What a start to the 2011 Champions League Knockout Rounds! With only one draw, football fans were rewarded with entertaining, end-to-end action in all four of this week’s matches. It turned out to be a great week for English football, and it is only fitting that Arsenal defeated Barcelona to outshine their bitter rivals Tottenham, who overcame AC Milan at the San Siro.
For me, the game of the week had to be Arsenal’s inspired comeback against Barcelona. The Catalans looked the better side in the first half and enjoyed a one-goal lead at the break. However, Arsenal attacked with a vengeance in the second half, while Barca’s players looked largely uninterested in getting forward. Led by career defining performances from Laurent Koscielny and young Jack Wilshere, Arsenal deserved their equalizer. It was a good goal from Robin van Persie from an angle reminiscent of a couple of Dani Alves’ goals in a Brazil shirt. The Gunners were not finished however, with Andriy Arshavin snatching the winner with a placed effort created by Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri.
My attention was not solely on Arsenal vs. Barcelona today though. While watching the match at the Emirates live on Fox Soccer Channel I was simultaneously tuning in to Roma vs. Shakhtar on FoxSoccer.tv. The clash between Roma and Shakhtar was surely the most unsung of the fixtures in the Champions League this week, however the Ukrainians first ever appearance in this stage of the competition turned out to be arguably the most entertaining of all the matches played.
There was a heavy Brazilian influence in the Shakhtar side (including all three goal-scorers), and though large parts of the match were uneventful, there were a few moments of inspiration that led to fine finishes. Douglas Costa’s goal for Shakhtar and Jeremy Menez’s effort for Roma stood out as the pick of the goals. Roma now face a nearly impossible task in traveling to Donetsk, where Shakhtar disposed of Arsenal 2-1 in the Group Stage, and overcoming three away goals to win the tie on aggregate.
As entertaining as Wednesday’s fixtures were, one cannot look past the football that was played on Tuesday night in Valencia and Milan. Valencia will be largely disappointed with their result against Schalke, but they must consider themselves fortunate to have finished with the result at 1-1 as Schalke looked very dangerous after finally managing to level the match. The game at the Mestalla was highlighted by a record-breaking goal for former Real Madrid superstar Raul.
Raul netted his 71st career European goal, surpassing Milan’s Filippo Inzaghi on the all time chart. It is important to note that Raul’s was not the only goal scored in the match. In fact, Roberto Soldado’s opener is my pick of the goals scored this week in the Champions League. Valencia broke quickly after intercepting a pass in the midfield, and Jeremy Mathieu’s beautiful cross found Soldado for a sublime volley past Manuel Neuer.
Tottenham’s second trip to Rome this season was in stark contrast to their first. After a horrid start against Inter during the group stage, Spurs fought back behind a Gareth Bale hat-trick, only to fall 4-3 to the Champions League holders. This time around, Spurs were without Bale but were certainly full of confidence. They dominated the first half but were unable to find the net, and as the second half got heated and the intensity was turned up by Milan following the introduction of Alex Pato, Spurs responded to every blow that the Italians offered.
It is a shame that Peter Crouch’s counter-attacking goal created by Aaron Lennon will be largely overshadowed by the on-field behavior of Mathieu Flamini and Genarro Gattuso of Milan. Flamini dove into a two-footed, studs-up tackle on Vedran Corluka that forced the Spurs man to be substituted off with an injury, and was only shown a yellow card by the referee for his efforts. Gattuso’s offenses were more numerous and even more inflammatory. After the foul by Flamini, Gattuso could be seen arguing with Spurs coach Joe Jordan on the touchline, and he went so far as to grip the old man by the neck and give him a shove. Gattuso wasn’t finished however, he was diving into reckless challenges all over the pitch and threw a childish hissy fit when he was finally booked for his repeated offenses. After the match, Gattuso was not finished. The Milan captain returned to confront Jordan, and this time opted for a head-butt as his preferred method of attack.
All in all, it has been a great start to the Champions League Knockout Rounds in 2011. I am very much looking forward to next week’s action. Included in this entry are my Team of the Week for the week of February 15th/16th in the Champions League as well as a comic book breakdown of my Goal of the Week scored by Roberto Soldado of Valencia.
Goal of the Week:
UEFA Champions League Team of the Week
Goalkeeper:
Heuerelho Gomes – Tottenham Hotspur
Gomes turned in one of his finest performances in recent memory against Milan, repeatedly denying Mario Yepes’ headed attempts on set pieces. In a week of otherwise unremarkable goalkeeping, Gomes’ performance stood out as the cream of the crop.
Defenders:
Jeremy Mathieu – Valencia
Having played with Valencia in Football Manager 2010, Mathieu has become a player I am pre-conditioned to pull for. With that being said, his performance against Schalke was very good for Los Che. Mathieu’s defensive duties were performed well, and his marauding run forward on the overlap and subsequent first-touch cross created Roberto Soldado’s goal that put Valencia one goal to the good before Raul left his mark on the tie.
Laurent Koscielny – Arsenal
In what was perhaps the best performance of the week, the Frenchman Laurent Koscielny was stellar at the back for the Gunners. Koscielny was never rattled after Gael Clichy mistakenly played David Villa onside for the opener, and his role in breaking up the frequent Barca attacks of the first half (as well as the much less frequent Barca attacks of the second) cannot be underestimated. It is always a tough task to line up against the most in-form side in the world and Koscielny was the rock at the back that Arsenal needed to come out victorious.
Michael Dawson – Tottenham Hotspur
It was an historic victory for Tottenham Hotspur at the San Siro on Tuesday night, and this England international had a leading role to play. Dawson was integral in withstanding Milan’s offensive onslaught early in the second half, and he helped his team maintain composure while Gattuso and Flamini did their best to inflict pain and dismay on the Spurs. Heading, blocking shots, tackling; Dawson did it all for Tottenham.
Emmanuel Eboue – Arsenal
There are many situations I go to sleep dreaming about finding myself in. Lining up at full back against Barcelona is most certainly not one of them. The Ivorian looked lively all night and supported Theo Walcott very well coming forward. More importantly, Eboue was competent in defense, making tackles and interceptions to get Arsenal out of many a tight spot.
Midfielders:
Jack Wilshere – Arsenal
Take a bow, son! Fresh off of earning his first England cap at the tender age of 19, Arsenal’s number 19 played Barcelona off the park at the Emirates with superb ball winning and composed passing. Wilshere looked strong on the ball and it was not an uncommon occurrence to find him muscling his much older Barca counterparts off the ball. It was a performance that the most seasoned professionals would have ranked among their best, on one of football’s biggest stages, and it came from a boy who can’t even buy himself a drink here in the States.
Francesc Fabregas – Arsenal
Even though the Gunners dominated the first ten minutes, Cesc still found himself having a particularly slow start against his old mates from Catalonia. However, once he settled in he became as dangerous a playmaker as ever. Fabregas linked will with Jack Wilshere all game and played a lovely ball up to Samir Nasri which eventually led to Arshavin’s match-winner.
Aaron Lennon – Tottenham Hotspur
Lennon’s destruction of AC Milan can be described in a word. Pace. Milan’s defenders were exposed for the decrepit old men that they are by Lennon’s blistering runs. Constantly dangerous, he was finally able to link up with Peter Crouch in the 80th minute to give Spurs a thoroughly deserved victory at the San Siro.
Jose Jurado – Schalke 04
Whenever Schalke threatened (which admittedly was not all too often) they played through Jose Manuel Jurado. The Spaniard showed great ability to make precise passes as well as the intelligence to create chances. He will surely remember his assist to Raul for the rest of his days, having carved out a small piece of history as his teammate broke the all time record for goals in European competition.
Attackers:
Raul – Schalke 04
Valencia looked the more likely side for the first hour or so of the match, but Raul still managed to steal the spotlight from his old rivals. The former Real Madrid man looked hungry for a goal throughout the match, and took his chance perfectly when it came. Raul’s goal broke Filippo Inzaghi’s European goal-scoring record. It was his 71st goal in European competition.
Peter Crouch – Tottenham Hotspur
Being tall and gangly myself, Peter Crouch is something of a hero to me. For this reason, I was delighted to see him get a goal in Milan, the match-winner no less. Crouch stood his ground throughout the match whenever he was bruised by the Milan defense or confronted by Gennaro Gattuso. He smartly stayed out of Lennon’s way on the fateful break, and took his chance brilliantly when his teammate layed off a square ball.
Substitutes:
Manuel Neuer – Schalke 04
Luiz Adriano – Shahktar Donetsk
Jeremy Menez – AS Roma
Wilson Palacios – Tottenham Hotspur
Samir Nasri – Arsenal
Willian – Shakhtar Donetsk
Roberto Soldado - Valencia
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