Article 49 of the official Champions League regulations stipulates how repeated yellow card cautions are dealt with and when lingering yellow cards are wiped. A suspension for yellow card accumulation is a threat from the group stage until the quarterfinals, and receiving a yellow-card suspension in the second leg of the quarters will also carry over into the semifinal first leg.
It’s come to light that the best opportunity Barcelona had to snatch a goal to begin their famous comeback against Juventus wasn’t squandered by Lionel Messi but by Luis Suarez at kick off.
Juventus defender Dani Alves was off the pitch, shaking hands with his old coaching staff (one coach playfully holding his hand long enough to incur a slap from Alves) while Luis Enrique beckoned the Brazilian to take a seat next to him.
Just as Borussia Dortmund was picking up steam, Monaco capped it immediately. Quick on the counterattack, Monaco threaded together a string of passes once again opening up Dortmund's defense. With fresh legs, right as Valère Germain stepped onto the pitch, he made an impact.
(Goal at 1:17)
Monaco makes history as the first team to score three goals in four consecutive matches in the Champions League.
Perhaps a small section of supporters within Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu are on to something. For the opening 75 minutes of Real’s second leg match against Bayern Munich, Cristiano Ronaldo, by his own standards and those of Real Madrid and all that jazz, cut a forlorn figure like only he can.
For all the talk regarding what it would take for Barcelona to, once again, turn around a seemingly insurmountable lead, the difference between this return leg and the one against PSG was made immediately evident upon kickoff. Juventus played higher up the pitch, they made Barcelona entirely uncomfortable, they were sophisticatedly physical and they were capable of stringing passes together.
The war of words between Gerard Pique and Real Madrid reached ESPN FC comment section levels of villainy with Sergio Ramos taking the time to respond to Pique’s latest trolling effort.
Pique has previously insinuated that Real always get an easy draw in the Champions League, that Real’s expulsion from the Copa del Rey last season was hilarious and that Alvaro Arbeloa is a cone — this is pretty much a regular thing from him.
Barcelona vs Juventus: MSN try to work their magic for yet another comeback at home
Last 5 games
Barca: W L L W W
Juve: W W W L D
Barcelona find themselves in a deja vu situation again. The Catalans are trailing by three goals after being outclassed in Turin last week, and will need another big comeback to stay alive in Europe. Although they’re trailing a goal less than they did against PSG, they’re also facing a much tougher side to break down compared to the French outfit.
In the first extra time, Sergio Ramos crossed a ball in from the left side of the box, finding a wide open Cristiano Ronaldo. It appeared that he was offside, but that won't change the way Real Madrid fans feel about it.
Atletico Madrid are the first team of the quarter finals to punch their pass to the semi finals of the Champions League. Although Leicester played out of their skin, they could not find the shoe that fits to keep their Cinderella tale alive. Saul Niguez converted an early header to force Leicester to come up with three goals in order to advance. The uphill battle was too much of a task for Leicester, especially against an outstanding team such as Atletico.