Champions League: Five Teams with Best Historical Performances

In the ongoing season, the defending champions Chelsea are accompanied by Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Liverpool, Manchester City, Atletico Madrid, Villarreal and Benfica in the last eight of the competition.

The best historical performances delivered are highly dependent on the number of times a team has advanced to the quarterfinals stage. Having said that, here are five teams with remarkable historical performances since the Champions League got re-branded in 1992.

Juventus

These Italian legends have left a lasting impact on European football. The Turin-based side has appeared in 12 quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League since the beginning of the competition in 1992. They carried the trophy in 1995-96 but haven't won the title ever since. They lost the summit clashes in 1997, 1998, 2003, 2015 and 2017. They reached the quarterfinals in 2019 but lost to Ajax side 3-2 on aggregate. They are considered the second most successful team in Europe after AC Milan. However, in the last three seasons, they were evicted in the Round of 16 stages against Olympique Lyonnais, FC Porto and Villarreal.

Manchester United

Fan favorite Manchester United have made 14 appearances in the quarterfinals of the league. The Red Devils marched to glory in the competition in 2008 after beating Chelsea on penalties in Moscow. They subsequently lost the 2009 and 2011 finals to Pep Guardiola's Barcelona, who beat them again but in the quarterfinals in 2019. Unfortunately, they have failed to perform well in the last four seasons where they have qualified only twice. They were defeated in this year's Round of 16 by Spanish champions Atletico Madrid.

Real Madrid

Real Madrid are one of the best teams in Europe and are the side with the most UEFA Champions League victories in the history of the competition. They have pulled through to the quarterfinals 18 times in 30 years. They won three consecutive titles in 2016, 2017, and 2018. Los Blancos entered the semifinals in the previous season before succumbing to the winners of 2020-21 Chelsea. In the ongoing edition, they sent star-studded Paris Saint-Germain 3-2 in the Round of 16 to qualify to the last eight. They have clinched 13 trophies times in total and seven times since 1992. They won in 1998, 2000, 2002, 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018.

Barcelona

Spanish icons Barcelona are in close competition with seven-time titleholders Real Madrid. They have made 18 quarterfinal appearances since its inception in 1992. They won the competition back in 2015 which was followed by good performances in 2018 and 2019 although they lost in the latter stages. In 2020, they suffered a record-breaking 8-2 aggregate defeat to Bayern Munich in the quarterfinals. Barcelona have won the title four times after 1992 - 2006, 2009, 2011 and 2015.

Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich have made the most appearances in the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League since 1992. Reputed to be the most successful German side, they have reached the quarterfinals 20 times in 30 seasons. They won their last trophy in 2020 after defeating Paris-Saint-German in the final. They have only been knocked out once in the last 10 years with Liverpool defeating them in 2018-19. Since 1992, there have been three victories recorded in their names - 2001, 2013 and 2020.