Before the Draw: Champions League quarterfinal draw scenarios

Bayern Munich are back in the quarterfinals of the Champions League after another demolition of Arsenal in the last 16. With the big England sides out of the competition, the quarterfinal field is much more diverse, with only Spain and Germany with multiple teams in the last eight.

Who will Bayern want to face in the quarterfinals? Here’s a look at each draw scenario.

The Best Draw: Leicester City

Remarkable, how a team like Leicester City can continue to beat the odds and deliver unpredictable results. But if Arsenal cannot contain Bayern in Munich, Leicester City will not contain Bayern in Munich. Their style is very direct, which has taken some sides off guard, but Bayern showed they can handle a team that comes straight for them after beating Leipzig in their last game of 2016. Leicester have been a popular Cinderella in recent seasons, but they will turn back into a pumpkin if they have to go to Munich.

The Worst Draw: Atletico Madrid

They are perhaps the only team that has shown they can neutralize what Bayern do best. Atleti have lost ground in the La Liga title race, but their Champions League form has been immune to their inconsistencies in the league. Youthful role players are also coming to the fore, which makes it more probably that Bayern would struggle to reach the last four should these two teams be paired together once again.

The German Draw: Borussia Dortmund

As Raphael Honigstein pointed out, this draw would result in Bayern and Dortmund playing each other four times in April. That is something that neither team probably wants. Dortmund’s attack has become similarly potent to that of Bayern’s, but their defense has held them back on multiple occasions. Seeing Robert Lewandowski and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang exchange scoring blows would be fun to watch, but this tie in the quarterfinals would not be good for German football.

The Legacy Draw: Real Madrid

No two teams from different countries have faced each other as much as Bayern Munich has faced Real Madrid. A quarterfinal between these two teams would be the tie to watch. Zinedine Zidane has had a great run as first team coach, but they have recently come up short at strange times this season. The Ancelotti-Zidane teacher-apprentice angle would be interesting to watch, but with the way Bayern are playing now, Zidane may have trouble usurping his master.

The Proximity Draw: Juventus

Though in two very different countries, Munich and Turin are just about 600 kilometers (370 miles) apart. Bayern and Juventus have also seen a lot of each other, but Juventus has not had much success against the Bavarians since the mid-2000s. Juve are at the top of the Italian league and are unbeaten in the Champions League. They gave Bayern all they could handle last season, but they still might not have enough to finally vanquish their German adversaries.

The Attacking Draw: Barcelona

The Camp Nou was shaking after Barcelona completed the comeback to end all comebacks against Paris Saint-Germain (although PSG probably thinks the referee had a hand in their elimination). But that doesn’t disguise the fact that they conceded four goals to PSG, which is the second most goals the French champions have scored in a knockout stage game in the Champions League. Barcelona would come at Bayern with their elite forward combination, but Bayern should be able to match them on the score sheet.

The Dark-Horse Draw: AS Monaco

Monaco have reached the quarterfinals for the second time in three seasons, and each time they did, they knocked out an English club – who was heavily favored in the last 16 tie – along the way. They have so many players who can score goals, but their defense has not been as good as it has in previous years. Monaco may not be able to beat Bayern this time around, but they certainly will make it tough.