As we mentioned yesterday, when you advance this far in the Champions League, there are no easy outs—every club has reached this point for a reason; they’re good, and even if they’ve been punching above their weight, they’ve found some inefficiency to exploit. Even so, putting that all aside, why did it have to be Barcelona!? Why, why, why did Roma have to get Barcelona?
While some might argue that Manchester City is the best team in Europe at the moment, they can’t hold a candle to Barca’s European resume, nor do they have Lionel Messi. Can’t forget about that pesky little bugger.
We’ll save the Xs and Os for the coming days and weeks, but let’s take a look at how the players, experts and fans reacted to Roma’s lack of luck in the Champions League draw.
| The immediate reaction from the #ASRoma #UCL #UCLdraw pic.twitter.com/3jkRSOlIvL
— AS Roma English (@ASRomaEN) March 16, 2018
Man, I wish Totti could play in this one, but EDF remained as you’d expect, level headed and pragmatic...
— AS Roma English (@ASRomaEN) March 16, 2018
#ASRoma #UCL #UCLdraw pic.twitter.com/LcViRRnbub
| A tough tie, but nothing is impossible...#ASRoma #UCL #UCLdraw pic.twitter.com/ftYl6gXtil
— AS Roma English (@ASRomaEN) March 16, 2018
That’s the suits take, but what about the guys on the pitch, what do they think about Roma’s chances against Barca?
“We will be up against players that have helped build one of the great, unforgettable dynasties in football. But, nevertheless, on the night there will be 11 of us, there will be 11 of them...”
— AS Roma English (@ASRomaEN) March 16, 2018
| Daniele De Rossi on facing Barcelona in the #UCL... pic.twitter.com/mwGVGGXHIO
These games are the reason why we fight all the season to be part of the @championsleague , to play against the best..
— Edin Džeko (@EdDzeko) March 16, 2018
Feels good to be in the quarter finals. We are going to give our best and will enjoy every second of it..#forzaromasempre @OfficialASRoma @ASRomaEN pic.twitter.com/1GAEfdbBZp
And finally, the rest of the draw...
The official result of the #UCLdraw.
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) March 16, 2018
Predict the final... pic.twitter.com/YAlLd1tWJK
As we mentioned, we’ll dig a lot deeper into this fixture over the next week or so, but for now, what do we think? Can Roma pull off the upset?