3 In Defense: Can Shakhtar Donetsk pull off the upset?

The Champions League is finally back, and theScore’s trio of footy editors debate the key topics ahead of Tuesday’s Round of 16 ties. You better believe the takes are going to be hot.

No player scored more goals in the group stage than Shakhtar Donetsk’s Luiz Adriano (9). Can he carry the Ukrainian side to an unlikely victory?

Gordon Brunt: While Luiz Adriano's record-breaking heroics in the group stage made headlines, it's highly unlikely the Bayern Munich defensive approach won't be prepared to contain the Brazilian striker. He might have been able to find space to terrorize the likes of Athletic Bilbao, BATE Borisov and Porto, but a star-studded Bayern defence should have no problem limiting space and scoring opportunities.

Carlo Campo: It's important to remember just how Luiz Adriano raked up nine goals in the group stage of the Champions League. Eights of those came against a woeful BATE Borisov side that conceded more goals (24) than any other club in that stage of competition, while the other came against Porto.

Sure, Adriano's numbers are something to behold and should be applauded. But it's unrealistic to expect the Brazilian striker to find the back of the net against Bayern Munich, who held a clean sheet in four of their six group-stage fixtures.

Gianluca Nesci: Can he score against Bayern? Absolutely. Hell, Gervinho did it in the group stage. Can he score enough? Absolutely not. That is all. (This one isn't hard, guys).

Though the legendary swagger has never wavered, Zlatan Ibrahimovic has not been his all-conquering self on the pitch this season. Is there any reason to believe he breaks out against Chelsea?

Gordon Brunt: Last year's meeting between the two isn’t much of an indicator as to how Ibrahimovic might fare this time around since he left the first leg against Chelsea with an injury.  But his recent goal-scoring rate suggests the Swedish striker has returned to form and should provide one of the Premier League's top defenses with a mighty challenge as they try to hold-off the approach of PSG's multiple attacking options.

Carlo Campo: There is, and it's based on Ibrahimovic's streaky goal-scoring patterns this season. While his overall exploits in front of goal might not be as vicious as in previous years, Ibrahimovic has gone about 2014-15 in streaky fashion.

He scored five goals in PSG's first three matches of the campaign before going scoreless through the next five. Then he bagged five goals in four fixtures before going another four matches without finding the back of the net. And most recently, Ibrahimovic has scored in three of PSG's last four games, numbers that bode well ahead of the club's round-of-16 clash versus Chelsea.

Gianluca Nesci: The 33-year-old has been a far cry from his all-conquering self this season. Perhaps it's simply age, or maybe his season has been a byproduct of the club's struggles. Either way, while he's just too talented to be completely quieted by the (very good) Chelsea defense, only a herculean effort will be enough to fell the Blues. If he produces it, great, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

We’ll see two of the world’s best midfield duos on display in Paris when Nemanja Matic and Cesc Fabregas meet, principally, Blaise Matuidi and Marco Verratti. Simply, who ya got?

Note: Assumption being, of course, that Matuidi plays.

Gordon Brunt:  Matic’s ability to frustrate and extinguish the opposition's attempts in the heart of the midfield, coupled with Fabregas’ almost incomparable talents to initiate attacks give Chelsea the edge in this match-up. Both players, while they employ drastically different playing styles, provide Chelsea with a midfield recipe that most teams in Europe can only dream about. To have a single player with either of their playing styles can normally lead to successful results, but to have both at the top of their game occupying the centre of the pitch will always leave opposing teams struggling to come away with a positive result.

Carlo Campo: Writing off any midfield duo that includes Fabregas seems foolish, but ignoring the defensive qualities of Matuidi and Verratti would be equally as ignorant. Fabregas may hold the ability to take out an entire backline with a single pass, and Matic's form this season has been remarkable. However, if there's any midfield duo whose defensive pressure can limit Fabregas' impact on the match, look no further than Matuidi and Verratti.

Remember how Barcelona struggled to create chances during their 3-2 loss to PSG in the group stage? It could be a similar story when Chelsea take on Laurent Blanc's side, and just for the sake of going with the underdog, I've got Matuidi and Verratti.

Gianluca Nesci: The PSG duo is one of the few that can legitimately match up with Matic and Fabregas in terms of attacking creativity, ability to dictate the pace of a match and defensive solidity. But the main concern from Laurent Blanc's perspective will be Verratti's temperament and penchant for picking up yellow cards - something he's addressed openly already as a weakness in the Italian's game.

The 22-year-old, who has seven yellow cards in Ligue 1 play this season, is at his best when he is making tackles, winning possession and launching the attack. If he picks up a caution, particularly early, his ability to play freely will be significantly hindered - and his team will suffer as a result.