5 player duels to look forward to in the Champions League round of 16

The Champions League is back again, folks! Football a joyous affair no matter whenever you watch it, but you can't deny that late night games are the most exciting ones, especially if they are from the world's best club competition.

Following the draws held in December, the tournament has some mouth-watering fixtures in store for us in the Round of 16. It's just the second stage in the competition and there are a couple of titanic clashes that have come earlier than expected. These face-offs have made the Round of 16 more thrilling than usual.

Keeping in mind these battles of giants, let's have a look at five player duels that will decide the results of certain fixtures.

---

#5 Alex Telles - Mohamed Salah

Sure, the clashes of Real Madrid and Barcelona will be the cynosure of everyone's eyes in this round, but it would be unjust to turn a blind eye towards Liverpool's skirmish against Porto.

Both sides have had a decent group stage voyage, having garnered three wins each en route to the Round of 16. The clash is set to be a 50-50 for sure, but the battle between Mohamed Salah and Alex Telles will be crucial in deciding the upshot of the game.

Left-back Telles has been in fine form for the Portuguese champions, having assisted 10 goals in all competitions this season. The defender has already attracted interest from a host of giants, thanks to his impressive performances on the flanks of his side.

However, facing the Egyptian star will probably be the biggest challenge for him this season. Salah's exploits in England need no special mention and he will be expected to make a major difference as the Merseysiders visit Estádio do Dragão.

Apart from the goal-scoring threat Salah will impose on his opponents, Alex Telles will be required to pay special attention to his electrifying pace on the flanks.

Both players came face to face in last season's Champions League playoffs where Porto eventually emerged as winners, defeating Roma 4-1 on aggregate.Telles did a good job keeping Salah quite back then, but with the Egyptian now in the form of his life, the Brazilian definitely requires to do a good homework, if he is to turn the tie in Porto's favour.

#4 Giorgio Chiellini - Harry Kane

Harry Kane outsmarted Giorgio Chiellini in a friendly last year

Juventus versus Tottenham is one of those fixtures bound to garner attention. The indispensable duel between in Harry Kane and Giorgio Chiellini will be crucial to the result.

Harry Kane has continued his mesmerising charm this season, having found the net 32 times in all the competitions. Considering the terrific form he is in, it will be more than interesting to see what culminates when he comes up against defence master Giorgio Chiellini.

The Bianconeri will require the Italian to take a good care of Kane and Co. to edge the Lilywhites in the first leg. Also, the striker's recent goals against bigshots Liverpool and Arsenal means he will come to the Juventus stadium with a brimming confidence, which is an indirect drawback for the defenders.

The Englishman has enough pressure on his plate, knowing the fact that even if he does get past Chiellini, there's another formidable opponent in Gigi Buffon between the sticks waiting to neutralise his shots. However, he scored just 10 minutes into the time when Spurs met Juventus in a friendly last year; a memory that will surely help him stay optimistic for the clash.

No matter what, Chiellini versus Kane is going to be crucial and exhilarating to watch.

#3 N'Golo Kante - Andres Iniesta

Andres Iniesta will pose a considerable threat to Chelsea

Chelsea's form has been worrying of late, but that doesn't mean Ernesto Valverde's men can rest assured dreaming about ousting the English side. At least, their history with the Blues (3 draws and 2 losses from last 5 games) won't let them stay calm and relaxed.

There are a number of individuals battles you can outline in this fixture such as Eden Hazard vs Jordi Alba or Lionel Messi vs David Luiz/Andreas Christensen, but the fray in the middle of the park will be the most crucial activity for both the teams.

Alongside a trusted comrade in Cesc Fabregas, Frenchman N'Golo Kante will come up against midfield wizard Andres Iniesta and general Sergio Busquets when Barca visit Stamford Bridge next week.

Battles are won and lost in the midfield, and how the diminutive Chelsea anchorman manages to keep Iniesta quiet will hold crucial to the Blues' efforts to scrap a win in the clash. He might be 34 but the Spanish magician still boasts the muscle to win games on his own; a fact Antonio Conte needs to keep in mind prior to the fixture.

Barcelona's midfield is the telling strength of their attacking endeavours and since Coutinho is cup-tied, the responsibility of providing the openings for strikers to score automatically falls on Iniesta's shoulders. In N'Golo Kante, he has a sturdy opponent to defeat before he can carry out his usual creative role.

This midfield war will be important especially to Chelsea more than to Barca. Back in 2013, the way in which Bastian Schweinsteiger and Javi Martinez neutralised the Xavi-Iniesta combination in the middle proved to be a vital factor for their famous 7-0 thumping of the Catalans. Surely, the English outfit will benefit a lot by taking a leaf out of that fixture.

Barca are the outright favourites to win this clash but should N'Golo Kante prevail against Andres Iniesta, who knows, the results might actually turn out different than expected.

#2 Cristiano Ronaldo - Dani Alves

An old rivalry that will be reignited in the clash

Real Madrid's face-off against Paris Saint Germain is the most awaited fixture in this round. Frankly speaking, it won't be surprising if the number of neutrals watching this game turns out to be greater than those of the supporters of both sides combined, thanks to the hype that surrounds it.

As Les Parisiens travel to Madrid this week, there's another historic rivalry waiting to be reignited - that of Cristiano Ronaldo and Dani Alves.

Both megastars have an illustrious past between them, having come up against each other a number times during the Brazilian's time at Nou Camp. Ronaldo and Alves will leave no stone unturned in their efforts to trounce each other when they come face to face yet again.

Cristiano Ronaldo's story of downfall this season needs no retelling, however, his recent exploits of 7 goals and 2 assists in the last 4 games have put him exactly in the state he needs to be in - appearing lethal and brimming with confidence. On the other hand, his nemesis has successfully defied his ageing body and been in top form as usual.

Dani Alves' discipline has been questionable this season and he will need to be extra cautious with his tackles when Ronaldo tries to bulldoze past him by cutting inside. Keeping him quiet in the game will be challenging, but the Brazilian's invaluable experience coupled with the desire to avenge the Champions League final defeat will do more than enough to drive him to his utmost best against CR7.

Amongst a number of duels we will see in this game, the winner between Ronaldo and Alves is sure to have a considerable effect on the scoreboard and eventually, the outcome.

#1 Neymar - Nacho

Nacho will shoulder the greatest responsibility - silencing Neymar

Such is the magnitude of the game, it feels unjust to talk about just one among a number of exciting individual encounters.

Dani Carvajal's expulsion due to a red card means Zidane will probably deputise Nacho Fernandez instead of the inexperienced Achraf Hakimi on the right flank. The Spanish right-back has a monumental responsibility to shoulder when he comes up against Neymar at the Bernabeu.

Neymar is undoubtedly in the form of his life, scoring belters week in week out for the French outfit. He will be the chief threat to Los Merengues' woeful defence and all Zidane can do is pray that Nacho handles him well on the pitch. Adding to his headache is the fact that the highest share of PSG's attacks have come from the left side (37%) where Neymar plays.

For the Spaniard, the task of facing Neymar is daunting and difficult of course, but not impossible. He has always been undervalued in spite of churning out impressive performances for Los Blancos, but successfully containing the Selecao skipper could well be his ticket to the fame that he deserves.

Of course, there are Edinson Cavani and Kylian Mbappe in line to be taken care of, but silencing Neymar will certainly reduce a mammoth burden of pressure on the shoulders of Madrid's defenders.

It will be exciting to see which of the two emerges victorious and should it be the Spaniard, why, the results will be affected to a considerable extent.