The 2018-19 UEFA Champions League resumes this week with the first leg of the quarterfinals.
Sportsnet’s soccer panel of broadcasters, writers and pundits offer their picks and predictions below.
MANCHESTER UNITED vs. FC BARCELONA
Peter Galindo: Manchester United’s injury woes have improved since the second leg versus Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16. But there is another issue that’s affecting United in recent matches: leaky defending.
United has conceded 60 shots in its last four matches across all competitions. Given Barcelona’s attacking prowess, that could spell trouble for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s back line. La Liga’s table toppers are unbeaten in their last 16 matches and are showing no signs of slowing down, either.
That being said, United’s counter-attacks remain a huge threat. Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial, Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard are all fit again, so surely the Mancunians will have opportunities to strike on the break. However, with Lionel Messi on the other side, it might be too much to handle for Solskjaer’s men at Old Trafford on Wednesday.
Prediction: Barcelona wins 2-1.
AJAX vs. JUVENTUS
Dan Riccio: The big misconception of the quarterfinal draw is that Juventus was paired with an ‘easy’ opponent. Ajax have not only bounced Real Madrid from this year’s Champions League, but they also earned points against Bayern Munich and Benfica in the group stage. This Dutch team is genuinely tough to beat, and will take advantage of any squad that takes them lightly.
Juventus may have Cristiano Ronaldo back from injury for Wednesday’s match in Amsterdam, but he is not the talk of Turin right now. That label belongs to Moise Kean. The young Italian has scored in four straight matches and is taking the football world by storm. This may be the stage for him to put the hype train into overdrive.
Prediction: Juventus wins 2-1.
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TOTTENHAM vs. MANCHESTER CITY
Geoff Lowe: Tuesday marks the first of three clashes between these two teams over the next two weeks and the second match in Tottenham’s glorious new stadium – it’s also be Spurs’ most important of the season, and the biggest test Mauricio Pochettino’s side has yet to face in this Champions League campaign. A positive result in North London will be vital for Spurs given Manchester City have outscored Tottenham 8-2 in their last three meetings.
Chasing a historic quadruple season, Manchester City face a second-straight Champions League quarterfinal against a Premier League rival after crashing out of last year’s tournament to eventual finalists Liverpool. Winners of 22 of their last 23, the Citizens enter the round of eight in their best form of the season – Pep Guardiola’s potent side have proven equally hard to break down, posting clean sheets in each of their last three matches and surrendering more than one goal in a game just three times since the calendar flipped to 2019.
In sum: Tottenham is in tough.
Prediction: Manchester City wins 1-0.
LIVERPOOL vs. FC PORTO
James Sharman: This will be fun, but will it be a bigger challenge for Liverpool than last season’s 5-0 aggregate win over Porto in the round of 16? Jurgen Klopp thinks so, but then he has to say that.
Porto are, as per usual, in a battle with Benfica for Portuguese silverware. However, last season the title came easier to them, while this year it could not be any closer. So, are the Portuguese more battle hardened this time around? Or simply no quite as good? Pepe is unavailable for this one, while Iker Casillas brings unparalleled Champions League experience in goal.
Liverpool have scored some late goals in recent weeks to maintain a winning streak and keep them just ahead of Manchester City in the Premier League table, and the ease in which they kicked Bayern Munich out of the Champions League in the last round must be a big cause for concern for Porto. Mohamed Salah ended his nine-match goalless streak against Southampton last week, and would be a very good bet to start one of his ridiculous streaks on Tuesday at Anfield. Liverpool should prevail in this one.
Prediction: Liverpool wins 2-0.