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What to know about Champions League quarterfinals
The UEFA Champions League will return this week with the tournament's eight remaining teams playing out a two-legged quarterfinal to determine which four will advance to the semifinals.
Which teams are playing? What's at stake? And who is expected to shine? Here's a breakdown of this intriguing quarterfinal round:
Tuesday | Bayern Munich (Germany) vs. Inter Milan (Italy)
Bayern Munich recently announced that 35-year-old Thomas Muller, who has 497 appearances with the Bayern, will leave the club at the end of the season after 17 years of first-team service. Bayern wants nothing more than to send away its favorite son with a Champions League win.
Standing in Bayern's way is Inter Milan, a famously chaotic club that finds itself in the middle of an uncharacteristic period of calm. Inter is first in Italy's Serie A with a whopping 39 goals. It will fancy its chances against Bayern's slapdash defense.
Striker Marcus Thuram — the son of legendary French defender Lilian Thuram — will be the man most driven to spoil Bayern's going-away party. He's playing spectacularly and will view this quarterfinal as his opportunity to make a global statement.
Tuesday | Arsenal (England) vs. Real Madrid (Spain)
Arsenal's dreams of a Premier League title in 2025 vanished over the weekend when it failed to capitalize on Liverpool's loss to Fulham. With that trophy all but out of reach, a desperate Arsenal should be focused on the Champions League.
But is desperation enough to take down the defending champ? Madrid barely scraped through to this quarterfinal round, beating local rival Atletico Madrid on penalties to make it happen. With Arsenal missing key defenders Gabriel and Riccardo Calafiori, Madrid's front line of Rodrygo, Vini Jr. and Kylian Mbappé will be free to run riot.
Wednesday | Barcelona (Spain) vs. Borussia Dortmund (Germany)
Barcelona, flying as it is under coach Hansi Flick, is widely expected to blow through the Champions League field and snatch a spot in this year's tournament final. It'll have to go through Dortmund first, but it isn't expected to be that big of a deal for the blaugrana.
Barcelona is undefeated in all competitions in 2025; Dortmund is floundering in eighth in its own domestic league. Ask most of its fans and they'll tell you that Dortmund is lucky to be hanging on in the Champions League at all.
Much will be made of Lamine Yamal's performance in this fixture, and rightfully so. The teen led Spain to a Euro victory last summer and may well lead Barcelona to those same hallowed heights. But keep an eye on impact sub Ferran Torres, too. The Barcelona forward came off the bench against Girona recently and looked brilliant. Depth matters in Champions League games like these, and Torres proved Barcelona has more of it than anyone else.
Wednesday | Paris Saint Germain (France) vs. Aston Villa (England)
On paper, this is an easy PSG win. The French team's post-Mbappé rebuild has been stellar, with forward Ousmane Dembélé playing some of the best soccer of his career out from under his countryman's shadow. PSG is arguably the most in-form team in Europe. It should get the job done here.
But for all PSG's strength, Aston Villa was the last team it wanted to see here in the Champions League. Villa coach Unai Emery has history with PSG — he coached there a few seasons ago and wasn't given much support. When Emery has history with a side, he tends to destroy it. (See Arsenal in the Premier League.)
Emery has an ace up his sleeve, too: Argentinian goalkeeper Emi Martinez. Martinez is reviled in France for his antics against les bleus in the World Cup final in 2022, and he'll be booed into oblivion when he takes the field for Villa in Paris. It won't matter. Martinez is a rare player, one who really feels all of soccer's dark arts deep in his soul. The boos won't hurt him. They'll only make him stronger.
More must-reads:
- Premier League European race intensifies after another thrilling weekend
- Ex-PGMOL chief says ‘serial offender’ at Liverpool has gotten off lightly with numerous decisions
- The 'NFL stadium names' quiz
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