Where does Jose Mourinho's potential rest? Four clubs with 18 European Cup triumphs between them - Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund - are expecting a heavyweight pull for the semi-finals of this season's Champions League on Friday. The groups are established to discover their fate at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, with numbers from both Barcelona and Real Madrid careful about their public statements ahead of the sketch, with all involved aware of the stress created three seasons ago when the Primera Division rivals met in the semi-finals. On that occasion a Lionel Messi-inspired Barca developed, but Madrid boss Jose Mourinho said a refereeing conspiracy had rejected his part and relationships between the two clubs turned harmful amid accusations of abuse, diving and bias. With Bundesliga pair Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich also likely semi-final opponents, Catalan midfielder Sergio Busquets told Barca TV he had no choices in front of the pull. "Whoever we get will undoubtedly be difficult," Busquets said. "Playing the initial game home or away is the same to me." Talking after Tuesday's second leg at Galatasaray, Mourinho's public feelings were similar: "The pull will not tell much since we will get among the three top groups in Europe. They'll be big games, to enjoy, play and go for with everything." The Madrid chef may possibly, nevertheless, be secretly hoping to draw their domestic competitors, considering the fact that his side had the upper hand in their newest La Liga and Copa del Rey meetings. Los Blancos supporters will also be aware which they dropped out to Dortmund in the group stages of this year's opposition, and to Bayern Munich on charges in last season's semi-finals. Barcelona haven't confronted either Bayern or Dortmund in recent periods, and director of baseball Andoni Zubizarreta appeared to suggest after Wednesday's quarter-final conquer Paris Saint-Germain that he fancied facing a Bundesliga side in the semis - which can be performed April 23 or 24 and April 30 or May 1. "It feels as though it is a duel between the Spanish and German leagues," Zubizarreta said. "I genuinely have no choice. I really do not care if we play first in the home or away." Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness stated his hope that last season's dropping finalists draw their Bundesliga opponents Dortmund in the last four, saying: "A Champions League draw isn't any picnic. We wish to reach the ultimate, and Dortmund is the opposition we'd have the best possibilities against. "Do you truly feel Dortmund is better than Real or Barcelona"? he asked reporters. "Real won't often be as weak as they were in our last encounter. [Barcelona] are the most useful of those three teams." It took Dortmund leader Aki Watzke only a couple of hours to answer, defending the record of his club - who beat Bayern to the Bundesliga name in the past two seasons before relinquishing their overhead last weekend - but stating he would prefer to not face the Bavarians. "Those past years demonstrate that people may win the main one or the other sport against Bayern," Watzke told Die Welt. "Uli Hoeness should not feel too safe. "Those three clubs each one is on the list of world's most useful, For me personally the excitement of the European Cup is based on these international games. Thus I would be much more delighted about two duels between German and Spanish groups than about a semi-final against Bayern".
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