Real Madrid have been given a tough task in the Champions League quarter final, as they face a two-legged tie against Juventus. The Italian side will be looking for revenge, after Los Blancos defeated them comfortably in the Champions League final in Cardiff last year.
It was a 4-1 victory for Real Madrid last June, after two goals from man of the match Cristiano Ronaldo, plus one each from Casemiro and Marco Asensio. This cancelled out an early equaliser by Mario Mandzukic.
The first leg of this year’s contest will take place on April 3/4 and the return leg will be a week later. Juventus will be the home side in the first leg, so Real will hope they can grab a few away goals to bring back to the Santiago Bernabeu.
Interesting History
Though Zinedine Zidane’s side got the better of Juventus last season, it was the ‘Old Lady’ that won in the semi-final back in 2015. Throughout history it is very evenly matched, as the sides have met 19 times with eight victories for Juve and nine for Real and two draws.
In domestic action this season, Juventus look like they may be on their way to a win in Serie A for the seventh year in a row. They have recently taken a 4 point lead at the top of Serie A, having overtaken Napoli. Real on the other hand had a poor start, which has left them 3rd and way off the pace at the top of La Liga.
The draw for the last eight also put two English sides together, as Manchester City will face Liverpool. The other ties are Barcelona v AS Roma and Bayern Munich v Sevilla. It could well be the case that three La Liga sides make it through to the semi final stage, which would prove the league’s dominance in Europe.
