UEFA Champions League

Will Tottenham's dream continue? Will it finally be Chelsea's year? Who's turn is it to become the European Champions? 

So, now we know, the real talk can begin, the Quarter and Semi Final draws for the 2011 UEFA Champions League have taken place. We now have a better idea of who will have the tougher challenge if they wish to write themselves into the history books, and lift the most coveted trophy in World Club Football.

The ties are as follows, Tottenham will have to beat Real Madrid if they wish to continue their unbelievable Champions League adventure, Barcelona have the tricky task of having to go to Ukraine to face Shakhtar Donetsk, Inter Milan will face off against German side Schalke 04 and last but not least, Manchester United will have to battle past Chelsea in an all English tie if they want to match last season’s performance of reaching the Semi Final stages.

Real Madrid vs Tottenham Hotspur

First of all Real Madrid vs Tottenham, in my opinion, it’s the tie of the round. As an avid Arsenal fan it’s hard for me to write this but Spurs have played very well in the competition this year, they’ve done everything right, and deserve to be where they are now. When the group stages were drawn back in August I was convinced they had the hardest group and would struggle to get out of it. They then had the task of beating the team that top the Italian Serie A, AC Milan, not only did they beat them, but they managed to stop the likes of Robinho, Alexandre Pato and Zlatan Ibrahimovic from scoring against them for one hundred and eighty minutes, considering Tottenham’s defensive record this season, that’s nothing short of phenomenal.

As for Real Madrid, this is the first year they’ve been in the Quarter Finals of the Champions League in seven years, and Jose Mourinho is much to thank for ending this awful run for one of, if not the most celebrated club in World Football. One thing we learnt about Jose Mourinho in England when he managed Chelsea, is that he’s a winner. Tottenham will be in mixed spirits about this tie, the players and fans will be thrilled to welcome Madrid to White Hart Lane, and the lucky few that go to the Bernabeau will remember it for the rest of their lives, but on the flip side, this could be the end to Spurs’ wonderful Champions League journey.

In my opinion Jose Mourinho is the only manager that can be mentioned in the same breath as Sir Alex Ferguson, in terms of managers currently in the game, I don’t think there are any better than the two, and I think they are, plain and simple, the best around. I believe this will be where Real Madrid’s advantage comes in. I believe if Real Madrid had one of their older managers, Tottenham would have a decent shout of getting through, but with Jose leading the world class players that he has at his disposal, I can’t see past a Real Madrid win with this tie.

This may be because I’ve got Arsenal in my blood, but I think it’s more to do with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Mesut Ozil and Angel Di Maria being on Real Madrid’s books. Don’t get me wrong, Tottenham definitely have what it takes to get past this Real Madrid side, but it will be their biggest achievement in a very long time, probably their biggest achievement since I’ve been watching football. Tottenham will need the combined experience from the likes of Heurelho Gomes, Rafael Van Der Vaart and William Gallas, along with the flair and talent from the likes of Luka Modric, Gareth Bale and Michael Dawson if they’re to progress from this tie. If they do manage to shock the football world, beat Real Madrid and continue this fairy tale through Europe, the chances are they’ll get another dream tie against Barcelona, if Tottenham manage to get in the final, you might as well just give them the trophy.

Barcelona vs Shakthar Donetsk

This brings us onto Barcelona, after rolling Arsenal over in the second round they had become the side everyone didn’t want. Barcelona will definitely be happy that they’ve avoided the ‘bigger clubs’ but still have a tricky tie against reigning UEFA Europa League champions Shakhtar Donetsk. Shakhtar Donetsk have showed they’re no pushovers, finishing top of a group that included Arsenal and Portuguese side Braga, who have knocked out Sevilla, Celtic and Liverpool in Europe this year. They also managed to beat Arsenal when they played them on their home turf, and considering it’s been two years since Barcelona have won an away tie in the Champions League, Barcelona will have to be wary of Shakthar Donetsk.

No disrespect to Tottenham Hotspur and Shakthar Donetsk, but I think the majority of neutral football fans will be licking their lips at the potential of seeing arch rivals Real Madrid and Barcelona face off in the Semi Finals of the Champions League. Barcelona humiliated Real Madrid earlier in the season, beating them by five goals to nil, one of the most one sided El Classicos I can remember. That result was almost certainly a one off; Jose Mourinho prides himself on his teams having a good defensive set up, so Barcelona should not expect a result like this again if the tie does become a reality. Barcelona don’t have great memories of Jose Mourinho after he knocked the then favourites out of the competition last year, but as we see all too often, anything can happen in football, so this tie is far from certain to happen.

Inter Milan vs Schalke 04

Moving onto the next tie, managers and players very rarely come out and say who they would prefer to get in the next round of any competition, it’s kind of an accepted etiquette in football. But Inter Milan have drawn who everyone was probably hoping for, Schalke 04. Schalke have been very inconsistent this year, they’ve been superb in the Champions League, topping their group after beating the likes of Benfica and Lyon, two teams who they wouldn’t have been expected to beat, they also got past a good Valencia side in the last round. Yet in the Bundesliga, they’re a long way off the pace, sitting 10^th in the Bundesliga, and fourteen points off a Champions League place with eight games to go. They also recently sacked their manager Felix Magath due to this poor league form. So out of the eight sides in the Quarter Finals, I think many would agree they were probably the least fancied.

When you look at Schalke’s squad, you can see why they’ve got this far, Raul and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar are no pushovers, and with Manuel Neuer, Christoph Metzelder in the squad too, they definitely have the ability to pull off the odd result. Inter Milan will undoubtedly be favourites to progress though, Leonardo has rescued Inter’s season after Rafa Benitez’s appalling start. Inter are now just five points behind AC Milan with nine games to go, so they definitely have the chance to grab the title, this would have seemed unlikely when Benitez was sacked, he left them languishing in 5^th place when he was dismissed from his managerial duties at Inter earlier in the season. After Leonardo’s side managed to squeeze past Bayern Munich in what was one of the best ties in Champions League history, they will be glad they have been given the tie that everyone else wanted, with Samuel Eto’o and Wesley Sneijder hitting form at the crucial part of the season, I can’t see past an Inter win for this tie. The award for winning this tie? The winner of this one will go onto face either Manchester United or Chelsea.

Chelsea vs Manchester United

Now was it just me, or was you disappointed when Manchester United were the fourth team picked out of that hat, or bowl nowadays I suppose, to face Chelsea? I’ve never really been a fan of all English ties; they just don’t have the same magic as a European night when you face a foreign side. The teams know each other inside out, it’s a match we see at least twice a year, it might just be a feeling within England, but for me I’m a lot more excited about seeing Tottenham take on Real Madrid.

But when it comes down to it, these are two great European sides, Manchester United currently sitting top of the Premier League, and Chelsea have established themselves as a European force since Abramovich’s billions came to Chelsea all those seasons ago. Apart from the obvious, each of these teams have their own extra incentives to win the competition this year. Ever since Roman Abramovich has taken over, every one of his managers have failed to bring Champions League glory to the South West London side, so if Ancelotti were to bring success to Chelsea this season, he would undoubtedly cement his place in the Chelsea hot seat for another season. With Manchester United, they’re bidding to be the first club ever to do the treble on two separate occasions with the Champions League involved in the trophy haul, and Sir Alex Ferguson will love to add a third Champions League trophy to his impressive resume.

It’s hard to predict who will advance from this tie; both sides are having their problems at the moment. Manchester United have lost three games recently and injuries to key defenders are starting to pile up, John O’Shea is out for five weeks, Rafael recently suffered a Hamstring strain, Nemanja Vidic is out but should be back in time for the Champions League tie, but worst of all, Rio Ferdinand is out of the tie, if not for the rest of the season. But Sir Alex Ferguson has shown that he knows how to get the best out of what he’s got at his disposal, he proved this when United beat Arsenal in a recent FA Cup tie, with this in mind, you cannot write United off.

Chelsea have had problems ever since Ray Wilkins was relieved of his duties as Carlo Ancelotti’s assistant. Although they have been improving over the past month or so, they are still proving to be very hit and miss, one week beating Manchester United, yet on another getting knocked out of the FA Cup by Everton. The main problem for Ancelotti is keeping Drogba and Torres happy as it seems as though they cannot play together. A manager should never have to make a formation to fit his squad, he should always have a set formation, and then sign players based on where you need to improve. He needs one of Drogba or Torres, not both, I believe Chelsea have suffered from Ancelotti trying to change Chelsea’s system in order to fit these two into the squad. Although, despite their draw against Copenhagen in the week, Chelsea showed good signs, they created a lot of chances; it was just the finishing that was a little off. It could be worse for Ancelotti, if Chelsea failed to create chances against Copenhagen, then the alarm bells would start to ring.

My Prediction

If you're still reading, well done, I’ve written a lot about what I think with these ties and wouldn’t be surprised if you’ve stopped by now! This is the part where I put my neck on the line and predict how I think the ties will play out.

Semi Finals

Real Madrid vs Barcelona

Chelsea vs Inter Milan

Final

Real Madrid vs Chelsea

Since Jose Mourinho was appointed as Real Madrid’s manager I’ve backed him to win the Champions League, and I can’t go back on what I said. Jose Mourinho knows how to beat Barcelona after last season's experience in the Champions League; he also knows what not to do after that five goal drubbing he received earlier in the season. As long as Jose’s main squad stays fit, I can see him winning his third Champions League trophy at a third different club, opening the door for him to say bye to Real Madrid and complete his long awaited return the Barclays Premier League and Chelsea Football Club. Not so sure how the Chelsea faithful would feel about him returning if Chelsea are the team he beats to achieve this feat though.

So Arsene, make sure you win the league this year, because if Jose comes back to England, it’s only going to get more difficult.