In many ways Thursday’s draw for the last-16 of the Champions League threw up some of the most fascinating fixtures that this stage of the competition has ever seen.
Looking at the draw on paper, there is a real possibility that the British teams could all be eliminated by the time the quarter-finals are underway.
Manchester United are involved in the tie of the round against Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid who go into the two legs as slight favourites. Arsenal travel to last season’s finalists Bayern Munich, while Celtic must fend off resurgent Italian champions Juventus.
Galatasaray v Schalke
On paper Schalke would have been favourites against the Turkish champions but the picture has changed in recent weeks.
The Bundesliga side beat Arsenal comfortably at the Emirates in the group stages and topped the group. And in the early part of the season, the Ruhr valley club were the closest challengers to Bayern Munich in the domestic league. But times have changed as Schalke have slipped down the table after a poor run of results which led to head coach Huub Stevens’ dismissal and mercurial Dutch striker Klaas Jan Huntelaar could also be on his way out in January.
With that in mind Galatasaray will be confident of overcoming the Germans over two legs, although the Istanbul giants only scraped through to the knockout stages on their head-to-head record over CFR Cluj of Romania.
Celtic v Juventus
The Hoops reward for progression from their group is a glamour tie with Serie A giants Juventus. Conventional thought would suggest that Neil Lennon’s me will go no further in the competition.
The Italians have arguably the second best midfield in Europe behind Barcelona in Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal and Claudio Marchisio. With Giorgio Chiellini in defence and Gianluigi Buffon in goals, they are a match for any side in Europe.
However one thing will give the Hoops some hope – Juve’s lack of a world-class forward. Coach Antonio Conte may strengthen that area in January but Celtic will not fear Nicklas Bendtner, Alessandro Matri or Mirko Vucinic while Atomic Ant Sebastian Giovinco is still learning his trade.
However Neil Lennon would have preferred to play the first leg in Turin but Celtic will have to make do with the hand they have been dealt – and as Europe witnessed in the group stages, Celtic are capable of a surprise.
Arsenal v Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich were hurt by the way in which they lost to Chelsea in the Champions League final in their own stadium. And this season the Bavarian giants have the bit between their teeth which will make this a very tough tie for Arsenal.
The Gunners have been inconsistent in the league but secured progression to the knockout stages for the 13th consecutive season. But they would have hoped to avoid facing last season’s runners-up at this stage of the competition.
Juup Heynckes’ side have strengthened since the summer, signing versatile Spain international Javi Martinez, Swiss starlet Xherdan Shaqiri and one of Ireland’s many scourges at the Euros Croatian striker Mario Mandzukic.
The Gunners have weaknesses of their own in defence but so do the Germans which is something that can be exploited. Holger Badstuber is out for the rest of the season with cruciate ligament damage while Jerome Boateng has been a model of inconsistency.
However with a stronger squad Die Roten will still be strong favourites to dump Arsenal out of the last-16 for the third successive season.
Shakhtar Donetsk v Borussia Dortmund
In terms of emerging forces in Europe, it was difficult to look past these clubs during the group stages.
The reigning German champions finally showed their pedigree in Europe by topping the Group of Death unbeaten, beating Real Madrid at home and getting two wins over Manchester City.
The Ukrainians were also a strong proposition, eliminating reigning champs Chelsea in the group stages.
This tie is on a knife-edge with both sides capable of going deep into the competition. However Dortmund have home advantage in the second leg which could swing the tie in their favour especially if they can avoid defeat in Donetsk.
AC Milan v Barcelona
AC Milan were simply awful at the start of this season. But Massimiliano Allegri’s men seem to have rediscovered their mojo in recent weeks with four straight wins in Serie A, including victory over Juventus with the inspiration provided by the sensational scoring exploits of Stephan El Shaarawy.
However Barcelona should have too much for the seven-time champions. The Catalans knocked them out in last season’s quarter-finals – and that was when Milan still had Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva.
Barcelona have been in fine form this season in La Liga but some vulnerabilities were on show against Celtic and Spartak Moscow during the group stages.
The recent news regarding the health of manager Tito Vilanova will also be a worry for the club.
But their first choice defenders Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique are back and with Messi, Xavi and Iniesta in their ranks Barca should progress.
Real Madrid v Manchester United
And now we come to the tie of the round.
In 2003 - the last time these two met in the competition, the Brazilian Ronaldo lit up the second leg with a hat-trick to knock United out and even got a standing ovation from the home faithful.
This time around the other Ronaldo will return to the staging ground for his early success. But Real Madrid are not in great shakes at the moment. Sitting third in La Liga, 13 points off the pace, the Champions League represents the club’s only realistic source of silverware this season.
However Jose Mourinho’s team have been found out this season which will give Manchester United hope.
Sloppiness has been a major factor in Real’s uninspiring start as well as issues at set-pieces and an inability to break down defences that sit deep.
Manchester United – despite their own chronic weaknesses at the back – may choose sit deep in a similar way to the Manchester derby and with the firepower of Robin Van Persie and Wayne Rooney they have the players to do the job at the other end.
But the Reds will also have to deal with their own long-standing problems in Europe. Alex Ferguson’s team may have topped their group but there were a few shaky moments against mediocre opposition.
But they will have the advantage of playing at the Bernabeu first to pile the pressure on Jose Mourinho who in turn has a good record against Ferguson.
Valencia v PSG
PSG might have plenty of star names and Valencia may be shedding them on a seasonal basis but this is an intriguing match-up.
Poor league form aside, the Spanish side finished on the same number of points as Bayern Munich in their group and were only pushed into second because of their head-to-head record.
And in Roberto Soldado and Sofiane Feghouli they have the players to hurt the Parisian giants.
Carlo Ancelotti’s men have stuttered in Ligue 1 in contrast to their strong group stage performance in the Champions League.
Their chances of progression will depend heavily on the form of Zlatan Ibrahimovic with PSG often reliant on his mercurial talents in tight situations.
If the Swede is on song, PSG should get through.
FC Porto v Malaga
The fact that Malaga topped their group after losing their best players over the summer proves how good a manager Manuel Pellegrini is.
Pellegrini has guided the club into to La Liga’s top four in the first half of this season and will be quietly confident that he can engineer a positive result against Porto – provided they keep key players like Isco, Jeremy Toulalan and Joaquin Sanchez.
On the other hand, 2004 champions Porto have greater experience in the competition which will be a key factor.
The two sides are evenly matched so the tie could go down to the wire.
