Manchester City became the latest team to book their place in the quarter-finals of the Champions League after they secured a 6-2 aggregate win over FC Copenhagen on Wednesday.
Goals from Manuel Akanji, Julian Alvarez and Erling Haaland saw Pep Guardiola's side defeat the Danish champions 3-1 at the Etihad Stadium, three weeks after they had won the first leg by an equal scoreline.
That victory means City, the reigning holders, join Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid in securing their place in the last eight of the competition, with either Arsenal or Porto, Barcelona or Napoli, Atletico Madrid or Inter Milan and Borussia Dortmund or PSV Eindhoven set to join complete the star-studded quarter-final line-up after the second legs of their ties last week.
Following City's win at the Etihad, here's how the national media, and the Manchester Evening News' Simon Bajkowski, reacted to the win.
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'The phoney wars are ending'
In the Independent, Richard Jolly wrote: "For Manchester City, the Champions League tends to start in earnest in the quarter-finals these days.
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"The defending champions cruised through to the last eight for a seventh successive season. Now, finally, it gets tougher. City’s propensity to win weak groups and draw one of the lesser lights in the last 16 can delay the meaningful contests.
"FC Copenhagen were brushed aside, as they were always going to be, while Pep Guardiola granted nearly all of his strongest side some kind of rest before their visit to Liverpool.
"For City, the Premier League, like the Champions League, is about to become more difficult, too. The phoney wars are ending."
'City remain the Champions League favourites'
In the Telegraph, Jason Burt wrote: "City now join the giants in the last eight – with Bayern Munich, Paris St-Germain and Real Madrid also there – which will be an open draw. But the holders remain the favourites and rightly so.
"There was another record here as they became the first team in the history of all European competitions to score at least three goals in nine consecutive home games. And there were more landmarks: it is 22 matches unbeaten in Europe and this is also their seventh successive quarter-final, the best run of any club at present.
"But the focus, as so often, was on Haaland, who has 18 goals in 18 Champions League games for City and is the only player – ever – to maintain a ratio of more than a goal a game (1.11). Not even Lionel Messi (0.79) or Cristiano Ronaldo (0.77) can boast that, while Haaland’s nearest contemporary, Kylian Mbappe, is at 0.67 goals per game and it looked like Guardiola kept him longer on the pitch than was necessary to see if he could improve that yet further.
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"Even so it is now 29 goals for the season for Haaland, six in this competition – level with Mbappe and Harry Kane – and the first time since October he has scored in three successive games. Can he make it four? If so it will have to be at Anfield on Sunday against Liverpool and this run-out was the ideal preparation for such a momentous match."
'City earned the right to rotate'
In the Daily Mail, Jack Gaughan wrote: "Manchester City have warmed up nicely for Anfield. Warm in the sense that most of the main protagonists spent all or some of last night under blankets.
"City earned the right by how they performed in Copenhagen three weeks ago, an almost flawless away display in Europe where they strangled high octane opposition in a stadium that has consumed others.
"Earned the right to make seven changes and still breeze into the Champions League’s last eight for a seventh consecutive year, Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United the only other English team to have managed that before.
"It’s 10 wins on the bounce, something previously achieved by just Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. Some company."
'Haaland is fighting fit for Anfield'
In the Manchester Evening News, Simon Bajkowski wrote: "If that shows how serious City are about winning as many titles as possible this season - and the fact they cruised to victory over their Danish opponents indicated the decision was more than justified - it was interesting to see Haaland stay on for so long. Even with the game meandering in the second half and so little being created for the striker, Guardiola did not take his star man off until the 88th minute when there was barely any time left.
"Leaving Haaland on for so long was possibly more of a statement than resting the likes of Foden and De Bruyne for the evening as City's star continues back from injury. Resting him could only have been taken one way, but having another match and goal under his belt has certainly sent the message that he is fighting fit for Sunday.
"That match will tell us far more about where City are at, but an eighth successive Champions League quarter-final should not be shrugged off either. No other side in Europe will fancy the defending champions in the draw when it happens a week on Friday.
"Whatever intrigue remains around the team, they head into the first weekend in March in two quarter-finals and within a point of the league leaders so they have at least been good enough to put themselves and their season into a similar position. With Haaland leading the line, the team unbeaten in 20 and Rodri unbeaten in 59, City are again looking strong.'