Who will reach the Last Four of the Champions League?
by Steve Ashfield |
Who will reach the Last Four of the Champions League?
You can tell when the Champions League is beginning to reach its climax. Not one but two draws were held on Friday March 18. We now know the line-up for the quarter finals and the semi-finals. The possibility of an all-English final still exists but we could see a Madrid derby in the semi-finals. Let's look at the draw for the quarter finals and just who is likely to make it to the last four.
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Chelsea v Real Madrid
Chelsea take on Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter finals. The winner of this match will be up against either Manchester City or Atletico Madrid. That means we could see a repeat of last season's final between Chelsea and Manchester City or perhaps, Real v Atletico.
The English Premier League have their off-the-field problems. No need to feel too sorry for them though with billionaires seemingly lining up to make bids for the club. How many teams would love to be in that position? They come into this quarter final having won five and drawn one of their last six Champions League games. Their only loss in the competition this season has been away at Juventus and they avenged that with a 4-0 win at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea have won their last five home Champions League fixtures and all without conceding a goal. That run began with a 2-0 win over Real Madrid in the 2020/21 semi-final. The Londoners will want a similar result to that in the home first leg.
Real Madrid beat PSG in the last 16 and again have their eyes set on winning the Champions League. They had won all three of their away Champions League games this season to nil before losing the first leg in Paris. They will be out to get a good first leg result at Stamford Bridge but haven't always been as strong as they'd like on home soil.
They have won the last three at home but did lose to Sheriff earlier in the season. This is a hard tie to predict but Chelsea may well have the edge as they bid to win a second straight Champions League.
Manchester City v Atletico Madrid
Another season and still Manchester City haven't won the Champions League. They now know that to reach a second successive final, they have the two Madrid sides and Chelsea in their way.
City face another hectic end to a season. They have a narrow lead over Liverpool in the English Premier League and are still in the FA Cup and Champions League. They'd love to win all three trophies but it's the Champions League that they and Pep Guardiola want most.
The current English Premier League champions host the first leg and haven't lost a home Champions League game since 2020. 12 goals had been scored in their first three home games of this season, before a goalless draw with Sporting. It was a much changed side for that last game, you can do that after winning the away leg 5-0.
Away form for City isn't always what it should be. They have put five past both Brugges and Sporting but lost to PSG and RB Leipzig. You can bet that they will be out to get a healthy lead to take to Madrid.
Atletico have made an unsuccessful defence of their La Liga title but performed better in the Champions League. It's not been a stellar campaign though with only two wins in the group stage where they finished 11 points behind Liverpool. The big problem they face in this tie is their home record. You have to go back to 2020 for their last Champions League home win. This season has seen draws with Porto and Manchester United and losses to both Liverpool and Milan.
Aside from a loss at Anfield, Atletico have won all of their away Champions League games this season. All of which makes this an interesting tie but one that Manchester City should win.
Villarreal v Bayern Munich
Villarreal won the Europa League last season and are out to win the Champions League this time around. They caused a shock in the last 16 when beating Juventus 4-1 on aggregate. They did it the hard way too by drawing the home first leg and then going to Italy and winning 3-0. Now they face a tougher task as the Spanish side face Bayern Munich.
The La Liga side need to improve their home Champions League form with just one win in the last eight played. All a bit strange considering their La Liga record of nine wins at home but only three away. They can't expect to go to Bayern and get a win or can they?
Bayern have already scored 30 goals in the Champions League this season, 12 of them scored by Robert Lewandowski. Not since 2017 have the Germans lost an away Champions League game, so won't be scared of going to Villarreal for the first leg. 20 goals have been scored in four home Champions League games this season and they are the worthy favourites to reach the last four. Waiting for them will be Benfica (who they've beaten twice this season with nine goals scored) or Liverpool.
Benfica v Liverpool
Benfica beat Ajax in the last 16 but now face English Premier League side Liverpool. The Portuguese side caused a big surprise in the group stages when finishing second and dumping Barcelona (who they beat 3-0 at home) into the Europa League. Benfica did suffer two heavy losses to Bayern Munich though and they need to defend better against Liverpool.
The Reds beat Inter Milan in the last 16, winning away but losing at Anfield. They will relish the first leg as their four away Champions League games this season have seen them score 12 goals and that included putting five past Porto. Liverpool are in top form at present and should be able to get past Benfica to likely set up a semi-final clash with Bayern, who they beat two seasons ago.
