2008-2009 UEFA Champions League 2nd Round Preview

The UEFA Champions League returns at the end of the month, as the strongest 16 teams have advanced to the Knock-Out Round! They’ve had a couple of months to prepare, and, in some cases, they’ve reloaded and restocked their rosters. For many clubs, they’ve staked their entire seasons on success in the Champions League, and it all starts with the Round of 16.

From an aesthetic point of view, a lot of people think that the Round of 16 is the most exciting round in the Champions League. The lottery gods have accommodated us by giving us some truly mouth-watering matchups.

Two pre-tournament favorites will clash as Inter Milan take on Manchester United, all the while two teams whose fortunes have changed considerably since the drawing, Real Madrid and Liverpool, will meet. Elsewhere Chelsea (and their new manager Guus Hiddink) will face their old manager Claudio Ranieri and Juventus, while Arsenal and AS Roma (two teams that are slowly slipping in under the radar) will battle.

Completing the draw we find Atletico Madrid vs. Porto, Lyon vs. Barcelona (boy, do I not want to be a Lyon supporter right now) and Sporting vs. Bayern Munich.

Here’s the detailed preview for each matchup:

2008/09 UEFA Champions League
Round of 16

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Tuesday February 24 / Wednesday March 11

Arsenal	Arsenal	vs.	Roma
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	Atletico Madrid	vs.	Porto	FC Porto
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Inter Milan	Inter Milan	vs.	Manchester United	Man Utd
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Olympique Lyonnais	Lyon	vs.	Barcelona	Barcelona
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Wednesday February 25 / Tuesday March 10
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Chelsea	Chelsea	vs.	Juventus
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	Villarreal	vs.	Panathinaikos
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	Sporting	vs.	Bayern Munich
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Real Madrid	Real Madrid	vs.	Liverpool	Liverpool
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