FC Barcelona’s seven possible quarter-final opponents in the UEFA Champions League

Barça's seven possible rivals
The draw to determine the matchups in the next round of Europe’s top tournament is set for Friday in Nyon, Switzerland

FC Barcelona will find out which team they play just after 12.00pm CET this Friday, when UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland will be the backdrop for this year’s quarter-final matchups.  The first leg matches will be on 14 and 15 April, while the return legs will be on 21 and 22 April. Let’s take a look at Barça’s seven possible rivals.

Real Madrid

Ancelotti’s team may become Barça’s quarter-final rivals the just two days before the Clásico. Real arrive after eliminating Schalke, winning 2–0 away and losing 4–3 at the Santiago Bernabéu. Barça and Madrid have not faced off in the Champions League since the 2010/11 semi-finals, which saw Barça move into the final. A league rivalry could become a European confrontation.

Bayern Munich

The Germans eliminated Shakhtar Donetsk after a dramatic 7–0 rout at the Allianz Arena. This would be Barça’s first matchup with a team led by Pep Guardiola, since the end of his time at FC Barcelona. It could also be the first visit made by Thiago Alcántara, in the final stages of recovering his knee injury, who could face his brother Rafinha. Neuer, Müller, Ribery, Lahm, Robben, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Lewandowski are some of Bayern’s more prominent names.

Paris Saint-Germain

The French have already faced Barça in this edition of the Champions League. PSG won 3–2 at the Parc des Princes, while Barca won 3–1 at Camp Nou. Laurent Blanc’s team reach this round much stronger after eliminating Chelsea in a very exciting match at Stamford Bridge that saw the Parisians win with 10 players.

Porto

Another former Barcelona player, Julen Lopetegui, could face the Catalans in the Champions League. Porto beat Basel 4–0 in the second leg. One Porto’s best players is striker Cristian Tello, on loan to the Portuguese club from FC Barcelona. They also have former Barcelona player Ricardo Quaresma, Colombian Jackson Martinez and Algerian Yacine Brahimi, the team’s top scorers in the competition with five goals each.

Monaco

This team is one of the biggest surprises in this Champions League after winning group C over Zenit, Arsenal and Benfica. The team led by Leonardo Jardim has experienced players like Joao Moutinho, Jeremy Toulalan, Ricardo Carvalho and Dimitar Berbatov. They eliminated Arsenal after a great 3–1 victory at Arsenal before losing 2–0 at home.

Atlético de Madrid

Atlético faced Barça in the Champions League quarter-finals last season and this year fell to Barça in the quarter-finals of the Spanish Cup. The arrival of Fernando Torres has boosted a team that still has players like Koke, Godin, Arda Turan and Miranda, among others.