Champions League Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals draw

The draws for the quarter-finals and semi-finals of the 2019 Champions League have been made ahead of the competition’s delayed schedule restart in August. 

The outbreak of the coronavirus in March forced UEFA to put the competition on hold and it was expected that the championship will be scrapped for this season. However, UEFA were keen to conclude the season even if it takes some time.

As things stand, some of the last 16 fixtures are yet to be played and only Atletico Madrid (who knocked out the defending Champions League winners Liverpool), Atalanta, RB Leipzig and Paris Saint-Germain are currently assured of their place in the quarter-finals.

Bayern Munich are yet to play their reverse fixture against Frank Lampard’s Chelsea but a 3-0 away win at Stamford Bridge already makes them the favorites to go through.

The incomplete ties between Real Madrid and Manchester City, Lyon and Juventus and Barcelona and Napoli are still stuck with the results possibly going on either side.

The 2019-20 UEFA Champions League Quarter-Final draw is as follows:

The winner of Manchester City vs Real Madrid will be playing the quarter-final with the winners of Lyon vs Juventus. Manchester City recently confirmed that they will be without their all-time top scorer Sergio Aguero due to a long-term injury he sustained previously in the season.

RB Leipzig vs Atletico Madrid will be an interesting game to watch too as Julian Nagelsmann’s men did well against Jose Mourinho’s Spurs in the last 16 and have good momentum with them. Speaking about momentum, Los Rojiblancos will also enter the game with a positive outlook having defeated the Reds in both the games, home and away.

The next quarter-final game will be between the winner of FC Barcelona vs Napoli and Chelsea vs Bayern Munich. The aggregate score of Barcelona vs Napoli is 1-1 and considering the way both teams have been since the restart, the game will be a nail-biting one. 

On the contrary, Bayern Munich look the clear ones to go through in this fixture. However, a young Chelsea squad with the likes of Christian Pulisic and Mason Mount may come up with a miracle.

Atalanta vs Paris Saint-Germain is the final fixture of the quarter-finals and looking at the equally offensive Atalanta and PSG, the game is expected to witness a lot of goals and drama.

After the quarter-finals, the semi-finals are expected to begin soon. The draw will be as follows: 

Manchester City or Real Madrid/ Juventus or Lyon VS Barcelona or Napoli/ Chelsea or Bayern Munich. The other draw is the winner of RB Leipzig and Atletico Madrid vs the winner of Atalanta and PSG. The interesting part of the latter semi-final draw is that none of the teams have won a Champions League title before.

This means one of these teams is confirmed to be a part of the Champions League final this season. The semi-finals will be played as a straight knockout mini-tournament in Lisbon over an interval of 12 days in August, with the final to be played at Benfica’s Estadio da Luz in Portugal on Sunday, August 23.

Sporting CP’s Estadio Jose Alvalade is expected to serve as a secondary venue for the competition. 

featured image credits- en.as.com