The draw for the first knockout stage of the Champions League has been made. I intended to tell you what the tie of the round is, but they all look so lip-smackingly delicious I can’t decide! The draw in full is:
Porto v CHELSEA – Mourinho heads back to the club he won the title with.
CELTIC v AC Milan – Scottish underdogs against the Italian giants (who shouldn’t be in the competition)
PSV Eindhoven v ARSENAL – There were trickier names in the hat, so Arsene Wenger must be fairly pleased.
Lille v MANCHESTER UNITED – Probably the best draw United could have hoped for.
Roma v Lyon – I would fancy Lyon to go through, but it should be a good tie.
Barcelona v LIVERPOOL – I’m looking forward to this one already as Rafa ‘Ambassador’ Benitez takes his Spanish Embassy home.
Real Madrid v Bayern Munich – Another tie to drool over. Both have underperformed in Europe in recent seasons, but for big-names and big heritage it’s hard to beat this match-up.
Inter Milan v Valencia – Yet another great game for the neutral. I would expect Inter to progress.
[Rob Parker]