haves versus have-nots

Chelsea-Man Utd marquee clash of quarters as non-winners look to beat past champions.

Mike Collett

It will be revenge time for the big European clubs after the draw for the Champions League quarterfinals was announced on Friday. While Chelsea have a chance to avenge their shattering penalty shootout defeat to Manchester United in the 2008 final while favourites Barcelona will face Shakhtar Donetsk of Ukraine,who beat them 3-2 at the Nou Camp in a group stage match two years ago.

Nine-times winners Real Madrid will play Tottenham Hotspur,meaning a return to London for former Chelsea manager and current Madrid coach Jose Mourinho,while holders Inter Milan will meet Schalke 04. The winners of the Inter/Schalke match will play Chelsea or Manchester United in one semi-final while Real Madrid will face Barcelona in the other semifinal if they both win their quarter-final games,ruling out the chance of an all-Spanish final.

The first leg of the quarter-final matches will be played on April 5-6 with the return leg scheduled a week after on April 12-13. The semifinal legs will be played on April 26-27 and May 3-4 with the final at Wembley Stadium on May 28.

Shootout

Manchester Uniteds victory over Chelsea in Moscow in the final three years ago was on a night of relentless rain and high drama with the teams battling to a 1-1 draw after extra time. The game went to penalties,with Chelsea skipper John Terry only needing to convert his to give his side victory but he slipped on the wet surface and missed the shot as his kick hit the outside of the post. United went on to win the shootout 6-5.

Chasing history

Chelseas former boss Mourinho is bidding to become the first man to win the European Cup with three different clubs following his success with Porto in 2004 and Inter last year. He guided Real into the last eight for the first time in seven years this week and will welcome the game against Spurs.

The London side,playing in the Champions League for the first time,lost to Real as holders of the UEFA Cup in 1985,their 1-0 defeat being the first time they had lost at home since they began competing in Europe in 1961. Real director Emilio Butragueno,who played in the Real team that beat Spurs that night,said he was delighted to be going back to White Hart Lane.

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Barcelona,the overwhelming favourites to lift the European Cup for the second time in three seasons,will be wary about facing Shakhtar who have a good record against them. They have met six times with the Ukraine side winning twice,including their shock win at the Nou Camp two seasons ago.

Inter and Schalke are also old rivals,having met in the 1997 UEFA Cup final which Schalke won on penalties. London bookmakers have kept Barca as 11/10 favourites,followed by Real Madrid 7/2,Manchester United and Chelsea 7/1,Inter Milan 8/1,Spurs 20/1,Shakhtar Donetsk 33/1 and Schalke 50/1.