7 March 2011
The UEFA Champions League Round of 16 continues this week with four second round ties, the pick of which is the meeting of Barcelona and Arsenal at the Nou Camp on Tuesday evening.
The Gunners claimed a stunning 2-1 win over the Spanish giants in the first leg last month, but they are still regarded as underdogs overall, particularly as they come into the game missing Theo Walcott and Robin van Persie through injury, while Cesc Fabregas and Alex Song are doubtful.
Barca themselves have some selection problems, as first choice centre-back pairing Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique will be missing through injury and suspension respectively, but striker David Villa, who scored at the Emirates in the first leg, is confident that the Spaniards will turn the tie around: We have the team and the players to come back into the tie.
Arsenals North London rivals, Tottenham Hotspur, are very much favoured to progress against AC Milan. They head into the second leg game against the Italians at White Hart Lane on Wednesday with a 1-0 lead secured from a fiery encounter at the San Siro.
However, Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri believes his side will be able to overturn the deficit in the English capital: It will be a different game, but I think qualification (for the quarterfinals) is still up for grabs. We have to play with balance and have faith in our quality.
Milans fellow Serie A team, Roma, will also have to try and overturn a deficit away from home, as new coach Vincenzo Montella takes his charges to the Ukraine to face Shakhtar Donetsk, who won the first leg 3-2 in the Eternal City.
The final tie of the week is the most evenly balanced and could go either way. Schalke host Valencia having secured a 1-1 draw in the first leg in Spain and they do have the slight advantage of the away goal.
UEFA Champions League, Round of 16 second leg fixtures:
(Aggregate score in parenthesis)
Tuesday, March 08
Shakhtar Donetsk v Roma (3-2)
Barcelona v Arsenal (1-2)
Wednesday, March 09
Tottenham Hotspur v Milan (1-0)
Schalke 04 v Valencia (1-1)
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