SOCCER UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE ARTICLES

It’s been a crazy year in so many ways, but at least the UEFA Champions League will determine a winner. After putting the competition on hold for nearly five months, the tournament resumed last weekend and the quarterfinals have been set. The eight teams will head to Portugal with dreams of Champions League glory in their heads, but only one can lift the trophy at the end. ... 

Liverpool’s hopes of repeating in the Champions League took a big hit in the Spanish capital last month. The Reds fell to Atletico Madrid 1-0 from a fourth-minute goal from Saul Niguez, and that means they must defeat Atletico in Anfield on Wednesday to advance to the quarterfinals. That won’t be easy given how tenacious Diego Simeone’s club is on defense, but Liverpool are an odds-on favorite to pick up the win per the Champions League betting odds. Getting to the next round will be more difficult though due to the away goals rule. ... 

Two of the three non-Spanish clubs to win a Champions League title in the last decade are Chelsea and Bayern Munich. Chelsea bested Bayern Munich in penalties in Allianz Arena in the 2012 Champions League Final to claim its first and only title in this competition, but Bayern Munich avenged that defeat with a 2-1 victory over Bundesliga rival Borussia Dortmund in Wem... 

Wouldn’t it be something if this was the year Manchester City finally won the Champions League? UEFA levied the club with a massive fine and a two-year ban from the competition, dealing a huge blow to Sheikh Mansour’s hopes of winning Europe’s most prestigious competition. Manchester City have been one of the favorites to win it all per the Champions League betting odds for each of the last three years, and they are favored to get past the most decorated team in the history of the competition when they face Real Madrid in the first leg of their Round of 16 clash on Wednesday. ... 

Liverpool are well on their way to winning their first Premier League title in club history, and they now have their eyes set on a second straight Champions League title. They ran the gauntlet to win the title last year, surviving a group that included Paris Saint-Germain and Napoli before sending Bayern Munich, Porto, Barcelona, and finally Tottenham out in the knockout rounds. The Reds won their group to earn a date with Atletico Madrid in the Round of 16, but it’s never easy to send Diego Sim... 

Half of this year’s Champions League Round of 16 clubs hail from either England or Spain, so it’s no shock to see six of those clubs listed among the top nine favorites to win the competition. Liverpool, Manchester City, and Barcelona are each seen as a cut above by the oddsmakers, but clubs that have missed out on titles recently like Bayern Munich and Juventus are right behind the favorites. We will have two of these titans clash when Manchester City faces Real Madrid in the Round of 16, and o... 

All four Premier League teams made it into the knockout rounds of the 2019-20 Champions League, and England is trying to make the final an all-English affair once more. Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, and Manchester City are in the Round of 16, and the two favorites to win this year’s competition are Liverpool and Manchester City according to the most recent Champions League betting odds. Both clubs are favored to get past their Round of 16 opponent next year.... 

Paris Saint-Germain can lock up first place in Group A this Tuesday when they travel to Spain to take on Real Madrid. PSG have won all four of their games in the Champions League thus far, and they are hoping that this is the year they finally live up to their potential in this prestigious competition. Real Madrid are almost certain to finish second in the group, but their only chance to top the group is to win at home on Tuesday.... 

Ajax may have parted ways with Frenkie de Jong and Matthijs de Ligt over the summer, but a world class academy continues to produce young stars that keep the team ahead of the curve. The Dutch giant currently sits atop the standings of Group H in the Champions League, and they boast a +6 goal differential after two 3-0 wins. On Wednesday, Ajax will look to take firm control of the group when they face Chelsea in Amsterdam.... 

We can see some real separation in Group D of the Champions League on Tuesday. Atletico Madrid and Juventus were seen as the overwhelming favorites to advance to the Round of 16 per the Champions League betting odds when the groups were drawn, and they have a chance to feel very great about their chances in a few days. Both clubs are sizable home favorites per the soccer betting odds against Lokomotiv Moscow and Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday, and they can both move to seven points at the conclusio... 

Lionel Messi’s health has become a matter of national concern. The best footballer of his generation has been sidelined by two different injuries so far this season, and Barcelona has faltered as a result of his prolonged absence. It’s not time to push the panic button just yet at the Camp Nou, but we are rapidly approaching that point. If the Blaugrana stumble at home to Inter Milan in Champions League action, that is going to sound some alarms.... 

Tottenham Hotspur are trying to avoid the situation they were in during last year’s Champions League. Spurs looked likely to miss the knockout rounds after stumbling through their first three matches, so they had to put together three great games and receive a little bit of luck to go on their magical run to the Champions League Final. They are in real danger of only taking one point out of their first two matches in Group B as favorites Bayern Munich come to London on Tuesday.... 

Paris Saint-Germain want to erase seven years of Champions League heartache this season. While PSG have dominated French football since the club started splurging ahead of the 2012-13 campaign, this team has yet to make it past the quarterfinals of the Champions League this decade. On the other end of the spectrum is Real Madrid. Real Madrid are the most storied team in the history of this competition with 13 Champions League titles, and they sent PSG out of the 2017-18 edition of this tournamen... 

For just the second time ever, we are set to have an all-English Champions League Final. Tottenham Hotspur are looking to win their first Champions League title. It’s been an incredible season for Spurs. They finished the year with 70 points or more for the fourth straight season, and Spurs will now get the chance to win their first European trophy since winning the UEFA Cup in 1984. As for Liverpool, the Reds are looking to win their sixth Champions League title and claim some hardware after fi... 

The last 12 months have been phenomenal for English soccer and that has reached a crescendo. For the first time ever, both the Champions League Final and the Europa League Final will pit English teams against one another. When Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur meet on June 1, it will be only the second time the Champions League Final has been an all-England affair. The previous meeting pitted Manchester United and Chelsea against one another, with United emerging victorious in penalties.... 

The Cinderella of this Champions League has been Ajax, but the young Dutch club are underdogs no more. After dispatching of Real Madrid and Juventus in the previous two rounds, no one was seeing this club as an underdog, as their youth movement has proven enormously fruitful. Ajax went on the road to beat Tottenham Hotspur in the first leg of their Champions League Semifinals tie, and they are now favorites to advance to the final in Madrid in late May. A result here would ensure that they advan... 

FC Barcelona were the last team not named Real Madrid to win the Champions League back in 2015, and Barca are the odds-on favorites to win this year’s Champions League. The Blaugrana are in great shape to advance to the final in Madrid in late May after a 3-0 win over Liverpool FC in the first leg of their semifinal tie, and only a disaster in the return leg would keep them from advancing. They will be sure not to take advancing for granted after wasting a 4-1 win over AS Roma in last year’s Cha... 

Two European titans will square off for a spot in the Champions League Final on Wednesday when FC Barcelona and Liverpool FC begin their two leg clash. Barcelona have been dominant for nearly two decades, and they have continually been among the kings of Europe. Meanwhile, Liverpool have been largely up and down since their glory days in the 1970s and 1980s, and they are just now hitting their peak once more. Liverpool nearly won the Champions League Final last year, and they were outplaying Real Madrid until Mo Salah separated his shoulder after a questionable Sergio Ramos tackle. ... 

There isn’t any rest for the weary as just two weeks after our last Champions League matches, the Champions League Semifinals will get underway. The first of the two semifinals pits two teams that weren’t expected to be here against one another. Ajax have been the giant killer of the competition, and they have a real chance to harken back to their glory days in the 1970s with a win here. Meanwhile, Tottenham Hotspur are in the semifinals of the Champions League for just the second time in their ... 

As I said last week, we are incredibly likely to have two English teams in the Champions League Semifinals, and two English clubs are heavily favored to become the final semifinalists on Wednesday. An English team had to advance when Manchester City met Tottenham Hotspur, but the team that was favored to advance has a deficit to make up after losing the first leg. In Wednesday’s other game, Liverpool is a heavy favorite to advance after beating Porto 2-0 in the first leg of their tie. ... 

Two teams will punch their ticket to the Champions League Semifinals this Tuesday night, while two others will be left to turn their attention back towards their domestic leagues. The second leg of both of Tuesday’s matches stands to be thrilling. Juventus are not the favorite many thought they would be coming into their return leg against Ajax, while Barcelona know they have to be on their guard despite a win in Old Trafford in the first leg after what Manchester United did to Paris Saint-Germa... 

Two of the three top favorites to win the Champions League will be in action on Wednesday when FC Barcelona travels to Old Trafford to face Manchester United and Juventus heads to Amsterdam to face Ajax. Although Barcelona and Juventus are on the road, both teams are favored to win the first leg of their Champions League Quarterfinals matches. Manchester United and Ajax are looking to keep their Cinderella stories alive.... 

The Champions League has been an English celebration. All four English teams are in the Quarterfinals, and an English team is favored to win the competition. However, we will see an English team exit the tournament this round. Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City are pitted against one another in one of the quarterfinals, and one of them will have to exit. Liverpool are heavily favored to make it at least two English teams in the semifinals though, and they will be taking on Porto on Tuesday.... 

After Wednesday’s Champions League matches, the Champions League Quarterfinals will be set and ready for the draw on Friday, March 15. Last week, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United, Ajax, and Porto earned their places in the final eight, with Spurs being the only team to have little trouble claiming their spot. Two more teams will be added to the mix on Tuesday and the final two will be added after Bayern Munich host Liverpool and Barcelona host Olympique Lyon on Wednesday.... 

Half the Champions League Quarterfinals field is set. Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, Ajax, and Porto have already qualified for the final eight, and two more teams will be looking to join them on Tuesday when Juventus hosts Atletico Madrid and Manchester City hosts FC Schalke 04. ...