1. Groundhog day for the Gunners
FOR THE THIRD time in six years, Arsenal will face European giants Barcelona in the knock-out stages of the Champions League so they are fully aware of the challenge that lies ahead.
The Gunners go into tonight’s first-leg tie at the Emirates Stadium in the middle of a busy, and crucial, period in their season. Arsene Wenger’s side continue to fight on all fronts and remain in contention for three pieces of silverware.
Wenger will make wholesale changes from the side that was held by Hull at the weekend and you feel the hosts will need to be energised if they are to go into the second-leg still in a position to progress.
Arsenal have failed to go beyond this stage of the competition in the past five seasons but after scraping through the group stages and beating Bayern Munich in the process, they appear confident an upset could be on the card.
“We are looking forward to playing against Barcelona,” Oliver Giroud said. “The Champions League is always a special occasion, especially against Barcelona.They are the best team in the world and it will be great to measure ourselves against them.”
Former Barcelona forward Alexis Sanchez will come back into the team and he and Mesut Ozil will be crucial if Arsenal are to have any luck in manufacturing a lead for themselves.
But how Arsenal defend will be key. Messi, Suarez and Neymar are as potent as they come and Francis Coquelin will be tasked with nullifying the threat in his holding midfield role.
It may only be the first-leg but Arsenal will need to ensure they head to the Nou Camp on 16 March still in with a chance, unlike so many previous encounters between the sides.
2. Progress check for Juve against Pep’s Bayern
Since Bayern Munich last met Juventus in the Champions League, the Italian side have enjoyed something of a European renaissance. A 4-0 aggregate loss to the German outfit in 2012-13 was a reflection of the Old Lady’s dwindling European pedigree.
But they’ve managed to turn it around and last year reached the final, only to lose out to Barcelona in Berlin.
Massimiliano Allegri’s side slipped-up in the group stages and had to settle for second place behind Manchester City. They paid the ultimate price in the last 16 draw and will need to produce two big performances if they are to avenge the heavy defeat three years ago.
“Fear is the wrong word. Bayern don’t have to fear any team in the world,” Lazio striker Miroslav Klose said.
“But we should definitely have lots of respect for Juve. They’re a very clever team and it’s not easy to knock them out of their stride.
“It’s very, very hard to score against Juve. They’re very compact and their defence is very organised even when they lose possession.”
Juve will need to make home advantage count in Turin and the two-time winners will look to stop the threat at source. Franck Ribery and Mario Gotze could both return after featuring at the weekend.
Juve may be without former Bayern striker Mario Mandzukic while Giorgio Chiellini’s absence is a big setback.
Juve are winless in their last four Champions League outings against Tuesday’s opponents but Bayern are winless in their last five away games in the knockout stages.
3. Will Pellegrini’s decision be justified?
Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini stuck to his word at the weekend and selected a youthful side for the FA Cup clash against Chelsea.
He did so out of frustration at the FA’s insistence that his side had to play their fifth round tie just 24 hours before departing for Kiev – but he will be hoping his players go out justify his decision.
City were handed a relatively kind last 16 draw by being paired with Ukrainian champions Dynamo and they will be favourites to advance to the quarter-finals.
However, European competition has always provided City with something of a headache in recent years and they’ve been unable to translate their domestic prowess into success in the Champions League.
They advanced from Group D with minimal fuss and were rewarded with a favourable draw but they are now expected to take advantage and reach the last eight for the first time.
The Citizens have stumbled at this hurdle each of the last two seasons and Pellegrini has put all his eggs in this Champions League basket this time around.
The club were unceremoniously dumped out of the FA Cup this weekend and the manager’s decision to surrender the tie will only be justified if his charges do the business tomorrow evening.
They head into the game on the back of three damaging defeats, with title rivals Leicester City and Tottenham inflicting back-to-back home Premier League losses on City for the first time since December 2008.
The Chilean coach will restore his big guns to the starting XI at the NSK Olimpiyskiy stadium for a game which marks the start of a make-or-break period in their season.
With Sunday’s League Cup final also on the horizon, Pellegrini will be hoping City’s season goes from strength-to-strength down the home straight rather than unravel.
Champions League last 16 first-leg fixtures:
Tuesday
- Arsenal v Barcelona
- Juventus v Bayern Munich
Wednesday
- PSV v Atletico Madrid
- Dynamo Kiev v Man City
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