Kick Off: Messi says CR7 is predatory striker; Pep fires back at Barca on CL ban

Welcome to All Football's Kick Off, we bring you all important news in the past 24 hours. Make sure you do not miss out.

TOP HEADLINES

Messi: Ronaldo is a predatory striker and it's only normal when he scores

Barcelona attacker Lionel Messi isn't surprised by Cristiano Ronaldo's recent Serie A scoring streak for Juventus as he praised the striker's ability to find the back of the net.

TRANSFER RUMOURS

Barca 'close the signing of Braithwaite TODAY by paying €18M release clause'

According to Nicolo Schira, Diario Sport, Marca and other sources, Barcelona will close the signing of Martin #Braithwaite today by paying his release clause (€18M) to Leganes.

Haaland informed Solskjaer he DID want to join Man Utd ahead of Dortmund move

Erling Haaland told Manchester United that he wanted to move to Old Trafford, only to change his mind just weeks later.

What Braithwaite's shirt number at Barcelona will be

Martin Braithwaite will be presented on Thursday as Barcelona's new forward and it's most likely he will wear the No 19 shirt. 

VOICES

Solskjaer: Rashford is 'out for another few months' and could miss Euro 2020

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has admitted that leading striker Marcus Rashford will be 'out for another few months' and will not be part of England's squad for Euro 2020 if he cannot prove his fitness following troublesome back injury.

Don't talk too loud, Barcelona! - Guardiola fires back at former club on UCL ban

Pep Guardiola blasted back at Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu as he took questions about Manchester City's Champions League ban for the first time.

Ronaldo heaps praise on Mbappe: He is the present and the future

Cristiano Ronaldo has tipped Kylian Mbappe to be the future of football.

Atletico president: Anfield's very old, it wouldn't pass the UEFA inspection

Atlético president Enrique Cerezo said that manager Diego Simeone "would be here for a very long time" and had a light-hearted dig at Liverpool's famous stadium.

MATCH REPORTS

Man City 2-0 West Ham: De Bruyne stars with goal & assist in routine win

Kevin De Bruyne scored one and assisted another as Manchester City eased to a 2-0 win over West Ham in the Premier League on Wednesday.

Tottenham 0-1 Leipzig: Werner nets pen as Spurs completely outplayed by visitors

Timo Werner gave RB Leipzig a richly deserved first-leg lead in their Champions League last-16 clash with Tottenham as the Germans turned on the style in London.

Atalanta 4-1 Valencia: Ilicic & co run riot to gain massive advantage in UCL tie

Atalanta marked their maiden game in the Champions League knockout stages with a resounding 4-1 win over Valencia in the first leg of their last-16 tie at San Siro on Wednesday.

THE THINGS HAPPENED

Simeone never lost a UCL knockout tie against a team without Ronaldo

Atletico Madrid produced a classic defensive exhibition to beat Liverpool 1-0 on Tuesday night and the omens are not good for the Reds.

Messi sees Barcelona chaos 'strange subject' but refuses to tell more details

Lionel Messi has expressed his bemusement following his meeting with president Josep Bartomeu about the social media controversy currently surrouding Barcelona.

Atletico players STILL celebrating win over Liverpool 12 hours after the game

Atletico Madrid's players are still celebrating their 1-0 win over Liverpool and were filmed waving scarfs in delight during a gym session.

Haaland can jump 1.63m far when he was 5 and it's still world record at the age!

Haaland scored 2 goals for BVB in UCL game last night. He has scored tons of goals in his professional football career, and his talent has been shown even younger.

McTominay, Lindelof & Tuanzebe included in Utd training squad for UEL fixture

Manchester United have included Scott McTominay, Victor Lindelof and Axel Tuanzebe in their pre-match training squad for their trip to Club Brugge.

AF COLUMN & DEPTH

Why Haaland can play for BVB in CL knockouts but Coutinho was ruled out in 2018?

Previously players signed in January were barred from representing two clubs in the Champions League or Europa League during the same season

Why did Barcelona not sign Dortmund's goal machine Haaland?

Erling Braut Haaland, the 19-year-old Borussia Dortmund forward taking Europe. by storm this season, was one of the players looked at by Barcelona as they search for a long-term heir for striker Luis Suarez. 

10-goal Haaland & Lewy... Contenders to take Messi & CR7’s UCL goalscoring crown

Neymar finished level with Messi and Ronaldo on 10 goals in 2015 but nobody other than the 'big two' has claimed the prize outright since Kaka in 2007. Will their monopoly be ended and who can be the top scorer of UCL this season?

Squad values in UCL R16: Four teams more than €1BN, Atalanta only worth €290m

VIDEO OF THE DAY

Never? Aubayanyanyan? Can you pronounce the complex football names correctly? 😂

Keeper picks phone up & answers call as derby abandoned after firework attack 🎥

FIXTURES OF THE DAY

UTC 2020/02/20 17:55   Ludogorets Razgrad vs Inter

UTC 2020/02/20 17:55   Club Brugge vs Man United

UTC 2020/02/20 17:55   Getafe vs Ajax

UTC 2020/02/20 20:00   Roma vs Gent

UTC 2020/02/20 20:00   Olympiacos vs Arsenal

UTC 2020/02/20 20:00   Wolvs Wanderers vs Espanyol