Rio Ferdinand and Joe Cole have ranked the UEFA Champions League contenders ahead of the quarter-final draw on Friday and agree on the four favourites to win the trophy.
The current holders Chelsea secured their place in the draw with a 2-1 win over French club Lille last night.
Thomas Tuchel’s side will be joined by Premier League rivals Man City and Liverpool, Bayern Munich, La Liga champions Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid and Villarreal and Portuguese club Benfica.
Manchester City thumped Sporting Lisbon 5-0 in the previous round, while Liverpool eliminated Serie A side Inter Milan.
Real Madrid shocked Paris Saint-Germain to continue their bid to win a record-extending 14th Champions League title and Atletico Madrid progressed at the expense of Man United.
Bayern thrashed RB Salzburg 8-2 on aggregate in their last-16 tie, while Villarreal & Benfica defeated Juventus and Ajax respectively.
After European champions Chelsea progressed to the quarter-finals, Joe Cole told BT Sport: ‘I think they’re fourth favourites to win it.
‘The other English teams, Man City and Liverpool, are favourites for me and it’s a flip of a coin between them on the day. And then I put Bayern just above Chelsea.’
Asked to rank the remaining Champions League contenders, Cole said: ‘Right now I would go Liverpool, Man City, Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid, Villarreal, Benfica.’
Former Manchester United and England defender Ferdinand, meanwhile, added: ‘I’d go Man City, then Liverpool, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid, Villarreal, Benfica.’
Chelsea put the crisis at Stamford Bridge to one side with a good performance against Lille on Wednesday.
Under Tuchel, the London side have not only won the UEFA Champions League but also the Super Cup and Club World Cup.
‘I want us to be the team nobody wants to play,’ Tuchel said ahead of the quarter-final draw. ‘That’s the role we see ourselves in this last round of eight.
‘It’s a big step to do it again and again and that is why we fight for top-four places in maybe the toughest league in the world and we fight now again in the top eight teams.
‘This brings out the very best in us and we want to be the team nobody wants to play against… Let’s see what happens.’
