A Preview of the Champions League Round of 16 Second Leg

After two weeks off due to four Champions League knockout stages by eight other sides and a week of international friendlies, the UEFA Champions League has once again returned as we have four second leg matches to look upon this upcoming week.

The matches that are this week are as followed: Arsenal v FC Porto, Fiorentina v Bayern Munich, Real Madrid v Lyon and Manchester United v AC Milan.

In the first leg of all four of these matchups, there was no decided winner in any of these exciting four matches.

So with the return of the Champions League, here is a preview at each of the four matchups this week, who (or what) to watch out for, and who should advance onto the quarterfinals.

Arsenal v FC Porto

Result of the First Leg: FC Porto 2 Arsenal 1

Preview: After a disappointing 2-1 loss in Porto due to some terrible goalkeeping by Łukasz Fabiański and some poor refereeing by Martin Hansson, Arsenal will now face Porto down by one on aggregate, but do have an away goal off the head of Sol Campbell.

Since the match with Porto, Arsenal have been playing some solid football but have now lost captain Cesc Fàbregas to a hamstring injury for the match at the Emirates on Tuesday along with defender William Gallas due to a calf injury, both of which are a major blow for the Gunners.

Meanwhile for Porto, they have had mixed results since their win at the Dragao three weeks ago, but they are still ahead on aggregate 2-1 going into the match in London.

Porto have been 1-1-1 in the Portuguese Liga since they last faced Arsenal, but they will have Hulk back for the second leg due to the fact that his suspension for attacking a steward back in December does not affect his status for European and International matches.

What to watch for: How will Arsenal fare against Porto's physical play? Porto were extremely physical against Arsenal in the first leg, and it did slow down Arsenal's attack to a point.

Also, can Arsenal get an early goal? Arsenal need to get an early goal to set the tone of the match at the Emirates, and considering that Arsenal have scored eight goals in their last three matches, this should not be that hard.

For Porto, how will Hulk play? Hulk of course has only one appearance since the incident at Benefica back in December, (which was against Arsenal in the first leg).

Hulk was not that efficient in the first leg, so will he play better now in the second leg?

Prediction: Arsenal played a strong match in the first leg with an away goal and some terrible refereeing denying the Gunners from leading on aggregate.

With this in mind, Arsenal will defeat Porto 3-1.

Fiorentina v Bayern Munich

Result of the First Leg: Bayern Munich 2 Fiorentina 1

Preview: After a highly controversial match that consisted of Tom Henning Øvrebø sending off Massimo Gobbi and a goal by Miroslav Klose that was several yards offsides, the eagerly anticipated return match of Fiorentina and Bayern Munich will take place at Fiorentina's Stadio Artemio Franchi.

Since that first match, Fiorentina have been 0-1-2, with the losses coming against AC Milan and Juventus respectively, but they know that this will be their most important match of the season to date due to the fact that the Champions League is the one trophy that they are still in contention for.

Meanwhile for Bayern, they have been 1-2-0 since their controversial win in Munich during the first leg, but they are now on top of the Bundesliga.

What to watch for: Will Fiorentina have a repeat performance in the second leg? Fiorentina did play a physical match at the Allianz Arena during the first leg, and they should be looking to have the same exact style of play in the second leg.

Also, the Viola will be playing for their Champions League lives, as this is truly the only competition that they will be able to win this season.

Meanwhile for Bayern Munich, will they be able to get an early away goal? An away goal would force Fiorentina to get at least two goals just to tie and three to take the lead on aggregate.

Prediction: So far this season, Fiorentina have had the odds against them (especially in the Champions League).

And I expect the Viola to continue their great European campaign as they will win in extra time after a 2-1 result in Fiorentina's favor.

Real Madrid v Lyon

Result of the First Leg: Lyon 1 Real Madrid 0.

Preview:  Lyon go into this match as the leaders on aggregate thanks to a 47th minute strike by Jean Makoun and great goalkeeping by Hugo Lloris against a Real Madrid side that did not bring their A game.

Over this last weekend, Lyon did not perform well against Ligue 1 bottom feeder Boulogne in a scoreless draw, as they were "too passive" according to manager Claude Puel.

Meanwhile for Real Madrid, they do find themselves down on aggregate due to their underwhelming performance in the first leg.

But since then, Real have clearly taken a step forward as they now find themselves in as the hotter team overall now that they have taken over first place in La Liga.

What to watch for:  How will Lyon play at the Bernabeu? Lyon have played well this season and have won earlier in this Champions League season at Anfield over a struggling Liverpool squad.

Lyon are also a side that has scored timely goals this season, and an away goal will be crucial if Lyon are to make the quarterfinals.

Meanwhile for Real Madrid, their main question is will they play better than the first leg? The Whites might have already answered that with their great play since the first leg two weeks ago.

And finally for Real Madrid, will they concede an away goal to Lyon at all? If they do, their Champions League dreams could die.

Prediction:  These are two evenly matched teams, but I feel that Real will advance due to their better form as of late.

Manchester United v AC Milan

Result of the First Leg: AC Milan 2 Manchester United 3

Preview: After an exciting first leg at the San Siro, the Manchester United/AC Milan matchup has now moved to Old Trafford with one of these two giants advancing onto the quarterfinals.

In the first leg, Wayne Rooney led the Red Devils to victory with two goals in the second half, but Ronaldinho and Clarence Seedorf both scored to help keep the Rosseneri close going into the second leg.

Since the first leg, Man United have won the Carling Cup and currently are in first place in the Premier League, despite a loss to Everton in their first Premier League match since the First Leg.

Meanwhile for Milan, they have been extremely solid in Serie A, as they have gone 3-1-0 since the first leg.

What to watch for: With Wayne Rooney probably out due a knee injury, how will Manchester United respond? Rooney has been extremely important for United throughout this season, but his game status is still up in the air as no one is sure if he will be able to play.

How will David Beckham do in his first match against Manchester United at Old Trafford? During his 12 years as a Red Devil, Beckham became one of the most recognizable players in the world before leaving for Real Madrid in 2003.

Also, will Alexandre Pato play? He suffered a hamstring strain against Fiorentina several weeks ago, and his status should be determined right before the match.

Prediction: This is one of the biggest Champions League matches in recent years between two of the largest clubs on the planet.

Even though Milan have never lost on aggregate to Man United ever in the Champions League, I feel that two away goals will be too much for Milan to score, and it will be Manchester United who will be able to win the match and advance onto the quarterfinals.

So do you think that these predictions are correct or do you think that someone else will be able to advance? Please tell so in the comment thread below.