UCL Draw: Manchester United to face Barcelona, Juventus faces Ajax test
Manchester United has been drawn with Barcelona, while Juventus will take on Ajax in the quarterfinal of the 2018-19 UEFA Champions League.
Published : Mar 15, 2019 17:08 IST
Manchester United will face Barcelona in the quarterfinal of the UEFA Champions League, it was announced at the draw held in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday.
The other exciting fixtures see AFC Ajax take on Juventus, Liverpool face FC Porto and Tottenham Hotspur clash with Manchester City. The first legs of the quarterfinal matches will be played on April 9 and 10, while the second legs will be held on April 16-17.
Here's a look at each team's progression to the quarterfinal and its head-to-head record against its opponent. (W=Wins, D=Draws, L=Losses, GS=Goals scored, GC= Goals Conceded)
Ajax vs Juventus
This season: Wins 8, Drawn 5, Lost 1.
Having entered the competition in the second qualifying round, the Dutch giant defeated holder Real Madrid 4-2 on aggregate in the round-of-16 to make it to the quarterfinals. In all, it has scored 29 goals while conceding 12 — with Dusan Tadic its top scorer with 9 goals, including three in qualifying.
RELATED| Europa League draw: Napoli braces for Arsenal challenge
Cristiano Ronaldo's hat-trick helped Juventus team complete a come-from-behind win against Atletico Madrid and progress to the quarterfinals. It is the only side left in the competition that hasn't drawn a game so far, winning five and losing three, while scoring 12 goals and conceding 6. Paulo Dybala is its leading scorer with five goals.
| Ajax's head-to-head in UEFA competitions vs Juventus - W2, D4, L6; GF9, GC15 |
Manchester United vs Barcelona
Manchester United has had mixed performances in the group stages, winning three games and losing two. But a Rashford-inspired United came back from a 2-0 first leg defeat to Pari Saint-Germain to progress
This season: W4 D1 L3 F10 A7 (entry: group stage)
Top scorer: Romelu Lukaku, Paul Pogba, Marcus Rashford (2)
Barcelona is the only unbeaten team left in the competition this season, having won five games and drawn three. Lionel Messi, unsurprisingly, is its top scorer with 8 goals. Barcelona was held to a goalless draw by Lyon in the first leg but the Argentine's brilliance shone through in the second leg winning the tie 5-1.
| United's head-to-head with Barcelona in UEFA competitions - W3 D4 L4 F15 A20 |
RELATED| How the UCL quarterfinalists stack up against each other
Liverpool vs FC Porto
Last year's finalist Liverpool started the competition on a wobbly footing. Despite losing three of its group stage matches it got to the next round ahead of Napoli by scoring two goals more than the Naples team. The Scouse side then dismantled Bayern Munich 3-1 in Germany to make it to the quarters.
Form this season: W4, D1, L3; GS12, GC8
Porto dumped out last season's semifinalist AS Roma deep into extra time of the second leg thanks to a Alex Telles penalty. Its only defeat in the competition came in the first leg at Rome. Moussa Marega's sparking goal-scoring form in Europe has been key to Porto's progression into the quarterfinals since 2014-15.
This season: W6 D1 L1 F19 A9 (entry: group stage) Top scorer: Moussa Marega (6)
| Liverpool's head-to-head with Porto in UEFA competitions: W3, D3, L0; GS12, GC2 |
Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester City
Manchester City has scored 26 goals in the competition so far, which is only behind Ajax's 29 goals — but the Dutch side has played six games more since it started the season in the second round of qualification. City lost its opening group stage game at home to Lyon but since then it has won six games and drawn just one, conceding only 8 goals. With five goals, Sergio Aguero is its top scorer.
Tottenham Hotspur will be primed for its quarterfinalist opponent after the return of star striker Harry Kane. Its 4-0 aggregate win over two legs against Borussia Dortmund would have put Europe's elites on notice.
This season: W4 D2 L2 F13 A10 (entry: group stage) Top scorer: Harry Kane (5)
| Tottenham's head-to-head with Manchester City in UEFA competitions: N/A |