The excitement in the soccer world is at its peak. Exhilarating games from La Liga, the Premier League, Serie A, the Bundesliga, and Ligue 1 as well as many other leagues are taking fans by storm. In the center of all of this chaos lies the UEFA Champion's League. Many breathtaking games have already taken place. Some outcomes were obvious, and some others have been unexpected. The best teams in Europe have finally boiled down to the top 16. Here are the UEFA Champion's League Round of 16 Fixtures, and Net's predictions.
The Matchups and the times for the first and second legs.
Schalke 04 vs. Manchester City First leg: February 20: 3 p.m. Second leg: March 12: 4 p.m.
Atletico Madrid vs. Juventus First leg: February 20: 3 p.m. Second leg: March 12: 4 p.m.
Manchester United vs. Paris Saint-Germain First leg: February 12: 3 p.m. Second leg: March 6: 3 p.m.
Tottenham Hotspur vs. Borussia Dortmund First leg: February 13: 3 p.m. Second leg: March 5: 3 p.m.
Lyon vs. Barcelona First leg: February 19: 3 p.m. Second leg: March 13: 4 p.m.
Roma vs. Porto First leg: February 12: 3 p.m. Second leg: March 6: 3 p.m.
Ajax vs. Real Madrid First leg: February 13: 3 p.m. Second leg: March 5: 3 p.m.
Liverpool vs. Bayern Munich First leg: February 19: 3 p.m. Second leg: March 13: 4 p.m.
Roma vs. Porto
The advantage seems to lie with Roma, who are coming off of a 12 point, second place qualification. Despite Porto having more points, it can be argued that their group in the Group Stage was much less experienced than that of Roma's which included 3 consecutive-time-winners, Real Madrid. Furthermore, Roma knocked out F.C. Barcelona in the Champions League last year. This was a major accomplishment for Roma, and has earned them much legitimacy.
Man United vs. PSG
If this matchup was taking place last year, it would have been one of the greatest matches of the Champions League. However, Manchester United have had their struggles while PSG has been impeccable. They remain in the lead to win Ligue 1, with a 10 point lead, and their young phenom, Kylian Mbappe, is tied to lead the league in goals. Furthermore, veteran Neymar is tied for second most goals in the league.Their renowned mid-fielder, Ángel Di María is second in the league for assists. Therefore, PSG is the favorite to win this match-up of European giants.
Tottenham vs. Dortmund
This matchup is going to be another one of these clashes between huge European teams. Tottenham lies in 3rd place in a heated EPL race to the top. Meanwhile, Dortmund leads a one-sided Bundesliga. Despite Borussia's more apparent success, Tottenham is also doing well, and 3rd place is no reason to be discouraged, especially if 1st and 2nd are Liverpool and Manchester City.
Ajax vs. Real Madrid
Real Madrid looks to be the favorites to win this matchup, mostly due to past success in the Champions League, and their status as one of, if not the best teams in the world. Although they may have changed after the loss of manager Zinedine Zidane, and Cristiano Ronaldo, they are still a team not to be trifled with.
Lyon vs Barcelona
Barcelona, despite their struggles against Tottenham, look to be the favorites in this game. The Round of 16 is a chance to turn over a clean slate, and the Spanish giants as well as La Liga leaders seem to completely outmatch the roughly known French team.
Liverpool vs. Bayern
This is certainly set to be a top 3 game in the Round of 16. Liverpool is currently at the top of the English Premier League, and they currently lead Manchester City by 4 points. Bayern is coming off of a Bundesliga win in the 2017-2018 season, but this season they are currently in 3rd place. They are tied with Borussia Mönchengladbach in points, but if they could surpass them in points, then they could move up to second place. Meanwhile, rivals Borussia Dortmund are in first place. However, Liverpool struggled in its Champions League Group which included French stars PSG. Meanwhile, Bayern finished at the top of its group with an outstanding 14 points. Therefore, this matchup is certain to be the most varied of all, although Liverpool seems to have the advantage since they did make the UCL finals last year.
Atlético Madrid vs. Juventus
This may be the game of the round, the game that keeps fans on their feet. Here are two teams that are performing top 2 in their leagues, with Juventus being first in Serie A, and Atlético Madrid tied with Sevilla in points for second. Furthermore, Atlético Madrid tied with Borussia Dortmund in points for their Group, but they came 2nd due to Goal Difference. Juventus finished first in its group with 12 points. Although both teams rank in the top ten clubs in the world, the Old Lady seems to be the better club, especially since it's one of the best teams in the world, and most likely is the best.
Schalke 04 vs. Manchester City
Manchester City is obviously the favorite to win here, which can be explained by their performance in the Champions League Group Stage.They finished first in their group with 13 points while Schalke finished 2nd, and in a less competitive group.
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