would like to win it, it’s not an obsession, it’s a dream, a target we can do. 
      “I’m completely aware how good the opponents are and how difficult this competition is. 
      “I said many times, maybe people don’t believe me or think I’m making an excuse, I didn’t come here to win the Champions League.
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      “I’m the first to want it, [but] it was the same in Munich. In Barcelona we won it twice, I wanted to win four! 
      “The 30 or 40 seasons where I’m a manager, I want to win every single Champions League, [but] I don’t feel a failure when we don’t win it.” More