Western Daily Press (Saturday)
SPURS TO FACE CITY IN LAST EIGHT OF EUROPE
MANCHESTER City manager Pep Guardiola believes his side’s Champions League quarter-final with Tottenham is a “50/50” tie.
City have won their last three games against Mauricio Pochettino’s side, but Guardiola is taking nothing for granted after yesterday’s draw, which also saw last year’s beaten finalists Liverpool receive arguably the most favourable tie after being paired with Porto.
Manchester United, meanwhile, face a daunting challenge against
Barcelona, although caretaker boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will enjoy another trip to the Nou Camp, where he scored the winner in United’s Champions League final win over Bayern Munich in 1999.
United were drawn as the away team for the first leg but the tie had to be reversed, UEFA stipulating in advance following advice from local authorities that they and City could not play at home on successive
nights. United and Liverpool will meet in the semi-finals if they reach the last four, with Tottenham or Manchester City facing the winner of the Ajax and Juventus tie.
The ties between Liverpool and Porto and Tottenham and Manchester City will be held on April 9 and 17, with the other quarter-finals staged on April 10 and 16.
“We know each other quite well, we have played (Spurs) in the last years many times so we have a lot of respect for them,” Guardiola said. “(They are a) top side, so it’s 50/50.”
Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri got his wish to avoid former club Napoli after the Italian side were drawn to face Arsenal in the quarterfinals of the Europa League.
Chelsea will take on Slavia Prague in the last eight following the draw in Nyon, which also produced an allSpanish clash between Villarreal and Valencia. The remaining tie pits Benfica against Eintracht Frankfurt, with the winner facing Chelsea or Slavia Prague in the semi-finals. Arsenal will face Villarreal or Valencia in the last four if they can get past Napoli.