Champions League Europe — 20 December 2012

The draw for the last 16 of the Champions League has taken place and the two remaining English sides have been handed tough assignments.

Manchester United face Spanish champions Real Madrid, while Arsenal will play German giants Bayern Munich.

Reunion

Former-Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo will face his former-club for the first time. Ronaldo established himself as an Old Trafford hero prior to his world record £80million move to Madrid in 2009.

It will also be a chance for Sir Alex Ferguson to reacquaint himself with former-Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho. Although the pair were rivals during their time competing for the Premier League title, they hold a mutual respect for each other.

Tough

Elsewhere, Arsene Wenger’s side face German giants Bayern Munich. Munich were one of the most impressive sides in the group stages and are currently running away with the German Bundesliga title, going into the winter break.

Arsenal’s form has been patchy this season, but the Gunners certainly have the ability to shock the German giants. The likes of Santi Cazorla, Lukas Podolski and Theo Walcott have the ability to cause the Bavarians problems.

Shock

Elsewhere, SPL champions Celtic face a difficult tie with Italian champions Juventus. The Hoops qualified from the group stages with a victory against Barcelona along the way. Juventus topped a group containing Shakhtar Donetsk and European Champions Chelsea.

Celtic will go into the tie as massive underdogs, but as they have shown already this season they have a flair for upsetting the big boys.

Repeat

Catalan giants Barcelona will face Italian side AC Milan. Barca defeated Milan in last season’s competition and will be hoping for a repeat of that this season. Tito Villanova’s side face a Milan side very much in transition and should be clear favourites.

Other last 16 games in the Champions League:

Shakhtar Donetsk vs., Dortmund

Galatasaray vs. Schalke

Valencia vs. PSG

FC Porto vs. Malaga

Who will be crown European Champions in May?

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David Nugent

David is a 29 year-old football fan and journalist, who is passionate about the beautiful game. He is a lifelong supporter of Premier League Everton and likes nothing better than a healthy discussion about the world's favourite sport.

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