I don’t think anything could live up to the drama the first set of Round of 16 ties provided, but even this second week was pretty good. In that first week, the nerves of the PSG fans and heartbreak from Dortmund were so captivating that I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the screen. These four matches, while good, weren’t able to live up to the same standard.
Juventus 3-0 Club Atlético de Madrid (3-2 agg.)
This was an odd Atlético performance. Diego Simeone’s side are good at defending because they know how to play with an edge, and while they may be defensive, they aren’t passive. Instead, this looked more like the team that lost 4-0 to Dortmund, and not the one that put in a masterclass against Juventus three weeks ago. However, in that match, Atlético featured Thomas Partey in the midfield, who missed the match due to suspension, and Diego Costa, who missed due to injury. Rodri struggled to assert any physicality in the midfield, and Álvaro Morata couldn’t handle Leonardo Bonucci or Giorgio Chiellini up front. Atlético had no outlet to relieve pressure, and Juventus took full advantage. Knowing that Cristiano Ronaldo is the best aerial threat in Europe, Juventus got the ball wide and swung in crosses. Ronaldo got on the end of two and scored both. With Atlético on the ropes, Juventus kept pushing, substituting a forward Paulo Dybala for left back Leonardo Spinazzola with the score level on aggregate. As annoying as it is to watch Chiellini rolling around on the floor, it was effective in frustrating Atlético. And though Federico Bernardeschi’s penalty looked like the softest one given in the round, Bernardeschi deserved it for the way he played, and had the two teams played an extra 30 minutes, Juventus probably would have won anyway. Ronaldo converted from the spot, Chiellini rolled on the floor a little bit more, and Juventus avoided a disaster, as well as probably saved Massimiliano Allegri’s job, at least for the moment.
Prediction: Atlético to advance. Incorrect.
Manchester City FC 7-0 FC Schalke 04 (10-2 agg.)
At this stage last year, Manchester City won the first leg against Basel so convincingly that they effectively shut it down at the Etihad in the second leg and lost 1-0. They were out of the rest of their competitions, and I’d argue that given how comfortable they were in the Premier League, taking their foot off the gas in that match was the reason they lost 3-0 at Anfield in the quarter-finals first leg. They very well could have shut up shop after going up 3-0 in the first half, but to their credit, they kept playing and scored more when they may have been forgiven for turning their attention to Swansea in the FA Cup. There’s not much worth mentioning about the match itself except for the fact that Schalke never looked likely to score once, much less twice, and as soon as Sergio Agüero’s penalty went in, Schalke simply collapsed. City likely opened a few eyes with this performance, especially in a competition where no one has stood out so far. As for Schalke, they only got this far because of their soft group and definitely looked like a team four points from a relegation playoff.
Prediction: City to advance. Correct.
FC Barcelona 5-1 Olympique Lyonnais (5-1 agg.)
After the past couple of weeks, I think we were ready for the floodgates to open for Barcelona, and they finally did. Lionel Messi took over, just as he did last year at this stage against Chelsea, making sure Barcelona eventually got through comfortably. But for a few minutes, the tie hung in the balance at 2-1. It was good to see Philippe Coutinho on the score sheet, but Ousmane Dembélé’s introduction resulted in three goals for Barça, though it may have been Lyon pushing for the equalizer. Losing Anthony Lopes in goal may have hurt Lyon, but ultimately, despite Barça struggling to clear a corner, the Blaugrana were firmly in control from start to finish and reminded the rest of Europe that they have the player who can change a game all by himself, whereas Ronaldo merely scores the goals.
Prediction: Barça to advance. Correct.
FC Bayern Munich 1-3 Liverpool FC (1-3 agg.)
It was an odd decision from Jürgen Klopp to start Jordan Henderson, especially given that Liverpool was much better when Fabinho came on after 10 minutes. Liverpool’s entire back line of Virgil van Dijk, Andrew Robertson, Joël Matip, and Trent Alexander-Arnold also performed poorly when defending balls over the top, only using their pace to recover. That being said, Bayern struggled with the same, and both first half goals came from a fullback falling asleep and allowing a winger (Sadio Mané for Liverpool and Serge Gnabry for Bayern) to get in behind. 1-1 at halftime was better for Liverpool, though Bayern had the momentum. But on the other side of the break, Bayern didn’t play with any sense of urgency. Bayern’s back line was hardly tested, even with Kingsley Coman coming on for the final 20 minutes, and Mats Hummels was poor in the air for both of Liverpool’s goals. Ultimately, Liverpool deserved to go through, but Robertson made an awful challenge that rules him out of the quarter-finals first leg, which would prove disastrous if it’s not at Anfield. Congratulations to England for going 3 for 3 against Germany, though given how poor the Bundesliga season has been, I’m not sure that actually says much. This result also outlines how important Arjen Robben is for Bayern in big games, despite being 35 years old. None of Bayern’s other wingers are nearly as dangerous.
Prediction: Bayern to advance. Incorrect.
Honestly, I just can’t believe I went 3 for 8 with my predictions. And while this round was brilliant for England, it was a disaster for French and German soccer. France got two teams to this stage, and Germany had three. None of them advanced.
