Champions League draw: Arsenal draw the short straw and face Barcelona

Champions League / Jamie "The Pacman" Pacheco / 19 March 2010 / Leave a Comment

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is just one of many star names at Barcelona that Arsenal will have to deal with

"Arsenal will feel like they drew the short straw in today’s draw when they found out they will face defending champions and [3.0] tournament favourites Barcelona. The stats say no side has ever successfully defended their Champions League crown but no-one would be surprised to see Barcelona buck that trend, especially after the way they demolished Stuttgart on Wednesday night."

The reaction on Betfair to the Champions League and Europa League draws as English sides are handed tough draws.

Manchester United will be feeling the happier of the two English sides after drawing Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals of the Champions League in today's draw. The Betfair market has installed United as the [1.47] favourites to progress against Louis Van Gaal's side, who like Manchester United, are also still trying to win their domestic title. United trade as the [4.6] second-favourites for this year's Champions League whilst Bayern are [14.5].

Arsenal will feel like they drew the short straw in today's draw when they found out they will face defending champions and [3.0] tournament favourites Barcelona. The stats say no side has ever successfully defended their Champions League crown but no-one would be surprised to see Barcelona buck that trend, especially after the way they demolished Stuttgart on Wednesday night. Pep Guardiola's side are predictably the favourites to go through at [1.41] whilst as a result of the hard draw, Arsenal have drifted to [12.5] to win the Champions League for the first time.

It will be an all-French affair in the third of this year's quarter-finals as Bordeaux and Lyon lock horns. Bordeaux ([25.0] to win the competition) meet Lyon ([18.0])and are the slight outsiders at [2.2] to make the semis. Some punters will view that price as a good value bet given that Bordeaux are both the defending champions in Ligue 1 and this year's league leaders with Lyon's favouritism based on the fact that they took out big guns Real Madrid in the previous round and their greater pedigree in the competition.

Jose Mourinho will perhaps have been the happiest of all the managers in charge of teams still in the Champions League after Inter Milan drew CSKA Moscow. The Russian outfit were already the outsiders before the draw and their price lengthened further after being pitted against a side who were superb at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night and are managed by a man who has already won this competition when he guided FC Porto to glory back in 2004. At [3.75], CSKA are the biggest price of any of the sides left in the competition to make the semis and a massive [65.0] to win it. Inter Milan are the [5.1] third-favourites.

In the "other competition", the Europa League, Liverpool were drawn against Portuguese league leaders Benfica in a mouth-watering tie. Liverpool will go into the tie as favourites but you don't need a particularly great memory to remember what happened the last time these sides met: just three years ago the "Eagles" knocked out Rafa Benitez's side from the Champions League by beating them both home and away.

Fulham will face defending Bundesliga champions Wolsburg, Hamburg play Standard Liege and we'll have an all-Spanish tie in the remaining quarter-final as Valencia face Atletico Madrid.