Story of the week so far ! First with the Champions League games and then in the Premier League. The phrase “Comeback Kings” is soon fading away with the level of competition rising in domestic football leagues. I wonder, has the number of upsets gone up since, say, 2005 🤔? (Yes, I love sports stats, and even more, upsets 😎) Let us begin with the most elite club football competition in Europe!
On Tuesday night, Bayern and Porto were looking to make a comeback in their respective ties, and almost did. Bayern went 1-0 up in the first half after PSG hit the woodwork twice but could not get the job done. PSG advanced with the away goal rule, with the aggregate score tied at 3-3. Porto gave Chelsea a late scare with a goal in extra time, but it was too little too late for the Portuguese side. Wednesday night, Liverpool looked set to stage another famous Anfield European night but poor finishing let them down. A 0-0 final score meant Real Madrid advances to the semi-final where they will be joined by Manchester City, who responded to a first half strike by Borussia Dortmund and won 2-1.
Similar tale was relived in the Premier League when high flying Hammers went to 10 men and 2-0 down at Newcastle, only to comeback 2-2 and lose 3-2 at the end to a thumping header by Joe Willock! On Friday night, Everton faced Spurs. Everton played both beautiful and error laden football in the same game, with the game ending at (Gylfi) 2 – 2 (Kane). Arsenal needed a 97th minute equalizer to draw 1-1 at Fulham while a 1-0 win for Wolves confirmed relegation for Sheffield United.
Manchester United continue to build pressure on cross town rivals Man City with another impressive 3-1 win over Burnley, reducing the gap temporarily to 8 points. Well, Liverpool almost comeback into the top 4 only to fall to a late equalizer and ultimately draw 1-1 at Leeds. As we established, almost a comeback is not a comeback 😋
This week had some F.A Cup action with Chelsea beating Manchester City, 1-0 and ending City’s quadruple dreams. Leicester City beat Southampton 1-0 to set an exciting Wembley clash with Chelsea. Barcelona thumped Athletic Bilbao 4-0 to be crowned the Copa Del Rey (CDR) champions. This could very well be Messi’s last CDR trophy, with Barcelona.
Elsewhere in Europe, Lille dropped points this week shrinking its lead to second placed PSG to a single point. Leipzig’s draw to Hoffenheim means Bayern leads the Bundesliga with a 7 point gap now. Atletico Madrid still three points clear of Real, with Barcelona sneaking into this late title push. Despite a 1-1 draw to Napoli, Inter Milan still looks in firm control of their pursuit of the Serie A title with a 9 point lead over AC Milan.
Upset ALERT: Atalanta beat Juventus 1-0 and leapfrog over them into third place in Serie A.
Ball in the Net 