Madrid Derby Is The Highlight Of The Champions League Semifinal Draw

Another Madrid Derby in the Champions League had to happen sooner or later. And after two UCL finals in three years between Atlético Madrid and Real Madrid, it’s a nice change of pace to see the city rivals clash in the semifinal this time. Here’s the semifinal draw in it’s entirety:

Obviously the meeting of the Madrids is the headline event. For lovers of justice and righteousness (AKA people who want Real to lose), it’s probably better that Atlético caught Real here than in the final again. The mental block Atleti have historically had when coming up against the bigger and richer Madrid club, the block manager Diego Simeone has worked so hard to tear down, has appeared to re-emerge whenever the two have met in the final of this competition. Playing in more familiar territory in a couple matches of (slightly) lower stakes should ease the anxiety a bit, giving them a better chance to take down the evil empire. Fingers crossed!

We shouldn’t neglect the Monaco-Juventus side of the draw, either. Monaco play the most entertaining style of any of the remaining teams in this competition, and it will be fun to see their breakneck attack crash into Juve’s steel wall of a defense. And regardless of which of these two teams make it to the final, it’s nice to see some fresh blood getting this far.