The draw for the Champions League quarter-finals knockout rounds is scheduled to be held at 12:00 noon.
The eight participating teams have arranged for representatives to rush to the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, to witness the draw ceremony on site.
The guests of the draw were Bruno Conte from Rome, a representative of the final venue, and UEFA Secretary General David Taylor, who presided over the draw. The draw process was broadcast live around the world.
This draw is not only related to the quarterfinals, but also divides the upper and lower halves.
In other words, the lottery for the semi-finals was drawn by the way.
Judging from the distribution of the top eight teams, the Premier League and La Liga are undoubtedly strong, especially the Premier League.
If Naples hadn't attacked Chelsea, the Premier League would once again occupy half of the top eight spots.
Today's European football is truly a prosperous era of the Premier League.
…
Gao Shen and his assistants sat in the coach's office early, watching the live broadcast of the game.
At the beginning of the live broadcast, the top 16 teams were first introduced, as well as the performance of the eight participating teams.
This is also routine.
"I suddenly don't want to touch Manchester United so early." Gao Shen suddenly said with a smile.
This person's psychology is really weird.
Before, Gao Shen wanted to touch Manchester United and Ferguson, but that was more because he didn't have too clear requirements for performance.
But it's different now.
Chelsea were reversed in both rounds of the knockout round of the top 16, which made Gao Shen realize that his team still has a lot to do, and the goal he has set for himself now is the semifinals, and even beyond.
We will advance to the quarterfinals knockout round.
As a result, meeting Manchester United too early is definitely not a good thing.
Ferguson is awesome!
If he faced Manchester United now, Gao Shen really didn't know how to play.
Of course, there is another team that Gao Shen does not want to encounter too early, and that is Barcelona.
In the previous life, Guardiola's team really created a new tactical era, and its peak period lasted for several years, but Gao Shen's favorite team is actually still the 2009 team.
how to say?
Barcelona this year is like a human being, they will make mistakes, they will make mistakes, they will try their best...
Yaya Toure is indeed not suitable for Barcelona's fourth position. It goes without saying that he can't even adapt to a single defensive midfielder because he likes to penetrate forward too much, and with the strength of the Ivorian, he is held in the defensive midfielder.
In terms of position, it is definitely a waste of talent.
But after taking away Yaya Toure and replacing him with Sergio Busquets, Barcelona began to frantically pursue not making mistakes or mistakes. They became more and more obsessed with controlling the ball, with too many cross passes and fewer and fewer.
direct transmission...
Of course, it can also be explained that the outside world's restraint on Barcelona is constantly escalating, forcing Barcelona to make fewer mistakes.
For example, the two-leg match against Mourinho's Inter Milan in 2010.
Regardless of the reason, judging from the results, Guardiola's team did not perform as shockingly, excitingly, and unbelievably as they did in 2009 in the following years.
Not to mention, later on, so many Barcelona players collectively studied Stanislavsky's theory, which was really unpopular.
This was Gao Shen's feeling in his previous life, so he felt very special about the 2009 Barcelona team.
But fans are no longer so shocked.
Because, Gao Shen and his Naples seem to have been spoiled in advance.
In fact, almost everyone, including Guardiola himself, feels that there are deep and profound traces in his Barcelona.
Who asked him to work as an assistant to Gao Shen?
Gao Shen doesn't want to encounter Barcelona and Manchester United too early. As for other teams, he doesn't particularly care.
Even Benitez's Liverpool is actually in decline now, and its competitiveness is not that great.
Naples' ability to reverse Chelsea in succession is enough to prove that this sophisticated team has the qualifications and strength to compete with any opponent in the quarterfinals.
Gao Shen and Naples also have such confidence.
…
While Gao Shen was discussing with his assistants, Arsenal was the first to be drawn out.
Arsene Wenger's Gunners are considered the main sufferers of Serie A teams.
Gao Shen also joked: "I wonder if Bruno Conte would feel resentful when he pulled out Arsenal? MMP, I'm going to pull out Barcelona and beat you to death! Let you eliminate our Roma!"
Everyone in the office burst into laughter.
"I think he might pick a weak team, such as Villarreal or Porto. In this way, as long as Arsenal can reach the semi-finals or even the final, then Roma's elimination in the round of 16 will not seem so bad.
It’s ugly.” Lucas analyzed.
Everyone also felt that it made sense.
Gao Shen even smiled bitterly, it really felt like the national football team was participating in the World Cup and a funeral was held.
As for the lottery conspiracy theory, it is actually very difficult to take it seriously.
All teams that can reach the quarterfinals are not weak in strength. Unless they are a super strong team like Barcelona, otherwise, the outcome will be a matter of choice.
If you want to advance, you still have to rely on your performance in the game.
Therefore, Gao Shen appears to be relatively indifferent, and he can accept it no matter who is drawn.
As everyone is saying, winning the Champions League requires not only strength, but also luck.
What surprised Gao Shen and others was that after Arsenal was drawn, the next one Bruno Conte drew was Napoli.
Not to mention, the representative of the city of Rome smiled like a flower.
"Why do I feel like he's a bit gloating about his misfortune?" Lucas scolded with a smile.
Everyone nodded one after another, they really felt that way.
Meeting Arsenal in the quarter-finals, this is a pretty good signing.
Of course, if it were better, it would be Porto or Villarreal.
But Gao Shen always felt that he was not so lucky.
…
Arsenal meets Napoli.
Manchester United meets Porto.
Villarreal meets Liverpool.
Barcelona meets Bayern Munich.
The first four teams are placed in the top half, and the last four teams are placed in the bottom half.
In other words, if Naples eliminates Arsenal and advances to the semi-finals, they will encounter Ferguson's Manchester United.
Want to touch Barcelona?
Okay, let’s get to the Champions League final first.
This sign operation is quite satisfactory.
After all, if you reach the quarterfinals and still want to compete with the underdogs, it is basically unrealistic.
Even if it was like Chelsea last season, who had a huge draw and was almost given a walk, didn't they also encounter Liverpool in the semi-finals?
If you really want to be sent directly to the finals, wouldn't you become God's illegitimate child?
Besides, whether it's drawing lots or buying lottery tickets, as long as you're betting on luck, Gao Shen has never won in his past life.
The most outrageous thing is that when he was still in school, he once went to a convenience store to buy drinks and won eight times in a row [another bottle]. It was a shock at the time. He really felt like he was going to win a special prize. It was simply
The child of destiny.
So, he immediately ran to the lottery shop and bought all the lottery tickets with the 100 yuan he saved from living frugally.
The result...the entire army was wiped out!
From then on, Gao Shen no longer believed in luck.
But this also brought him a benefit, that is, every time he gambled on luck, he prepared for the worst.
If there is no hope, there will naturally be no disappointment.
So fine.
…
After the draw results came out, the outside world had their own discussions and comments on the draw results for the Champions League quarter-finals.
Serie A generally believes that Naples' luck is not good, but it is not bad either.
At least we didn't meet the strongest Barcelona and Manchester United.
Roma La Repubblica reminded Naples that Arsenal is not as weak as imagined, and Wenger's team has also performed very competitively in the Champions League this season.
But this somewhat conceals the embarrassment of Roma being eliminated.
In London, England, as soon as the draw results came out, Wenger accepted an interview with media reporters.
The Gunners godfather said that Naples is a very competitive team, and Arsenal has rich experience in the Champions League knockout rounds. "I think both sides have equal chances of winning and advancing."
Regarding the schedule of first home and then away, Wenger said it was completely acceptable.
"We need to work hard to gain an advantage at home in the first round, so that we can have more initiative in the second round."
Wenger also evaluated Napoli's head coach Gao Shen, whom he believed to be the most exciting among the new generation of head coaches.
"I have played against him and I know that his performance in cup matches is always surprising."
Wenger said that precisely because of Gao Shen and Naples, Arsenal needs to be more cautious and step by step.
But Arsenal CEO Yinwan Gazidis, who is far away at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, obviously doesn't see it that way.
After drawing Naples, the Arsenal executive was so happy that he couldn't help but say: "We want to be better than Naples. I am very satisfied with this draw!"
Later, Gazidis went out of his way to explain.
He believed that the match against Roma in the top 16 was too tense. The Red Wolves put considerable pressure on Arsenal, but Arsenal's young people withstood the pressure and defeated Roma in a very difficult environment. This proves that
The overall strength of Arsenal and the quality of its players.
"This is a good draw, no doubt about it!"
"What we need to do now is to focus on preparations, learn from the experience of the top 16 knockout rounds, and strive to get a ticket to the semifinals at home in the first round."
Compared to Gazidis' high profile, Naples general manager Marino appears to be much more low-key.
There is no way, the team is a newly emerging team, and the finances are not tight. Being able to reach the knockout round is already a blessing. Now it has advanced to the quarterfinals. Everyone in Naples is quite satisfied.
.
How could Marino dare to hope for more?
Even De Laurentiis, who lives in Naples, Italy, just said, "The Champions League is a huge stage. Every team has its value. Arsenal is a huge challenge, but we will do our best to advance to the next round."
One round.”
Obviously, in the Champions League, the always high-profile and outspoken De Lao has tempered his character.
On the contrary, in Fort Volturno, Gao Shen was also interviewed by the media from Italy. He said in a very high-profile manner, "This is a good team. I like to meet Arsenal and beat the Gunners. I have experience."
"In 2006, when I first coached Real Madrid, our first Champions League game was against Arsenal. We reversed Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium and advanced to the quarterfinals."
