UEFA Champions League draw 2013: Barcelona faces Manchester City in knockout stage

There’s no question that the Germans will be playing at a talent disparity, but they have a slew of German internationals, an emerging young star in Son Heung-Min and a young coach in Sami Hyypia that has turned the team into one of the Bundesliga’s best. Bayer are underdogs, but not huge ones.

A lot can change between now and February, but the title race in France is something to keep in mind - if Monaco continue to push PSG at the top, sitting two points behind the defending champions at this stage, there is the threat that Blanc’s side could be distracted by their domestic challenge. The two will face off in what is shaping up to be a crucial league match days out from the first leg of the first leg of the knockout rounds, and Blanc could find balancing the multiple trophy hunts a difficult task.

Schalke 04

Schalke’s progression to the next round -- along with the three other German sides in the competition -- has prompted suggestions that this ‘proves’ the strength of the Bundesliga, but the reality is that Jens Keller’s side benefitted from a weak group - the winners, Chelsea, lost twice to Basel yet still finished first, and it was a red card to the Swiss side in the final match which gave Schalke the upper hand for a victory they required to qualify from the group.

Instead, much of their season has been dominated by the difficulties finding balance and harmony, a task made difficult by the unexpected and somewhat unnecessary arrival of Kevin Prince-Boateng in the transfer window. On paper, the Ghanian gave Schalke some much needed depth in attacking midfield, but on the basis of first team selection, it’s complicated things - it’s meant Julian Draxler’s had to shift out into a wide left position, where he’s far less effective and seemingly unhappy, going off his comments in Kicker magazine this week.

Nobody likes an away trip to Russia, but that’s exactly what Borussia Dortmund have been dealt in drawing Zenit St. Petersburg in the Champions League.

Dortmund don’t have any hope of winning the Bundesliga, but they can’t ignore league form completely - a combination of poor form and injuries have left them well adrift of the summit. Nonetheless, with their best chances of major silverware this year now actually being the Champions League, Jurgen Klopp will surely prioritise the competition. His side will be favourites to progress here, but Zenit can provide serious danger.

Key player: Mario Balotelli.

Yeah, no obscure references here. Despite a downturn in goals scored this season, and a couple injuries, and the fact that he still can’t control his temper, oh and the way he looked totally uninterested in the final group stage match, SuperMario remains Milan’s best. Which just might say more about the rest of the squad than the young forward.

Olympiakos is one of Greece’s most successful clubs and something of a regular presence in the Champions League. While they’ve never gotten farther than the quarterfinals of the tournament, this is the seventh time they’ve advanced past the group stages. Olympiakos’ fans are passionate, loud and highly intimidating, making a trip to the Karaiskakis Stadium not one that most teams look forward to.

The Greeks squeaked into the Round of 16 thanks to a final day with over Anderlecht that allowed them to advance past Benfica on a tiebreaker. Their league form is a bit more impressive with the Thrylos dominating the Greek Super League with a 13-1-0 record and an eight point lead over PAOK Salonika.

José Mourinho’s men will still be firm favourites to go through, but the away trip to Istanbul is a famously daunting one, and with Drogba, Wesley Sneijder and Burak Yilmaz among their ranks, Roberto Mancini’s men have plenty of opportunities to spring a surprise.

There’s a black cloud hanging over Galatasaray. After officials suspended their match against Juventus in the 31st minute, it resumed the following afternoon on a pitch that had been chewed up by tractors, a pitch looking much worse than the one that had been abandoned the previous day. Gala went on to win with a 85th minute goal and, my, some people are bitter.

City had a rather easy time of it in this year’s group stages. Sure, they were thrown in with the current cup-holders, but neither Viktoria Plzeň or CSKA Moscow were ever going to be a serious threat (although the 4-2 win over the Czech side made for some rather entertaining viewing). Now, they’re one of the toughest draws for the first place finishers, a side capable of dislodging one of the favorites on their way to the quarter-finals – at least, they are if they put in a performance similar to the final hour of their win over Bayern Munich.

Key player: Sergio Agüero

The German side will be clear favourites to give the Gunners another early exit in the competition, but Arsene Wenger’s men are much-improved this year and currently sit top of the Premier League table. The last time these two sides met in the competition was just last year - victory went to Bayern, but Arsenal did pull off a remarkable win at the Allianz Arena.

The good news for Arsenal is that since then, they’re playing much better football. The bad news is that so are Bayern - Pep Guardiola’s men will be strongly fancied to go through here.

For years, the Champions League group stages were seen as a formality, with many claiming that the action didn’t really start until the knockout rounds began. While the group stages have become ever-more tight, that sentiment still holds -- it’s not until the two-legged knockout ties begin that the competition really grabs the undivided attention of the footballing world.

Teams cannot be drawn against other teams from their country or the other knockout stage participant from their group in the Round of 16. It will be possible for teams from the same country to draw each other beginning in the quarterfinals.

The draw gets underway at 12 p.m. local time, 11 a.m. GMT, 6 a.m. ET from UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland. It can be seen live on Sky Sports 1 in the U.K. The draw is not being broadcast on live television in the United States, but FOX Sports 1 will show it later in the day on delay. It’s streaming live globally at UEFA.com.