Liverpool Thumping by Real Madrid Prove they are Light Years Behind Europe's Best

Matchday 4 of the UEFA Champions League didn’t flood with goals as the night before but there was still enough drama, action and just about enough goals to quench the thirst for some.

Europe hosted 8 games in 8 different cities but it was in Northwest England that arguably the lion share of attention was as five-time winners Liverpool entertained record winners and defending champions Real Madrid in a European heavyweights clash. The odds were rightly stacked against Liverpool getting a result against Madrid who won last season’s title and have made it to at least the semis for the past four years, a stark contrast to Brendan Rodgers’ side who are making their return to the elite competition after a 5-year absence. Gulf in class.

Much had been said of the atmosphere in a European night at Anfield and the Koop were in full voice bellowing one song after another before raising the decibels to deafening levels when the ‘You Will Never Walk Alone’ rendition rented the air before kickoff. Emotions ran high as the home fans sang along to one of the world of football’s most famous anthems. Not even the likes of Steven Gerrard who was born and grew up with the song nor first time visitors like the would-be tormentor of Liverpool’s midfield, Isco, could have understated the chilling effect, the hair-raising feeling of the musical carousel.

With the stage set for a giant clash, the hosts started with a spring in their step, circulating the ball around with ease, putting Carlo Ancelloti’s side under relentless pressure. After all, the last time Real made the trip to Anfield, they were made to look like they had just emerged from an inferior universe with Steven Gerrard scoring twice in a 4-0 demolition job, damn, even Andrea Dossena scored on that night! There was a bit of gulf in class in favor of Liverpool then.

But that was five years ago, and so much has happened besides the passage of time. So it wasn’t a surprise when the Reds were given a timely reminder of how far they half fallen behind the La Decima champions when James Rodriguez’s perfectly weighted lob behind the Liverpool backline found Cristiano Ronaldo who slotted home with Dejan Lovren attempting in failure to clear the danger. A classy goal created by a World Cup Golden Boot winner and scored by a Ballon d’Or winner. Gulf in class.

Karim Benzema showed the hosts why a player of his quality shouldn’t be left unaccompanied at the back post after he looped a header past Mignolet to double Madrid’s lead. A better positioning, a little instinct not to give Madrid too much time on the ball outside the box and that goal could have been avoided. And who assisted Benzema’s goal? Toni Kroos, a World Cup winner who was also named in the All-Star team of the tournament. Gulf in class.

Benzema was at it again just four minutes before the breather, and boy didn’t Liverpool desperately need a break given the proceedings. With the game 3-0 in favour of the visitors at half time, Liverpool fans would have wished for yet another Istanbul miracle. They must have recalled that night in Tureky when the Reds came from three goals down at half time to force a 3-3 draw and edge out AC Milan on post-match penalties and lift what was their 5^th European crown. Problem was, Carlo Ancelloti was the manager of Milan then and for sure he wouldn’t let such a catastrophe hit him for the second time. And secondly, there simply wasn’t motivation enough; there wasn’t a title to compete for.

For the second half, Brendan Rodgers tinkered with the team a bit, hauling off the ineffectual half-time-shirt-swapping Mario Balotelli for Adam Lallana and putting Raheem Sterling as the point man. Whether it worked or not is open to debate but the Merseysiders at least ensured there wasn’t more goals in the second half.

Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu will be stage for a rematch in less than a fortnight and such is the importance of that match as they will secure qualification to the next stage with a draw or a win against the Reds. Will Liverpool prove to be a much tougher opposition or will the gulf in class see the hosts prevail?  

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Champions League Matchday 3 Review: Goals Galore Mark Record Setting Night

There was goals galore in the UEFA Champions League matchday 3 with no less than 40 goals finding the back of the net.

It all started with the early kick off with four goals scored in the match pitting CSKA Moscow and Manchester City. CSKA came from two goals down to force a 2-2 draw with the Premier League champions in Russia. City took the lead just before the hour mark, Sergio Aguero tapping in Edin Dzeko’s cut back before the Argie turned creator for James Milner’s strike in the 38^th minute for a 2-0 lead at half time. However, the Russian outfit fought back pulling a goal back through Seydou Doumbia in the 64^th minute before Israeli midfielder Bibras Natcho converted an 86^th minute penalty to draw level and leave City’s qualification hopes in tatters. Manuel Pellegrini’s side are without a win in their first three matches leaving them third on the log, 2 points behind second place Roma and a further 7 adrift of leaders Bayern Munich.

Pep Guardiola’s men put themselves to within a win of securing qualification to the last 16 with a 7-1 demolition job of AS Roma. Arjen Robben netted twice in the first half with Mario Gotze, Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller all registering their names on the scoresheet for a 5-0 lead at half time. Gervinho pulled one back for Roma after the breather but substitutes Frank Ribbery and Xerdan Shaqiri joined the Bayern goalscoring party which only ended with the scoreboard reading 7-1 in favour of the visitors.

Three goals either side of half time guided Chelsea to a 6-0 thumping of Slovenian side NK Maribor at Stamford Bridge. Loic Remy put the Blues ahead in the 13^th minute before Didier Drogba converted a penalty midway into the first half, the Ivorian netting his first goal since returning to Chelsea and his 43^rd in the competition. John Terry made it 3-0 before the breather connecting to a cross from Cesc Fabregas. Mitja Viler turned into his own net before a brace from Eden Hazard completed the rout to ensure Jose Mourinho’s men remained top of Group G ahead of Schalke 04 who edged out visitor Sporting 4-3, Cameroon international Jean-Eric Moting with a winning penalty for the Germans in stoppage time.

Lionel Messi and Neymar were both on the scoresheet for Barcelona who easily dismissed Ajax 3-1. Messi assisted Neymar’s opener for the Catalans with 7 minutes on the clock before the Argentine captain turned in one after being set up by Andres Iniesta in the 24 minute. Anwar el Ghazi pulled one back for Frank de Boer side two minutes before the final whistle but any hopes of an unlikely comeback were dashed by Sandro Ramirez who scored in the final minute of added time to give Barca the win, their 67^th home win in the Champions League.

Barca however remain a point behind leaders Paris Saint Germain who needed an 87^th minute strike from Edison Cavani to beat APOEL Nicosia in Cyprus.

Atletico Bilbao fell further behind in Group H after going down 3-1 at the hands of group leaders Porto. Hector Herrera put Porto ahead at the half time mark only for Guillermo Fernandez to equalize for the visitors 13 minutes after the restart. Ricardo Quaresma had the last laugh though as he netted in the 75^th minute to protect Porto’s unbeaten record in the group. The Portuguese side are a point ahead of Shakhtar Donetsk, who dismantled BATE 7-0. Luis Adriano hauled five goals for Shakhtar including two penalties while there were also goals for Alex Teixeira and Douglas Costa.

On Wednesday night, Liverpool welcome Real Madrid at Anfield with victory more vital for them than the visitors. The Reds have never lost to Madrid winning their last encounter 4-0 in their Champions League clash in 2009. Ludogorets will host Basel in the other group fixture.

Last year’s losing finalists, Atletico Madrid will host Malmo FF with Juventus traveling to Olympiacos Piraeus. Bayer Leverkusen will have a date with Zenit in Germany, Monoca will host Benfica while Arsenal and Dortmund will play away to Anderlecht and Galatasaray respectively.

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The Records that Tumbled in the Champions League Matchday 3 Goalfest Night

Are you the type who appreciates goals, goals and more goals even if the quality of football is not up to scratch? Or do you love an eclectic mix of both? If you are either of both then you sure must have slept feeling entertained enough at the end of Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League matchday.

A record 40 goals were scored in only 8 games across Europe with the standout figures being Luis Adriano’s 5-goal haul for Shakhtar Donetsk which led them to a 7-0 obliteration of BATE Barisov and Bayern Munich’s 7-1 bullying of Roma at Stadio Olympico. The 40 goals were the second highest on a Champions League matchday falling only four short of the 44 goals scored on October 1 1997 but even then, 10 games were played on the night.

The Bavarians and the Ukrainian outfit became only the third and fourth sides to score seven goals away joining Ligue 1 duo Olympique Lyon and Olympique Marseille. Mircea Lucescu’s Shakhtar also became the first team in Champions League history to score six goals in the first half of a match with Adriano matching Lionel Messi’s record of 5 goals in a match, the Argentine having accumulated the same against Bayer Leverkusen on March 7 2012. However, Adriano became the first player to score five away from home in the history of the competition.

And as if that’s not enough, 21 goals were scored by the half time whistle, a competition record for first half goals. CSKA Moscow, Bayern, Sporting, Schalke, Chelsea and Shakhtar (both twice) all scored from the penalty spot, the eight goals from the spot also a new Champions League record breaking the six penalties scored on September 13 2000 and September 29 2010.

There were also club records. Bayern Munich’s 7-1 win against Roma was their biggest away win in European competition while they also became the first away team to put 7 goals past an Italian team in Italian ground in European competition. Chelsea’s 6-0 thrashing of Maribor is their largest win margin in their Champions League history while Shakhtar’s 7-0 win over BATE was not only their largest but ended the hosts’ 14 month unbeaten run at home.

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