Dortmund survive late scare to reach final

Borussia Dortmund reached the Champions League Final for the first time in 16 years, despite a late Real Madrid fight-back.  They will face fellow German side Bayern Munich after the Bundesliga leaders destroyed Barcelona 7-0 on aggregate – the biggest Champions League semi-final win of all time.

Robert Lewandowski, scorer of all four Dortmund goals in the first leg against Real Madrid. Photo credits to Christopher Neundorf

Real Madrid went into their fixture against Dortmund trailing 4-1 from the first leg, a match in which Robert Lewandowski scored all four of his team’s goals in a terrible game for the Spanish visitors.  Madrid scored two late goals in the return leg but were unable to score the third required to progress, with Dortmund winning 4-3 on aggregate.

Madrid looked the dominant side in the return leg, spurred on by a vociferous Bernabeu crowd eager to see their team overcome a three goal deficit.  Los Blancos set the pace at a high tempo and will look at a flurry of early missed opportunities that could have clinched a memorable victory.

First, Gonzalo Higuaín missed a one on one, driving the ball at Dortmund keeper Weidenfeller, before Ronaldo beautifully controlled a long ball on the chest but volleyed at Weidenfeller’s chest from close range.  Mesut Özil had a golden opportunity to take the lead in the 16^th minute but he dragged his shot wide.

Dortmund had several decent chances of their own, with Madrid committing men forward and leaving themselves susceptible to counter attacks.  Robert Lewandowski smashed a shot off the bar early in the second half, and it took an excellent sprawling save from Diego Lopes to prevent İlkay Gündoğan’s close range effort ten minutes later.

Madrid finally took the lead in the 83^rd minute following a half that saw many aerial balls easily headed away by a well organised Dortmund defence.  Karim Benzema had been brought on for the largely ineffectual Higuaín, and he snuck in at the near post to rifle a shot into the roof of the net.

Mourinho may have rued leaving Benzema on the bench at the start of the match, because the French forward turned provider shortly after his goal, teeing up Sergio Ramos to strike into the roof of the net in the 89^th minute. This set up a frantic finale that saw Madrid keeper Diego Lopez come up for a Madrid corner that ultimately came to nothing.

Dortmund clung on and ensured that the 2013 Champions League Final would be an all-German affair, after Bayern dealt with a Barcelona side that was unable to overcome the 4-0 deficit from the first leg.

Clearly struggling without Messi, left on the bench with a minor injury, the Blaugrana had a few chances in the first half but never looked like really breaking through an organised Bayern defence, their best chance falling to Xavi who volleyed over the bar from eight yards.

Instead it was Bayern who dominated the match, and in the 48^th minute they extended their aggregate lead, Arjen Robben cutting in and curling a beautiful left-footed shot into the far corner.

This left Barcelona needing six goals to progress, but they further added to their own misery in the 72^nd minute with an own goal, Gerard Pique smashing the ball into his own net in an attempt to steer Ribery’s cross away from the onrushing Mario Mandžukić.

David Villa flicked a header onto the bar but minutes later it was Ribery who again provided Bayern with a goal, clipping a cross to the back post for Thomas Müller to nod in.

Following Bayern’s penalty shootout loss to Chelsea in last year’s final, this was a devastating display of power that shows the club’s intent to dominate the European scene for the coming years.  With former Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola taking the reins at the end of the season, Mario Götze joining the club on July 1^st and Robert Lewandowski also linked with the German giants, the next few seasons could end up being very promising indeed for the Bundesliga leaders – and very troubling for their counterparts across Europe.

The Champions League Final takes place at Wembley Stadium on May 25.

Tim Hellyer

[poll id=”33″]

Real Madrid hit form going into last 16 decider

Karim Benzema, scorer of Real Madrid’s first goal in their 2-1 league victory over Barcelona. Photo credits to Wikimedia Commons

Real Madrid beat Barcelona twice in five days with the Champions League last 16 decider against Manchester United on the horizon.

The first of these fixtures was the Copa del Rey semi-final second leg.  The first leg finished a goal apiece, but the return leg was a one-sided affair, with Real coming out 3-1 victors.  As expected, Ronaldo was instrumental in Los Blancos’ victory, notching the first two goals of the game.

He created the first, shimmying past Gerard Piqué, who fouled the Portuguese in the area.  Ronaldo picked himself up and duly slotted away the penalty into the bottom corner.

The second goal came from a straightforward counter attack.  Sami Khedira launched a ball forward, Ángel di María latched onto it and weaved his way past Carles Puyol, who was left sprawled on the floor. After the Argentinian’s shot rebounded off Barcelona keeper Pinto, Ronaldo swept the ball away to send Madrid two goals clear.

Raphaël Varane added a third with a header from a corner before Jordi Alba scored a consolation for the Catalans to take the aggregate score to 4-2. But Real Madrid nonetheless cruised into the Copa del Rey final, where they will play out a Madrid derby against rivals Atlético Madrid.

Last week’s second fixture between Spain’s two biggest sides again saw Real emerge victorious, this time in a narrower affair sealed by a Sergio Ramos header.  Real took the lead in the sixth minute when Álvaro Morata delivered the perfect cross into the gap between keeper Valdes and his back line, leaving Karim Benzema to tap into the open net from the edge of the six-yard box.

Messi equalised in the 18^th minute with a neat finish at the near post, and the scores remained level until the 82^nd minute when Sergio Ramos rose to nod in Modrić’s corner.

As is usually the case in fixtures between these two sides, there was a controversial ending to the game, with Adriano hitting the deck after a challenge by Ramos in the 93^rd minute, but no penalty was given and the game ended 2-1.  Barcelona keeper Victor Valdés received a red card after the match for his argument with the referee, and the visiting side’s remonstrations following the final whistle are indicative of the uneasy atmosphere at a club that is used to winning.

Barcelona have now won just three of their last seven games in all competitions and will need to regain form by the time they take on AC Milan in their Champions League game on Tuesday March 12 – especially seeing as they trail 2-0 from the first leg.  Real Madrid travel to play Manchester United on March 5 in a fixture that will see Ronaldo return to Old Trafford for the first time since leaving United in 2009.

Sir Alex Ferguson said that he was wary of the threats that Real can pose: ‘I think both teams will score – I just hope we score more than them.’  He is also expected to bring Ryan Giggs on at some point, which will be the Welshman’s 1,000^th senior appearance for the Manchester side that he has represented since 1987.

United fans have reason to be optimistic coming into this fixture: their defence has markedly improved with the return of Nemanja Vidić to the starting line-up following his knee injury, and although Robin van Persie is a slight doubt after injuring his hip by falling into a photographer’s dugout at the side of the QPR pitch, it is clear that there are other goal outlets in the squad, with Shinji Kagawa scoring a hat-trick in a 4-0 demolition of Norwich City.

Both sides have a great deal to play for. Real Madrid are going for their first Champions League title since 2002, knowing that the domestic league is probably out of reach for this season (Barcelona are 13 points ahead in the La Liga table), while Manchester United are pushing for what could be their first treble since 1999.

In next week’s fixtures, Arsenal have a mountain to climb after suffering a 3-1 loss to Bayern at The Emirates, while Barcelona have work to do having been unexpectedly beaten 2-0 by AC Milan.

The Champions League continues tomorrow (March 5) with Shakhtar Donetsk vs. Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid vs. Manchester United. 

Tim Hellyer

[poll id=”22″]

British sides struggle in Champions League

Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid’s goalscorer against Manchester United. Photo credits to Wikimedia commons

Manchester United were the only British side not to lose in the first leg of the Champions League last-16, with Celtic overpowered by Juventus and Arsenal outplayed by Bayern Munich.

Juventus travelled to Glasgow to take on the Scottish Premier League leaders Celtic on February 12.  The Hoops went into this fixture having seized an historic 2-1 victory over Barcelona in the group stages, but faced a Juventus side currently leading Serie A by four points, and the Italian outfit put on an imperious display to dispatch the home side 3-0, meaning that the return leg will surely be a formality.

Celtic defender Efe Ambrose had only returned that same morning from his Africa Cup of Nations campaign with winners Nigeria, and he was singled out for criticism by many pundits – as well as his own teammate Kris Commons, who said: ‘the manager pulled him to one side and asked him if he was feeling OK.  He said he was feeling brilliant.  If he wasn’t feeling OK then he should have said so.  If he felt good then he should have put in a better performance.’

This outburst came following a game in which Juventus scored two goals thanks largely to mistakes by Ambrose.  In just the third minute of the match, he misjudged a routine aerial pass which allowed Matri to poke the ball past the onrushing goalkeeper to score Juventus’s first goal. The third Old Lady goal came after Ambrose clumsily lost possession close to the edge of his own penalty area.

He also missed a glaring opportunity to score for The Bhoys when they were only 1-0 down, but it was not just Ambrose who drew criticism. The Spanish referee Alberto Undiano Mallenco did not penalise Juventus for grappling with Celtic players at set pieces, and Hoops boss Neil Lennon has since sought ‘clarification’ from UEFA, saying ‘we needed a strong referee and we didn’t have that’.

The following day saw Manchester United travel to Madrid to play the match that Real Madrid manager José Mourinho had called ‘the match the world wants to see’, and the Manchester outfit owed their 1-1 draw to their keeper, David de Gea.  The Spaniard was in stunning form, tipping a Fábio Coentrão shot onto the post at full stretch early in the first half, and he received plaudits for a series of brilliant athletic saves made throughout the match.

Despite early Madrid pressure it was United who struck first, with Danny Welbeck losing his marker and steering a header into the bottom corner from a Wayne Rooney corner in the 20^th minute.  However, Portuguese icon Ronaldo followed the scriptwriters’ orders and levelled ten minutes later with a majestic header.

Ángel di María curled in an inviting cross and Ronaldo leapt up, towering over Patrice Evra to direct his header into the bottom corner.  After the game Sir Alex Ferguson applauded the goal, saying, ‘I don’t know how to describe it’ before going on to explain, ‘I actually blamed Evra for not challenging him… until I saw the replay.  I felt a bit stupid.’  Ferguson’s summary described it well enough: ‘his kneecap is almost at the same height as Evra’s head’.

In a game peppered with moments of attacking brilliance from Los Blancos, it is perhaps unsurprising that Ronaldo is the one who again tried to steal the show – however, United, who are bound to be encouraged by an away goal, will go into the return leg on level pegging, largely down to the Spaniard between the posts.

Any sense of optimism felt by United fans will not be shared by Arsenal supporters.  Almost a week after United took on Madrid, Arsenal faced Bayern Munich at The Emirates, and got off to the worst possible start in a game that was largely dominated by the Bundesliga leaders.

In just the seventh minute, a ball was cut back to Toni Kroos who had found space on the edge of the area, and the Germany international smashed the ball past a helpless Szczesny to put Bayern 1-0 up.  Their lead was doubled in the 21^st minute when Arsenal failed to defend the most basic of corners.  An outswinging cross found Van Buyten unmarked at the near post, and although Szczesny was able to keep the Belgian’s initial shot out, no Arsenal defenders came to the rescue and Thomas Müller gratefully poked home.

A terrible lack of communication between Bayern keeper Neuer and his defence allowed Podolski to bring The Gunners back to 2-1 with a simple header, before a scuffed Mario Mandžukić shot looped in from close range to seal an impressive 3-1 victory for the German side.

However, the shock of the round came in the fixture between AC Milan and Barcelona.  Milan would have been pleased with a goalless draw coming into this meeting, so their 2-0 home victory will give them confidence going into the second leg.

Their first goal came in controversial circumstances, with the ball bouncing up off Jordi Alba onto the arm of Milan defender Cristián Zapata.  It fell to Kevin-Prince Boateng, who ruthlessly fire in a volley to take the lead.

Milan contained Barcelona well – the Spanish giants are 12 points clear at the top of La Liga but lacked the cutting edge required to break down their Italian opponents, and some would argue that in this first leg, Barça’s talisman Messi failed where Ronaldo succeeded.

However, it is true that in general, Barcelona’s tactic of trying to pass through the Milan defence was bettered by Milan’s disciplined defensive display and clinical finishing, and it was this sort of composure in front of goal that that led to Barcelona conceding their second in the 81^st minute.  Some neat touches in the box found Sulley Muntari on the overlap, and he rifled a sweetly struck left-footed volley into the far corner to send the majority of the San Siro crowd into oblivion.

Of the British sides remaining in the competition, only Manchester United seem to have a realistic chance of progressing, with Celtic and Arsenal both travelling abroad to face sides that have three away goals apiece to their names.  Barcelona will be feeling the pressure as they take on Milan at home, knowing that failure to beat i Rossoneri by two goals will knock them out of a competition that they last won in Wembley in 2011.

First Leg Scores

Valencia 1-2 Paris Saint-Germain

Celtic 0-3 Juventus

Real Madrid 1-1 Manchester United

Shakhtar Donetsk 2-2 Borussia Dortmund

Arsenal 1-3 Bayern Munich

FC Porto 1-0 Malaga

AC Milan 2-0 Barcelona

Galatasary 1-1 Schalke 04

The Champions League continues on March 5 with Borussia Dortmund v. Shakhtar Donetsk and Manchester United v. Real Madrid.

Tim Hellyer

Champions League enters knockout stages

Didier Drogba, pictured after winning last year’s Champions League with Chelsea. Photo credits to Wikimedia Commons

The UEFA Champions League will enter the knockout stages on Tuesday February 12.  With holders Chelsea knocked out in the group stages and a standout tie between Real Madrid and Manchester United taking place the following day, this season’s Champions League looks set to provide all the excitement that fans have come to expect from Europe’s elite competition.

The opening day of football will showcase some of the signings made in the January transfer window – Celtic will host Juventus, who have signed Shanghai Shenhua forward Nicolas Anelka on loan until the end of the season, while Paris Saint-Germain will travel to Spain to take on Valencia C.F.  The French club, funded by Qatar Investment Authority, have bolstered their squad with several high-profile players in the last year or so, their most recent addition being David Beckham, signed on a free after the ex-England captain left L.A. Galaxy.

However, fans here will regard this opening day as a precursor to the games involving English sides that will take place on the 13^th and 19^th of February.  On Wednesday, Manchester United will travel to the Spanish capital to take on José Mourinho’s Real Madrid.  The Spanish giants have struggled in their domestic league, slipping to third place behind Atlético Madrid and Catalan rivals FC Barcelona, so there is a great incentive to go far in the Champions League, with Los Blancos currently 16 points behind La Liga leaders Barca.

This fixture will also be the first time that Cristiano Ronaldo has taken on his former side since leaving in June 2009 for a record £80m.  During the Portuguese’s six years at Manchester United he won the Champions League against Chelsea in 2008 (despite having his penalty kick saved in the shootout), as well as three Premier League titles, an FA Cup and two League Cups.  As a result of Ronaldo’s achievements for the Manchester club there has been a respectful build-up to this clash.

Ronaldo has said that he will not celebrate if he scores against his former club, saying that ‘without [United], I wouldn’t be the player I am today’, while United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has stated that the captain of the Portuguese national side is comparable to other United greats such as ‘Scholes and Giggs and Cantona’, saying that Ronaldo is ‘certainly in that bracket’.  The Scot said that Ronaldo had ‘always had a hankering to go to Real Madrid at some point in his career’, but gave the opinion that Ronaldo’s move to Spain was not a sign of disloyalty – and that ‘the United fans would share that’.

The following week will see Bayern Munich take on Arsenal at The Emirates in North London on Tuesday 19 February.  The Gunners have had to endure a concerning domestic campaign that has seen them drop to 6^th place, a point behind Everton and 4 points behind rivals Tottenham.  Arsenal will take some heart from the fact that Bayern do not have the best record against English sides – memorable examples to support this include the historic 2-1 loss in the final to Manchester United, the 4-2 loss to a Chelsea outfit inspired by Lampard and Drogba in 2005, and, most recently, the penalty-shootout failure against Chelsea in last year’s final.

However, the German outfit, currently storming away with the Bundesliga with a comfortable 12-point margin over holders Borussia Dortmund, are going into this game with a great deal of confidence.  When the tie was announced, German midfielder Thomas Mueller said: ‘it’s a nice draw against opponents who are not impossible to overcome’.  His optimism was echoed by club CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who said that although Arsenal are not to be underestimated, his table-topping outfit were ‘going into this tie as favourites’.

With several sides boosted by wealthy investors and new signings, there is a higher chance that this year’s Champions League could be won by an unusual candidate.  However, if outsiders such as Galatasaray, who have recently added the likes of Sneijder and Drogba to their ranks, are to get anywhere near the Champions League trophy, they will have to get past squads who have either won or come close to winning the competition in recent years, such as Manchester United, Bayern Munich and Barcelona – not to mention the side that has won the competition more than any other team, Real Madrid.

Tim Hellyer

 

[poll id=”11″]