Right, here’s our take on the Champions League draw.
I’ll be back shortly with the Europa League quarter-final draw. Yes, Liverpool fans, I’m talking to you.
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Well, some intriguing ties there. Barcelona v Atlético stands out for me. Atlético have been beaten twice by Barça in La Liga this season but they just have an incredible way of frustrating teams in Europe. It might not be pretty but it will test the creative and swashbuckling power of Barcelona’s MSN more than any other tie.
As for Manchester City, well, they may benefit from PSG having already won Ligue 1. Bayern have had a habit of switching off once their domestic season has been wrapped up. Will PSG do the same? Man City will certainly hope so. Laurent Blanc’s challenge will be to keep the intensity levels up until three weeks’ time.
@Bluemoondan @MCFC game of throne #PSG pic.twitter.com/VNleR86GyW
— Arnotovic (@ArnoMAZFU) March 18, 2016
Will they rock up in Manchester looking like this? I hope so.
See you soon @MCFC ... #UCLDraw #DreamBigger pic.twitter.com/YQBJpJidRX
— PSG English (@PSG_English) March 18, 2016
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The quarter-final draw in full
Wolfsburg v Real Madrid
Bayern Munich v Benfica
Barcelona v Atlético Madrid
PSG v Manchester City
The first legs will be played on 5-6 April, with the second legs played on 12-13 April.
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And, of course, it’s PSG v Manchester City. Ibrahimovic and co make their way back over to England. They like it here.
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It’s Barcelona v Atlético Madrid. It’s attack versus defence. Oof!
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Next up: Bayern Munich v Benfica. So no reunions and no Etihad trip for Pep.
It’s Wolfsburg v Real Madrid first out of the pot! Zidane will be happy with that.
The draw!
Here we go …
Some pedantry: “If Barcelona play Madrid and both matches are drawn, they will both remain undefeated,” says Pablo Miguez. Well, I suppose so Pablo but whoever loses on penalties won’t feel like they’ve kept their unbeaten record. Ah, there wouldn’t necessarily be penalties would there? Anyway, someone would have to lose.
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Oh hang on, it’s Giorgio Marchetti doing the draw. He looks like a little Claudio Ranieri. Pedro was just there to glam it up a bit with his dashing good looks and booming voice. Giorgio will be assisted by Gianluca Zambrotta of Juve, Barcelona and Milan fame. He wasn’t bad was he? He’ll be trusted to pluck the balls out without dropping them.
With Champions League tombola-overlord Gianni Infantino installed as Fifa head-honcho these days, I’m guessing ball-plucking duties will remain with Michael Heselschwerdt, who oversaw the Europa League last-16 draw capably enough and even supplied us with the Liverpool v Man Utd tie. Hopefully he’ll deliver again today. I do miss Gianni, though. Oh, hang on, It’s Pedro Pinto on presenting duty. I’ve been on the Football Weekly podcast with Pedro. Maybe I could present the semi-final draw. or Barry Glendenning. Or maybe not. Anyway, poor Michael, dropped for the big occasion.
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Here are the Champions league 2015-16 season records of the teams left:
Real Madrid: W7 D1 L0 F23 A3
PSG: W6 D1 L1 F16 A3
Manchester City: W5 D1 L2 F15 A9
Wolfsburg: W6 D0 L2 F10 A5
Benfica: W5 D1 L2 F13 A9
Bayern: W6 D1 L1 F25 A7
Barcelona: W6 D2 L0 F20 A5
Atlético Madrid: W4 D3 L1 F11 A3
So Barça and Real are the only teams who haven’t lost. A clásico would damage at least one of those undefeated records.
Luis Enrique has been busy blowing the Barça trumpet before the draw: “The only team I wouldn’t want to draw is Barça and we can’t get them,” honked the Barça manager.
Hello. So 16 becomes eight – and it’s quite an interesting eight too. You have the usual suspects in Bayern, Barça, Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid, the ever-more fearsome force of PSG, the in-form Portuguese league-leaders, Benfica (14 wins in their last 15 games), demob happy Manuel Pellegrini’s Manchester City … and Wolfsburg, who are defying the odds somewhat given that their league form is poor. Of the eight, four of them are reigning league champions, Barça, Benfica, PSG and Bayern.
This time last year, PSG drew Barcelona and Real and Atlético were also drawn together. Pep could travel back to the past if Bayern are drawn against Barcelona, or into the future if they face a trip to Manchester City at the Etihad.
The team I’d hate to face most (if I managed an elite European football club, that is), other than Barcelona for obvious reasons, is Atlético. They just don’t concede goals. A very handy tactic in Europe.
There are no seedings for the last eight-draw and no country restrictions either. The teams drawn first will play the first leg of their ties at home.
The first legs will be played on 5-6 April, with the second legs played on 12-13 April.
The quarter-final draw lineup
And then there were eight...#UCLdraw live stream from 12CET: https://t.co/5cvhaCgpWP pic.twitter.com/RvSoSUF5cc
— Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) March 18, 2016
Benfica (Portugal), PSG (France), Real Madrid (Spain), Wolfsburg (Germany), Manchester City (England), Atlético Madrid (Spain), Barcelona (Spain),Bayern Munich (Germany).
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