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Tag: UCL

  • Benzema treble as Real Madrid beat Chelsea, Bayern Munich lose

    Benzema treble as Real Madrid beat Chelsea, Bayern Munich lose

    Karim Benzema scored back-to-back UEFA Champions League hat-tricks as record winners Real Madrid took a big step towards the semi-finals with a 3-1 victory at title-holders Chelsea on Wednesday.

    France striker Benzema headed home twice within three minutes midway through the first half.

    He completed his treble seconds after the restart owing to a terrible blunder from goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.

    Benzema had also scored a hat-trick in the previous game Real Madrid won with the same 3-1 scoreline, against Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in the last 16.

    Kai Havertz was on target shortly before half-time for the Blues who eliminated Real Madrid in last year’s semi-finals.

    They now face an uphill battle next week at the Bernabéu.

    “They’re magic nights, like the other day at the Bernabéu against PSG. Today (Wednesday) we came out to win, to show we’re Real Madrid,” Benzema later said.

    There was more joy for Spain as Europa League winners Villarreal beat harmless Bayern Munich 1-0 with the goal from Arnaut Danjuma’s early strike.

    It was their next upset bid following a last 16 elimination of Juventus.

    The other two first leg games were played on Tuesday, with Liverpool well placed winning 3-1 at Benfica while Manchester City edged Atletico Madrid 1-0.

    Former Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti tested negative just in time to make it to Stamford Bridge after a coronavirus infection at the helm of Real Madrid.

    He then saw the unmarked Benzema head the opening goal in the 21st minute off a cross from Vinicius Junior who had hit the top of the bar earlier.

    The goal rattled the Blues who had crashed 4-1 at the weekend against Brentford.

    Three minutes later, Benzema wrong-footed Mendy by artistically heading Luka Modric’s cross into the far corner.

    Havertz revived Chelsea’s hopes in the 40th minute when he headed in Jorginho’s chipped ball over the Real Madrid defence.

    But Chelsea’s comeback attept stalled seconds after the restart when Mendy made a mess out of a routine pass to Antonio Rüdiger.

    It left Benzema with an easy shot into the empty net for his 11th goal of the competition.

    Romelo Lukaku came on only to head wide from a perfect position in the culmination of Chelsea’s woes.

    “It is a heavy loss. It was one of the worst first halves that I saw from us here at Stamford Bridge,” Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel later said.

    “If we keep playing like this … we will get hammered at Bernabeu.”

    In Villarreal, Bayern Munich left-back Alphonso Davies played his first game of the year after heart issues but it was the hosts who drew first blood after eight minutes.

    That was when Danjuma fired in a low shot to complete a slick move on the right wing with his sixth goal of the campaign.

    Bayern Munich were out of sorts but lucky because Francis Coquelin was ruled offside before his seemingly attempted cross went in.

    Also, Gerard Moreno was denied by the left post, and he then missed the empty net from his own half after a mistake from goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.

    “It was a deserved defeat. We weren’t good today. We didn’t defend well and lost too many balls,” Bayern Munich coach Julian Nagelsmann said.

    Forward Thomas Müller vowed: “We must now prepare for the return leg and hit back.”

    NAN

  • Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola names most feared enemy

    Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola names most feared enemy

    Pep Guardiola has revealed that only Liverpool can stop Manchester City in its quest from winning the UEFA champions League this season

    The Manchester city head coach said this after his team thrashed Sporting Lisbon of Portugal 5-0 on aggregate to progress to the quarter final of the competition.

    Man City have been in a fantastic form in this season’s UCL and other competitions.

    Manchester city are still in contention to win the UCL, Premier League and FA Cup this season.

    Just one point separates Pep Guardiola’s side from Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool in the current campaign with about 9 matches remaining to be played.

    But Guardiola believes Jurgen Klopp’s side have been his team’s biggest rivals in recent years, adding that the Reds are ” a thorn in their flesh”

    Liverpool are one point behind us,” Guardiola said at his post-match press conference when asked which team can beat Man City on current form.

    “They were our biggest rivals in the last seasons. They are always there. They are a fantastic team in Europe.”

  • Neymar finally speaks on fight with PSG goalie, Donnarumma

    Neymar finally speaks on fight with PSG goalie, Donnarumma

    PSG Brazilian forward,Neymar has dismissed as untrue the fight between him and goalie Gianluigi Dannarumma after their 3-1 round of 16 champions league loss to Real Madrid.

    Real Madrid defeated PSG by 3-2 on aggregate to exit the competition in the round of 16,

    Reports had emerged from MARCA that Neymar had an argument with Donnarumma in the dressing room after PSG’s loss to Real Madrid, adding that the Brazilian criticized the goalkeeper for his mistake that led to Benzema’s opening goal.

    Denying the report, Neymar has released the screenshot of their last conversation between him and the goalie, admiting that their relationship is very perfect.

    The chat reads :“Ciao Ney. I’m sorry about yesterday. This news is unacceptable,” Donnarumma wrote.

    “Mate! Relax! This can happen in football. We are a team and we are with you. You’re still very young and you’re going to win loads! Keep your head up and let’s keep going. Hug,” replied Neymar.

     

    The Brazilian superstar then wrote : “I hate coming here and talking about the news, but the stuff in the previous post is a lie.

    ”some persons in the media are just up to some mischiefs” He said

  • UEFA looking into referee report after PSG exit at Real Madrid

    UEFA looking into referee report after PSG exit at Real Madrid

    Europe’s ruling body UEFA has received the referee report from Wednesday’s Champions League match between Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain amid alleged misbehaviour from PSG top officials.

    UEFA said on Thursday it was looking into the report, without giving details.

    French side PSG lost the last 16 tie 3-2 on aggregate after a 3-1 defeat in Spain following Karim Benzema’s hat-trick.

    But the French team’s camp has lamented that their goalkeeper, Gianluigi Donnarumma, had been fouled before Real’s equaliser for 1-1.

    Media reports in Spain and France had indicated that PSG sports director Leonardo and club president Nasser al-Khelaifi had attempted to get into the dressing room of the match officials.

    The reports had centred around Dutch referee Danny Makkelie.

    There were conflicting reports about what exactly happened and some said that al-Khelaifi and Leonardo were in the dressing room.

  • Manchester City into UCL last eight round after Sporting Lisbon stalemate

    Manchester City into UCL last eight round after Sporting Lisbon stalemate

    Manchester City sailed through to the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals after a 0-0 draw with Sporting Lisbon in their last-16 round second leg clash on Wednesday, progressing 5-0 on aggregate.

    The English champions had already done the hard work in their thrashing of the Portuguese side in the first leg three weeks ago in Lisbon, and could take it easy.

    Moreover, it was against an inferior Sporting Lisbon at the Etihad Stadium.

    Pep Guardiola could afford to make several changes to his starting team.

    That was with one of those players coming in —- Raheem Sterling —- going closest to scoring in the first half after his close-range effort was saved.

    Brazilian forward Gabriel Jesus, making his first Champions League start of the season, did have the ball in the net early in the second half.

    But his clever finish was ruled out for offside after a VAR review.

    Paulinho almost earned Sporting Lisbon victory late on, but it was not to be as Manchester City held on in cruise control to progress.

  • Pochettino slams VAR after PSG’s Champions League exit to Real Madrid

    Pochettino slams VAR after PSG’s Champions League exit to Real Madrid

    Mauricio Pochettino slammed match officials on Wednesday and questioned why VAR was not used to rule out Real Madrid’s first goal against Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in their 1-3 loss.

    The French side were dumped out of the UEFA Champions League in sensational circumstances, losing 2-3 aggregate after having won the first leg match 1-0.

    The Ligue 1 leaders looked set for the last eight after Kylian Mbappe had put them 2-0 up on aggregate with a cool finish in the first half.

    Real Madrid, and Karim Benzema in particular, had other ideas, though.

    The France international scored a breathtaking hat-trick —- the second and third of which came inside the space of just 106 seconds —- to book Los Blancos’ quarter-final berth.

    PSG have now been eliminated from four of their nine UEFA Champions League knockout ties when winning the first leg.

    Only Real Madrid have done so more often in the competition’s history (six times).

    Pochettino will be under intense pressure after the defeat.

    The former Tottenham manager believes the result only came about due to the officials’ decision not to penalise Benzema.

    That was for a foul on goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma during the build-up to the first goal.

    “What a shame! There was a foul on Donnarumma for the first goal,” he said. “It is not possible to not talk about this gross mistake. It is not possible for this to happen in 2022.

    “Real Madrid’s first goal changed the game. I wonder what the VAR does because there is a foul. It’s a shame. When you see the action, it’s a foul.

    “After that, the match changed. For 60 minutes we dominated and that goal changed everything.

    “It’s not easy to explain the defeat. After the goal, the nervousness and the feeling of injustice hurt us a lot. The little details mark these games. We felt the impact of the equalising goal.”

    With a 13-point lead at the Ligue 1 summit, PSG look likely to reclaim the domestic title.

    But Pochettino concedes the final months of the campaign could be challenging, given they are no longer in European football’s premier competition.

    “The rest of the season is going to be very difficult,” he added. “The Champions League has been PSG’s goal for years, everyone knows it. The fans are going to be upset, we know it.

    “At a time like this, we will still have to analyse and remember the good things we have achieved against this excellent Real Madrid team. But what happened tonight is not normal.”

    PSG return to domestic action on Sunday when they host Bordeaux.

  • UCL: City expect to cruise pass Sporting as Real Madrid face uphill task with PSG

    UCL: City expect to cruise pass Sporting as Real Madrid face uphill task with PSG

    With five (5) goals advantage, Manchester City expect to cruise past Sporting CP in their Wednesday UEFA Champions League encounter.

    The Premier League champions have a tremendous lead from the first leg and will be confident of another win in Manchester.

    Manchester City are all set to sail into the quarter-finals of the Champions League when they host Sporting CP in the second-leg of their last-16 tie later today.

    Pep Guardiola’s team thrashed the Portuguese side 5-0 in Lisbon last month to all but confirm their spot in the next round.

    Real Madrid on the other hand, have a daunting task in their hands this evening as Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) look set to seal their place in the UCL quarter-finals.

    The La Liga side suffered a one (1) goal defeat in the hands of the French side in February with the only goal of the game coming from Kylian Mbappe.

    Real Madrid have been eliminated from nine of their last 10 knockout ties in the UEFA Champions League when losing the first leg, with the exception being a 3-2 aggregate victory over VfL Wolfsburg in the 2015-16 quarter-final.

    Paris Saint-Germain have been eliminated from three of their eight UEFA Champions League knockout ties when winning the first leg – only Barcelona (4) and Real Madrid (6) have been eliminated in this fashion more often.

  • Robert Lewandowski is fastest hat -trick scorer in UCL’s history

    Robert Lewandowski is fastest hat -trick scorer in UCL’s history

    Polish and Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski has emerged as the best fastest hat trick scorer in the UEFA Champions League, the hat trick was completed in 10 Minutes, 27 seconds in the match between Bayern Munich of Germany and Red Bull Salzburg of Austria on Tuesday night.

    The second -leg UCL game played at Allianz arena the home ground of Bayern Munich ended 7-1 in favour of the home side after the first leg in Austria ended in a 1-1 stalemate.

    The record has ensured that Marco Simeone’s record of 24 minutes and Claudio Pizzaro’s 33rd minute record have all been beaten and the duo moved to 2nd and 3rd in that order.

    The Polish striker had three goals to his name by the 23rd minute – the earliest anyone has ever completed a hat-trick in a Champions League game – as Bayern shook off their early nerves to crush Salzburg.

    With his 3 goals in the game, Lewandowsky has now scored 85 Champions UCL goals in 104 games overall.

     

  • UCL: We’re preparing for Mbappe to be fit for PSG – Ancelotti

    UCL: We’re preparing for Mbappe to be fit for PSG – Ancelotti

    Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti insists he’d like to see Kylian Mbappe fit for PSG on Wednesday night.

    Real need to overturn a 1-0 deficit on Wednesday night to reach the Champions League quarterfinals. Mbappe is battling to make the second-leg due to an ankle injury.

    Ancelotti said, “There are many factors in these kinds of games. The most important aspect is the mental side of things and the excitement levels. The important thing is that we will enjoy the backing of our fans, which is big motivation. I see the team as being in good shape, motivated and relaxed and we’re going to produce our best.

    “I was a player myself and I never want players to get injured. What happened yesterday to Mbappé means that he’s in with a chance of playing and we’re going to prepare for the match as if Mbappé was going to play. Looking back historically in games at the Bernabéu, great players have always received a good reception. I’d obviously understand it if the fans clap him. The Bernabéu fans enjoy watching good players and also like to see Madrid play well and win.

    “Our game plan isn’t just all about stopping Mbappé, it involves Neymar and Messi and all of PSG’s good players. Our plan is to play as a unit, both with and without the ball, display intensity for over 90 minutes and put in a strong all-round performance and produce a smart display. We mustn’t go crazy out there because we’ve got to win in the game, it’s not a case of having to thrash them. We may go infront early on or in the last minute. The important thing is to be in the game and play with intensity.”

    He continued: “I don’t usually think about what I fear. I think about what we need to do to produce our best and to perform better than we did in the first leg, play out well from the back and apply a better press. In the build-up to a game, I usually focus on the things that we have to do and not on what we have to avoid.

    “When we lose, we lose as a group. Our objective is to remain in what’s a very important competition for this club and we’ve got the same to lose: being knocked out of a competition that’s very important to us. This season goes on after this and let’s hope we’re still in the Champions League. I’m certain that we will be, but PSG will be thinking exactly the same.

    “Applying a high press is part of a defensive mechanism. When you play against the likes of Mbappé and Neymar, you’ve got to be very wary and I think that the fans will have a very important role to play tomorrow. In that sense, we want to produce a performance that the fans want to see and that’s what we’ll do.”

  • UCL: Liverpool survive Inter Milan scare as Bayern Munich thrash FC Salzburg

    UCL: Liverpool survive Inter Milan scare as Bayern Munich thrash FC Salzburg

    Liverpool on Tuesday slipped to a shock defeat against Inter Milan at Anfield but managed to seal their place into the Champions League quarterfinals with a 2-1 aggregate victory.

    Lautaro Martinez’s wonder strike sealed a 1-0 win for the reigning Serie A champions but Inter failed to capitalise after Alexis Sanchez was sent off moments after the goal.

    It is Liverpool’s first defeat in the competition this season but their 2-0 win at the San Siro last month was enough to seal their place in the final eight.

    Jurgen Klopp’s side can now turn their attention to the Premier League with fixtures against Brighton and Arsenal to come in quick succession.

    The first half was a tight affair with Inter edging the early stages as they pressed for an early goal but failed to create any clear-cut opportunity.

    The game was stopped after 25 minutes when Liverpool supporters in the Kop stand alerted the referee and players to a medical emergency.

    The match resumed and moments later, Liverpool almost took the lead on the night but Joel Matip’s header rattled off the crossbar.

    Virgil Van Dijk came close to scoring from the resulting corner but Milan Skriniar made a stunning block to deny the Liverpool captain.

    The hosts hit the woodwork again shortly after the break when Mohamed Salah’s close-range effort struck the bottom of the post.

    Just after the hour mark, Inter silenced Anfield as Martinez hit a stunning strike from outside of the box that arrowed into the top corner.

    Inter’s momentum was immediately halted seconds later when Sanchez received a second yellow card and the visitors were reduced to 10 men.

    Liverpool started to dominate possession after the sending off and hit the woodwork for a third time after Salah’s effort struck the post.

    Substitute Luis Diaz went close in stoppage time but his goalbound effort was cleared off the line by Arturo Vidal.

    Liverpool have now reached the last eight of the Champions League for the fourth time in the last five seasons.

    Bayern Munich thrash FC Salzburg to reach Champions League quarterfinals

    Meanwhile, Robert Lewandowski scored three times as Bayern Munich rolled into the Champions League quarterfinals with a 7-1 win over FC Salzburg at the Allianz Arena on Tuesday.

    The Bundesliga leaders won the tie 8-2 on aggregate after a 1-1 draw against the Austrian side in Salzburg on Feb. 16.

    Lewandowski had the hosts up two goals by the 21st minute, drawing a pair of fouls in the penalty area — both against Maximilian Wober — and calmly dispatching the resulting spot kicks to make it 2-0.

    Lewandowski completed his first-half trick minutes later with a goal from close range and Serge Gnabry added Bayern’s fourth soon after following a Salzburg giveaway to effectively put the game to bed almost before it began.

    Thomas Muller got on the scoresheet early in the second half, sweeping home from a Leroy Sane assist.

    Maurits Kjaergaard managed to pull one back for Salzburg with a powerful shot that beat Manuel Neuer at his near post.

    It was too little, too late for Salzburg, though, who were making the first knockout round appearance for an Austrian side in Champions League history.

    Muller hit his second and Sane scored two minutes later as Julien Naglesmann’s side put further gloss on the scoreline en route to a 20th Champions League quarterfinal berth for the Bavarians.

    The result marked the second time in Bayern Munich history they scored seven goals in a UCL knockout round match, the other being their infamous 8-2 win over FC Barcelona in the 2020 quarterfinals.