From the 1960 final to the miracle of Istanbul, Europe’s top club competition has provided many moments to rival the drama of Real Madrid’s quarter-final against JuventusThe almost shocking conclusion to what had been a notable Juventus recovery against Real Madrid at the Bernabéu has not only divided opinion – it was a penalty all day long, one could only admire the stealth with which Medhi Benatia administered his shove in the back of Lucas Vázquez and the bravery of Michael Oliver for punishing it – but has also inspired much talk of the evening being one of the most dramatic in the history of the European Cup and Champions League. However the latter stages of the competition have frequently...
Champions League exit against Roma was proof ageing team can no longer rely on Lionel Messi to get them out of troubleIf it was possible for Barcelona not to become overwhelmed by despair when they fell to Juventus last season, there was no way for them to rationalise their stunning collapse against Roma on Tuesday. Succumbing to the best team in Italy and a fellow European giant did not feel like a drama, even though they had started the tie as slight favourites. But folding so meekly against Roma has exposed a deeper malaise.Roma should not be patronised given they have taken some serious scalps, from finishing top of a group that contained Atlético Madrid and Chelsea to overcoming the...
The Champions League is full of sides losing by three goals or more – and that includes the latter stages. Even domestically dominant sides can be found wantingExplain this: Juventus, top of Serie A, having kept clean sheets in 21 of their previous 25 games, horribly defensively exposed by Real Madrid last week, letting in three. And yet on Tuesday night Roma, third in Serie A, 21 points behind Juve, hammered Barcelona, who remain unbeaten in La Liga and stand 15 points clear of fourth-placed Real Madrid. How can this be?Eusebio Di Francesco, rightly, took credit for his switch to a back three. “I made this choice,” the Roma coach explained, “to create more width, allow more counterattacks and bring speed, but what...
Diego Simeone’s side retain faint hopes of winning La Liga but both teams seem more concerned with European ambitions when they meet at the BernabéuOn the eve of the Madrid derby Zinedine Zidane was asked to whom the game mattered more. “Both,” he said, but many wondered if the right answer was actually “Neither”. The word repeated most in the build-up to this match is “decaffeinated”. These city rivals have faced each other in three finals over the last five seasons – two European Cups, one Copa del Rey – and met in last year’s Champions League semi-final too. Both have also won La Liga and they have European quarter-finals of their own next week, so it is understandable that...
Sevilla had been agonisingly close to beating Barcelona but substitute Lionel Messi came on after an hour to score an equaliser in the dying minutesIt took FC Barcelona 358 days to lose their record and 54 seconds to get it back again. Saturday night, week 30 in La Liga and Sevilla were 2-0 up at the Sánchez Pizjuán, but it could have been three, four or five. They had overrun their opponents and although they were exhausted they didn’t have long to hang on now. On the touchline, the fourth official was fiddling with the board; high above him, the scoreboard crept beyond 87 minutes, and there would only be two more added. Alongside the time were two names: goalscorers...