UCL road narrows to Budapest final
With the quarterfinals decided this week, only two Premier League teams remained alive in the knockout stage and the tournament schedule now points to a May 31 final in Budapest, Hungary. (nbcsports.com) UEFA and Opta also released tactical previews and probability models for the remaining ties. (uefa.com)
The UEFA Champions League field is down to four by Wednesday night, and the route to the final in Budapest is now fixed for May 30. (uefa.com) Arsenal and Bayern Munich took first-leg leads into Wednesday’s second legs, while Paris Saint-Germain and Atlético de Madrid finished their jobs Tuesday. Paris beat Liverpool 2-0 at Anfield to go through 4-0 on aggregate, and Atlético lost 2-1 at home to Barcelona but advanced 3-2 on aggregate. (uefa.com) (theanalyst.com) Only two Premier League clubs were still alive when the quarter-finals began: Arsenal and Liverpool. UEFA’s bracket had already placed them on opposite sides, so an all-English meeting was possible only in the one-match final in Hungary. (nbcsports.com) (uefa.com) The schedule is compressed now. UEFA lists the semi-final first legs for April 27 and 29, the second legs for May 4 and 6, and the final at the Puskás Aréna in Budapest on May 30. (uefa.com) Arsenal entered the knockout draw with a structural edge. Opta noted on February 28 that Arsenal’s first-place finish in the league phase meant Mikel Arteta’s team would host the second leg in every round before the final, and its supercomputer made Arsenal the tournament favorite at 27.4%. (theanalyst.com) UEFA’s scouting reports framed Arsenal as the most balanced of the remaining English teams: five clean sheets in the league phase, goals from 12 outfield players, and a perfect 8-for-8 record in that opening table. UEFA said no team had previously gone through the new-format league phase with a 100% record. (uefa.com) Bayern’s side of the draw looked harsher. UEFA’s second-leg preview said Vincent Kompany’s team carried a 2-1 lead back to Munich against Real Madrid, but also noted Madrid had won the clubs’ last four two-legged UEFA ties and all seven of their previous European Cup or Champions League quarter-finals against German teams. (uefa.com) The quarter-final week also underlined how quickly the competition’s center of gravity can shift. Liverpool started the season as Opta’s pre-tournament favorite at 20.4%, but by Tuesday they were out, while defending champion Paris reached another semi-final. (theanalyst.com 1) (theanalyst.com 2) By the end of Wednesday, the tournament will have four clubs left and two dates circled: late April for the semi-finals, then May 30 in Budapest for the last match. (uefa.com)
