Mar 13, 2012: Bayern Munich vs Basel
Bayern Munich have to correct the mistakes that saw them lose to FC Basel away from home. Luiz Gustavo is not taking anything away from the Swiss contenders who stunned pre-tournament favourites Manchester United en route to the Last 16.
“It is not only a very difficult game, but also a very important one. We will have to be very focused in order to turn around this tie. We have to deliver a good game from all positions. One mistake can decide everything!”
It would be big news if Bayern fail to reach the next stage. Olympique Lyonnais are already out of the competition and Hollywood FC are not ready to join the French on the list of busted giants.
Mar 13, 2012: Internazionale vs Olympique Marseille
Elsewhere on Tuesday night, Olympique Marseille will clash against Internazionale in the bid to seal what they started. Thanks to Dede Ayew’s injury-time winner in France, Marseille have the advantage. Can Inter turn the tables around at the San Siro?
Well, in the absence of Jose Mourinho, the Nerazzurri are not what they used to be a couple of years ago. Marseille vs. Inter is a do-or-die match for the Italians. The home crowd will not accept defeat on home soil.
On Wednesday night, Chelsea, Napoli, Real Madrid and CSKA Moskva will be in action.
Mar 14, 2012: Chelsea vs Napoli
In England, Chelsea’s strengths will be tested to the limit. Following their miserable 3-1 defeat in Italy, the Blues are forced to win big or crash out from the UEFA Champions League on March 14. Current manager Roberto di Matteo will attempt to repair what got broken under Andre Villas-Boas. A 3-1 deficit is definitely not easy to manage, especially against a team like Napoli. Conceding first would be suicide.
Mar 14, 2012: Real Madrid vs CSKA Moskva
After watching their bitter rivals trounce Bayer 10-2 on aggregate, Last 16 contenders Real Madrid will perhaps bother to do something similarly big on Wednesday night. Los Blancos have defined stylish and attacking football several time this season but against CSKA Moskva, the main point will be to secure victory. A win at the Bernabeu – whether ugly or not, whether huge or narrow – would be good enough for Real Madrid to snatch Last 8 tickets.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored a vital away goal for Los Blancos in the first leg but you cannot rule out CSKA Moskva’s threat just yet. The Russians grabbed a very late equalizer on home soil. Taking a 1-1 draw to Spain is perhaps not that bad for them. After all, a score draw would do. Will CSKA Moskva opt for a very defensive approach and leave Real Madrid lost of offensive ideas?
The Real Madrid-CSKA Moskva tie gives the Spaniards the edge because of a few things such as Ronaldo’s away goal and the Bernabeu factor. However, there’s room for an upset and Jose Mourinho is aware of that.
Which team will join the rest?
Last week, underdogs APOEL secured safety by upsetting French titans Olympique Lyon. They were joined in the quarter-finals by giants Barcelona, AC Milan and Benfica in the quarter-finals of the 2011/12 UEFA Champions League.
