It is the week of footballing comebacks! Chelsea and FC Bayern bounced back from deficits in their UEFA Champions League quarterfinal games, the former sneaking in over two legs on away goals,against Paris St Germain, and the latter doing so against Manchester United very quickly indeed, in the second leg at Munich.
Chelsea was trailing 3-1 after the first leg at Paris - not unlike their Round of 16 game against Napoli back in 2011-12. (They went on to win the second leg 4-1 and eventually the cup itself.) Eden Hazard, this season's undisputed star for them, had secured a valuable away goal for them, though, through a penalty. They were soon to find out just how valuable it was. Substitute Andre Schurrle fired in the first at 32 minutes, to hopeful celebrations from the home crowd. It was his first goal in the competition for Chelsea, unsurprising given his fluctuating form and starts.The team lived in fear of an equaliser for nearly an hour of the game. Possession was nearly equal. Chelsea hit the post twice soon after the break. A second goal looked impending. Blues' manager Mourinho, whose ways are often unfathomable but not that night, took off Frank Lampard, yellow-carded earlier in the game, and brought on striker Demba Ba. It paid off. Ba scored from close range at 87 minutes, cueing wild celebrations from the players. PSG had a chance in injury time, but the script was written. Chelsea had entered the semifinals again and are three good games away from a second star on the shirt.
But so are Bayern! Their first leg at Manchester tied at 1-1, their away goal would only be useful in the case of a goalless draw. That seemed quite likely in the first half. United's tight, experienced defence meant that even though Bayern enjoyed a majority of the possession, they had no clear-cut chances on goal. The Red Devils were depending on set pieces and counterattacks which were few and far between. Bayern's crosses were wayward and their key man in Robben was playing rather selfishly. In the second half, however, United's aging defence seemed to wear down. Unexpectedly, Patrice Evra scored a stunner on 57 minutes. A Bayern comeback was imperative and their execution was immediate. 22 seconds after the restart, Mario Mandzukic headed into the corner. Moyes's defence was momentarily unwary and the tie was level.
Bayern's confidence restored, it didn't take long for them to take the lead. Robben's pass was tapped in by Thomas Muller and the Dutchman himself doubled the lead nine minutes later, with a shot after a dribble along the box. Interestingly, all three goals followed defensive lapses by Evra. Bayern seemed content with the scoreline of 3-1, unlike last year where they went after Barcelona relentlessly to earn 3-0 and 4-0 wins.
The semifinal draw today announced Real Madrid v FC Bayern and Chelsea v Atletico Madrid as the ties. Both promise to be exciting affairs. However, both legs take place on consecutive weeks ten days from now. Three of the four teams are title contenders in their respective countries (the fourth, Bayern, did well to wrap it up quickly!) and high-pressure games in quick succession are bound to fatigue them and diminish their chances of domestic league wins. I hope for better scheduling of European games next season.
The titular week also features my own comeback! I am posting on this blog after fourteen months and four days. Unsurprisingly, the reason was my class X board examinations. I hope to blog oftener this summer and year.
Chelsea was trailing 3-1 after the first leg at Paris - not unlike their Round of 16 game against Napoli back in 2011-12. (They went on to win the second leg 4-1 and eventually the cup itself.) Eden Hazard, this season's undisputed star for them, had secured a valuable away goal for them, though, through a penalty. They were soon to find out just how valuable it was. Substitute Andre Schurrle fired in the first at 32 minutes, to hopeful celebrations from the home crowd. It was his first goal in the competition for Chelsea, unsurprising given his fluctuating form and starts.The team lived in fear of an equaliser for nearly an hour of the game. Possession was nearly equal. Chelsea hit the post twice soon after the break. A second goal looked impending. Blues' manager Mourinho, whose ways are often unfathomable but not that night, took off Frank Lampard, yellow-carded earlier in the game, and brought on striker Demba Ba. It paid off. Ba scored from close range at 87 minutes, cueing wild celebrations from the players. PSG had a chance in injury time, but the script was written. Chelsea had entered the semifinals again and are three good games away from a second star on the shirt.
But so are Bayern! Their first leg at Manchester tied at 1-1, their away goal would only be useful in the case of a goalless draw. That seemed quite likely in the first half. United's tight, experienced defence meant that even though Bayern enjoyed a majority of the possession, they had no clear-cut chances on goal. The Red Devils were depending on set pieces and counterattacks which were few and far between. Bayern's crosses were wayward and their key man in Robben was playing rather selfishly. In the second half, however, United's aging defence seemed to wear down. Unexpectedly, Patrice Evra scored a stunner on 57 minutes. A Bayern comeback was imperative and their execution was immediate. 22 seconds after the restart, Mario Mandzukic headed into the corner. Moyes's defence was momentarily unwary and the tie was level.
Bayern's confidence restored, it didn't take long for them to take the lead. Robben's pass was tapped in by Thomas Muller and the Dutchman himself doubled the lead nine minutes later, with a shot after a dribble along the box. Interestingly, all three goals followed defensive lapses by Evra. Bayern seemed content with the scoreline of 3-1, unlike last year where they went after Barcelona relentlessly to earn 3-0 and 4-0 wins.
The semifinal draw today announced Real Madrid v FC Bayern and Chelsea v Atletico Madrid as the ties. Both promise to be exciting affairs. However, both legs take place on consecutive weeks ten days from now. Three of the four teams are title contenders in their respective countries (the fourth, Bayern, did well to wrap it up quickly!) and high-pressure games in quick succession are bound to fatigue them and diminish their chances of domestic league wins. I hope for better scheduling of European games next season.
The titular week also features my own comeback! I am posting on this blog after fourteen months and four days. Unsurprisingly, the reason was my class X board examinations. I hope to blog oftener this summer and year.
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