The last time English delegates showed up in Switzerland, it was all bad news. England finished dead last in voting for the right to host the 2018 World Cup in Zurich, picking up a measly two votes.

The Champions League draw, which took place on Friday in blustery Nyon, Switzerland was mostly better; Chelsea and Manchester United were paired with FC Copenhagen and Marseille, respectively, in the knockout stage and are heavy favorites to advance. The Blues, who won Group F but are struggling domestically, will be doing cartwheels because they wanted to land Copenhagen, the rank outsider. And they should be playing better football by then, too.

Tottenham got Serie A leader AC Milan, which, while not easy, isn't a disaster. Milan has been a spent force in Europe recently and continues to own an aging squad that doesn't fare well against faster-paced EPL sides. Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic underachieves at crunch time, so Tottenham's back four shouldn't lose much sleep.

The English club that got shafted in the round of 16 draw, of course, was Arsenal. The Gunners drew Barcelona, which no one wanted to face, for the second straight season. Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who had a feeling Thursday he'd meet the Catalans, would do well to focus on the EPL at this point.

The Gunners shouldn't have been in this spot, but on some level they have only themselves to blame. They paid the price for finishing second in a cream-puff group that included Partizan Belgrade, Braga and Shakhtar Donetsk. Arsenal cruised in its first three games, scoring 14 goals, before faltering, allowing Shakhtar Donetsk to take the top spot. And the Ukrainian side got Roma. See what could have been, Arsene?

Barcelona and Arsenal have been mentioned in the same breath because of their similar, flowing styles. But let's be real -- they're miles apart. For one, Barca is packed with internationals who've actually won trophies. They've got experience. Off the ball, their players are always moving, working, unlike Arsenal's.

Last season's two-leg affair quarterfinal was pretty close, I hear you say. To remind, Arsenal rallied from 2-0 down in the first leg to make it 2-2, and then netted the opener at Nou Camp -- before conceding four. Lionel Messi was on fire.

The type of team that can defeat Barcelona -- on an off day, that is -- is one that suffocates the midfield, goes in hard on tackles and essentially takes Barca out of its rhythm. Discipline is vital. Inter did that effectively in April when it knocked the then-reigning European champion out of the competition.

Arsenal isn't that type of team. And it hasn't done much to shore up its weak defense, although even Sebastien Squillaci is a significant step up from Mikael Silvestre, who was out at sea at Nou Camp last season. Squillaci, if he plays, won't be intimidated, having spent a bulk of his career at Sevilla.

The only hope for Arsenal is that Messi, Xavi and Andres Iniesta all get injured.

Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas gets to go home, which is another negative. Close to joining Barcelona in the offseason, competing at Nou Camp in March will probably only fuel his desire to hit the road this offseason. Fabregas was absent for the second leg this past April.

Meanwhile, the defending champion, Inter, and Bayern Munich lock horns in a repeat of May's final. For both, the Champions League is likely the only major trophy -- domestic Cups not included -- they have a chance to win this season. Bayern is a staggering 17 points behind archrival Borussia Dortmund, and Inter sits 13 points behind AC Milan in Italy. We wonder who Rafael Benitez is blaming now. The Inter boss always has an excuse when things aren't going well, but at least now he can't target U.S. owners, a la his days at Liverpool.

A lot can happen in the two months leading up to the knockout stage, but expect three of the four English teams to progress, joined by Barcelona, Real Madrid (over Lyon), Bayern Munich and Schalke (over Valencia). Shakhtar versus Roma is a pick 'em.