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Eric Bailly has sent a message to Manchester United fans ahead of their sides second leg clash with FC Rostov in the last 16 of the Europa League on Thursday.

Jose Mourinhos men will head into the game firmly in the driving seat after claiming a 1-1 draw in Russia last week, with Henrikh Mkhitaryan grabbing a vital away goal in the first half.

Bailly was unable to feature against Rostov following his red card against Saint Etienne in the previous round but will be in contention to start at Old Trafford.

And the Ivorian, speaking to MUTV, was quick to emphasise the importance of playing at home ahead of the game against Rostov.

At Old Trafford, the fans are like the 12th player,he said.

They always give everything until they are hoarse to get behind us and give us a lift. Its great that the tie will be decided at home and we can do our utmost to get the victory needed and send the fans home happy.

Its really important that we make the quarter-finals in this very difficult competition. All the players are aware of how much it means to make it through and so, when the day of the match comes around, well be ready and prepared to ensure we start well.

We always aim high in everything we do here. I managed to get to the semi-finals last year but that wasnt enough. We didnt win the cup or even get to the final itself so, for me now, its all about taking things a stage at a time.

As Ive said before, this competition brings plenty of surprises in a season so, first of all, we have to focus on getting through against Rostov and then we can think a little further ahead after that.

Nobody in that Man United squad enjoyed the first leg: the pitch, the physical approach from the home side, the eerie atmosphere it was, by all accounts, incongruous to ones general conception of a European knockout game.

But one suspects that the home tie will possess an entirely different complexion. United will have the chance to get the ball down, move Rostov all over the pitch and exploit space with far more ease, and supporters will just hope that, in a potentially season-defining encounter, Mourinhos men dont draw a blank in front of goal.

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Eric Bailly sends a message to Manchester United fans - The Peoples Person

The FC panel preview Manchester City's leg two clash against Monaco in the UEFA Champions League. Pep Guardiola is well aware of the dangers that his City side face when travelling to Monaco in the Champions League.

Manchester City must build on last season's run to the Champions League semifinals, Kevin De Bruyne has said.

City reached the last four for the first time in their history before losing to eventual winners Real Madrid.

They had knocked out Dynamo Kiev and Paris Saint-Germain to reach that stage, winning a knockout game in the competition for the first time, and De Bruyne said they could use that belief to reach this year's final.

"I think it was important as a team to make the next step," he said. "City have had a difficult time in Europe, which is new for this club, but last year we did great in the Champions League.

"I think we now have to try to emulate that. We had a really difficult group last year and then we had to play PSG and Real Madrid, but I don't think this year has been any easier.

"I think that when you play at the highest level, you're always playing in big matches whether it's in the Premier League, the cups, the Champions League or at international level."

City head to Monaco on Wednesday for their round-of-16 second leg clash holding a 5-3 advantage after a thrilling first leg.

And De Bruyne said: "I think we can reach the final, but of course the other teams will think the same and that doesn't make it easier.

"It will be very tough against Monaco. They are doing extremely well, but we are very positive and if we beat them we are through to the quarterfinals, after which the final is not that far away.

"That would be fantastic. I think that's what we're here for."

Jonathan is ESPN FC's Manchester City correspondent. Follow him on Twitter: @jonnysmiffy.

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Kevin De Bruyne: Manchester City can draw on last year to get to UCL final - ESPN FC

DETERMINED: Aguero fires an effort at goal but he can't beat Valdes A Wembley appearance is the prize for the victor when Manchester City face Middlesbrough in Saturday's FA Cup quarter-final, but what subplots are also on the pre-match agenda?

Here are four things to consider...

This will be the second of three games in seven days for City, which rightly poses the question, to what extent will Pep Guardiola rotate his squad?

Raheem Sterling was rested for the midweek game against Stoke and given his form, whether or not he returns to the fray is perhaps the most pertinent question of all.

The manager has made it abundantly clear the immediate threat of Middlesbrough is his primary concern, so the appeal of naming the flying winger in his starting XI is obvious.

But there is the finely balanced Champions League tie with Monaco to consider and so Pep may wish to utilise squad depth and bring the likes of Nolito in from the start.

In amongst his selection and tactical considerations, Guardiola must also contend with FA Cup rule changes.

For the first time there will be no quarter-final replay, meaning this game could go to penalties.

The prospect of a shoot-out could possibly impact on Peps substitutes if the game goes to extra-time, when the boss will be afforded an additional fourth sub.

How and whether he uses this is, of course, at his discretion, but it's sure to be an interesting subplot to the weekends fixture.

The home sides defensive record belies their 18th placed Premier League position Boro have the fifth meanest back line in the league, but its their profligacy up front which has been their undoing.

You would expect City to enjoy the lions share of possession on Saturday, but that is dependent on whether the home side maintain their usual approach.

Clean sheets are most definitely the priority for Aitor Karanka.

However, in a knockout game, free of the concerns of preserving Premier League status and with the defensive trio of George Friend, Daniel Ayala and Calum Chambers all unavailable, might the Spaniard throw caution to the win and decide attack is the best form of defence?

With Stewart Downing and Gaston Ramirez supplying Alvaro Negredo and the powerful Rudy Gestede, Boro could certainly prove to be a handful.

Its been four years since City last played at Wembley in the FA Cup and Guardiola is certainly keen to end the wait.

The impact of such a timely boost cannot be underestimated.

The FA Cup can so often be the catalyst for a fine run of form and while City have certainly been impressive of late, fans and players alike would welcome to the opportunity to head into the tough tests against Monaco and Liverpool buoyed by a confidence swelling Wembley appearance.

Find out what new rules you need to be aware of.

Guardiola's injury update ahead of Middlesbrough trip

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Middlesbrough v Man City: Talking points - Manchester City

Arsene Wenger felt that the red card delivered to Laurent Koscielny was game-changing moment.

It was. But it was right.

The Frenchman was sent off for the denial of an obvious goalscoring opportunity in the 53rd minute of Arsenal's second leg tie with Bayern Munich with the Gunners leading 1-0.

Greek referee Tasos Sidiropoulos - who was taking charge of his first-ever Champions League knockout game - originally handed a yellow card to Koscielny.

With the game having not restarted, the fifth official behind the goal corrected the decision and told Sidiropoulos to brandish red.

At the start of this season, the law regarding the denial of a goalscoring opportunity changed, so that if the offence occurred inside the penalty area, it would be a yellow card, rather than red.

That is apart from when it is an 'upper body' offence.

The law describe these as "holding, pulling or pushing" fouls, or one where "the offending player foes not attempt to play the ball or there is no possibility for the player making the challenge to play the ball".

As Koscielny's foul was one of the above mentioned 'upper body' offences, it was correct decision in law to send off Koscielny.

Mirror Football columnist Robbie Savage tweeted: "Correct decision red card, in my opinion no genuine attempt to play the ball a push in the back prevented clear goal scoring opportunity."

Former World Cup final and Premier League referee Howard Webb quickly responded with "Correct interpretation."

Wenger insisted that the incident was game-changing. It certainly was.

Over the two legs, with Koscielny on the pitch, Arsenal would have been leading 2-1. Without him... well, you do the maths.

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Why Laurent Koscielny's red card for Arsenal in Bayern Munich defeat was the RIGHT decision - Mirror.co.uk

Barcelona face an almighty rescue mission to protect an unprecedentedChampions League last-16 run when they host Paris Saint-Germain in the second leg, while Borussia Dortmund have it all to do against Benfica.

Ligue 1 champions PSG sent shockwaves through world football when they ran roughshod against Barca to earn a commanding 4-0 lead at Parc des Princes.

Barca, whose head coach Luis Enrique is to leave the club at the end of the season, must do something that no other club has done to reach the quarter-finals but they have scored 11 goals in their past two LaLiga matches to perhaps offer a glimmer of hope.

Meanwhile, Dortmund take on Benfica at Signal Iduna Park looking to overturn a 1-0 first-leg deficit against the Portuguese side and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will be looking to break an unwanted duck to boost their chances.

We have looked at the best stats ahead of the last-16 ties, courtesy of Opta.

Barcelona v Paris Saint-Germain

9 - Barcelona have progressed past the round of 16 in each of the last nine seasons, which is the longest ever run in the competition. The last time they failed to reach the quarter-finals was against Liverpool in the 2006-07 campaign.

0 - No club has ever overturned a first leg 4-0 away defeat in a Champions League knockout tie. It has happened on five previous occasions.

1 - The only time PSG eliminated Barcelona in the Champions League was in the 1994-95 quarter-finals. Since then Barcelona have won their two previous knockout encounters with the Parisian club in 2013 and 2015.

4 - Barcelona's first-leg loss equalled their heaviest defeat in a European competition. The 4-0 scoreline matched the defeat they suffered at the hands Bayern Munich in the 2013 Champions League semi-final.

5 - Neymar has scored five goals in five games against PSG, his highest tally against a team in the Champions League. The Brazilian is also the top goal creator in this season's competition with seven assists.

Borussia Dortmund v Benfica

30 - Only 30 per cent of teams that have lost 1-0 away from home in the first leg of a Champions League knockout game have gone on to qualify (9 out of 30).

9 - Benfica have lost all nine of their away games against German clubs in the Champions League or formerly known European Cup, conceding 26 goals in these matches.

7 - Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has yet to score in his seven career Champions League knockout games.

14 - Kostas Mitroglou is the top Greek scorer in the history of the tournament with 14 goals, having scored in each of his last six Champions League campaigns.

1 - Dortmund's first leg defeat in Lisbon was their first in the Champions League this season after winning four and drawing two of their previous six matches. It was also the first time they have failed to score in the 2016-17 competition.

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Proud Barca run hangs in the balance, Aubameyang keen to break knockout duck - Champions League in Opta numbers - beIN SPORTS