The holders of the Champions League have been drawn against Chelsea in the quarterfinals
The Champions League has been reduced to just eight teams, with the remaining teams learning their quarterfinal fate at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, on Friday.
Following a convincing win over Liverpool in the previous round, Real Madrid was drawn against another English club, Chelsea.
Given Chelsea’s struggles this season, Real will be a significant favorite going into that tie, but Graham Potter’s side may have finally turned a corner after winning three straight games for only the second time this season.
Chelsea advanced to the quarterfinals after overturning a 1-0 first-leg deficit against Borussia Dortmund with goals from Raheem Sterling and Kai Havertz, who scored the game-winning goal in the final two years ago when the London club defeated Manchester City.
Real, on the other hand, will be rightly confident of advancing to the semifinals after a 5-2 thrashing of Liverpool at Anfield in the round of 16 first leg.
It was a historic result, with Real going on to comfortably see out the tie with a 1-0 win at the Bernabeu courtesy of Karim Benzema’s goal, bringing the Frenchman’s Champions League tally to 89.
The Real Madrid striker has scored 13 goals in his last eight knockout matches in the competition, making him Europe’s most feared marksman as the Spanish club continues its quest for a 15th European Cup.
Pep Guardiola may never win Julia Roberts’ heart, but he will be hoping that this is the year he finally wins his first Champions League title without Lionel Messi. When the two were at Barcelona, the Spanish club won the Champions League twice.
The Spaniard came so close to leading Manchester City to their first European Cup title two years ago, losing to Chelsea in the final in Porto, Portugal.
This season, however, there is one significant difference for City: Erling Haaland. The Norwegian scored five goals in the team’s rout of RB Leipzig, cementing his position as the world’s best striker.
A Bayern Munich team that has struggled in the Bundesliga this season, only recently opening up a two-point gap at the top, stands in their way.
Despite its inconsistent form, Bayern Munich easily defeated Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League over two legs, and a team with talents such as Thomas Müller, Sadio Mané, and Alphonso Davies will always be a threat.
Napoli is the most exciting team in Europe this season, on course to win its first Serie A title since 1990 after establishing an 18-point lead at the top of the table.
The team, led by star striker Victor Osimhen, has also been a European force to be reckoned with.
Luciano Spalletti’s team easily defeated Eintracht Frankfurt in the round of 16 5-0 on aggregate, and a combination of stingy defense and attacking verve has consistently overwhelmed opponents this season.
Napoli will also be confident of defeating an AC Milan team that is currently 20 points behind Napoli in Serie A and only narrowly defeated a beleaguered Tottenham in the previous round with a 1-0 aggregate score.
The final two teams in the draw are Benfica and Inter Milan, and both will be confident of reaching the semifinals.
Inter won a difficult tie against Porto thanks to a late goal by Romelu Lukaku in the first leg, while Benfica thrashed Club Brugge 7-1 on aggregate.
The tie was originally drawn with Inter playing at home first, but that was changed when AC Milan drew Napoli at home in the first leg due to the fact that both Milan clubs share the San Siro.
