World Football's Champions League Hangover: No Mercy from Messi the Genius
Welcome to world football's Champions League Hangover, an homage to the NFL section's own Monday Morning Hangover, in which we round up the key stories and important points from the most recent matchday in the Champions League—albeit in a more concise format.
What is there to write? What really is there to offer of any value beyond the glaringly obvious acknowledgement that this was one of the most absorbing, entertaining and high-quality football matches of this season or many others?
That this was a match that, for 75 minutes, contained two impressive team performances (yes, there were errors—but errors invariably recovered by a moment of brilliance) but ended up being decided by one individual's undeniable genius? That this was a game many will point to when trying to encapsulate Lionel Messi's brilliance?
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Barcelona may have been threatening to overrun Bayern Munich for large parts of the 90 minutes at Camp Nou on Wednesday evening, but as the game reached the final 20 minutes at 0-0, the visitors seemed to be growing in confidence and were looking good value for what would have been a hugely significant first-leg draw.
And then Lionel Messi did what Lionel Messi does, which is blow past defenders like they aren't there and score goals with the same instinctive ease with which most of us inhale air. This was Messi at his absolute finest. Not only did he deliver two magical solo goals to change the course of the tie (and possibly the whole tournament?), but he used his opponents' own tendencies against them in order to do so.
"I will not say what I think of Messi," said Bayern boss Pep Guardiola, who endured an ultimately horrendous homecoming, per ESPN FC. "They are not just Leo. Barca are a very good team.
"We tried to control the game so that Messi would not participate so much. We were 15 minutes away from a very good result."
Until Messi broke the deadlock, it was Bayern's goalkeeper, Manuel Neuer, who had been the man of the match, making a couple of characteristically brilliant one-on-one saves from Luis Suarez and Dani Alves to keep his side in the contest. In the buildup, Neuer talked about the need for Bayern to impose themselves on Barcelona and Messi, and he was one of the few Bayern players who made a decent fist of doing exactly that.
Neuer, like many goalkeepers around Europe, knows Messi's preferences. He knows that when the Argentinian finds himself on the right side of the box, he loves to curl his left-footed shots into the far corner—over and around goalkeepers toward the spot they have the least chance or reaching.
That was what Neuer must have been anticipating when Messi shaped to shoot from such a position in the 77th minute at Camp Nou, as the German took a half-step across his line to cover the exact angle his opponent so often finds.
Instead, Messi whipped his effort inside the near post, beating Neuer's fingertips by inches. The stutter in the other direction was the goalkeeper's downfall.
Three minutes later, Messi repeated the trick. All evening, Neuer had spread himself low and wide to deny Barcelona—Suarez's effort being kicked away by his trailing leg—a technique he has utilised to great effect for much of his career.
So when Messi rounded Jerome Boateng—breaking his ankles in the process, as they would say in the NBA—the Barca man used that tendency against Neuer, hoisting a right-footed effort high over the spread-eagled goalkeeper, Neuer ready to block the anticipated power effort that never came.
Both goals involved brilliant athleticism and brilliant planning. In a game in which Bayern, almost overran in the first 15 minutes, changed shape and stayed manfully with the task of shackling their opponents, it was that kind of excellence that was finally required to break them down.
It is worth remembering that Bayern were without the two most Messi-like players they have, Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben, and dealing with plenty of other injury problems. It is also worth remembering that they have won their last two European knockout games at the Allianz Arena 7-0 and 6-1, so it is not as if the tie is completely over just yet.
"In the last 15 minutes we decided the game, but not the tie," Barca boss Luis Enrique said, per ESPN FC. "Tuesday will be another game, for sure very difficult. We have seen everything can happen in football.
"I remember [the] quarter-finals when Porto were eliminated having won the first leg 3-1. We want to go there and cause them the most danger possible. It is still all to be decided."
Nevertheless, for all Messi's brilliance it was perhaps Neymar's late finish to secure a 3-0 scoreline that will have the decisive impact on the tie. A two-goal deficit is a challenge, but a three-goal difference is a yawning chasm. Of all the frustrations of the night, Guardiola might be most aggrieved about the way his side were caught on the break at the end—Neymar's straightforward counter-attacking finish cutting what limited hopes his side had left into ribbons.
"I could not come here and shut up shop," Guardiola added. "Against players at his level, Leo, and others, there is this possibility if you lose the ball close to your area.
"We lacked a little bit of incision up front, but I must just congratulate Barca for the win and prepare for Munich."
Fans are fortunate they'll have a chance to witness another 90 minutes between these two sides. The sense, however, is that it will not be quite the same; Messi may have already broken Bayern's resolve. If he has, you cannot exactly blame them, either.
Champions League Semi-Final, 1st-Leg Results
Tuesday
Juventus 2-1 Real Madrid (Morata, Tevez; Ronaldo)
Wednesday
Barcelona 3-0 Bayern Munich (Messi (two), Neymar)
Second-leg ties take place on 12 and 13 May. The final is in Berlin on June 6.
Real Far from the Brink Despite Defeat
For Real Madrid, the challenge has been set. An eye-catching Clasico Champions League final—the dream of the purists if perhaps the nightmare for many Madridistas and Cules—is only 90 minutes away if Real can find a way to score against the meanest defence in Europe's top competition this season.
In the wake of Juventus's 2-1 win in Turin on Tuesday, a popular phrase used in the media was that Carlo Ancelotti's side were on the "brink of elimination." This is patently untrue; a 2-1 deficit may be far from ideal, but with the home leg still to come, the tie is about as evenly poised as possible.
Juve have done half the job, but they will still need to dig deep if they are to complete it.
Considering the setbacks with which Real have had to deal—Sergio Ramos' struggles at the base of midfield and the penalty Dani Carvajal gave away—Ancelotti will perhaps not be devastated with the one-goal defeat against a former side he will have been well aware posed a considerable threat.
They are as good defensively as any side we have seen for a few seasons, and in Carlos Tevez, they have an attacker whose all-round play adds more than one dimension to the side.
"I believe that the game could have been better from our part," Ancelotti said, per ESPN FC. "We tried, always looking for quality, but not always with efficiency. In some moments we did very well, in others less.
"We did not have enough consistency. We had some bad luck, with James hitting the crossbar, and then counter-attack from Marcelo's shot. We are not happy, but confident we can change the result in the return."
That seems a rational assessment. The odds are certainly not up against Real by any means. Yet Juventus will take as much confidence from the performance as the result—a tangible indication that they have the talent to match Europe's very best after more than a few seasons when that has not appeared to be the case.
The worry for Real now is that the state of the tie plays into Juve's hands, with the side able to go to the Bernabeu and play with a defence-first approach—daring one of the best attacks in history to break down what is likely to be a five-man back line.
Monaco could not do it in the previous round, and without Luka Modric to grease the wheels of the Real machine, the home side might find the fluency they will need to break down the Italians maddeningly elusive.
Juventus will not be intimidated by the occasion—they played at the Bernabeu in the group stage last season—and unlike Bayern, they can switch between tactical setups without missing a beat. They pose a formidable challenge.
It is a huge test for Ancelotti, a man whose job is in some doubt. Characterised as more of a man manager than a tactical genius, changing that perception with a second-leg masterclass might just keep him in employment.
Either that or it will be a moment of individual genius from a player. After all, isn't that exactly why Real pay the big transfer fees and big wages—a moment of decisive genius when it is most important?
"The answer is clear from the game—when we play the ball well we can make chances," Ancelotti added. "When we try and force it too much, Juventus are dangerous on the break. I believe they will sit back and try and hit us on the counter. We will have to be more patient than we were today."
Random Asides
- Just how far ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo is Messi in the current Ballon d'Or race? As Ronaldo continues to frustrate with his visibly egocentric ways in recent weeks, Messi has subjugated some of his attacking threat for the good of his Barcelona team and yet only become an even more decisive influence on matches. His two goals against Bayern were the salvo of the season and could end up deciding the destination of this competition.
- On that note, it was telling that Gareth Bale continued to struggle horribly in Turin and Luis Suarez was a valuable and persistent contributor for Barcelona 24 hours later. Ronaldo seems to have waged a cold war against the Welshman that has cowed him from his usual game, and now when Real need their most expensive signing most, he is simply unable to perform to his abilities. Messi, in contrast, has nurtured Suarez—even changing his own game to better integrate the Uruguayan—and Barcelona are a much stronger side as a result.
- Surely there was nothing wrong with Alvaro Morata's decision not to celebrate against his former club. Yes, Real Madrid made the decision to let the young Spaniard go last summer—but they also made sure to place a buy-back clause in the deal that means he could one day return to the Santiago Bernabeu. If nothing else, not celebrating was a good business decision that might have an impact on his long-term future.
- On the one hand, refereeing Champions League semi-finals is a blessing, an honour to watch such talent up close; on the other, it is a nightmare as you try to correctly pick out the fouls from the simulation and the clean tackles from the off-the-ball infractions. Neither Martin Atkinson nor Nicola Rizzoli had a perfect evening. They made more than a few decisions that raised eyebrows, but their decisions never unduly affected the course of the match or upset the natural rhythm had been established. A qualified success from the men in the middle.
- Will we now see the beginning of the revision of Pep Guardiola's managerial history? Twice now he has seen his Bayern side unravel in the semi-finals of the Champions League. Twice they have paid the price for their manager's unwillingness to turn to pragmatic methods when the stakes are highest. Guardiola's sporting principles are noble and the pinnacle of the game when they also delivered the biggest trophies. Without them, however, he becomes Kevin Keegan in another form—and no-one wants that. More importantly, even Bayern will not put up with it forever.
Good Week, Bad Week
Good Week
Lionel Messi: The best in the world. Nights such as Wednesday remind us exactly why.
Carlos Tevez: A masterclass in attacking play from the Argentinian, whose play elevates Juventus significantly.
Max Allegri: The coach is on the verge of taking Juventus from European also-rans to finalists in one go.
Dani Alves: The summer free agent seems to be saving his best performances for the biggest games.
Football fans: What a pair of semi-finals, and what a final we could have in store.
Bad Week
Pep Guardiola: The homecoming turned into a nightmare, and that third goal changed the whole tie.
Cristiano Ronaldo: His selfish ways continue to grate, even if his goals continue to help the team.
Juan Bernat: Perhaps his top-level inexperience showed as his initial mistake opened the floodgates at Camp Nou.
Sergio Ramos: Hardly the best of nights in an admittedly unfamiliar position.
Rest of Europe's elite: How high is the standard at the very top? The rest have a long way to go.
