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In Eindhoven:
Stadium: Philips Stadion
Time: 21:45
Referee: Bertrand Layec (France)
In Eindhoven, the teams that have already eliminated last year's tournament finalists will meet – the Dutch defeated London's "Arsenal", while the English defeated "Barcelona".
Interestingly, these teams already faced each other in this season's group stage matches. The first match in the Netherlands ended in a 0-0 draw, while in England, "Liverpool" won 2-0.
PSV" has some serious losses. Due to a knee injury, defender Alex will not be able to play, as his season is already over. Arouna Kone from the Ivory Coast has also suffered a similar injury and the young forward Ibrahim Afellay is likely unable to play due to a hamstring strain.
Liverpool" has slightly fewer losses. Due to suspension, midfielder Mohamed Sissoko will miss the match, and he will likely be replaced by Javier Mascherano, who would make his debut in the Champions League. Forward Craig Bellamy also traveled to Eindhoven, despite missing the weekend match against "Arsenal" due to a shin injury and rib knock.
The manager is determined to take to the field: "Taking deep breaths, I still feel pain in my ribs, but I really hope that I can play against "PSV". This tournament is very important to me; it is the highest level in my career, and I want to play in it."
In Europe, "PSV" has played against English clubs 12 times; they have gained 5 victories, played to a draw 5 times, and suffered only 2 defeats. Meanwhile, "Liverpool" has only faced Dutch teams 4 times (1 win, 2 draws, 1 loss).
Both clubs had different results in their respective national championships over the weekend. The Eindhoven team drew 1-1 with NAC Breda, and currently leads the Eredivisie with just 3 points ahead of their closest pursuers, Ajax. On the other hand, Liverpool thrashed "Arsenal" 4-1 and solidified their position in third place in the Premier League.
Liverpool" is considered the favorite in this matchup. They have won the Champions League 5 times (most recently in 2005), as well as triumphed in the UEFA Cup and Super Cup three times each. PSV" has won the UEFA Cup once and the Champions League once (1988). The strength of the opponents is recognized by Eindhoven's manager Ronald Koeman: "The Liverpool players will undoubtedly seek victory because we have many problems due to injuries. To win such high-level matches, you need to prepare the team properly and have all the strongest players, but anything can happen in a two-match series. Our opponents are currently in excellent form. The match will be tough, and we would be happy with a 0-0 draw or a 1-0 victory."
Curiously, last year, R.Koeman led Lisbon's "Benfica," which eliminated "Man Utd" in the Champions League group stage and then defeated the same "Liverpool" in the quarter-finals.
The English club's coach, Spanish Rafa Benitez, was more restrained but did not underestimate their opponents: "I believe we have a better team than when we won the Champions League. When we reached this stage, people were already talking about the final. It's natural, but we have to aim for our goal slowly, step by step. PSV" is a very strong opponent, but we have more experience and confidence in ourselves."
The PSV" team will be seeking their 100th victory in European competitions tonight, while it will be the 50th match for "Liverpool" in the Champions League.
Projected lineups:
"PSV": Heurelho Gomes; Jan Kromkamp, Carlos Salcido, Manuel Da Costa, Sun Xiang; Edison Méndez, Phillip Cocu, Timmy Simons, Mika Väyrynen, Jason Culina; Jefferson Farfán.
"Liverpool": Pepe Reina; Álvaro Arbeloa, Daniel Agger, Jamie Carragher, Steve Finnan; Steven Gerrard, Xabi Alonso, Javier Mascherano, John Arne Riise; Dirk Kuyt, Craig Bellamy.
In Milan:
Stadium: San Siro
Time: 21:45
Referee: Yuri Baskakov (Russia)
In the determined "Milan" team, almost all the strongest players will be able to play, except for Brazilian Ronaldo, who has already played in the Champions League this season with Real Madrid. Defenders Paolo Maldini and Alessandro Nesta have returned to the Italian club after injuries.
Milan's coach Carlo Ancelotti spoke before the match: "This season has been quite difficult for us – there have been many ups and downs. We haven't played as well as we can for many reasons. However, we made it to the quarter-finals and have a great chance to achieve even more."
The long-time Milan captain Paolo Maldini also responded to the coach: "We have played poorly in the Italian championship, but we are a strong opponent in the Champions League. It's time to show what we can do at the highest level."
On the other hand, "Bayern" has more serious losses. Due to suspensions, the main goalkeeper Oliver Kahn and regular starter defender Mark van Bommel will miss the match in Italy. However, full-back Owen Hargreaves, recovered from a thigh injury, will play again.
"These two losses are very serious, but we have excellent replacements. Michael Rensing is an excellent goalkeeper, and full-back Andreas Ottl played very well in the weekend match against "Schalke". Both teams have had ups and downs this season, so these matches are a great opportunity to prove who is who. I hope we will handle our nerves and aim for a favorable result," - Germany's champions coach Ottmar Hitzfeld, who replaced the dismissed Felix Magath as the head coach of the Munich club at the beginning of this year, was trying not to lose optimism.
It is interesting to note that "Milan" and "Bayern" met in the quarter-finals of the Champions League last season. The Italians celebrated the victory then with an impressive score of 5-2.
"From last season's games, we have very pleasant memories. We played fantastically at home and won 4-1. I hope we can repeat that once again. The losses of O.Kahn and M.Van Bommel will be an additional burden for the opponents," - C.Ancelotti stated.
Last weekend, "Milan" played a 1-1 draw with "Roma" in the Italian championship and dropped to 6th place in the league table. Meanwhile, "Bayern" celebrated a 2-0 victory against the leader "Schalke," now trailing by just 6 points and ranking 4th.
The Milan club hopes for home advantage in tonight's match. The Italian team has celebrated 15 victories in their last 18 matches at their home San Siro stadium. However, "Bayern" has already taken one victory from "San Siro" this season when they beat "Inter" 2-0 during the group stage matches.
The match will be officiated by Russian referee Yuri Baskakov, whom the Bayern club expressed doubt about on the eve of the match.
Projected lineups:
"Milan": Dida; Massimo Oddo, Alessandro Nesta, Paolo Maldini, Marek Jankulovski; Gennaro Gattuso, Andrea Pirlo, Massimo Ambrosini; Kaká, Clarence Seedorf, Alberto Gilardino.
"Bayern": Michael Rensing; Willy Sagnol, Daniel Van Buyten, Lucio, Philipp Lahm; Hasan Salihamidžić, Andreas Ottl, Owen Hargreaves, Bastian Schweinsteiger; Roy Makaay, Lukas Podolski.
