TUESDAY:
BENFICA V INTER MILAN
Benfica reached this stage of the competition last season and this time they have a better chance of going one better. They're up against an Inter side who are not having their best season domestically and are out of form which gives the Portuguese leaders a great opportunity to reach the semis.
Inter Milan head into this first leg not in great form with Simeone Inzaghi's side without a win in their last six games in all competitions. They will be seen as the favourites to reach the semi finals as they have players of a higher calibre. But their current form makes their chances look very slim.
It's been over a decade since Inter last reached this stage of the Champions League and they've been presented with a great opportunity to reach the next round. They might not be in great form but they will still fancy their chances because of the quality they have. Especially going forward.
PREDICTION: 1-0
I think Benfica will come out on top in this first leg because they're in better form and will want to make the most of having home advantage. With Inter out of form and Benfica have the ability to surprise teams, I think they'll edge this one.
MAN CITY V BAYERN MUNICH
Man City have looked more like their usual selves recently including in their win over Southampton at the weekend. I wasn't sure if Erling Haaland would play in that game as I thought Pep would save him for this one having just returned from injury. But Pep decided to play him and he'll be glad that he did after netting twice.
They'll definitely play a strong team here as they're desperate to win this competition and are up against a quality side in Bayern. They'll be the favourites to win this tie and having home advantage in the first leg will give them confidence.
Bayern Munich have made a good start under Thomas Tuchel winning two of their three games since he took over. I was surprised that they sacked Julian Nagelsmann last month as they were still in with a chance of winning the Bundesliga. They might not have been top at the time but the decision to sack was still a suprising one.
Tuchel beat Man City in the final two seasons ago when he was Chelsea boss and he'll be feeling confident of beating them again with Bayern. His Chelsea side were underdogs that day like his Bayern side will be in this one and this tag could serve them well here.
PREDICTION: 2-0
I'm backing City to go ahead in this tie because they have home advantage and are the side in better form. Bayern have made a decent start under Tuchel but with City having an out and out goal scorer in their side in
Haaland, I think they'll gain the upper hand here.
WEDNESDAY:
AC MILAN V NAPOLI
AC Milan hammered Napoli 4-0 in Serie A earlier this month in Naples and they'll be looking to pull off something similar at the San Siro. Their performance on the day will certainly give them a lot of confidence and with the first leg being a home tie for them, they could pull off another victory.
Napoli have put themselves among the favourites to win the Champions League this season with the form they've been in and they have a great chance of doing so. They'll have a winnable semi final tie against either Benfica or Inter Milan if they win this tie and they'll back themselves anyone in Europe as they've shown many times this season.
Luciano Spalletti's side will want revenge on Milan for that defeat earlier this month which will have lit a fire inside them going into this first leg. They bounced back from that defeat with a 2-1 win at Leece on Friday and their main focus now will be to avenge that crushing defeat in this first leg.
PREDICTION: 1-2
I'm backing Napoli to bite back here because I can see them use the anger from their 4-0 defeat to Milan to help them win this game. It will be a tough game as the atmosphere at the San Siro can make it difficult for teams but with the mentality that Napoli have, I think they'll show up here.
REAL MADRID V CHELSEA
These two met at this stage of the competition last season with Real being given a scare by Chelsea in the second leg at the Bernabeu. I don't see that happening here as both sides have had contracting seasons in their domestic leagues.
Real Madrid might be in the Copa Del Rey final this season but their sole focus will still be on winning the Champions League because of the history they have with it. Them being the holders will give them more motivation to win it as they'll be desperate to retain their crown.
Karim Benzema scored a hat trick against Chelsea last season and has a good record against English sides in this competition. He scored in both legs against Liverpool in the last 16 and he also scored in both legs against Man City in the semi finals last season. He'll certainly back himself to bag another goal or two here because of this record.
The last time Chelsea had an interim manager going into a Champions League Quarter Final they ended up winning the whole thing. Roberto Di Matteo was that man back in 2012 the man who is trying to emulate that in Frank Lampard was part of that squad. People have been talking about Chelsea potentially pulling this off but I don't see it happening because of the problems they've had this season.
The blues seem to have more creative players than goal scorers at the moment as they're creating a lot of chances but don't have someone to put them away. This has been their problem all season and one that they won't be able to fix until at least the summer.
PREDICTION: 3-0
I've got to back Real Madrid here because I can see them being too strong for Chelsea. They look stronger in every department and with the likes of Benzema and Vinicius in their attack, I can see them win this leg rather comfortably.
Comments