- Roo Legend: Rooney Retires from England duty!
- Australasia gets represented in the Premier League this year!
- Sanchez in North London, Where Have We Heard That Before?
- Sigurdsson Sale: Swansea could face Ragnarok after losing Thor!
- 2017/18 Premier League Predictions!
- PSG set to trigger record Neymar Fee!
- Mourinho thrives with a Prag-Matic approach!
- The Loan Ranger: Game of Loans!
- Rome(-lu) Wasn’t Built In A Day, But Hernandez Is Heading Hammers Way!
- Man United, Arsenal, and Huddersfield are all in a dash to splash the cash!
Champions League Quarterfinal draw: guide and predictions
The 2013/2014 Champions League Quarterfinal draws provided no pushovers and no weak sides yet still could leave us with some incredible twists and turns from the cream of European football.
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Manchester United v Bayern Munich
Manchester United barely scraped past Olympiakos in the Round of 16, so it seems ludicrous to even give the English Champions a chance against Bayern Munich, reigning champions of the competition . However, it goes without saying that the German champions have looked slightly more shaky at this point in the competition than they did last season with losses to Manchester City, Arsenal and a slight 1-0 win at Victoria Plzen in previous rounds. But their league form has been nothing short of incredible, with Bayern extending their unbeaten record in the Bundesliga to 50 matches just last weekend. Pep Guariola’s side have scored 28 goals in the last seven of those matches, compared to the 10 United have scored in their last seven.
The Red Devil’s might even suffer worse than Spanish champions Barcelona, who were scalped 7-0 on aggregate by Bayern in last season’s semifinals, having had their confidence shattered in the wake of news that star forward Robin van Persie will miss both legs of the tie through injury. In short, it would take something of the likes of United’s dramatic 1999 Champions League final win over Bayern for David Moyes’ side to even have a chance of beating the newly crowned world champions.
1 – Since the 1999 CL final, Man Utd have won just one of their six Champions League encounters with Bayern Munich (W1 D2 L3). Background.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 21, 2014
“I have probably drawn out the favorites. They are the holders so it is a really tough draw for us but it’s one I am looking forward to.” – Manchester United manager David Moyes
Winner: Bayern Munich
Paris Saint-Germain v Chelsea
Paris Saint-Germain looked strong in their Group and Round of 16 ties, but with Bayer Leverkusen probably the toughest team they had to face it will be quite interesting to see how they fare verses Chelsea, whom they have only met twice before in their history. Both bid-spenders are top of their respective leagues, the French Ligue 1 and the English Premier League, and while PSG undoubtedly have to best player on the pitch in Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Chelsea have more depth in their squad.
Yet, unlike PSG, Chelsea have had problems scoring, mainly due to their lack of an in-form striker, and have only scored 12 goals in their last eight matches. This, in such a tight tie, could prove to be Jose Mourinho’s side’s kiss of death.
Winner: PSG
Real Madrid v Borussia Dortmund
A rematch of one of last season’s semifinals, and although Dortmund famously edged out Madrid that time a lot has changed since.
Only four of Dortmund’s starting 11 players in last season’s Champions League final will be able to play against Madrid in the first leg, a grim sight for Jurgen Klopp’s side.
We do not need moans, we need support. Afterwards you can whistle but during the game we need the support.” – Borussia Dortmund defender Kevin Grosskreutz following their recent loss to Zenit Saint-Petersburg
Among those not able to play are Mario Götze, who moved to Bayern Munich at the end of last season, and the suspended Robert Lewandowski set to miss the first leg. Meanwhile, Madrid have taken a big step in the right direction since last season, and for one, they now have Gareth Bale in their squad. Los Blancos are also not a team in disarray anymore, as their “Jose Mourinho saga” ended over the summer. In short, Dortmund could hardly have gotten a tougher draw and Madrid an easier one among the best eight.
Winner: Real Madrid
Barcelona v Atletico Madrid
Atletico Madrid, the news kids on the block when it comes to Champions League Quarterfinals, have only made it to this stage in the competition once before in the 1996/1997 competition. On that occasion they were eliminated, but the Spanish side have every chance of progressing to the semifinals this time.
Considering all three of their meetings this season have ended in draws this is likely to be the most cagey affair which could go either way. Barcelona’s experience on this stage could help them overcome Atletico, but Diego Costa and Co. will undoubtedly cause Barca’s relatively shaky back four problems. The Spanish champions have allowed six goals in their last five matches, although they have made it up by netting 22 goals in those matches. Of course, it will be tight, but Barcelona are probably the slight favorites walking into the tie, and probably have the edge to walk out with an aggregate win.
Winner: Barcelona (But just barely)