Champions League: Round of 16
Omar Eldosouky
Omar Eldosouky
Welcome Back Guys!
A new month, a new stage of the UEFA Champions League. Last time we talked, we had reached the Round of 16 draw, and discussed some initial predictions.
Here are the results:
Liverpool vs PSG :
PSG won. Unfortunately for me, Liverpool was completely locked up. In both games, PSG was extremely dominant, however Liverpool won the first leg away 0 - 1, and then lost the second 0 - 1 at their own stadium. To give credit to Liverpool, they were better in the 2nd leg, but a cheap Dembele goal was enough to lead to extra time and penalties, which Liverpool lost. Liverpool, despite finishing the league stage first, were out in the first round. Props to PSG however, who are on FIRE, which we will see later.
Barcelona vs Benfica:
Barcelona won. Barcelona keep their fiery streak going and remain as one of the best teams in Europe. They won both legs comfortably and progressed through on 4 - 1 on aggregate.
Arsenal vs PSV
Arsenal demolished. Arsenal won the first leg away 1 - 7, making the largest away win in UCL Knockout history. They then drew 2 - 2 in the leg at home to comfortably progress 9 - 2 on aggregate.
Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid:
Real Madrid won. Real Madrid won their first of two derby games 2 - 1 against Atletico, and it all seemed over. However, Atletico won the 2nd leg 1 - 0. The draw resulted in a penalty shootout which ended in a win for Real Madrid.
Bayern Munich vs Bayer Leverkusen:
Bayern Munich won. Before this game, the hype was high. An All-German tie with the current German Champions as well as the historical German beast. Odds were it would be a tight game. However, Bayern Munich showed the world their heritage and thrashed their German rivals, winning 3 - 0 at home before winning 0 - 2 away, going through 5 - 0 on aggregate.
Aston Villa vs Club Brugge
Aston Villa won. The matchup of undergods. If you had told anyone 5 years ago that one of these teams was going to be in the Quarter Finals, they would have called you crazy. But now, Aston Villa finished in the top 8 of the league stage, and Club Brugged came off an impressive comeback against Europa League Champions Atalanta. Aston Villa, however, showed why they have a Champions League to their name (1982) and thrashed the Belgians 1 - 3 away before winning comfortably at home 3 - 0, going in 6 - 1 on aggregate.
Feyenoord vs Inter Milan:
Inter Milan won. Although expected to be a hard game, Inter Milan was the favourite and they did not disappoint. They won 0 - 2 away before a 2 - 1 win at home, going 4 - 1 on aggregate.
Lille vs Dortmund:
Dortmund won. The least elegant of the ties was quite basic. A 1 - 1 draw at home and then a hard fought 1 - 2 win away saw Dortmund qualify 3 - 2 on aggregate.
So that is it for the Round of 16. The eight teams who progressed were:
PSG
Barcelona
Arsenal
Real Madrid
Bayern Munich
Aston Villa
Inter Milan
Dortmund
The next matchups were :
PSG vs Aston Villa
Barcelona vs Dortmund
Arsenal vs Real Madrid
Bayern Munich vs Inter Milan
Since we missed a month, the Quarter Finals have actually been played. I will end it off here so it is not too long. However, if you are interested, check out the article in the same section to see my discussion on the Quarter Final games.
Make sure to check out my previous articles.
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