The 2015/16 Champions League Round-of-16 draw took place in Nyon, Switzerland today. Gianni Infantino and Javier Zanetti revealed some mouth-watering fixtures, as Europe’s top teams begin their knockout journey on the road to the final in Milan.
Here are some interesting facts for each fixture:
KAA Gent vs VFL Wolfsburg
The Belgian champions and the German runners-up were surprise qualifiers into the knockout stages of the Champions League. The teams have never faced each other in the past. In addition, since both teams are making their debut at this stage of the Champions League, the quarter-finals will have a guaranteed newcomer.
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Gent will also creat Champions League history if they defeat Wolfsburg, since no Belgian team has ever defeated a German side in the competition.
Gent were seen as the most favourable draw, and Manchester United fans will be particularly gutted, as they were pipped to the knockout stages by Vfl Wolfsburg.
AS Roma vs Real Madrid
AS Roma made history when they qualified for the knockout stages, with a record-equalling low of 6 points. The Italians had qualified despite a single victory in the group stages, while conceding 16 goals. Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo will be licking his lips in anticipation, having already scored a record 11 goals in the group stages.
The Gialorossi have met the Los Blancos 8 times in 14 years, all in the Champions League. Although the two did last play on a cricket ground, having competed in a pre-season friendly at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Australia.
Roma might consider the fixture a good omen; as the only time they have made it to the quarterfinals was in 2007/08, where they beat Real Madrid home and away to qualify. Real Madrid director Emilio Butragueno shares the sentiment, surprisingly voicing the view that ‘Real Madrid cannot consider themselves favourites against Roma.’
Paris Saint-Germain vs Chelsea FC
PSG and Chelsea face each other for the third time in succession, in what has become an iconic Champions League fixture. The Parisians defeated the Londoners at the same stage last season, while Chelsea were the victors in the 2013/14 quarterfinals.
Despite having qualified last time around, PSG have defeated Chelsea only once in the 6 games they have played in the Champions League, a 3-1 win at home in 2013/14. Chelsea are the only English club to have ever defeated PSG at the Parc des Princes, defeating them 3-0 in the group stages of the 2004/05 season, which was Jose Mourinho’s first European game in charge of Chelsea.
Chelsea fans must be particularly annoyed, as they would’ve expected an easy draw having qualified as group winner. PSG are favourites to go through, which was probably not the case the last two times the teams have met in the knockout stages. The Parisians have an excellent defensive record this season, only conceding once in the group stages. However, Chelsea have an excellent record against Ligue 1 opposition, having only lost twice in 11 games in the Champions League.
Arsenal FC vs FC Barcelona
The Gunners pulled off a miracle in Greece to qualify for the knockout stages, but having drawn Barcelona will wonder if they even should have bothered. It is the third time in seven seasons that the two sides have drawn each other.
The two teams have met each other 7 times in the competition, with an overall aggregate score of 17-10 in favour of the Blaugrana. With 27 goals scored at an average of almost 4 per game, one can definitely expect the goals to flow when the two sides meet in February & March next year.
Arsenal have only won once against Barcelona, defeating them 2-1 at the Emirates in a round-of-16 fixture in 2010/11. The Catalans overturned that result 3-1 to qualify, a feat they had achieved in the quarterfinals the previous year as well. The Gunners will naturally be wary of Barcelona’s attack, as Lionel Messi has scored 6 goals in 4 games against the Londoners.
Juventus vs FC Bayern Munich
Juventus will be rueing finishing second in their group, despite having beaten Manchester City twice. Their loss to Sevilla in the final game proved costly as City now face an easy trip to Dynamo Kyiv while Juventus face the mighty Bayern Munich. The Bavarians have a great record against the Bianconeri in the last few years, having won 4 out of their last 6 games including the 3 most recent games.
The sides last met in the 2012/13 quarterfinal stage, where Bayern defeated Juventus 2-0 both home and away on their way to winning the Champions League that year. Mario Mandzukic scored for Bayern the last time they met, but returns to the Allianz Arena sporting Juventus’ iconic stripes.
Bayern have every reason to be confident, with defender Jerome Boateng noting, “Juve are strong. They're very clever & tactically outstanding. Nevertheless, we're favourites.”
PSV Eindhoven vs Club Atletico de Madrid
Jeremy Brenet will be a disappointed man, as the PSV defender hoped to be drawn against Barcelona. PSV will console themselves with a trip to Madrid, where they face an Atletico side that qualified top of their group.
It’s a return to Spain for current PSV manager and former Barcelona player, Phillip Cocu. The Dutch side are the first team to get into the knockout stages in 9 years, with PSV themselves last qualifying in 2006/07 where they went out to Liverpool.
Conversely, Atletico Madrid have never eliminated Dutch opponents in the knockout stages in their European history. However, the Rojiblancos did eliminate PSV from the group stages in the 2008/09 season, defeating them 2-1 at the Vicente Calderon and 3-0 in Eindhoven. Given their recent history, Jeffrey Bruma, PSV’s centreback, is realistic about his side’s chances, saying “Atletico Madrid are the better team in theory, but we are certainly not without a chance.”
SL Benfica vs Zenit Saint Petersburg
Zenit qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League with ease, winning 5 out of their 6 games. The Russians narrowly lost to Gent in their last game, missing out on becoming one of the few sides to qualify from the group stages with a perfect record. Benfica qualified in a comfortable second place with 20 points, and face a familiar trip to Russia.
The two sides last faced each other in the group stages last season, with Zenit winning 1-0 at home, and defeating the Portugues side 2-0 at the Estadio da Luz. However, the Eagles beat the Russian side 4-3 on aggregate when they last met in the round-of-16 in 2011/12, coming back from a 3-2 defeat in Russia with a 2-0 victory at home.
It’s a return to Portugal for Zenit manager Andre Vilas Boas and former Benfica man Alex Witsel, with the Belgian midfielder glad to meet his former side yet again.
Dynamo Kyiv vs Manchester City
Manchester City finished top of their group with a thrilling 4-2 comeback win against Borussia Monchengladbach, thus earning a favourable draw against Dynamo Kyiv. The Sky Blues might finally make it to the quarterfinal stages of the Champions League, having gone out in the round-of-16 stage to Barcelona in the last two seasons.
City, who have been sanctioned for their fans booing the UEFA Champions League anthem, travel to a side who have been sanctioned by UEFA as well. The two sides will play behind closed doors in Ukraine, as Dynamo fans were punished for racist behaviour.
While Kyiv are massive underdogs going into the game, they can draw on history for inspiration. The Ukranians defeated Manchester City when they last met, winning 2-1 on aggregate in the round-of-16 stage of the Europa League. City director, Txiki Begiristain agrees that the fixture could be problematic, saying, “It's never easy – they've shown they have a good side by beating Porto and drawing with Chelsea.”
