On a night of champions, it was goals galore, as Europe was agog, with some breathtaking football
on display, and sublime out-of-this-world goals scored, as match-day four of the UEFA Champions
league took center stage. Here, Econsport rounds up the major talking points
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Pep's masterstroke;
seventh time lucky for city
Mastermind; Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola led his side to victory against much fancied FC Barcelona
How many times
have we mentioned Messi, Suarez and Neymar in this second half? The commentator
asked curiously, after Manchester city's Ilkay Gundogan had dealt Barcelona a
hammer blow, by smashing in his side's third goal on the night. Such was city's
dominance in the second half, at the Etihad stadium.
In six previous meetings against Barcelona,
City had failed to win any--scoring just once in the process. But not this
time. On the grandest stage of all, under the beaming floodlights, the men clad
in blue put on a recital. Guardiola's high pressing, slick passing approach
yielded dividends, as Barcelona simply couldn't cope with the hustling and
harrying from man city. Despite boasting of arguably the world's best forwards
in Messi, Suarez and Neymar, Pep Guardiola outwitted his Barcelona counterpart,
Luis Enrique in the opposition dugout.
Sweet sailing; De Bruyne's inch perfect free-kick flew into the top right hand corner to put Manchester City 2-1 up
Lionel Messi had earlier handed Barcelona the lead in the first half, before city responded emphatically
The Argentine wheels away in celebration after nudging his side in front at the Etihad stadium
By fielding an extra midfielder in
Gundogan, alongside Fernandinho, City had bodies in midfield, and thus were
able to stem the free-flow passing from Barcelona, and deep lying midfielder
Sergio Busquets. City's equalizer was a perfect example.
Man city were denied a clear penalty, when winger Raheem Sterling was upended in the box, by Barcelona defender Samuel Umtiti
Constantly pressing
off the ball-despite having just 28% of possession by that stage, the tactic
paid off, as Sergi Roberto lost possession in a crucial area, city pounced,
Gundogan equalized, and from then on, the water was only flowing one way. In
fairness to Barcelona, up until that point, they were by far the better side,
and had city on the ropes. But football is made up of little fine details, and
just like biscuit--you never know when it will crack.
Together they stand; City players gather in a huddle to celebrate
On the balance of play,
at full time, city more than deserved their victory. Three points, three goals,
two games left, Man city's qualification is back on track, and for Guardiola,
well, very few have the balls to pull off this kind of feat, for some, his
glorified status is enhanced even further.
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They won't back down; Arsenal's change in
mentality is key
With the Gunners, one is never starved of
excitement--keeping fans on the edge of their seats--there was plenty of such
on display. Away to Ludogorets Razgrad, in far away Bulgaria, the gunners made
life difficult for themselves, by going two goals down in the first twenty
minutes of their group stage tie.
Midfielder Granit Xhaka gave Arsenal a glimmer of hope with this well taken strike
In years gone by, the gunners would have
fallen short of the expected maximum three points, but not this group of
players. Not with a certain Mesut Ozil at his brilliant best, spunning some
choice silk at will with hia spellbinding skill set. Two goals down, Granit
Xhaka gave the north Londerners hope--pulling a goal back for his side--while Olivier
Giroud levelled proceedings, with his goal before the break.
Striker Olivier Giroud equalized for the Gunners before the break--his third goal in two games.
After that the
gunners superior quality proved insurmountable for their Bulgarian
opponents. Tougher tests lie in wait
though, as Arsenal face Tottenham Hotspur--in the north-London derby, before
tackling Manchester United in the premier league, and Paris Saint German (PSG)
in the Champions league.
Peak of the bunch; German midfielder Mesut Ozil scored a classic to hand his side all three points
His touch is fabulous; After been sent through on goal, Ozil conjured up spellbinding technique to lob the onrushing goalkeeper
Composed; Shimmying past two defenders, he left one of them on the seat of his pants
That's for you; The German midfielder celebrates with the away supporters
In what promises to be a grueling month of November,
the gunners can't keep on getting away with naive defensive mistakes. If
anything, complacency has to be nipped in the bud. For this night though,
Arsene Wenger will gladly take this result--after all three points is three
points, some will say, and with their forward line looking bang creative, the
gunners are just a stone throw , from vying with the bigger fishes, for the
continental title, that has eluded Wenger so far.
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Simeone crafting
something special out of Antoine Griezmann
When Atletico Madrid signed Antoine Griezmann in 2014, they
saw a player blessed with a unique blend of frightening pace, array of skills
mixed with flair, not forgetting his spot-on finishing ability. However the player in question was still raw
and unrefined. Fast forward two years,
now a world beater and a Ballon d'or nominee, Griezmann's reputation has
blossomed under Diego Simeone's tutelage. On the back of a breathtaking Euro
2016 campaign with France, where he was top scorer, he has notched crucial
goals this season--and plenty of them too. On Tuesday, at the Vicente Calderon,
his full repertoire of skill was on display. His dying minute goal sealed his
brace on the night, and effectively handed all three points to Atletico,
enabling them to remain top of the group standings ahead of much fancied Bayern
Munich. Domestically too, Griezmann has been a key cog in his side's
campaign--with six goals and four assists in nine league games. B It would be
unfair on coach Simeone if some of the praise for Griezmann development wasn't
allotted to him. After all, it was he who changed his star striker's position
from a barnstorming winger, to a lethal top nine. The sad thing though for
Atletico, it'll take a monsters effort to keep Griezmann at the club, when the
big guns come calling.
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Elsewhere;
In Switzerland, Paris Saint German defeated Fc Basel,
thanks to Thomas Meunier's late strike. SSC Napoli held Besiktas to a 1-1 draw
in Turkey, Ricardo Quaresma netting for the hosts, only for Marek Hamsik to
level the scores four minutes later, in the 82nd minute. At the Estadio da luz,
Benfica defeated Dynamo Kiev by a lone goal, with Eduardo Salvio scoring from
the penalty spot on the stroke of half-time.
Stuff of legends; Captain Marek Hamsik scored a screamer for Napoli to hand his Italian side a share of the spoils against Besiktas.
Remember him; Euro 2016 winner Ricardo Quaresma had earlier handed his side( Besiktas) the lead from the penalty spot
Eduardo Salvio (pictured above) scored from the penalty spot to secure victory for Benfica over Dynamo kiev.
In Germany, Borrusia
Monchengladbach were held to a 1-1 draw by Celtic, at the Borrusia park, and
German champions Bayern Munich defeated PSV Eindhoven 2-1 away from home, to
ramp up the pressure on Atletico Madrid in the battle for top spot. Roberto
Lewandowski scored a brace, as the German champions came from behind, after
Santiago Arias put the hosts in front--albeit in controversial circumstances.
Calm as you like; Roberto Lewandowski scores from the penalty spot for Bayern Munich against PSV Eindhoven
Matchday 4 resumes on Wednesday, as teams battle for the
automatic two spots in their respective groups, to seal qualification to the
next round of the lucrative UEFA Champions league. Trust Econsport to give you
the load down of all the action, as it unfolds.
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