Lost in all the hullabaloo surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo’s iconic bicycle kick against Juventus yesterday was a flawless 75-minute performance from Real Madrid attacking midfielder Isco.
Mario Melchiot knows more about football than you or I. He knows more about football than the both of us combined. A native of Amsterdam, Melchiot was a product of the legendary Ajax youth system, making his debut for the first team as a 20-year-old before transferring to Chelsea at just 22.
He played extensively in the Premier League for the Blues, Birmingham City and Wigan Athletic, as well as amassing 22 international caps for the Netherlands over an eight-year international spell.
Watch the highlights again. You've already seen them, but watch them again, especially Ronaldo's second goal.
Who else could it be??
Cristiano Ronaldo puts Real Madrid ahead early in Turin! pic.twitter.com/sBKCDsRvM6— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) April 3, 2018
Bayern Munich took a massive step towards the Champions League semifinals with a 2-1 away first leg victory over Sevilla in the quarters. Pablo Sarabia opened the scoring for the hosts, but a Jesus Navas own goal and header from Thiago Alcantara put Bayern in the driver's seat ahead of the return leg in Munich.
The opening 35 minutes was close to perfection from Sevilla with regards to executing their game plan. Bayern controlled possession from the start, but the likes of Sergio Escudero, Joaquin Correa and Pablo Sarabia showcased the club’s devastating quality on the counter.
Some clever movement in the box from Real Madrid (and a basketball-style screen) left the Juventus defense befuddled and gave Real Madrid the lead three minutes into the Champions League quarterfinal first leg Tuesday.
Who else could it be??
Cristiano Ronaldo puts Real Madrid ahead early in Turin! pic.twitter.com/sBKCDsRvM6— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) April 3, 2018
Juventus play Real Madrid today, and if Gianluigi Buffon has anything to say about it the Italians will approach this game with an entirely different mindset than the last time these two teams met.
"I'd say we went into the Cardiff game over-confident and that was mistake number one. At the same time on the night Madrid were the better side and I hope for a better performance from Juve on this occasion," the 40-year-old told Diario AS.
Mario Mandzukic is reportedly in good health heading into the Champions League quarterfinal clash between Juventus and Real Madrid. That's good news for Juve, as it was a Mandzukic bicycle kick in last year's UCL final that was the lone bright spot for the Italian side.
When Barcelona drew Roma in the Champions League quarterfinals back on March 16, many penciled the LaLiga leaders straight through to the semis. This is, after all, Barcelona’s 11th consecutive appearance at the quarterfinal stage. For Roma, it’s their first in 10 years. If you want to place a bet on Roma winning the first leg at the Camp Nou, you’ll get 14-1 odds on that punt.
A few weeks ago, Lionel Messi reached the landmark of 100 goals in the UEFA Champions League, joining Cristiano Ronaldo as the only footballer to achieve the feat. The following comparisons between the two were inevitable, because for the last 10 years, it’s just been Ronaldo and Messi at the top of the world’s premier club competition.
In fact, you’d have to go back to the 2006-07 season and AC Milan’s Kaká to find the last Champions League top scorer by season not named Ronaldo or Messi.
The Women's Champions League has a ways to go to catch up to the men’s competition in terms of stature, but the quarterfinal pairing of defending champion Lyon and FIFA Women’s Player of the Year Lieke Martens of Barcelona was every bit as enticing for fans of the women’s game as Real Madrid vs. PSG on the men’s side. While Lyon won 1-0 to advance 3-1 on aggregate, the victory was not without controversy.