Champions League: A Reunion and One Last Opportunity
Cuatro enfrentamientos completan la ida de los octavos de final de la Liga de Campeones con el reencuentro de Diego Pablo Simeone con parte de su pasado, con el Inter en Milan, y otra oportunidad, ¿la última?, del Barcelona para ganar un título en lo que resta de temporada.
Following the first leg matches last Tuesday and Wednesday, with Manchester City and Real Madrid reaffirming their aspirations for success, while Real Sociedad and Bayern Munich are in doubt and in need of a comeback, the matchups are now outlined.
Inter hosts Atletico Madrid and PSV Eindhoven faces Borussia Dortmund next Tuesday, while Porto takes on Arsenal in Portugal and Napoli meets Barcelona in Italy.
Simeone returns to the Giuseppe Meazza to reunite with the Nerazzurri club, where he played for two seasons as a player and won a UEFA Cup. It will also be the coach's 100th match for Atletico Madrid. He will be the ninth to achieve this feat, joining a renowned list that includes coaches like Carlo Ancelotti, Alex Ferguson, Arsene Wenger, Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho, Mircea Lucescu, Massimiliano Allegri, and Jurgen Klopp.
The red and white team returns to the continental tournament eliminations after years on the sidelines, stuck in the group stage. Having overcome the dry spell, they now clash with the runner-up of the last edition, relegated to second place in their group by Real Sociedad.
Absolute dominator in Serie A, the team led by Simone Inzaghi and spearheaded by Lautaro Martinez assesses the Spanish representative, whose fate for the year depends on the cups. Lagging behind in LaLiga with no real title chances, they survive in the Copa del Rey, having reached the semifinals, and once again venture optimistically into the Champions League.
Atletico Madrid aims to take the outcome of the showdown to the Metropolitano, where the return leg will be held in three weeks.
Even more urgency is assumed by Barcelona, which also finished first in its group and clings to the continental competition as the only chance to salvage the season. With Xavi having resigned in advance, Wednesday's match at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium brings together two clubs that triumphed months ago and are now struggling. Napoli was Serie A champion not long ago but is currently outside the European zone, mid-table in the current standings.
Watler Mazzarri's team has lost its offensive power of yesteryears. Georgian Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is not as inspired as before, and Nigerian Victor Osimhen needs some breathing room after his recent return from the Africa Cup of Nations.
Barcelona regains players for the European cause. Away from the top spot and institutionally turbulent, the Blaugrana team returns to the round of 16 after two years stuck in the group stage. Xavi's team looks optimistically towards the horizon to contest the only chance of success they have this season. Without the Copa del Rey and out of LaLiga, they aim not to let this new opportunity slip away against a rival who shared a group with Real Madrid in the previous round.
PSV Eindhoven hosts Borussia Dortmund at the Philips Stadion. Peter Bosz's squad, unstoppable in the Eredivisie with seventeen consecutive victories, faces the challenge of going far in the European event once the Dutch League is almost secured.
Borussia Dortmund, however, does not approach the continental duel in their best moment. Irregular in the Bundesliga, they have lost sight of the fight for the top spot and are focused on staying among the top four in the German table.
Nevertheless, the power of the German team is evident. They finished as champions of the so-called 'group of death', ahead of Paris Saint Germain and Newcastle. They have the reinforcement of Jadon Sancho and the takeoff of Ivorian Sebastian Haller, back after the Africa Cup of Nations where he emerged as a champion and hero.
Finally, the matchup between Porto and Arsenal completes the round of 16. The English representative has regained, under the leadership of Spanish Mikel Arteta, the prominence that its history gave it. They are in the Champions League round of 16 for the first time in seven years. But the precedents do not encourage the Premier League team's outlook, as they have lost their last six round of 16 first-leg matches and have been eliminated in their last seven encounters at this stage.
Both are also involved in the particular challenge of the Portuguese and English leagues, where they have possibilities and aspirations. Porto aims to maintain the good level of their forward Evanilson so far this season, including in the Champions League.
