Apologies for the hiatus, I've been busy with life however the draw of the Champions League knock-out stages deserves a post no matter how busy a person is! A great deal has taken place since Germany lifted the World Cup a couple months ago. However, we're on the road to Berlin as Bayern Munich, one of Germany's four club representatives to make it to this stage of the tournament, face Ukraine's Shakhtar Donetsk. In truth, the pairing has the potential to be one of the most lopsided of the round, with Bayern the clear favorites to proceed. Frankly, Shakhtar's performances up to this point have been minimalistic. The only times that they showed any sign of life was when they were absolutely hammering Belarus' BATE Borisov by seven and five goals respectively. While the Ukrainians did manage to give group leaders Porto a run for their money in the two matches that the teams had, they both ended in draws. Meanwhile, against a less-than-impressive Athletic Bilbao, Shakhtar suffered a 0-1 loss at home in addition to a 0-0 group opener. Compare that to the results of the German giants who won all but once in a group that consisted of major sides from England (Manchester City), Italy (Roma), and Russia (CSKA Moscow). That loss 3-2, somewhat understandably, came in Bayern's away fixture to City that saw Sergio Aguero play at a level that he probably wishes that he could have demonstrated in the World Cup Final match. I mean, what are the odds that someone will score another hat-trick against Bayern in this tournament?
Moving on, France's Paris Saint Germain (PSG) were the obvious heirs of Group F. Coming in second to Barcelona is never something to be ashamed of (unless you're Real Madrid), and England's Chelsea FC will have their hands full when they take on Zlatan Ibrahimovic and company. By their respective records, I would say that PSG are my slight favorites to progress to the next round. While Chelsea are technically undefeated, their two draws came against teams that - while good - are not great. The fact that German side Schalke 04 were able to hold the English giants to a 1-1 draw in September was an embarrassing moment for the Blues. However, they made up for lost time with a 5-0 drubbing of the Germans in Gelsenkirchen. Even harder to fathom was the fact that Slovenia's Maribor were able to stay level with Chelsea despite losing 6-0 to the English side in the preceding fixture! At best, these results indicate an inconsistency in Chelsea that PSG have not suffered from (at least, to the same extent). While the Parisian outfit did get off to a rocky start, tying 1-1 with the Netherlands' Ajax in the their opener back in September, they otherwise had a good run up until the final game of the group which determined that Barcelona were in fact the best team in the group.
As for Group B's victors Real Madrid, they may have gotten off relatively easy depending on which Schalke 04 side shows up for their matches. If it is the Schalke that rolled over last season at this round, or the one that were sorely beaten at home this term by the likes of Chelsea, I don't see much hope for the Germans. Real Madrid have been insatiable thus far, winning all of their Champions League games up to this point. In Group B, though, the Spaniards were not faced with any real challenges. Basel have a decent side this season - though on their day Schalke are probably better than the Swiss - but Liverpool are in a reconstruction period while Bulgaria's Ludogorets Razgrad were never going to do much damage (though they did prove their resolve in a victory over second place Basel!). One bright point that Schalke may see in the coming days is the fact that Madrid have had a few close calls away from home: they only barely edged the likes of Basel (in Switzerland) and Ludogorets (in Bulgaria). All the same, I fear that Schalke will go the way of Liverpool: defeats in both legs to the well-oiled machine that is Real Madrid.
Basel versus FC Porto is probably the tamest of the Round of 16 match-ups though also one of the closest. I think the Portuguese will ultimately triumph, though it won't be easy. Basel have firepower as well as being a compact side that can hold up to sides with greater star power. However, the fact that Porto will be riding high on an unbeaten record (they have drawn twice, both times against Shakhtar Donetsk) might give the northern Portuguese club all the encouragement they need. The Swiss are admittedly very good at home, but Porto have shown themselves to be more than capable road warriors! They won with cleansheets during their visits to Spain and Belarus, while they managed a point when they visited Lviv, Ukraine. With Yacine Brahimi and Jackson Martinez in the line-up, I think Porto will win a hard fought battle to the next round. Marek Suchy, Marco Streller, and others will put in some good performances for Switzerland's sole flag-bearer, but I'm not sure it'll be enough.
Perhaps the most tantalizing showdown will be between Manchester City and Barcelona. While the English have arguably been tested more strenuously thus far in the campaign, I think that Barcelona have shown themselves to be a side that will get the result no matter where they are. They've won all their home games, with their only defeat in the group coming from a formidable PSG who were only able to best them 3-2. City on the other hand have faltered throughout their struggle for qualification, though they began to sharpen up in their last two matches of the Group E fixture list. I would argue, though, that their only truly eye-opening result was against Bayern Munich (in Manchester) where they won 3-2. Perhaps City will win that way against Spanish opposition? Or maybe they'll just hiccup from September to early November. We'll just have to wait and see! I know I'll be rooting for Barcelona though.
Juventus v.s. Borussia Dortmund is the game that I am most interested in. I really enjoy watching both teams play, though I've been left scratching my head on a couple occasions with regards to both sides. For the Italians, their 1-0 loss to Atletico Madrid in Madrid was done gracefully, though the next fixture saw them lose to Greece's Olympiacos by the same margin! Drawing in the last game of the group with Atletico once more left me wanting more, though the fact that Juventus were through was what mattered. Not that they had nearly been snubbed by Olympiacos who were on 9 points to Juve's 10. With Dortmund on the other hand, they had been golden internationally, while suffering embarrassment domestically. While their domestic fortunes have slightly improved, they began faltering on the world stage in late November. They lost 2-0 to Arsenal in London, England (fair enough), but then tied with Anderlecht at home in Germany! Such up-and-down performances by both sides lead me to question whether they will get very far in the Champions League this year. However, in the present stage, I'm sure we'll see some great matches. I think Dortmund will win at home, meaning that Juventus will have to step up when they welcome the Germans to Turin, Italy. Will they be able to? I'm not so sure. I think Dortmund might just be a little better (internationally, that is) than their Italian counterparts. If Juve were a German team though? My money would be on them!
When Atletico Madrid take on Bayer Leverkusen this season, it'll be for an opportunity to get back into the Final. The Spaniards should be confident, they led their group and performed well in doing so. However, Atletico be warned: Leverkusen travel well. They only lost 1-0 away to group winners Monaco in the opener (losing by a similar score in the return fixture in Germany), and otherwise fought admirably in Russia - always a hard place to visit - and Portugal where they won and tied respectively. Atletico meanwhile proved less than insightful on the road. They lost in their first match of the group against Olympiacos (a 3-2 affair in Piraeus, Greece), before drawing 0-0 with Juventus in Turin, Italy. What does all this mean? That Leverkusen shouldn't be written off. Although they will miss Omer Toprak, with Bernd Leno in goal and the likes of Son Heung-Min and Robbie Kruse on the field, the Germans are a force to be reckoned with. Atletico do remain the favorites with Arda Turan, Mario Mandzukic, and Koke to name just a few of the players that the Spaniards can call upon. All I know for sure is that it'll be an exciting pair of games.
Last but in no way least we have AS Monaco (technically a French side though I'm not buying it) taking on England's own Arsenal. Neither side looked particularly overwhelming in their respective groups, though it should be noted that Monaco probably had the tougher group. From October to early November, the "French" side had a few snafus, dropping points against Zenit St. Petersburg and Benfica though they at least made up for the first mistake in the return leg in Monaco. In the last two matches of the group, Monaco were looking better: winning 0-1 in Leverkusen, and deconstructing Zenit 2-0 to seal the top group spot. Arsenal meanwhile had some defensive frailties throughout the group stage, though they only dropped points on two occasions: in the first group game against Dortmund and in London when Anderlecht kept pace with the Gunners for a 3-3 scoreline. All I can say from the above is that Arsenal can out-score Monaco if the need arises. The Gunners conceded double the number of goals that the "French" side scored (4), in the process scoring 15 of their own. For that reason alone I'd suggest that Arsenal might proceed at the expense of Monaco, though you never know when Dimitar Berbatov, Joao Moutinho, Ricardo Carvalho, Wallace, or Bernardo Silva will have a great match so it's possible that Monaco keeps the score low and takes care of business. With Maarten Stekelenburg and Danijel Subasic available in goal Monaco have the pedigree to put on a defensive performance. Enjoy the football!
