Analysis of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 (part one)
- Dec 21, 2016
- 4 min read
Football is life.
Actually, sometimes football is more than life – as per the wordings of Bill Shankly – a former Liverpool manager.
That said, the prestigious UEFA Champions League had its draw conducted in Nyon.
There was no Gianni Infantino to oversee the draws as it has been the norm for ages.
Gianni – the former UEFA secretary general who was entrusted with conducting UEFA draws had early this year been elected FIFA president to succeed the graft-laden Sepp Blatter.
Actually, we sincerely hope that the only trait that Gianni shares with Blatter is the nationality – they are both Swiss; we would abhor if Gianni replicates the scandals as perfected by his predecessor.
Back to the UEFA Champions League draw – it was a spectacle to watch as Leicester City Football Club progressed from the group stage of the competition to earn a much deserved clash in the round of 16 against Sevilla in their maiden attempt.
The draw as well pitted familiar foes and by extension offered a platform for augmenting the enmity involved.
Make no mistake however; the round of 16 is a different kettle of fish as it entails a knockout process and not amassing of points as in the group stages.
The road to The Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, will be hard and long for all the prospective winners of the celebrated competition as shown by the outcomes of the draw.
Perennial rivals (read Bayern vs. Arsenal and Barcelona vs. PSG) will lock horns while new entrants such as Leicester City will get a slice of what they have been craving for.
The outcomes of the draw were as follows: PSG vs. Barcelona; Benfica vs. Borussia Dortmund; Real Madrid vs. Napoli; Bayern Munich vs. Arsenal; Manchester City vs. AS Monaco; Bayer Leverkusen vs. Atletico Madrid; Porto vs. Juventus; and Leicester City vs. Sevilla. Portugal’s Benfica vs. Borussia Dortmund is a match to die for.
Benfica has for ages been under the curse of Bela Guttmann, even with the services of the now departed Eusebio – the feared Portuguese goal machine who was astonishingly nicknamed the Black Panther.
Benfica got cursed by Bela Guttmann who was their coach during their most successful period.
Guttmann had led Benfica to back-to-back victories in Europe in 1961 and 1962.
After the second triumph, he approached the club’s board with a view to have his salary scaled upwards.
The board promptly shot down his proposal and in retaliation he uttered the now famous words, “Benfica will not win a European title in one hundred years.”
Amazingly, it seems Guttmann’s curse worked as Benfica have never again won the European trophy.
Actually, they have lost in all their eight appearances in the European finals since their last triumph in 1962.
However, expect Benfica to give its all in this clash; expect the Estadio da Luz to be painted in red.
Who wouldn’t fear a club that has an eagle for a mascot? On the other hand, don’t expect Borussia Dortmund to blow it away - Die Schwarzgelben are as lethal as any other top team in Europe; expect Aubameyang, Ousmane Dembele, Julian Weigl, Shinji Kagawa, Mario Gotze and Marcos Reus to do the job for Thomas Tuchel.
Bavarian giants – Bayern Munich, will entertain Arsenal.
Bayern has had a plethora of superstars: Uli Hoeneß, Franz Beckenbauer, Paul Breitner, Sepp Maier and Gerd Muller in the 1970s; Karl-Heinz Rummenigge in the 1980s; Lothar Matthaus and Stefan Effenberg in the 1990s; Giovane Elber, Oliver Kahn, Mehmet Scholl in the early 2000s; Philipp Lahm and Bastian Schweinsteiger in the late 2000s; Robert Lewandowski, Manuel Neuer, Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery, and Thomas Muller in the current age.
It should not be lost on us that Bayern Munich earned the notorious moniker of FC Hollywood at a time when the club endured its worst periods yet the players still made it to the tabloids courtesy of gossips and other headline-making news.
Arsenal Football Club on the other hand has the likes of Gabriel and Chamberlain to challenge the Germans.
However, this is football and shocks are dished out at an exciting rate - despite their glittering collection of superstars, Die Roten should be wary of undermining Arsenal.
Carlo Ancelotti should not be tempted to overestimate the capability of his lads and play into Arsenal’s hands.
As underdogs, Arsenal players under the guidance of Arsene Wenger know that we don’t expect too much from them.
That could be the mistake.
Wenger has the habit of performing when least expected and bottling it up when everyone thinks he will win!
This contrasting nature saw him edge out Pep Guardiola at the Emirates last year with two clinically-taken goals during the group stages.
The win came even as we had prophesied about a Bayern win or rather a catastrophic loss for Arsenal.
Guardiola would later trounce Arsenal by five goals in the return match but the match at the Emirates showed why the Champions League has the capability to shock us.
The modest AS Monaco was paired with Pep Guardiola’s Man City.
AS Monaco themselves feature in the French League just because Monaco is not a member of FIFA.
However, the Principality club boasts loads of talents especially in the midfield and forward lines.
Les Rouges et Blancs, or rather the Red and Whites, parade the likes of Nabil Dirar, Radamel Falcao, Joao Moutinho, Bernando Silva and Tiemoue Bakayoko.
That lineup doesn’t sound like one that could buckle easily under pressure.
Leonardo Jardim’s lads will go into the fixture knowing too well that they can’t let down the jersey numbers that were once worn by Thierry Henry and David Trezeguet at the club.
Maybe – just maybe, the only disheartening aspect for them is the knowledge that Arsene Wenger was once AS Monaco’s manager – honestly, that is not a statistic you would want associated with your beloved team.
The meeting between these clubs shall present a chance for Pep Guardiola to test the real might of Leonardo Jardim’s men.
With a collection that features Sergio Aguero, Fernandinho, David Silva, Kevin de Bruyne and Raheem Sterling, Manchester City may just have the right combination to upset the Stade Louis II outfit, more so at the Eastlands.
The noisy neighbours have a real chance to showcase their not-so-classy play as further evidenced by Claudio Bravo’s antics (rivals should read heroics) and the systematic caving of their defence.
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