Tuesday night saw the beginning of this week’s installment of European club soccer as four sides clashed in what turned out to be two epic soccer matches in the Uefa Champions League. German side Bayer Leverkusen faced off against Atletico Madrid meanwhile Monaco were visitors at Manchester City. Possibly the most exciting Champions League evenings in recent weeks then unfolded in an explosion of goals, a total of 14 goals across the two fixtures.
Bayer Leverkusen – Atletico Madrid
The last time these two sides met was only two years ago in the round of 16 in the Champions League which proved to be a very close tie, with the two having to be separated on penalties. Given how tight their last meetings have been this was sure to be an exciting battle and it didn’t disappoint.
Heading into the match both sides had found some form, Atletico striker Kevin Gameiro has been on fire recently having scored a five-minute hat-trick at the weekend. On the other side of the field, Leverkusen striker Chicharito Hernandez is someone the German side can always count on to produce the goods. Hakan Calhanoglu’s suspension offers opportunities for Leverkusen’s fringe players and in this game, it was 17-year-old Kai Hertz who was given a chance, his Champions League debut. For Atletico Godin and Juanfran sat out with injuries forcing them to field a much weaker defense than they’re capable of.
It didn’t take long for the deadlock to be broken as in the 17th minute Saul scored a peach for Atletico. Cutting in from the right flank the Spaniard curled a beauty into the top left-hand corner. Following from this it didn’t take the Spanish giants to double their lead through Griezmann. Gameiro created the opportunity before finding the French talisman patiently waiting at the back post where he cooly slotted home. 2 – 0 down after 25 minutes would have been nothing short of worrying for Leverkusen fans as the side were already flirting with defeat. Thankfully they made it to half-time without conceding more. I’d imagine coach Roger Schmidt had some stern words for the side. Karim Bellerabi brought one back in the 48th minute to make it 2 – 1 but despite this Atletico were in control for much of the second half as the game ended 4 -2 to Atletico. This puts the Spanish side in a very strong position for the second leg but given the number of goals in this game, it would be unreasonable to say this game is over just yet.
Manchester City – AS Monaco
In the other fixture Man City and Monaco, two sides in a good form created a festival of goals. To begin with, the game was very much a game of cat and mouse. Both defenses were having very poor games, in particular, John Stones for City had an absolute nightmare up against a rejuvenated Radamel Falcao. 1 – 0 City. 1 -1. 2 – 1 Monaco. The first half was a crazy end to end affair which was reflected in the number of goals scored. This trend continued into the second half as City equalized through Aguero to make it 2 – 2. By far the best goal of the game then came from Falcao. The Colombian shrugged off Stones with ease before releasing a sublime chip over Caballero to give Monaco the lead once again. However at this point in the game a combination of Monaco losing some concentration and City picking up the pace lead to the home side taking control of the game and taking advantage of the poor Monaco defense. The game came to a close with the score at 5 – 3 to Manchester City. It’s definitely advantaged City but with the second leg in the south of France, I wouldn’t be afraid of backing Monaco to be in with a shout of progressing.
