11:20 And that concludes the draw of the last 16 of the Champions League. Good luck Tottenham and Chelsea. Yet BBC football think that "hardly vintage" (TM) Juventus means that Spurs need luck. As I contend that : hardly vintage (TM) Madrid > hardly vintage (TM) Juventus Spurs need no luck whatsoever.
Tough draw but I feel playing someone like Juventus is better than Basel or Porto. We seem to do better in Europe against the big sides than sides we should do well against. Wouldn’t surprise me to see Chelsea beat Barcelona either. I have a weird feeling they will do very well in the CL this season.
Would've preferred Bayern tbh. It's sides that are happy to play for a 0-0 and maybe nick a 1-0 that worry me most.
Another 2012 is not out of the question for them (more so given Conte knows that Citeh are unlikely to spectacularly derail from their PL tracks) .
Tough draw. I agree with NKNG. Despite Juve having bags of talent, if they sit back, it could be 2 verrrry long games. How we set up for these is going to be vital. Doesn’t help that our 3 games before we play them are united, Liverpool and Arsenal. Ouch. However, in the CL this season, we’ve played some of our best football and remained extremely disciplined. Anything is possible and we’ve got nothing to lose.
Ostersunds: Rise of Swedish club under English manager Graham Potter http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/41902664 Great story in fact. Might produce a shock......
On the contrary. The squad mindset will be on high alert anyway for those PL fixtures. Juventus will not wanting to be facing a Spurs side that potentially has overcome said PL opponents. That aside, the CL games are a long way off so not really worth worrying specifically about Juventus until the date gets closer.
I see the draw as a win-win. Barca and Bayern were the two I was dreading. I guess closely followed by Juve but tbh if we lose but play respectably we can hold our heads high and concentrate on the league and if we win we can holds our heads even higher. Just bracing myself for the inevitable 'Ode Upon a Guardiolan Urn' when they overcome the mighty Basel. PSG v Real will be a mental game.
That actually is a great story. Nice to see someone taking an alternative route and having some success. Their season ended last month and Potter won Manager of the Year over there, having finished 5th. Can't see how they're going to be competitive when these games are played, unfortunately.
It's also incredibly dull, as is the team of the year crap. 11 players from Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, barring the odd exception or wildcard.
So how big do you think the fine will be after Atletico reported Barca to FIFA for their illegal approach for Griezmann? I'm thinking Atletico will be slapped with a £2.5m fine.