Ajax-Juventus, Liverpool-Porto, Spurs-Man City, Man Utd-Barca
Following the Champions League quarter-final draw, we look back on European clashes between the sides that have been pitted against each other.
Friday 15 March 2019 in Nyon, Switzerland. The date and location of the Champions League quarter final draw where Ajax, Juventus, Liverpool, Porto, Tottenham Hotspur, Barcelona, Manchester City and Manchester United learned their fate. We look back on who got who and how they have faired in previous matches in European competetion.
Ajax vs Juventus
The Dutch side have consistently dominated the Eredivisie over the years, and with The Old Lady also being a regular title challenger, these two sides have crossed paths numerous times in European competition, 12 to be precise. There have been five games at home for each side with two at a neutral venue. The results of those fixtures have fallen in favour of Juve, who have won six, while four were drawn. Ajax's two victories came in the 1973 European Cup final and in the second leg of the 1974/75 round of 16 in the Europa League.
Liverpool vs Porto
There have been six encounters between the famous Reds of Liverpool and Porto, most recently in last season's Champions League round of 16 where the Portuguese side took a bit of a hammering. Jürgen Klopp's potent strikeforce scored five without reply in the opening leg before playing out the goalless dead rubber at Anfield. Prior to that the group stage of the 2007/08 Champions League saw Porto hold The Reds to a 1-1 draw before a convincing 4-1 win on Merseyside ensured three points for the home side. It was a similar situation in 2000/01, where in the quarter-finals of the Europa League, the sides drew 0-0 in Portugal, with Liverpool progressing to the semi's with a 2-0 victory.
Tottenham vs Man City
The two Premier League clubs have clearly met on several occasions in domestic competitions but have never faced up for continental honours. The record between the two sides across the Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup stands as 146 games played with Spurs winning 57 and City taking 56. 33 were drawn. As we saw in last season's Champions League quarter-final, domestic form can be thrown out of the window, with Liverpool thrashing one of the most dominant City sides in English top flight history. Can Spurs take inspiration from that?
Man Utd vs Barcelona
Two of Europe's historical heavyweights clash at Camp Nou and Old Trafford, and everyone will be hoping for another classic double-header. They've met before in official competitions on 11 occasions, Barcelona having the slight edge with four wins, United having three. The most recent two of these games were also the most important, both being Champions League finals. In 2009 the Spanish side scored a goal in either half without reply, and that was followed in 2011 with another blaugrana two-goal victory, this time 3-1. Another memorable year was in 1998/99 when the two giants were drawn together in the group stage of the competition. Both games ended in thrilling 3-3 draws. More of that please.