Champions League quarter-final draw sees favourites avoid each other but promises plenty of exciting ties

Tottenham v Man City

There was bound to be one all-English tie, and though this one is slightly less glamorous than a Manchester derby, or either Manchester team facing Liverpool, there’s plenty of intrigue for Tottenham v Manchester City as well.

The biggest talking point will be the opening of Spurs’ new stadium. They’ll have played one game before they host City, but that will be against either Brighton or Crystal Palace.

There’s no doubt that this is going to be the marquee fixture for the new White Hart Lane during the stadium’s infancy, with no home game against a rival or Big Six side scheduled otherwise. The atmosphere for the first leg of this tie should be fantastic.

City are favourites, no doubt, though they’ve had their struggles with Tottenham at times in recent years. Spurs’ blend of physicality, aggression, and intense pressing has the capability of knocking Pep Guardiola’s team off their stride, though they’ll have to be at their absolute best to stand a chance. This is the second-straight season City are facing an English side in the quarter-finals, and memories of being knocked out by Liverpool last season will still rankle.

City and Spurs will actually play each other three times in ten days, as there’s a Premier League fixture at Etihad Stadium right after the two Champions League games. These two teams are about to get to know each other very well.

Prediction: Manchester City

Liverpool v Porto

This is a rematch of last year’s round-of-16 tie, and if those fixtures are any indication, Liverpool will be fancying their chances.

Porto were being considered the “easy” team in the quarter-final draw, and given the Reds beat them 5-0 in Lisbon last year before playing out a 0-0 draw at home to advance, Jurgen Klopp’s side are probably happy with the way the draw’s turned out.

But there shouldn’t be any complacency. Porto look a different side this season, and the way they came back against Roma in the last round – albeit a Roma that has hardly resembled the team that made last season’s semi-finals – was impressive.

There is more resilience, with former Real Madrid defender Pepe anchoring a back line that is unlikely to get turned over as easily.

And if Liverpool players and fans were annoyed with Sergio Ramos after last year’s final, Pepe, the Madrid captain’s former partner-in-crime, has the ability to be even more of a nuisance. This is a tie that could get spicy.

Prediction: Liverpool

Ajax v Juventus

Ajax’s reward for their stunning demolition of Real Madrid is to face another side of equally daunting pedigree.

Juventus pulled off a famous comeback of their own in the round of 16, and a team that can beat Atletico Madrid 3-0 is not one that will be afraid of Erik ten Hag’s young, vibrant side.

Of course, the same holds true for Ajax, who are probably ready to take on anyone after the way they dispatched Madrid, beating the reigning champions 4-1 on their own patch. Juventus are not a team in disarray the way Madrid were, but they’ll be treating Ajax with a healthy respect knowing what they can do to a favoured side.

There are plenty of subplots – this face-off of two of Europe’s most storied sides is a rematch of the 1996 Champions League final, which Juventus won, while young Ajax captain Matthijs de Ligt, considered one of the best young defenders in football, will relish going up against grizzled veterans Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci on the other side.

And of course, there’s Cristiano Ronaldo and the possibility he can avenge former club Madrid’s defeat, though that is unlikely to be a prime motivation. More importantly, there’s that fourth straight Champions League title to win for himself, and a first one this century for his new club.

Prediction: Juventus

Manchester United v Barcelona

If Ajax going from beating Madrid to facing Juventus seems like bad luck, Manchester United can be forgiven for feeling the same way.

They pulled off a miraculous comeback against Paris Saint-Germain, and their reward is a tie against Lionel Messi and Barcelona.

Of course, under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, United feel they can beat anyone. Barca are one of the favourites to win the competition, but they’ve also lost at the quarter-final stage in three-straight seasons, all in ties they were expected to win.

United will believe they can join Atletico Madrid, Juventus, and Roma in that list of sides to knock Barcelona out.

The second leg will be special for Solskjaer personally, as he returns to the scene of the moment that made him a United legend: his winning goal in the 1999 Champions League final, scored at Camp Nou against Bayern Munich.

If he can bottle some of the spirit and stardust of that famous night, Barcelona will have to be wary of an upset. In the meantime, Messi can look forward to only his second appearance at Old Trafford, though of course, he has plenty of experience of hurting United: Barcelona beat the Manchester club in both the 2009 and 2011 finals, with Messi the star on both occasions.

Prediction: Barcelona