UEFA Champions League - Last 16

Kliq

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My buddy turned me onto it and it's really well done. The episode with Ney faking his death, Cavani trying to take credit for it, and Arry getting lost is probably my favorite.
The Tottenham players whining to Kane about leading the home is great.

My favorite episode is the Jose Mourinho dinner party. "We are going to play a game; it's called Park the Bus."
 

Zososoxfan

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Waaaaaaaaay too quiet in here considering the enticing lineup of matches today:

Bayern @ Liverpool
Barca @ Lyon

Bayern comes into the match surprisingly 2nd in the Bundesliga behind banged up Dortmund. This year's Bayern is also slowly transitioning away from their stars, as Robben and Ribery are not in the top 5-10 of appearances. Lewa is still banging in the goals and the squad is still worthy of praise, but this isn't the fearsome juggernaut Bayern was 3-5 years ago.

Most here are familiar with the Reds. Their form has dropped significantly since their immensely entertaining loss to MANC. Since that match, they've lost to Wolves (who are actually quite good), drawn with Leicester, and drawn with resurgent West Ham. Gomes and Ox are still hurt, but I think Reds supporters thought more of the squad's depth. Nevertheless, progressing in UCL will put this club back on track to compete for both of the important trophies. If Bayern trots out an old lineup, I'd like to see them attacked by the Reds' relentless pressure.

In the other matchup, most Barca fans I know are deservedly cautious about this impressive Lyon side. That being said, Barca feels like it's getting ready to rev up for the home stretch of the season. Roles are beginning to be refined and the emergence of Alena and the reemergence of Coutinho give the club an air of depth they haven't had in awhile. While the Sunday match with lowly Valladolid was not impressive at all, they still got the points while Real lost to Girona and results do matter at this time of year.

While today's side will likely include Vidal and Rakitic in the middle along with Busi, look for Alena to come on in the second half. He is much more creative in the attacking third than Vidal and has filled in admirably for the injured Arthur who was holding that role down for some time. It will be fun to see if those 2 get to play together in an aggressive possession-based MF, with Arthur filling the Xavi role and Alena getting his turn to reprise Iniesta. Suarez got some rest over the weekend but still came on with enough time to flub several golden chances. But, I've learned not to worry about Luisito in big matches. On the other side, I'm excited to see if Dembele can continue to build on his excellent season. He is growing increasingly comfortable on the ball and can create all sorts of problems for the opponent. Coutinho should see 20-30 minutes to help build on his improved form over the past week or 2. He finally looked like the terror he is again, getting more involved with the combination play. The other thing to watch is who gets the start at RB--Roberto or Semedo. I'm an unabashed Semedo guy because he is more comfortable with the position and has blazing speed, but it has taken him some time to get integrated. Over the past month, that process has taken a big step forward though.

Lyon sit 3rd in Ligue 1 with an impressive GD of +12. They are very even in attack, with 5 players with 5+ goals in Ligue 1 (Depay, Aouar, Traore, Dembele, and Fekir). This is a young team that is fun to watch and has a lot of talent. While the conventional wisdom may be to try and keep Barca off the board to avoid away goals, I don't think that's how Lyon will play it and they will go out and try and score some goals.
 

67YAZ

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Waaaaaaaaay too quiet in here considering the enticing lineup of matches today:

Bayern @ Liverpool
Barca @ Lyon

Bayern comes into the match surprisingly 2nd in the Bundesliga behind banged up Dortmund. This year's Bayern is also slowly transitioning away from their stars, as Robben and Ribery are not in the top 5-10 of appearances. Lewa is still banging in the goals and the squad is still worthy of praise, but this isn't the fearsome juggernaut Bayern was 3-5 years ago.

Most here are familiar with the Reds. Their form has dropped significantly since their immensely entertaining loss to MANC. Since that match, they've lost to Wolves (who are actually quite good), drawn with Leicester, and drawn with resurgent West Ham. Gomes and Ox are still hurt, but I think Reds supporters thought more of the squad's depth. Nevertheless, progressing in UCL will put this club back on track to compete for both of the important trophies. If Bayern trots out an old lineup, I'd like to see them attacked by the Reds' relentless pressure.
You missed the biggest concern for Reds fans - VVD is suspended for the match. He is the rock upon which Klopp has built this defense, and I think he'd have a great match going up against the clever, wily Bayern attack. I worry that a Lovren-Matip pairing will have positioning issues that get compounded by Lovren's temperament/concentration lapses. In short, my worst case is a match where Liverpool has a lot the ball but few clear chances while Bayern one on the counter and another on a set piece.

That said, I'm hopeful that the squad can get it going for one of those special 20 minute flurries where they run rampant and completely deflate the opponent. Been a while since we've seen that.
 

Zososoxfan

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You missed the biggest concern for Reds fans - VVD is suspended for the match. He is the rock upon which Klopp has built this defense, and I think he'd have a great match going up against the clever, wily Bayern attack. I worry that a Lovren-Matip pairing will have positioning issues that get compounded by Lovren's temperament/concentration lapses. In short, my worst case is a match where Liverpool has a lot the ball but few clear chances while Bayern one on the counter and another on a set piece.

That said, I'm hopeful that the squad can get it going for one of those special 20 minute flurries where they run rampant and completely deflate the opponent. Been a while since we've seen that.
I think the world of VVD and he is a huge loss. However, I would not be that worried about this Bayern team on the counter. Any team with skilled attackers can be dangerous on the counter because it's a numbers game. But, Bayern don't have the speed typically associated with punishing a team that likes a lot of possession getting caught out. Lewa and James are not ideal counterattacking players. Coman can obviously play in space in any system but don't know much about Gnabry. Their backline plus Thiago is very solid though.
 

SoxFanInCali

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Yup, Fabinho and Matip in the middle, and the only actual defender (and I use that term loosely) on the bench is Moreno.
 

koufax32

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This could get laughably ugly on the back line. Going to need a raucous crowd and dominant possession to have a chance in the 2nd leg.
 

CPT Neuron

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This is a tricky track for the Reds today - can they maintain 100% focus on Bayern or is one eye drifting to the ManU match around the corner. Many (This Is Anfield, ESPN.COM/SOCCER) have essentially written the Reds out of the CL to focus on winning the Premier League. Personally, I don't think that is in Klopp's DNA, to give up a major (read not League Cup or Gummy Bear Competition Cup) competition for another. I expect a full on press from LFC to try to protect a make-shift CB pairing and something of a 3-1 or 4-1 outcome in favor of LFC. They will leak a goal today probably from Matip who concerns me more as a CB then Fabinho does.
 

67YAZ

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At the other end, Salah is a couple fractions away from 2 goals already. Praying that Liverpool score first and that calms the defenses nerves. Yeesh
 

allstonite

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If you told me 45 minutes ago we'd be at 0-0 at the half with this defense I'd take it and run but I feel like Liverpool left a few out there
 

fletcherpost

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Liverpool have been too sloppy on the ball in midfield and around the box. Robertson was in acres of space there and it wasn't a hard pass to make.
 

teddykgb

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Really surprised by that possession graphic. Feels like it has been all Liverpool with Bayern trying to scrap a bit on the counter
 

Kliq

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Both games end in 0-0 draws; a good result for Lyon who can really put the pressure on Barca if they score an away goal in their next leg.
 

teddykgb

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I think it’s the universe reminding us how much it would suck to eliminate the away goals rule. The away goal prospects make Liverpool and Lyon have a very good chance still. Otherwise we will see tons of first leg bus parking
 

triniSox

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Probably a better outcome for Bayern? I wasn't optimistic without Virgil.
Given the way Liverpool played, Bayern would be happy. But overall Liverpool would be very happy not conceding an away goal. They can play the second leg as they want now.
 

Zososoxfan

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Barca's frustrating draw @ Lyon wasn't as bad as everyone made it seem. Barca had a ton of chances, especially in the second half and they were unfortunate not to bury one. The biggest thing I took away from the match was that when Dembele came off, Lyon pushed their defensive line much higher and since there wasn't any fast attackers for Barca, there was minimal threat. Also, once Messi drifted centrally and left, Semedo, Roberto, and Vidal were all isolated on the right.

As a result, I think Barca need to start Dembele on the right. Alba already provided width and space on the left and the left-right balance would be improved by Dembele coming off the right. Furthermore, Luis had a rough match and while he is still a top 10 striker, he can be infuriating at times.

Coutinho had another solid outing and I'm very encouraged by his recent performances. He may be ready for full time starter duties, but EV needs to figure out if he can have Messi, Suarez, Dembele, and Coutinho on the field at the same time. Rather than post here, I'll bring more details to the Barca thread.

Up today: Juve @ Atleti (@bosox4283 !) and MANC @ Schalke. Football defensive purists are likely excited about the cagey Juve-Atleti matchup, but it will likely just be an ugly mess unless either team pips an early goal. MANC draw mid-table Schalke in what should be the most lopsided matchup of the round.
 

bosox4283

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Up today: Juve @ Atleti (@bosox4283 !) and MANC @ Schalke. Football defensive purists are likely excited about the cagey Juve-Atleti matchup, but it will likely just be an ugly mess unless either team pips an early goal. MANC draw mid-table Schalke in what should be the most lopsided matchup of the round.
I was going to use a vacation day to work the match, but mostly everything is closed here in Philly due to the snow, so it's a win-win.

It seems that Simeone will use four midfielders -- Thomas, Rodri(go), Koke, and Saul -- to play defensively and attempt to stifle Juventus' creation. Koke is coming back from injury after missing four matches, so his form will be one of the things to watch in the match. Atletico is clearly better with him.

Up front, the reports are that Simeone will go with Griezmann and Morata. Diego Costa is back after missing 10 weeks with surgery on a foot injury, but Simeone said he's not yet ready for 90 minutes. Morata has been fine so far, so I think this strategy is fine.

One unfortunate thing is that Lucas Hernandez, the young French LB, is out with an injury. Filipe Luis will replace him. At the moment, Filipe is off his top form and showing his age. He might be able to put together a vintage game, but I'd much rather than Lucas' speed and toughness on the pitch.

Vamos, Atleti!
 

bosox4283

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Ooooooh, reports are that Costa will start in place of Morata. First, I hope Costa does not physically break down. Second, I like it. He plays with fire and I think has that "edge" that Morata does not have. Let's hope it pays off.
 

Zososoxfan

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Ooooooh, reports are that Costa will start in place of Morata. First, I hope Costa does not physically break down. Second, I like it. He plays with fire and I think has that "edge" that Morata does not have. Let's hope it pays off.
Fight fire (Chiellini, Bonnucci) with fire. Makes sense. I've always liked Morata's game--seems like he just ran away from a great spot at Juve and had trouble at Real and Chelsea, two places that can be difficult to play for any striker. I think he will do well at Atleti and he gives Simeone some real weapons at the top of the formation.
 

Senator Donut

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Fight fire (Chiellini, Bonnucci) with fire. Makes sense. I've always liked Morata's game--seems like he just ran away from a great spot at Juve and had trouble at Real and Chelsea, two places that can be difficult to play for any striker. I think he will do well at Atleti and he gives Simeone some real weapons at the top of the formation.
Real had a bargain-basement buyback option on Morata, so the option to stay at Juventus wasn't entirely available to him. Although that was a good situation for him, he was reunited with Conte at Chelsea with lesser results.

His best moment with Juventus was scoring against his former team, Real Madrid, in the knockout stage, so I'm oddly relieved to see him on the bench.
 

Titans Bastard

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Weston McKennie is starting in the midfield against Manchester City. Gregg Berhalter is supposedly in attendance.

Could be a rough one for Schalke.
 

Zososoxfan

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So yesterday, Liverpool-Bayern was on TNT and Barca-Lyon was on Unimas (Univision). Today, it seems like the Atleti-Juve match is on both stations and MANC is not being televised? I have YouTube TV and Sling International and I don't see any listing.
 

rguilmar

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What the hell happened to this team? They are a midtable Bundesliga side in the KO rounds of UCL. Did they lose some players last summer?
Several, highlighted by Goretzka moving to Bayern. Other standout players from last year just aren’t playing as well or as consistent.
 

Senator Donut

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So yesterday, Liverpool-Bayern was on TNT and Barca-Lyon was on Unimas (Univision). Today, it seems like the Atleti-Juve match is on both stations and MANC is not being televised? I have YouTube TV and Sling International and I don't see any listing.
It's on Galavision and potentially the Univision Deportes app with provider validation. (I seem to get it on the app without getting Galavision on my cable.) There is no English broadcast as far as I'm aware, it's web only through b/r.
 

teddykgb

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The penalty + card suffered by Otamendi there is everything that will be wrong with VAR. minutes to make up a call that is never a card and probably shouldn’t be a penalty.
 

CPT Neuron

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I think they have gotten the same number of penalties as they have had total times in the Manchester City have so far. Absolutely against the run of the game!
 

rguilmar

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Meanwhile in the Atletico-Juve game a penalty call was rightly overturned by VAR (Costa clearly outside the box). Win some, lose some I guess.