Fred excited by Champions League quarter-final draw

The draw for the Champions League quarter-finals will take place in Nyon, Switzerland, on Friday morning, and every Manchester United supporter around the world is waiting with bated breath to see who the club is drawn against in Europe’s top competition.

In case you didn’t know, our seven possible opponents include Ajax, Barcelona, Juventus, Liverpool, Manchester City, Porto and Tottenham Hotspur, and that eye-catching group of clubs ensures a couple of high-profile contests regardless of how the balls come out of that bowl.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Reds reached the last eight by knocking much-fancied Paris Saint-Germain out via the away goals rule, after losing 2-0 at home before securing a famous 3-1 away win in France.

Speaking to us at the Aon Training Complex, just days after that triumph in Paris, Fred looked forward to Friday's draw.

“We can’t choose who we play against,” he explained. “In the Champions League, they are all big teams and they all represent difficult adversaries, difficult opposition, and they will all be tough games.

“But we are prepared for whoever we are drawn against,” Fred continued. “We will do our best, we will go all out for the victory and we want to win the Champions League trophy.”

Typically, Solskjaer also had a positive mindset when discussing the draw for the last eight. “Of course, we fancy ourselves that we can go all the way but we just have to wait for the draw and take the game as it comes now,” Ole told reporters in Paris last week.

WHAT HAPPENS ON FRIDAY?

The Champions League quarter-final and semi-final draws will both take place at the House of European Football.

That means all teams will know their potential routes to the final. There is even a draw for that showpiece occasion in Madrid, to decide the 'home' team.

Here's when all of the remaining ties will be played:

9/10 April: Quarter-finals, first leg
16/17 April: Quarter-finals, second leg
30 April/1 May: Semi-finals, first leg
7/8 May: Semi-finals, second leg
1 June: Final