On this Friday (15th of March 2024), the quarter-final of the 2023/24 Champions League were determined.
We’re in for high-level clashes, which is why we at Calcio Deal will make predictions for these electrifying duels.
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Index
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Atlético Madrid vs Borussia Dortmund – Quarter-finals of the 2023/24 Champions League
The matchups in these quarter-finals seem not to have been decided by drawing. This is because all the games will be very balanced, with teams that are quite evenly matched.
Starting with Atleti and Dortmund.
As demonstrated by us in previous texts, the Spanish team had a subpar performance in the first leg against Inter at the Giuseppe Meazza, an opportunity where they could have lost by a much wider margin if it weren’t for the missed goals by Lautaro and Arnautovic.
But Simeone’s men usually thrive in knockout competitions due to their spirited attitude, as well as their defensive solidity, even though it was not present in the aforementioned game.
Borussia Dortmund, on the other hand, is the opposite. It was a successful team under Klopp’s command, but it struggles to assert itself in decisive moments.
One thing is to define the round of 16 with PSV, another is the quarter-finals against Atlético Madrid.
Therefore, the teams are technically equivalent, but the Madrid team has something extra, important for this type of competition. The prediction is that Atleti will advance.
Image: UEFA
PSG vs Barcelona – Quarter-finals of the 2023/24 Champions League
Another very evenly matched confrontation, for complementary reasons.
On one side, Barça, one of the greatest Champions League champions, with a coach who knows very well how to win the competition, as a player.
On the other hand, a modest PSG when it comes to the main European continental competition, but with a very capable coach.
This will be, in fact, the reunion of Luis Henrique with his former charge, Xavi, and Barcelona.
However, football is settled on the field and at this moment, PSG has more tools to secure qualification.
It is difficult to draw a comparison between the two teams considering their national championships since Ligue 1 demands little from the Parisian team. Despite this, PSG is the outright leader.
As for Barcelona, they are in third place, eight points behind Real Madrid and with no real prospects of winning the title.
When we talk about the tournament in question, we saw a Barcelona convincingly defeating Napoli. Although it is not the same team as last season, the southern Italian team still has highly skilled players.
PSG also secured qualification quite comfortably. Two wins against Real Sociedad.
The decisive factor has a name and surname. Kylian Mbappé. The French forward is a true star and is having another blessed season, with 35 goals in 36 matches.
Therefore, Mbappé has everything to decide the clash and qualify PSG for the semi-final.
Image: Reproduction Lance!
Arsenal vs Bayern Munich – Quarter-finals of the 2023/24 Champions League
This is another clash between the moment and tradition.
On one side, Arsenal, the leader of the Premier League, playing incredible football.
They have scored 33 goals in the last eight league matches, winning all of these games, impressive.
In the Champions League, a hard-fought but deserved qualification against Porto, who also have a great team.
Bayern Munich, on the other hand, is going through a rough patch. They are likely to lose their Bundesliga hegemony after eleven consecutive titles. They are ten points behind Leverkusen, who are having a truly spectacular campaign, unbeaten in the competition.
Thomas Tuchel may not continue in charge of the team, but he is a coach to be respected. He was a finalist with PSG in 2019/2020 and a champion with Chelsea in 2020/21.
This, not to mention the six Champions League titles that the Bavarian team has, boasting tradition.
That said, the bet is that Bayern Munich will advance to the next stage for being a more ready team, with more experienced players for this type of decision.
Image: Getty Images
Real Madrid vs Manchester City – Quarter-finals of the 2023/24 Champions League
It could be considered an early final. Every football lover would like to see these two teams playing in the final, or perhaps in the semi-final, but by a twist of fate, the duel was brought forward.
This is the kind of game in which it will indeed be very difficult to make a prediction.
In 2021/22, victory for the Merengues, who won their 14th Champions League that year. The revenge came the following year when the Cityzens inflicted a resounding 4-0 defeat in the return leg and conquered the continent for the first time.
Now is the time to settle this beautiful rivalry that has been growing.
Manchester City can already be considered a seasoned team in the Champions League, as in the last three editions they reached two finals, winning one and one semi-final.
Real Madrid, as everyone knows, is the greatest winner of the tournament. It is inexplicable how the Spanish team manages to find victories that seemed lost.
That said, Real Madrid will have a slight advantage if they study well the game in which they were crushed by City last season.
Using field widening and positional changes, Guardiola made Real’s marking spaced out. From there, Manchester City’s key players found passes in these spaces and quickly resolved the game.
And for you? Who will advance?
Image: Yasser Bakhsh/Getty
Written by Vitor F L Miller.
