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The Champions League draw has provided us with some really exciting matchups, with a few rivalries renewed and European heavyweights going up against each other.Although it is quite early to make predictions given that over 2 months separate today and the day the first leg of the first match of the knockouts kicks off, let’s take a preliminary look at the fixture and see how these teams have shaped up over the course of the season.
#8 Basel vs Porto
Although there isnt much stardust in this clash, it allows for favorable viewing to a neutral football fan as 2 teams from Europes unfancied leagues face off in a bid to make a deep run in the competition after a long time, as neither has featured in the quarterfinals for a long time.
Probably the surprise packages of the tournament so far given that they are among the 3 unbeaten teams along with Chelsea and Real Madrid, Porto are a team on the rise having scored 16 goals in the competition (tied second with Real Madrid). They havebouncedback from last seasons disappointments to be the only Portuguese team to qualify for the Champions League knockout stages.
Still trailing Benfica in the league after a loss in the O Clasico, however, Porto have a few concerns at the back, as demonstrated in the matches against Shakhtar, with both ending as score draws. Yacine Brahimi presents a significant threat from attacking midfield, and Jackson Martinez, should he stay at the club through the January transfer window, is one of the most accomplished finishers plying their trade in the continent.
Basel will be looking to capitalize on their domestic form, as they are 8 points clear of closest rivals Young Boys and Zurich. Though they failed to beat Real Madrid in their group encounters, they posed a significant goal threat in both matches with captain Marco Streller and Fabian Frei shining for them.
Given their defeat of Liverpool at home, plus their ability to turn it on in crucial matches as they have previously shown in the competition, they should be a tough team to beat. Taulant Xhaka, the diminutive Swiss playmaker is among their biggest attacking threats, and Fabian Schar is a rock at the back.
#7 Arsenal vs Monaco
An intriguing matchup as 2 teams which are not in the best positions in their league campaigns do battle for a place in the quarterfinals. Arsenal will begin as favorites considering their superiority in midfield and attack, but Monaco are a tough proposition to be up against, as Zenit found out to their cost. Arsene Wenger would want to come away from his old hunting grounds with a victory in this one.
Monaco must surely be one of the most uninspiring teams to ever make the Round of 16, let alone do it as group winners. With their project now haywire with the departures of James Rodriguez and Radamel Falcao in the summer, they must have been buoyed by their 11 points in 6 games as they progressed through with the best defensive record, with just 1 goal conceded and 5 clean sheets in 6 games. This shows how theyve adapted to life without their 2 best attackers.
Leonardo Jardim has done a commendable job to change the emphasis of the side from an attacking style to a more realistic one given their losses, and Monaco seem to be this season what Malaga provided football fans with their tasteful run 2 seasons ago, pioneered by Isco and guided along by Manuel Pellegrini.
Arsenal began their campaign with a horrible defeat at Borussia Dortmund, with a scoreline of 2-0 barely reflecting the gulf in class that day. Ever since, theyve improved as the group stages progressed, and they finished the campaign with a 2-0 home win of their own against Dortmund and a 4-1 defeat of Galatasaray, with Aaron Ramsey scoring the goal of the competition so far.
Their goal difference of +7 was not good enough to overcome Dortmunds +10, however, and Arsene Wenger must be a relieved man to have finally gotten a favorable draw for the Round of 16, having been knocked out for 4 successive seasons at the same stage.
In Alexis Sanchez, Olivier Giroud, the soon-to-return Theo Walcott and Danny Welbeck, they have got goals in them, and should Mesut Ozil start displaying some of his best form, Arsenal will be a watchable side.
#6 Shakhtar Donetsk vs Bayern Munich
A matchup that sees Bayern Munich as hot favourites given their pedigree in Europe over the last few years and Shakhtars shaky defense, it should be a watchable contest as both teams play an upfront, attacking style of play that should guarantee lots of goals.
The pre-tournament favorites alongside Real Madrid, Bayern have produced some vintage football under Guardiolas reign this season as theyve adapted a more incisive, testing and adventurous approach in many matches in contrast to last year, when there was more emphasis on moving the ball around the park. A solid defense spearheaded by Ballon DOr shortlisted Neuer and well shepherded by Jerome Boateng gives them a great foundation.
With Arjen Robben in great form, Lewandowski finally settling into the Bayern red and Mario Gotze hitting top gear, Bayern are a frightful prospect for any team right now, given that they will almost have their full complement of players back including Alaba and Lahm.
Even in the game they lost at the Etihad Stadium to Manchester City, except for the mistakes which led to goals for the Mancunians, Bayern looked more than comfortable playing with 10 men for most of the game, bossing the proceedings. With 15 points off 6 games, Bayern go into the round of 16 as group winners for the 4thseason in succession.
Shakhtar do have some dynamite of their own in Luiz Adriano, who scored 9 goals in 5 outings for them equalling Cristiano Ronaldos record for most goals scored in the Champions League group stage, set last season itself. In support they have Alex Teixeira, who played a crucial role 2 seasons ago in ensuring their progress through the group stages; Bernard, the diminutive but pacy winger bought last season from Atletico Mineiro and Taison in midfield.
Darijo Srna, even at the age of 32, continues his bombing raids down the right hand side and is still among Europes top fullbacks, and continues to be underrated as he has been all his life.
Shakhtars best hope would be to commit men behind the ball and hope to catch Bayern on the counter, something that has worked well for more talented teams, but remains the lone feasible option for them.
#5 Schalke 04 vs Real Madrid
One of the 2 matchups straight out of last seasons draws, Real Madrid are pitted against Schalke, playing their away leg first again.It must surely make for torrid viewing to Schalke, who were sent packing with a cumulative 9-2 score after the tie ended last season, and little seems to have changed this season.
Whatever initial jitters the reigning champions displayed in their initial weeks of the campaign did not carry over to the Champions League, because Real Madrid decimated Liverpool, Ludogorets and Basel and emerged with 16 goals in 6 matches as the only team with a 100% record in the group stages.
In the midst of a marauding, record-breaking 19-game winning streak, they have adapted to life without Angel di Maria and Xabi Alonso under the expert maneuvering of manager Carlo Ancelotti, one of the nominees for FIFA Coach of the Year. Their overwhelming superiority in the group is shown by the fact that 2nd-placed Basel who got 7 points, are 11 points behind Madrid.
Schalke qualified on the last match day, requiring Sporting Lisbon to lose to Chelsea while they hemmed and hawed their way to a victory against Maribor away. They are the leakiest defense to qualify for the last 16, shipping 14 goals in 6 matches. Clearly, Metzelder seems to not have adequately been replaced since he left the club in 2013.
Schalke do have a good frontline, though, with Choupo-Moting in great form, while Klaas Jan Huntelaar and Julian Draxler, along with Max Meyer and Kevin-Prince Boateng are some of the better options they can call up to muster a more-than-decent attack.
#4 Juventus vs Borussia Dortmund
One of the marquee clashes of the Round of 16, this is a rematch of the 1997 Champions League final which Dortmund won 3-1 against Zinedine Zidane, Alessandro del Piero and co. Like that occasion, Juventus go into this clash as slight favorites as of now, given their domestic form and Dortmunds lack of it. Its tough to count out Dortmund, though, given their penchant for coming good against big teams.
For the second season running, Borussia Dortmund have beatenArsenal in the raceto secure top spot in their group, a handy advantage to have. Although their domestic form in the opening 100 days of the season has been woeful, Dortmund have managed to display some sort of organization and play to their strengths in the continent, where big wins against Galatasaray and one against Anderlecht ensured a good goal difference of +10, which proved to be the difference between them and the group runners-up.
They will hope to have Reus back and firing by the time the next round will commence, so that Dortmund, provided they stay clear of injury, can finally play with their full complement of players in over an year.
A change in management this summer saw former Milan boss Allegrii takeover at the Bianconeri. So far, he looks to have done a fine job as Juventus maintain a one-point lead in the Serie A standings in the face of an improved Roma side who ran them close last season too, domestically.
Allegri began the season in the same setup as Conte had set Juve up last season, but after 4 group stage games, he changed tack to switch from a 3-5-2 formation to 4 at the back. Barzagli has, since then, dropped out of the lineup to accomodate a midfielder.
Juventus finished 2ndin a group in which they were expected to lock heads with Atletico for group supremacy. They, however, slipped to defeats to both Olympiacos and Atletico, requiring a final day finish to qualify from Group A. Carlos Tevez and Llorente have come into their own this season and Juve look a formidable side to deal with right now, though, and that shouldnt change come matchday.
#3 Bayer Leverkusen vs Atletico Madrid
One of the non-marquee matchups, it is one where defense and aerial ability reigns supreme asLeverkusen (274) and Atletico (235) both contested the most aerial duels of any side still in the Champions League this season.
The 2 have met before in the 2010/11 Europa League group stages, a time when Sergio Aguero and Diego Forlan still played for the Madrid side and Ballack was a competent professional coming off a double-winning season with Chelsea. Obviously, a lot of changes have taken place ever since, and Atletico should go into this fixture as the more confident side.
Do not be lulled into thinking otherwise: despite their not-so-glamorous start to the season, Atletico Madrid remain one of the biggest threats in Europe, courtesy mainly the effort they exert on the defensive side of the game something other contenders and pretenders ought to take a leaf out of.
Atleti lost one of the best fullbacks in the world in Felipe Luis to Chelsea, and yet they are as stingy as ever. Even losing Courtois hasnt hurt as Moya has done quite well between the sticks. Atletico beat competition from Juventus to emerge as group winners. A defeat at Olympiakos aside, under Simeone, they retain their ability to get the job done and execute a proper game plan to stifle oppositions, something which marks them as tricky opponents for any side.
Leverkusen beat Andre Villas Boas-ledZenit St. Petersburg to finish second in a group consisting of AS Monaco and Benfica too. 10 points in 6 games is a decent return, and although Bayer look slightly weaker than last season with a few departures, new recruit Hakan Calhanoglu represents one of German footballs biggest talents, and his set piece delivery combined with Bayers prowess at set pieces makes them a side to watch out for.
With a solid keeper in Bernd Leno, Gonzalo Castro and Lars Benderin midfield, with Stefan Kiessling and Son Heung-Min to look to in strike, they represent a good lineup with experience and quality.
#2 Manchester City vs Barcelona
Probably the matchup with the greatest number of starsand the most even of the marquee matchups, Barcelona face Manchester City in a repeat of last years competition, one that ended with Barcelona triumphing 4-1 on aggregate as City floundered and failed to cope up with Barcas forward play.
Barcelona have had a good start to their season. Not their best ever, but certainly not too shabby either. With a period of transition kicking in asthe twilight of Xavis career approaches, they have successfully integrated Ivan Rakitic into the squad.
Rakitic and Iniestas penetration has given Barcelona the edge in midfield that allows them to continue to boss games in the middle of the park as they did in earlier seasons, and with Messi in stupendous form, Neymar in the best finishing form of his career and Suarez slowly coming into his own.
Barcelona will not be an entirely welcome prospect to play against. They dostill have issues in defense, which is very much a work in progressand a selection headache in defensive midfield over the selection of Busquets in competition to Mascherano. Jeremy Mathieu seems to be more comfortable playing centrally, whereas Pique has had a stop-start season and has failed to nail down a starting berth.
Barcelona ended their Champions League campaign with an emphatic 3-1 home victory against PSG that gave them top spot in Group F.
Manchester City have had a far tougher route to the Round of 16, and at one point, they seemed the unlikeliest team to progress from their group as they stared down the barrel with 2 points in 4 games after a home defeat to CSKA Moscow had consigned them to the last spot in Group E, the Group of Death. They rallied, however, courtesy a memorable hat-trick from Sergio Aguero, to comeback and beat Bayern 3-2 at home before going on to beat Roma 2-0 away, confirming second spot in the group.
Thatthey beat Romawith notable absentees like Vincent Kompany, Yaya Toure, David Silva and Sergio Aguero, the 4 players commonly viewed as Citys best and most dependable, should be an indication of their strength in depth, something Barcelona should be wary of.
Stevan Jovetic looks in much better form this season, and with the ever-dependable Dzeko present, Milner and Lampard to call upon at times of need and Navas keeping opposition leftbacks honest, City would definitely be nobodys dream team to face.
#1 Paris Saint Germain vs Chelsea
Last year, the matchup between Chelsea and Paris Saint Germain saw great battles fought on the pitch and great banter off it. Fans and neutral onlookers alike will hope for more of the same as Jose Mourinho renews his rivalry with PSG, who are led by the enigmatic Zlatan on the pitch and managed by Laurent Blanc off it.
Chelsea were in full flow in the group stages having outscored all other teams with 17 goals in 6 matches. Sitting atop the Premier League standings, they have been a force to reckon with in the Champions League too, only failing to win against Schalke in their opening home fixture. Although handed an easy group, they ensured qualification to the Round of 16 happened with the minimum of fuss.
Hazard, Fabregas, Matic and Diego Costa have been their lynchpins and have displayed great consistency: Fabregas, in particular, looks ominously good, playing with the same freedom and expressing himself as he did in the best years of his career at Arsenal. Oscar, too, having shaken off early-season rust, is getting right up to speed and this years squad looks all set and geared to at least match last years run in Europe. John Terry, Gary Cahill, Branislav Ivanovic and Cesar Azpilicueta/Filipe Luis (whoever plays) comprise of a back four that is as good as any in the whole of Europe, and this is an area where Chelsea will hope to assert their superiority against the French champions.
Paris, on the other hand, have not been at their very best this season. Missing David Luiz, Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic for significant swathes of the season, they have failed to stamp their authority in Ligue 1, trailing pace-setters Marseille in second place.
At the European stage, they began well, beating Barcelona at home 3-2 after being held to a 1-1 draw away at Ajax. Their hopes of progressing as group winners were put paid to, however, as Barcelona exploited defensive mistakes to win 3-1 at home and consign PSG to second place.
Thiago Silva does not look in the best of form, and David Luiz has withered away a good start alongside Marquinhos to look like his old self once more. PSG have hope from their midfield, however, with their trio of Thiago Motta, Marco Verratti and Blaise Matuidi as good as any in Europe. Even their backup options in Cabaye, Pastore and Chantome are capable of causing significant damage and are in a good vein of form.
Although Ibrahimovic continues to be their biggest attacking threat, the emergence of Lucas Moura this season and Edinson Cavanis aerial presence will still be a large factor in why PSG will look ahead to this tie with optimism.
