Who said that the giants are all easy to sign, and the worst Champions League round of 16 is a hidden underdog
Jimu News reporter Xu Ping
On the evening of December 18, Beijing time, the draw results of the 2023-2024 Champions League 1/8 finals were released.
Let's take a look at the teams that the big clubs face in the quarterfinals: Arsenal vs. Porto, Barcelona vs. Napoli, Paris Saint-Germain vs. Real Sociedad, Inter Milan vs. Atletico Madrid, PSV Eindhoven vs. Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich vs. Lazio, Manchester City vs. Copenhagen, Real Madrid vs. RB Leipzig.
Manchester City player Grealish
Looking at it, there are indeed giants who "picked up the wallet" in this 1/8 matchup, like Manchester City, the favorite to win the championship, and some netizens commented: "Manchester City's luck in drawing weak teams continues." In the 2020-2021 season, Manchester City faced Borussia Mönchengladbach and finally won 4-0 on aggregate, in the 2021-2022 season, they repelled the weaker Sporting on aggregate with an aggregate score of 5-0, and in the 2022-2023 season, Manchester City played an 8-1 aggregate score to eliminate RB Leipzig.
In the quarterfinals this time, what kind of score will they play against Copenhagen? Although it is not easy to predict, as long as they play normally, it is appropriate to enter the quarterfinals again. Of course, there are also different voices from the outside world, reminding Manchester City not to capsize in the gutter, because in the group stage, Copenhagen beat Manchester United 4-3 at home and only lost 0-1 away. And reaching the round of 16 has proven that Copenhagen's fighting power is extraordinary.
If it can be called a strong dialogue, it is Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid. According to statistics, Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid have only met once in official matches before, and that was 13 years ago in the UEFA Super Cup, when Atletico Madrid defeated Inter Milan 2-0 with goals from Sergio Aguero and Reyes. On paper, the two teams are evenly matched, and it won't be a surprise who makes the cut.
FC Barcelona
The other heavyweight matchup is Barcelona vs Napoli, although in terms of historical record, Barcelona have the advantage of 2 wins and 2 draws, and the two teams also met in the 2020-2021 Champions League 1/8 finals, which Barcelona won 4-2 on aggregate. However, today's Barcelona is no longer the Barcelona of the past, and even Barcelona fans are looking down on the home team: "That's in the Messi era, there is a ghost now", "In this state, look forward carefully", "How do I feel that this time is a little dangerous"......
Of course, what seems to be a strong and weak dialogue does not necessarily guarantee that there will be no upset. Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain, etc. are not soft persimmons, if you want to pinch the opponent as a soft persimmon, beware of pinching the "bomb", accidentally injuring yourself, this is by no means alarmist.
(Image source: Xinhua News Agency data map)
(Source: Jimu News)