Which country will hold its head up high after this campaign? No, I am not referring to the World Cup, well not just yet. I am referring to one of the best if not the best club competition in the planet, the UEFA Champions League. It features the best clubs in Europe facing each other for not only bragging rights but also to be named the champions of champions. Last year's semi-final featured 3 English Clubs and 1 Spanish Club talk about dominating the cup competition. However, it was the Spanish club Barcelona FC who won it all. This year however is a different story. There are no English clubs but it features the Giants from Germany, Italy, France and Spain.
This year's semi-final is, as I would dub it, a Giant vs Giant match up. Bayern Munich is up against Olympique Lyonnais and FC Barcelona goes head to head against Internazonale Milano. This Giant vs Giant match-up would be a thriller.
In the first match of the first leg saw the heavily favored Bayern Munich get a slim victory over Lyon. This was really a poor performance for both teams especially Bayern who were expected to dominate Lyon. Unfortunately they left the door open for Lyon to snatch the upset of the season in their second leg fixture. Lyon's performance may be poor but you have to give credit to their defense. They literally shut down the always dangerous Franck Ribery and they didn't give Bayern any chance to play their wide game. All in all it may not have been an exciting match but it is just the set-up for a finale worth watching. Can Lyon come back in their home ground and upset the German powerhouse or will Bayern prove time and time again just as what they have done through out the whole season that they deserve to be in the Finals in Madrid?
The next and probably the most talked about match is the first meeting between the Italian champions Inter Milan and the reigning European champions FC Barcelona. There is a history behind this match up. FC Barcelona is trying to stamp their name in the record books in becoming the only team to win back to back Champions League titles. Inter Milan however is a different story, they would want to win their first Champions League title in over 45 years. To add to that, their manager "The Special One" Jose Mourinho is hungry for his first title and has had his own history with FC Barcelona. He has gone against the Spanish giants before when he was still managing Chelsea FC and has failed to get the victory at the Nou Camp, Barcelona's home fortress. During the first leg, Barcelona wasn't able to play its wide, up tempo, passing game since their maestro Lionel Messi was being silenced by the Milan defense. They may have scored the first blood but Inter Milan showed their master class and came back with 3 unanswered goals. Barcelona's manager, Pep Guardiola, was furious with his sides performance as well as how the referees treated his team. Clearly, he has a mountain to climb on the second leg in their home fortress but if anyone can make a comeback this season surely it is Barcelona with the fire power that they have with the likes of Messi, Ibrahimovic and Henry providing a long list of attacking options. But don't think Inter Milan, having a foot in the finals, will just rest on their laurels, they will surely try to do a repeat performance of their first leg dominance, Jose Mourinho will not let this opportunity to go to his first Champions League final slip away. Can Barcelona protect their home ground and over a mountain of a task or will Jose Mourinho and his Inter Milan continue their journey 45 years in the making to become the Champions of Europe?
This year's semi-final is, as I would dub it, a Giant vs Giant match up. Bayern Munich is up against Olympique Lyonnais and FC Barcelona goes head to head against Internazonale Milano. This Giant vs Giant match-up would be a thriller.
In the first match of the first leg saw the heavily favored Bayern Munich get a slim victory over Lyon. This was really a poor performance for both teams especially Bayern who were expected to dominate Lyon. Unfortunately they left the door open for Lyon to snatch the upset of the season in their second leg fixture. Lyon's performance may be poor but you have to give credit to their defense. They literally shut down the always dangerous Franck Ribery and they didn't give Bayern any chance to play their wide game. All in all it may not have been an exciting match but it is just the set-up for a finale worth watching. Can Lyon come back in their home ground and upset the German powerhouse or will Bayern prove time and time again just as what they have done through out the whole season that they deserve to be in the Finals in Madrid?
The next and probably the most talked about match is the first meeting between the Italian champions Inter Milan and the reigning European champions FC Barcelona. There is a history behind this match up. FC Barcelona is trying to stamp their name in the record books in becoming the only team to win back to back Champions League titles. Inter Milan however is a different story, they would want to win their first Champions League title in over 45 years. To add to that, their manager "The Special One" Jose Mourinho is hungry for his first title and has had his own history with FC Barcelona. He has gone against the Spanish giants before when he was still managing Chelsea FC and has failed to get the victory at the Nou Camp, Barcelona's home fortress. During the first leg, Barcelona wasn't able to play its wide, up tempo, passing game since their maestro Lionel Messi was being silenced by the Milan defense. They may have scored the first blood but Inter Milan showed their master class and came back with 3 unanswered goals. Barcelona's manager, Pep Guardiola, was furious with his sides performance as well as how the referees treated his team. Clearly, he has a mountain to climb on the second leg in their home fortress but if anyone can make a comeback this season surely it is Barcelona with the fire power that they have with the likes of Messi, Ibrahimovic and Henry providing a long list of attacking options. But don't think Inter Milan, having a foot in the finals, will just rest on their laurels, they will surely try to do a repeat performance of their first leg dominance, Jose Mourinho will not let this opportunity to go to his first Champions League final slip away. Can Barcelona protect their home ground and over a mountain of a task or will Jose Mourinho and his Inter Milan continue their journey 45 years in the making to become the Champions of Europe?
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