Champions League Quarter-final discussion

The Franchise wrote:2 games on the same day

The Franchise wrote:On the game, Atleti going to put up a tougher fight for Barca than City I suspect.

They were looking tired at some point just recently, but they seemed to have found another gear here recently.

EL Patron wrote:

The Franchise wrote:2 games on the same day

UEFA  

Platini   

Having pulled off the surprise result of the round to reach the quarterfinals with a second leg comeback against Olympiakos, Manchester United were out to prove the doubters wrong again, keeping holders Bayern Munich to a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford.

Elsewhere Real Madrid strengthened their credentials with a crushing 3-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund, while Chelsea left themselves a lot to do by conceding a late third in a 3-1 defeat to PSG. In the other game, a 1-1 stalemate between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid at Camp Nou sets up an intriguing second leg next week.

We look over the top performers from the quarterfinal first legs, analysing WhoScored.com's Champions League Team of the Week, with the best XI performers lining up in a 4-4-2 formation.

Goalkeeper: The fact that Dortmund’s Roman Weidenfeller makes the team of the week despite conceding three goals is perhaps the best indicator of Real Madrid's dominance at the Bernabeu. The German produced eight saves to ensure that Juergen Klopp's side weren't on the end of a battering, but last year's finalists still have a mountain to climb.

Right-back: An unlikely player of the week, Real Madrid's Dani Carvajal put in one of his strongest performances for Los Blancos to earn a rating of 9.2. The full-back produced eight tackles to help minimise Dortmund's threat out wide and picked up an assist for Gareth Bale's early strike -- one of three key passes on the night.

Left-back: David Alaba takes his place on the opposite side of the backline having put in a typically attacking performance from full-back for Bayern. No player attempted more crosses in the match (six), while the Austrian international also made three tackles and won a game-high of seven aerial duels.

Centre-back: The first centre-back to make the XI is United captain Nemanja Vidic, whose superb header from a Wayne Rooney corner early in the second half gave the hosts a shock lead. Elsewhere the Serbian completed 13 clearances to help keep Bayern at bay and maintained an excellent 94 percent pass accuracy over the 90 minutes.

Centre-back: The Inter-bound defender is joined at the back by Real Madrid's Pepe. The Portuguese put in a solid performance, with no player attempting more than his 80 passes, whilst completing a team high of four interceptions and winning three aerial duels.

Right midfield: Just pipping Gareth Bale into the place on the right, Neymar's goal ensured that Barcelona will still likely go into their second leg against Atletico as favourites. The Brazilian's intelligent run, found by a precise Iniesta through ball, and his neat finish capped a display that included five shots and a match-high of seven successful dribbles.

Left midfield: Having equalled Lionel Messi’s record of scoring 14 goals in a single Champions League campaign with his strike against Dortmund, Cristiano Ronaldo claims the spot on the left. With the potential of four more games to play should Madrid reach the final he'll be confident of breaking that record, with four shots and four successful dribbles on Wednesday having helped Ronaldo garner a rating of 8.4.

Centre-midfield: We stay in Madrid to find the central midfield pairing in this week's XI, with Isco registering on the scoresheet at the Bernabeu. The young Spaniard completed the most dribbles in the match against Dortmund (five), created three chances for teammates and completed 95 percent of his 63 pass attempts before he was taken off in the 72nd minute.

Centre-midfield: Luka Modric completes a five-man Real Madrid contingent in the UCL TOTW this time around, with a familiarly impressive playmaker's display. The former Spurs man picked up an assist from a match-high of four key passes, completed four dribbles and weighed in with three tackles and two interceptions to break up play in the middle of the park.

Striker: It's fair to say it wasn't a week for strikers in the Champions League, with no starting centre-forward on the scoresheet in the quarterfinal first legs. Wayne Rooney did pick up an assist and mustered two shots at goal against Bayern, and the Englishman created a further chance in a somewhat modest performance.

Striker: Lionel Messi joins the United man despite a sub-par performance by his astronomical standards. The Argentinean did fire off five shots at goal and create three chances for teammates to pick up a rating of 7.3 but will certainly hope to play a more integral role in the second leg, with the tie against Atletico in the balance ahead of next week's showdown.

The Franchise wrote:2 games on the same day

Yohan Modric wrote:

Having pulled off the surprise result of the round to reach the quarterfinals with a second leg comeback against Olympiakos, Manchester United were out to prove the doubters wrong again, keeping holders Bayern Munich to a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford.

Elsewhere Real Madrid strengthened their credentials with a crushing 3-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund, while Chelsea left themselves a lot to do by conceding a late third in a 3-1 defeat to PSG. In the other game, a 1-1 stalemate between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid at Camp Nou sets up an intriguing second leg next week.

We look over the top performers from the quarterfinal first legs, analysing WhoScored.com's Champions League Team of the Week, with the best XI performers lining up in a 4-4-2 formation.

Goalkeeper: The fact that Dortmund’s Roman Weidenfeller makes the team of the week despite conceding three goals is perhaps the best indicator of Real Madrid's dominance at the Bernabeu. The German produced eight saves to ensure that Juergen Klopp's side weren't on the end of a battering, but last year's finalists still have a mountain to climb.

Right-back: An unlikely player of the week, Real Madrid's Dani Carvajal put in one of his strongest performances for Los Blancos to earn a rating of 9.2. The full-back produced eight tackles to help minimise Dortmund's threat out wide and picked up an assist for Gareth Bale's early strike -- one of three key passes on the night.

Left-back: David Alaba takes his place on the opposite side of the backline having put in a typically attacking performance from full-back for Bayern. No player attempted more crosses in the match (six), while the Austrian international also made three tackles and won a game-high of seven aerial duels.

Centre-back: The first centre-back to make the XI is United captain Nemanja Vidic, whose superb header from a Wayne Rooney corner early in the second half gave the hosts a shock lead. Elsewhere the Serbian completed 13 clearances to help keep Bayern at bay and maintained an excellent 94 percent pass accuracy over the 90 minutes.

Centre-back: The Inter-bound defender is joined at the back by Real Madrid's Pepe. The Portuguese put in a solid performance, with no player attempting more than his 80 passes, whilst completing a team high of four interceptions and winning three aerial duels.

Right midfield: Just pipping Gareth Bale into the place on the right, Neymar's goal ensured that Barcelona will still likely go into their second leg against Atletico as favourites. The Brazilian's intelligent run, found by a precise Iniesta through ball, and his neat finish capped a display that included five shots and a match-high of seven successful dribbles.

Left midfield: Having equalled Lionel Messi’s record of scoring 14 goals in a single Champions League campaign with his strike against Dortmund, Cristiano Ronaldo claims the spot on the left. With the potential of four more games to play should Madrid reach the final he'll be confident of breaking that record, with four shots and four successful dribbles on Wednesday having helped Ronaldo garner a rating of 8.4.

Centre-midfield: We stay in Madrid to find the central midfield pairing in this week's XI, with Isco registering on the scoresheet at the Bernabeu. The young Spaniard completed the most dribbles in the match against Dortmund (five), created three chances for teammates and completed 95 percent of his 63 pass attempts before he was taken off in the 72nd minute.

Centre-midfield: Luka Modric completes a five-man Real Madrid contingent in the UCL TOTW this time around, with a familiarly impressive playmaker's display. The former Spurs man picked up an assist from a match-high of four key passes, completed four dribbles and weighed in with three tackles and two interceptions to break up play in the middle of the park.

Striker: It's fair to say it wasn't a week for strikers in the Champions League, with no starting centre-forward on the scoresheet in the quarterfinal first legs. Wayne Rooney did pick up an assist and mustered two shots at goal against Bayern, and the Englishman created a further chance in a somewhat modest performance.

Striker: Lionel Messi joins the United man despite a sub-par performance by his astronomical standards. The Argentinean did fire off five shots at goal and create three chances for teammates to pick up a rating of 7.3 but will certainly hope to play a more integral role in the second leg, with the tie against Atletico in the balance ahead of next week's showdown.

Khaled wrote:LOL no Iniesta

halamadrid2 wrote:

Forza wrote:Pepe is a moron who got away with not conceding at least 1 penalty. Last-ditch tackle all you like, but the guy has no brain.

oh please.

If you are referring to his Shoulder to shoulder on Mikhitariyan then thats ridiculous. This is supposed to be a mans sport isnt it, not Pepes fault Mik is so weak. There was another instance when Hoffmann dived under Coentraos challenge (again shoulder to shoulder) I bet you thought that was Pepe too

Pepe was excellent yesterday and has been all season. When was the last time he caused a penalty?????? like two seasons ago???? This is a new much improved Pepe who seldomly plays like Mou made him to.

Forza wrote:

halamadrid2 wrote:

Forza wrote:Pepe is a moron who got away with not conceding at least 1 penalty. Last-ditch tackle all you like, but the guy has no brain.

oh please.

If you are referring to his Shoulder to shoulder on Mikhitariyan then thats ridiculous. This is supposed to be a mans sport isnt it, not Pepes fault Mik is so weak. There was another instance when Hoffmann dived under Coentraos challenge (again shoulder to shoulder) I bet you thought that was Pepe too

Pepe was excellent yesterday and has been all season. When was the last time he caused a penalty?????? like two seasons ago???? This is a new much improved Pepe who seldomly plays like Mou made him to.

I am indeed referring to his tackle on Mkhitarayan at about the 35th minute. Pepe made no attempt to go for the ball and could've easily given away a penalty. I've seen far softer tackles given penalties and that is why it was an utterly moronic thing to do at 2-0 up so early in a game.

Take off the Real Madrid Specs that seem to be glued to your head and for once consider an alternate view properly. I'm not sure who you think you're talking to, but I know the difference between Coentrao and Pepe, whereas you seem only to be able to distinguish the glorious aura that is Real Madrid from the dreary and lacklustre remainder of the world of football, which only seems to exist for the purpose of showcasing Real Madrid's relative greatness.