5 Storylines to Watch in Champions League Week of February 23
While the first week of Champions League last-16 ties might have been uncharacteristically flat, the second promises much.
This still relatively recent revamp, which spreads the matches out over a number of weeks, allows for each story to be more pronounced, with every match seemingly meaning more and the players within them even more closely analysed.
Just who ends up hitting the headlines remains to be seen, but there are some fascinating tales to keep an eye on as we head into the week.
Luis Suarez Returns to England, but Is He Better Than When He Left?
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For the first time since the final day of the last Premier League season, when Liverpool hosted Newcastle United, Luis Suarez is set to play on an English football pitch.
The Uruguayan didn't really have a great record against Manchester City when he wore the Liverpool red, scoring just one goal in six appearances against the Citizens. But after Barcelona's shock La Liga defeat at home to Malaga at the weekend, they are perhaps going to need their major summer arrival to show some of his Premier League form.
Seven goals in 22 Barca appearances isn't a drastically bad start to life at Camp Nou. Nor is it that good, and it seems a world away from the heights he was regularly hitting during his remarkable 2013/14 campaign with Liverpool.
His Reds just missed out on the title to the opponents he'll face here, but while the old Suarez would perhaps tear around the pitch and look to right a few perceived wrongs, his natural game does seem to be somewhat stifled at his new club.
With Lionel Messi and Neymar around, there isn't quite the need for Suarez to regularly pull rabbits from hats, but you get the sense that that is what his game thrives upon.
Writing for Goal.com, Ben Hayward noted some of the differences in Suarez's game since his move from Liverpool:
"While goals have been hard to come by for the former Liverpool man, Suarez has turned provider with 12 assists already for his new club. Such generosity was unexpected from a man many looked at as a single-minded, selfish striker who would supposedly compete with Messi for goals at Camp Nou and perhaps even upset the applecart with his uncompromising approach.
Far from it. The Uruguayan understands his role at the Catalan club and as soon as the goals start flowing, his importance will be duplicated.
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Seeing Suarez up against City will provide us with the ultimate test of just how much his game has changed. Playing with better players is doubtless going to improve him technically, but has that come at the expense of his effectiveness?
Manchester City vs. Barcelona: Tuesday, 7:45 p.m. GMT
Ciro Immobile Can Show Juventus What They're Missing...If He Gets off the Bench
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Five first-team appearances in three years were all that Ciro Immobile could muster at Juventus, who sent him out on three loan deals before shipping him out on co-ownership moves to Genoa and then Torino.
It was at the latter that the Italy international forward really began to find himself, and he scored 22 goals in 2013/14 to earn the title of Serie A's top scorer—but not, it seems, the respect of Juve.
He was soon on the move again, and the switch to Borussia Dortmund was seen as an exciting move for an up-and-coming forward and a rising team. But as with everything else at that club this season, things haven't quite worked out that way.
Immobile has scored just three times in the Bundesliga as Dortmund have struggled, and he didn't even get off the bench in Friday night's clash with Stuttgart.
However, that match resulted in a third win in three for the club. With relegation talk now firmly in the past with BVB in mid-table, they re-enter Champions League combat safe in the knowledge that this is the tournament that has seen the best of them this season.
Immobile has four goals in five games in the competition this season, so he'll be desperate to get off a bench he's stayed on for each of those three recent victories when he returns to Turin.
Fate and sentimentality might not feature too highly in Jurgen Klopp's mind, but his Italian forward might just need them if he is to be given the chance he craves.
Juventus vs. Borussia Dortmund: Tuesday, 7:45 p.m. GMT
Olivier Giroud Looks to Show That He Can Be a Big-Game Player
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Saturday brought another goal for Olivier Giroud, with the Frenchman finding the net for the 11th time in his 19 appearances during what has been an injury-affected season.
While all the praise has quite rightly been reserved for Alexis Sanchez and more recently Santi Cazorla, Giroud has simply got on with his job and accumulated goals at a fairly steady pace for an Arsenal team who can use his physicality well.
Giroud's form means that hopes Danny Welbeck had of forging a Gunners career as a central striker have been put on hold for now. However, the Frenchman still faces accusations from some that he doesn't turn up for his side in big matches—despite scoring goals against Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City this season.
With Arsenal desperate to get a good result to take to Monaco, and the fact there will be plenty looking on from his homeland, this meeting with the Ligue 1 side looks to be a perfect opportunity for Giroud to shine.
In the recent wins over Middlesbrough and Crystal Palace, Sanchez, Welbeck and most notably Mesut Ozil all looked to be playing to Giroud's tune, with the quartet creating a dynamic attacking setup that looks guaranteed to give its figurehead great service.
A bit more of that here and the Gunners will head to the principality in good spirits.
"Winning the Champions League remains an objective," Giroud said, according to Ian Holyman at ESPN FC. "In recent years, our recruitment has been significant. We're building a team to challenge the biggest sides."
Arsenal vs. Monaco: Wednesday, 7:45 p.m. GMT
Dimitar Berbatov Comes Back to London as the Man Monaco Gamble on
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He only had a few months at the same club as Radamel Falcao and James Rodriguez, but now Dimitar Berbatov is firmly considered to be Monaco's key man and the player they'll be relying on as they look to strike an away goal at the Emirates Stadium.
The Bulgarian will lead the line in front of an impressive midfield of Jeremy Toulalan, Joao Moutinho and Geoffrey Kondogbia, with a repeat of the defensive solidity that took them through the group stage likely to be needed by the Ligue 1 outfit.
Monaco conceded just one goal as they progressed from Group C ahead of Bayer Leverkusen, and they've remarkably only shipped two goals in their last 11 fixtures in all competitions.
That solidity is going to come under severe examination at the Emirates, though, and Berbatov is going to need to offer himself as an outlet for his team as they come under what will be mounting and increasing pressure.
That's going to require him to be mobile and to show an appetite for tracking back and getting into space—traits English audiences know have a tendency to elude him.
Arsenal vs. Monaco: Wednesday, 7:45 p.m. GMT
Heung-Min Son Eyes Up Atletico Madrid and Possibly a Big Move
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Bayer Leverkusen's last two matches have seen them score four goals at home and still lose, and then score twice on the road and only draw.
All of which suggests their problems lie at the back and not further forward, where Heung-Min Son continues to impress and is catching the eye of many across the continent.
The scorer of 11 goals this season, including a hat-trick in his last BayArena appearance against Wolfsburg, Son is likely to be the key threat to an Atletico Madrid team that arrives in Germany seemingly capable of both the sublime and the ridiculous.
Their last three fixtures have seen them put four past Real Madrid, lose dismally at Celta Vigo and then get back on track with a routine home win over Almeria, the latter match featuring a three-goal burst in the opening half an hour before a coast to the finish line.
France's Antoine Griezmann grabbed two of those strikes, and Son might see him as a reference point ahead of this second-round meeting, which promises much.
Having impressed in the recent Asian Cup and knowing the popularity of Asian players among some of the bigger clubs, a good display here could add further weight to Son's claims for a potential summer move to La Liga or the Premier League.
Bayer Leverkusen vs. Atletico Madrid: Wednesday, 7:45 p.m. GMT
