Groundhog Day may not arrive until Monday, February 2, but for two soccer teams experiencing a case of déjà vu, it feels like it’s come early.
The draws for the knockout stages of the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League were revealed on Friday, bringing forth matchups that would likely make Phil Connors, the jaded weatherman from “Groundhog Day,” nod in understanding.
The most striking clash in the Champions League is the repeat fixture between Real Madrid and Benfica, who recently faced off in the group phase. A dramatic last-minute header from Benfica’s goalkeeper, Anatoliy Trubin, kept José Mourinho’s squad in the running.
However, these two are not the only teams poised for a rematch in the knockout phases of European competition.
Bulgaria’s Ludogorets and Hungary’s Ferencváros have been drawn to compete against one another over two legs in the Europa League playoffs, marking a historic moment as they prepare to meet for the fourth and fifth time this season, despite participating in separate domestic leagues.
According to research from ESPN Global, this marks the first occasion where the same two teams will face each other five times in a single season within European competitions, although teams have previously met four times on 32 occasions.
The rivalry kicked off in August when Ludogorets and Ferencváros clashed in the third qualifying round of the Champions League, with the first match ending in a 0-0 draw in Razgrad, Bulgaria, followed by a 3-0 victory for Ferencváros in Budapest a week later.
However, Ferencváros encountered defeat against FK Qarabag in the final qualifying round, thus descending into the Europa League.
The two teams faced off once more during the league phase on November 6, resulting in another victory for Ferencváros, this time with a score of 3-1.
After both clubs ended up midtable in the Europa League group stage, they were again drawn together for the playoffs, with the first leg scheduled for February 18/19 at Ludogorets and the return leg one week later on February 25/26 at Ferencváros.
The silver lining for both squads is that the upcoming fifth matchup will provide a chance to break free from this repetitive cycle—one will move on to the round of 16, while the other will exit the European scene.