It seems the times are changing. Long gone are the boring and static high tension games that the Uefa Champion’s League used to offer us in its last stages, and no one is going to complain.
Bayern – Manchester
Van Gaal is a stubborn man. Once the right formula is found, he refuses to change it, at all cost. So Bayern starts in the most traditional 4-4-2, with Altintop and Pranjic replacing the absent Robben and Schweinsteiger. On the Manchester side, Ferguson almost reiterates the starting eleven that had so easily dismissed Milan some three weeks ago, with Carrick replacing Valencia. And it pays off straight away. After a mere 60 seconds of play and the first assassination attempt of Demichelis on Nani, the latter delivers a cross from the free kick. The deflection is from Van-Bommel-one-man-wall, the tap in from Rooney and the defensive mistake from an autistic Demichelis. The away goal is in the pocket for the Red Devils, already. Bayern remains mute and astounded for the first couple of minutes. Progressively though the Bavarians take advantage of the precautious Manchester United by rushing to the wings (where else?). By the twentieth minute we’ve seen Altintop and Lahm combine well to cross the ball, Pranjić send in the first free kick and Scholes shoe the Turk with a nice “Nike” logo on the thigh. Whilst the Germans play around with the ball, Manchester use their counter attacking speed to bring the danger to Butt’s net, in the person of Nani, who, after missing the 2-0 with his left foot (16th), hits the crossbar on a cross-shot (22nd). Asleep for all this time, Ribery suddenly wakes up. First, pushing Van Der Sar to a delicate save on a deflected shot (21st), then by delivering a caviar ball between Vidic and Rio to Altintop who, not being Robben, eats himself on the control (24th). Finally, Ribery does justice to his status and devours Neville on the left flank, delivering a powerful cross than Van Der Sar only pushes back as far as Altintop who fails miserably at the volley. Olić is a millisecond too late, and all of the Manchester defence sighs of relief (28th). Manchester seems to be in somewhat of a bad day (maybe because of the deafening Bayern fans?), and rely on the most basic combinations. Van Bommel becomes king in the midfield, Pranjic sollicitates Van Der Sar again with a shot from outside the box: Demichelis and Van Buyten slowly discover Manchester’s half, thanks in part to Carrick and Scholes loosing possession in their own half. Olić fights with Rio. Although uninspired, the Red Devils manage to come forward menacingly with Rooney’s shot (after Demichelis watches the ball fly over his head, 40th) and Carrick’s volley (45th), both straight from worked combinations and both straight to Butt. Olić and Müller remain subdued in the end of the first half, Vidic and Rio playing safe, the mistake is right around the corner, on both sides.
The second half gets off to a flying start (love these ready-made expressions) and it’s again on the left side of the field. After Olić, by now already the most loveable player of all time with his relentless efforts, and Müller force good saves from the Dutch Tower, Bayern obtains two successive corner kicks. It’s there that we first see the Red Devils’ defence struggle with the strength of the Germans, notably with the two Vans (Buyten and Bommel). Bayern’s good spell is concluded by Altintop who dances around the defence with three successful sharp turns before unleashing a furious shot, just inside the box, that Van Der Sar somehow manages to save with a great reflex (56th). The frantic pace finally gives way to a static midfield battle to give the game a more traditional aspect. Manchester runs out of ideas quickly: they first try to reenact the third goal scored at the San Siro, but Van Buyten has obviously seen the tapes, and Rooney often finds himself against 3 or 4 defenders on the counter attacks. Olić tries his left foot shot at the near post again after receiving a delicious back heel pass from Müller, invisible otherwise (72nd). The deliverance comes from Ribery and a cheap free kick, deflected into his own goal by Wayne Rooney (out of all people). It’s neither expected nor worthy of such a game, yet deserved. At the 76th, Bayern come back to 1-1. The Bavarians sense the opportunity to ram the point home and press further, with a 58% ball possession. Manchester doesn’t seem to mind. Fergie’s protégés obtain a couple of free kicks but lack the firepower to pierce through a rugged defence. The pace quickens as the last minutes are inaugurated with the ball rarely going out of play. In these games, the details usually make the difference (I told you I love these ready-made sentences): Vidic simply devastates the German defence on a corner kick but his header bounces off of the crossbar (83rd) and the loud knock resonates throughout a whole stadium holding its breath in. A couple of centimetres below and Manchester wouldn’t have needed to see Van Der Sar pull out a top class save in front of Gomez (90th). The pressure is on the English goal. The miracle happens at the 92nd when Evra forgets how to clear a ball, that box must be cursed for defenders, leaving Olić an open highway to beat a stranded Van Der Sar with an excellent feint to top it all off (and sign of great calm). Bayern finally give Manchester a taste of their own 1999 medicine. Unfortunately this was only the first leg of a quarter final, and the conceded goal might reveal itself treacherous for a team that has looked flimsy in defense in more than one occasion. After a horrible confrontation with Fiorentina, Bayern seem to unveil themselves, opening their hearts up, finally.
Lyon-Bordeaux
The feel for the game was that of a tight and closed encounter. Both teams came on the field with a substitute central defender, Sane for Bordeaux and Bodmer for Lyon, as an omen that the key to the game would be defensive mistakes. At this game, it was the Girodins who first illustrated themselves. At the tenth minute, Ciani, “à la ramasse”, forgets that a successful header involves clean contact with the ball, clears the ball less than poorly, the leather falls to Bodmer who crosses in low to Lisandro who just has to tap the ball in, between the guilty defender’s legs, to make it 1-0 for the home team (10th). We’ll see the closed game some other time. Both teams accept to play full throttle, using the whole width and length of the pitch. Makoun gently kisses Carrasso. From one of the only throw-ins, Gourcuff mystifies Cissokho and Toulalan in two moves, sends in a more-than-perfect cross for Chamakh’s head that silences the whole stadium (14th). Cris, the cop, is guilty this time. The distance duel between the two clinical finishers is on its way. You think the game might slow down, finally, as the two teams level out. But the 25th minute serves as symbol of this game. From a Bordeaux corner kick, Bastos receives the ball within his own half and launches a sublime outside-of-the-left-foot-curving-deep-pass for Delgado in between Sané and Ciani, both too slow to catch up to the speedy Argentine, who further looses his one-on-one with Carrasso just inside the box. Gourcuff recuperates the ball at midfield and with an intelligent pass finds Wendel flying down the left wing. The Brazilian winger waits for Tremoulinas’ overtake, launches him on the side of the box, the cross is low for Wendel, who miss-shoots, but the ball comes to Gouffran who attempts the Madjer only to see Lloris fly and save the ball that was aimed at his top corner. “Cracking stuff here at Gerland”, as the British commentator says. But the young goalkeeper isn’t exempt from the mistakes, and on a disastrous aerial outing allows Chamakh to head a Tremoulinas cross towards the open net but the ball goes just wide (30th). Two minutes later Lyon finds the second opening when a cross from Pjanić finds Bastos at the second post. The Brazilian finds the time to get back on his left foot and sends a bullet into the Girondins’ opposite 7. The first half ends and everybody has a chance to catch a breath.
Laurent Blanc must have been furious in the locker room. Himself a solid and tactful defender, the performance of his back four surely infuriated him. Hence the second half sees a newfound solidity in Bordeaux’s defence, as well as incredible will to look for an equalizer. Every ball goes through Gourcuff who in turn distributes the game evenly on the sides. On the hour mark, Chalme sends in a flying cross to a forgotten Chamakh who stretches out to tap in the ball, but that’s without counting on an XXL Lloris who pulls out the save of the century to keep the ball out. The display of talent continues when Hugo Boss goes to capture a free kick made-in-Gourcuff (68th). On the other hand, the keeper remains still as Wendel sends his shot onto the crossbar after yet another one touch movement involving Gourcuff and Chalme (70th). The final blow comes at the 75th when Chalme gets sanctioned with an ultra-severe penalty kick for blocking a shot with his elbow (how could it have been voluntary if his head was facing the other way?). Lisandro pulls ahead in the striker duel. 3-1 for Lyon. Lyon miss the 4-1 with a Govou shot that evades the post. The loss is harsh for Blanc’s team but they only have themselves to blame for the fatal mistakes, as the quality of the play was otherwise intact. They were confronted to a gigantic Lloris. The away goal keeps the hopes alive, but the difference was clear tonight between the team with a lot of European past and the rookies. For Lyon, the year seems right for them to finally overtake the quarterfinal obstacle so fatal to them previously. I see this as a good sign for French football: they offered a game overloaded with quality, will and young players. From the goalkeepers (both, that is), to the creative forwards, passing through the wingers (Cissokho and Tremoulinas/Chalme in mind), France can compliment itself for such a show, and who knows, maybe claim another European title in this year of the underdogs? It would not be stolen.
TFO
No comments:
Post a Comment