(ESP-ENG) Inglaterra y la Champions, sin entendimiento!
Hello friends, good vibes to all.
This week ended the first round of the round of 16 of this Champions League, some first leg matches that looked to be very interesting and indeed they were. We saw several teams that are going through complicated situations in their domestic leagues to the point that winning in this competition was an obligation and a necessity, there was no room for mistakes. Teams like Madrid, Liverpool and even City, despite being among the European horses, are clubs that are not in their best form, or at least that's how I see it, they are being very inconsistent, some in results and the vast majority in the way they play. That changed this week, one of them shut their mouths in a resounding way while the other two remain a sea of doubts.
Real Madrid vs Liverpool. An early final perhaps from other times, two teams that have a gigantic history in Europe met at Anfield in order to take an important step towards the quarterfinals and of course to dispel some of the fog that may be around them. Madrid comes from being world champion after winning the Club World Cup and it is being seen that in La Liga they are still on a good pace but still far from Barcelona, they have a two-game winning streak and are waiting for Saturday in what will be the derby of the capital. On the other hand, Liverpool is in a similar situation, with a two-game winning streak in the Premier League, climbing two places in the standings to eighth but still far from the level of past seasons.
I honestly had high expectations because I knew that this match was going to be complicated and colorful, I was a little wrong with the first but definitely not with the second. The game started and I realized that the English came out hungry, they went out to kill and kill an early game with high pressure and cornering a Madrid that seemed to have stayed in the locker room. And it was so much that in the fourth minute, thanks to a surgical pass from Salah, the Uruguayan Darwin Núñez made a genius and took the ball to the back of the net. The Reds' desire materialized and the outlook was already dark for the Whites, the momentum continued and once again thanks to a very high pressure, the second goal came from a rookie mistake by Courtois, a bad handling of the ball was taken advantage of by the Egyptian to sentence, or so one thought, the 2-0 on the scoreboard.
But friends, Madrid should never be left for dead in life and even less so in this competition, one that in an inexplicable way has a perfect and golden relationship with the Merengues. There was something that caught my attention and that is that when they were down on the scoreboard, the Spaniards continued to play calmly, with great composure and keeping their cool, I think this is the work of Ancelotti, and it is something that is not often seen but it seems to be the secret formula of this team. The thing is that Liverpool's good play continued or at least they kept some control until around the 20th minute when Vini Jr. scored a goal to be framed, I'm still trying to figure out how he could hit it that way when he was marked as he was. Ten minutes later, this time thanks to a childish mistake by Alisson Becker, the Brazilian striker would score again what would be the equalizer. 2-2 and Madrid revived, 2-2 and Madrid was not dead.
With that, the first half ended and the second half arrived, a second that would be the worst nightmare for Klopp's team. I say this because as soon as they came on the field, Militao scored the third goal, which for me was the final sentence for Liverpool. One of their problems is defensive, Joe Gomez (I repeat) is a hole, this player is not at the level to play in a first team as big as Liverpool, his mistakes are very big and obvious. And if we add to this that Van Dijk is also not at the level we are used to, it is very obvious that this defense is a sieve. From this point on it was all Madrid, the Whites did what they wanted, they managed the game as they pleased, Benzema, who was a doubt, had the luxury of scoring a brace; everything went perfectly for the Spaniards.
Why does this happen? - Because like it or not, Madrid is a club of hierarchy and of those who grow in the face of adversity, sometimes things work out for them, sometimes they don't, but in the end it is what it is. 5-2 in a match that in its first twenty minutes looked like it would be a massacre by Liverpool. The Whites played at ease and dominated an English team with no soul, many talk about injuries but the one I see that can make the difference and is still not here is Luis Diaz, maybe Konaté should be included as well. But well, another English club that succumbs in these round of 16 because City was on the verge of doing it too and thanks to I don't know what they were saved from losing to a worthy and very good Leipzig team.
The team led by Guardiola is not going through a crisis of results but of effectiveness and play. They are in second place in the Premier League and have won three of their last five games. If there is an inconsistent team it is them and the best proof of that was yesterday's match against the Germans. A Leipzig team that actually comes in a decent form, yes, they are fifth in the Bundesliga but 4 points behind the leader. City arrived with the intention of getting the better of this visit to finish the job in the return leg at the Etihad but they were faced with a well-stopped team. The match started with the ball at City's feet but without generating any danger, it was a sterile possession, I find it hard to believe that such a team with such offensive power was not able to be more dangerous.
Haaland has a "problem" and I put it in quotation marks because to say that a monster like him is not capable of doing something well is risky but yes, he has a detail in his game. He is a pure 9, a penalty box player, a predator but when it comes to going down to look for the ball, to play as a pivot, to invent his own chances, as Benzema can do for example, he is not as efficient. I'm not saying that this is something serious because each player is the way he is and has his own characteristics but it is true that City could use a player like this because they currently don't have one. Bernardo Silva for me was the best yesterday, the way he handles and drives the ball and even the game is amazing but it was not enough.
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Then, the first half would belong to the English team, who through Mahrez would score the first goal for the citizens thanks to a right-footed shot that beat Blaswich to go to the break with a minimal victory. City would be far from having resolved the match as in the second half the roles would change, Leipzig would take total and absolute control of the game to the point that they generated much more danger than City and had the opportunity to have gone away with a victory. Gvardiol would be in charge of the equalizer with a header from a corner. If you ask me, the Germans played better, were more incisive, had the ball better, were clearer and almost completely annulled Manchester City. Another English team that did not lose but showed that England is struggling with this Champions League.
¡Un abrazo a todos, nos leemos en la próxima!
Well my people that's all for today, I hope you liked it.
¡Hugs to all, see you next time!
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Creo que pocos hubiesen apostado por una caída general de los británicos en ésta primera vuelta. Incluso, algunos de ellos se vieron en muy mala posición para sacar adelante ahora su eliminatoria. Estará complicado para algunos, quienes irán a terreno hostíl para vuelta. Para nosotros, nos brindará más espectáculo. Saludos @javyeslava.photo
El que más complicado la tiene sin dudas es el Liverpool porque tanto el Chelsea como el City y el mismo Tottenham tienen chance aún. Pero es lo que dices, creo que será un buen ingrediente la urgencia de esos equipos para un buen espectáculo.
Saludos amigo!
Yo también tenía altas expectativas, además con ese comienzo del Liverpool, pensé que podrían golear o que el Madrid colocará el resultado en un partidazo. Pues, también me equivoqué, Real Madrid simplemente hizo el juego de un solo lado, no entiendo que pase con el Liverpool, pero seguramente Kloop termine saliendo del equipo.
Lo que menciona de Haaland, lo comparto contigo, justo en el juego, dijeron una estadística importante y que recalca eso. Este jugador toca en promedio 17 veces la pelota por juego, claramente es un monstruo para hacer tantos goles con tan pocos toques, pero también tiene sus desventajas. Los veo pasando, pero horita si tiene una mini crisis.
Yo no sé si el City la tiene tan fácil, de verdad que ese segundo tiempo fue bastante lamentable. Y bueno con un Haaland que no ayuda mucho y totalmente perdido en el área no se que tanto pueden hacer.
También pienso que si el Liverpool no endereza puede que estemos viendo los últimos partidos de Klopp, veremos. El Madrid dio un paseo de jerarquía.
Luego de los resultados de estás fechas de champions estuve pensando sobre esto, que siempre los equipos de la premier dejan mucho que desear en esta competencia, incluso algunos equipos han dicho que es más importante la liga que está. En el partido Liverpool vs. Real Madrid pensé que los rojos ganarían cuando iban 2-0, pero nunca debemos dar por derrotados al conjunto blanco, siempre se crecen en la adversidad en este torneo.
Muy buen análisis, veremos qué pasa en la definición de estos octavos de final de la champions y los equipos ingleses.
¡Saludos!
Gracias amigo!
Si, el Liverpool tenía todo para liquidar ese partido en el primer tiempo y no lo hizo, dejó que el Madrid empatara y ahí se le fue toda opción. Es grave lo del Liverpool, defensivamente están dejando mucho que desear.
A pesar de que la Premier es la mejor liga del mundo, para mi, siempre sus equipos pasan trabajo extra en Champions, es raro eso.
El Chelsea y el City aún pueden pasar de ronda, yo la verdad sigo viendo al City como un candidato importante a ganar este trofeo, después del Madrid los veo como el segundo mejor equipo. Ya veremos que pasa en la vuelta pero a pesar de que no están a pleno rendimiento, igual creo que llegan lejos.
Chelsea y Liverpool están sufriendo un gran bajón y allí poco se puede hacer la verdad.
Coincido. Ellos pueden que pasen de ronda pero el City por lo menos a mi me sigue sin convencer, es verdad que el equipo que tienen les da para ganar y más pero no se, hay algo ahí que no me termina de cerrar con ellos, que al final el Leipzig terminara jugando mejor es un llamado de atención.
El Liverpool si está complicado, a ellos si los veo muy afuera!