The Champions League last sixteen draw handed the two remaining English sides tough Italian opposition and their odds of winning the competition were immediately on the drift. Chelsea have been paired with Napoli and were eased out to 12/1 by William Hill, while Arsenal went to 20/1 after they drew AC Milan, with Barcelona still firm favourites.
The Chelsea v Napoli match looks to be one of the stand out ties in the round of sixteen, although the London club would no doubt have appreciated an easier draw. Chairman Roman Abramovich counts this competition as his own holy grail after they lost the final to Man Utd in 2008, although they drifted from 10/1 to 12/1 for this year's competition.
They come up against a Napoli side who made the knockout stages at the expense of Manchester City after they lost just one game in the 'group of death'. They are one of the most exciting Italian sides around and are 40/1 to win the tournament, although Chelsea are 4/7 favourites to qualify for the last eight, with Napoli priced 5/4.
Chelsea's London neighbours Arsenal face a similarly tricky tie as they come up against seven time European champions AC Milan. Hills pushed the Gunners out from 18/1 to 20/1 in the outright betting as they bid to go one better than their final appearance of 2006. Arsene Wenger's young side face a tough task and much will depend on whether Robin Van Persie can make it through the season without injury.
The Gunners have the benefit of playing the second leg of the Arsenal v AC Milan tie at home, with both sides currently 10/11 in the betting to qualify for the last eight. Furthermore, Arsenal have won each of their last eight matches against Italian opposition in the knockout stages of European competition and Arsene Wenger will no doubt be relieved that his side don't have to face Barcelona this year.
Barcelona have been the bane of Arsenal's Champions League ambitions in recent years as they have repeatedly knocked the Gunners out. Barca have drawn Bayer Leverkusen in the last sixteen and they were clipped in slightly from 13/8 to 6/4 to win the tournament with Hills. The Spanish side are bidding to win the competition for a third time in four years, although their bitter rivals Real Madrid will hope to deny them
Madrid manager Jose Mourinho knows all about winning this competition after his success with Porto and Inter. His side are a best priced 5/2 in the betting with WilliamHill.com, but they must overcome a tricky last sixteen tie against CSKA Moscow in bitterly cold conditions in Russia.
Meanwhile, Basel, the club who pipped Manchester United to a place in the knockout stages, have been rewarded for their fine efforts with a match against tournament third favourites Bayern Munich. 2010 finalists Bayern are 5/1 in the outright betting and they are 1/7 on to qualify for the last eight.
- Check out our dedicated Champions League mini-site for the latest odds, betting news, fixtures, match previews and much more.
6/4 Barcelona
5/2 Real Madrid
5/1 Bayern Munich
12/1 Chelsea
20/1 Arsenal
25/1 AC Milan
25/1 Inter Milan
40/1 Napoli
50/1 Benfica
66/1 Lyon
100/1 BAR
Odds provided by WilliamHill.com, who provide match odds for all of the last sixteen Champions League ties.
Posted: Friday, 16th December 2011
Author: Chris James
Tags: champions league, arsenal, chelsea, barcelona, william hill,
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