Champions League last 16: Who can we play? With the group stage of the Champions League now having come to an end, attention turns to the draw for the first knockout round, which is due to take place next Monday at 12pm in Nyon. We take a look at which teams Jose Mourinho’s side could potentially be drawn against. The rules of the competition stipulate that, at this stage, we cannot be drawn against teams from the same country or any team that was in our group, ruling Arsenal, Manchester City and Schalke out. The Blues topped Group G, ensuring we are guaranteed to play the second leg of the next round at Stamford Bridge. JUVENTUS The Italian side, managed by Massimiliano Allegri, finished three points behind Atletico Madrid in Group A and have won the competition twice previously, most recently in 1996. They are currently three points clear at the top of Serie A having lost just once all season, with familiar players such as Arturo Vidal, Paul Pogba and Carlos Tevez in their squad. Our last meeting with Juventus was at the group stage of the 2012/13 season, although we also met them, and progressed over two legs, in the last 16 in 2008/09. BASEL Basel’s 1-1 draw at Anfield on Tuesday ensured they finished two points ahead of Liverpool to qualify from Group B as runners-up, behind Real Madrid. Now under the stewardship of former Swansea and QPR manager Paulo Sousa, the Swiss side have shown in recent years they are more than a match for many of the more established teams in Europe on their day. Basel would be familiar opposition to Chelsea supporters after we were paired with them at the group stage of last season’s competition, as well as in the Europa League semi-finals in 2012/13. BAYER LEVEKUSEN Andre Schurrle’s former club finished a point behind Monaco in Group C to safely secure their passage. The German side secured impressive home wins against Benfica and Zenit St Petersburg in the group, as well as winning away from home against Andre Villas-Boas’s team. Managed by Roger Schmidt, they are currently fourth in the Bundesliga table. We last met Bayer Leverkusen at the group stage of the 2011/12 tournament, winning 2-0 at home and losing 2-1 away. PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN Laurent Blanc’s side went into their final group game, away at Barcelona, one point ahead of the Spaniards, but a 3-1 defeat sees them qualify as runners-up. The PSG squad contains players such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Edinson Cavani, Lucas Moura and Ezequiel Lavezzi, and a date with the French side will also allow our supporters the opportunity to welcome David Luiz back to Stamford Bridge. The Blues eliminated PSG at the quarter-final stage of last season’s competition in dramatic circumstances, while Jose Mourinho’s first Champions League game in charge of the club in 2004 was a 3-0 win at the Parc des Princes. PSG are currently second in Ligue 1, a point behind leaders Marseille. SHAKHTAR DONETSK The Ukrainian side secured their place in the knockout stages of the competition by finishing second in Group H, behind Porto. The stand-out result from their campaign thus far was undoubtedly a 7-0 away win against BATE Borisov, a game in which Luiz Adriano scored five goals. They are currently second in their domestic league, five points behind leaders Dynamo Kyiv. We met Shakhtar at the group stage of the 2012/13 tournament, winning 3-2 at the Bridge and losing 2-1 away from home. Shakhtar are currently playing their home matches in Lviv, more than 600 miles to the west, due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. You can follow Monday’s draw via this page.
Posted on: Thu, 11 Dec 2014 15:17:43 +0000
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