Mixed bag in Champions League draw for Barcelona and Real Madrid
Holders Barcelona will play Bayer Leverkusen in the last 16 of the Champions League while Real Madrid face a trip to Russia, having been paired with CSKA Moscow in the draw made in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday.
Barca boss Pep Guardiola will undoubtedly be happier than counterpart José Mourinho, whose Madrid team will have to cope with sub-zero temperatures in the Russian capital and also have to play on a plastic pitch, something Barcelona President, Sandro Rosell, admitted his club had been fortunate to avoid:
“That we have got Bayer Leverkusen is good,” he said. “But you get who you get and everything has its pros and cons. If we had to go to Russia there would have been the flying time and having to get there a day before, and also the cold, so we preferred not to have drawn either Zenit St Petersburg or CSKA Moscow. Having said that, they will be in pre-season.”
Meanwhile, Barca director of football Andoni Zubizarreta highlighted the strength of German teams in European competition: “They are very hard and I’ve always liked their football,” confessed the former Barcelona goalkeeper. “The grounds are full of passion, emotion, and young people and I think it’s a great place. But it doesn’t scare or intimidate us and I think it’s a beautiful tie.”
Bayer Leverkusen sports director, former German international Rudi Voeller said: “We are playing against the defending champions and are, of course, clear outsiders. For both our fans and younger players this is a dream draw... Everyone must play their best and Barcelona could have an off day.”
For his part, Real Madrid’s director of institutional relations Emilio Butragueño warned that CSKA will be a ‘dangerous rival’ not only because of the strength of their team but external factors that will come into play. He said: “They are dangerous because they have good players and beat Inter Milan, but we will be playing in February when temperatures will be very low and on a pitch that will be a novelty to us. We will have to be very careful as it won’t be easy.”
The full draw is:
First legs to be played February 14/15, second legs on February 21/22.
Lyon (France) vs. APOEL Nicosia (Cyprus)
Napoli (Italy) vs. Chelsea (England)
AC Milan (Italy) vs. Arsenal (England)
FC Basel (Switzerland) vs. Bayern Munich (Germany)
Bayer Leverkusen (Germany) vs. Barcelona (Spain)
CSKA Moscow (Russia) vs. Real Madrid (Spain)
Zenit St. Petersburg (Russia) vs. Benfica (Portugal)
Marseille (France) vs. Inter Milan (Italy)
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