Morning all, I didn’t see last night’s Champions League game as I was playing football myself (2-1 win if you’re interested which you’re not and there’s no reason you should be), but it sounds like it was another cracker between Atlético Madrid and Bayern Munich.
Atlético lost 2-1 on the night but went through on away goals, having won the first leg 1-0 at home. I did notice some post-game Twitter chat about the away goals rule, and whether or not it’s archaic or useful at this point. Personally, I think it’s fundamentally unfair. A goal should be the same wherever you score it, and while I take the point it adds some layers to the occasion, it’s also a rule that can kill games as a contest.
Perhaps I’m not that fond of it because we’ve fallen foul of it more than once, and I don’t suppose there are too many Atlético Madrid fans this morning who would be campaigning against it, but adding weight to goals based on the location of them doesn’t seem right. Still, it’s something teams are well aware of, but if it were done away with I don’t think it would have any kind of negative impact on knock-out ties in Europe.
As for the men in charge, that’s two Champions League finals in the last three years for Diego Simeone, while Pep Guardiola has seen his Bayern side knocked out at the semi-final stage for the last three years. It’s gonna be really interesting to see what he does when he takes over at Man City this summer. I mean after he spends an absolute ton of money on new players, because the squad he’ll be inheriting seem very far removed from a Guardiola team.
Of course they’ll probably play like one on Sunday, or at least be allowed look like one by our bunch, but in the meantime they have a Champions League semi-final themselves, facing Real Madrid at the Bernebeu later tonight. Manuel Pellegrini returning to a club that sacked him – but then they sack pretty much everyone, regardless of whether or not they win anything.
And it’s hard not to think back a little over 10 years ago when we went there and pulled off a magnificent 1-0 win. That Thierry Henry goal will live long in the memory but when you look back at the team we had out, compared to their Galácticos, it’s even more remarkable.
Anyway, here’s hoping tonight is utterly exhausting for City ahead of our trip there this Sunday. Extra-time, having to play with 9 men or something, then a soul destroying penalty shoot-out which they have a chance to win but don’t and then Joe Hart dandruffs one in to give Real the win. A disconsolate City return in the early hours of Thursday morning and head home but their bus breaks down and they’re forced to trudge along the motorway with the hugely irritating sound of suitcase wheels echoing through the night air.
The noise becomes so acute, so maddening, that Otamendi rips off his beard and starts to fight lampposts. Yaya Toure looks on and wishes he had some cake, while Gael Clichy is fine because he’s got listening to a Geri Halliwell LP on his Walkman and that drowns out the noise. Something like that anyway.
Antoine Griezmann, he’s good, isn’t he? I like him. I also remember when we were linked with him when he was at Real Sociedad. I think it was suggested he might have been part of the protracted negotiations we had with them over Carlos Vela, but that didn’t pan out and he and joined Atletico instead. Seems to have worked out pretty well for him there. Champions League final, the possibility of winning La Liga this season, 31 goals to his name, it’d take a quite monumental amount of money to sign him – and that’s making the assumption, rather grand that it is, that he’d want to join us at all. A man can dream though.
Closer to home, Santi Cazorla made his comeback in last night’s U21 victory over Blackburn at the Emirates. He got an assist, which is nice, and he was joined in the team by Calum Chambers who, it seems, was played in midfield. Update: he played centre-half, I am useless (thanks tommohobbo).
When the season’s over we’ll do our usual assessment/review of the team and individuals, but he’s one for whom things really haven’t gone as well as expected. I don’t think he’s even played badly. When he’s been picked he’s done well, you think of that second half against Leicester in February when Koscielny went off and we all thought ‘Oh-oh’, but he had a very good 45 minutes.
I do wonder if they’re not quite sure where to use him. Centre-half seems the most obvious to me, but Wenger has said in the past he sees him as a deep-lying midfielder, so time will tell. Or it won’t, and he’ll go somewhere else. I don’t think he’s one we should give up on just yet though, there are others in that queue ahead of him for this summer.
Finally for today, we’re delighted to announce a brand new book, coming soon. I think it’s one everyone will really enjoy. Details here.
Till tomorrow.
