Penalty drama and victories for favourites
- Joshua Rufer
- Mar 17, 2016
- 3 min read

The eight quarter-finalists in the 2015/16 UEFA Champions League have now been confirmed. After VfL Wolfsburg, Benfica, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain sealed their places in the next round last week, they were joined by Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich and defending champions FC Barcelona. The quarter-final draw will be made on Friday 18 March, with the first legs to be played on 5/6 April and the return fixtures on 12/13 April. FIFA.com looks back on this week's Round of 16 action. Results Atletico Madrid 0–0 PSV Eindhoven (Atletico win 8-7 on penalties; first leg 0-0) Manchester City FC 0–0 Dynamo Kyiv (first leg 3-1) Bayern Munich 4–2 (AET) Juventus (first leg 2-2) FC Barcelona 3–1 Arsenal FC (first leg 2-0)

Memorable moments It never rains but it pours Manchester City were in line for a comfortable evening in front of their own fans after winning the first leg 3-1 away in Kiev. Yet within 30 minutes it turned out to be anything but – and not because of the scoreline. Only seven minutes had been played when centre-back Vincent Kompany was forced off the field with injury, the earliest a captain has ever been substituted in the Champions League. Then, in the 23rd minute, the team's second centre-back, Nicolas Otamendi, was also taken off after a collision. It was a turn of events that no doubt dampened the club's joy at reaching the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time ever. Good things come in threes Following defeats in 2010 and 2011, Arsenal were eliminated by Barcelona in the knockout rounds of the competition for a third time. If their loss in the 2006 final is taken into account, then the Spaniards are increasingly becoming the Gunners' bogey team. It was the sixth successive year the English side have been knocked out in the Round of 16, while Barcelona are in the last eight for a tenth consecutive season and stretched their unbeaten run to 38 competitive games. Supersubs to the rescue At 2-0 down Bayern appeared to be on the verge of elimination, but the fact they turned the game around was without doubt down to the substitutions made by coach Pep Guardiola. Kingsley Coman, who was brought on in the 60th minute, created the all-important equaliser and scored the final goal in Bayern's 4-2 triumph. Thiago was not introduced until the 101st minute, but set Bayern on their way by scoring with his ninth touch of the ball to put his side ahead for the first time on the night. Sharpshooters – but only from the penalty spot PSV Eindhoven and Atletico Madrid were unable to score during three and a half hours of football over the two legs, setting a new record in the competition. However, the players proved to be far more clinical in the subsequent penalty shoot-out, with the first 14 takers all finding the net. It was only after Luciano Narsingh hit the crossbar that Juanfran scored to bring an end to the most goal-filled shoot-out in European cup history and book the Rojiblancos' berth in the next round. Coach in focus Diego Simeone is a full-blooded coach and it is often far more entertaining to watch the Argentinian on the touchline than the game itself. The 45-year-old participates in his team's every attack, heading and shooting with his players from the edge of the pitch. The penalty shoot-out against PSV must therefore have been agony for him. Simeone vented his emotions particularly strongly after the score reached 7-7, flailing his arms to fire up the 50,000 spectators in the Estadio Vicente Calderon. The Dutch side missed their next penalty and shortly afterwards Atletico progressed to the quarter-finals. Decisive goal Bayern Munich – Juventus Goal: 2-2; Thomas Muller (Bayern, 90+1') The FIFA World Cup™ winner's stoppage-time goal paved the way for Bayern to take the game to extra-time and reach the last eight. Arturo Vidal played the ball out to the right wing to fellow former Juventusplayer Coman, and the Frenchman's inch-perfect cross to the back post was met by unmarked Germanyinternational Muller, who headed in to level the score at 2-2. The stat 100 - Reigning champions Barcelona celebrated their 100th home win in Europe's premier club competition with victory over Arsenal. Real Madrid (151) and Bayern (111) are the only teams to have beaten them to the milestone.
Comments