On the four-year anniversary of The Togher Perspective, I run an eye over the eight second round ties and what way they are likely to fare out.
PARIS SAINT GERMAIN v CHELSEA
For PSG, so cruelly eliminated in the dying minutes of last season's quarter-final by the Londoners, this presents a swift chance for revenge.
However, the French champions will need to rediscover the spark that enabled them to sweep through the group phase instead of the stuttering form they've been showing domestically, with Lyon and Marseille ahead of them in Ligue 1. Zlatan Ibrahimovic remains the go-to man up front, although his season has been affected by injury, while Ezequiel Lavezzi and Edinson Cavani have been nowhere near their best. Coach Laurent Blanc could really do with a third consecutive quarter-final appearance to take some of the heat off him and he needs his misfiring South Americans to sharpen up for Tuesday's first leg. David Luiz will also get a chance to show Chelsea what they're (not) missing.
Chelsea breezed through an admittedly accommodating group and have re-opened a seven-point lead in the Premier League, but Jose Mourinho continues to cut a moody figure. There aren't too many evident weaknesses in his team, with top-class players in all areas of the pitch, although performance-wise you still get the sense that there is more to come from the Blues. The January addition of Colombian midfielder Juan Cuadrado from Fiorentina provides them with another exciting option going forward and, with his former club not in this competition, he will be eligible for Champions League action.
Chelsea are stronger now than when they knocked out PSG last April, while the Parisians have weakened since then. Over two legs, you have to fancy Mourinho's men in this one.
SHAKHTAR DONETSK v BAYERN MUNICH
This tie could keep the scoreboard operators ticking over - both clubs managed to score seven in an away game in the group stage.
Although this isn't Shakhtar's first foray into the knockout stages, they have done particularly well to get this far in 2014/15 as the ongoing conflict in Ukraine has forced them to play home games at least 200 miles from Donetsk. Luiz Adriano hit the headlines when he became only the second player, after Lionel Messi, to score five times in one Champions League game, although worryingly their only two group stage wins came against a BATE Borisov team which will go down as one of the worst in this tournament's 23-year history. However, Mircea Lucescu's side has been sturdy at the back so far this season.
That defence is set for its most serious test in a long while when 2013 champions Bayern roll into town. Pep Guardiola's men have been almost flawless this campaign, although the group stage loss to Man City and a recent 4-1 hammering by Wolfsburg showed that, when they switch off, they are ripe for picking. Life in the Bundesliga has been so easy that the Munich giants can be liable to playing with the handbrake on, lulling them into a false sense of security that Real Madrid mercilessly exposed in last year's semi-finals. Then again, when Arjen Robben, Robert Lewandowski, Xabi Alonso, Franck Ribery and Mario Gotze get going, trying to stop them can often be a futile exercise.
Bayern Munich will come through this tie. The margin of the aggregate victory may depend on just how ruthless they want to be.
FC BASEL v FC PORTO
It might not be one of the last 16's glamour ties, but both of these sides have proven to be worthy Champions League campaigners.
Liverpool fans don't need reminding of how good Basel can be, with the Swiss team's October win over the Merseysiders ultimately proving the difference in getting them into the knockout stage. Paulo Sousa's men won't be fish out of water, either, having beaten Bayern Munich at this stage three years ago (though they lost heavily in the second leg and went out), while they were Europa League semi-finalists in 2013. As ever, the team is more than the sum of its parts, with no standout names in the mould of one-time Basel stars Xherdan Shaqiri or Granit Xhaka, although the latter's brother Taulant is making a name for himself at St Jakob Park.
This isn't the strongest Porto side of recent years, but they still had little trouble in winning their group and often tend to save their best football for the Champions League. They also possess one of Europe's most potent strikers in Jackson Martinez, who is impressively treading a path previously taken by fellow Colombian marksmen Radamel Falcao and James Rodriguez. Young Spaniard Oliver Torres has also stood out this season, although Julien Lopetegui's men would do well to cut out their tendency to cheaply concede goals.
While writing off Basel can often be an unwise move, I think Porto's greater attacking threat and match-winning star quality will tip this one in their favour.
SCHALKE 04 v REAL MADRID
These two meet at the round of 16 for the second year in a row. One can only hope it will be more competitive than the 9-2 aggregate win racked up 12 months ago by Real Madrid, who scored six in Gelsenkirchen.
Schalke have regrouped impressively under Roberto di Matteo after a hideous start to the season, clocking in behind Chelsea to advance from the group stage. They can call upon a more than decent strike partnership in Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Eric Choupo-Moting, although injuries have hampered the creativity of their midfield while they can be awful defensively. A winter arrival on loan from Manchester City was Matija Nastasic, who is eligible as he didn't feature for the Premier League champions in Europe this season.
Real Madrid need no introduction, with the ridiculous goal tally racked up by their galacticos saying it all, but the recent 4-0 hammering by city rivals Atletico will have hurt Carlo Ancelotti and co. Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale simply steamrollered Schalke last season and, with James Rodriguez and Toni Kroos having since joined the party, the task seems even more daunting for the Germans.
In this clash of two former Chelsea managers, the indications are that it will be almost as lop-sided as the previous meeting of these two clubs in European competition.
JUVENTUS v BORUSSIA DORTMUND
If European ties were decided on domestic fortunes alone, Dortmund may as well just forfeit here and now. Alas, football is never quite that simple.
Once again, Juventus have been imperious in Serie A, with a fourth consecutive title already looking a foregone conclusion with more than a third of the season still to play. The Bianconeri, however, have consistently flopped in Europe and lost twice in the group stage, so the same old question marks remain as to whether Massimiliano Allegri's team can be considered as realistic contenders for this competition. They do have a good mix with the experience and mastery of Gianluigi Buffon and Andrea Pirlo, the goalscoring prowess of Carlos Tevez and the youthful dynamism of Paul Pogba.
Borussia Dortmund's Bundesliga season has been a complete disaster, with some weeks spent at the very bottom of the table. Jurgen Klopp's team are currently 16th, which is incredible when you consider how easily they qualified from the Champions League group stage. They still have several of the team that almost won this competition two years ago, including Mats Hummels, Neven Subotic and Marco Reus, plus a decent strike force in Ciro Immobile and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. It is undeniable, though, that the goals of Robert Lewandowski have been badly missed, with a spate of injuries not helping matters either.
Bizarrely, Dortmund have actually been the better of these two in the Champions League so far this season. Look at these teams' performances as a whole, though, and this rematch of the 1997 final will most likely see Juventus go through to the last eight.
MANCHESTER CITY v BARCELONA
As with the Schalke-Real Madrid match-up, this tie is a repeat of a round of 16 clash from last season.
It was a meeting that looked most unlikely when Man City only had two points from four group games, before heroic wins over Bayern Munich and Roma spared them from a damaging early exit. The group stage was City's season in microcosm - extremely good at times but equally susceptible to dropping points that their talent ought to be hoovering up with ease. They have been unconvincing of late in the Premier League, slipping seven points behind leaders Chelsea having drawn level over Christmas, and Sergio Aguero may not be fully fit for the first leg. We could see a first glimpse in a sky blue shirt of Wilfried Bony, who has yet to play for Manuel Pellegrini due to his role in winning the African Nations Cup with Ivory Coast.
Barcelona haven't been without their problems in 2014/15 either, but in comparison to their opponents' worries, their supposed crisis has been a mere blip. Both La Liga and the Champions League remain realistic targets and Luis Enrique is doing a fine job in maintaining them as one of the continent's top sides, even if they are not the majestic force of four to six years ago. Lionel Messi has been potent as ever, with Neymar also enjoying a fruitful season. There are also signs that Luis Suarez is finding his best form after a tricky start to life in Catalonia, not helped by the ban that prevented him from playing until late October. Defensively, though, they can be vulnerable.
Man City are certainly good enough to go through over two legs, but they just haven't been dependable and lesser teams than Barcelona have exposed their frailties this season. As with last year, I expect Barca to have the better of this one.
ARSENAL v AS MONACO
A 15th consecutive season in the last 16 for Arsenal as they take on a Monaco team who until this year last appeared in the Champions League a decade ago.
The Gunners have fallen at this stage in each of the last four seasons, but on every occasion they came up against first-rate opposition. Arsene Wenger has finally had some luck in the last 16 draw, with probably the weakest available group winner picked out for them. Arsenal, whose pre-January form was quite worrying, seem to be getting it together in recent weeks, helped in no small part by the genius of Alexis Sanchez and the improving form of Mesut Ozil and Theo Walcott, plus much-unheralded contributions from youngsters like Francis Coquelin and Hector Bellerin. The decision to promote David Ospina to first-choice goalkeeper has also worked, with the Colombian a more dependable option than Wojciech Szczesny.
Monaco started the season awfully but have found their way back into the top five in Ligue 1, while they also caused a bit of a surprise by winning their Champions League group against seasoned European opposition. After recent spending sprees, this is a team now without Hollywood billing, but they have one of the best defences in Europe, conceding only once in six group games and putting together an eight-match clean sheet streak in the league. They are the type of disciplined opposition capable of frustrating the life out of Arsenal, who can lose their composure when they fail to get on top after an hour or so.
Wenger will be sensible enough not to underestimate his former employers and knows that defeat would be calamitous. It will test Arsenal, but their recent resurgence and the brilliance of Sanchez should be enough to get them into the quarter-finals.
BAYER LEVERKUSEN v ATLETICO MADRID
Not much previous between two clubs who are among their respective leagues' top sides, albeit not the star attraction.
Bayer Leverkusen have been the definition of a 'B+' side this season - doing what is expected of them and doing it quite well without ever truly threatening to excel. One man who has reached an A-grade level, though, is striker Son Heung-min, the South Korean who impressed at the World Cup and has continued that form at club level. Another player on an upward curve is midfielder Karim Bellarabi, whose performances have been recognised by Germany coach Joachim Low. Roger Schmidt's side are entertaining to watch, playing a quick tempo, attack-minded brand of football.
Last year's finalists Atletico have also done what could be asked of them so far in 2014/15, easing through their Champions League group and challenging for a second successive La Liga title. Diego Simeone's men will have confidence gushing through them after their 4-0 thumping of Real Madrid, over whom they have had the Indian sign ever since that agonising defeat in Lisbon last May. Summer signings Antoine Griezmann and Mario Mandzukic have settled in nicely at the Vicente Calderon, with last season's key men Miranda, Diego Godin and Gabi also impressing. It's a case of 'more of the same, please' for Simeone, who has efficiently kept the Atletico machine purring nicely since he took the job in 2011.
It promises to be a competitive tie with some wonderful football. Atletico look the stronger side and should overcome a stern challenge from their German opponents.
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