Arsenal to face Barcelona in Champions League quarter-finals
Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas and Barcelona's Lionel Messi to clash in Champions League quarter-final
Friday, 19, Mar 2010 05:43
By Matthew Champion.
Arsenal will play holders and favourites Barcelona in a mouth-watering Champions League quarter-final draw, while Manchester United face Bayern Munich.
The two English teams could face each other in the final at the Bernabeu on May 22nd after they avoided each other in the semi-final draw, which was also made.
Elsewhere in the draw, made in Nyon, Switzerland, at Uefa headquarters, the two French sides Lyon and Bordeaux were paired up, while Jose Mourinho's Inter Milan, who beat Chelsea in the last round, will face CSKA Moscow.
The semi-finals will see the winners of Bayern Munich/Manchester United play the winners of Lyon/Bordeaux, while Inter Milan or CSKA Moscow will play Arsenal or Barcelona.
Quarter-final draw
Ties to be played on March 30th/31st and April 6th/7th
Lyon v Bordeaux
Bayern Munich v Manchester United
Arsenal v Barcelona
Inter Milan v CSKA Moscow
Semi-final draw
Ties to be paid on April 20th/21st and April 27th/28th
Bayern Munich or Manchester United v Lyon or Bordeaux
Inter Milan or CSKA Moscow v Arsenal or Barcelona
This year's quarter-finals saw six nations represented; the highest since 1999. But after Liverpool exited in the group stage and Chelsea crashed out to Inter, two English teams is the lowest number of Premier League representatives for four years.
The Arsenal v Barcelona tie, which will see Thierry Henry return to the Emirates, is a repeat of the 2006 final that Barca won 2-1, while Bayern were the opponents in one of United's greatest-ever triumphs when two late goals saw them win the Champions League in 1999 and claim an unprecedented treble.