Liverpool produce Europe’s greatest comeback

Liverpool produced the greatest comeback in the club’s European history by beating FC Barcelona 4-0 at Anfield to reach the 2018-19 Champions League final.

Trailing 3-0 from the opening encounter in Spain six days ago, the Reds’ hopes of overcoming the Spanish giants on aggregate were alive, yet slim, at kick-off.

But Jürgen Klopp’s remarkable team achieved what many considered impossible courtesy of two goals apiece from Divock Origi and Georginio Wijnaldum on a scarcely believable night in L4.

And so Liverpool will contest a second successive Champions League final, facing the winners of the other semi-final between Ajax and Tottenham Hotspur in Madrid on June 1.

Barcelona, meanwhile, crashed out of the Champions League by blowing an enormous lead for the second consecutive season in unbelievable fashion. 

After Origi’s first goal in the opening minutes, Liverpool’s dominance continued. The team was stronger on the ball, looked more confident and never gave up, and in the second half everything went right.

Minutes after coming on, Wijnaldum finished this ball inside the box to make it 2-0, leaving Liverpool a goal away from potentially forcing extra time:

Then just three minutes later, Wijnaldum did it again with a header goal:

As the match seemed destined for extra time, Liverpool caught Barcelona napping with a corner kick incoming. Trent Alexander-Arnold walked away from the ball as if he was giving up the set piece, but then he quickly saw Origi all alone and took it, setting up an absolutely jaw-dropping fourth goal:

With that, the comeback was complete and Barca fell short of its goal, as it has done each of the last four UCL seasons. 

Messi scores 600 Club goal

Lionel Messi has reached another milestone in his legendary career, hitting his 600th goal for Barcelona with a wonderful free-kick against Liverpool in their Champions League semi-final first leg on Wednesday.

Messi scored number 599 earlier in the match, pouncing on a rebound from a Luis Suarez shot and walking the ball in, before curling home a lovely strike for his 600th moments later. 

The Argentine becomes just the seventh player in history to reach the 600-goal mark at the club level, though he was beaten to the milestone by eternal rival Cristiano Ronaldo. 

Ronaldo and Messi, who have dominated world football for the last decade, are joined on the exclusive list by Brazilian legends Pele and Romario, Germany’s Gerd Muller, Slavia Prague hero Josef Bican and Hungarian Ferenc Puskas. 

Messi’s first goal for Barcelona came exactly 14 years ago, on May 1, 2005, against Albacete . He has since grown into arguably the biggest star in the game, having won the Ballon d’Or on five occasions, 10 La Liga titles and the Champions League on four occasions. 

At 31, Messi is also a five-time winner of the European Golden Shoe and claimed the World Cup Golden Ball at the 2014 tournament in Brazil. 

His performance on Wednesday leaves Barcelona in prime position to add to that remarkable haul. 

The club have already won La Liga this season and reached the Copa del Rey final, while a 3-0 result against Liverpool leaves them on the verge of reaching the Champions League final, though a trip to Anfield for the second leg remains. 

It also continues a trend for Messi of dominance over English teams in European play. 

The Barcelona star has netted 26 times in just 33 matches against Premier League clubs in the Champions League, the best haul for any one player against any country in the competition, though he does share that record with Ronaldo, who has netted 26 times against German clubs. 

Barcelona will travel to Liverpool next Tuesday for the return leg, and should they progress they will face either Ajax or Tottenham in the Champions League final in Madrid on June 1.

Champions League quarter Finals review

The first leg of the quarter finals have come to an end and it certainly was eventful. I’m going to give y’all a summary of all that happened.

Tottenham vs Manchester City

In a game that was looking like a mismatch on paper was certainly a surprise to everyone as Tottenham came out on top.

The game was Tottenham’s first European game in their new stadium and fans hoped it’ll be a good a game I guess they weren’t disappointed. Manchester City had the opportunity to get ahead when Sergio Aguero had a penalty but Hugo Lloris was up to the task and saved it keeping his team in the game. Both team fired blanks and the game looked like it was headed towards a draw but Hueng min Son scored a goal just before the final whistle to hand Tottenham a 1-0 lead.

Liverpool vs Porto

Porto who qualified by away goals came up against a Dominant Liverpool side and the score went how everyone expected.

With one first half goals from Naby keita and Roberto Firmino respectively. Keita who hasn’t been a regular in the Liverpool squad is beginning to find his stride and making his mark

Ajax Vs Juventus

Ajax who have the youngest side in the competition came up against an experienced Juventus side.

Cristiano Ronaldo came back from the injury he sustained during the euros qualifiers and scored a fantastic header to hand Juve a first half lead over Ajax.

By second Ajax showed their determination and dominated for a better part of the second half and as expected Neres was the one who stepped up and put them level. The Ajax side kept asking questions but the Juventus keeper was up to the task and the game ended draw but Juventus have the advantage due to away goals rule

Manchester United vs Barcelona

This is probably the biggest game of this round due to the history between both teams Since Manchester United Second best to Barcelona in their last encounter.

Barcelona controlled the first half and Manchester United was all over the place it was only a matter of time before a goal would be scored. A header by Luis Suarez made Luke Shaw score a Own Goal and that was the only goal.

We all remember the Tweet from Smalling saying he knows a secret to stop Messi and I guess he showed us what it was.

Will there be shocks in this Round of the Champions League?! We just have to find out

Champions League second leg Preview

The second leg of the Champions League is just around a corner and we’re going to Preview of the Champions League and those who might get Knocked out and those who will qualify.

Paris-Saint-Germain VS Manchester United

The Second leg will be played in Parc des Prince. The first leg ended in a 2-0 win for Psg who were undoubtedly the stronger side and we’re very much in control.
The second leg will see the return of Edison Cavani which will be a great boost to them.

Manchester United have been hit with 9 injuries to important members of the squad but if Manchester United is known for anything it’s their resilience.

Predictions:

PSG will qualify onto the next round

Lyon VS Barcelona

In what was a shock to most fans the game ended in a stalemate. Lyon played a wonderful Defensive game and neutralised the threat of Lionel Messi.

Barcelona are coming into the game after a wonderful victory over Real Madrid in the Copa Del Rey and Lyon are not doing bad in their league.
Lyon will look to cause an upset here like Roma did last year.

Prediction:

Lyon to qualify on away goals

Atletico Madrid VS Juventus

Juventus lost 2-0 in the first leg with goals from Jose Maria Gimenez and Diego Godin. Juventus have been having defensive issues all season and Atletico took advantage of it scoring two late goals.

Juventus will look up to Ronaldo to pull them out of the ditch they’ve found themselves and hope he can become a hat-trick hero like he did against Wolfsburg while he was in Real Madrid.

Prediction:

Juventus to qualify on away goal

Bayern VS Liverpool

This game ended in a stale mate but not without both teams putting their goalies to the test. The game had it all wonderful attacking football a great show of defence but lacked goals.
Both teams are on comfortable positions on the table and they could win it.
Predictions:

Liverpool to qualify

Tottenham VS Borussia Dortmund

This was undoubtedly a shocker to all as Tottenham thrashed the German league leaders 3-0 but they’ve lost momentum since then losing 2-0 to Chelsea while Dortmund seem unstoppable in the League.

Prediction:

Tottenham to qualify

Ajax vs Real Madrid

The defending champions continue their journey to European immortality with hopes to win their fourth Champions League in a row.

Real Madrid will be without Sergio Ramos who got suspended in the last game.

Prediction:

Real Madrid to qualify

Schalke VS Manchester City

The Champions of England look to advance to the next round.

After what seemed an unconvincing performance from Manchester city in the first leg Schalke was unable to take advantage of that and will pay for it

Prediction:

Manchester city to qualify

Porto VS Roma

Roma was undoubtedly in control of the first leg with a wonderful 2-1 win over Porto.

Porto are known for being a stubborn team and hopefully they’ll cause an upset.

Prediction:

Roma to qualify.

What are your thoughts on who will qualify.

Italy look up to Ronaldo to pull them through

Cristiano Ronaldo was supposed to be the missing piece of the jigsaw for Juventus in their quest to regain the Summit of Europe for the first time since 1995-96, the Italian club splashing out 117 million euros to bring the five-times winner of the continents elite club competition to Turin last summer.

But after Juves 2-0 defeat at Atlético Madrid in the first leg of the last 16 clash between the sides, the Serie A clubs ambitions hang by a thread. Runners-up five times since their last triumph, Juve will have to score at least twice without reply in the Allianz Stadium to take the tie to extra-time, but the Italian media have been busy collating Ronaldos statistics in the competition – and against the LaLiga side – and speculating an extra half-hour may not be necessary.

Tuttosport ran a headline sounding a rallying cry for the Old Lady: Juve? Coming back from 2-0 down? Cristiano has already done it…” in allusion to the 2015-16 Champions League when Wolfsburg took a 2-0 advantage to the Bernabéu and Ronaldo bagged a hat-trick to turn the tie around.

Ronaldo to the rescue?

The Portugueses statistics in the competition also make for impressive reading. Ronaldo has scored twice or more in a Champions League game 34 times, with 27 doubles, six hat-tricks and a four-goal haul against Malmö.

Against Atlético, Ronaldo has 22 goals, including three hat-tricks and one brace. One of those hat-tricks came in the Champions League, in the 2016-17 semi-finals.

However, Under Diego Simeone, Atlético have never lost a Champions League tie after triumphing in the opening leg. Juventus, meanwhile, have never overturned a 2-0 deficit in European competition home or away.

If Ronaldo is to save the day for Juve, he will need to write another piece of history in Turin on March 13.

Firmino in doubt for Champions league knockout

Liverpool, already dealing with a massive injury crisis in the back line, could also be without one of their top scorers tomorrow night when they Bayern Munich in UEFA Champions League round of 16 action. Forward Roberto Firmino missed training today due to an unspecified virus, making him a serious doubt for the epic Euro clash at Anfield.

Firmino is the fourth Liverpool player who has fallen ill since the beginning of February. Additionally, central defender Dejan Lovren will face a last minute fitness test before the midweek evening kickoff.

“I don’t know 100 per cent. It’s Monday and we play on Tuesday so most of that should be clear,” Klopp told reporters on Monday.

“Gini trained and looked really well. Shaqiri did a lot, so it will be close, we have to see. Dejan, I actually have to wait minute by minute if there is a chance or not. But that’s pretty much all, I would say.”

In addition to all their injury woes, Liverpool must also soldier on against the Bavarian giants without their best defender as Virgil van Dijk is suspended for this one.

PSG defeat Manchester United at Old Trafford

Man United vs PSG Champions League clash saw the Red Devils unbeaten run in all competitions come to an end at Old Trafford

Presnel Kimpembe and Kylian Mbappe both scored a goal each in the second half to power the visitors to 2-0 win

Both sides clash again for the second leg of the clash in France next month

Two second half goals from Presnel Kimpembe and Kylian Mbappe were all Paris Saint Germain needed to overcome Manchester United in the first leg of their Champions round of 16 tie at Old Trafford.

Manchester came into game looking unbeatable and Psg came in with what we all believed to be a weakened side due to the injury of Neymar, Cavani and Meunier.

The first half was an end to end game which saw both sides having a crack at each other. Di Maria came close to an early opener from 20 yards out but he missed the mark while Manchester United golden boy Marcus Rashford had a shot on target after a wonderful team play.

At the start of the second half, both Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial were taken off for Alexis Sanchez and Juan Mata due to injuries suffered in the first half.

Manchester United looked flat and out in the second half showing no attacking impetus and Psg took advantage of this by controlling the tempo and pace of the game.

In the fifty third minute Manchester United conceded a corner kick which was taken by ex Manchester United player Angel Di Maria. It was well struck to the far post and Presnel Kimpembe tucked it in.

Things were looking bad for Manchester United already and Psg star Kylian Mbappe wasn’t going to miss out as he scored his goal from a perfectly layed pass from Kylian Mbappe in the sixtieth minute.

Paul Pogba however lost his cool before the end of the match and was brandished a red card.

With a Mountain to climb and injured players Manchester Uniteds Champions League dreams could as well be over.

Champions League Back in action: Schedules,Reviews

Champions League round of 16 encounters for the 2018/19 season will begin on Tuesday night, February 12, with two games lined up for football fans in many parts of the world to watch.
Real Madrid who are the defending champions of this championship are also in the knockout stages of this competition as they face Ajax.
Los Blancos have been struggling since the departure of superstar Cristiano Ronaldo who joined Juventus, and they will have to up their games against the Dutch club.
Today, we we shall preview all the eight matches that will played in the 2018/19 Champions League encounters.

1. Manchester United VS Paris-Saint-Germain

Manchester United are currently in the best form of their lives since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took over in December 2018 from Jose Mourinho, and the Red Devils will want to stretch their impressive performances to the Champions League.
The last time United won the Champions League title was in the 2007/2008 season and they will face PSG side who will be without Brazilian star Neymar.
United and PSG have never met before in the Champions League, and this maiden game will be interesting for all football fans.

2. Roma VS Porto

The Stadio Olimpico in Rome will be the venue where Roma will host FC Porto in what will be a tough Champions League battle between these two clubs.
Porto impressed in the group stages thereby finishing with 16 points and Roma finished second behind last season’s Champions League winners Real Madrid.

3. Tottenham VS Borussia Dortmund

Premier League giants Tottenham will welcome Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund to the Wembley stadium on Wednesday, February 12, for the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 encounter.
With the two sides both known for their work rates and fluid attacking play, this tie looks set to be one of the most mouthwatering of the knockout stages this season.

4. Ajax VS Real Madrid

The last time Ajax won the Champions League title was in the 1994/95 edition of the Championship, and since then, they have been struggling.
Ajax ended the group stages as 1 of only 5 teams to remain unbeaten throughout, and they only finished 2 points behind Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich in the end.
Real Madrid on the other hand struggled in the group stages due to the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, and their credentials will be put to test against the Dutch side.

5. Lyon VS Barcelona

French club Lyon have previously faced Barcelona six times with the Spanish club winning four games, while the other two ties ended in draw.
Barcelona have been impressive this season in all competitions, and it will be difficult for Lyon to overcome the Spanish champions in the two games.

6. Liverpool VS Bayern Munich

This will be the toughest ties in the Champions League round of 16 as last season’s runners-up Liverpool will face German giants Bayern Munich.
These two teams both scored three goals in their last encounters and this tie will be the battle of strikers with the likes of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Firmino expected to be in great form.

7. Schalke VS Manchester City

Schalke’s last three Champions League campaigns have all ended in the round of 16 and they will be keen to make the most of home advantage as they welcome Manchester City for the first leg of their knockout tie.

Premier League champions Manchester City are in the knockout stages for the sixth year in a row, and have won two of their last three round of 16 ties.

8. Atletico Madrid VS Juventus
These two teams have reached the final twice in the past five seasons with Atletico losing to neighbors Real Madrid in 2014 and 2016 whereas Juventus were beaten by Barcelona in 2015 and Real Madrid two years later.
Juventus will be boosted with the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo who joined the club from Real Madrid, but Atletico also have two dangerous strikers Diego Costa and Antoine Griezmann.
Cristiano Ronaldo told Juventus’ chiefs to give him three more bodyguards for himself and his family in Italy.
The superstar is reportedly concerned about the safety of himself and his family as he has been swarmed by fans since his move to Turin from Real Madrid.
One of these three men will be monitoring his house in the Gran Madre Park, while the other two guards will be looking after him and his family.

Squad Changes For Champions league Round of 16 confirmed

The squad changes for the knockout phase have been confirmed, with the England international back in contention
Article continues below

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has been added to Liverpool’s Champions League squad for the knockout phase.

The England midfielder has not played this season since sustaining serious knee ligament damage in the semi-finals of the 2017-18 competition.

He has been added to the final 25-man group for the last-16 onwards, though, along with 17-year-old Ki-Jana Hoever and Ben Woodburn, who is on the B list.

Juventus have chosen to drop Juan Cuadrado, meanwhile, with the winger recovering from an operation on his left knee in December.

Barcelona have added B-team forward Moussa Wague to their squad, along with new signings Jeison Murillo and Kevin-Prince Boateng.

Alvaro Morata is in the Atletico Madrid squad as expected, while Real Madrid have added Brahim Diaz, who joined from Manchester City last month.

City have named Claudio Bravo on their list, with Eliaquim Mangala dropping out having not appeared for the club in the 2018-19 campaign.

All last-16 contenders were permitted to register a maximum of three new A-list players for the last 16 before the deadline of midnight CET last Saturday.

And the news regarding Oxlade-Chamberlain’s inclusion will come as a boost for Liverpool and the player himself, with the Reds facing Bayern Munich in the last 16.

It is unclear exactly when the 25-year-old will be available to play again, although he posted on social media back in December to confirm that he was now able to begin running outdoors.

And Klopp revealed in January that he was hopeful he’d be able to play a part before the end of the season, hence his inclusion in the Champions League squad.

The German said: “He is in a very good way. That will still take a couple of… last time I put a bit of pressure on the medical department.

“But when I see him moving the ball and what he’s doing already it looks really good, promising, close to a return.

“But after so long out – April, against Roma – he will be fine, he looks completely without any problems at the moment, no swelling any more, so he can really work on his fitness issues.

“It’s a surprise. He’s ahead of schedule. That’s always good news. We try not to push him too much but we don’t want to hold him back.

“If he makes further steps like he did in the last few weeks he can play Premier League football this season which is nice to know. I think we will see him this season.”

Changes for Champions league Round of 16 confirmed

It is a week till the Champions league return and The squad changes for the knockout phase have been confirmed, with the England international back in contention

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has been added to Liverpool’s Champions League squad for the knockout phase.

The England midfielder has not played this season since sustaining serious knee ligament damage in the semi-finals of the 2017-18 competition.

He has been added to the final 25-man group for the last-16 onwards, though, along with 17-year-old Ki-Jana Hoever and Ben Woodburn, who is on the B list.

Juventus have chosen to drop Juan Cuadrado, meanwhile, with the winger recovering from an operation on his left knee in December.

Barcelona have added B-team forward Moussa Wague to their squad, along with new signings Jeison Murillo and Kevin-Prince Boateng.

Alvaro Morata is in the Atletico Madrid squad as expected, while Real Madrid have added Brahim Diaz, who joined from Manchester City last month.

City have named Claudio Bravo on their list, with Eliaquim Mangala dropping out having not appeared for the club in the 2018-19 campaign.

All last-16 contenders were permitted to register a maximum of three new A-list players for the last 16 before the deadline of midnight CET last Saturday.

And the news regarding Oxlade-Chamberlain’s inclusion will come as a boost for Liverpool and the player himself, with the Reds facing Bayern Munich in the last 16.

It is unclear exactly when the 25-year-old will be available to play again, although he posted on social media back in December to confirm that he was now able to begin running outdoors.

And Klopp revealed in January that he was hopeful he’d be able to play a part before the end of the season, hence his inclusion in the Champions League squad.

The German said: “He is in a very good way. That will still take a couple of… last time I put a bit of pressure on the medical department.

“But when I see him moving the ball and what he’s doing already it looks really good, promising, close to a return.

“But after so long out – April, against Roma – he will be fine, he looks completely without any problems at the moment, no swelling any more, so he can really work on his fitness issues.

“It’s a surprise. He’s ahead of schedule. That’s always good news. We try not to push him too much but we don’t want to hold him back.

“If he makes further steps like he did in the last few weeks he can play Premier League football this season which is nice to know. I think we will see him this season.”

Luck not on Juventus’ side with Champions League draw, says Nedved

The Italian side were paired with Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid in the last 16 of the competition, much to the dismay of the vice-chairman Pavel Nedved lamented Juventus’ misfortune after the Bianconeri were paired with Atletico Madrid in the last 16 of the Champions League on Monday.

Juve continue to blaze a trail domestically- they have won the last seven scudetti and already established an eight-point lead at the summit this season after 16 games- but have not been crowned European champions since 1996.

They recruited Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid to bolster an already imposing squad but Nedved was relatively downbeat when asked to assess the clash with the defending Europa League champions.

Nedved said:‘we didn’t have much luck. Atletico are a difficult side to face, they are more of an Italian-style team than European. They have a strong defense that plays well together, and they know how to play into the forwards with Griezmann and others.

‘I foresee two very even matches, with few goals. We have been drawn the strongest possible opponent, but there is no problem. Cristiano Ronaldo may be the man of the Champions League but the is strong and we can be confident in our ability to qualify for the quarter-finals’

Juve midfielder Sami Khedira, another former Real Madrid man, has also predicted a difficult game against Diego Simeone’s side.