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Showing posts with the label UCL Classics

Inter and Barca play out another all time classic

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Inter Milan 4 - 3 Barcelona (Inter won 7-6 on aggregate) Inter Milan staged a remarkable late comeback to beat Barcelona in one of the most thrilling Champions League semi-finals in recent memory. Author - Josh T Stadium - San Siro With just two minutes of stoppage time remaining, Inter were trailing 3-2 on the night and facing elimination. But veteran defender Francesco Acerbi powered a cross into the roof of the net to draw the tie level, tearing off his shirt in celebration as the San Siro erupted. Moments of high drama continued into extra time, where substitute Davide Frattesi curled a superb left-footed shot into the bottom corner to win it for the Italian champions. He climbed a security fence to celebrate with Inter’s fans, who had witnessed an astonishing turnaround. Barcelona had appeared set for their first final in a decade, having come from 2-0 down on the night to lead 3-2, echoing their fightback in the first leg. Teenage forward Lamine Yamal came close to forcing pe...

Barca and Inter play out a thriller

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Barcelona 3 - 3 Inter Milan Barcelona twice came from behind to earn a draw against Inter Milan in a pulsating six-goal Champions League semi-final first leg, leaving the tie finely balanced ahead of next week’s return fixture in Milan. Author - Jack L Stadium - Estadi OlĂ­mpic LluĂ­s Companys The visitors stunned the hosts within 30 seconds when Marcus Thuram diverted Denzel Dumfries’ low cross into the net with a deft backheel, registering the fastest goal ever scored in a semi-final of the competition. Dumfries then doubled Inter’s lead after 20 minutes with an acrobatic volley that silenced the MontjuĂŻc crowd and left Barcelona facing an early uphill task. However, the irrepressible Lamine Yamal soon dragged his side back into the contest. The teenager weaved inside from the right, jinking past several defenders before curling a sublime left-footed shot in off the post to halve the deficit. READ MORE: Champions League news and stories Yamal remained at the centre of Barcelona’s a...

Barca qualify despite scare against Dortmund

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Borussia Dortmund 3 - 1 Barcelona (Barcelona won 5-3 on aggregate) Borussia Dortmund came agonisingly close to pulling off a remarkable Champions League comeback, but their spirited second-leg display against Barcelona was not enough to overturn the heavy damage inflicted in the first leg. Author - Josh T Stadium - Signal Iduna Park The Bundesliga side had been left with a mountain to climb following a chastening 4–0 defeat at the Camp Nou, a result that had all but booked Barcelona’s place in the semi-finals for the first time since 2019. Yet Dortmund refused to roll over. Led by a stunning hat-trick from Serhou Guirassy, they produced a breathless display in front of their home crowd, injecting genuine jeopardy into what had seemed a foregone conclusion. What does all of this mean for Barca? Despite their valiant efforts and a stirring performance, it is Barcelona who advance to the last four. It marks their first appearance at this stage since their infamous capitulation to Live...

UCL: Real Madrid progress after astonishing drama

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Real Madrid 2 - 1 Bayern Munich Real Madrid won 3-2 on aggregate  The Spanish side and the Champions League are a match made in heaven. Let's explore what happened on another dramatic night in Madrid. The recently crowned Spanish champions snatched an incredible semi-final victory, scoringblate goals to beat Bayern Munich and set up a Champions League final with Borussia Dortmund at Wembley. Bayern Munich had looked to be heading to the final. They went into the lead after Alphonso Davies cut in and blasted past Andriy Lunin after England captain Harry Kane had found him with a superb pass. However, as they always do, Real Madrid found a way back into the game. Joselu grabbed an 88th-minute equaliser when he reacted quickest after Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, who had been excellent up until then, fumbled an effort Vinicius Jr.  There was even more drama to come two minutes later when Joselu, scored again. The former Stoke City and Newcastle United player swept home fro...

UCL: Exciting first leg leaves things all to play for

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Bayern Munich 2 - 2 Real Madrid It was an intriguing and exciting first leg in Germany After soaking up immense Manchester City pressure in their quarter-final second leg, but eventually progressing to the semi-finals , Real Madrid were on the back foot again from the very beginning in Bavaria as Bayern created a succession of chances in the opening exchanges. Real Madrid's visiting goalkeeper Andriy Lunin, who saved two penalties in the quarter-final shoot-out against City denied Leroy SanĂ© in the first minute with a smart save using his left leg. SanĂ© was constantly involved in Bayern's attacks and his clever back-heel, after a dart into the middle from the right wing, found Harry Kane in the area . However, the striker's curling shot was too close to the goalkeeper. This Bayern duo teamed up again a minute after their previous attempt. This time, Harry Kane played a well-measured pass from just inside the Real Madrid half to find SanĂ© on the left side of the goal. H...

UCL: Manchester City lose on penalties

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Manchester City 1 - 1 Real Madrid Real Madrid won 4-3 on penalties Real Madrid beat Manchester City in a dramatic quarter-final at the Etihad Stadium, ending their hold on the Champions League after a penalty shootout. Some incredible celebrations in the #RealMadrid end last night. #MCFC https://t.co/sibOvrXJB0 https://t.co/ZuTAUAqK7V — Jay Dee (@JDESFNews) April 18, 2024 The holders came back from an early goal scored by Rodrygo to put pressure on Real Madrid's defence. They eventually managed to equalize 14 minutes before the end of normal time when Kevin de Bruyne took advantage of Antonio Rudiger's clearance. It was the least City deserved for their almost total domination, but a lack of the finishing touch cost them as Real, despite being exhausted and mounting a desperate rearguard action, held out for spot-kicks. UCL and UEL news and stories UCL: Madrid and City play out a classic  A Dramatic Penalty Shootout It all started well for City. Real Madrid players and f...

UCL: PSG knock out Barcelona

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  Barcelona 1 - 4 PSG (Aggregate: 4-6) Kylian Mbappe scored twice as his Paris St-Germain side thrashed Barcelona to turn around a first-leg deficit and reach the semi-finals of the Champions League. You can watch the highlights of the match in the video below . Footage from the TNT Sports YouTube account. The French side had trailed 3-2 after the first leg but they reached the last four for the first time since 2021 after what can only be considered a chaotic encounter in Spain. PSG will face Borussia Dortmund in the semi-final after they beat Atletico Madrid 5-4 on aggregate in what was another thrilling encounter. Where did it go wrong for Barca? It was actually the Catalan side who struck first when Lamine Yamal drove down the pitch, beating Nuno Mendes and clipping over for former Leeds United star Raphinha to score. The Barcelona fans and players assumed it was all going according to plan. Things were to go very wrong in the second-half. Things started t...

UCL: Madrid and City play out a classic

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Real Madrid 3 - 3 Manchester City There was a quite incredible night of football in Real Madrid. Let's explore what happened.  This video below is from the official Real Madrid YouTube account. The current Champions League holders Manchester City took took the lead in the second minute when Bernardo Silva intelligently placed a 25 yard free-kick round the wall and past goalkeeper Andriy Lunin. This lead was quickly overturned. Deflected strikes from Eduardo Camavinga and Rodrygo helped 14-time European champions Real overturn the deficit at the Bernabeu. A lot of fans and pundits were saying that City were lacking quality in the final third. This was until Phil Foden, who had been on the periphery of the game, found some space outside the area to turn and fire into the top corner to pull last year's Treble winners level. 2-2 quickly became 2-3 which then became 3-3 Only a few moments later, Josko Gvardiol cut in and found the far corner with a superb right-foot shot to scor...

UCL Classics: Man United v Bayern Munich 1999

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Manchester United v Bayern Munich 1999 The first in a series of articles where we talk about some classic Champions League matches Background Manchester United went into the game having won the league and cup double and they were now chasing a historic treble. The quest for glory in Europe's premier competition had been the focus point of United's development since they qualified in 1993. There were some memorable encounters along the route to the final. That included an incredible comeback against Juventus. The match itself  United were without Paul Scholes and their captain Roy Keane who were both suspended. Mario Basler gave Bayern the lead after 5 minutes, and as the game developed, it started to look like they would win and United would fall short. There was to be a dramatic end to the game though. Goals from Teddy Sheringham and Ole Solskjaer in stoppage gave United a win that people will talk about forever.  The highlights can be found in the video above. Credit -...