Champions League QF: Inter Milan vs Schalke Recap (2nd Leg)

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Inter Milan vs Schalke

Raul scores the 1st goal
photo from uefa.com

Raul proves that he still got it, scoring the 1^st goal of the match.  With brilliant ball control, he beat the goalkeeper and netted in his 71^st Champions League goal.  Throughout the match, he posed quite a threat to Inter’s defense and goalie.  He was either making shots or setting them up. 

Inter equalized with a goal from Thiago Motta
photo from uefa.com

Inter's Lucio tried to convert with a header the corner kick from Sneijder.  But the ball deflected onto a Schalke player (sorry, couldn't tell who it was) and Thiago Motta was just in the right place to give the ball a tap to score the equalizer.

Raul sets up Schalke's 2nd goal.  He definitely is still an attacking force to reckon with.
photo from uefa.com

But then Schalke ended any of Inter’s hope of even just trying to salvage some pride from a 5-2 defeat in the 1^st leg when Raul, executed a clever move of chipping the ball forward, giving  Howedes the chance to break away and score their 2^nd goal.

Schalke moves to next round and faces Manchester United.  Speaking of Man U, Sir Alex Ferguson was seen watching the Inter Milan-Schalke game at the stands.  I guess he we sizing up his next opponent.

Champions League QF: Real Madrid vs Tottenham Recap (2nd Leg)

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Real Madrid vs Tottenham

It was very fast-paced match with both teams making quick counter attacks.  Tottenham actually had a lot of pretty close chances, giving Casillas quite a work out.  They even actually looked like the stronger team.  But in the end, what counts is not the “almost-made-it” shots or being the stronger team, what counts is who scored the most goals.

CRonaldo scoring the only goal of the match
photo from eufa.com

The only goal in the match was from CRonaldo’s longe range shot which goalie Heurelho Gomes blocked but couldn’t hold on to the ball.  Real now advances to the semis with final aggregate score of 6-0.  And yes, CRonaldo’s teammates do celebrate with him after all.  Good to know.



is he trying to start a fad of the Jose Rizal hair?
photo from eufa.com

On an unrelated note… What was up with CRonaldo’s hair??

Champions League QF: Inter Milan vs Schalke Preview (2nd Leg)

Inter Milan vs Schalke (2^nd Leg)

April 14 @ 4:30AM

Inter Milan, will have to work really hard to overturn a 3-point deficit.  With Schalke coming in with 5 away goals from a stunning 1^st Leg win, Inter would really need to score a lot of goals.  But I think It think, other than scoring goals, they should also have to fix their defense problems which was the cause of them conceding 5 goals to Schalke in the last match.  Aren’t Italians known for their very organized defense?  Or was it Germany?

Initially, I was rooting for Inter on this side of the table, but somehow the defending champions, doesn’t seem to be the strong team they were last season.  Now I’m rooting for Schalke, with Raul leading the way to defeat Man U.  And hopefully, face off with Barca in the finals J

Aggregate Score:

Champions League QF: Real Madrid vs Tottenham Preview (2nd Leg)

Real Madrid vs Tottenham (2^nd Leg)

April 14 @ 2:30AM

With a 4-point goal advanatge, it would seem that Real Madrid will most likely be advancing to the semi-finals, a first in eight years. 

There’s isn’t much to say about this match, as like the Barca vs Tottenham game, this also seems like a formality, unless of course Tottenham pulls off a miracle.  Real must be very comfortable with their lead that coach Jose Mourinho can afford to have two of his key players Sergio Ramos and Angel Di Maria miss the match to avoid picking up a 2^nd yellow card (and subsequently miss the next match).

They are seriously on the path of trying to reclaim the Champions League title they have won 9 times.  But they will have to go thru Barca first.

Aggregate Score:

Champions League QF: Barcelona vs Shakhtar Recap (1st Leg)

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Barcelona vs Shakhtar

Barca seemed to have a bit of a slow start, finding their footing around 15 minutes into the game.  It was during this time that Shakhtar really pushed their offense and made a lot of attempts.  You can see the holes in Barca defense which Shakhtar tried to exploit.  With the absence of Carles Puyol and Abidal, Barca really needs to step up their defense as it seems like they will be facing Real Madrid in the semis (and in the domestic matches).  A team like Real will really capitalize on their weak defense.

Leo Messi scored the only goal of the match during the later part of the 1^st half.  It was an amazing show of ball control and dribbling skills.  The commentator said of the goal, “The little man re-writes the record books, yet again.”  Can you believe he’s only 23?!

no, this isn't the "jersey-grabbing" shot.. can't find it yet, well see if I can get the vid
photo from Getty Image

I guess Shakhtar must have felt that Messi was just too dangerous that they had to literally hold onto him to slow him down.  Ischencko, was seen clearly grabbing Messi’s jersey during the 2^nd half.  And a couple of minutes later, another Shakhtar defender (wasn’t able to clearly see who), grabbed on to Messi’s jersey when he dispossessed the ball from goalie, Andrey Pyativ.  I know this is normal in football but it the grabbing was caught clearly on camera.  Ischencko held on so tight, Messi couldn't run forward anymore.  I'll try to find a vid of it if I can.

On an unrelated note, this guy’s  kinda cute, hihi J  He has that Elijah Wood-look going on.

Yaroslav Rakitskiy

Another unrelated note, Swapping Jersey Watch: saw Messi holding Willian’s jersey after the match.  Messi must, like, swap jerseys every game.  Lucky Willan, got the "record-breaking" Messi jersey.

Final Aggregate Score:

Barcelona: 6

Shakhtar: 1

Here are numbers:

Champions League QF: Chelsea vs Manchester United Recap (1st Leg)

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Chelsea vs Manchester United

Javier Fernandez scores Man U’s 1^st goal during the 1^st half.   Didier Drogba equalizes in the 2^nd  half but just seconds after, Man U strikes back with Park Ji Sung scoring the 2^nd goal.

I never really paid much attention to the English teams.  I had this unfounded perception that Chelsea is one of the weaker teams (as they just seem to coast thru Round of 16 ).  But now, looking at their squad, they actually have a lot of strong attacking players.  You have Fernando Torres, Didier Drogba, Nikolas Anelka, Frank Lampard, etc.  How come they don’t score a lot of goals?  I know I didn’t watch their games, especially in the group stage, but didn’t they have draws or 1-0 wins?

According to the commentator, Carlo Ancelloti seems “to be struggling to find the right combination of strikers, ever since Torres came in as it changed the whole team dynamics.”  Is he like the “Beckham” of Real Madrid? (Remember the club’s Galacticos era where they put in too much money on the offense with Figo, Ronaldo, Zidane, Raul, etc. and not much on defense.  And after signing Beckham they haven’t won the Champions League ever since). 

I also wondered what the logic behind substituting Torres just before the 1^st half ended was?  It’s kinda early to make substitutions unless it’s because of an injury.  If it wasn’t, then that must really affect Torres’ confidence level with his “goal-drought” problem.  Won’t things like not being one of starting players and being substituted too soon makes you think the coach doesn’t have confidence in you?  But then again, he is a professional player, so I guess, that comes with the territory.  I feel bad for him, all this pressure.  He really needs to work with the team.

Chelsea seems to be under-playing their potential.  Is it because there is no team fluidity? (for me, it doesn’t really mean much if you have all the best players in the world but if they don’t know how to play together, you won’t the best team). 

So we say good bye to Chelsea as Man U moves on to the semi-finals.

Final Aggregate Score:

Chelsea:  1

Manchester United: 3

Here are numbers:

Champions League QF: Barcelona vs Shakhtar (2nd Leg)

Barcelona vs Shakhtar

April 13 @ 4:30AM (Balls Channel)

According to the commentator during their 1^st leg match, this game “looks like a formality”.  Even if Shakhtar wins, they need to score lots and lots of goals to overcone Barca’s solid 4-point advantage over them to advance to the next round.  Shakhtar captain Darijo Srna, defender Dmytro Chygrynskiy and Coach Mircea Lucescu are already saying that Barca will be advancing to the semis and even winning the finals.  Seems like they will just try to salvage what they can from the previous 5-1 defeat.

"We play for the honour of our club, the city and the fans." – Darijo Srna, demanding Shakhtar playesr a show of character on the 2^nd leg match.

I will still be crossing my fingers coz in football, you’ll never know.

Here’s what the very modest Pep Guardiola has to say:

“A serious test awaits us. We should complete our task in the Champions League before preparing for the Santiago Bernabeu. I want to repeat, again, that the tie is not already won. Anything is possible in football, but we will work hard to prevent Shakhtar pulling off a miracle.”

Maybe Shakhtar can to exploit Barca’s shakey defense (they will still be without Puyol and Abidal).  Guardiola has been saying not to underestimate this offense-minded team.  But even if Shakhtar wins this match, it will tougher for them to win in the final aggregate score though.  They also need to prevent Barca from scoring away goals (good luck with that).

I am looking forward to watching the “best team in the world” play again, it’s very entertaining to watch their tiki-taka football J

Aggregate Score:

Champions League QF: Chelsea vs Manchester United (2nd Leg)

Chelsea vs Manchester United – 2^nd Leg

April 13 @ 1:30AM (Balls Channel)

The only match during the 1^st Leg that ended with a low goal difference, this gives Chelsea a chance to turn this around.  Man U might be coming in with an away goal but compared to Shakhtar, Schalke and Tottenham, Chelsea’s chances are better.

But it won’t be that easy for Chelsea as Man U is hard to beat in their home turf.  Will this be the time for Fernando Torres to find his form and break his goal drought to score goals that will bring Chelsea to the next round?  Or will it be Didier Drogba scoring the goals?  But Chelsea will also have to look out for Wayne Rooney.

Aggregate Score:

Chelsea: 0

Manchester United: 1

For the win:

Chelsea:

Champions League QF: Barcelona vs Shakhtar Recap (1st Leg)

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Barcelona vs Shakhtar

Again, another amazing attacking football from Barca.  It was an example of Barca’s tiki-taka style of play that is just entertaining to watch.  Imagine, Barca had 671 passes completed compared to Shakhtar’s 286.  I love their quick one-two passes, building up the play, the ball zigzagging within Messi, David Villa, Iniesta and Alves, and out of nowhere a shot (mostly) on target surprising Shakhtar’s goalie and defence. 

The first goal was a pass from Messi to David Villa where there was some sort of deflection and Iniesta was just in the right spot to beat the goalkeeper.  Second goal was a long pass from Iniesta and Alves, out of nowhere, slotted the ball in.  I think Shakhtar’s defense was caught flat footed.  I mean, who was marking Alves?  Third goal was from set play corner.  Alves providing the cross and the player marking Pique didn’t notice him slip away and make the shot.  Fourth goal was right after Shakhtar scored their only goal (from a free kick) where Barca countered right away (probably within a minute after). It was Keita scoring from “a beautiful pass” (according to the commentator) from Messi.  And just when you thought Barca was finished with their attack, an unmarked Xavi converted the excellent cross from Alves to score the last goal of the match.

Shakhtar had some quick-counter attack moves, where Barca’s defense was caught off guard a couple of times.  They infiltrated the holes of Barca defense, capitalizing on the defensive mistakes of Barca.  Good thing they had some “awful finishing” (according tot the commentator) sometimes firing the shots too wide or hitting the post.  There were also great saves by Valdez.  In those instances, you would really feel the absence of Puyol and Abidal at the back.

Messi might not have scored in this match but he did make his presence felt.  He had some pretty close chances with his shots.  But more than anything, he has set up some of Barca’s goals and attempts, so his attacking creativity is not just for finding the back of the net but for creating chances for the team as well.  Can I say he can be a good playmaker as well?  Football experts out there, please enlighten me J

On a different note, Srna (I think) asked for Messi’s jersey during end of the 1^st half.  I could just imagine that there are probably many players who ask for his jersey during games.  Messi must, like, stock lots of jerseys in their dressing room.  Does it happen where he’d run out of jerseys to give?  Is there, like, a record for the most jerseys requested from a player?  What does Messi do with all the jerseys he received?  What do other players do with the jerseys they swapped from other teams?   Do they hang it somewhere?  Frame it? 

*sigh* If I only lived in Europe, I’d be stalking my favourite players, and ask for autographed jerseys from them J

Aggregate Score:

Barcelona: 5

Shakhtar: 1

Here are numbers:

Champions League QF: Chelsea vs Manchester United Recap (1st Leg)

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Chelsea vs Manchester United

Must be frustrating for Chelsea because they had a lot of attempts, most of it on target, but they just could not covert them into goals.  Man U’s organized defense and Van der Sar made sure of that.  He had some pretty incredible saves. 

The frustration must probably be more so for Fernando Torres who is still having a goal-drought since his signing to Chelsea.  He could just not hit the back of the net.

Interesting to note, this is the only game in the 1^st leg that ended in low goal difference.  Real Madrid has a 4 point advantage over Tottenham, Schalke has 3 over Inter and Barca has a cushy 4 point advantage over Shakhtar.  So even if Manchester goes into the second leg with an away goal, Chelsea still has a big chance to turn things around and advance to the semis.  

Aggregate Score:

Chelsea:  0

Manchester United: 1

Here are stats/numbers: