Chapter 192: The opponent of the quarterfinals

After the match between Atletico Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen, the results of the quarter-finals of the Champions League were also announced, and after this round, all the teams in the last eight of the competition were determined.

In La Liga, Real Madrid was defeated by Bundesliga team Schalke 04 at home with a score of 3-4, if it were not for Real Madrid's 2-0 victory away from home, Real Madrid's road to promotion would still be very thrilling. With a 1-0 victory at home, Barcelona eliminated the Premier League giants with an aggregate score of 3-1 and successfully reached the quarterfinals, while the local tyrant team Manchester City fell at the feet of Barcelona again and missed the Champions League quarterfinals.

Other teams that have made it past the quarter-finals include Serie A giants Juventus, Ligue 1 sides Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco, Bundesliga side Bayern Munich and Portuguese Premier League side Porto. The Premier League teams were wiped out in the round of 16, and all of them missed the quarterfinals of the Champions League.

La Liga once again has three teams finally entered the quarterfinals, for Spanish football, this is the grand occasion of Spanish football in the past two years, Real Madrid got rid of the "Champions League 16" dilemma after Mourinho, and Barcelona in the past ten years is the most glorious period in the history of the Barcelona team, coupled with the strong rise of Atletico Madrid, La Liga forces occupy a stronger and stronger position in the Champions League.

The last league to be so strong was in the Premier League from 2006 to 2009, when there were three Premier League teams in the Champions League semi-finals for three consecutive years, but since 2009. The Premier League's status in the Champions League began to decline, with the Reds reaching the Champions League final in 2011-2012 and no Premier League team reaching the semi-finals for three consecutive years since the start of the 2012-2013 season.

This season has been the same, and there are no Premier League teams even in the quarter-finals. In its place, the troika of La Liga roared through the Champions League and became the protagonists on the field.

Following the quarter-finals, UEFA held the draw for the quarter-finals, with the first leg of the quarter-finals taking place on April 14 and April 15. The second round will be on April 21 and April 22 a week later.

In the round of 16 draw, teams belonging to the same country will not face each other, and teams from the same group will not meet each other, but in the quarter-finals and semi-finals, the draw rules are not limited by these rules.

With three La Liga teams reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League, there is also a high chance that La Liga teams will be in a head-to-head situation.

Sure enough, after the draw results were released, Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid, a pair of Madrid rivals, were drawn together. This draw is not a good draw for either team, Real Madrid does not have much advantage against Atletico Madrid, and similarly, Atletico Madrid will be a little frightened when they face Real Madrid. The two teams have played each other four times this season, and both sides know each other well, which is not an easy bone to gnaw on.

Barcelona drew Paris Saint-Germain, and Barcelona's form has exploded this season, but Paris Saint-Germain is not a team to mess with. Paris Saint-Germain's boss Al-Nasser is a tyrant who can earn a steady stream of dollars by turning on the oil valve. You must know that Nasser himself is the first in line to the death of Qatar, the chairman of the Qatar Sports Investment Fund, and the authoritative body conservatively estimates that his personal assets are as high as 60 billion US dollars. Backed by such a big financier, Paris Saint-Germain has acquired an almost all-star squad. Sweden's Tajbrahimovic, Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani, Italy's talented midfielder Verratti, and the Brazilian duo of David Luiz and Thiago Silva at centre-back are a force to be reckoned with.

On the whole, the luck of La Liga teams in the quarterfinals is not very good, especially compared with other teams, Serie A giants Juventus drew the French team Monaco, while the Bundesliga boss Bayern Munich drew the "top eight package" - Portuguese Super League team Porto.

When the results of this draw came out, many Spanish media insinuated that UEFA was ready to suppress La Liga, which has been strong in the Champions League in the past two years, but these things can only cause heated discussions among fans, and at the club level, no team dares to say this.

Real Madrid is full of confidence, Ramos said that Real Madrid's record against Atletico Madrid this season is not bad, especially in the two-legged Copa del Rey, Atletico Madrid was eliminated by Real Madrid, which has greatly increased the confidence of Real Madrid.

For Real Madrid, it was obviously a shame to be snatched from their lips by Atletico Madrid in the Champions League final last year, so the whole team faced this game with a vengeance.

"Atletico Madrid is very strong, but the team that wins the game and reaches the semi-finals can only be Real Madrid."

Real Madrid vice-captain Sergio Ramos was very tough in an interview.

Speaking of which, Real Madrid is indeed a difficult opponent to deal with, but Atletico Madrid does not need to show weakness - Atletico Madrid's record against Real Madrid has been superior in recent years, and Real Madrid has not bargained for Atletico Madrid.

Moreover, in the two-legged match of the Copa del Rey this season, in the absence of Li Qingshan, Atletico Madrid was eliminated by Real Madrid, and Real Madrid eliminated not a complete version of Atletico Madrid.

Of course, when Li Qingshan was interviewed, he didn't say that he was eliminated in the Copa del Rey because of the lack of Li Qingshan's team - such offensive words generally don't come out of Li Qingshan's mouth.

"Real Madrid are a really strong opponent and it's a shame not to be able to meet them in the final." Li Qingshan said seriously.

The reporters quickly reacted to what Li Qingshan was regretting: the final of Mars hitting the earth last season is still fresh in people's minds.

The subtext in Li Qingshan's words is easy to capture.

"Do you think Atletico Madrid will be able to reach the final this year?" The reporter asked.

"Our goal is to win the Champions League!" Li Qingshan said very resolutely.

"But since the Champions League was restructured, no team has been able to successfully defend the title."

"Of course, it's hard to succeed without sleeping, but aren't all records meant to be broken? Who's to say we can't break this record? ”

"But before that, you still have to face Real Madrid." The reporter brought the topic back to the quarterfinals.

"Of course, of course, I don't have any disrespect for Real Madrid, but it's not too bad for us and I can't wait for this game."

Li Qingshan expressed his belief in victory lightly, and was not timid because the opponent was the powerful Real Madrid.