The draw for the Round of 16 in European soccer’s Champions League took place on Monday, with a mix of expected and surprising showdowns.
With big names like Manchester United out early in the tournament, and teams like Liverpool and Chelsea not even making the cut to get in, surprise packages like Copenhagen and Real Sociedad have managed to find their way in.
The draw pits the eight seeded teams – Arsenal, Atlético de Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Manchester City, Real Madrid, and Real Sociedad, who are the group winners – against the eight unseeded or runner-up teams: Copenhagen, Inter Milan, Lazio, RB Leipzig, Napoli, Paris Saint Germain, Porto and PSV Eindhoven.
At this stage, teams from the same country cannot play against each other, nor can teams who were in the same group in the group stage. This makes for some interesting matches.
Arsenal, currently sitting in first place in the Premier League table, look like genuine title contenders. But the Gunners, after cruising through the group stages, might need to step it up facing Porto, who finished tied on points with Barcelona.
Reigning champions Manchester City have received a kind draw for the round of 16. City is set to play Copenhagen, which is making its first appearance at this stage since 2011. Even though as of now City have just one win in their last six Premier League games, they should have a clear shot into the next round going against the weakest of the 16 remaining teams.
Real Madrid’s 14 titles make them the most successful team in the history of the competition. They are set to play RB Leipzig. Key players like Vinicius and Camavinga will be back by the time the Round of 16 kicks off, which should pave the way for Real Madrid to the quarterfinals.
In the tie of the round, Barcelona is set to play Napoli. Finishing runner-up in their group, Napoli showed some defensive frailties. But on the other hand, Barcelona are not what they used to be with recent defeats against Shakhtar Donetsk and Antwerp. With both teams much stronger in attack than in defense, it’s tough to call as of now.
Regular contender PSG are set to play the surprise entry, Real Sociedad. PSG squeezed into the round with only two wins, with Sociedad coming in after conceding just two goals in six games.
Last season’s narrow second-place runner-ups Inter Milan are set to play Atletico Madrid. Both teams came through the group stage without a single defeat, making for a matchup that will be thrilling to watch.
Bayern Munich have been matched up against SS Lazio, with Harry Kane and Leroy Sané making Bayern the heavy favorites.
PSV is set to play Dortmund, with both teams sporting U.S. men’s national team players. Gio Reyna’s Dortmund coming out as group winners makes them favorites in this tie, but Sergino Dest, Ricardo Pepi and Malik Tillman playing for PSV make them hard to beat.
The teams are set to play the first legs of their ties on Feb. 13, 14, 20, or 21, and the second legs on March 5, 6, 12, or 13.
