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The week in the Champions League was super dramatic. There was intrigue even in a single match, which in general did not decide anything. Portugal’s Benfica managed not to lose to Liverpool in the second leg at Anfield (3:3), but the draw did not gain him anything in terms of number of games (4-6).
But everyone else was unimaginably hot. England’s Chelsea made an incredible comeback in Madrid against Real Madrid, who lost at home with a seemingly hopeless 1:3 score.
However, at the Santiago Bernabéu, Thomas Tuchel’s men took a 3-0 lead and Rodrigo could score a fourth goal before turning the game into overtime with a brilliant pass from Luka Modric, where Karim Benzema did his job.
Contrary to all predictions, Villarreal managed to retain the minimal advantage at home against Bayern Munich (1:0) and eventually bounced back with Robert Lewandowski’s goal.
Well, the Spaniard “Atletico” held branded fights with Manchester City in the second leg, according to the notes of head coach Diego Simeone, almost depriving Josep Guardiola’s men from the semi-final trip. However, Kevin de Bruyne’s goal in the first match remained the only goal in the match.
Now we expect two interesting duels in the semi-finals, but the records of the teams are very different and in terms of status in modern football Villarreal is inferior to the rest of the strongest teams in Europe. season.
For a team from a Spanish town of 40,000 inhabitants, the best success in the Champions League is the same stage. The Yellow Submarine played in the Champions League semi-finals in the 2005/06 season, after which it was very close to the final. Losing 0:1 to London’s Arsenal in their first match, Villarreal took a penalty at the end of the second half, but Juan Roman Riquelme was unable to beat Jens Lehmann.
Unlike other participants in the semi-finals of this season, Villarreal has never been the champion of their country, only once (in 2008) the silver medalist of the La Liga.
In contrast, his rival Liverpool won the English title 19 times and took the main club tournament in Europe six times!
Despite its long history, Manchester City is just now beginning to experience its most glorious times after being bought by the Arab sheikhs, but they made it to as many Champions League finals as possible and that was the previous draw. But in the name of “townspeople” there are seven national champion titles, five of which have been won in the 21st century.
Well, Real Madrid is the most famous club on the continent. “Creamy” for 13 Champions Cups and 37 national Spanish titles!
Liverpool – Villareal
If we talk about stats, then, of course, Liverpool will be the almost unconditional favorites in their duel with Villarreal, and there is no need to be surprised.
Jurgen Klopp has led the Reds to all possible heights, but now he has a very good team at his disposal.
In England, after a not-so-successful start to the season, the Merseysiders pulled themselves up, practically reclaiming a sizable lead from Man City and are now seen as favorites by many, despite being one point behind.
But in the Premier League, there are still difficult games ahead of Liverpool and the struggle for points, and in the semi-finals of the Champions League, everything will be decided by a two-legged match where the English team is too much. stronger than its rival.
The Spaniards are losing comparisons across all lines, but Mohamed Salah, who has already had a great season, will also be motivated by failures in the national team. Egypt both lost the African Cup and missed the World Cup, so the winger really needs the Champions Cup.
But Unai Emery’s suit will definitely not be a gift. In addition, the “submarine” no longer claims to be in the top 4 in the domestic championship, and it will not be easy to reach the top 6 and the Europa League. So Villarreal’s entire motivation will be for the Champions League.
Everyone was waiting for the Liverpool-Bayern semi-final, and Klopp should not forget that Emery managed to neutralize many of the strengths of the German flagship. If Liverpool find themselves in an uncomfortable situation, it won’t be easy for them to come out.
It looks like Liverpool is stronger than Bayern right now and it will be much, much harder to stop Klopp’s dashing team. But in any case, much will determine the first game at Anfield. At least it will determine the confrontation vector.
Manchester City vs Real Madrid
In the other semi-finals, well-known favorites who are also the leaders of their national championships will meet. Moreover, Real Madrid will definitely be the champion, 12 points ahead of Barcelona (while playing in reserve with the Catalans). It is almost impossible to spend such a gap in seven rounds.
“City” has already lost its handicap ahead of “Liverpool” and may lose the overall lead, although in a personal meeting it is closer to victory. Wards Josep Guardiola was ahead twice, but the Merseysiders still drew the game – 2:2.
In the local arena in Foggy Albion, the whole fight is still ahead, but this is unlikely to give the “royal club” an advantage – Carlo Ancelotti and his wards need to play at the maximum since Barça led by Xavi. , has not yet lost a single championship in the championship and has not seen a misfire for a long time.
And in general, City, which seems to be the favourite. It cannot be said that Guardiola had no problems with the formation, but the “citizens” in almost all lines were equipped at an extra level. Yes, Pep still needs a striker, but the “wrong nine” made a great game, plus he can be played by Gaby Jesus, Raheem Sterling and Phil Foden or even Bernardo Silva. Although the latter is needed in a different role.
Real Madrid has their own problems and the real problem is age. All team leaders except Vinicius Junior are very mature players. Thibaut Courtois is of course the perfect age for a goalkeeper, but Karim Benzema and Luka Modric are already over 70 for two.
And although this does not bother them at all, the “creamy” line of defense frankly does not correspond to the level of the club. In the semi-finals with Chelsea in overtime, the defensive foursome alongside David Alaba, with Marcelo and Lucas Vazquez on the sidelines, and Daniel Carvajal playing second centre. He has already visibly lost, but he has never played in this position, probably never in his life.
Yes, Eder Militao has served his sentence and his return to Alaba will strengthen Real Madrid, but problems remain around the corner. On the right, the tandem Carvajal – Vazquez does not inspire confidence, and on the left Ferland Mendy, as it turned out, can fail in the decisive game.
Real Madrid suffered through both stages of the playoffs. In both encounters, in the middle of the second half of the homecoming meeting, he was on the brink of a cliff. Yes, PSG and Chelsea are the biggest rivals. Yep, either way, the Ancelotti team respawned like a phoenix. But Man City is perhaps even stronger and it may not be possible to stand up for the third time with the order.
So the British still seem to be the favourites, but there is another factor. This is Guardiola’s perfectionism. In the decisive matches each year, City’s Catalan mentor comes up with some complex ideas for specific opponents and introduces them to the team during the weekly training cycle. And, as a rule, it spoils a perfectly working mechanism.
This has already happened many times, Guardiola himself jokes about it, but continues to walk on the rake.
Given the obvious fragility of Real Madrid with the undeniable class and character of the team that knows how to get out of desperate situations, the tendency to hit one of their pain points harder would be too big for Pep. Thomas Tuchel tried something similar in the first leg of the quarterfinals and Chelsea took 1-3 at Stamford Bridge.
All this was superimposed on Guardiola’s failures in the Champions League. He took this tournament three times with Barcelona, but after that he did not find success with Bayern or Man City, he seemed to have all the possibilities for it. He never made it to the finals with the Germans, took off in the semi-finals every time, and didn’t even make it to the semi-finals with the British until he got there last season. Then favorites City lost the final to Chelsea.
The opponent will be Ancelotti, who is not a tactician but can use his players’ strengths wisely and is also always on his side.
Overall, the duel between City and Real Madrid will be a clash not only between top-notch players, but also between coaching ideas and characters. Everything is so intense and difficult to predict that everyone can decide on some nuances and absolutely trivial things. But that makes it even more interesting.
At the same time, the confrontation may boil down to the fact that the “citizens” will have to stop the bond between Modric and Benzema, who has regained fantastic form and clearly goes to the Golden Ball. The British have a chance to run in his way.