The stage is set for the UEFA Champions League, UCL, quarter-final second leg fixtures.
The second leg fixtures, which will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday, is expected to be a ‘judgment day fight to finish’ for the eight teams as only four will progress to the Champions League semi-final stage after the conclusion of the matches.
NEWSUPLUG reports that the first leg fixtures were played last week, Tuesday and Wednesday.
There are currently 8 teams – Inter Milan, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Arsenal and Aston Villa in the Champions League quarter-final stage.
Here are the fixtures for the Champions League last-8 second leg games:
Tuesday:
Aston Villa vs PSG – This match will take place at Villa Park by 8 pm. Unai Emery’s side lost 3-1 against PSG in the first leg last week. The Premier League club will have to put in a strong performance in order to come out with a good result against PSG.
Dortmund vs Barcelona – This game will take place in Germany. Barcelona thrashed Dortmund 4-0 in the first leg last week at Camp Nou. It will definitely take a miracle for the Bundesliga side to pull a comeback against Hansi Flick’s side.
Wednesday:
Real Madrid vs Arsenal – This match will take place at the Santiago Bernabeu. The Los Blancos lost 3-0 against Arsenal in the first leg at Emirates Stadium last week. Carlo Ancelotti’s side will indeed need a miracle to pull a comeback against the Gunners in Spain. Some Real Madrid players like Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo have already warned Mikel Arteta’s side ahead of the return leg tie.
Inter Milan vs Bayern Munich – This match will take place in Italy. Inter Milan was the only team that went away and won last week. The Serie A giants defeated Bayern 2-1 in the first leg last week in Germany. The Bundesliga giants will need to put in an outstanding display in order to get a revenge against Inter at San Siro.
Speaking with NEWSUNPLUG about the Champions League quarter-final second leg fixtures, Media Consultant and Football Development Expert, Ibrahim Lawal gave his view on the matches.
Lawal said: “The Champions league knockout stages have always been highly competitive and unpredictable, though, on paper, it is expected that the more experienced clubs like Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern and PSG will record easy victories over their opponents.
“But sometimes it doesn’t turn up that way, the big one being Madrid losing to Arsenal by 3 goals to nothing, it was a little understandable considering Madrid’s recent loss of form in the LaLiga.
“The goal margin against Madrid may have been more if not for the heroics of Courtois. Considering Madrid’s Champions league experience, having won the competition a record 15 times and having won it 3 times back-to-back, one cannot rule out a comeback win for the Spanish giants.
“For Aston Villa, they are seen as the underdogs, playing a seemingly revamped PSG who seem determined to go all out and win the Champions League this season, after beating Liverpool in the Round of 16. Aston Villa may have a good comeback against PSG but they are not good enough to qualify for the semi-finals.
“For Inter Milan, the Nerazzurri are known for their defensive and counter tactics this season. They will surely work a tight midfield that will frustrate Bayern who have quick attackers and will want to hit the ground running with quick goals.
“Inter wining away at Bayern Munich is less surprising considering their recent good form both in domestic and European competitions.
“As for Dortmund, they lack the tactical discipline to match the young Barcelona side who were able to craft out incredible quick and counter moves that gave them an easy first leg victory at home.
“However, the second leg may not be different, it certainly will be a cracker, judgement day fight to finish, but the teams that lost the first leg will have to dig deeper to come up with wins against their opponents.”
When asked to pick the four teams that could make it to the Champions League semi-final, Lawal simply said: “Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan and PSG.”
