A great performance by Olympique Lyon seals the fate of the next title favorite. Manchester City also makes it easy for the French and disappoints across the board. Our comment on the last quarter-finals.
What kind of crazy Champions League tournament is that being played in Lisbon? First Paris Saint-Germain saved themselves with a last-minute double against Atalanta, then Leipzig broke through the Atlético fortress, Bayern beat Messi’s Barcelona, and now Manchester City is also flopping. What’s next – a final between RB Leipzig and Olympique Lyon?
The underestimated by everyone “Gones”, in English “Children”, confirm the sensational performance from the round of 16 against Juventus Turin and also stand against the “Cityzens” their man. A surprise? Yes. But undeserved? Under no circumstance. “The victory is not stolen”, Marco Streller confirms this view in the Teleclub studio. But not only the panel of experts in Volketswil agrees, a visibly beaten Pep Guardiola also finds words of praise in the catacombs of José Alvalade for the self-sacrificing French. “In the last 15 or 20 minutes they started playing really well. They were very aggressive and so strong defensively, ”mumbles the city coach behind clenched teeth.
«Same old Story» für Manchester City
But as good as Lyon plays, the star ensemble from Manchester is just as disappointing. A few weeks after questionable decision of the International Sports Courtto lift the Champions League ban against the «Cityzens», the English show why they are not ready to lift the coveted pot of the handle anyway. Raheem Sterling crowns the toothless performance of his team in the 86th minute with the “miss of his life”, as Teleclub commentator Robby Hunke yells in disbelief from the stands.
But the star among the stars finds the most appropriate words among the sky blues. “Same old story”, snaps Kevin De Bruyne after the recent bankruptcy of his team – translated: same old story. “Our team is great, but we just make too many mistakes,” adds the Belgian. And so, in the end, Olympique Lyon secured the coveted last ticket for the Champions League semi-finals.
After four crazy game days, the pairings for the coming Tuesday and Wednesday are complete. With Leipzig and Lyon, two outsiders have the perhaps unique chance to qualify for the final of the premier class. And even if the opponents with Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich could hardly be bigger, who dares to give a forecast in the bizarre year 2020 and after such an unusual start to the Final 8 tournament in Lisbon?
Maybe you?
survey
Who will win the Champions League