The year was 2015. France legend Zinedine Zidane had just begun his life at the touchline.

The Real Madrid B team coach was still doing his Uefa B licence course and had flown to Munich, along with some of his former Les Bleus teammates, who were also learning the tricks.

The World Cup winner wanted to have a first-hand knowledge of how the then coach of Bayern Munich operates, exchanging notes and getting some vital 'Pep' talk. Zidane spent a couple of days with Pep Guardiola discussing what they knew best - football.

"He told me lots of things, gave me advice, we talked a lot, although we all do things differently," Zidane had said.

Five years have gone by and the "pupil" has carved out a niche for himself as an astute tactician. Three Champions League trophies on the trot for Madrid and last month's La Liga title have put Zidane on top of the managerial hierarchy. So much so that he is threatening to usurp the "world's best coach" tag from the person he had gone to meet. French newspaper L'Equipe has already said Zidane is the best manager in the world.

On Friday, when the Uefa Champions League presses the restart button, the Pep Guardiola-versus-Zinedine Zidane clash will be the main story. That's the battle everyone is looking forward to.

On paper, Manchester City have an advantage after the 2-1 victory at the Bernabeu in late February in the first leg of the round-of-16 match. That was before the coronavirus forced a worldwide shutdown. The match looks like something happened ages ago and Friday's clash has become sort of a one-leg affair. Like it would be from the quarter-final stage after Uefa decided to change the format for this season.

Madrid brought home the La Liga winning 10 matches on the trot post restart and are definitely the team in form. Sergio Ramos will not be there after seeing a red card in the first leg. He will be travelling with the squad though as Zidane decided to leave out Gareth Bale and James Rodríguez.

Refreshed Bayern

The common perception is Bayern Munich are the favourites. That's because Bundesliga ended on June 27 and that gives German club the much-needed time to recover. It's the team in form winning the league for the eighth consecutive time. What makes them more dangerous is the fact that they scored 100 goals in 34 matches. Bayern host Chelsea on Saturday and with a 3-0 first-leg advantage, they surely have one foot on the quarter-final stage.

Duo for all seasons

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. The two players we all love to watch anytime, any day anywhere. Both Barcelona and Juventus have not been in good form of late. But that doesn't make them pushovers because these two players can conjure anything out of nothing. Barcelona though have lost the La Liga to Madrid and given their wretched form, it's difficult for them to win their sixth Champions League title.

And Juventus? Agreed they return to European competition on the back of wrapping up a ninth successive Serie A title, but will they able to go the distance?

Cristiano faces Lyon at home on Friday, while Messi has a fight with Napoli on Saturday. That's at Camp Nou.

Mbappe injury

Paris Saint-Germain suffered a huge blow when Kylian Mbappe suffered an ankle injury last month. He is racing against time to be fit for the quarter-final match against highly-talented Atalanta. His absence could prove decisive in the single-leg clash.

The format

Quarter finals and semi-finals will now take place as single-leg ties. From the quarter-finals, all matches take place at two stadiums in Lisbon. Round-of-16 second legs will be held at the club's home ground. The final will be staged at the Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica on August 23.

ROUND-OF-16 MATCHES

Friday

Man City vs Madrid; Juventus vs Lyon

Saturday

Barcelona vs Napoli; Bayern Munich vs Chelsea

Matches start: 12.30am IST