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          X factor players for all 16 UCL teams

          Cesc Fabregas will play a key role -- both in the attack and on defense -- in Chelsea's Champions League title bid. IAN KINGTON/AFP/Getty Images
          • Adrian Melville
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            • Joined ESPN in 2013 as a soccer Insider
            • Worked previously at NBC, Major League Soccer and Opta (UK)
            • Played college soccer at Princeton and professionally for the New England Revolution and Santo Andre, a second-division club in Brazil
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          Feb 17, 2015, 11:00 AM ET

          The knockout stage of the Champions League features a number of great matchups, and each of the 16 remaining teams will rely heavily on individual performances to advance to the later rounds.