Champions League knockout round opens with big matchups
There will be plenty of dream matchups as the final 16 teams begin the knockout phase of the UEFA Champions League Tuesday.
There will be plenty of dream matchups as the final 16 teams begin the knockout phase of the UEFA Champions League Tuesday.
Arguably the top two teams in Europe square off when Barcelona, the top club in the Spanish Primera Liga, hosts English Premier league-leading Chelsea.
Both teams have dominated their respective leagues and are among the most talented in all Europe, although the English side has been hit with the injury bug of late.
Already without the likes of Arjen Robben, the Blues lost William Gallas, Damien Duff and Wayne Bridge to injury in the team's loss in the fifth round of the FA Cup. Bridge will miss the rest of the season because of a broken ankle.
Led by FIFA Player of the Year Ronaldinho, Barcelona will be tough to beat at Camp Nou, where it is 11-1-1 in Spanish League play this season. Portuguese international Deco will be anxious to face his former FC Porto coach, Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho.
Spain's other team in the final 16, Real Madrid, hosts Italian powerhouse Juventus, which is just 1-2-1 in its last four games.
Winners of the Champions League in three of the last seven seasons, Madrid hopes to reclaim the European title for the first time since 2002. The "Galacticos" have fond memories of playing the Turin squad in Champions League play after beating Juventus to win the 1998 title.
The 2001 champions Bayern Munich will face a daunting task when it hosts English powerhouse Arsenal.
The Gunners believe that without the burden of keeping their famed unbeaten streak as they did last season, that this would be one of their best shots to win their first ever title.
Bayern Munich coach Felix Magath believes the lack of a winter break in England could work to his side's advantage. He thinks the lengthy break his side had in December and January has allowed them to recover from a difficult start to the season.
"English teams have been suffering for many years from not having a winter break and the players will be tired through all the games that they have played," Magath said.
No English team has won the the Champions League since Manchester United in 1999.
Tuesday's last matchup will pit Dutch Eredivisie-leading PSV Eindhoven against the runners up in this tournament last season, AS Monaco. It is the first time the Dutch club has reached the knockout stage of the Champions League in nine appearances.
The knockout phase of the Champions League involves each team playing a home-and-away series against its opponent. The team with the most goals after those two games advances to the quarterfinals. If the team's are even on goals, whichever scored more goals on the road would advance.
A 30-minute, silver-goal overtime and penalty kick shootout - if necessary - would decide the winner if the the away goals are also even.