Three Spanish teams (Barça, Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid), two German (Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund), two English (Manchester City and Arsenal) and one French (PSG). Except for the absence of the Italian teams (Inter Milan, Napoli and Lazio fell to the last eight), the draw for the quarter-finals of the Champions League which takes place today (12:00 p.m.) will be one of the most difficult in memory. There are no Cinderellas, this time, so any opponent will be a hard bone to gnaw at for Barça, who have reached these crossroads of the tournament after a three-year absence.
By difficulty level, Manchester City is the one everyone wants to avoid. Pep Guardiola's team, reigning champion, is the main favourite, but Bayern Munich, PSG and Real Madrid must be placed at the same height. Atlético de Madrid, Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund are, with all possible precautions, the least complicated rivals in the draw, although favoritism would continue to be widely distributed.
The big favorites have not failed and have progressed sufficiently to the round of 16. City did not forgive against the surprising Copenhagen and settled the tie by the fast track (6-2). For their part, Bayern, very dangerous because they have the Champions League as the only possible title this season, recovered from the tie against Lazio (3-1 on aggregate). PSG, with Mbappé as their standard-bearer and Luis Enrique at the controls, minimized Real Sociedad in the two matches of the tie (4-1). After a seven-year absence, Arsenal return to this round with a young and cheerful team. Ødegaard, Saka and Havertz lead Arteta's Gunners, leaders of the Premier League. Borussia Dortmund, finally, is the most affordable team in terms of its potential.
As this is a pure draw with no conditions, there is the possibility that both Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid will be Barça's rivals. They have not met the whites since the semi-finals of 2010-2011 and a new duel between them would be one of the star matches of this round. The quarter-finals will be held on April 9-10 and 16-17. The semi-finals will be played on April 30 and May 1 (first leg) and May 7-8 (second leg). The grand final is scheduled for June 1 at Wembley (London).
