Drama pumped up in drawn-out Champions League round of 16
According to the Catechism of Football Cliché there are no easy draws at the knockout stage of the Champions League. Like all clichés there is an element of truth to it, but there is no denying that Manchester City have landed the easiest of three Anglo-German ties, nor that Roma will be relieved to be drawn against Porto, and Real Madrid against Ajax.
Three of the four pairings involving Premier League clubs could be tipped as tie of the round. Manchester United’s clash with Paris Saint-Germain is a first, though not for Jose Mourinho, who will have mixed feelings about another meeting with the French champions. Chelsea’s 2-2 draw with a 10-man PSG in March 2015 in retrospect looks like a milestone marking the spiral of decline in Mourinho’s Champions League fortunes.
