Holders Chelsea have been drawn to face 13-time winners Real Madrid in the Champions League quarterfinals.
The three Premier League and three La Liga teams in the last eight avoided each other, with Manchester City up against Atletico Madrid, Liverpool taking on Benfica while Villarreal will play Bayern Munich.
In the other ties, Manchester City take on Atletico Madrid, Villarreal come up against Bayern Munich and Benfica face Liverpool.
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There is the potential for teams from the same domestic division to face off In the semifinal draw, with the winner in the Chelsea/Real Madrid tie playing Manchester City or Atletico. Meanwhile, Benfica or Liverpool will face Villarreal or Bayern.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti will return to former club Chelsea for the first leg and Thomas Tuchel described the challenge as a “tough one.”
As things stand, Chelsea will not have any fans at either leg after UEFA said it would uphold EU sanctions against Russian owner Roman Abramovich who has had his assets frozen since announcing he was selling the club.
“The challenge cannot be higher,” Tuchel told reporters on Friday. “Playing the second leg in the Bernabeu with spectators is a big challenge. We know what’s coming, but there is a big excitement around this fixture.
“It’s nice to avoid the English clubs, it’s always nice to play European teams.”
Asked about the prospect of having no Chelsea fans at either leg, Tuchel added: “In general I think this game changes so much with spectators so hopefully we find a solution and I’m pretty sure everyone at the club, the board, will fight for a chance.”
“Hopefully we make it happen somehow.”
Real Madrid, beaten by Chelsea in last season’s semifinals, are 10 points clear at the top of LaLiga while Tuchel’s side are third in the Premier League.
Liverpool will consider a clash with Benfica as the best option from the…
Source : espn
