The crosses of the round of 16 of the Champions League They are already defined. And the tie that steals all the spotlight, with world champions everywhere you look, is the cross between Atlético de Madrid and Inter Milan. If he Cholo Simeonecon Nahuel Molina, Rodrigo DePaul y Angel Correahe will face the team he leads Lautaro Martínez.
For its part, Manchester Citydefending champion that has Julián Álvarez in its ranks and Pep Guardiola on the bench, had a wink of fortune, since it will cross paths with Copenhagenthe most accessible rival a priori in this qualifying stage of the most important club tournament in the world.
The other crossings will be: FC Porto-Arsenal, Napoli-Barcelona, PSG-Real Sociedad, PSV Eindhoven-Borussia Dortmund, Lazio-Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig-Real Madrid.
The Champions League final will be played at Wembley Stadium in London on June 1.
The premiere of the direct elimination duels will be in the week of February 13 and 14, along with the week of the 20 and 21 of the same month. Then, on March 5 and 6, as well as the 12 and 13, the eight teams that advance to the quarterfinals will be finalized.
The attraction that the duel between Simeone’s team and the one led by Lautaro Martínez generates from the beginning is not only due to the number of Argentines who will face each other. In what will be a clash of teams in which defensive play is a priority, the good present of each one at the local level also plays its part: the Spanish are fourth in La Liga while those from Milan are the undisputed leaders of the Series TO.
Another of the clashes that can catch the football world is that of Napoli y Barcelona, which promises possession football in Xavi’s team facing the intensity and speed of the Italians. It will be defined in Catalan lands.
Then, despite not going through their best moment at the local level and finishing fourth in the Premier League, the duel that City will face seems to be the most uneven by far from the rest. Nor should we forget that in their group stage they finished first with a perfect score. And as a colorful fact: every time Guardiola faced Copenhagen, he became European champion.
The same path could follow Real Madrid, for keeping 18 points out of a possible 18 in groups and for the continued hierarchy that the club imposes in the European competition. In front will be the Leipzigwhich does not look out of place in the Bundesliga but does not show an attractive game that could catapult it to be a revelation.
The same situation could arise in the clash between Lazio y Bayern Munichwith Harry Kane as a figure, and in PSV vs Borussia Dortmund, which despite sweeping football in the Netherlands, the difference in level it presents with the Bundesliga tips the balance of favoritism to the German side. In both duels we must not overshadow the important framework that the Allianz Arena (Bayern) and the Singal Iduna Park (Borussia) usually impose.
Who could receive their token to surprise and get into the top eight are two teams: Real Sociedad and Porto. The Spaniards finished as leaders of their group by beating Inter, they made sure to finish at home and they have to clash against an unstable PSG. Beyond having Kylian Mbappé On the attacking front, since the arrival of Luis Enrique the squad does not provide many guarantees in defense. Furthermore, he no longer has Neymar or Lionel Messi and the karma he carries in the Champions League head-to-head matches could work against him again.
in the duel Porto against Arsenalthe Portuguese have just finished a good group stage in which they were tied on points with Barcelona, but relegated to second place because goal difference is not prioritized but rather the Culés won in the two games they played against each other .
Yes, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal will be in front. Although logic may impose him as a favorite, London’s weakness in recent seasons was the hand-to-hand definitions in international competitions or key duels for titles. Even in the last Europa League they were eliminated at Wembley against Sporting Lisbon, also from Portugal.
However, there are still two months until the round of 16 comes first. Anything can happen in them. Proof examples abound. The truth will begin in February 2024, when speculation is put aside.
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