Title Holders, Bayern Munich, will play against PSG in the quarter-finals after their game last year in the final

By: Emmanuel Mendez

First legs games are to be played on April 6th and 7th while the second legs are the following week, April 13th and 14th. Credit: en.as.com

This year’s Champions League competition is getting closer to its end after the Round of 16 finished. After the round of 16, only eight teams remain and those are PSG, Manchester City, Liverpool FC, Chelsea FC, FC Porto, Borussia Dortmund, Real Madrid, and the champions, Bayern Munich. 

PSG`s 4-1 away victory away from home against FC Barcelona was enough for them to win the fixture after they tied 1-1 in the second leg. Lionel Messi once again scored for the Catalan club after scoring a goal from a long distance. Kylian Mbappe scored a penalty before and both games together meant PSG defeated Barcelona 5-2 on aggregate. 

Liverpool once again defeated RB Leipzig 2-0 from goals from their attackers Sadio Mane and Mohammed Salah. The overall score was a convincing 4-0 scoreline on aggregate. Liverpool needs to win the Champions League to stay in the competition next year since their form in the Premier League looks to be shaky.

Dortmund in the second leg drew 2-2 with Sevilla and the aggregate score was 5-4. The game was very close, and Sevilla was only one goal to bring the game to extra time. The surprise so far in this year’s competition was FC Porto defeating Juventus.

FC Porto defeated Juventus in the first game with the score being 2-1 in favor of the Portuguese side. In the second leg, Juventus managed to win the game in regular time with a score of 2-1 but the score led to extra time because of the aggregate score being 2-2. 

Porto`s Sergio Oliveira strike from a low free-kick crushed the Italian team’s hopes in extra time by scoring another away goal. Juve would score one more and the game ended 3-2 in favor of Juve. The aggregate score ended 3-3 and Porto won on away goals.

Real Madrid wins against Atalanta 3-1 at home and the aggregate score was 4-1 in favor of Los Blancos. Man City won their game against Borussia Monchengladbach 2-0 and the overall score was 4-0. 

Chelsea defeating Atletico Madrid was also a surprise after Atletico`s great form this season. Chelsea defeated them 2-0 in the second leg and won the overall game with an aggregate score of 3-0.

Bayern Munich showed their dominance against Lazio once again and beat them 2-1 at home. The aggregate score was 6-2 for Bayern and the German team looks to defend their title and win back-to-back.

On Friday, March 17, 2021, the draw for the quarterfinals and semifinals took place. The result of the draw has excited many football fans because of the matches that will take place and the possible matchups that can occur in the semifinals.

Manchester City will be playing against Borussia Dortmund. Bayern Munich will be playing against PSG. This matchup is a repeat of last year’s Champions League final. The winners between these two games will place each other in the semifinal.

On the other side of the bracket, we have FC Porto against Chelsea. Real Madrid will be playing against Liverpool FC. This matchup is a repeat of the 2018 Champions League final in which Madrid won 3-1. Once again, the winners of these two quarter-final games will play each other in the other semifinal.

The two favorites of the competition are Man City and Bayern Munich. These two teams could match up in the semifinal if they win their respective games. Dortmund looks to surprise City while PSG would want revenge after last year’s final.

On the other side, Chelsea looks to find great form after the new manager, Thomas Tuchel has transformed the London side into a great defensive team. FC Porto is the underdog and looks to get another surprising win. Liverpool wants to win this year’s competition to avoid a trophyless season as well as Real Madrid, who looks to also fight for the La Liga title.

Many fans are excited about the next games of the Champions League and the final at Istanbul is getting closer, which takes place on May 29th, 2021.