With only 16 teams remaining in the Champions League, any team realistically has a chance. So let’s take a look at some of the results from this week. We have already recapped the Manchester United v. Real Madrid match, so it will not be included in this post.
Let’s first take a look at Paris Saint-Germain. The French leaders beat Valencia Tuesday 2-1 away from home. Now PSG will play the second leg at the Parc de Princes. However, they will be without striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who was sent off in stoppage time. Also, according to ESPNFC, “UEFA’s disciplinary panel will meet at the end of February to decide whether PSG striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic should be banned for an extra game.” If he is suspended an extra match, that could hurt PSG if they are to advance to the quarterfinals.
Despite an away win for PSG, Juventus claims the best week in the Champions League. Juventus beat Celtic 3-0 away from home, which pretty much puts them in the quarterfinals unless Celtic has a miracle up their sleeve. Celtic manager Neil Lennon was not too pleased with the referee’s performance in the match.
“I thought he was very poor. I thought he was very pro-Juventus. I was disappointed with his performance to say the least,” Lennon said according to ESPNFC. “They were being fouled, manhandled. Every time one of my players tried to move he was held. He should have given a penalty on at least two occasions.”
The final game of the week featured Shakhtar Donetsk v. Borussia Dortmund. This game ended 2-2, with everything to play for in the second leg.
The Champions League always presents exciting matchups and games and this week was no exception. Other than Celtic, every team has a reasonable chance of advancing to the next round, which will set up for an exciting round of second leg matches. Let us know whom you think will advance to the quarterfinals and predictions for what team will win the Champions League this season.
Written By: Eric Stoyanov, Contributing Writer, soccerprose.com
