UEFA Champions League 2023/24 Season

[bbigtart]

Very interesting. This season's Champions League top 16 matches will certainly present something exciting. In my opinion, in the big 16 matches that are eagerly awaited there will be surprises, including Napoli vs Barcelona, Inter Milan vs Atletico Madrid and PSV Eindhoven vs Borrussia Dortmund.

Interestingly, the Copenhagen vs Manchester City match will be a place to prove that the Danish representative can win over Manchester United. how about against Man City? If they can get rid of the defending champion, this will be an extraordinary achievement for Copenhagen.

Meanwhile, the Paris Saint-Germain vs Real Sociedad match will be even more exciting as well as being an event for two teams that have always only finished in the round of 16 in the last few seasons.

[Weawant]

Barcelona been more experienced in the champions league is and advantage they will be having over Napoli in their round of sixteen game, knowing how crucial this stage is for them if they must be able to get to semi finals, both teams will definitely put in every effort to making sure they win but then it's eminent that one team wins.

Napoli suffering in their domestic league could have an effect on their psychology and may affect their performance aswell, this will be the advantage Barcelona will have over Napoli aswell but then the home advantage is what Napoli has got over Barcelona. AthletiCo Madrid taking on inter Milan is another very interesting game that will be happening in the champions league round of sixteen because both team are actually strong and doing well aswell.

[Dzwaafu11]

I think there's no need to discuss about Barcelona vs Napoli and Arsenal vs FC Porto, it's a sure win for both Barcelona and Arsenal, Napoli and FC Porto aren't that good compared to last season.

Barcelona have also been inconsistent this season, especially in the LaLiga, but mind you that every match in the CL RO16 is going to be tough, i understand that some teams are underdogs when you compare them to their oppositions, but in the two games you highlighted above, neither of those teans are underdogs, it is going to be a 50-50 game that anybody can win. Barcelona and Arsenal are very much beatable, and it would be a mistake to write off Napoli and Porto.

Barcelona performance is not good this season, even though I don’t know what they will play in the round 16 as the competition is going to be tough in this stage. However, the Barcelona and Napoli matches will be somehow unpredictable to me because both of them are not in good form, and we don’t know which team will dominate the game or the team that will be lucky to win that day. Although I think Napoli performance is quite better than Barcelona performance in the competition, you can see that the round 16 is going to be tough, so I think Napoli will do great.

As for Arsenal and Porto, I don’t really know, but I think Arsenal is doing a little bit well, so let's see how they perform when the day arrives, but I don’t think Porto will be able to win Arsenal.

[shogun47]

Real Madrid hasn't even made a big centre-forward transfer for this season. They are making do with Rodrygo and Joselu but still their condition is very good. Because they get a good level of score contribution from their attacking players. I mean especially Bellingham as he is top scorer in the La Liga as well now. Rodrygo has also been in form in the recent times.  

Ancelotti's system is working really well. I think they even have nearly the same chance with Manchester City for the Champions League title. Because Manchester City look a little problematic recently. While Real Madrid are playing more dedicatedly we never know what happens in case of a matchup between these 2 teams.

But they could never know that someone like Bellingham would out of a sudden turn into this mysterious super striker midfielder defensive extreme action phenomenon.

I am still blown away by his performance for the team. I counted down the games and thought that his score statistics must decrease. But they didn't. That's really giving goose bumps for a soccer fan. I think he can become the best in the world if this doesn't stop.

Yes whenever I also thought like he would start to score less often he just continued to score goals like a real striker. He is really like a centre-forward rather than a midfielder recently.

Back at Dortmund he was even a central midfielder and he wasn't scoring this many goals in a season. But here Ancelotti started to use him as an attacking midfielder and even rarely as a centre-forward. Now he is making the biggest score contribution to Real Madrid.    He is in his first season maybe but he is already one of the most critical players of the team. Real Madrid would never like to let him go to another team.

Was ist that Ancelotti used him intentionally as some kind of center forward or did Bellingham begin to interpret his role on the field differently and then it turned out how dangerous he is at scoring? I can't recall whether Ancelotti wanted him to play that way or whether he decided to go for it and then it went so well for him that Ancelotti gave him maximum freedom. But whatever the case was, every team can only wish for a player like Bellingham who is so strong in literally any position and movement on the pitch.

[QueenVera]

I agree with you, even though Barcelona is the favorite in the match against Napoli, this will not necessarily match expectations because Barcelona is in an unstable condition and Napoli is not an easy team and of course this will be a match that is difficult to predict because the performance of both teams is the same. the same is not very consistent in the domestic league, but even so, I hope Barcelona can win this match because in my opinion, even though Barcelona is unstable, I hope Barcelona can appear surprising in the next match even though they have to fight hard because the first match will be held at Napoli headquarters.

The match between PSG vs Real Sociedad is indeed a match that must be watched carefully because this match is very important for both of them, but even so, it looks like PSG will remain the favorite here because PSG has shown progress, especially in the domestic league, its performance is still consistent, for Real Sociedad this is This is their first time competing in the Champions League but Real Sociedad was able to qualify for the round of 16. This is a good start and now they have to fight hard against a team that has more experience competing in the Champions League.

Between Napoli and Barcelona currently, there's no much difference because both teams have flaws they're battling with. For Barcelona, they're not so grounded yet as there's a bit of shakiness and inconsistencies in their usual performances before now. They're now at a low leveled performance phase than they are normally known for.

 For Napoli, the team just got a new boss and so Mazarri is trying hard to implement strategies that best fits his team and would give them the required results. There are still weeks to the round of 16 games, so it's more chance given to both teams to improve themselves in their various league games and then be better prepared for the encounter in February, judging both teams, they've got same odds of qualification based on the current teams' technicality.

[Ndabagi01]

I have a slightly different opinion than you. I think the Barca and Napoli pair is quite unpredictable; they are the reigning champions of both the Spanish and Italian leagues. Currently, the form of both Barca and Napoli is not good, but when they face each other, the result is hard to predict. Napoli's style of play remains challenging for teams from England and Spain. Therefore, it's not easy for Barca to overcome Napoli in this round.

When you look at the performance of this two teams, it is very obvious that they are on the same level now. Their individual performance in both leagues is just the same and nothing much can be said in their upcoming match against each other. One of this two teams will be eliminated from this round and won’t advance to the quarterfinals, the thought of it makes it more interesting to watch out for their match by next year when they meet in the round of 16.

[Oluwa-btc]

I have a slightly different opinion than you. I think the Barca and Napoli pair is quite unpredictable; they are the reigning champions of both the Spanish and Italian leagues. Currently, the form of both Barca and Napoli is not good, but when they face each other, the result is hard to predict. Napoli's style of play remains challenging for teams from England and Spain. Therefore, it's not easy for Barca to overcome Napoli in this round.

When you look at the performance of this two teams, it is very obvious that they are on the same level now. Their individual performance in both leagues is just the same and nothing much can be said in their upcoming match against each other. One of this two teams will be eliminated from this round and won’t advance to the quarterfinals, the thought of it makes it more interesting to watch out for their match by next year when they meet in the round of 16.

It'll definitely be Barcelona progressing to the next stage of the game. I have gotten to look at them both and I have come to agreement that they're both in the same state but anyways, in the Champions League, you cannot overlook Barcelona, they a month and one week to fix things real quick and I'm sure that'll be definitely done.

Fixture between Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid gone be a blast. This is the same Inter Milan that got to the finals last season, dropping out so early? They've done that too much. Last season they scaled though. I be expecting same thing from them in this round. For Paris Saint Germany versus Real Sociedad, Luis Enrique is already experienced with Spanish clubs, you can already day they'll be exited.

[bitvalak]

Was ist that Ancelotti used him intentionally as some kind of center forward or did Bellingham begin to interpret his role on the field differently and then it turned out how dangerous he is at scoring? I can't recall whether Ancelotti wanted him to play that way or whether he decided to go for it and then it went so well for him that Ancelotti gave him maximum freedom. But whatever the case was, every team can only wish for a player like Bellingham who is so strong in literally any position and movement on the pitch.

Ancelotti positioned Bellingham like Kaka when he played for AC Milan, he put him as an Attacking Midfielder who also doubles as a false 9.
Initially, many people were surprised by that, but the fact is that now he is the most fertile Midfielder in the Champions League this season.

And it is effective in helping Real Madrid win every match, because Bellingham is almost never absent in all matches. But he has a high risk of injury due to fatigue.
In the upcoming transfer market, Madrid should buy a pure striker, so that they don't just rely on Bellingham.

[Huppercase]

When you look at the performance of this two teams, it is very obvious that they are on the same level now. Their individual performance in both leagues is just the same and nothing much can be said in their upcoming match against each other. One of this two teams will be eliminated from this round and won’t advance to the quarterfinals, the thought of it makes it more interesting to watch out for their match by next year when they meet in the round of 16.

Barcelona and Napoli aren't in the same form right now. In the beginning of the season, Napoli was staggering and trying to stay form but it wasn't later before they were able to build stamina in their domestic League, they are now good and there games so far is improving in every round but look at Barcelona, they were in good form in the begin of the season but right now if they should meet Napoli today, they are going to lose that match because are not in form.

Barcelona is trying to maintain their place in the domestic League where Girona is now the supreme leader on the standing but Napoli is trying to come back to the top and so far it is working for them, they only need to spice things up to break Barcelona into pieces. But if Barcelona later come back on form, there is every chance they can take down Napoli because there last game is giving me loss vibes when they have the chance to beat a small club for Coppa Italia.

[kawetsriyanto]

Barcelona - Napoli
If it was last year I would talk different but I don't like Napoli's performance this season. Barca is also not looking good in La Liga but they should go on in Champions League. I don't expect any surprise here.

Why don't expect for a surprise in this match?
Do you think Barcelona is still the same team as the previous season?
Although Barcelona could qualify for the knock-out round, it seems not very convincingly. They got 2 defeats during the group stage matches. Shakhtar Donetsk and Antwerp could beat Barcelona. So why Napoli has no chance to beat Barcelona? Although Napoli is no longer as strong as the last season, I'm sure Napoli still has enough quality players that can beat a top team like Barcelona.

Atletico Madrid - Inter
Though pick. It can go either way. I see Atletico one step ahead but Inter is also pretty good this season, I won't be surprised if they pass this round.

TBH, I doubt if Atletico Madrid can beat Inter Milan. Inter Milan looks strong enough to defeat Atletico Madrid. Their stats in Serie A and in UCL look quite impressive. In UCL, Inter Milan won 3 matches and got 3 draws, they never got a lose. So, I think Inter Milan should be the favorite to win the match over Atletico Madrid.

[temple]

I was confused when I this matchup. I wanted to say the same things about Napoli that I wanted to say about Barcelona. In so far this is a great matchup. I am looking forward to it and I believe this is a close game. I can't call out a favorite, I would still think that if Napoli gets back to old perfromances, Barcelona would lose, but I don't know.

Losing was never in the DNA of Barcelona but with their recent performances, I'm afraid they can be easily thrashed by these elite and mediocre clubs. Barcelona perfromances is volatile and we can not easily predict the winning scores for this fixture, it happen to be one of the challenging UCL game to play for. Napoli faces Barcelona in the round of 16, these fixtures are prerty tough and I doubt if Barcelona can make it out to the next round. They're both elite sides in their perspective leagues wnd and qualifying becomes an important spot for bothsides.

The only good news for Barcelona about this game is that Napoli is far from their best level from last season as well. I think this is a game where none of the teams is the favorite. Look at how close Barcelona was to ending the game against Almeria with a draw in their home stadium. That is quite unacceptable against a team like Almeria, but more is not possible for Barcelona these days. I also don't see them as a serious competitor for the title. That's all about Real Madrid and if they play a normal season, Barcelona won't be at the top ever this season.

[flyingcarpet]

Barcelona - Napoli
If it was last year I would talk different but I don't like Napoli's performance this season. Barca is also not looking good in La Liga but they should go on in Champions League. I don't expect any surprise here.

Why don't expect for a surprise in this match?
Do you think Barcelona is still the same team as the previous season?
Although Barcelona could qualify for the knock-out round, it seems not very convincingly. They got 2 defeats during the group stage matches. Shakhtar Donetsk and Antwerp could beat Barcelona. So why Napoli has no chance to beat Barcelona? Although Napoli is no longer as strong as the last season, I'm sure Napoli still has enough quality players that can beat a top team like Barcelona.

Atletico Madrid - Inter
Though pick. It can go either way. I see Atletico one step ahead but Inter is also pretty good this season, I won't be surprised if they pass this round.

TBH, I doubt if Atletico Madrid can beat Inter Milan. Inter Milan looks strong enough to defeat Atletico Madrid. Their stats in Serie A and in UCL look quite impressive. In UCL, Inter Milan won 3 matches and got 3 draws, they never got a lose. So, I think Inter Milan should be the favorite to win the match over Atletico Madrid.

Napoli are far from the good football they played last season, but they are still not that bad. In big matches, some teams may perform unexpectedly well. Also, Barcelona is not a very good team right now. So it is very difficult to make predictions for this match and it is difficult to say who will win the match.

My favorite in the Atletico Madrid-Inter match is Inter. Atletico Madrid is not a weak team, but I can say that Inter is more dominant. Football is full of surprises and we cannot know the exact outcome of the match, but I like Inter's game more than Atletico Madrid's game.

[rahmad2nd]

We all know that when big teams are playing against smaller teams especially in the knockout UEFA Champions League competition, it's always rare to smaller teams eliminate the bigger teams but I think there are exceptions to that popular belief. The Arsenal vs Porto and Barcelona vs Napoli round of 16 ties I don't think are easy games that that can be easily predicted.

Arsenal we know have been impressive since the start of the season but when it comes to the UCL, Porto is a more successful club than Arsenal as they've won the competition before now. So you don't expect a former winner of the competition to be easily beaten. Porto understand how the UEFA Champions League competition is played and would definitely want to make a statement in their tie against Arsenal. Just like bookmakers, I'm backing Arsenal to progress but I expect the two-legged games to be a difficult one for both sides

Barcelona are the reigning champions of Spain and so are their Italian round of 16 opponent Napoli are the reigning champions of Italy and both teams have not been performing like that they did last season in their respective leagues. However, since Napoli sacked their former manager Rudi Garcia and hired the current manager Walter Mazzarri, they've improved their performance both in the league and in their final group stage game and that's why I don't expect Barcelona to easily eliminate Napoli in the round of 16.

Arsenal, has been my discussion in the previous two threads. now I discuss it again in the Champions League thread. I agree with what you said for Arsenal, and it will not be an easy matter for the Gunners to beat Porto in the next match. in fact, my question is whether Arsenal will be able to win when they visit Porto. because the first leg will be held at the Estadio do Dragao. if they are able to appear impressive, without mental pressure, the Gunners should be able to do their job well. because this match is an away match for Arsenal. so, there was no choice but to win the battle at Porto's headquarters. for the second leg, the Gunners played in front of their own supporters. as an Arsenal supporter, I don't worry too much when they play at home. and referring to betting bookies, Arsenal is indeed superior. there are no other words, as an Arsenal fan I wish them the best they can do in this competition.

Now, we are talking Napoli vs Barcelona. coincidentally, Barcelona and Arsenal are my two favorite teams. of course, I have high hopes if Xavi is able to bring his squad to appear much more established and solid. not because Barcelona is the defending La Liga champion, neither is Napoli in Serie A. these two teams can currently be said to be in an unstable condition. that's why, the bookmaker puts the odds equal to @2.55. even though it is still temporary, it means that it can be said that the two teams are equal opponents. however, Xavi should be able to manage his team better. because in terms of strength, Barcelona has much better depth. although, Gavi was absent due to injury. but at least, it looks like Barcelona has some newcomers. one of them, Vitor Reque wonderkid from Brazil. I know, this player will not immediately shine. but at least, there is additional ammunition that Xavi can use when their front line players have difficulty scoring goals. well, because this match still has quite a long time. let's just follow developments regarding the teams entering the round of 16.

[swogerino]

Barcelona - Napoli
If it was last year I would talk different but I don't like Napoli's performance this season. Barca is also not looking good in La Liga but they should go on in Champions League. I don't expect any surprise here.

Why don't expect for a surprise in this match?
Do you think Barcelona is still the same team as the previous season?
Although Barcelona could qualify for the knock-out round, it seems not very convincingly. They got 2 defeats during the group stage matches. Shakhtar Donetsk and Antwerp could beat Barcelona. So why Napoli has no chance to beat Barcelona? Although Napoli is no longer as strong as the last season, I'm sure Napoli still has enough quality players that can beat a top team like Barcelona.

Atletico Madrid - Inter
Though pick. It can go either way. I see Atletico one step ahead but Inter is also pretty good this season, I won't be surprised if they pass this round.

TBH, I doubt if Atletico Madrid can beat Inter Milan. Inter Milan looks strong enough to defeat Atletico Madrid. Their stats in Serie A and in UCL look quite impressive. In UCL, Inter Milan won 3 matches and got 3 draws, they never got a lose. So, I think Inter Milan should be the favorite to win the match over Atletico Madrid.

Napoli are far from the good football they played last season, but they are still not that bad. In big matches, some teams may perform unexpectedly well. Also, Barcelona is not a very good team right now. So it is very difficult to make predictions for this match and it is difficult to say who will win the match.

My favorite in the Atletico Madrid-Inter match is Inter. Atletico Madrid is not a weak team, but I can say that Inter is more dominant. Football is full of surprises and we cannot know the exact outcome of the match, but I like Inter's game more than Atletico Madrid's game.

Both Napoli and Barcelona are not enjoying a good form so far in their domestic leagues,they have a lot of oscillations and they are quite volatile as teams who were Champions just the last year in their domestic leagues,as such I predict a strong game between these two teams as most likely both will give a really high priority to this clash.

The Atletico vs Inter game is a strong one as both teams are in red hot form with Inter being a bit better in my opinion but still Atletico is there too so this for me is the most interesting encounter and of course the strongest of all other encounters which look easy on paper for most teams.

[ShowOff]

I have a slightly different opinion than you. I think the Barca and Napoli pair is quite unpredictable; they are the reigning champions of both the Spanish and Italian leagues. Currently, the form of both Barca and Napoli is not good, but when they face each other, the result is hard to predict. Napoli's style of play remains challenging for teams from England and Spain. Therefore, it's not easy for Barca to overcome Napoli in this round.

When you look at the performance of this two teams, it is very obvious that they are on the same level now. Their individual performance in both leagues is just the same and nothing much can be said in their upcoming match against each other. One of this two teams will be eliminated from this round and won’t advance to the quarterfinals, the thought of it makes it more interesting to watch out for their match by next year when they meet in the round of 16.

Squad depth and experience tend to give Barcelona an edge over Napoli in the Champions League, but the teams' performances this season have been relatively similar in their respective domestic leagues. I hope that Barcelona will be able to qualify for the quarter-finals this season by beating Napoli, even if Barcelona fails to reach the semi-finals then Xavi will actually have brought the team up two levels from previous seasons in the Champions League. Of course I don't consider Barcelona capable of getting to the final and winning the title, that seems unlikely.

Napoli was the home team in the first leg, so it is possible that they could perform better than Barcelona. I don't think we can analyze what their chances will be in this match, I mean there are several things that might change it, including the availability of players in the starting line-up.

[baeva]

I have a slightly different opinion than you. I think the Barca and Napoli pair is quite unpredictable; they are the reigning champions of both the Spanish and Italian leagues. Currently, the form of both Barca and Napoli is not good, but when they face each other, the result is hard to predict. Napoli's style of play remains challenging for teams from England and Spain. Therefore, it's not easy for Barca to overcome Napoli in this round.

When you look at the performance of this two teams, it is very obvious that they are on the same level now. Their individual performance in both leagues is just the same and nothing much can be said in their upcoming match against each other. One of this two teams will be eliminated from this round and won’t advance to the quarterfinals, the thought of it makes it more interesting to watch out for their match by next year when they meet in the round of 16.

I think that Barcelona just now look a bit worse than Napoli in terms of their physicality, so you can make even a slight bias in favour of a Napoli win. But since there will be two matches, it's hard to say exactly how the 1/8 will end. Both teams know how to get back on track

[nurilham]

Between Napoli and Barcelona currently, there's no much difference because both teams have flaws they're battling with. For Barcelona, they're not so grounded yet as there's a bit of shakiness and inconsistencies in their usual performances before now. They're now at a low leveled performance phase than they are normally known for.

You're right. The performance of Napoli and Barcelona seem not so different, they are no longer playing as well as the last season. So, it is quite difficult to predict which team to win the match. If we look at the quality of attackers, Napoli seems better than Barcelona. Barcelona has no productive attackers, Lewandowski can't play as expected until now. Napoli has some attackers who have better productivity in scoring goals (Victor Osimhen, Kvaratskhelia, and Raspadori).

Fixture between Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid gone be a blast. This is the same Inter Milan that got to the finals last season, dropping out so early? They've done that too much. Last season they scaled though. I be expecting same thing from them in this round.

Inter Milan was the finalist of UCL in the last season. I'm sure they will try all out to reach the final round again for this season. Their performance looks quite good so far, they are unbeatable during the group stage matches. Against Atletico Madrid, I believe Inter Milan has something better than Atletico Madrid. So, they won't be eliminated in this round, I guess they will beat Atletico Madrid.

[Abu-Naim]

Squad depth and experience tend to give Barcelona an edge over Napoli in the Champions League, but the teams' performances this season have been relatively similar in their respective domestic leagues. I hope that Barcelona will be able to qualify for the quarter-finals this season by beating Napoli, even if Barcelona fails to reach the semi-finals then Xavi will actually have brought the team up two levels from previous seasons in the Champions League. Of course I don't consider Barcelona capable of getting to the final and winning the title, that seems unlikely.

Napoli was the home team in the first leg, so it is possible that they could perform better than Barcelona. I don't think we can analyze what their chances will be in this match, I mean there are several things that might change it, including the availability of players in the starting line-up.

I doubt if Barcelona will be able to defeat Napoli easily; remember, Barcelona is not in a good form this season, they couldn't make it in the Champions League last season, and some of their players were injured; while Napoli is not also too strong this season due to injury, they are in good shape than Barcelona because they have players to depend on, and with the way they played in the Champions League last season, I think this Xavi's team cannot easily defeat Napoli, but it will not be easy to predict because all the teams can qualify.

[Adams0001]

Both Napoli and Barcelona are not enjoying a good form so far in their domestic leagues,they have a lot of oscillations and they are quite volatile as teams who were Champions just the last year in their domestic leagues,as such I predict a strong game between these two teams as most likely both will give a really high priority to this clash.

The Atletico vs Inter game is a strong one as both teams are in red hot form with Inter being a bit better in my opinion but still Atletico is there too so this for me is the most interesting encounter and of course the strongest of all other encounters which look easy on paper for most teams.

If you watch Barcelona's match last weekend and look at Napoli on, you will see Napoli are more stronger than them and their performance is good, Xavi just needs to get a new striker and play well because if they continue playing like that, I don't think they can compete with Madrid and Girona in the league, let alone the Champions League, and I don't think Barcelona can win the Champions League with there performance this season. Athletico Madrid vs Inter Milan will be a challenging game because both clubs are performing well in their respective leagues, but the outcome may be predicted based on their key players. Because Inter Milan are in good health and top their league table and they have a very competent coach with experience, he will lead them to victory over Athletico Madrid and go to the next round of the championship.

[AYOBA]

Napoli are far from the good football they played last season, but they are still not that bad. In big matches, some teams may perform unexpectedly well. Also, Barcelona is not a very good team right now. So it is very difficult to make predictions for this match and it is difficult to say who will win the match.

My favorite in the Atletico Madrid-Inter match is Inter. Atletico Madrid is not a weak team, but I can say that Inter is more dominant. Football is full of surprises and we cannot know the exact outcome of the match, but I like Inter's game more than Atletico Madrid's game.

The match won't be hard to forecast, in my opinion, because everyone is aware that Barcelona is playing well right now, as opposed to earlier when they were playing poorly. Now, they have returned to their typical shape. I can see the difference suggest decision even thought I want place a bet how rather Barcelona to win against Napoli. Some of the predict that many here are saying won't happen that Barcelona won't win the Champions League this year. Please allow us to cease contrasting them. I'm positive that Barcelona can easily defeat Napoli.