By Joe Plunkett
And then there were eight! Europe’s premier club tournament has reached the quarter-final stage, and some of football’s biggest names are closing in on Champions League glory. Only one of the remaining teams will be crowned as the continent’s best, but all eight have solid pedigrees and a chance of lifting that famous trophy towards the end of next month in Kiev.
The favorites at this stage with football pundits and fans who bet with Stakers.com are Barcelona. The La Liga leaders were held to a draw by Chelsea in the first leg of their round of 16 game but showed their quality in the second leg as Lionel Messi put in another vintage performance to help Barça stroll to a 3-0 win. They have been particularly impressive at home this season, though their away form has been less convincing, so they really did themselves a huge favor by opening up a 4-1 lead in the first leg of their quarter-final ahead of their trip to Rome.
The biggest scorers of the round of 16 were Bayern Munich, who amassed an 8-1 aggregate win over Besiktas, winning 5-0 at home and 3-1 in Turkey. Their typically dominant domestic form has provided breathing space and enabled them to focus on their European campaign. Up 2-1 on aggregate, they should be able to edge out Sevilla in their quarter-final. Of course, don’t underestimate the Spanish side as they put out Manchester United in the last round.
The tie of the quarter-final round is undoubtedly the clash between Real Madrid and Juventus. Real beat the Serie A powerhouse convincingly in last year’s final, but both teams have faced significant challenges domestically this time around, and both had to dig deep to get to the last eight. Juventus were sloppy at home against Tottenham but relied on their considerable European experience to pull out a win in London, while Real showed considerable resilience, coming from behind to beat Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg and battling to a 2-1 win in Paris.
It’s a stirring battle between two old adversaries with considerable European experience, but Juventus fell down 3-0 in the home leg of this tie. Their chances of edging past the current trophy holders is very slim.
The final tie of the last eight is a fascinating clash between two high scoring Premier League sides. Liverpool were in typically free-flowing form in the first leg of their round of 16 game, scoring five against Porto to effectively end the tie, and Manchester City managed a similar performance, scoring four in Basel in the first leg, though Pep Guardiola will be slightly concerned that they lost the home leg 2-1. Liverpool went up 3-0 at home in the Anfield leg, putting City in a tough spot now at home, if they are to advance. Both sides play exciting football, and if their Premier League encounter in January is a guide, this should be a thriller.
The quarter-finals of the Champions League offer fans a feast of football and a quartet of improving sides in Sevilla, Liverpool, Roma and Manchester City taking on Europe’s grand old competitors Juventus, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. Predictions at this stage are precarious, but Real and Bayern seem to be in the dominant mood this season, and with Barça not at their best away from home, perhaps Los Blancos may end up making it three in a row.