“There is so much bloody soccer happening. Arsenal is awesome terrible awesome terrible. Bayern Munich just served up another reminder that we shouldn’t even bother watching any of its games until the Champions League semi-finals. José Mourinho is living out a terrible nightmare that will probably end in an eight-figure payout deal. Manchester United is…zzzzz. Let’s get to dumpster diving.” Fusion
“Atletico Madrid vs Valencia. Without a spare seat in the house, we were in for a real battle in what promised to be a mouthwatering clash between two historic Spanish giants that both came into this one having boasted wins in the Champions League days earlier. True to their trademark, the hosts were out of the blocks like greyhounds and within minutes Valencia goalkeeper Jaume Domenech was forced into several top drawer saves to keep Simeone’s men at bay. The heat was turned up further and Atletico’s Rojiblanco fans greeted every one of their player’s challenges with deafening cheers of encouragement which made for a ‘hairs on the back of the neck’ atmosphere in the famous Vicente Calderon stadium that lays beside the Manzanares river in the working class district of Arganzuela, south Madrid.” Outside of the Boot
“The highlight contest of MatchDay 11 was Saturday’s clash between Champions League clubs VfL Wolfsburg and Bayer 04 Leverkusen. With Bayern Munich dropping their first points of the Bundesliga season Friday in their 0-0 draw at Eintracht Frankfurt, there became the rare opportunity for Bundesliga title contenders/pretenders to make some ground on the record title-holders in Saturday’s matches, adding more importance to the clash of the Wolves and Die Werkself. It was VfL Wolfsburg, though, rebounding from a midweek Pokal loss from Bayern to down Bayer Leverkusen, taking care of business in garnering all three points in a 2-1 victory, gaining the third spot in the Bundesliga table in the process and demonstrating that success after the departure of Kevin De Bruyne can continue.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“Sooner or later, reality bites in football – especially for football clubs like Celta Vigo. Unbeaten in La Liga up to last Saturday, the humble Galician outfit had found themselves sharing top spot on merit with visitors Real Madrid. But sooner or later, despite your dash, your verve, your high intensity pressing, reality bites.” backpagefootball
“Arsenal have had a very indifferent start to their Champions League campaign, losing their opening two games. Doing that means that you need to pick up points against the third team, a simple enough task if the third team isn’t Bayern Munich. Having said that, Arsenal too came into this game in great form, with Sanchez and Ozil in great form. of course, Lewandowski and co. were looking intimidating as always, and that just set the stage for an epic clash.” Outside of the Boot.
“Traditionally, one would never expect a match between Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain to end scoreless. Symbolizing tradition and the concept of the nouveaux riches in European football, neither have been goal-shy over the past four seasons, and when the group stage draw was made for this year’s Champions’ League, the pair’s clashes on Matchdays 3 and 4 looked to be among the most tantalizing encounters. While some (though likely not readers of this site) would see a 0-0 scoreline and dismiss the match as having been dull and workmanlike, those who would will have missed out on a transcendent meeting between two sides hungry for European success.” Outside of the Boot
“Arsenal have had a very indifferent start to their Champions League campaign, losing their opening two games. Doing that means that you need to pick up points against the third team, a simple enough task if the third team isn’t Bayern Munich. Having said that, Arsenal too came into this game in great form, with Sanchez and Ozil in great form. of course, Lewandowski and co. were looking intimidating as always, and that just set the stage for an epic clash.” Outside of the Boot
“Paris Saint-Germain v Real Madrid ended goalless, Manchester City scored late to defeat Sevilla, and Galatasaray and Malmö earned long-awaited group victories.” UEFA
“Regardless of what happens today, yesterday’s 4-4 feast of a draw between Bayer Leverkusen and AS Roma at the BayArena is the match of the round. Perhaps feast is the wrong descriptor. Let’s try avant-garde installation piece instead. Adapting this descriptor instead, has avant-gardeism ever been so much fun? (Hmmmm.) Of course, all the fun should be attributed to Roger Schmidt’s vision and tactics for Tuesday’s match. For over a season now, in the Bundesliga, we’ve come to identify Schmidt’s hyper-pressing system at Leverkusen, which features an excessive number ball-seekers flooding forward to win back the ball quickly (a la Kloppian gegen-pressing) then flooding the width of the opponent’s box.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“For going on five years now, the world soccer hierarchy has looked like this: Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich … and then everybody else. So, as players return from the international break and domestic leagues resume play this weekend, it’s time to ask: Who exactly is the best of the rest? This season, three teams have the chief claims, but questions surrounding their legitimacy make the answer as unclear as ever.” Grantland
“Four-goal performances are the new hat tricks as Barcelona’s Neymar and Newcastle’s Georginio Wijnaldum both lit up Europe with their individual performances this weekend. Elsewhere, normal service resumed in England, where Jurgen Klopp’s time at Liverpool is underway, while there are managerial dilemmas to solve in Germany and Spain. Napoli continues to talk down its title chances in Italy, despite evidence to the contrary, while in France actions off the pitch seized the most attention.” SI
“Arsenal, Shakhtar Donetsk, Borussia Mönchengladbach, Malmö and Maccabi Tel-Aviv have the unwanted tally of zero points from two UEFA Champions League games – but their hopes have not completely died. This is the 13th season since the current UEFA Champions League format of eight groups leading to a knockout round of 16 was introduced in 2003/04. In the first 12 campaigns, 68 teams lost their opening two matches; yet of those, six still made it through to the next stage, one actually topping their group. Our graphic explains how many sides have gone through or been eliminated after having each of the six possible points’ totals following matchday two – while beneath we chronicle the six clubs that shook off the worst possible start to earn a knockout berth.” UEFA
“Through the first five matches of the Bundesliga season, Borussia Dortmund held the best record in the league, having scored more goals than even Bayern Munich. That streak ended with two straight draws, but it doesn’t take away from BVB’s impressive resurgence under 42-year-old new manager Thomas Tuchel. Tuchel studied under Pep Guardiola during his own sabbatical after resigning from Mainz in 2014, and on Sunday, they go head-to-head in their first Klassiker. Tuchel based his style of play at Dortmund on the same system Guardiola has used since his days at Barcelona.” SI
“Losing Messi to a knee injury, football fans wanted to know how Barcelona would respond to the absence of a player of such quality. And through the first half, Barcelona was certainly not the better side. Bayer Leverkusen not only produced the majority of opportunities in the first 45 but looked the more spirited and in step of the two teams. But, Barcelona showed resolve and let fans know that one player does not make a championship team. With a gritty second half performance, they showed that they still had enough talent to find a way to net two in the last ten minutes of the game and secured the three points.” Outside of the Boot
“5-0 win over Dinamo Zagreb. After defeats for Arsenal and Chelsea on Tuesday, Wednesday wins for Manchester City and Manchester United see three Premier League players make the XI. And Cristiano Ronaldo – who extended his lead at the top of the all-time Champions League goalscoring charts with two more for Real Madrid – keeps his place.” BBC
“The appointment of Rudi Garcia as manager for AS Roma signaled a change in fortune for the Italian capital club. Garcia joined Roma from Lille after his 2011 exploits won them their first Ligue 1 title since 1954. They were by far the most exciting team to watch in France with an abundance of attacking talent in a fast paced and zippy 4-3-3 formation. With Hazard and Gervinho flanking Moussa Sow, they resembled a French version of the mighty Barcelona.” Outside of the Boot
“Chelsea face Porto in the Champions League on Tuesday, which means an emotional return to the club for José Mourinho. As Jonathan Wilson explains, a lot has happened since the Portuguese left the club in 2004 – but many of Mourinho’s underlying principles and approaches have remained unchanged since those formative years” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
“At first glance, there’s really not a lot of similarity between war-torn Donetsk, debt-ridden Porto and metropolitan Lyon. The urban trio are not the surprise frontrunners for European city of culture, nominated by a hipster whose concerns are more esoteric than realistic, nor are they the latest cities to be twinned with Slough, a dystopia desperate to ship its industrial reputation for a bright European future. The answer, in truth, lies with three men you’ve likely never heard of.” backpagefootball
“The team is funded by income from oil and natural gas interests. Its players have been seduced by high salaries to join the squad. Part of the team’s reason for being is to attract visitors to its country. In fact, the country’s president founded the club’s umbrella organization.” Fusion
“At halftime on Tuesday night, Wolfsburg led Bayern Munich 1-0. It had defended well, looked dangerous on the counterattack and seemed that it might, for the first time in its history, win at Bayern. Pep Guardiola made two changes at the break, bringing on Javi Martinez for Juan Bernat and Robert Lewandowski for Thiago Alcantara. Six minutes later, Lewandowski equalized, rolling in a half-blocked shot at the back post. A minute later, surging through the middle, he dispatched a fierce low shot into the bottom corner from just outside the box. Three minutes after that, he hit the post, then drew a save from Diego Benaglio and then, at the third attempt, completed his hat trick. Two minutes after that, he rammed in a volley at slightly higher than waist height, contorting superbly to keep his weight over the ball. And two minutes after that, hooking the ball from behind him, he lashed in a side volley from the edge of the box. Five goals, three of them in stunning quality, in the space of nine minutes.” SI – Jonathan Wilson
Four Incredible Things That Happened in Bayern Munich–Wolfsburg BESIDES Robert Lewandowski’s Five Goals
“Yesterday, in the Bundesliga, Bayern Munich found themselves in an unfamiliar position: They were losing. This usually isn’t the end of the world for a team, especially one as good as the defending champions, but Bayern happen to be locked in what will likely be the most entertaining title race in club football this season. Bayern and their rivals Borussia Dortmund — who might be playing the most effervescent version of the sport right now — are steamrolling the competition, winning their matches and winning them big. Every game counts. Every goal counts. The entire league might be decided by the two matches that Dortmund and Bayern play against one another and how many goals they score throughout the season. Bayern losing to Wolfsburg, at home no less, was not on the menu.” Grantland (Video)
“Barcelona suffered a big shock and Juventus stuttered again while Real Madrid and Lyon impressed. We round up how the group stage contenders got on in Wednesday’s action.” UEFA
“Manchester City, still undefeated and yet to concede a goal prior to Juventus match, had nothing to change in its strategy and Manuel Pellegrini approached the game with a 4-4-2 formation. Juventus, who have not yet tasted victory in Serie A this term, focused more or the defensive structure. Massimiliano Allegri adopted a 4-3-3 formation and Juventus were changing regularly to 4-5-1 when out of possession.” Outside of the Boot
“A brilliant goal from Alessandro Florenzi earned Roma a 1-1 draw against Barcelona in the highest-profile clash on the second half of Matchday One of the Champions League, while there was further disappointment for the Premier League as Arsenal was beaten away to Dinamo Zagreb, 2-1. Chelsea, though, did record a comfortable victory, 4-0 over Maccabi Tel Aviv to relieve some of the mounting pressure on Jose Mourinho, while there were a pair of comfortable wins for the two Bundesliga sides in action: Bayern Munich winning 3-0 away to Olympiakos and Bayer Leverkusen thumping BATE Borisov 4-1 at home.” SI – Jonathan Wilson
“Last season Juventus had one of the best seasons in their history, winning a fourth consecutive Serie A title, the Coppa Italia and coming only a step away from Champions League glory. The Bianconeri midfield was pivotal in their success: Andrea Pirlo led the likes of Pogba, Marchisio and Vidal, all definitively consecrated as world-class midfielders.” Outside of the Boot
“In a game with several plot lines— Memphis’ return to PSV, Luke Shaw’s injury, Martial getting his first start after a great debut, Wayne Rooney’s injury prohibiting him from playing, as well as PSV’s coach, Phillip Cocu, a former player under Van Gaal, the three goals all being scored between the 40th and 60th minutes were just another piece of an already interesting game.” Outside of the Boot
“The Champions League is here! And we’re so excited we’ll say it again: The Champions League is here! Starting today, the best of Europe’s best will square off every few weeks until the final on May 28 in Milan. Well, at least, that’s what is supposed to happen: For a quartet of qualifiers from the continent’s top four leagues, the first month and a half of the season has gone just about as poorly as anyone could’ve imagined. And as if to prove the validity of the cliché ‘misery loves company,’ three of them are in the same group. Let’s take a look at how worried each team should be.” Grantland
“In beating APOEL Nicosia 2-1 on aggregate, FC Astana have become the first team from the former Soviet Union state of Kazakhstan to qualify for the group stages of the Champions League. The Kazakhstanis beat Maribor of Solvenia, HJK Helsinki of Finland and Cypriots APOEL on their way to the group stages for their maiden season with Europe’s elite after being drawn against Atlético Madrid, Galatasaray and Benfica in an almost impossible Group C.” backpagefootball
“Bayern made it three wins from three in the weekend’s top game as they downed Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 at the Allianz Arena. Thomas Müller was the hero with a brace, while Arjen Robben added a third. It was a case of Leverkusen being good, but Bayern being exceedingly good. What do you do when you’ve got your two first-choice centre-backs out? Well if you’re Pep Guardiola you just fill your side with midfielders. With both Mehdi Benatia and Jerome Boateng missing, the Bayern trainer went with a three-man back line of Philipp Lahm, David Alaba and Juan Bernat with Thiago playing just in front.” Bundesliga Fanatic
Tactical Notes on Saturday’s Bayern Munich – Bayer Leverkusen Match
“MatchDay 3’s game of the week fixture featured two (of three) Bundesliga clubs with perfect records after two weeks, as holders FC Bayern Munich hosted Bayer 04 Leverkusen. In terms of squad strength, each club was short-handed, as Bayern were without much in the way of available defenders while Leverkusen’s attacking midfielder, Heung-Min Son, just signed a deal with Tottenham. Nevertheless, Bayern were able to prevail, downing Die Werkself 3-0.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“It was a busy weekend across Europe, with Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich winning, Roma shocking Juventus and transfers galore. But what are the stories you might have missed? Several former Premier League strikers on the scoresheet, freak goals and stadium problems and more – BBC Sport takes a look.” BBC
“There was a twist to the Champions League group stage draw in Monaco Thursday. UEFA’s new seeding regulations meant that only reigning champions would be picked from Pot 1, leaving some dangerous contenders in the lower pots. And so it proved, as Manchester City was drawn with Juventus and Sevilla while Real Madrid drew Paris Saint-Germain and Shakhtar Donetsk. The draw resulted in some intriguing individual storylines, powerhouses going up against one another and the first steps on the road to the San Siro.” SI (Video)
“In the minutes after Celtic’s lame exit from the Champions League, the mixed zone at the Swedbank Stadium was like a hospital ward for damaged footballers. The visiting team trooped in with their pride hurting not just because of what their driven opponents from Malmo had just done to them but by what their own manager had said about them. When Ronny Deila accused his team of being ‘scared’ and ‘frightened’ on the night, it was as firm a kick to their collective solar plexus as anything the Swedes visited upon them.” BBC
“José Mourinho is a manager who thrives on conflict, someone who is never happy unless there is something to be unhappy about. Or at least to pretend to be unhappy about. ‘Mourinho,’ as Manchester City’s chief executive, Ferran Soriano, said when explaining why Barcelona opted for Pep Guardiola in 2008, ‘is a winner, but in order to win he guarantees a level of tension that becomes a problem.’ Tension is simply how he operates. If it isn’t there, he has to create it and he isn’t too bothered whom he hurts in doing so.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
“The high point was also the tipping point. The slow and torturous decline began almost at the very moment 18-year-old Patrick Kluivert’s 84th-minute toe-poke skittered past Sebastiano Rossi and into AC Milan’s net to win the 1994-95 Champions League, whereupon the teenaged striker wheeled away as he twisted his jersey around on his torso so everybody could see real well.” Fusion (Video)
“So Celtic duly won their fourth consecutive Scottish League title in May in their first season under young Norwegian manager Ronny Deila, who had replaced the very successful Neil Lennon the previous summer. Despite this fine achievement, there was also disappointment, as the famous Glasgow club failed to qualify for the group stages of the Champions League, even though they had two bites at the cherry, having been reprieved after Legia Warsaw fielded an ineligible player, only to crash out against Slovenian champions Maribor. This was in stark contrast to previous great nights in Europe. As recently as November 2012, Celtic beat Barcelona 2-1 in front of a packed Celtic Park, as they made their way to the last 16 of the Champions League. Many believed that this would be the platform for greater things, but the club has not progressed since then, as they did not make the best use of the European cash windfall. Instead, they sold three key players at the end of that season (Victor Wanyama, Gary Hooper and Kelvin Wilson) and failed to adequately replace them.” The Swiss Ramble
“Barcelona won the European Cup – and completed a treble for the second time in seven years – with a 3-1 victory over Italian champions Juventus. There were no surprises on Luis Enrique’s teamsheet. Andres Iniesta had been the only slight injury doubt, but he was fit to start and wore the captain’s armband. Luis Enrique continued with his policy of using his reserve goalkeeper in cup competitions, which meant Marc-Andre ter Stegen started on home soil, with Claudio Bravo on the bench.” Zonal Marking
“Thanks to Sepp Blatter, the FBI, a hastily called FIFA press conference, and years and years of unchecked corruption, the state of the game has been the talk of the soccer town this week. Of course, none of that talk has anything to do with, well, the way soccer is played on the field. Thankfully, tomorrow we get the biggest (men’s) soccer game of the year: the Champions League final between Barcelona and Juventus. With championship games, there’s always a temptation to turn the result into a referendum after the fact, to take what happened in the final and retroactively apply it to the season gone by. But if Barcelona lose tomorrow despite their status as heavy favorites, it doesn’t mean they were any less dominant for the six months prior, and if Juventus get blown out, that doesn’t make their unlikely finals run any less meaningful. It’s not the final game that makes the trend; it’s everything leading up to it.” Grantland
How do Juventus stop Lionel Messi and Barcelona’s front three?
“It’s a question that opponents have been asking since the four-year-old Lionel Messi first wandered on to a dusty pitch in the Rosário suburb of Grandoli, nudged the ball in front of him and set off on a slaloming gambeta that took him past three players. How do you stop him? Before the semi-final Pep Guardiola, who perhaps knows his game as well as anybody, admitted that you just couldn’t. As Messi demonstrated against Athletic Bilbao in last Saturday’s Copa del Rey final, when he’s in the sort of form he is in at the moment, even surrounding him with three players and placing another three between him and the goal isn’t enough. So what do Juventus do?” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
Vintage Barcelona display suggests Champions League legacy has a future
“The holy grail of becoming the first team to retain the Champions League remains unclaimed but this Barcelona, after winning a third European title in seven years on Saturday, can surely be regarded now as not merely a great team but a great dynasty. This Barça perhaps now stand comparison with the Real Madrid team that won the first five European Cups. That is not to say that winning three times in seven years with three semi-final appearances is greater than winning five in a row, it’s to say that the core of this Barça side has remained more consistent than the core of that Madrid one; that – remarkably in this age of transfer-market frenzy – this Barcelona have managed to keep winning with essentially the same players.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
Tactical Analysis: Juventus 1-3 Barcelona | Barcelona’s quality, and poor positioning from Juventus make the difference
“We all waited for this fantastic evening, and what a game it was. Barcelona took on the lead very early after a pretty shaky period for Juventus, thanks to the man of the match, Iniesta who found Rakitic with a cut-back pass into the penalty-spot. Juventus did eventually shake things up and did also find the equalizer to keep the final dramatic enough, but with the attacking-trio of Barcelona, Juventus proved to be too vulnerable to direct counter-attacks.” Outside of the Boot
4 Champions League Final Storylines – and How Messi’s Presence Could Make Them Irrelevant
“In coming up with an angle for writing this, I was conflicted. On one hand, there are an exorbitant number of spectacular storylines for Saturday’s Champions League Final. When this many legends-in-the-making take the pitch at once, there are bound to be more than a few fascinating plot points. But then I kept coming back to one thing: Lionel Messi will be on the field. I’m going to run through four of the most interesting storylines for Barcelona vs. Juventus on Saturday, and then I will get to Messi. As you read them, just remember the presence of that diminutive Argentine could render all of them basically irrelevant. Here we go.” Soccer Pro
Europe’s best, Barcelona finishes treble run with 3-1 win over Juventus
“Barcelona capped an incredible season with a 3-1 win over Juventus in the Champions League final on Saturday, sealing a treble of trophies and ending the 2014-2015 European soccer season on an exciting high note. Ivan Rakitic opened the scoring in the fourth minute with the fourth-fastest goal in a Champions League final, and it looked like Barcelona would ease to the title. But Gianluigi Buffon made a number of clutch saves, and Alvaro Morata, the former Real Madrid striker, found an equalizer in the 55th minute, finishing off a rebound from a Carlos Tevez saved shot. Luis Suárez scored the eventual winner 13 minutes later, though, and Neymar, who earlier had what he thought was Barca’s third goal ruled out for a handball, tallied the insurance goal with the last kick of the game.” SI
How Barcelona’s tactics helped it beat Juventus in Champions League final
“As long as it played to its capabilities, Barcelona always seemed likely to win the Champions League final against Juventus on Saturday. It did just that, taking its fifth European Cup with a 3-1 victory while controlling most of the match with its flexible possession. Barcelona’s unchanged lineup set out in its traditional 4-3-3 system. Neymar played wider than Lionel Messi, who cut inside as a situational No. 10. A relatively flat line of three in midfield filled in the front line’s gaps, and the fullbacks also provided width when the forwards tucked in.” SI
“Mixing misfits is an art, and the Old Lady is ready to show off her collection. She’s been welcoming in the young, the old and the unwanted for years, but she’s now grown a bit more discerning, and the result is a Juventus side set to challenge for the UEFA Champions League trophy. It’s not a lack of money that’s kept Juventus from splashing out on flashy buys. It’s now one of the 10 richest soccer clubs in the world, valued at $837 million. The club’s ownership of Juventus Stadium, a rarity in Italy, has dramatically increased its matchday takings, and having the biggest share of the Serie A broadcasting pie adds to its revenue. But Juventus still operates as though it’s on the verge of losing money, with a smaller budget than that of even West Ham United.” Fusion
Juventus’ possible defensive formation.
“Luis Enrique declared hunting season open in the first week of November and it lasted well into the new year. Barcelona had just been beaten at home by Celta de Vigo, the first time the Galicians had ever won at the Camp Nou, and the Catalans’ coach, who had watched the criticism grow almost from the start, sarcastically foresaw a ‘nice week’ ahead. As it turned out, that was optimistic: it was more than a week and it would get a whole lot ‘nicer’. A 0-0 draw with Getafe followed in December and when 2015 opened with a 1-0 defeat at Real Sociedad, a crisis opened.” Guardian
UEFA Champions League Final: How will the teams tactically set-out?
“We have now finally come to the final stage of the Champions League, with a team that has not been good enough in the past few editions of the Champions League in Juventus, and Barcelona, who also started off this season with problems as well on and off the pitch, with an apparent rift between Messi and Enrique, but after the defeat against Moyes’ Real Sociedad, has transformed into an unstoppable team, not losing a single game. If we could separate these teams in any way, than that would without doubt be on the basis of style of play. The percentage of the ball-possession that Barcelona has in a game on average (this season) is 62 % while on the other hand you have Juventus with 52 %.” Outside of the Boot
Juventus and their Champions League conquest
“For the first time since 2003, the black and blue striped jerseys of Juventus FC, will be seen in the Champions League Final, which this year will be held at the Olympiastadion in Berlin. On June 6, Gianluigi Buffon will have the chance to lift the trophy for the first time in his career and there is no better time than right now for him and Juventus to win the Holy Grail. After many years of failure in Europe, Juventus have finally made it to the big time. What has changed? What finally made the Old Lady sing in tune? To start off, we must address what makes Juventus such a difficult team to beat. What cannot be denied, is their defensive prowess, composure and organisation.” backpagefootball
Find a Free Pirlo: How Juventus Built a Champions League Finalist on a Budget
“Why are Juventus in the Champions League final? The short answer is Paul Pogba, the guy who might just be the best player in the world not named ‘Lionel Messi’ or ‘Cristiano Ronaldo.’ After joining Manchester United at 16, Pogba’s relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson soured over a lack of playing time. He left on a free transfer,1 signed with Juventus, and, three years later, here they are: one win away from a treble. Of course, the longer answer is, well, longer. But Pogba’s move is of a piece with an approach that built a team capable of overcoming plenty of more expensive teams.” Grantland
“The shadow of Pep Guardiola still hangs over everything that happens at FC Barcelona, and for good reason. In 2009, Guardiola’s first season as manager, the club won the treble — league, league cup, and Champions League. It went on to win another two league titles, one more league cup, and one more Champions League trophy during Pep’s four years in charge. Quite simply, his Barca side, with their sustained dominance and signature quick-passing style, are the defining team of the 21st century.” Grantland
“Carlo Ancelotti is in no rush to take off his shoes, roll up his trousers and go paddling in the Mediterranean Sea. ‘I am not in a hurry to go on holiday,’ he said on Friday as he pondered a meeting with Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez next week. ‘Madrid is a holiday city, I can stay here.’ Many expect those talks with El Real’s president to end with Ancelotti being asked to clear out his office at Valdebebas. Thanks for the Champions League last season, Carlo, but it’s probably best if you go and get a job somewhere else now.” Fusion
“The recriminations from Bayern Munich’s Champions League semifinal exit at the hands of Barcelona are unlikely to be short-lived. For the second year in a row, Pep Guardiola’s side have come up short against Spanish opposition in the last four. In 2014, Bayern were beaten 5-0 on aggregate by Real Madrid, which included a humbling 4-0 defeat at the Allianz Arena. This season, it was a 5-3 aggregate defeat against Barcelona, although the tie was effectively over after the first leg when the Spanish champions-elect scored three times in the final 15 minutes.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“‘Good artists copy, great artists steal.’ The quote by Picasso should tell you that great people don’t just come up with great ideas, but take all the best ideas from the greatest minds and apply them to their own visions. There are many in the game with the opinion that Pep has taken Bayern backwards and is not a great manager – inheriting two great squads. The recent first leg loss to Barcelona may have hurt Guardiola. It would be naïve to call his tactics naïve but they were certainly found out by the pace of Barca’s attack and the sheer class of Lionel Messi. However, the second leg showed more of what Guardiola is about. And, if the team’s defending hadn’t been so sloppy, they may very well have got back into the tie.” Outside of the Boot
“It’s hard to believe that only four years ago AC Milan secured their 18th Scudetto. Even harder to believe that it was just a year before that Internazionale were on the verge of completing an unprecedented Treble of league title, European Cup and Coppa Italia. Today both Milan clubs languish in midtable obscurity, the recent scoreless draw between the clubs highlighting the lack of spark in either team. Milan are as close in points to relegation as they are to a Champions League spot. How they have reached this point could be a blueprint on how not to use your transfer funds.” backpagefootball
“FC Barcelona is on the verge of winning the treble, while Real Madrid will end the year without a major trophy. Last year, Real Madrid was the champion of Europe while Barça was trophy-less. What the hell happened? Why is it that two teams that seemingly play the same exact formation can have such wildly different outcomes? In Spain, there has been a lot of debate about whether Real Madrid’s 4-3-3 formation is feasible. Proponents say something like ‘Look at Barça! It plays the same way and also has three superstars up front, and it makes it work!’” Fusion
“Juventus qualified for the European Cup final with a 3-2 aggregate victory. Carlo Ancelotti surprisingly dropped Pepe and shifted Sergio Ramos back into his favoured centre-back position, after an unsuccessful stint in midfield during the first leg. Upfront, Karim Benzema was fit to return, and otherwise it was Real’s expected side, with Marcelo and Dani Carvajal returning having been rested for the weekend draw with Valencia.” Zonal Marking
Tactical Analysis: Real Madrid 2-2 Valencia | Valencia’s counter attacks and Real’s positional play
“The last clash between the teams ended in a 2-1 win for Valencia. This time in the Santiago Bernabeu, things didn’t quite turn out the way Ancelotti would have want them too either, as Real were down by 0-2 after just 30 minutes of the game. Thanks to a much better performance in the 2nd half, Real managed a draw courtesy a stunner from Isco, which was also the last goal to be scored ending the game at 2-2.” Outside of the Boot
“If you’re reading this, you don’t need to be informed of the magnitude of the Barcelona – Bayern Munich Champions League semi-final. There were all kinds of storylines and sub-plots to the actual game. Most of them involved Pep Guardiola. It was Pep versus Messi, Pep versus his old club and his old teammate Luis Enrique, then you had Pep versus the machine he had created and every other storyline in between. That was why it was no suprise that Pep started the game in what might be described as an altenative style of play against a team like Barcelona. Guardiola is considered a visionary and the high intensity press that Bayern started with was emblametic of Pep’s thinking. It didn’t work though.” Outside of the Boot
Guardiola’s gambles put Bayern in hole in nightmare Camp Nou return
“That was what Guardiola had said of Lionel Messi before Wednesday’s Champions League semifinal between Barcelona and Bayern Munich, but to suggest the match simply bore that out would be too simplistic. To begin with, there was that extraordinary first 16 minutes when Guardiola played a man-marking back three against Neymar, Luis Suarez and Messi. It was perhaps the boldest, most startling defensive gambit in the history of the Champions League, and it may have consequences for Guardiola.” SI – Jonathan Wilson
“This season’s Champions League semifinals don’t feature the four most outstanding goalkeepers, defenders, wingers or strikers in the world, but it’s difficult to argue with the selection of deep-lying midfielders. In Sergio Busquets, Andrea Pirlo, Xabi Alonso and Toni Kroos, we’re being treated to an exhibition of probably the world’s four most revered footballers in that role. Between them, the quartet have won the last three World Cups and seven of the last 12 Champions League titles. More crucially, in different ways, they’ve helped redefine the nature of their position.” ESPN – Michael Cox
“Three-quarters of the way into the opening leg of their Champions’ League semifinal in Barcelona, FC Bayern looked good to take a decent result with them to Bavaria. All seemed well as Pep Guardiola’s side had kept out everything their opponent could throw at them as the clock ticked past the seventy-five minute mark. Then . . . two crushing blows in the space of three minutes turned the tie on its head, with a crippling – and completely avoidable – third goal coming in injury time. In truth, all three goals were avoidable in a game that had looked so good until the wheels came dramatically spinning off on what was a warm, late-spring evening on the Mediterranean coast.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“In the build-up to Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final first leg, Jonathan Wilson analyses how Bayern Munich and Barcelona have changed since they last met in 2013; how Pep Guardiola might set up his team and who will he play up front if Robert Lewandowski doesn’t make it; and how Barcelona have evolved under Luis Enrique from the team that Pep built” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
“The biggest event on the footballing calendar is drawing close, and we’re at the last stop on the road to Berlin. With excitement coming close to fever pitch, we at Outside of the Boot decided to get a closer look at the challenges and opportunities each team will face at this stage. Here are the opinions of one of our writers.” Outside of the Boot
Champions League Semi Final: The Bayern Munich perspective Outside of the Boot
“Short of confidence, no real impact and without a shot on goal to his name, Gareth Bale cut a disappointing figure during Real Madrid’s 2-1 defeat at Juventus. The fit-again 25-year-old Wales forward was eventually substituted after 86 minutes, his performance in the first leg of this Champions League semi-final drawing criticism from both Spanish and British media.” BBC
“The list of achievement is impressive: a penalty decider in the thrilling Pokal shootout against Leverkusen, an away goal in Porto keeping Bayern’s UCL hopes alive, and finally the opener in Bayern’s 6-1 dismantling of FC Porto. These key moments make Thiago Alcantara’s return to Bayern’s starting lineup appear perfect. Doubts about the Spaniard lengthy injury exodus and wider future have quickly disappeared. According to this convention thinking, Thiago’s arrival back on the field has been a combination of perfect timing brilliant football. But a question can be posed, is this conventional thinking true?” Bundesliga Fanatic
“Early Friday morning, the news that many wanted to hear (and some of us feared) was officially announced: FC Barcelona will face Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-final. The two-leg match, which is set to be played in Barcelona on May 6th and in the Allianz Arena on May 12th, will be the most anticipated clash of the season, and will signal the return of Pep Guardiola, Barça’s most accomplished and prolific manager, the man who perfected Cruyff’s tiki-taka style of play, to the Camp Nou.” Barca Blaugranes
“Todern football was invented in Barcelona in the mid-90s. Of this season’s Champions League quarter-finalists, four sides are managed by players who turned out for Barça in 1996: Pep Guardiola, Luis Enrique, Julen Lopetegui and Laurent Blanc. Within a couple of years, they had been joined by Frank de Boer and Phillip Cocu as well as the coach, Louis van Gaal, and his assistant, Ronald Koeman. In slightly differing ways, the eight are apostles for the Barcelona way – or, more accurately, given the influence of Ajax on that style, the Barçajax way. However, there was another presence there, initially as a translator and then as a coach. In the Barçocracy of modern football, there is a fallen angel.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
“The Champions League semifinal draw was conducted Friday and while the names may be familiar, the opportunity for new storylines to arise is bountiful. There will be reunions for coaches and a chance to avenge previous defeats, and, with three teams still dreaming of clinching a European, league title and domestic cup treble, plenty at stake.” SI
“Javier Hernandez struck in the 178th of the 180 minutes in this European Cup quarter-final, but Real had been the better side throughout. Carlo Ancelotti had a mini-injury crisis, with Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale, Luka Modric and Marcelo all out. This meant Javier Hernandez, Fabio Coentrao and Isco were all recalled, although the replacement for Modric was more surprising – Sergio Ramos was fielded in the middle alongside Toni Kroos, as Ancelotti’s system was more 4-4-2, or 4-2-2-2, than 4-3-3.” Zonal Marking
We Can Play Defense, Too: Real Madrid Bring a Katana to Atlético Madrid’s Knife Fight
“The eighth Madrid derby of the season was not for the faint of heart, but they never are. So what gave? While it took until the 87th minute, Carlo Ancelotti found a way to beat his crosstown rivals for the first time this year. Why was Real Madrid able to win a match that was less a soccer game and more a late ’90s brawl between the New York Knicks and Miami Heat? It probably has something to do with this: Real scrapped their pretty attacking approach and got down and dirty with some defense.” Grantland
“As we told you a few weeks ago, the drama’s all but gone from the major domestic leagues across Europe. Thankfully, the Champions League is here to save us. The quarterfinals of soccer’s greatest annual competition kick off today with Atlético Madrid hosting Real Madrid in a rematch of last year’s final and Monaco traveling to Juventus. Tomorrow, FC Porto welcomes Bayern Munich and Barcelona visits Paris Saint-Germain.” Grantland
“The two teams that met in the one of the most charged local derbies of all time in the Champions League final of last season clashed again on the European stage in the quarter final this time around. Last season was the breakout year for Atletico, as they won La Liga, and went all the way to the Champions League final. That, however, was where it ended for them, with their eternal rivals Real Madrid beating them in heart breaking fashion to lift La Decima. This season was a totally different story though, with the European champions failing to record a single victory over their rivals. Both sides came into the game pretty evenly matched, and left quite the same.” Outside of the Boot
“‘Luis Suárez did what he does best,’ sighed Edinson Cavani, fresh from watching his Uruguay team-mate score a pair of magnificent goals at the Parc des Princes. The forwards had just experienced wildly contrasting evenings, but even the crestfallen Cavani had to admire the way his international colleague had put FC Barcelona on the brink of the UEFA Champions League semi-finals with a 3-1 win at Paris Saint-Germain.” UEFA (Video)
“As the full-time whistle sounded, the fans at Juventus Stadium were happy. Their beloved Bianconeri had just claimed a 1-0 win over Monaco, in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final, and as they gazed down from the steep stands to watch their idols shake hands with the opposition, there was a sense that the tie was theirs to lose. And that feeling was justified, too. Juventus probably shaded the contest on home soil, kept a clean sheet and head into the away leg knowing that, despite Monaco’s lofty third-place standing in Ligue 1, the club’s home form is only the ninth-best in France. It’s not a fantastic record, and Monaco’s six wins in 16 appearances at the Stade Louis II will hardly make Max Allegri’s men feel as though they’re visiting a fortress.” Licence to Roam
Scissors Kick 