All-action victory against Atlético Madrid was sweet for Jürgen Klopp, but less so for his increasingly ragged back lineThankfully there are only 15 days to wait until Liverpool meet their Champions League irritant once again. The emotions, the anger and the lessons from a pulsating encounter with Atlético Madrid are unlikely to have been forgotten when Jürgen Klopp and Diego Simeone renew what is becoming more than simply a clash of styles.Atlético will arrive at Anfield on 3 November aggrieved at the major decisions that went against them at the Wanda Metropolitano and contributed to only their second home defeat in 32 European ties. Liverpool will find motivation in the prospect of winning a supposedly complex group with two games...
Existential angst over competitiveness shouldn’t overshadow the fact we are looking at possibly the best team in EuropeWe’ve seen it before, but it’s still difficult to know exactly how it should be characterised. It was brilliant, beautiful, ugly, deflating, awe-inspiring and a huge letdown all at the same time. Bayern Munich’s hegemony shows no sign of letting up and neither does it show any potential for being less of a source of conflicting feelings and views.Normally the Bundesliga’s Top-Spiel is on a Saturday at 6.30pm local time, situated perfectly between going to a game in the afternoon and stepping out for the night. Yet Bayern’s visit to Leverkusen – enterprising and entertaining thus far under new coach Gerardo Seoane –...
He was billed as the missing piece of the jigsaw but the Belgium striker was increasingly frustrated in the defeat by JuventusIs it time to talk about Romelu Lukaku? Or rather, to talk about the way in that this mannered Chelsea team still seems to be toying with that final element of its armoury, spinning it on its end, admiring its edges.Lukaku has been called the final piece in this jigsaw so many times, you wonder what kind of jigsaw this is that can become champions of Europe, with such excess talent available, and still claim to be incomplete. Continue reading...
Manchester United’s Champions League win against Villarreal was ill-deserved – the team are too open and will be punished for itHow much time does love buy you? That Manchester United fans want Ole Gunnar Solskjær to succeed is understandable. It’s not just that he scored vital goals, it’s that he embodied a golden age. Who would not want a returning hero to restore the club to glory? But wishful thinking will not organise a midfield.The win will part the clouds a little. Solskjær has survived another mini-crisis, but each one leaves him slightly weaker. And this one comes with Cristiano Ronaldo. It may not be fair, given Ronaldo is 36 and, for all his goalscoring ability, increasingly an anachronism, but...
An exhilarating 2-0 win against Manchester City showed flickers of what Paris Saint-Germain and Messi 2.0 can do togetherAnd so it came to pass. With 73 minutes on the clock, He finally turned up.Lionel Messi had done very little for the previous 20 minutes at Parc des Princes. A promising first half had given way to one of those extended periods where Messi resembles a man maintaining a pretence of polite interest while milling around a notably disappointing flea market. Continue reading...