Manchester City continues to lead in the 32nd round of the Premier League without any problems. Even the absence of Sergio Aguero, who may also miss the first quarter-final match of the Champions League with Liverpool due to injury, did not prevent the team from gaining three points. Leroy Zane, Gabriel Jesus and Raheem Sterling scored once for the Citizens. Now only a miracle can prevent Josep Guardiola's team from becoming champions. Already in the next round they can guarantee themselves the title in the derby with Manchester United.
Jose Mourinho's team, in turn, resolved all the issues last weekend by the 20th minute, hitting the goal of the outsider Swansea twice. Romelu Lukaku opened the scoring, for whom this goal became his hundredth in the Premier League.
“Not a bad number, but I want to add trophies to my personal achievements. There is a lot of challenging work ahead, and I enjoy the challenge. I am a team player, so I put the team before myself. But I am also a striker and I know that I will score many more goals,” the Manchester United press service quotes the Belgian as saying.”
The second goal was scored by Alexis Sanchez, whose adaptation to the new place took a little longer. In addition, the Chilean scored an assist for Lukaku. Perhaps now the midfielder will feel more confident at Manchester United.
Liverpool, before meeting with Manchester City in the Champions League, won a hard-fought victory over Crystal Palace in the 100th match in the Premier League under the leadership of Jurgen Klopp. The hosts opened the scoring in the 13th minute from the penalty spot. The visitors came back straight after the break thanks to a precise strike from Sadio Mane. Finally, shortly before the end of the meeting, Mohamed Salah, after serving from the flank and a teammate's save, scored his 29th goal of the current season of the English Championship and strengthened his lead in the tournament's scorers' race.
The central match of the tour was the confrontation between Chelsea and Tottenham. It was difficult to overestimate the importance of the London derby for the Blues, because only if they won did they have a chance to compete for getting into the top four, which would give them the opportunity to play in the Champions League.
And in the first half, Antonio Conte's team really looked better. Already in the 19th minute, Marcos Alonso opened the scoring, but the goal was rightly canceled due to the Spaniard being offside. The nominal hosts corrected themselves quickly enough; Alvaro Morata caught Hugo Lloris's mistake on the way out and scored according to the rules.
But Chelsea did not manage to go into the break in the lead. In stoppage time for the first half, goalkeeper Willy Caballero, who replaced Thibaut Courtois, also played poorly. The Argentine clearly did not expect that the ball after Christian Eriksen's long-range strike would dive right under the crossbar, and did not even raise his hands.
After the break, Chelsea's game completely fell apart; the current champion's hopes of fighting for the Champions League zone were destroyed by Dele Alli. Within five minutes he managed to score twice. To begin with, the young midfielder fired the ball past Caballero after Eric Dier's amazing pass from deep, and then managed to be the first to get to him in the crush at the opponent's goal.
PSG"s Coupe de la Ligue win yesterday has meant Dani Alves has become the most decorated footballer ever with 3️⃣6️⃣ trophies. 🏆 pic.twitter.com/xZQ5NmuyYN
— Uber Sports Fact (@UberSportsFact)
Probably the most anticipated of the return matches of the 1/8 finals of the Champions League among neutral fans was the match at the Camp Nou, where Barcelona hosted PSG. Everyone was worried about one question: will the Catalans be able to snatch a ticket to the quarterfinals after a devastating away defeat with a score of 0:4. Many people believed in the reality of this. More than 40 percent of active users of the Euro-Futbol.ru portal believed that Barcelona would be able to make a comeback. And they turned out to be right, although even they were sure in the 87th minute that the Parisians would be in the quarterfinals.
Game protocol
Luis Enrique decided not to trust the traditional Barcelona 4-3-3 formation, deciding to play three central defenders, saturating the center of the field as much as possible, realizing that in order to score 6 goals, as the Barcelona entrenador himself wanted, it would be desirable part with the ball as little as possible.
Unai Emery has released a fairly predictable squad. The only problem was with Di Maria, who had just recovered from an injury and apparently did not have time to reach optimal condition, so the Parisian coach decided to leave the Argentine, who became the main character of the match at the Parc des Princes, on the bench.
It was important for the Parisians not to miss an early goal at Camp Nou. After all, it was clear to everyone that the Catalans would attack from the first seconds. But at the same time, the French team chose a strange tactical scheme, squeezing almost the entire team into their third of the field, rather than trying to deprive the opponent of the ball. Having gained space, Barcelona gained confidence, and the PSG players, finding themselves under intense pressure, were noticeably nervous. This is what provoked the home team's early goal - Rafinha crossed from the right edge towards the line of the goalkeeper's area, where two visiting defenders failed to clear the ball, after which Suarez, ahead of Trapp, opened the scoring in the match.
The Parisians managed not to be knocked down after such a rapid start. Emery's team picked up the pace, trying to even out the game, moving it away from their goal. But still, Barcelona continued to have the initiative, while PSG limited itself to rare counterattacks. Barely the first goal in a “blue garnet” shirt in such a important match Javier Mascherano did not mark, but his shot from the rebound from outside the penalty area turned out to be slightly inaccurate. And after that, a very controversial episode occurred - after Draxler’s cross from the left edge, the ball hit the hand of Mascherano, who was lying in a tackle, and went beyond the baseline. However, German referee Deniz Aytekin was either afraid to point to the point, or interpreted the episode as “a hand in a natural position,” or simply did not want to kill the intrigue - in any case, only a corner was awarded.
And “Barcelona” decided to get carried away seriously long-range strikes. Thus, Messi and Neymar scored dangerous attempts, but each of the forwards lacked some centimeters to score. Tried with middle distance Suarez scored a double, but he did not have the opportunity to put his body down to shoot tightly, so Trapp easily dealt with the threat. The Catalans earned a lot of standards not far from other people's possessions, to which Pique and Umititi, who played excellent headers, connected. PSG held on, but shortly before the end of the first half they conceded a goal, or rather scored themselves - Marquinhos failed to cover the ball with his body from Iniesta, Andres, from a difficult position, managed to heel the ball along the goal, and Kurzawa, trying to clear the ball, cut off the game ball into your own gate.
At the end of the first, Barcelona staged a real assault on the opponent's possessions, forcing the Parisians to play on the rebound, but the guests survived, after which they received a 15-minute break in order to calm down and think about further actions. From the start of the second half, Unai Emery's team tried to play first and carried out a couple of sharp attacks, but the Blaugrana's first response was effective. In the struggle for the ball, Menier tripped and fell right in the path of Neymar - the Brazilian could have avoided contact, but he fell beautifully. Aytekin was not impressed by this fall, but his assistant, who was behind the goal, convinced the chief referee to change his mind and award a penalty, which was clearly converted by Messi.
Almost immediately after this, the Parisians could have nullified most of the Catalans' efforts - after Meunier's cross from the right flank along the goal, Cavani, playing ahead, shot in the opposite direction to Ter Stegen, but the ball hit the post and went out of bounds. Barcelona continued to press in the opposing half of the field, but at the end of an hour of playing time, PSG still scored: Draxler earned a free kick in the middle of the field. The set piece was followed by a throw to the left edge of the penalty area, where Kurzawa won the fight in the air and dropped the ball into the center to Cavani, who immediately fired under the crossbar.
“Barcelona” tried not to give up and continued to move forward, but still the former fire in the blue-garnet hearts died out, and the Catalans moved forward more by inertia - it seemed that with the missed goal, the Barca players themselves believed that they could save the game unreal. The match was calmly coming to an end, until at the end of the match Neymar scored a superb free kick into the top corner. Literally right there, Suarez earned a penalty for Barcelona, which was converted by the same Neymar.
Miracle! Only actions comparable to this word could help Barcelona advance to the next round. After losing to PSG in the first leg with a score of 0:4, the Catalans put themselves in a very difficult position. However, the fans who filled the Camp Nou believed in the final success of the Blaugrana.
An early goal in this match was important for Luis Enrique's team. And it happened! The first attack on the guests' goal led to the Parisians taking the goal. The ball was thrown from the penalty line into the center of the goalkeeper's area, where Suarez outplayed Trapp and headed the sphere in an arc into the goal from a couple of meters. The visitors' defender knocked the ball away, but did it out of the gate. The referee recorded the fact of the goal and pointed to the center - 1:0.
The Camp Nou got into a frenzy, with Barcelona's players gaining some confidence in their abilities as they circled the PSG penalty area. Unai Emery's team retreated to their goal. This is roughly the picture that was observed throughout the first half. The Catalans were practically unable to get through to the opponent's goal through 10 defenders. Therefore, sometimes the home team hit from afar. In the 17th minute, Neymar made a great shot - the ball flew centimeters from the top corner.
But despite the “bus” lined up at Trapp’s goal, Barca managed to score a second before the break. Luis Suarez threw the ball into the penalty area as Iniesta rushed, and he got ahead of Marquinhos at the goal line and decided to escalate the game with a backheel pass along the goal. Messi and Neymar ran into the pass, but Kurzawa cut the ball into his own goal with an awkward movement of his foot - 2:0. The Catalans had two goals left before the comeback!
The break flew by unnoticed, and the hosts returned to the field with the desire to continue the scoring extravaganza. Five minutes pass and the Camp Nou literally explodes with delight - their favorites score the third! And it was like this: Barcelona’s next attack developed on the left flank, where Neymar threw the ball into the penalty area on his own move. At this moment, Meunier stumbles and Neymar clings to him. At first, the main referee of the match showed the Brazilian “get up”, but after consulting with the referee behind the goal, he pointed to the “spot”. Messi takes the penalty superbly - 3:0. There's only one goal left until a miracle!
The guests are well aware of the complexity of the situation and are trying to become more active. In the 52nd minute, PSG manages a great counterattack, during which Meunier crosses into the penalty area, but Cavani hits the post. Lucky Catalans!
Di Maria immediately enters the field. Emery feels everything. The Argentinean's appearance invigorated the Parisians and soon they caught Barca in a counterattack. From the set piece the ball was thrown to Kurzawa, who from outside the penalty area makes a pass at the lonely Cavani. Edinson shoots from 10 meters under the crossbar - 3:1. There is an important away goal! The home team needs to score three more!
The Catalans just go blank for a while and don’t know what to do on the field. There was one ball left until happiness! Luis Enrique takes Iniesta out of the game, and in the next substitution he brings on Roberto. Maybe he knew something?
Meanwhile, the minutes were inexorably melting away, Barca could not manage to score at least the fourth, not to mention other goals. Moreover, in one of the rare attacks by the Parisians, Cavani runs away one on one - Ter Stegen miraculously saves the hosts from complete collapse by sticking out his leg.
In the 87th minute, Neymar earns a free kick to the left of the goal and decides to take it himself. The Brazilian hits perfectly, the ball touches the bar and flies into the near corner - 4:1. There are still two goals left and 5-6 minutes to play. "Camp Nou" roars! "Barcelona" with the whole team goes on the attack.
Another throw into the PSG penalty area and in the fight with Marquinhos, Luis Suarez ends up on the turf. The referee decides to give the Catalans a second penalty. Neymar carries out the penalty and makes it 5:1. Addition time has begun, and only five minutes to play.
And here is the final assault! Even the Catalan goalkeeper goes into the Parisian penalty area. It was there that Veratti violated the rules not far from the center circle and a minute and a half before the end of the match, Barca earned a free kick. There is a cross into the penalty area and Sergi Roberto jumps out of the pile of players, throwing his foot forward and managing to send the ball into the goal - 6:1. This is something incredible! There is a record of all records!
As soon as the Parisians leave the center, the final whistle sounds. Barcelona are in the quarterfinals! PSG is missing out on a fantastic head start! A historic match for many generations to come!
Barcelona - PSG - 6:1
Goals: Luis Suarez, 3 - 1:0. Kurzawa, 40, own goal - 2:0. Messi, 50, from the penalty spot - 3:0. Cavani, 62 - 3:1. Neymar, 88 - 4:1. Neymar, 90+1, from the penalty spot - 5:1. Roberto, 90+5 - 6:1.
"Barcelona" : ter Stegen, Umtiti, Pique, Mascherano, Busquets, Iniesta (Turan 65), Rakitic (Gomes 84), Rafinha (Roberto 76), Messi, L. Suarez, Neymar.
PSG: Trapp, Meunier (Krychowiak 90+3), Marquinhos, Thiago Silva, Curzawa, Matuidi, Rabiot, Veratti, Lucas (Di Maria 55), Cavani, Draxler (Aurier 75).
The most outstanding comeback in the history of world football. This is perhaps how we can characterize what Barcelona did in the match against Paris Saint-Germain in the second leg of the 1/8 finals of the 2016-2017 Champions League.
Will there ever be anything like this? Perhaps not. In the meantime, let's remember the details of that amazing evening.
Barcelona - PSG 6:1
- Date: March 8, 2017.
- Stadium: Camp Nou.
- Number of viewers: 96920.
- Judge: Deniz Aytekin (Germany).
Pre-start layouts
The first match in Paris ended with a major victory for PSG 4:0 and the outcome of the two-game confrontation seemed to be beyond doubt - never before in the more than 60-year history of European competitions has such a handicap been won back.
What about European Cups? I think in the history of football in general. No, maybe in some amateur league or in the Honduran Cup something similar happened, but I have never heard of such miracles on a serious level.
Therefore, the words spoken before the match:
“If someone can score four goals against us, then we can score six against him,”
seemed like ordinary bravado. And who would have thought that they would turn out to be prophetic.
Team compositions
The teams' losses could hardly be called irreparable. For the Catalans, Jeremy Mathieu and Ales Vidal were unable to take the field, and for the Parisians, Thiago Motta.
- Luis Enrique fielded the following line-up: Ter Stegen, Pique – Mascherano – Umite, Butskes – Iniesta – Rakitic, Messi, Suarez – Neymar – Rafinha.
Graphically, Barcelona's formation could be depicted as a 3-3-1-3 with Lionel Messi in the "under striker" position. Of course, any scheme is rather arbitrary, but it is a fact that Barça entered the field with six attacking players.
- PSG squad: Trapp, Thiago Silva - Kurzawa - Marquinhos - Meunier, Rabiot - Matiudi, Draxler - Verratti - Lucas Moura, Cavani.
It was clear that Unai Emery was being cautious - Angel di Maria remained on the bench.
Match
The match itself can be roughly divided into four segments. The first is the starting half of the meeting. Barcelona completed the minimum task, scoring two goals, and did it at the optimal time for itself - in the opening of the match and immediately before the break. The first goal was scored by Luis Suarez, the second was cut into his own goal by Kurzawa after a brilliant backheel pass from Andreas Iniesta.
The second period began immediately after the break - Messi took the penalty awarded for Manier's foul against Neymar. About the judges' decisions - a little lower, for now we'll just state the facts.
The third period can be conditionally called “PSG time”. Unai Emery, feeling that he no longer just smells, but frankly stinks of something fried, throws Angel di Maria into battle. And soon the Parisians score a goal - Edison Cavani shoots irresistibly after a discount from Layvin Kurzawa, who is redeemed for an own goal.
After some time, Ter Stegen eliminates Cavani's one-on-one exit, and a similar exit by Di Maria is interrupted by his compatriot Javier Mascherano.
Well, the final segment can hardly be called anything other than fantastic. In the 88th minute, Neymar scores with a magnificent free kick, two minutes later he converts a penalty, and in the 6th added minute, Sergi Roberto, who replaced Sergi Roberto, sends the sixth ball into the PSG net!
Analyzing what happened, you can’t help but think, how could this even happen? After all, Paris Saint-Germain is far from a brewery team. Of course, it’s good to be clever in hindsight, but you couldn’t play like that against Barcelona. PSG came to lose with the score they needed, and were punished for it.
On the other hand: how should Emery have played after winning 4:0? I’ll say right away that I don’t know and I don’t undertake to judge the Spanish specialist.
Controversial decisions of the arbitrator
And finally, about refereeing. Actually, we're talking about about three decisions of the referee - the awarding of two penalties against the Parisians and Mascherano's tackle on Di Maria.
Let's start with a penalty, after which the score became 3:0 in favor of Barcelona. Neymar bursts into the penalty area, Parisian defender Meunier loses his balance, falls, catches Neymar with his head, causing him to end up on the lawn. It seems like an obvious penalty, since contact actually took place.
But don't rush to conclusions. Experts' opinions were divided. The fact is that in the interpretation of football rules there is the concept of “an episode that does not depend on the player.” This is exactly the case when there was no intent and negligence or recklessness in the actions of the defender.
Episode two: with the score 3:1, Di Maria runs away one on one with the Catalan goalkeeper, enters the penalty area, at the moment Javier Mascherano catches his supporting leg in a tackle without touching the ball. An undisputed penalty and a straight red card because there was a deprivation of a clear goal-scoring opportunity.
And finally, a penalty on Luis Suarez. He wasn't there. At all. Apparently this was Barcelona’s reward for their boundless self-confidence, perseverance and desire to win.
So the assessment of this incredible victory cannot be unambiguous. Although in five years they will already forget about refereeing, but the result of the match will remain forever. And it will clearly be remembered for decades.
Two weeks ago, Barcelona lost in Paris with a score of 0:4, thereby practically destroying their chances of reaching the quarterfinals of the most prestigious tournament in Europe. The fact is that not a single team in the history of European Cups has managed to reach the next round after 0:4 in the first match. And by the 88th minute of the meeting in the capital of Catalonia, everything also indicated that the hosts could not be saved. Barcelona needed to score three times.
And that's where it started. First, Neymar scored coolly from a free kick, soon Luis Suarez earned a penalty (it seems that there was a simulation in that episode after all), which the Brazilian converted, and a few seconds before the end of stoppage time, Sergi Roberto drove the sixth ball into the PSG goal.
Incredible drama
“I was present at the Camp Nou in 1999 on the day Manchester United scored two goals against Bayern last minutes Champions League final. Back then I could not imagine that I would ever see something like this. Not to mention the fact that I will also have to watch this in the same stadium.
Wednesday's drama overshadowed even that incredible match 18 years ago.
After the final whistle, not only the shocked PSG fans, but also the Barcelona fans remained in their seats at the stadium. Neither of them moved from their place at the moment when his team needed to score three goals. The stadium roared and the ground shook with this passionate support.
What happened at Camp Nou will never be forgotten. Magic from start to finish,” writes ESPN.
Posted by FC Barcelona (@fcbarcelona) Mar 8, 2017 at 3:32 PST
“It was impossible to even imagine that Barcelona would be in the quarter-finals of the Champions League after what happened two weeks ago in Paris. I couldn’t believe it even after Luis Suarez’s goal in the second minute of the return match. When Edinson Cavani scored, no one had any doubts - Barcelona's hopes collapsed. However, the Catalan club defied history and ended up in the last eight best teams Europe.
Now no one will ever dare to say after the first match that Barcelona has been knocked out. This victory will certainly add confidence to Luis Enrique's team, including in the fight against Real Madrid for the La Liga title. I wonder if there is anyone now who would like to play Barcelona in the quarter-finals of the Champions League?
Luis Enrique, by the way, set the tone for the post-match press conference the day before the game. On Tuesday, he argued without an ounce of doubt that if PSG scored four goals in Paris, then why couldn't Barcelona score six times at home. Enrique opted for a very bold 3-4-3 tactic that has only been used in the last few weeks. He also had the courage to replace the ineffective Andres Iniesta, and his decision to bring on Sergi Roberto was a stroke of genius.
Neymar was the only one who believed in success after Cavani's goal. His skill combined with cunning ultimately led to Barça moving on,” he noted in another match note ESPN.
Comeback for all time
Barcelona staged the greatest comeback in Champions League history on Wednesday night, scoring three goals in the final seven minutes of the second leg against PSG.
It is a match that will remain in Barcelona's consciousness for a long time to come and there is no doubt that 20 years from now millions will claim that they were present at the Camp Nou for that magical match.
The 3-4-3 tactics chosen by Luis Enrique were not a revelation to anyone. Rafinha and Andres Iniesta took up positions on the flanks, while Ivan Rakitic and Sergio Busquets played in the middle of the pitch. Three central defenders played in defense, while Sergi Roberto and Jordi Alba remained in reserve.
At times this season the atmosphere at the Camp Nou has resembled a Sunday mass, but on Wednesday it was the opposite. The huge stadium was so seething that Barcelona forced PSG to make a mistake just a few minutes after the opening whistle.
With 25 minutes left until the final whistle, Barcelona needed to score three times. At that time, PSG was happy with everything, calmly watching the opponent's attempts to turn everything upside down.
The Camp Nou stands roared as Marquinhos brought down Luis Suarez in the PSG penalty area and the referee awarded a penalty, which Neymar coolly converted. And then the incredible happened. The most unexpected of heroes, Sergi Roberto, scored the sixth goal against PSG at the very end of extra time.
The fans who stayed in the stadium until the end witnessed the greatest comeback in the history of European football,” writes the Spanish newspaper Marca.
The Sergi Roberto effect
“The presence of Sergi Roberto on the pitch coincided with a remarkable turnaround in the fortunes of the Catalan club. In the 88th minute, Neymar scored a stunning goal from a free kick, once again making the PSG players nervous.
In the 90th minute, when the fourth official announced five minutes had been added, the Brazilian striker calmly converted the penalty. Who would have thought that the hero of these five minutes would be Sergi Roberto, who forever wrote his name in history. The protagonist of a truly iconic night in the history of Barcelona and European football,” writes AS.
"PSG is humiliated in Barcelona and leaves the Champions League", says the headline of one of the articles about the match on the website of a leading French publication. L'Equipe.
“Three weeks after one of their greatest achievements, PSG suffered perhaps one of the biggest nightmares in their history. The Parisian club was defeated at the Camp Nou, suffering a defeat that will be talked about for a very long time. What happened happened. PSG players were punished.
Already in the first minutes of the match, it was easy to notice that PSG was not at ease. Luis Suarez's goal at the very beginning of the match indicated that the Parisians were not playing quite correctly and pointed to a collective mistake.
Cavani's 64th-minute goal led many to believe that PSG were already in the quarter-finals. “Barca” at that moment had to start all over again. Some began to leave the stadium. But in Extra time The unthinkable happened - Barcelona knocked out Paris. It will be very difficult to recover after this.
Neymar was the best on the field, it was thanks to him that Barcelona ended up in the quarterfinals. Without the Brazilian this comeback would not have happened. He not only scored twice himself, but also provided the decisive pass when Sergi Roberto scored the winning goal. “Barcelona should thank Neymar,” writes L'Equipe.
Posted by FC Barcelona (@fcbarcelona) Mar 8, 2017 at 4:34 PST
“The Parisians cannot justify their defeat by the referee's decisions, since they lost with a score of 1:6.
But, naturally, they have the right to lament some of the refereeing decisions that ultimately led to this result.
PSG's dreams of greatness remain just dreams. This match will remain in the minds of Parisians for a long time,” adds France Football.
“The euphoria after a 4-0 victory gives way to bitter disappointment. The result of the confrontation should have confirmed PSG as a real contender for the trophy, but instead the Parisians look as far from their dream as ever. Memories of this match will haunt PSG for many, many years to come. And questions for Unai Emery and his players will follow very soon. Such defeats are usually costly...,” notes the author of the official UEFA website Chris Burke.
