Chapter 610: Champions League Situation
After Real Madrid smoothly secured their spot in the Champions League quarter-finals, Barcelona and Messi finally redeemed themselves at the Camp Nou, with the Argentine star contributing a brace to help the team secure a 4-0 victory over AC Milan.
With a total score of 4-2, the Catalan team completed a turnaround, becoming the first club in Champions League history to reverse a 0-2 deficit from the first leg and advance.
Such a miracle on Barcelona's part didn't surprise many, as their strength was originally superior to that of other teams. When Messi regains his best form, Barcelona becomes the strongest contender for the championship.
However, another La Liga club making it to the Champions League quarter-finals surprised many. That club is the struggling Málaga, who also won after losing the first leg, defeating Porto with a total score of 2-1 to advance.
The era of the "Manchester City" of La Liga is gone for good. Last summer, the Arab owner suddenly withdrew investment, leading to the loss of many key players. The team even struggled to pay player wages, leading many to believe that the team was on the brink of collapse and relegation was unavoidable.
However, the coach, known as the "Chilean Engineer," Pellegrini, was unwilling to let all his previous efforts go to waste. He chose to stay and instilled a strong spirit into the team, stabilizing the defense while actively counterattacking. The players did not disappoint him.
If we rewind time by ten years, Málaga's lineup could be considered luxurious. With forwards like Saviola, Santa Cruz, and Baptista, midfielders like Joaquín, and defenders like Demichelis and Lugano, but now these players are just aging veterans who are no longer sought after.
Former golden boy Joaquín has rejuvenated himself, running rampant on the wings with unstoppable momentum. His breakthroughs and crosses make it hard to believe he's 32 years old.
Saviola's situation is even more miraculous. After being released by Benfica last season, he joined Málaga for a very low price. The result was that he found himself perfectly suited to the coach's counterattacking tactics, contributing 8 goals as a substitute, becoming a surprise weapon for the club.
In fact, this is not the first time Pellegrini has revitalized veteran players. During his time coaching Villarreal, he revived the "Argentine future" Riquelme and developed Fran, who even gave Ferguson a headache, into the team's top scorer.
Of course, the Chilean is also good at developing young players. Formerly Cassano, and now Isco, this 21-year-old European golden boy's style resembles that of Silva's, able to play on the wing or in the center, making him an absolute organizational core for the team.
With 11 goals scored in 33 appearances, his attacking efficiency is very good, and his value has skyrocketed to over 20 million euros, becoming the target of top clubs such as Real Madrid and Chelsea.
Currently, Málaga ranks 6th in the league, continuing to compete for European qualification for next season. Their ability to compete on multiple fronts even puts many traditional powerhouses to shame.
This season, La Liga still dominates with three seats in the Champions League quarter-finals: Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Málaga. The Bundesliga has two seats, Dortmund and Bayern, Serie A has one seat, Juventus, and Ligue 1 has Paris Saint-Germain, while the Turkish Super League has Galatasaray.
The complete failure of the Premier League is alarming. Many English media outlets have once again mentioned the need for reform of the competition system. The high-intensity competition and constant cup matches in domestic leagues have left the top teams exhausted, resulting in poor performances on the European stage.
"Only by giving up the pursuit of the league title can we possibly go further in the Champions League. No club would willingly take such a risk of ending up empty-handed. In the long run, even if the Premier League is very popular, the overall European stage is getting worse and worse," analyzed Sky Sports.
The English Football Association understands this principle, but every game is about immediate interests, and cutting any one is painful.
Paris Saint-Germain, with their lavish spending in recent years, defeated Valencia with a total score of 3-2 and entered the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time in 18 years.
Although Ibrahimovic was absent due to injury, PSG still had players like Lucas, Lavezzi, and Pastore, among others, who were strong in attack. Beckham, who returned to European football from the United States this winter, also received attention, although the Englishman did not get a chance to play.
Next, the draw for the Champions League quarter-finals is completely open, with no seeded teams and no avoidance of opponents from the same country or group stage. The team drawn first will play at home, and UEFA has designated new drawing rules.
Unlike in previous years, there is now an additional draw for the semi-finals. Before, the quarter-finals would determine the two halves, with two teams from each half facing off in the semi-finals. The final would be played between the winners of each half.
The new rule eliminates the concept of halves, and the draw for the semi-finals will be made again when the final four teams are decided. The outside world sees this as a signal of UEFA's further control of the situation, after all, the more draws there are, the more likely there is to be foul play.
However, after experiencing the tests of the Group of Death and the Red Devils, Real Madrid's luck seems to be bursting. They will face Galatasaray in the quarter-finals.
On March 10th, in the 27th round of La Liga, Real Madrid hosted Celta Vigo at home. The Galacticos had an absolute advantage, having won all five of their recent encounters.
In the 27th minute, the home team broke the deadlock. Alonso's corner was punched out by the goalkeeper, and Modric's powerful shot from the edge of the penalty area was blocked by the opponent's defense.
The ball fell to the feet of Higuain, and the Argentine naturally wouldn't miss such a great opportunity, scoring the opening goal for Real Madrid.
In the 72nd minute of the second half, Wang Feng sent a precise lob pass from midfield, and Morata received it, dribbled past the defenders, and then scored a powerful shot into the bottom right corner of the goal.
In the end, the Galacticos defeated their opponents 2-0, taking all three points. On the other hand, Barcelona also won 2-0 against Deportivo La Coru?a, with Messi coming off the bench to score a goal, increasing his total league goals to 39. Barcelona and Real Madrid remained tied on points.
On March 16th, in the 28th round of La Liga, Real Madrid faced Mallorca away.
The game started with a warning from the home team. In the 3rd minute, Dos Santos crossed from the left, and Ensué met the ball with a header in front of the goal, breaking the deadlock.
And just 10 minutes later, the away team's defense made another mistake. Once again, Dos Santos took a corner kick, and Bigas headed the ball forward. There was no one marking Alfaro nearby, allowing him to easily control the ball and shoot to further extend the lead.
Conceding two goals early made Mallorca extremely excited, and they continued to press forward. What they didn't notice was that the Galacticos were not flustered and continued to control the pace of the game.
Their aggressive pressing naturally led to defensive vulnerabilities. In the 23rd minute, Alonso intercepted the ball in midfield and passed it to Wang Feng, who immediately sent a lofted pass. Morata, who had been waiting for the chance, quickly started a solo run, scoring another goal for the away team.
Five minutes later, almost the same scene played out again. Wang Feng lobbed a pass to Morata, who broke through, then dribbled past the goalkeeper and scored into an empty net.
This goal woke up the home team, who urgently retreated, but it was too late. Just before halftime, Modric broke through in the frontcourt, was fouled, and Wang Feng scored directly from the free kick, beating the goalkeeper Elliott's ten fingers, completely reversing the situation.
In the 67th minute of the second half, the Chinese superstar and Carleone formed a wall pass and broke into the penalty area. Morata tapped the ball into the net to complete his hat-trick, also helping Wang Feng achieve a hat-trick of assists.
Marcelo scored a header in the final moments of the game, sealing the score at 5-2, and Real Madrid won a resounding victory over Mallorca.
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