UEFA Champions League Round 16 draw

The much anticipated UEFA Champions League round of 16 draw took place in Paris on Monday and was accompanied by the usual UEFA flair, but due to what UEFA deemed a “technical problem” the initial draw was “declared void” and denied football fans around the world the chance to see a Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo showdown for now, but it did serve up the prospect of some equally exciting showdowns.

Real Madrid would be rightly aggrieved at the new draw, having been initially drawn against Portuguese team Benfica, they will now face Paris St Germain (PSG). With Real Madrid having won their last 10 games in a row, and PSG fronted by Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé, this clash of European heavy weights will surely be entertaining. Real will hope Karim Benzema and Vinícius Júnior continue their scoring streaks while PSG hope their domestic form more than makes up for their shaky performances in the group stages of Europe’s elite competition.

One tie that did not change is reigning Champions League winners Chelsea’s match against French champions Lille. Free scoring Ajax, whose player Sébastien Haller is the current top scorer in the Champions league with 10 goals, will play against Benfica, while the other Portuguese club in the Champions league Sporting Lisbon will face Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City. 

Juventus will need to leave their domestic form behind them when they face 2021 Europa League champions Villareal, and Austria Bundesliga log leaders Red Bull Salzburg will have a tough time against German Bundesliga powerhouse and champions Bayern Munich, with Robert Lewandowski in fine form in the Champions league having scored 9 goals and made two assists in the 6 games played so far. 

Liverpool, champions in 2019, will face a resurgent Inter Milan, who top the Italian Serie A while Manchester United will face La Liga Champions Atletico Madrid. Athletico seem to be struggling domestically of late, having just come off a bruising defeat to city rivals Real Madrid, but United will face a tight defensive Athletico which also has dangerous attacking players Luis Suarez and Antoine Griezman who can easily make the difference in any game.

The first leg games will be played on the 15/16 and 22/23rd of February 2022 with the return leg 8/9 and 15/16 March 2022. Checkout Betway Zambia soccer betting and odds to make your predictions on the next round of the Uefa Champions League as well as many other major football from around the world.

The Round of 16 matches are as follows;

Red Bull Salzburg v Bayern Munich

Sporting Lisbon v Manchester City

Benfica v Ajax

Chelsea v Lille

Atletico Madrid v Manchester United

Villarreal v Juventus

Inter Milan v Liverpool

PSG v Real Madrid