On March 16, in the western suburbs of Paris, Saint-Germain training base.

After the morning training class, Gao Han and his assistants went to the restaurant for lunch, sat in front of the TV on time at 11:30 to watch the UEFA lottery live broadcast.

According to UEFA's convention, the Champions League draw will be drawn in fifteen minutes, then the rest will be taken, and then the UEFA Cup draw will be drawn in the quarterfinals. The two major cups are drawn in the quarterfinals.

During the Champions League final 16 knockout rounds, the Europa League held two rounds of knockout rounds. Paris Saint-Germain first eliminated Turkey's Trabzon Sports with an 8-1 overall score, and then eliminated Belgium's standard Liege with a 6-1 overall score of two rounds, successfully reaching the quarterfinals.

This time, among the teams that entered the Champions League quarterfinals, the La Liga was the most popular. All four participating teams entered the quarterfinals, occupying half of the territory. The remaining four teams occupied two Premier League places, Manchester's doubles, Serie A and Bundesliga each took one place, Inter Milan and Bayern Munich.

According to the Champions League draw rules, this time, eight teams will be disrupted and they will draw lots again and fight each other. There is no principle of evasion between the two countries, and all teams may meet. Therefore, there is a high possibility that La Liga teams will meet.

"How do you feel now?" Zidane asked with a smile while sitting beside Gao Han.

When others heard this, they found it funny, but they were really curious about how Gao Han felt?

"If I want to answer with a high sound, I will definitely say that I am very satisfied that the team can reach the present day, so no matter who the opponent will be drawn next, no matter whether the game will lose or win or lose, I can accept it. So, I don't care at all now, nor do I care who will draw."

Gao Han took out the tone of dealing with the media reporter to answer the assistant coach's questions. His serious expression made everyone present laugh, and this answer was indeed a bit too high-sounding.

"What if it's not so high-sounding?" Zidane asked again with a smile.

Gao Han nodded, "Then I will definitely say that these seven teams in the quarterfinals of the Champions League are so powerful!"

At the end of hearing, the assistants burst into laughter.

But this is true, because Chinatown is definitely the weakest among the top eight teams, so no matter who draws, they think they are very strong, which is understandable.

"Mr. Gao Han, I am a reporter for Paris Saint-Germain." Sergio Garcia also came to join in the fun, "I would like to ask you, among the seven teams, which team do you think you have the most hope for Chinatown?"

Gao Han frowned, looking very distressed, which made everyone present laugh again.

"Can I not answer?"

"No, I have to answer."

"Okay, I most hope to draw the Chinese and La Liga teams."

"Ah?" Everyone suspected that they had heard it wrong.

La Liga team?

Barcelona is one of the two most powerful teams recognized as one of the top eight teams. Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid are also very strong, and they are both regular visitors to the Champions League quarterfinals. They are sure to have the strength of the top four. Is Gao Han so smart?

"Look, right? You must have suspected that I was bad-minded, because according to your ideas, you should choose Inter Milan, right?" Gao Han himself found it funny.

"Then why isn't Inter Milan?" Zidane asked curiously.

The situation in the Serie A has declined in recent years. Inter Milan is a standout. After selling several leading stars in succession, coupled with a group of high-altitude backbone forces such as Adriano, Cannavaro, and Cambiaso, Inter Milan's strength is also much worse than before.

Although there are currently core players such as Hamsik, Bonucci, and Marchisio, and Plandelli has also cultivated local rookies such as Thornton and Balotelli, the overall strength of the Nerazzurri is still relatively weak in the quarterfinals of the Champions League.

Of course, Morati has not invested much in recent years, but the team raised a lot of money on the new stadium project and is expected to be completed within one year. Once the new stadium is put into use, Inter Milan will usher in a new period of rapid development.

But judging from the current situation, Inter Milan is still in a dormant stage, and its strength is at best the level of the quarterfinals.

On the other hand, there is no need to say about the other teams, Barcelona, ​​Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Manchester United and Manchester City. After Bayern Munich fired Klinsmann, he poached Heinquez. His strength has also skyrocketed this season, and all three fronts performed very well. In addition, Gao Han left a team, at least the level of the semi-finals.

Therefore, it is not surprising that everyone does not understand Gao Han’s idea.

"I know that Inter Milan is relatively weak among these eight teams. When Chinatown meets Inter Milan, it may not be impossible to compete." Gao Han's words were also recognized by everyone present.

"But you forgot one thing. Chinatown is just a new champion in the Champions League. He has never even played in the Europa League before. He lacks experience in dealing with team styles in different leagues. Inter Milan has excellent defensive ability and Serie A's tactical rigor will definitely pose a fatal threat to Chinatown."

Gao Han's words made everyone nod involuntarily, it was indeed the case.

Judging from the strength alone, there may be a fight, but Chinatown is too inexperienced, and the Italian style restrains La Liga, which is well known. Chinatown's youth and immatureness are probably quite difficult to draw Inter Milan.

"Although I'm not willing to admit it, I have to say that if I draw Inter Milan, Bayern Munich, Manchester United and Manchester City, Chinatown will basically have a very slim hope of qualifying. On the contrary, Barcelona, ​​Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid know each other's bottom line in the league, and I think we can have a good fight."

The Champions League knockout stage is definitely more difficult to play than the league, but they know each other well and are more confident in dealing with it. Pochettino's arrangement will be more confident, so Gao Han believes that playing against La Liga teams has a better chance of winning.

Of course, the odds mentioned here are just the difference between 10% and 20%.

Anyway, for Chinatown, these seven teams are like towering mountains, especially Manchester City and Barcelona, ​​which are even more comparable to Mount Everest and are insurmountable.

"Then you'd better pray to draw Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid, if it's Barcelona..."

Before Zidane finished speaking, the lottery ceremony in the live TV broadcast began.

The draw ceremony was still hosted by UEFA Secretary-General Infantino. After he took the stage, he introduced the eight teams that reached the quarterfinals and spent a short period of time to review the just-concluded quarterfinals knockout matches.

After entering the lottery ceremony, the first person to be drawn was Chinatown.

When the lottery guest Bretner drew the results, even the team representatives on the scene were a little surprised.

Everyone knows that this is Gao Han's team. After upgrading every year, it not only reached the final of the King's Cup this season, but also reached the quarterfinals of the Champions League. This was achieved by selling four absolute core players in one summer, which shows the strength of this team.

But soon, everyone went from surprise to secretly happy.

Because the second team Bretner draws is Barcelona.

This time, Zidane, who was in front of the TV, covered his mouth and opened his eyes wide open to the TV in disbelief, then looked at Gao Han, who had a wry smile on his face.

Who would have thought that Chinatown would draw Barcelona? These are two teams with a considerable gap in strength. Barcelona can be regarded as Chinatown's natural enemy. In the past three seasons that Chinatown entered La Liga, they have never beat Barcelona, ​​and they have not even draw.

Now he is in the Champions League again, playing Barcelona, ​​and he has no chance of winning.

Gao Han shook his head and breathed heavily. The draws of other groups were no longer what he cared about.

Bayern Munich won Atletico Madrid, Manchester United had the best luck, drew Inter Milan, and Real Madrid fought against Manchester City. In the subsequent draw, Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid were drawn to the second half along with Chinatown and Barcelona, ​​which means that the winners of the two matches will meet in the semi-finals.

"Is it too depressing?" Sergio Garcia shook his head and smiled bitterly. "I used up all my luck before, but now it's time to be unlucky."

Everyone also felt that this was the case. Barcelona and Manchester City are the teams that everyone is most reluctant to meet.

Gao Han always said on the surface that he was satisfied with the team's current achievements. Even if he stopped in the quarterfinals, it would be an unexpected gain. But he still had some thoughts. What if he got an unpopular again and entered the quarterfinals?

But judging from the current draw results, the possibility is really small.

But he quickly calmed down and nodded and smiled, "Actually, Barcelona is not completely weak."

"Left back." Sergio Garcia followed Gao Han for many years and knew Gao Han's character well.

Since the lottery results are already obvious and cannot be changed, we should work hard to find a way to defeat the enemy.

"Abidal is planning to undergo a liver transplant. After selling Maxwell, Guardiola has always had two options on the left, one is Puyol to switch positions and the other is to use Adriano, but no matter which one is, the left is Barcelona's fatal weakness."

It should be said that neither of these two players were the choice of Barcelona on the left, but were just a measure that was forced to do.

"We know, Guardiola must know, and he will definitely be prepared." Marklele analyzed.

Gao Han nodded, "Yes, but judging from last season, Guardiola has not had many ways. It is his strategy to use offense instead of defense. In European football, there are not many teams that can withstand Barcelona's offense."

After a pause, Gao Han continued: "Using Barcelona's playing style and lineup configuration, the loopholes on the left will always exist, but not any team can attack it. But as long as you can hold Barcelona's seven-inch play, there may not be no chance of winning. I believe Pochettino must be very clear about this."

Barcelona's left-wing problem has been exposed since last season. This summer, due to transfer budget issues, he failed to strengthen the left-wing and continued to retain Abidal and Adriano. However, he did not expect that after half of the schedule, Abidal's condition relapsed, which exposed Barcelona's left-wing crisis.

Pochettino has played so many games with Barcelona in two seasons, and he must be clear about this.

So, let’s see if he can make good use of this.

This can be said to be the only hope for Chinatown to be upset again.

However, Pochettino should not have a headache about the Champions League quarterfinals knockout stage, because the first thing he was the weekend match against Real Madrid, and when he was visiting the Bernabeu Stadium, how should he ensure that the team escape unscathed.

After the Champions League quarter-final draw ended, the Europa League quarter-final draw also began. Paris Saint-Germain drew Alkmaar from the Netherlands, and the possibility of advancing to the semi-final was very high.
Chapter completed!