The Champions League returned strongly from its winter hibernation last week, with four good last 16 ties. But, those openers are only a warm up for this week’s clashes, which are without a doubt the main event. That’s saying quite a lot after a week which saw Real Madrid heading to Roma, and the champions of France and England meeting. Those games were good, but we’re expecting even more to come.
Even the least interesting tie of this week features a side who made the 2014 final. This is a week packed full of European superpowers, historic clashes and great subplots. Splitting the last 16 looks like the best thing UEFA have ever done, as this week deserves the attention all on its own. Here we’re previewing each of the four big clashes across Tuesday and Wednesday, and we’ve got a betting tip for each one.
Tuesday 23rd February 2016
Arsenal v Barcelona (19:45) – Draw (3/1 with Coral)
The English interest tonight sees the Gunners hosting European champions Barcelona. Having finished second in their group, Arsenal were given almost the kiss of death in the last 16 draw. They need to find a way to topple Barca, and they have to try and stop Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi and Neymar. That seems like a tall order, as the Catalans have few rivals as they look to go all the way in this competition once again. No one is expecting their trophy defence to end in the first knockout round.
But, Arsene Wenger took an unusually pragmatic approach when dealing with Bayern Munich in the group stage and it really paid dividends. They were able to carve out a 2-0 home victory and that was what reignited their faltering European campaign and that defensive blueprint could be their way to deal with Barca here. Few are backing a home win, but this game might be a lot closer than many imagine. While Barca should still make it through over two legs, we think that Arsenal will have their backs to the wall here, and we’re backing them to make it out with a draw.
Juventus v Bayern Munich (19:45) – Juventus to win (11/5 with Coral)
Prepare to be forced into a tough choice on Tuesday night, with Juventus and Bayern Munich going head to head. Do you pick the clash between the favourites for the English and Spanish titles, or the Italian and German league leaders? This is easily the tie of the round, and it sets up a fascinating match between two of the sides who are legitimate contenders for the trophy. Last year’s runners up against the 2013 winners. But who comes out on top?
Juventus may have improved massively, but they’re still not fancied here. Bayern Munich are the favourites, as they are in most clashes. The German side are all-conquering at home under Pep Guardiola but the Spaniard is desperate to extend that supremacy to Europe. He won’t have things all his own way here, as Juve are currently on the back of a 15 game winning run in Italy. They’ve won eight out of their last 10 home European games, drawing the other two, and we fancy them to get a win here. It’s strange to think that the Italian champions and European Cup runners up would be causing an upset by beating the German champions at home, but that’s the way it is and that’s exactly what we are predicting here.
Wednesday 24th February 2016
Dynamo Kiev v Manchester City (19:45) – Man City to win (5/4 with Betfair)
Wednesday’s two clashes aren’t as high profile, but they’re certainly two interesting ties. First up, Manchester City face a massive test, as they head into a Champions League knockout tie as clear favourites for the first time. They are expected to qualify easily against Dynamo Kiev, but they’ll have to get through a long journey and then come out with a victory. They are favourites to get the win and put themselves in a commanding position, as that is what many of Europe’s top sides would do here. Are City really capable of doing that, or will they fall below expectations in Europe once again?
You’d fancy any of Europe’s giants to win this one. Many even thought Chelsea would win here in the group stages and look at the shape they’ve been in. The Blues came close to a winner, but they left with a 0-0 draw. We’re expecting more from the Citizens here though, despite their lack of European pedigree. They picked up some impressive away wins in the group stage, and we think they’ll return to that form in this one.
PSV Eindhoven v Atletico Madrid (19:45) – Under 0.5 PSV goals (23/20 with Betfair)
Atletico Madrid travel to Holland to take on the side who put Manchester United out in the group stage. PSV Eindhoven beat the Red Devils to second place in their group, and now they need to find a way past the second best team in Spain. PSV made it out of a group that also contained CSKA Moscow and Wolfsburg, but are they at all ready for a task of this nature? While they’ve done well to make it this far, it’s hard to see them measuring up to the side who made the final in 2014.
Atletico now look closer to that 2014 side than they did last season, as they push Barcelona for the title in Spain. They don’t quite have the firepower now that Diego Costa provided then, but they’re still winning games. That’s because Atleti have an incredible defensive record, one which makes them very difficult to beat. They’ve let in just 11 goals in the league this season, which is the main reason behind their success. We can’t see PSV finding a way past Europe’s meanest defence, so we’re backing an Atletico clean sheet at 23/20 with Betfair.