Opinion: What do we make of the UCL draw?
It was an anxious day for football fans of the teams which progressed into the quarter-finals of the biggest club competition in Europe as the UEFA Champions League draw took place in Nyon to decide the fate of the last eight teams.
Everybody was hoping to get a good draw for themselves so that they could progress to the next stages of the competition but one of them had to get Bayern Munich (clearly, the toughest of the lot).
Let`s see what we make of the draw.
Redemption time
This is perhaps the best fixture of the quarters as both last year`s winners, Bayern Munich and the runners-up, Paris Saint-Germain face each other.
PSG was the only team in the draw who could mount a challenge for the Bayern Munich considering their formidable and somewhat invincible form ongoing since last year.
PSG will be looking for some redemption as a Kingsley Coman header broke PSG`s hearts last season, whilst Bayern ran away with their 6th UCL title.
Another team who will be taking a shot at redemption is Liverpool.
As we all know, Liverpool fans have been waiting for this match-up with Real Madrid since the 2018 UCL final when Sergio Ramos inflicted a horrific injury to Mohamed Salah and Madrid put three goals past goalkeeper Loris Karius to secure their 13th UCL.
Mohamed Salah will not be looking to clash with Ramos again and it’s better for both to keep their distance.
While Liverpool fans are piping up the match they usually forget that they have a makeshift defence with players like Ozan Kabak in it, whilst Madridistas are forgetting that they don’t have a prolific goalscorer in their team. Funny isn’t it?
Upset on the cards?
While Chelsea are the clear favourites to win the tie against Porto, we can clearly see that there is a possible upset there.
Porto, who have a formidable defence, commanded by ex- Real Madrid legend Pepe, are very resilient. Timo Werner and his partners (on the pitch) will not be looking forward to create a mess with that man because we have seen how Pepe pocketed Cristiano Ronaldo during the fixture with Juventus.
But considering these things aside, Chelsea might brush aside Porto and move on to the semis.
Homecoming
Two players who will be welcomed back to the Etihad are Erling Braut Haaland and Jadon Sancho.
As Borussia Dortmund face an uphill battle against Manchester City who are expected to continue their stellar form in the game, Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho will be having a reunion with their old city.
Born in England, Erling Haaland spent the first few years of his life in Manchester, as his dad joined Manchester City shortly before the Dortmund striker was born. It was, for a while, Haaland’s home, and City hold a special place in his heart. And considering the recent transfer rumours, Haaland`s homecoming is surely on the cards.
Jadon Sancho was a City player until the age of 17 when he chose to get more playing time and decided to move to Borussia Dortmund.
We expect it would be a game full of goals as both of the teams are known for their furious attacks.
Trambak’s Predictions
Manchester City 3-2 Borussia Dortmund (1st Leg)
Real Madrid 2-0 Liverpool (1st leg)
Porto 1-2 Chelsea (1st leg)
Paris Saint-Germain 2-2 Bayern Munich (1st leg)
