UCL Draw Thread

[FabHazard 655]

Paris St Germain coach Laurent Blanc said on Friday that Chelsea will have a Champions League advantage by hosting the second match in their quarterfinal.

"We are going to prepare well for this double confrontation, we still have a little time" Blanc said in reaction to the quarterfinal draw.

"Getting the return leg is a small advantage for Chelsea so we will have to make the difference at home," he told the Paris club's official website.

Paris captain Thiago Silva said he was delighted to be playing against fellow Brazilian expatriates David Luiz, Ramires, Oscar and Willian at Chelsea. "I can't wait to get there. It will be a big duel between two big clubs. And I hope that contrary to last season we can reach the semifinals."

Barcelona beat Paris St Germain in last year's quarterfinals on away goals.

The Paris match will be on April 2 and the return in London on April 8.

Paris president Nasser al-Khelaifi insisted that the side his Qatari company bankrolls would be ready for the battle.

"As I said before the draw, the seven sides who remain (with Paris) are very strong. We will be ready for these matches against Chelsea, a club for whom I have a lot of respect. I know this will be very exciting for all of ourn supporters and we are very impatient," Khelaifi said in a statement to AFP.

[Barbara 15,149]

Fuck sake (pardon my FRENCH) but why is it so hard for some people to get the basics?

If you look back the last 10 pages, sane people are trying to make very simple points.

1)There isn't a clear favorite in this tie, therefore there's no upset regardless of who wins.

2) Ligue 1 was, is and probably is always going to be a second tier league. No matter how much money one team may have, the league will hardly strengthen, saying such isn't a lie and shouldn't be an offense.

3) The fact that PSG is playing in a second tier league doesn't make them worse than us, just less tested, less experienced, just less used to having to face big sharks. They don't have that confidence that comes from beating big teams because there are no big teams for them to beat. Psychology is one the biggest aspects of games at this stage.

4) The fact that some of our players come from Ligue 1 doesn't make Ligue 1 better. If it was better they wouldn't leave the country and go to England, Spain or Germany.

The best thing about this tie though is how little attention it'll get and along with little emotional investment. There's no drama like Mourinho facing RM or Pep Guardiola. There's no nostalgia, excitement and precaution like playing Barça. There's no ill feelings about facing Courtois off. There's no media games minds on us like playing United. The only comparable is Dortmund and even then I'm sure there would be some lines about Mourinho facing the team that put his RM to shame last season in the first leg. This is the most neutral, unattached and even low profile QF. Everyone will keep their eyes elsewhere for one reason or the other. Given our position in EPL and what's at stake there, I think the lack of attention is just what we needed. There won't be too much spotlight on Mourinho and the boys.

JUST DO IT, CHELS!!!

[duo11bluecl 207]

Sirigu - Jallet, Marquinhos, Thiago Silva (cap), Maxwell - Verratti, Thiago Motta, Matuidi - Cavani, Ibrahimovic, Lavezzi.

Line-up for their game against Lorient in 1 hour.If there are no injury, it will be this team that will play against us (Van der Wiel or Jallet).

Obviously lol their strongest team. Maybe Lucas instead of Cavani because he is better out wide but then if they are chasing they will bring him on. Even if someone in their CM are injured, they just bring in Cabaye. Maybe VDW at RB too.

[sdrcfc 461]

Not too sure why people are calling Chelsea the underdogs in this tie, while PSG have a good squad they have very limited experience when it comes to playing top sides. We'll knock them out.

[duo11bluecl 207]

Not too sure why people are calling Chelsea the underdogs in this tie, while PSG have a good squad they have very limited experience when it comes to playing top sides. We'll knock them out.

Most overrated thing in the world, 1st season back in CL after ages for us in 2003 guess where we ended up? Guess who we knocked out in 04-05? Guess who Porto beat in Jose's last season in charge?

It means fa really, Ibra, Silva, Cavani, Thiago Motta...etc all have experience and know about it, just because the club hasn't went on a amazing run in Europe for a long time doesn't mean they don't know how to do it. I am sure we probably will but people are underestimating a team with 2 player the best in the world in their positions.

[TorontoChelsea 4,064]

This is what you don't understand.

Chelsea of 2003 were still playing Manchester United of 2003, Liverpool of 2003, Arsenal of 2003, Everton of 2003, Newcastle of 2003.

You're the best team in France. Well done. You're the tallest midget, the slimmest kid at fat camp, the big dick in a tranny convention. It doesn't matter. Unless you want to secede and move to a different league people will only tune in to watch PSG vs Monaco for the foreseeable future.

Chelsea aren't great because we're simply Chelsea, or because we're wealthy. We're great because we're tested EVERY week against top teams in matches people watch all over the world. PSG can't buy that.

This is exactly it. The 2004 Arsenal team we beat for the title was undefeated the year before. They had Cole Veiera, Pires, Bergkamp, Henry, Fabergas, and others. The United team had Ronaldo, Rooney, Beckham, Scholes, Giggs, Ferdinand, Keane, Van Nistelroy and others. These were teams stocked with world-class, top level talent. Yet, what makes the Premier League the best league in the world is not the top 2 or 3 teams. It's that teams up and down the league are tough. ManU is a very talented team with a few fantastic players and is in 7th in the league. Mid-table teams like Newcastle and Southampton are tough and have some very good players. You look at mid-table teams in other leagues and they aren't full of international players. 12 teams in the Premier League have players who have combined for more than 250 international caps. France has 2 teams at that level (and barely). Hell, more of the French national team play in England than in France. Even a significant contingent of the Spanish national team now plays in England. The Premier League is the league that has the best players in the world. (yes, it's because it has the most money, but that's really irrelevant).

[CHOULO19 24,332]

Fuck sake (pardon my FRENCH) but why is it so hard for some people to get the basics?

If you look back the last 10 pages, sane people are trying to make very simple points.

1)There isn't a clear favorite in this tie, therefore there's no upset regardless of who wins.

2) Ligue 1 was, is and probably is always going to be a second tier league. No matter how much money one team may have, the league will hardly strengthen, saying such isn't a lie and shouldn't be an offense.

3) The fact that PSG is playing in a second tier league doesn't make them worse than us, just less tested, less experienced, just less used to having to face big sharks. They don't have that confidence that comes from beating big teams because there are no big teams for them to beat. Psychology is one the biggest aspects of games at this stage.

4) The fact that some of our players come from Ligue 1 doesn't make Ligue 1 better. If it was better they wouldn't leave the country and go to England, Spain or Germany.

The best thing about this tie though is how little attention it'll get and along with little emotional investment. There's no drama like Mourinho facing RM or Pep Guardiola. There's no nostalgia, excitement and precaution like playing Barça. There's no ill feelings about facing Courtois off. There's no media games minds on us like playing United. The only comparable is Dortmund and even then I'm sure there would be some lines about Mourinho facing the team that put his RM to shame last season in the first leg. This is the most neutral, unattached and even low profile QF. Everyone will keep their eyes elsewhere for one reason or the other. Given our position in EPL and what's at stake there, I think the lack of attention is just what we needed. There won't be too much spotlight on Mourinho and the boys.

JUST DO IT, CHELS!!!

#BarbaraForPresident

[Stats 6,980]

Should be a really good game. There is not much difference between from us 2 apart from they have 2 clinical strikers who will score if we slip up in the slightest but on paper we are both evenly matched. They are a much bigger force compared to the team we beat 3-0 at Paris a few years ago. Ibra against Terry should be an excellent battle though. Look forward to it. But there is something about us that when we play in the UCL I believe we can get past anyone. Just look at some of our historic matches in the past. Second leg at our ground hopefully is a bonus. Has helped us a lot of over the years. Liverpool, Barca, Gala, Napoli... and most of the times the games have been absolutely epic and thrilling to watch.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

Of course it's not going to be an easy game, it's the quarter finals of the UCL FFS! But I think both teams will be happy to have avoided the likes of Real and Bayern and Barcelona. I think it's a pretty even match up, but the good thing is that there really isn't much pressure. The media will be occupied with the other ties and I'm sure that neither team had "reaching UCL semifinal" as their objective at the start of the season.

But I have to say, after Galatasaray, the PSG fans, so far, are a breathe of fresh air!

[xPetrCechx 13,546]

PSG fans >>> Galatasaray fans

[mediator 2,026]

But I have to say, after Galatasaray, the PSG fans, so far, are a breathe of fresh air!

It's only day 1, wait the match day thread

[Shane 2,275]

Can't fucking with for this.

Jose Mourinho's Chelsea in big European nights again. That extra confidence when you have a man who has produced so many tactical masterclasses in the competition.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

Thiago Silva has just been subbed off, injured. Don't think it's a serious injury though, he took an elbow below the eye.

[didierforever 7,349]

Of course it's not going to be an easy game, it's the quarter finals of the UCL FFS! But I think both teams will be happy to have avoided the likes of Real and Bayern and Barcelona. I think it's a pretty even match up, but the good thing is that there really isn't much pressure. The media will be occupied with the other ties and I'm sure that neither team had "reaching UCL semifinal" as their objective at the start of the season.

But I have to say, after Galatasaray, the PSG fans, so far, are a breathe of fresh air!

Massively disagree!!!! Psg should have had "reaching the semi" as an objective before the start of the season. Infact why should not they? Just on comparing the squad of all teams all over the world psg has to be in the top 4. The likes of cavani, ibra, lavezzi, verrati, silva, moura. It is a brilliant squad and even last season they almost pulled it off against barca and would definitwly have pulled it off if lavezzi had had a decent day.

Infact except for bayern, barca and rm which squad could u say was better than theirs before the start of the season???

To put things into perspective in comparing the squad strength, if our manager right now was fsw (who by the way pulled off another tactical genius ladt night by taking off higuain at 78th minute for a like for like swap when his team needed 2 goals atleast) in place of jose mourinho, and with matic cup tied, psg would have been definite favourites.

Right now, one of our biggest strength is jose. His tactical genius and the system that he has introduced in the team. We are far more a team/unit thab psg but I say that only cos I have seen them against teams where they are OTT favourites and don't need to fight/slog it out as much. So in a big match, it might be different.

Anyways, i have no doubt that it would 2 very well xontested and played games.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

Massively disagree!!!! Psg should have had "reaching the semi" as an objective before the start of the season. Infact why should not they? Just on comparing the squad of all teams all over the world psg has to be in the top 4. The likes of cavani, ibra, lavezzi, verrati, silva, moura. It is a brilliant squad and even last season they almost pulled it off against barca and would definitwly have pulled it off if lavezzi had had a decent day.

Infact except for bayern, barca and rm which squad could u say was better than theirs before the start of the season???

To put things into perspective in comparing the squad strength, if our manager right now was fsw (who by the way pulled off another tactical genius ladt night by taking off higuain at 78th minute for a like for like swap when his team needed 2 goals atleast) in place of jose mourinho, and with matic cup tied, psg would have been definite favourites.

Right now, one of our biggest strength is jose. His tactical genius and the system that he has introduced in the team. We are far more a team/unit thab psg but I say that only cos I have seen them against teams where they are OTT favourites and don't need to fight/slog it out as much. So in a big match, it might be different.

Anyways, i have no doubt that it would 2 very well xontested and played games.

What do you mean as a squad? As a team, in terms of their performances, their results, their achievements, they are by no means in the top 4 teams in Europe. I don't care about names, if names mattered then Zenith would have been in the QFs last season and City would be in the semis this season.

"Almost" knocking out the worst Barca in a decade, on a bad day, doesn't them in the top four teams in the world. If they win the CL this season, then I'll consider them in the top 4 teams in the world.

[didierforever 7,349]

What do you mean as a squad? As a team, in terms of their performances, their results, their achievements, they are by no means in the top 4 teams in Europe. I don't care about names, if names mattered then Zenith would have been in the QFs last season and City would be in the semis this season.

"Almost" knocking out the worst Barca in a decade, on a bad day, doesn't them in the top four teams in the world. If they win the CL this season, then I'll consider them in the top 4 teams in the world.

The players, the talent pool available. And this is not one hulk or an axel witsel we are talking about but a team of top class players.

What you consider psg to be is very different from what psg's objectives would be. Most of the english clubs in CL were in transition. Atm fans themselves would be shocked and suprised by their teams perdormance and standing this season. Bvb is a good team who had a great run last season (even then they needed that 2 last minute goal and a horrendous display by RM to get where they got).

I mean, they have barely have had to break a sweat to reach to the qfs. Plus barring the top 3, any team in the world would have been an equal opposition in the qf (which is the case even with this fixture). All in all, don't see why psg would not have tried to aim for a semi spot!!!

[CHOULO19 24,332]

The players, the talent pool available. And this is not one hulk or an axel witsel we are talking about but a team of top class players.

What you consider psg to be is very different from what psg's objectives would be. Most of the english clubs in CL were in transition. Atm fans themselves would be shocked and suprised by their teams perdormance and standing this season. Bvb is a good team who had a great run last season (even then they needed that 2 last minute goal and a horrendous display by RM to get where they got). All in all, don't see why psg would not have tried to aim for a semi spot!!!

I'm not saying they wouldn't have aimed, just that it's not their season objective. Meaning, their season would not have been failure if they fail to reach the semis of the CL as is the case with Bayer, Real and Barca.

And I think you're using the term "world class" way too loosely..

[Eligius 121]

Well the WORLD thinks that the EPL is the best league in the world. And every English person has the right to support their national team with a lot of heart like every other nation does support its national team. Now you can't stereotype people. I am quiet sure you support France. Some people are objective than others with regards to evaluating their national team.

There is no shame in supporting a player from my country and following his news yet never said he should start or play over Willian, Oscar or Schurrle but who are you to judge kid. You have got your history all messed up, you evaluate based on your passion, you compare Barca to PSG!!! You think you players leaving a team makes them a 2nd tier. You don't know if Ramires's tackle was deliberate, you think jumping or avoiding a tackle would be harmful......your talk before thinking mate.

When did I compare PSG's history to barcelona history as the same. I called Barcelona a second tier team.

Ramires tackle was so harsh and deliberate that it made news and headlines, o wait, no one cared, because it wasn't deliberate and harsh. Any little negative thing Chelsea does, the media would scrutinized, guess what, ramires tackle wasn't....

Is that why Mourinho wanted a ban from Foy to ref Chelsea games? Because he agreed with all his calls and cards?

Yes, I guess I talk before I think.