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Inter Milan - Current Heroes of the Champions League
With a quick turnaround in the Champions League semi-finals, there is not much time to analyse what went right and what went wrong. With the final being held in Madrid's Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, the stakes couldn't be higher.
First up on Tuesday is the game in France where Lyon and Bayern Munich clash for the second time in a week. On Wednesday, the Camp Nou is the setting for Barcelona, who have to turn around a 3-1 deficit from the first leg.
In relative terms, last week was a disaster for Barcelona. A 0-0 draw away to city rivals Espanyol allowed Real Madrid to narrow the gap to just one point in the Spanish title race. Then, the Catalan club found their travel plans were thrown into disarray by the grounding of flights all across Europe.
It is not often that Iceland has a major impact on European semi-finals but 2010 is the year that changed. The volcanic ash clouds which have made air travel unsafe gas had a huge impact on the lives of many people, with football being no exception. Barcelona set off for Milan on Sunday, placing their squad into two coaches as they drove to their Champions League semi-final.
A one night stop-over in France helped break the journey up but many wondered if this journey would have any impact on the performance of the Barcelona players.
Early on, it did not appear to be the case with Barcelona grabbing a vital away goal and the lead in the match. A terrific run from Maxwell, a former Inter Milan player, saw him hit the bye-line before cutting back for Pedro to fire the away side into the lead.
The away goal always changes the tie and means that Barcelona have something to build from at the Camp Nou. However, it also meant Inter had to pull something out of the tie and it showed.
Before half-time, they were level as Sneijder drilled home. A lot is made of Barcelona's desire to win the Champions League on Madrid but you can bet the Dutch international has am incentive to win at the grounds of his former club.
A goal from Maicon just after the break and a third from Milito gave Inter that two goal cushion and dramatically changes the shape of the second leg in the Camp Nou. It is almost in the hands of the Italian side and their manager, who would not shy away from a technical battle.
f any manager is capable of going to the Camp Nou and shutting up shop, it is Jose Mourinho. The Special One worked at Barcelona under Bobby Robson but has had a difficult relationship with the club ever since. The clashes between Barcelona and Chelsea were full of intrigue and incident and there is no reason to expect Wednesday night's second leg to be any different.
The other match in the Champions League semi-final is very much up for grabs but yet again, the team that were at home first take the advantage into the second leg. Although there was not the same level of hype and anticipation for the Bayern Munich versus Lyon match, a Champions League semi-final is one of the pinnacle moments in a footballer’s career.
The game will be remembered for two red cards, which will deny both teams a key player for the second leg. When the game was announced, one of the aspects that people were looking forward to was how Bayern’s Franc Ribery would perform upon his return to France in the second leg of this tie.
This was ruled out early on when Ribery picked up a booking but that was compounded before half-time, when he was dismissed. Ribery went in recklessly and although the home crowd did not appreciate the decision, there can be few arguments about the decision. Sadly, it will deprive the French football fans of seeing one of their major players return to his home country to perform but Bayern fans will also be upset about missing one of their star men.
Lyon were unable to take advantage of the extra man they had and shortly into the second half, the French side were reduced to ten men as well. Jeremy Toulalan was perhaps harshly treated with in his dismissal but in such a big stadium, the referee was probably keen to be seen to be evening up the score with regards to sending offs.
As the game swung back to level numbers for both teams, the home team took advantage and it was no surprise when they eventually took the lead. The goal was inevitably due to the skill and shooting ability of Arjen Robben, whose long range effort took a slight deflection before flying into the net to give Bayern Munich a one goal lead. This was the end of the scoring and sets up a thrilling second leg.
Both teams will be confident of getting through to the final in the Santiago Bernabeu and there is no doubt the tie remains very much in the balance. Bayern will be delighted at the fact that they never lost the away goal and if the German side can open the scoring, Lyon will need to score three goals to make the final. This may see Bayern Munich coming with an attacking attitude, hoping to score the goal that will likely put the French side out.
However, if Lyon can open the scoring, the tie will be all-square and whoever gets the second goal will be firmly in the driving seat. A 1-0 home win will see the match go to extra time but both sides will know that a late goal will give their opponents very little time to strike back. You can expect this match to go right to the wire and it will take a brave person to predict a winner in this semi-final.
All four teams in the semi-final will think they have every chance of making it through to the Champions League final and this should ensure the second legs are massively exciting and tense games. With a very tangible prize of a final place at the Santiago Bernabeu up for grabs, there are very likely to be one or two twists and turns before the final two teams are left.
by Andrew Reilly
for The Silver Circle at www.footballtip.co.uk
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Dear Greg,
I've been a member since July 2003, maybe one of the first to join the Silver Circle.
2004 was a good year but I really enjoyed the long run we had in, I think, July 2005. It was exhilarating! 2006-2007 was not as exciting although still quite profitable and so far 2007-2008 looks quite good. I'm wondering if we're going to hit a long one again soon. Anyway, it's been a pleasure as always with your service, Greg. Armstrong and you are one of the few people I trust on the internet. You have made my retirement so much more fun and financially happy!
Best Wishes, Trent Wrayford, Sidney
