Champions League: A preview to the quarter finals

The Champions League has reached the quarter-final stage & the draws are out as well. 8 teams have had their dreams crushed in the last round while the remaining 8 teams can still dream of a place in the final at Wembley. Some big names have been defeated in the previous rounds while some unexpected teams have fought hard and made their way into the next one. 

         

        
 18 Yard Box’s Pranav Byatnal takes a look at what the quarter-finals have in store for the football fans.

Malaga vs Borussia Dortmund

        Malaga has been absolutely outstanding in its first season in the Champions League.  Having topped their group, the Spanish outfit was pitted against a formidable FC Porto side in the Round of 16 and they managed to scrape through to the next round. Malaga has a balanced unit and they play a healthy brand of football. However, they will have to face their biggest test to date when they play against Borussia Dortmund for a place in the last four. 

         Although their chance of retaining the Bundesliga title look bleak, Dortmund have been in scintillating form in Europe this season. Dortmund topped the Group of Death comprising of Ajax, Real Madrid & Manchester City (Dutch, Spanish & English champions respectively). Their quick passing is a joy to watch and they have probably been the most consistent team in this competition thus far. The German side are favourites to win this tie but their Spanish opponents are not ones to give up so easily.

Isco is the man Dortmund must watch out for!!

Real Madrid vs Galatasaray

         Having beaten Manchester United in the last round, Real Madrid are one of the hot favourites to win this competition. Their domestic campaign looks all but over and this competition is what matters the most for Mourinho & Co. With a huge squad boasting of world-class players in every department, no opponent should seem very difficult for them. But first, they need to overcome the Turkish test.

         Turkish league leaders, Galatasaray are the surprise package in the Top-8. Players like Sneijder and Didier Drogba have taken the club to a new level. They beat FC Schalke in a hard-fought encounter over two legs and they will have their work cut out against the high-flying Madrid side. Galatasaray will give it their all but the All Whites might just be too hot to handle. 

Real Madrid should advance with relative ease, & if they don’t then it will surely be one of the biggest upsets in the current edition of the Champions’ League.

 Didier Drogba will spearhead the Turks' attack against his former mentor Mourinho

PSG vs Barcelona

         Both these teams are currently on top of the table in their respective domestic leagues and given their form it looks highly unlikely that they would let the title slip out of their hands. All the focus will be on their European campaign. This surely will be one of the matches to watch out for. PSG boast the likes of Beckham, Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva in their ranks whereas Barcelona don’t need any such introduction.

         PSG advanced comfortably by beating Valencia and they are up against another Spanish team in this round. For Barcelona, their victory over AC Milan was one of the most historic comebacks because Barcelona are known to be on the back-foot. Having, won this competition twice in the last 4 years, the Catalans maybe the odds-on favourites to win against the French side, but with loads of quality in their youth in this current PSG side, some inspiring performances might see them pull of a miracle. 

PSG's hopes rest on his shoulders

FC Bayern Munich vs Juventus

         Juventus have come long way after the 2007 match-fixing scandal. They clinched promotion to the top tier of Italian football, won the Serie A last season and now they are in the quarter –finals of the Champions League. They eased past Celtic in the Round of 16, and now they face German giants Bayern Munich.

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         Bayern on the other hand, managed to stay in the competition courtesy the away goals advantage. They in pole position to clinch the Bundesliga and they boast of a phenomenal record of having conceded just 6 goals at the Allianz Arena this season and haven’t failed to score in any of the League games. This is surely the tie of the round and all that one can hope is that it lives up to the billing. Stylish football, World-class players, great history and a relentless desire to win is something both these clubs define. Champions’ League nights are known to be special and only a special performance can see one team through to the next stage.

Can they go one better this time?

Written By,

Pranav Byatnal.                                 

Pranav is an Editor & Writer for 18 Yard Box.

Bayern Munich v/s Arsenal: Preview

18 Yard Box has a look at the tie of the round tonight.

This is one game that seems to have a foregone conclusion. 3 away goals by the Bavarians in the 3-1 win over the Gunners by their standout attackers this season, Müller, Kroos and Mandzukic has given them a near unassailable lead. Can the Gunners salvage pride or will they capitulate?

18 Yard Box looks at the tie.

Arsenal 

The 16^th year of the Wenger era has by far been the most horrendous for Arsenal. As if the sale of their two best performers of last season was not enough, the irritating of the inconsistency of the team has seen Arsenal languish at 5^th in the League table. The same indifferent form has also seen them lose to the likes of Olympiakos in the group stages of the UEFA CL, with the hopes of qualifying for the next season of the elite competition too diminishing fast. While players like Wilshere have gone on record wishing to emulate the Chelsea model, the fact remains that Bayern are simply far too strong.

First leg analysis

The Gunners were carved apart

Simply too slow in passing the ball, Arsenal found themselves guilty of over passing  it at times. The Bayern Munich defence stood firm, yet there glimpses of brilliance by the Arsenal midfield. Dominating possession at home. the Gunners were found guilty of squandering their chances. The midfield trio of Arteta, Cazorla and Wilshere did well. However, Ramsey was a liability. Giroud's miss could prove to be costly when the Gunners take the field on Wednesday night. 

The Arsenal defence was thoroughly exposed, losing shape in every Bayern counter. Not closing the man down well (first goal), not clearing the corner well (second goal) and not able to deal with the pacey counter attacking football of the Bavarians (third goal), exposed the Arsenal defence from all angles.

Injuries, suspensions and changes 

He might get a game tonight

Arsenal’s biggest blow is the loss of Jack Wilshere and Lukas Podolski to ankle injuries. Bacary Sagna’s injury means Arsenal have to make do with Carl Jenkinson at rightback. The one positive piece of news is the return of Keiran Gibbs at leftback, freeing up Vermaelen back to his centreback position.  Arsenal.com confirms that 1^st choice goalkeeper Szczesny will be rested, with Vito Mannone being the likely replacement. Abou Diaby is to travel to Germany too. This would mean Cazorla being shifted to the position behind the striker, in place of Wilshere or on the left wing in place of Podolski. Tomas Rosicky would then be in the centre of the field. There may indeed be a chance for out of favour winger Arshavin , as Wenger told the club website.

Tactical Talking

Tactically, Arsenal are in a quandary for this game. To get through, they need to score thrice against a team that has conceded 4 times in all competitions this year. This translates to them having to play in a full-out attacking mode, at the risk of losing possession and being shred apart by their much-fancied opponents. A defensive approach won’t work wonders either as a draw would only mean the end of the road for them. Compact defending, a high pass rate, ball retention, movement around the ball and most importantly blocking out the midfield from the opponent, were the features of the Bayern game at Ashburton Grove. Arsenal should be ready to circumvent all this and still attack without conceding goals.

Bayern Munich 

Munich have most deservedly grabbed the pole position in this contest. Sitting pretty with a 2 goal lead, they could do with even a 1-goal defeat, which in their form this season doesn’t look possible. Yet their biggest pitfall would be underestimating their beleaguered opponents.

First Leg Analysis

They look well drilled

Bayern Munich were extremely patient when they came out in the first leg. They knew that Arsenal would dominate possession and defended well. Exposing Arsenal's defensive frailities, Munich took adavantage of the Gunners' school boy errors and finished them for good by going three goals up. The Bayern defence looked sharp and stood strong and did not allow the Gunners' midfield to find the killer pass. 

Good going front and great at the back, Munich had everything to make them look classy. 

Injuries, suspensions and changes 

Gustavo to start

Injury to Ribery and Robben as well as Schweinsteiger’s suspension indicates starts to Shaqiri on the wing while Luis Gustavo would partner Javi Martinez. That apart, Bayern have nothing to change. Reports on the club’s website also indicate the central defensive pairing of Dante and Boateng.

Tactical Talking

While all that the Germans have to do is grind a draw, they will most certainly attack and will play to win. That is only fitting for a side that aims to present its outgoing club coach with the trophy that has eluded them for long. Arsenal will have the attacking threats of Kroos, Müller and Mandzukic unleashed upon them with the entire unit including the defenders looking to attack. That said however, they will look to cut off any provisions that the midfield may have for Giroud.

Defending wise, Bayern would like to stiffle the likes of Cazorla and Walcott and in the process bottlenecking the Arsenal attacks. A four man defence with Javi Martinez sitting in front will pose a great problem for the Gunners and might see them struggle to get any past the Bayern defence today.

Chances 

One would be tempted to allude to Arsenal’s near comeback last seaon against AC Milan at the same stage of the competition, and to Barcelona’s comeback yesterday. As things stand right now though, the match surely seems to be within the firm grip of Bayern Munich. While Bayern Munich also have their share of injuries and suspensions, they have a well-oiled team with wonderful squad depth, which is where Arsenal lag. Yet the Germans would do well not to take the Gunners lightly, specially a wounded side who would have something to prove. They could yet spring a surprise. A 2-0 victory for Bayern seems likely.

Written By,

Abhishek Karandikar

Abhishek is a writer for 18 Yard Box.

Also read the article 'Injuries and Suspensions risking a Munich disaster?' 

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Injuries and suspensions risking a Munich disaster?

18 Yard Box looks at the players who are going to remain absent from both the teams as Munich gear up to face a wounded Arsenal.

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Injuries and suspensions never truly represent a team's strength. But unfortunately these two demons come hand in hand alongwith the perks of playing at the top level. As Bayern looks to welcome Arsenal at the Allianz Arena, both the teams look set be miss certain key players.

18 Yard Box has a look at the players who will fall short of making it to the Champions League second leg Round of 16 encounter between the Bavarians and the Gunners.

Arsenal 

1. Jack Wilshere (Ankle inflammation)

Wilshere loss huge for Gunners

Arsenal's Champions League hopes looks to be in tatters as they welcome a fresh injury blow to an already injury ravaged squad. The 21-year old English man will be unfit for the clash due to an inflammation on his left ankle. This injury will bring back the memories of the terrible stress fracture to his right ankle which had kept him out of the game for an entire season. His failure to play a clash of this magnitude might affect Arsenal dearly. His midfield presence has been very important to the Gunners so far and Arsene Wenger's men now face a daunting task of overturning a 3-1 home loss without their star man.

2. Lukas Podolski (Ankle injury)

Arsenal set to miss out one of it's German soldier

If any player knows the Bayern side in and out, its him. Lukas Podolski's miss will be a huge one for Arsenal as the German knows the way Bayern play, being a former Bayern man himself. His form too has been great this season, scoring 13 goals for the Gunners so far. Podolski's excellent ability to find the right pass and a vision to launch a searching cross has seen his reputation rise considerbaly. To add to this, his tireless work ethics and a never say die attittude will cause the Gunnners missing out on a leader on the pitch.

3. Bacary Sagna (Knee Injury)

Bac's not back yet

Still suffering from an injured knee from the previous leg, the Arsenal right back will miss this leg too. Sagna's form has raised a question mark about his future with the club. However, his experience and determination would be a huge miss as Arsenal risk putting the inexperience Carl Jenkinson on the pitch. The former Charlton man has lots to learn and maybe one of the weaklinks in the Arsenal defence.

4. Wojciech Szczesny (Rested)

Not the number one today

This comes as a great surprise as the Arsene Wenger has decided to rest the Arsenal number 1. Looking off colour this season, Wojciech still needs to prove himself on the pitch. Having let the Gunners down on plenty of ocassions, Arsene Wenger thinks that its right if his Polish counterpart Fabianski keeps in between the poles this time. However, Fabianski is hardly match fit as he has just returned from a fresh injury. Playing him would be a huge risk in such a big clash for the Gunners.

Bayern Munich

1. Franck Ribery (Ankle Injury)

No super Frank for Bayern

Franck Ribery has been the mainstay for the Bavarians ever since he joined them. Although the Frenchman has looked cold this season, his presence gives Bayern a new dimension in attack. However, Bayern look to miss the French international as he undid his ankle in Bayern's weekend clash against Dusseldorf. This might cause Kroos to start and play on the left with Muller shifting right. Ribery's change a pace and his eye for goal will be sorely missed and his absence leaves a huge gap to fill.

2. Bastian Schweinsteiger (Suspended)

The German playmaker misses the tie

The Bayern Munich vice captain sits this one out after picking up a yellow in the first leg against the Gunners. Schwensteiger has been the linchpin of Bayern's midfield and he, alongwith, Javi Martinez has have run riot in the opposition midfield this season. Although Bayern have an able replacement in the form of Gustavo, Schweinsteiger's hold up play and ability to thread a pass will be missed. Gustavo has big boots to fill.

3. Jerome Boateng (Suspended)

A red to forget

Boateng's red against BATE Borisov in the Champions League group stage had forced him out of both the legs. This known fact could come to haunt Munich if they lose out on a 3-1 lead at home. Boateng's absence alongwith Badstuber's injury sees Dante and Van Buyten set to start.

4. Holger Badstuber (Injured)

Still injured

A long term injury sees Badstuber miss out on this clash. Badstuber and Boateng had forged an incredible defensive partnership before the German got injured and now the baton will be transferred to Dante and Van Buyten to stop the Arsenal attacks.

Other doubtful casualties

Arjen Robben (Bayern Munich)

There have been rumours that the Dutch international has picked up a slight injury and is doubtful to start. The former Chelsea winger has not hit the ground running this season. However, the club has not confirmed his injury.

Abou Diaby and Santi Cazorla (Arsenal)

Abou Diaby may be back for the Gunners as he prepares to clear the late fitness test. However, the shock rumours are that Cazorla will also be one of the players rested as Rosicky might get an opportunity to star. Cazorla's absence will be a shocking one in a game of such huge magnitude.

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With hoards of big names missing, the clash seems to be losing its gleam much before it has become. The first leg scoreline puts the tie hugely in favour of the German outfit and to top it up, these injuries and suspensions might cause the interest levels to drop and it could be branded as the 'Munich Disaster'

Written By,
Rishabh Ghai

Rishabh is a writer for Goal.com India, International, contributor for AIS and a writer and editor for 18 Yard Box.

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