Another day of blue-chip UEFA Champions League action

By Roger Gonzalez

Another fine day of UEFA Champions League soccer awaits today.

On Tuesday, Juventus fell 2-0 at Bayern Munich in the quarterfinal first leg, while Paris Saint-Germain secured a tie at home to Barcelona after Lionel Messi left the game with an injury.

Today, two more tasty clashes take center stage.

Malaga – Borussia Dortmund

The Spanish side are the surprise of the tournament, with Malaga playmaker Isco showing why he is one of the top young talents in the world. But in comes the German club, filled with plenty of star players of their own.

It will be tough for Malaga to advance to the semifinals, but nobody saw them making it this far to begin with. Expect Mario Gotze to have a quality showing for the Germans, who should get a solid result away from home.

Dortmund 1, Malaga 1

Real Madrid – Galatasaray

Isn’t this a tasty clash? So many fantastic story lines.

First, you have Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho taking on his former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba, who recently returned to the European spotlight after a stint in China. Then, you have Wesley Sneijder returning to the Spanish capital, where he played for Madrid earlier in his career. Oh, and he was also coached by Mourinho at Inter Milan in Italy.

In Champions League football, you can’t count out Drogba or Sneijder, as both have won the tournament crown.

But “Mou” has won two UCL titles, one apiece with FC Porto (Portugal) and Inter. He will need a good first leg if he hopes to make it a trio of crowns. In the end, I expect Madrid stars Cristiano Ronaldo and Gonzalo Higuain will come to play.

Real Madrid 2, Galatasaray 0