Champions League Round of 16 (15th Feb - 16th Mar)

[Hastar]

Inter were the better team for large chunks of the tie.

But that is not how football works. We had quality on the bench to win in the first leg, and we negated Inter defensively in the second with Sanchez's harsh Red card, which is my opinion wasn't even a Yellow, to add to their misery.

 

[Deery]

And the goalkeeper Handonovic.
Just cooly playing the ball out of trouble within their own 6 yard box.
Compared to our back line absolutely shitting themselves whenever there's a tiny bit of pressure from the opposition.

It was a joy to watch so composed, a few times I couldn’t believe my eyes, think I’m conditioned to Harry Maguire that I don’t realise what good football is

 

[Classical Mechanic]

Inter were the better team for large chunks of the tie.

But that is not how football works. We had quality on the bench to win in the first leg, and we negated Inter defensively in the second with Sanchez's harsh Red card to add to their misery.

I don't think that is the case. Their xG over the two legs was 0.78! If you're so toothless in attack then most likely you're not going to get a result. They ran hard (that cnut Sanchez didn't run that much in his whole United career) but they were busy fools ultimately.

 

[MUFC OK]

Hope PSG progress and go a long way in the CL. DO NOT want Poch getting sacked by them.

 

[Deery]

a couple of obvious things about today's game: try to score the first goal early, preferably in the first 20 minutes. High pressure and very attentive so that Verratti does not smell the ball.
In Madrid, as usually happens in these cases, a lot of talk about historical comebacks, creating a high-pressure environment, etc.
I think Asensio will play up front and in midfield the doubt is Kroos, who in theory is not 100%. There is a certain desire in the fan to see Camavinga in his place, more than anything because it may happen that he is not 100% and will play by pure hierarchy.
Vini has said that it is his most important game, and I think he is looking forward to it after a gray game in Paris, so he is my bet to be man of the match

Modric masterclass incoming.

 

[kouroux]

Hope PSG progress and go a long way in the CL. DO NOT want Poch getting sacked by them.

Whatever happens, Poch will go. You can start to accept it now

 

[Classical Mechanic]

It was a joy to watch so composed, a few times I couldn’t believe my eyes, think I’m conditioned to Harry Maguire that I don’t realise what good football is

They played 3 at the back which obviously made it easier with the extra man but it contributed to their toothlessness in attack. The balance wasn't there to win the game.

 

[Deery]

They played 3 at the back which obviously made it easier with the extra man but it contributed to their toothlessness in attack. The balance wasn't there to win the game.

It was the way they played though which was impressive, so nonchalant and composed. Spinning balls into midfield, little triangles and first touch passes with perfect weight. Liverpool’s press was nonexistent, now compare that to our 5-0 humiliation, it’s stark contrast

 

[Classical Mechanic]

It was the way they played though which was impressive, so nonchalant and composed. Spinning balls into midfield, little triangles and first touch passes with perfect weight. Liverpool’s press was nonexistent, now compare that to our 5-0 humiliation, it’s stark contrast

Well they were better than us in the 0-5. I'll give you that. Ultimately you need to score goals to win games though.

 

[Deery]

Well they were better than us in the 0-5. I'll give you that. Ultimately you need to score goals to win games though.

They obviously are lacking in the forward department but you never know what would have happened if Sanchez stays on, I think their game plan and formation was quite good going up against a much better side, unlucky not to get something out the tie.

 

[Pintu]

Well they were better than us in the 0-5. I'll give you that. Ultimately you need to score goals to win games though.

They did win last night. Who knows what would have happened with 11 men, with Dzeko, Correa and Gosens ready to come in.

You can't even compare the way they played through Liverpool's press in both legs to what we seem to do whenever we meet Liverpool or City. It is day and night... I genuinely never thought they'd be capable of doing this consistently against Liverpool. There are maybe 5 teams in Europe capable of that.

 

[Classical Mechanic]

They obviously are lacking in the forward department but you never know what would have happened if Sanchez stays on, I think their game plan and formation was quite good going up against a much better side, unlucky not to get something out the tie.

That's a fair point. The momentum was swinging their favour until Sanchez got sent off. Personally though I can't say they were unlucky. They would've been lucky to go through because Liverpool missed a few big chances in that game, the game should've been dead and buried before Martinez scored.

 

[NoPace]

I was a bit surprised when I saw this but the reality is Inter didn't create enough. We were there for the taking in the first half.

Your CBs played well, which made up for the flat performance. Midfield wasn't great, but Robertson did well in both legs and TAA didn't get torn apart by Perisic this one. Fabinho always solid.

It's possible Inter would have pipped it with Barella, though Vidal was very good yesterday. But he would have helped.

 

[Deery]

That's a fair point. The momentum was swinging their favour until Sanchez got sent off. Personally though I can't say they were unlucky. They would've been lucky to go through because Liverpool missed a few big chances in that game, the game should've been dead and buried before Martinez scored.

I think it was quite obvious that Inter were missing the like of Lukaku and I think he’d have scored last night, I can see why he’d want to return he’s made for that team.

 

[Pintu]

That's a fair point. The momentum was swinging their favour until Sanchez got sent off. Personally though I can't say they were unlucky. They would've been lucky to go through because Liverpool missed a few big chances in that game, the game should've been dead and buried before Martinez scored.

They were very unlucky to get drawn against Liverpool when Lille, Ajax, United were among the options. They were unlucky to have Barella (their best midfielder) suspended for both legs... And they were unlucky not to score in the first leg despite having dominated most of that game (Dzeko was playing his 4th high-intensity game in 10 days, he was too tired to do better). The calendar didn't help them.

 

[Classical Mechanic]

They did win last night. Who knows what would have happened with 11 men, with Dzeko, Correa and Gosens ready to come in.

You can't even compare the way they played through Liverpool's press in both legs to what we seem to do whenever we meet Liverpool or City. It is day and night... I genuinely never thought they'd be capable of doing this consistently against Liverpool. There are maybe 5 teams in Europe capable of that.

I don't really agree with that. Inter's xG over both games was 0.78. It's not effective football. If you create so little then you're relying on luck or individual brilliance to win you the game. It can work sometimes but most times you'll come up short as Inter did here.

Brighton are one side that outplayed Liverpool this season (and do many times they play them) and that created better chances against them than Inter did so I'm not convinced it puts Inter in the top 5 team in Europe as you seem to imply.

 

[Pintu]

I think it was quite obvious that Inter were missing the like of Lukaku and I think he’d have scored last night, I can see why he’d want to return he’s made for that team.

I'm not convinced Lukaku would function in their game plan against Liverpool. They need highly skilled players to keep the ball moving quickly and accurately. Dzeko does it well and Sanchez did it fine yesterday. But Lukaku has the speed to hurt the high line.

 

[strongwalker]

US firefighter edition

 

[strongwalker]

I'd 8-2 be a Salzburg fan

such dont exist

 

[Deery]

I'm not convinced Lukaku would function in their game plan against Liverpool. They need highly skilled players to keep the ball moving quickly and accurately. Dzeko does it well and Sanchez did it fine yesterday. But Lukaku has the speed to hurt the high line.

They were too far from goal at times Lukaku would have taken that out and ran the centre backs, I understand what you’re saying about being technical but a player like Lukaku would have looked twice the player last night.

 

[Pintu]

I don't really agree with that. Inter's xG over both games was 0.78. It's not effective football. If you create so little then you're relying on luck or individual brilliance to win you the game. It can work sometimes but most times you'll come up short as Inter did here.

Brighton are one side that outplayed Liverpool this season (and do many times they play them) and that created better chances against them than Inter did so I'm not convinced it puts Inter in the top 5 team in Europe as you seem to imply.

They created more than that. In the first leg, they had many near chances that didn't lead to shots, and that does not feature in expected goals. I think they were toothless to some extent because of Lautaro and Dzeko's form on that night (that was his 4th consecutive start in 10 days, against Roma, Napoli, Milan and Liverpool). And of course, they didn't have Barella. That's the main hindrance. Barella is their main creator. Both assists and pre-assists.

I don't think Inter is top 5 in Europe. They are probably the best team in Italy right now but in Europe there is an obvious top 4/6 that is clearly better than them. The top 4/6 is (Bayern, City, Liverpool, Paris + Real & Chelsea). So they are not at that level. But the way they played through Pool's press consistently in 2 games was impressive. Milan scored more at Anfield (lost 3-2) but they were nowhere near as good at playing through Liverpool's press. That's what I was talking about.

Comparison to Brighton is always going to be misleading. Salah, Mané and Thiago can't possibly produce the same consistent press and maintain a high concentration in a random PL game against a midtable/bottom half team as they do against the big 6 or at a KO stage in the CL... But that being said, Brighton is their next opponent (with a week to prepare), and it is the final run of the title race now so they'll have to give it their all... Bear in mind Pool won't have the 5 substitutions that they needed in Milano to change the game.

 

[Classical Mechanic]

They created more than that. In the first leg, they had many near chances that didn't lead to shots, and that does not feature in expected goals. I think they were toothless to some extent because of Lautaro and Dzeko's form on that night (that was his 4th consecutive start in 10 days, against Roma, Napoli, Milan and Liverpool). And of course, they didn't have Barella. That's the main hindrance. Barella is their main creator. Both assists and pre-assists.

I don't think Inter is top 5 in Europe. They are probably the best team in Italy right now but in Europe there is an obvious top 4/6 that is clearly better than them. The top 4/6 is (Bayern, City, Liverpool, Paris + Real & Chelsea). So they are not at that level. But the way they played out of the back consistently in 2 games is impressive. Milan scored more at Anfield (lost 3-2) but they were nowhere near as good at playing through Liverpool's press. That's what I was talking about.

Comparison to Brighton is always going to be misleading. Salah, Mané and Thiago can't possibly produce the same consistent press and maintain a high concentration in a random PL game against a midtable/bottom half team as they do against the big 6 or at a KO stage in the CL... But that being said, Brighton is their next opponent (with a week to prepare), and it is the final run of the title race now so they'll have to give it their all... Bear in mind Pool won't have the 5 substitutions that they needed in Milano to change the game.

On the Brighton point Potter has demonstrated a better tactical solution against Liverpool with lesser players than Inter so I do think it's relevant when considering how Inter performed against Liverpool.

Inter employed what are essentially containment strategy except instead of a low block it was more of a medium block. They played 3 at the back which countered the high press and there was a lot of pressure on the ball in midfield. The consequence of this is a lack of numbers in the attacking phase, hence the low xG. The overall xG for the two games was roughly 3.11 - 0.78 in favour of Liverpool. In the second leg especially Liverpool missed about 3 big chances Salah x 2 and Diaz x 1. Inter didn't create a single big chance over the course of the two legs. I'm not sure how you can rationally look at this game over the two legs and deduce than Inter were unlucky. If anything they were lucky that the margin of defeat wasn't higher.

 

[Pintu]

On the Brighton point Potter has demonstrated a better tactical solution against Liverpool with lesser players than Inter so I do think it's relevant when considering how Inter performed against Liverpool.

You didn't read the reason I am not interested in comparing it to Brighton.

"Salah, Mané and Thiago can't possibly produce the same consistent press and maintain a high concentration in a random PL game against a midtable/bottom half team as they do against the big 6 or at a KO stage in the CL.."

It is not the same thing. Players don't react in the same way even when they want to.

Expected goals say too little about single games. Most of Liverpool's big chances came from set pieces. The second leg you're right, but it is skewed by the red card. The first leg was different, Inter had a shot on the post and had many near chances, with 3 vs 3 and 2 v 2 where they didn't take the chances. They often misplaced the last pass and failed to take shots that were there for the taking.

 

[Classical Mechanic]

You didn't read the reason I am not interested in comparing it to Brighton.

"Salah, Mané and Thiago can't possibly produce the same consistent press and maintain a high concentration in a random PL game against a midtable/bottom half team as they do against the big 6 or at a KO stage in the CL.."

It is not the same thing. Players don't react in the same way even when they want to.

Expected goals say too little about single games. Most of Liverpool's big chances came from set pieces. The second leg you're right, but it is skewed by the red card. The first leg was different, Inter had a shot on the post and had many near chances, with 3 vs 3 and 2 v 2 where they didn't take the chances. They often misplaced the last pass and failed to take shots that were there for the taking.

I did read it but I'm not convinced by the argument. What they can do against Brighton is bring in Milner and Henderson for Thiago and Jones and bring in Diaz for Mane. Three players that offer more athleticism than the players they're replacing. Liverpool played Thiago & Elliot and Thiago & Jones as the 8s against Inter which are the least physical combinations available to them.

Liverpool are in an ultra tight title race at the moment so the idea they have significantly less to play for against Brighton and won't work as hard is fanciful. If anything the PL title is more precious to them at this point than the CL as they'd get to equal United's 20 titles if they win.

None of Liverpool's big chances came from set-pieces last night Salah x 2 and Diaz x 1 all came from open play. They did have 2 good chances from set-pieces too.

I don't really buy arguments about 'if Inter played a better pass at this point' because if Matip didn't make a hospital pass in defence last night then Inter wouldn't scored that first goal and the 'momentum' is much less likely to swing their way given how toothless they were. Such arguments could go on forever.

What you're perhaps hinting at is xT or expected threat which is the next big step in statistical analysis, even so I'd expect Liverpool to have much higher xT as well because they dominated the ball in both games, had more shots in both games and had a higher xG in both games. Perhaps xT would've been more flattering to Inter than the xG (not flattering at all) was.

 

[PoTMS]

If by some miracle we beat Atletico, we better hope to God we face the winners of Juventus/Villarreal or Ajax/Benfica in the next round or we could be onto a hiding. The aggregate score against City, Bayern and Liverpool in particular could be in double figures.

 

[Klopper76]

Your CBs played well, which made up for the flat performance. Midfield wasn't great, but Robertson did well in both legs and TAA didn't get torn apart by Perisic this one. Fabinho always solid.

It's possible Inter would have pipped it with Barella, though Vidal was very good yesterday. But he would have helped.

I saw someone on Twitter suggesting we missed Firmino who would've been perfect for a game like last night. Jota wasn't great and Firmino would've given another body to receive the ball in midfield, as well as something else for Inter's midfield to worry about.

 

[SportingCP96]

No big deal today, will be a light 6-0 win for Sporting.

OG Ruben dias 1-0
OG Bernardo Silva 2-0
OG Cancelo 3-0
OG Ederson 4-0
Slimani 5-0
Paulinho 6-0

Sporting go through 6-5

 

[Theafonis]

Since you all love his style, I did a bit of research and found the coat

https://www.hugoboss.com/si/en/relaxed-fit-duffle-coat-with-colour-blocking/hbeu50454305_262.html

Thank you but above my tax bracket

 

[NoPace]

I saw someone on Twitter suggesting we missed Firmino who would've been perfect for a game like last night. Jota wasn't great and Firmino would've given another body to receive the ball in midfield, as well as something else for Inter's midfield to worry about.

Good call. Firmino would have helped disrupt all the little flicks and link ups Inter played to create counters.

But Inter missing Barella is not you guys missing someone who might or might not start. He's their best playmaker, so it's more like you missing Alexander-Arnold or there's no exact fit, but someone more important than 2022 Firmino. Maybe 2018 Firmino.

 

[NoPace]

Seems like posting this will mean he has 2 assists and is the key man tonight, but is this the first game of Messi's career he's not starting on merit? Away at the Bernabeu, up 1-0, with Neymar and Mbappe around, it seems like you'd want Di Maria's defensive workrate and pace on the counter over Messi to start, right?

Like he's basically prime Papu Gomez now, who was a great player 3-4 years ago for Atalanta (won Serie A best midfielder) but probably comes off the bench in this game away with this scoreline.

 

[Hansi Fick]

No big deal today, will be a light 6-0 win for Sporting.

OG Ruben dias 1-0
OG Bernardo Silva 2-0
OG Cancelo 3-0
OG Ederson 4-0
Slimani 5-0
Paulinho 6-0

Sporting go through 6-5

So much benevolence towards ex Benfica players, warms my heart

 

[giorno]

They played 3 at the back which obviously made it easier with the extra man but it contributed to their toothlessness in attack. The balance wasn't there to win the game.

Lack of individual quality did for that. Ultimately individual quality was the difference in the tie

 

[Who's Kissing Cameras?]

No Ferland Mendy and Casemiro? PSG to go through easily.

 

[Klopper76]

What way is this going then? I fancy PSG to win 2-1 on the night.

 

[Hughie77]

That ref in the dippers game has been a constant useless one he should ref in the prem, alongside , Moss, Mr Bean m Dean, and the rest. Yellow card jeez Klopp must have shown his new teeth at him and he shit himself.

 

[cyberman]

Even City fans won’t be watching their game tonight

 

[kouroux]

Seems like posting this will mean he has 2 assists and is the key man tonight, but is this the first game of Messi's career he's not starting on merit? Away at the Bernabeu, up 1-0, with Neymar and Mbappe around, it seems like you'd want Di Maria's defensive workrate and pace on the counter over Messi to start, right?

Like he's basically prime Papu Gomez now, who was a great player 3-4 years ago for Atalanta (won Serie A best midfielder) but probably comes off the bench in this game away with this scoreline.

If he'd bench him tonight, he gets the sack right after the game

 

[Who's Kissing Cameras?]

Even City fans won’t be watching their game tonight

What fans?

 

[diarm]

The difference in volume when you flick between BT 2 and BT 3!

 

[cyberman]

What fans?

Good point, well made sir.