Champions League, Round of 16: Staff Picks - Feb. 17

theScore’s footy staff peer into their crystal balls and make predictions for the first leg of each Round of 16 tie. Beginning with Tuesday’s matches, Gordon Brunt, Carlo Campo and Gianluca Nesci tell you what they think will happen on the pitch, and why.

Shakhtar Donetsk vs. Bayern Munich (Arena Lviv Ukraine)

Led by the leading scorer from the group stages, Luiz Adriano, Shakhtar Donetsk will look to pull of the (seemingly) impossible against what many believe is the most finely-tuned football machine on the planet.

Gordon Brunt: While Shakhtar Donetsk put together an impressive run in the group stage, Luiz Adriano and company will be no match for one of the world’s best squads, Bayern Munich. The 2013 European champions will likely ensure advancement to the quarter-finals with a dominating victory Tuesday, ending what has been one of the better stories to come out of the tournament, considering Shakhtar’s performance amidst a diplomatic crisis.

Score: Bayern Munich 4, Shakhtar Donetsk 0

Carlo Campo: Despite Luiz Adriano's goal-scoring exploits in the group stage, it's hard to envision any scenario where Shakhtar Donetsk come away with a favourable result against Bayern Munich. Eight of Adriano's nine goals in the Champions League came against BATE Borisov, a club who conceded more than any other side in the group stage, and it's unreasonable to expect him to mirror those numbers against the 2012-13 champions, who will be high on confidence following their 8-0 thrashing of Hamburg over the weekend. 

Score: Bayern Munich 4, Shakhtar Donetsk 0

Gianluca Nesci: If this match was taking place at the Donbass Arena, perhaps the hosts could come away with a favorable result. But the move to the smaller, less intimidating Arena Lviv over 1,000 kilometers away - due to the shelling that damaged the Donbass in October as part of Ukraine's conflict with Russia - significantly diminishes what was one of Europe's better home-field advantages.

Score: Bayern Munich 2, Shakhtar Donetsk 0

Paris Saint-Germain vs. Chelsea (Parc des Princes, France)

A rematch of last season’s gripping Champions League quarterfinal, the French club will look to exact some measure of revenge on Tuesday. They don’t have to worry about any late goals from Demba Ba. There is that Diego Costa guy, though ...

Gordon Brunt: Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain’s familiarity with each other should provide one of the best matches of the Round of 16. The pair combined to score six goals in their quarter-final meeting last season, and could come close to that total when the two legs are over. Chelsea's fire power, however, will cancel out PSG's output and the encounter will end even in what should be an exciting match

Score: Paris Saint-Germain 2, Chelsea 2

Carlo Campo: Given the recent form of both sides, it's easy to assume that Chelsea will emerge with three points at the Parc des Princes. Such an assumption seems even fairer when you consider that Paris Saint-Germain's confidence took a hit after giving up a two-goal lead to Caen on Saturday in a match where they suffered five injuries, while Chelsea were able to enjoy some time off. However, PSG's defensive abilities shouldn't be overlooked, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic's form as of late has me thinking a draw on Tuesday is completely within reason.

Score: Paris Saint-Germain 1, Chelsea 1

Gianluca Nesci: Aside from their 3-2 win over Barcelona in group stage action, Paris Saint-Germain has been decidedly uninspiring this season, throwing away leads and struggling to find a balance in attack. Now dealing with a host of injuries, they get a Chelsea side that rolled into the French capital with almost a full week off and time for Jose Mourinho to devise a suitable plan. Can Laurent Blanc match wits? I think not.

Score: Chelsea 2, Paris Saint-Germain 1