The draw for the knockout stages of the Champions League football competition took place on Monday. The first matches will take place on February 18, 19, 25 and 26:
- Borussia Dortmund – Paris-Saint-Germain
- Real Madrid – Manchester City
- Atalanta Bergamo – Valencia
- Tottenham – Leipzig
- Chelsea – Bayern Munich
- Naples – Barcelona
- Atlético Madrid – Liverpool
- Olympique Lyonnais (OL) – Juventus Turin
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Dortmund, perhaps a trap for PSG
It will take much more than that to convince Paris-Saint-Germain that its mishaps in the Champions League are coming to an end. But the most optimistic will see a sign: by facing Borussia Dortmund, the former club of its coach Thomas Tuchel, the Parisian club will return to Germany for the first time in the eliminatory phase of the Champions League since the beating inflicted on Bayer Leverkusen, five years ago (victories 0-4 on the first leg, 2-1 on the return).
It was the time when the knockout stages did not seem like an insurmountable obstacle to PSG, eliminated at this stage in the last three seasons.
Among the possible draws, Borussia Dortmund was not the most unfavorable, but it conceals perhaps the biggest trap: inconstant during the group stage, miraculously qualified thanks to the defeat, at home, of Inter Milan during From the last day against the FC Barcelona reserve team, the Ruhr club could have a different face in February.
Swiss coach Lucien Favre, threatened a month ago, may have found the right formula, judging by his team's three consecutive wins in the Bundesliga. RB Leipzig’s reception on Tuesday will give a clear picture of Borussia Dortmund’s holiday season.
Its offensive animation, around wingers Jadon Sancho and Thorgan Hazard, has the means to torment the Parisian defense; but its central defense, made up of aging Mats Hummels and inexperienced Swiss defender Manuel Akanji, offers few guarantees against the emergence of Kylian Mbappé and Mauro Icardi.
The profile of the two teams offers the prospect of a match rich in scoring chances. The first leg will take place in the Ruhr in February, the return in March at the Parc des Princes.
Thomas Tuchel left Dortmund in 2017 after two successful seasons – the best point average in club history – but on the run with his leaders and supporters.
He will be able to warn his players of the dangers of the "yellow wall", which shelters some 25,000 supporters in the south stand of Signal-Iduna Park.
"This is a team that plays, which has in its DNA the search for attacking play. It will be special for Tuchel there. (…) The scenario is good. Borussia is something special ", reacted the Parisian sports director Leonardo to the RMC Sport chain.
" The draw could have been worse, Carsten Cramer, managing director of Borussia Dortmund, noted. We know Thomas Tuchel well, but we are not playing against a coach but against a spectacular team, the multiple champion of France. We are always positive, we will fight to qualify. "
Juventus, unbeatable Italian champion on the road to Lyon
Far from the Parisian obsession with the Champions League, Lyon has, these days, other priorities more urgent in mind than a round of 16, even against the prestigious Juventus Turin, double European champion in 1985 and in 1996.
In the midst of a rout, the club of President Jean-Michel Aulas is busy healing his wounds: the two ruptures of the cruciate ligament suffered yesterday by Memphis Depay and Jeff Reine-Adelaide are only the last episodes of a nightmarish first half of the season.
Distanced and disturbing in the championship (8e 17 points behind the leader and six on the podium), OL won their place among the top sixteen continental teams. The paradox is great and it is difficult to see how the European miracle could continue in the face of the indestructible Italian champion, crowned each season since 2012. Juve has, moreover, twice reached the final of the Champions League on the last five editions: in 2015 and 2017.
Lyon have already met the Turinese twice: in 2014, in the quarter-finals of the Europa League (two defeats 1-0 and 2-1) and in 2016-2017 in the group stage of the Champions League, with a defeat from Lyon 1-0 at home and a 1-1 draw away.
OL representative in Nyon during the draw, sports director Juninho reacted with humility to the mountain that this draw constitutes:
“Juve is arch-favorite for this double confrontation. We have admiration for their project, their way of playing. In the meantime, we will have to solve our problems and improve our performance. Will we be able to come out with the perfect match to face a better team than us? "
His Turin counterpart, Czech Pavel Nedved, was a diplomat at the microphone of RMC Sport: “Yes, very interesting even if a draw is always difficult. We are playing in two months, a lot can happen. We will try to be in good shape. "
The return of Pep Guardiola to Madrid, for the poster of these eighths
The poster for these round of 16 will undoubtedly be the meeting between Manchester City, directed by Pep Guardiola, and the real Madrid, coached by Zinedine Zidane. A former Barça coach, the Catalan will return to the Santiago Bernabeu in the first leg, in a stadium which will certainly be hostile to him.
Outdistanced by Liverpool in the Premier League (3e, at 14 points), Manchester City will finally try to shine in a competition that has never smiled on it in recent years (two eliminations in the quarterfinals in 2018 and 2019).
The reigning European champion, Liverpool, will have to challenge a Atletico Madrid in reconstruction, after the departure of several major players, notably that of Antoine Griezmann. Comfortable in the league, the team of Jürgen Klopp seems armed to lead the two competitions.
Only team with six victories in its group, the Bayern Munich face Chelsea, clearly slowing down after a good start to the season. The Germans leave with the favors of the forecasts, even if they will have to be wary in front of a representative of English football, particularly comfortable last season.
Finally, the two novices at this level of the competition will have their card to play: theAtalanta Bergamo will play against the Spanish of Valence and the RB Leipzig, current Bundesliga leader, will challenge the Tottenham by Jose Mourinho, unhappy finalist in the Champions League in June.
