UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULTS | REAL MADRID - AT MADRID

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE continued tonight with the remaining Group matches. Two Spanish Clubs were down for action, REAL MADRID & ATLETICO DE MADRID. Here is a brief summary of the main events along with the goalscorers & the final results.

REAL MADRID travelled to France to play PARIS ST GERMAIN with the following starting XI for the visitors (see image):

Real Madrid CF ended the first half with two goals down thanks to PSG midfielder Angel Di Maria. DI MARIA was inspired in the goal area and his opportunities went into the back of the net. The two goals in the 14th min & 33rd min come out of his left boot. Real Madrid did have their occasions especially through their Best player JAMES who came close a couple of times. Also a GARETH BALE Goal in the 36th min was disallowed after the VAR called it a hand-ball. 

An uphill position after 45 mins for Real Madrid, & that is with PSG without Mbappe, Neymar & Cavani.

The second half was not better for Real Madrid as Paris St Germain continued to create the goal opportunities. The Spanish Club looked slow, predictable & impotent against a French team that was more determined & looked as if they had ideas.

Real Madrid Coach Zidane brought on Vazquez, Dovic & Vinicius in an attempt to shake things & pull some goals back, but nothing, ineffective. The fact is that PSG managed to score their 3rd goal through MEUNIER in the 91 st min.

Lastly, disappointing the performance of Gareth Bale who intervened little, but so did many of his team-mates.

Great win for Paris St Germain.

FINAL RESULT: PARIS ST GERMAIN 3 REAL MADRID 0

ATLETICO DE MADRID hosted JUVENTUS FC in their Group D match. Above is the Atletico de Madrid starting XI team.

Atletico de Madrid & Juventus put forward an attractive, open and end to end first 45 mins. At Madrid had more ball dominance in the rival area. Atletico midfielder Joao Felix had clear chances along with defender Gimenez who pardoned a corner opportunity. All the Juventus attacks passed through Cristiano Ronaldo who created chances but was solidly meet by Atleti goalie OblaK. Great first half with the only thing missing a Goal.

The second half was as entertaining as the first 45 min. This time around the Italians took control & scored two goals straight through CUADRADO in the 48th min & MATUIDI in the 65th min. Just when it looked like the night would turn into a disaster for Atletico de Madrid the team reached deep & pulled out their fighting spirit. Atletico defender SAVIC scored in the 70th min & HERRERA scored the equalizer in the 90th min to blow the roof off the stadium. 

Share points & just result. 

FINAL RESULT: ATLETICO DE MADRID 2 JUVENTUS FC 2

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FC BARCELONA VALENCIA CF | UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULTS

UEFA Champions League 2019-2020 kicked off this season with Group games scheduled with Spanish Clubs FC BARCELONA & VALENCIA CF down for their Group duties. Here is a short summary of the main events along with goalscorers & the final results.

Interesting starting XI for Barça tonight with Arthur & 16 year old Ansu Fati in the line-up. Above in the image is the full 11 names. 

An equalled first half for both teams with Borussia Dortmund having more occasions, especially a golden chance by Reus that was stopped by Barça goalie Ter Stegen. FC Barcelona had good periods of control of the ball, specially when Brazilian midfielder Arthur took command. Said this, Borussia Dortmund was not overwhelmed by Barça & managed to counterbalance the situation & created their goal opportunities.

The second half converted Barça goalie TER STEGEN in "Man of the Match", he solely avoided that his team lose tonight with some magnificent saves. The Barça goalie stopped a REUS penalty in the 56th min. Later Borussia Dortmund hit the bar. 

Messi came on to play 30 mins after a long stint out through injury but he could turn the wave. Tough night for Braça in Germany, nearly lost to Borussia

Lastly, bad news for Barça was the injury to Jordi Alba.

FINAL RESULT: BORUSSIA DORTMUND 0 FC BARCELONA 0

VALENCIA CF travelled to London to play Chelsea FC in an unsettling fashion after their Coach Marcelino was fired last week & replaced by Celades. The new Coach has not the full backing of the Senior players & their is a "bad vibe" in the air. However, tonight they pulled things together to give a good image & get the 3 points.

Below is the starting XI team for Valencia CF:

The first half did not have a clear and defined dominator. Valencia CF started defensively allowing Chelsea FC to control while looking to launch their counter-attacks. As the game progressed Valencia gained in confidence & pushed forward reaching more often the area of Chelsea goalie Kepa. Chelsea FC although with more game control did not show signs of danger & did not trouble the Spanish team. Chelsea only troubled Valencia Cf a couple of times, one with a Willian goal opportunity.

The second half allowed fans to witness an entertaining match with chances going to both teams. However, it was Valencia CF through their forward RODRIGO that scored in the 73rd min with a rehearsed tactical play having Captain Parejo involved.

Chelsea won a penalty in the 85th min but ROSS BARKLEY missed hitting the crossbar. Valencia held out &, must I say, surprised. Well done!

FINAL RESULT: CHELSEA FC 0 - VALENCIA CF 1

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UEFA TOP EUROPEAN CLUB RANKINGS

UEFA has released its list of the TOP EUROPEAN FOOTBALL CLUBS. The first three Clubs are Spanish with REAL MADRID CF in first position, followed by ATLETICO DE MADRID second & FC BARCELONA in third place.

From a Spanish Football perspective the big gainer is Atletico de Madrid which jumps into second place overtaking traditionally bigger local rival FC Barcelona.

UEFA Top 10 European Football Club Rankings:
1. Real Madrid CF
2. At. Madrid 
3. FC Barcelona
4. FC Bayern Munich
5. Juventus 
6. Manchester City FC
7. Paris St. Germain
8. Liverpool FC
9. Arsenal FC
10. Manchester United

To see the full list you can visit the UEFA website .

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SPAIN 3 SWEDEN 0 | EURO 2020 QUALIFIER RESULT

SPAIN hosted SWEDEN tonight at the "Santiago Bernabeu Stadium" (Madrid) for their Group F EURO 2020 Qualifying match. Here is a brief summary of events, goalscorers & the final score.

The Spain starting 11 team had some surprises with goalkeeper KEPA starting over David De Gea, and FABIAN starting as well. Later in the 2º half Real Sociedad forward OYARZABAL would get a run & debut for Spain. 

Above is the Sweden starting 11 with an outfit throughout for their direct Football style.

Spain starting well & confident putting forward their touch & passing Football style. It was not long into the match that Spain was creating goal opportunities. However, bad luck for Sweden early as upfront man Claesson fell badly & had to be replaced. This caused a tactical change which strengthened the Swedish defence & they began to lock down their area. 

It became increasingly difficult to penetrate the Swedish defence as Spain kept smashing into their wall. The first half finished with a sense of desperation on the Spanish side.

However, the second half saw a more determined Spain passing the ball around patiently looking for the Swedish error which was to come. After long patient passing & incursiones into the Swede area, the break came in the 64th min when a hand ball was rewarded with a penalty. Spanish Captain SERGIO RAMOS who achieved a "World Record" tonight of 122 International victory games & results, took the penalty & scored in the 64th min. 

Sweden opened up a bit more to attempt to go up forward but a brilliant move by substitute forward ALVARO MORATA who lost his defensive marker was fouled in the area & awarded a penalty. He took it & scored Spain's second goal in the 85th min. 

Two minutes later with Sweden acknowledging their loss, with another substitute OYARZABAL scored the third in the 87th min.

FINAL RESULT: SPAIN 3 - SWEDEN 0
Goal Scorers:
1 - 0 (64') (P.)
Sergio Ramos
2 - 0 (85') (P.)
Alvaro Morata
3 - 0 (87')
Mikel Oyarzabal

Spain achieves its 4th straight Group F victory & secures the top spot with a 5 point difference with the second placed nation. Sweden is considered the "main competitor" of the Group & a victory tonight was the prime objective to keep Spain's EURO 2020 qualification on course.

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FC BARCELONA 1 VALENCIA CF 2 | SPANISH CUP FINAL RESULT

The final big match for season 2018 - 2019 & title for Spanish Football was played tonight between FC BARCELONA & VALENCIA CF in the SPANISH CUP - COPA DEL REY - FINAL in the city of Seville. Here is a summary of the main events, goalscorers & the final result.

FC BARCELONA starting 11 team: Cillessen; Semedo, Gerard Pique, Lenglet, Jordi Alba; Rakitic, Sergi Busquets, Arthur; Sergi Roberto, Lionel Messi & Coutinho

VALENCIA CF starting 11 team: Jaume; Daniel Wass, Garay, Gabriel Paulista, Gaya; Dani Parejo, Coquelin, Carlos Soler, Guedes; Rodrigo & Gameiro

From the start the strategies of both Clubs were clear, FC Barcelona ball possession & domination, while Valencia CF was firm tactical defending looking for the speedy counter-attack. Barça forward LUIS SUAREZ had decided beforehand to operate himself from a niggling injury & was not part of the Final, his team was to miss him very much.

The Barça intensity started strongly but gradually faded as Valencia calmed themselves & forced defensive mistakes. The counter-attacks was catching the Barça defenders on the back foot & it was not long that in a sprint by defender GAYA he found forward GAMEIRO who shook off Jordi Alba & scored the opener in the 21st min. Barcelona was rattled & another counter-attack by SOLER who outpaced Barça defender Alba found the head of RODRIGO who scored the second for Valencia CF in the 33rd min. 

Valencia went into the 2º half 2 - 0. 

The 2º half saw Barcelona react putting on Arturo Vidal (for Arthur) & Malcom (for Semedo) with the objective of turning the result around. Barcelona took control & the initiative lead by Messi who was single handedly pulling his team onward. The opportunities arrived, Messi hit the post & Vidal missed a chance. The goal opportunities continued to come for Barça, Pique came close & Messi had free kicks, until a corner found the head  of Lenglet with the ball stopped  by the Valencia goalie but MESSI scored off the rebound in the 73rd. The comeback was possible.

Valencia Coach Marcelino took off his forwards & reinforced the midfield (change forced as Parejo injured himself) plus the strengthen the defence. Valencia CF managed to hold off the continued Barça attacks until the end, while GUEDES could have avoided the suffering earlier had he not missed two huge sitters ( one in front of the Barça goalie, the other with an empty Barça goal). 

The whistle blew in the 95th min & VALENCIA CF proclaimed themselves Spanish Cup winners 2019 breaking the Barça reign of 4 straight years & winning the title 11 years later. 

FC Barcelona tried hard in the last 20 minutes but missed dearly Luis Suarez upfront as there was no clear forward as reference. Some players were not up to the event with disappointing performance from Arthur & Coutinho, plus the Champions League semifinal elimination at Liverpool may have still been deep within the subconscious of some players.

As for Valencia great match, very focused & determined tonight & they rightly deserved the victory & title. A big trophy for the Club in their 100 year anniversary which will be greatly celebrated tonight by players & the city of Valencia CF.

FINAL RESULT: FC BARCELONA 1 - VALENCIA CF 2 


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LIVERPOOL FC 4 FC BARCELONA 0 | (4-3 AGG) CHAMPIONS SEMI-FINAL RESULT

Historical night of UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE Football & for English Club LIVERPOOL FC after managing to turn around the semi-final from an away 0 - 3 aggregate deficit to a hammering 4 - 0 victory over FC BARCELONA at Anfield. The final result is a 4-3 aggregate semi-final ticket for Liverpool FC which goes onto the Madrid Champions League Final against tomorrow's winner from the Ajax-Tottenham semi.

Everything was against Liverpool FC, a deficit of 3 goals from the 1º leg game plus injuries to star players SALAH & FIRMINO. Coach Klopp put forward the above starting 11 with huge pressure on lesser names like ORIGI & SHAQIRI.

FC BARCELONA put forward their starting 11 which was basically the same team as in the 1º st leg match. They felt confident, but as we were to witness the ghost of the past & of AC ROMA returned to hover over them again tonight.

LIVERPOOL FC had a clear plan, take the initiative, pressure up front, force mistakes & pull from emotion. This latter part was supplied by the home crowd which was their 12th man tonight with non-stop chanting & support. The dream become a possible reality when a Jordi Alba mistake lead to the Liverpool FC opener through ORIGI in the 7th min.

Liverpool FC looked for more goals but their overzealous adventures upfront nearly cost them goals. But there was - for me - the MAN OF THE MATCH, Liverpool goalkeeper ALISSON who made 4 crucial & match turning saves tonight, three of them in the 1st half.

The first 45 min ended with Barça controlling the best they could the English "fire" & it seemed they would continue to do so in the 2ºnd half. However, all to the contrary, LIVERPOOL overran Barça with two quick goals - again Barça defensive mistakes - through substitute GEORGINIO WIJNALDUM in the 54th & 56nd min. Liverpool suddenly had their dream in their hands as FC Barcelona were rattled & seeing the nightmare of AC ROMA returning to haunt them again.

Barça Coach Valverde reacted making changes by putting on Semedo for Coutinho, moving Sergi Roberto into midfield & taking off Barça´s best until then ARTURO VIDAL for Arthur.
Then the miracle appeared from a corner that could all the Barça defense wrong footed finding ORIGI alone to hammer home his 2nd & the 4th for Liverpool FC in the 79th min. The English Club  was now winning the semifinales tie & had a foot in the upcoming final.

Liverpool FC then held their winning advantage with tooth, nails & blood holding off Barça in their desperate attacks until the referee finally blew the whistle to give Liverpool the victory. Absolutely historical achievement for Liverpool FC, a night they will never forget.

As for Barcelona a disaster. There worst match possible with the big names disappearing at the crucial moments. Too many defensive errores, especially Alba, & perhaps a bit too much overconfidence coming into this match. With their elimination Spanish Football loses their only representative which is a big negative after so many years of European domination. 

FINAL RESULT: LIVERPOOL FC 4 - FC BARCELONA 0 | LIVERPOOL WINS SEMIFINAL ON A 4-3 AGGREGRATE RESULT

Congratulations to Liverpool FC, good luck in the upcoming Champions League Final.

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FC BARCELONA 3 MANCHESTER UNITED 0 | CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULT

UEFA Champions League Quarter Final 2º leg match tonight with FC BARCELONA hosting MANCHESTER UNITED in a 0-1 away goal advantage & victory from the 1º leg away game. Here is a brief summary of the main events along with the goalscorers & the final result.

FC BARCELONA started with the above 11 names.

MANCHESTER UNITED started with the above 11 names.

Manchester United started well dominating the first 5 minutes but from then things went terribly wrong. An 11 th min penalty called on Rakitic but disallowed by the "VAR" was the "alarm bell". This was followed shortly by a horrible attempt to get the ball out of defence by Young that allowed MESSI to take possession of the ball, escape defenders & score for FC Barcelona in the 16th min. Things got even worse when a shot at goal by MESSI went beneath the body of Manchester United goalie DAVID DE GEA in the 19th min. A shocker, & its not the first time DE GEA has sinned in this manner, one recalls against Portugal while goalkeeping for Spain in the last World Cup when a Ronaldo shot & it also went beneath the body.

With a 2 - 0 scoreline things were uphill for Manchester United while FC Barcelona calm things down to a pace that was more suitable to their style . Barça continued looking for more goals & nearly found a 3rd when Messi again did his magic & found Sergi Roberto whose shot was this time saved by De Gea. 

The second half was a copy of the first. Man Utd started more intensely looking to create some opportunities & find some luck. However, their efforts faded in the 61st min when Barça midfielder COUTINHO shot from outside the area into the net for Barça´s 3rd goal. There was nothing De Gea could do about it. Manchester United Coach Ole Solskjær moved the bench with Kukaku & Alexis coming on with the latter having a clear occasion in the 90th min which Barça goalie Ter Stegen stopped brilliantly. Just not Manchesters United´s night.

FINAL RESULT: FC BARCELONA 3 - MANCHESTER UNITED 0 (4-0 AGGREGATE)

Conclusions, Barca too strong tonight, neutralized Manchester Utd & a was steps above in quality. The English team made some terrible mistakes & paid dearly as habitual at this level of Football. Midfielder POGBA disappointed greatly & puts a question mark over his head about why all the fuss with Real Madrid wishing to sign the Frenchman.

LIONEL MESSI was the key, the man of the match & the driver of his team, two goals & just brilliant. Great match from Rakitic, Lenglet, Jordi Alba, Pique & company.

FC Barcelona now moves onto the Champions League semi-finals stage & are looking good. 

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MANCHESTER UTD 0 FC BARCELONA 1 | CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULT

UEFA Champions League moves into the Quarter Final phase & continues tonight with the only Spanish Football representative FC BARCELONA travelling to "Old Trafford" to play MANCHESTER UNITED in the 1º leg away game. Here is a brief summary of the main events along with the goalscorers & the final result.

As we can see above FC BARCELONA starts the match with the 11 mentioned names. No surprises here really, goes in with their "big guns".

As in the image we can see the starting 11 team for MANCHESTER UNITED. 

A 1ºst half relatively comfortable for FC BARCELONA which showed their habitual ball domination style Football. Manchester United waited more in their own area to attempt to find a counter-attack or force errores in the midfield on the Barça players.

Barça struck first on the 12th min when LUIS SUAREZ headed in his teams goal & opener that was later given by UEFA as an own goal by defender SHAW. The English Team had some occasion from Rashford who was active but not dangerous at all. The contrary from the Barça perspective which nearly got a second goal had Man Utd goalie DE GEA not stopped magnificently a Coutinho effort.

FC Barcelona would have been pleased with their first 45 min as they managed the prized & advantageous away goal that assures some ease for the second half of the game.

The second half saw a more intense & determined Manchester United looking to equalize the encounter. They created  a few occasions but without true effectivity, plus the English team did manage to put Barça on the back foot until Barça Coach Valverde decided to make some moves. Barça took of two attacking midfielders (Coutinho & Artur) to put muscle in their place with Vidal & Sergi Roberto which helped Barça regain control.

The rest of the game was Man Utd placing long balls & looking for some luck, while Barcelona neutralized the English efforts & accepted the away goal win to take back to Barcelona.

FINAL RESULT: MANCHESTER UNITED 0 FC BARCELONA 1

Good game for the Spaniards who have the advantage although the tie is far from shut.

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MALTA 0 SPAIN 2 | EURO 2020 GROUP F QUALIFIER

Tonight EURO 2020 qualifiers with a GROUP F match schedule between MALTA & SPAIN. Here is a brief summary of the main events, the goalscorers & the final result.

MALTA vs SPAIN

Spanish National Team Coach Luis Enrique had to fly back to Spain for a family emergency & his role was taken tonight by his second in charge ROBERTO MORENO. His choice of the starting 11 (above image) had 8 changes from the match against Norway last Saturday: Kepa, S Roberto, Hermoso, Gaya, Rodri, Saul, Canales & Bernat were the new names.

The first half was very clear, Malta was to defend putting up to 9 - 10 men in their area, while Spain had complete ball domination. Under this scenario good Football is very difficult to create & in fact the game was fairly boring. Spain attacked & bounced off the Maltese wall until the 31st min when ALVARO MORATA got onto a pass which he managed to slip past the goalkeeper Bonello for Malta & register Spain´s opening goal. That was basically it for the half. 

The 2ond half was more of the same. Spain dominating & Malta defending. A substitution which shaked things for Spain was the coming on of Jesus Navas who was dangerous along the right flank. From his pass came the second goal from Spain when ALVARO MORATA managed to header home his second for the night in the 73rd min.
Three more points for Spain which currently leads Group F unbeaten in two matches with 6 points. 

FINAL RESULT: MALTA 0 - SPAIN 2 

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SPAIN 2 - NORWAY 1 | EURO 2020 QUALIFIER RESULT

The road towards the qualification for the upcoming EURO 2020 Champions began for SPAIN tonight with the first match at home against NORWAY in Group F. Here is a short summary of the main events, the goalscorers & the final result.

SPAIN - NORWAY: Euro 2020 Group F Qualifier 

Spanish National Team Coach Luis Enrique put in the following starting 11:

David de Gea, Jesus Navas, Sergio Ramos, Íñigo Martinez, Jordi Alba, Parejo, Sergio Busquets, Jesus Ceballos, Marco Asensio, Rodrigo & Alvaro Morata. 

Only 5 names survive from the World Cup team: De Gea, Ramos, Alba, Busquets & Asensio.

Later Betis midfielder Sergio Canales & forward Jaime Mata of Getafe debuted as substitutes in the 2º  half. 

SPAIN won in a worked match 2 - 1 NORWAY. Although Spain dominated most of the match they were overall not at all convincing. Spain creates plenty of goal opportunities but does not manage to score, their effective rate is way below the occasions created by the Team.

Norway, knows their limitations & they also know their strengths sticking to their strategy of defending well, forcing the errors from their opponents, counter-attacking & attempt to exploit their big men upfront with long balls to exploit their heading power. Simple & effective. 

This is basically the summary of tonight's match. The Norwegian game plan nearly paid off as they pushed Spain in the latter part of the 2º half. A penalty on Morata was the lifesaver for the locals to pull off the victory & grab the three points.  

The 1º st half went to Spain which started well with the habitual ball domination & goal creating opportunities. The first goal came in the 16th min when Valencia CF striker RODRIGO managed to score.  With the momentum Spain created numerous clear goal opportunities but Norway Goalie JARSTEIN made important saves & MORATA (along with fellow team-mates) was not able to score. In fact, the Atletico de Madrid forward have up to 6 occasions that where all missed, even though the penalty awarded late to Spain was won by him.

The 2º half was more in Norway´s favour & they put up forward some "towers" of forwards to receive the long balls & make things difficult for the Spanish defenders. The plan worked when in the 65th min Norway was awarded a penalty from a free- kick that forced Martinez to foul KING in the area. In was KING himself who converted the penalty to draw the result. Spain was going through its worst moment & things were not looking bright for the locals as the nerves began to settle in throughout the side. 

However, a Norwegian defensive error gave Morata the ball & Norway goalie Jarstein had no option but to foul the Spanish forward. Sergio RAMOS took the penalty in the 71st min to score & put Spain back into the match & leading. The worst part for Spain seemed over, as the locals regrouped & began using their heads to keep control of the situation. Norway did have some occasions towards the end that made the crowd hold their breath but Spain managed to hold the 2 - 1 result. 

GOALSCORERS:

1 - 0 (16') Rodrigo Moreno
1 - 1 (65') (P.) Joshua King
2 - 1 (71') (P.) Sergio Ramos

FINAL RESULT:

SPAIN 2 - NORWAY 1

Spain manages the victory & the three points but they have to work more upfront to lift their goal conversion rate, as they fail to transform the numerous occasions created into goals to shut their matches. 

Spain plays MALTA next Tuesday in their next Group F Euro 2020 match. 

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FC BARCELONA 5 OLYMPIQUE LYON 1 | CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULT

UEFA Champions League action tonight with the last remaining Spanish Club in the competition. FC BARCELONA hosted OLYMPIQUE DE LYON with the tie totally open as the 1ºst leg result from France was a 0 - 0 draw. FC Barcelona was warned to be alert & fully concentrated as they had the precedents of Real Madrid & Atletico de Madrid, both with positive results from their 1ºst leg games but both eliminated after their return encounters.

Here is a brief summary of events, goalscorers & the final result.

Above is the FC BARCELONA starting 11 team line-up.

Above is the starting 11 line-up for Olympique de Lyon

Overall a relative comfortable night & good performance for Barça. The first half saw some Lyon attempts that were fairly well neutralized, but it was Barcelona which scored first when Luis Suarez was fouled in the penalty area. A controversial penalty was awarded - did not look like a penalty - that LIONEL MESSI converted in the 17th min.

Lyon then lost their goalie Lopes half way through the match & COUTINHO scored the second for Barça in the 31st min. Things looked at this stage well by halftime.

However, the second half turned into a complicated situation when LYON scored in the 58th min through TOUSARD, the French were back with a chance to turn things around to their favour & Barça got nervous.  Lyon had their moments & Barça passed through a difficult period, but Barça Coach Valverde moved the bench moving the pieces around & LIONEL MESSI made his appearance to calm things for his team. FC Barcelona scored their third goal in the 78th min through LIONEL MESSI taking the spirit & wind out of the Lyon sails.

From here it was Barça which took over & shut the door with a fourth goal by PIQUE in the 80th min & a fifth goal in the 86th min through DEMBELE

Goalscorers:

1 - 0 (17')(P.) Messi
2 - 0 (31') Coutinho
2 - 1 (58') Tousard
3 - 1 (78') Messi
4 - 1 (80') Pique
5 - 1 (86') Dembele

FINAL RESULT : FC BARCELONA 5 - OLYMPIQUE DE LYON 1 (5-1 AGG)

FC Barcelona eliminates Lyon & qualifies for the Q/Finals of the Champions League. They are the only Spanish Club that remains in the competition. 

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JUVENTUS 3 ATLETICO DE MADRID 0 (3-2 AGG) | CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULT

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE tonight with ATLETICO DE MADRID taking a  2- 0 advantage from their 1º leg home match against JUVENTUS FC to Turin & attempt to finish the job. The end result was not the expected or planned for by the Spanish Club which witnessed a comeback effort from the Italians taking the final result 3 - 0 & thus eliminating Atletico de Madrid on a 3  - 2 aggregate result.

Here is a brief summary with the goal scorer...of all three goals.

ATLETICO DE MADRID started with the above 11. The inclusion of Lemar made everyone think that Atletico would put aside their natural defensive nature & look to score. This turned out to be an illusion.

JUVENTUS FC went into this match with the above 11, with CRISTIANO RONALDO super motivated believing in his team & a comeback. He was to become vital in his team's victory. 

The Italians started strong forcing Atletico to defend, it was to signal the trend for the rest of the match. A superb attacking left back SPINAZZOLA, PJANIC dominating play, right back CANCELO being an open alternative option, BERNARDESCHI a constant danger, CHIELLINI & BONUCCI cleaning up the loose ends & CRISTIANO RONALDO scoring 3 goals - A HAT TRICK - as he predicted before the match.

Things were crystal clear in the 4th min when the VAR cancelled a goal by Chellini from a Ronaldo foul on goalie Oblak. Not deterred Juventus FC kept going after their objective.

Atletico de Madrid may have wanted to score the vital away goal but its not in their DNA to attack. In fact their player midfield profile is not creative or with much ideas. Upfront Morata was neutralized & the other forward Griezmann was everywhere except in the goal square area. The man to give Atletico spark upfront Lemar spend all his time defending, this was the script for tonight's show. Said conclusively, Atletico de Madrid looked nothing at all like the 1º leg match, as did Juventus FC which instead turned the who tie 360º degrees to their favour. 

The man of the match was CRISTIANO RONALDO who earned his transfer & paycheck tonight proving again that he is a "BIG TIME PLAYER". The Portuguese scored a HAT TRICK - two from headers & a penalty:

1 - 0 (26') Cristiano Ronaldo
2 - 0 (48') Cristiano Ronaldo
3- 0  (86')  Cristiano Ronaldo, p

He was aptly supported by his competent & focused team-mates. Tonight is the reason why Juventus signed Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid, to flip things over to their favour in times of difficulties, an asset pivotal for the Champions League competition. Having observed tonight's game I would dare to proclaim that JUVENTUS are definitely my favourite Club to win Champions League this year.

As for Atletico another failure, & yes under Coach Simeone. The Argentine Coach cannot jump the "BIG MOMENTS" hurdle. Simeone has again been demystified showing more doubts than inspiration. Tonight there was no grabbing his genitals instead he received a solid kick by the Italians between the legs.

In a nutshell, extremely disappointing performance from the Atletico Coach for his lack of ideas & from most of the players which were overwhelmed by the occasion. Difficult to understand how the Spanish Club could squander a 2 goal advantage in tonight's fashion.

Congratulations to Juventus FC, deserved victory & good luck for the rest of the competition. 

Tomorrow its Spanish Club FC BARCELONA turn against LYON...same story? Stay tuned. 

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REAL MADRID 1 AJAX AMSTERDAM 4 (3-5 AGG)| CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULT

REAL MADRID CF took its 1º leg Champions League 1-2 advantage back to their home Stadium "Santiago Bernabeu" to play tonight the 2º leg away game against AJAX OF AMSTERDAM. The end result was a horror night for the Spanish Club which was overrun from the beginning to finally lose the game 1 - 4 & be eliminated from the UEFA Champions League 3 - 5 on aggregate. 

Above is the starting 11 of the Real Madrid team.

Above is the starting 11 of the Ajax team.

AJAX OF AMSTERDAM had a very clear game plan, exploit their pace with very accurate & efficient counter-attacks. The Dutch would allow the Spanish team to play in their area & with every mistake, missed goal chance or error pounce with deadly surgical precision with overwhelming men in the Real Madrid goal area. Simple. So basic that this strategy was utilized the whole match with Real Madrid not being able to halt the Dutch or find an antidote.

Finding a solution from REAL MADRID would always be difficult if the team is down psychologically for a string off important local League defeats, NOT ABLE to score goals & two injuries to Lucas vazquez & Vinicius JR in the first 30 minutes of play. This is not an excuse, it just highlights that tonight was going to be a nightmare, the worst dream possible for Real Madrid. 

Real Madrid missed goals, hit the post a couple of times & within their growing frustration came the silly mistakes. A terrible TONI KROOS back passed lead to the first goal of Ajax which ZIYECH scored in the 7th min, a deep & fast counter in the 18th min allowed NERES to score the second, this shook Real Madrid. 

The nerves took over, the frustration set in & the local supporters turned on their team in disbelief. However, Ajax kept to their game plan while Real Madrid failed to react or counter their hosts. Forced to attack Madrid had to look for goals, REAL MADRID in doing so "allowed AJAX" to exercise more often the counter-attack, & this is what happened.

Real Madrid started strong in the 2º half but once again without goal effectiveness, the opportunities were created but no one to score the goals. Reality finally made it clear, if you exit a player that gives you 40-50 goals (+10 in Champions) like Cristiano Ronaldo per season, you need to replace that asset with someone similar or spread the goal scoring across players. Its mathematics. Luck finally ran out tonight.

Ajax quickly regained the situation & continued with their work. The third goal came in the 62nd min from TADIC after a long consultation with VAR over a possible over the sideline ball beforehand. At this stage Real Madrid was rattled, but managed to get a glimpse of hope when finally ASENSIO managed to pull one back for Real in the 70th min. But, this was a horror movie for the locals tonight & from a free-kick SCHONE surprised goalie COURTOIS to score the 4th goal in the 72nd min, secure the victory & passage for Ajax into the next stage of the Champions League.

Things got absurd & surreal when Benzema slipped in front of goal to miss a sitter & GARETH BALE injured his ankle towards the end. Not only had REAL MADRID lost tonight, they get eliminated from Champions League & lost 3 key players to injury: Vazquez, Vinicius & Bale. But the terror week was more definitive: in 7 days, just in a week, Real Madrid has been eliminated from the Spanish Cup, lost twice at home to FC Barcelona (with loss of options in the race of La Liga title) & eliminated from Champions League. Basically their season has ended tonight. Ironic, tragic & perhaps bad luck, but the poor planning of pre-season & the unavailability of signing a competent center forward has hit hard.

For Ajax, a great night & excellent historic display & victory. They deserved to move forward into Champions League to keep their chances alive. Young, fast & dedicated players that showed great maturity & calmness. Well done.

Real Madrid? Well, avalanche of criticisms forthcoming, players will be signalled out, Coach Solari can say goodbye to his Coaching position next season... a revolution is in the horizon. Will be interesting to see how things develop & who gets the boot. Stay tuned!  

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