English clubs' European exploits set to end

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE - Will the four tournament favourites advance?

BARCELONA v ATLETICO MADRID
The top two in La Liga meet in the quarter-finals for the second time in three seasons, with Atletico toppling the Catalans in 2014. In fact, it is the third consecutive year that Diego Simeone's men have encountered fellow Spanish opposition at this stage, having been ousted by city rivals Real Madrid 12 months ago.
Speaking of Real Madrid, Barca's momentum will have been slightly checked by defeat in El Clasico on Saturday, although with Luis Enrique's side still well on course for the league title, the result could actually help to sharpen their focus ahead of what promises to be a belter of a tie. They will inevitably start as favourites, given their 39-game unbeaten streak prior to the weekend and the well-documented potency of the Messi-Neymar-Suarez strike force, a relentless stream of goals that somewhat overshadows Ivan Rakitic's substantial influence from midfield.
Atletico will bank on their most gifted player, Antoine Griezmann, to keep performing at the hugely impressive level he has reached and maintained throughout the season. Simeone will no doubt have his side well charged for this one, and their eclipsing of Barca a couple of years ago both domestically and in Europe should mean they won't have an inferiority complex. 
The sheer quality of players on show, as well as the promise of a feisty temperature between two well-matched teams, should make this a 180-minute gem of absorbing brilliance for the neutral observer. The potency of Barca's front three will probably make the difference when push comes to shove.

BAYERN MUNICH v BENFICA
Neither of these teams are strangers to European quarter-finals, with Bayern at this stage of the competition for the fifth year in a row and Benfica reaching the last eight of a continental tournament five times in the last six seasons - although they both overcame stiff tests in the previous round to set up this clash.
Bayern were on the verge of elimination against last year's finalists Juventus, trailing 4-3 on aggregate having been 2-0 up at one stage in the first leg, before salvaging extra time at the death and prevailing over the shellshocked Italians. Pep Guardiola will be all too aware that the Bundesliga champions teetered over the precipice before hauling themselves back to safer ground. However, the Bavarians have shown in recent years that they are capable of pummeling teams, even in the Champions League knockout stages, and their form since that scare in the last 16 has been impressive. Also, Guardiola will not be short on motivation to sign off with a fourth European Cup triumph in management before he swaps Munich for Manchester.
Benfica won both legs of their clash with Zenit St Petersburg a few weeks ago, although the winning goals arrived in stoppage time in either match. They also had been pegged back to 1-1 on aggregate until the closing minutes of the second leg in Russia, so there is a sense that Rui Vitoria's team might be entering bonus territory by making it this far. This tie will provide another opportunity for 18-year-old sensation Renato Sanches to continue wowing his growing band of admirers, several of whom are employed by big-name European clubs who may just be interested in luring him from Lisbon in the summer. 
Bayern left it as late as they possibly could to stave off elimination against Juve. They should get the job done much sooner in the quarter-finals. Benfica just don't have enough to frustrate them as much as the Serie A side did.   

PSG v MANCHESTER CITY
It was bound to happen eventually - the two European clubs who have profited the most from Arabian investment come face to face in the most prestigious competition in club football.
A few days after seeing off Chelsea, another notable beneficiary of billionaire ownership, PSG secured a fourth consecutive Ligue 1 title with a 9-0 away demolition of Troyes. Even before their last 16 clash, the Parisians could put all of the eggs in the Champions League basket, such has been their level of superiority at home. While in other years they have buckled when their character was put to test, Laurent Blanc's side this time responded in magnificent fashion when under the cosh against Chelsea, ultimately prevailing with a degree of comfort. Zlatan Ibrahimovic will certainly be the chief focus, but the contributions of Adrien Rabiot, Blaise Matuidi, Thiago Silva and Kevin Trapp deserve recognition and Manuel Pellegrini has surely taken note of such.
While PSG have been cruising domestically, Manchester City were in freefall prior to a convincing and perfectly-timed hammering of Bournemouth in a game that could easily have tripped them up. Still, Pellegrini's side have work to do just to ensure their presence in this competition next season and it will take more than a 4-0 blitzing of the Cherries to oust the French champions. At least the return of Sergio Aguero to the scoresheet, the return of Kevin de Bruyne from injury, and a reminder of the form that we know David Silva can produce, will give City encouragement. More is needed from Yaya Toure, though, while they will miss Joe Hart and their Vincent Kompany-less defence could be a disaster waiting to happen.
Man City have never been this far in the competition before, while it has been 21 years since PSG's last semi-final, so one of these teams will enter unchartered territory. I am quite confident that it will be the French club which does just that.

WOLFSBURG v REAL MADRID
For one team, this is a historic first ever appearance in the Champions League quarter-finals. For the other, it's business as usual as they hunt down a sixth consecutive semi-final appearance.
While it would be discrediting Wolfsburg to say that they are only here because of favourable draws in the group stage and last 16, they certainly made the most of the far from world-beating opposition placed before them. Also, their triumph over competition debutants Gent in the last round was hard-earned, and Real Madrid will represent an enormous step up in quality for Dieter Hecking's side. If they are to pull off a massive shock and dump the 10-time European champions out, it's quite likely that young midfielder Julian Draxler will have played a starring role. He has been Wolfsburg's star in this improbable run to the last eight.
Real Madrid's season seemed to be on life support not so long ago, but with another European semi-final in sight and a surprise win away to rivals Barcelona at the weekend, Zinedine Zidane's men could be coming into form at the perfect time. What was particularly impressive about their El Clasico win was that they achieved it by coming from behind against a team that hadn't lost a game in almost six months. Zidane is certainly making a very good first impression in management, although having been involved with the club for years as a player and coach, he will know that games like this should be meat and drink for a team of Real Madrid's quality and stature. 
Wolfsburg have nothing to lose and will throw absolutely everything at trying to upset the odds, but over two legs it's hard to see anything other than Real Madrid advancing with at least a couple of goals to spare.  
 



EUROPA LEAGUE - Quick return home for charismatic Klopp

ATHLETIC BILBAO v SEVILLA
Just as in the Champions League, Europe's secondary competition has an all-Spanish quarter-final. Both of these teams also harbour an outside chance of finishing in the top four in La Liga, while Sevilla are in pursuit of what would be a record third Europa League triumph in a row, and a fifth in 11 years. Bilbao, finalists in 2012, owe a large chunk of their progress to the last eight to veteran striker Aritz Aduriz, whose sensational form in front of goal has seen him become likely to make Spain's Euro 2016 squad. The Basque side will be up against an old friend in Fernando Llorente, who has had an impressive season with Sevilla and could well prove to be the downfall of his boyhood club. The holders' unparalled record in this competition, added to their slightly superior overall strength, is persuading me to tip them to narrowly get the better of Bilbao.

BORUSSIA DORTMUND v LIVERPOOL
As inevitable as a Liverpool-Man Utd clash in the last 16 seemed, there was also a sense of destiny that the quarter-final draw would bring Jurgen Klopp back to Dortmund less than a year after he departed Signal Iduna Park. The 1997 European champions have been doing alright since then under the clever tutelage of Thomas Tuchel, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang among the most in-form strikers in Europe. Liverpool, on the other hand, have been inconsistent as ever, and not even an unexpectedly comfortable win over Man Utd could shake off the question marks over what is, for the most part, an all too average team. If they are to make it to the semi-finals, they will need Philippe Coutinho to keep producing magic and Daniel Sturridge to rediscover his scoring touch. It aches me to say it, but I just don't think the Reds are good enough to put a halt to the gallop of a far superior Dortmund side.

BRAGA v SHAKHTAR DONETSK
The 2011 runners-up meet the 2009 winners, with both clubs continuing to grow in stature over the past decade. Braga's faint hopes of a Champions League placing domestically are all but over, so they will be depending on winning this year's Europa League to get back among the big boys. Central to their chances of doing so are attacking midfielder Rafa Silva and strikers Nikola Stojkovic and Ahmed Hassan. Shakhtar, meanwhile, warmed up for this tie by smashing eight goals past Metalist Kharkiv at the weekend, so Mircea Lucescu's side will be overflowing with confidence. Although their squad was undoubtedly weakened by the sale of Alex Teixeira in January, fellow Brazilians Marlos, Taison and Eduardo have picked up the slack. The Ukrainians look the stronger outfit and I fancy them to progress to the last four.

VILLARREAL v SPARTA PRAGUE
Villarreal look almost certain to claim a top four finish in La Liga, and a crack at Champions League football next season, although their best chance of automatic passage to that competition lies in winning the Europa League this term. Tottenham fans may find this hard to believe, but one of the chief reasons for their impressive season thus far has been the form of Roberto Soldado, a man reborn since returning to Spain. Midfielder Bruno Soriano has also stood out for the 'Yellow Submarine' in 2015/16. Opponents Sparta Prague go into the quarter-finals as the tournament's outsiders, although their hammering of a resurgent Lazio in the last 16 is a result worth noting. David Lafata, who is set to feature for Czech Republic at Euro 2016, is their go-to guy up front, while midfielder Ladislav Krejci is creator-in-chief. Sparta won't fear Villarreal by any means, but the Spanish side should assert their superiority over the two legs.