Champions League, Haaland does not stop scoring. Real and Dortmund ok, Benfica too

Real Madrid doesn’t stick, Manchester City doesn’t stick either. The path of two candidates to the final victory begins as best it could, with an away success. It should have been a long-distance duel between the most spectacular strikers in the world, but Benzema’s match against Celtic lasts only half an hour due to a worrying knee problem. Ancelotti’s team is not affected anyway, on the contrary: in the second half he offers a fun and effective football that bends the brave opposition of the Scots with three goals.

The Citizens instead dominate from start to finish on the pitch of Sevilla, who thanks Bono without whom the passive would have been much worse than the 0-4 final. In the Juventus group, Benfica safely beat Maccabi Haifa with an irrepressible Grimaldo. In Leipzig, Shakhtar gives the best story of the evening, lowering the poker against the German team, but now they are at risk of exemption. In the 18.45 matches, Chelsea’s ugly knockout at Dinamo Zagreb; 3-0 authoritative instead for Borussia Dortmund against Copenhagen.

CELTIC-REAL MADRID 0-3

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A two-sided game for Real Madrid, rather disappointing in the first half and perfect in the second. Celtic are not fearful and go close to scoring several times. Abada engages Courtois in the 13th minute, the goalkeeper is then saved from the post on the conclusion of McGregor (21 ‘). The real reason for apprehension, however, is related to the conditions of Benzema, who at half an hour is forced to leave the field due to a knee problem. After the break, Ancelotti’s team imposes their quality. Vinicius concludes by opening the pot a perfect choral action, which started from the penalty area in the 56th minute; four minutes later it’s up to Modric to finish Hazard’s restart from the outside. The Belgian drops the curtain in the 77th minute, supporting Carvajal’s perfect assistance from the right with the door unguarded. Furuhashi came close to an overall well-deserved goal for the Scots, trying to deflect Jota’s cross with his knee, but the ball ended just wide.

SEVILLE-MANCHESTER CITY 0-4

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The real question is how long it would take Erling Haaland to score his first Champions League goal for Manchester City, the answer is twenty minutes. The assist is from the usual De Bruyne, who detached to the right puts the usual ball behind the defense that the Norwegian pushes into an empty net. The midfielder is one of the most dangerous men: in the half hour he tries directly as a free kick, finding only the outside of the net, but the real opportunity happens to him in the 49th minute. The Belgian steals the ball and trades with Haaland, who throws him into the goal but face to face with Bono he gets the shot saved. The disappointment of Guardiola lasts a few minutes, because Foden doubles: just inside the area he lets himself go to a couple of feints, then kicks diagonally (58 ‘). Sevilla’s resistance loosens over time, Haaland does not let him say it twice: on Foden’s shot, Bono stretches but the ball remains in the area of ​​the attacker who still scores in the 67th minute. The extreme defender of the Andalusians avoids a worse passive on the blow of Cancelo (74 ‘), he can do nothing instead at the end of Ruben Dias.

LIPSIA-SHAKHTAR 1-4

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Few occasions and moments when practically everything happens. This is how the game in Leipzig is summed up, with Shakhtar taking the lead. At 16 ‘Gulacsi controls a ball on the trocar, but is lost in a series of feints and Shved deposits the easiest of goals in the goal. The Ukrainians try to keep the right distances between the departments, without however pouring forward with conviction. Thus, Tedesco’s team raises the center of gravity, increases the pressure and in the 57th minute draws with Simakan, good at putting Trubin from inside the area. Not even the time to take the kick-off, which Shakhtar equalized: Shved receives in the sixteen meters, his deflected shot knocks out the goalkeeper. The Leipzig is unbalanced in search of the same, Jovisevic’s team punishes on the counterattack with Mudryk who flies and finds the 1-3 with a precise left diagonal (76 ‘). The Germans collapse in the final, also suffering the fourth goal in the 85th minute: Mudryk escapes well behind the defensive, in the center there is Traoré who anticipates the exit of Gulacsi.

BENFICA-MACCABI HAIFA 2-0

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It is not the usual intense Benfica that has been seen during the foreplay, on the contrary. In particular, Ramos practically did not arrive and the responsibility for the offensives passed directly on Rafa Silva’s shoulders. At 30 ‘his right from the edge seriously commits Cohen. On the other hand, at the beginning of the second half, Vlakodimos is also decisive in coming out of Pierrot’s imprecise control who graces the Portuguese. Schmidt’s team pushed on the accelerator and unlocked the match in the 49th minute, when Silva deflected a cross from Grimaldo’s left into the net. The latter then conquers the scene six minutes later with a twenty-five-meter car directly at the intersection, practically unstoppable, for the doubling. The rest of the race is possession management, a mission that succeeds smoothly despite the danger created by Rukavytsya in the final, which Vlakodimos foils.

DYNAMO ZAGREB-CHELSEA 1-0

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Tuchel’s team immediately poured into the opposing half of the pitch and took possession, as expected. Sterling and Aubameyang seek and find each other, perhaps too much since in a couple of occasions the excess of altruism does not pay. Surprisingly, at 13 ‘it is the Croatians who take the lead, on an axis that knows of Italy given the past of the protagonists: Petkovic extends a ball from the defense with his head, Orsic burns Fofana and in front of Kepa he pricks him with a delicious touch of the outside. The inertia of the maneuver remains with the Blues, who however suffer from the disadvantage. It is Dinamo to become more dangerous, with the conclusion of Ademi from outside the area that the goalkeeper rejects at half an hour. The progress of the match is essentially the same in the second half: Chelsea play, the opponents create scoring. Ristovski lets off a great right from the distance, Kepa exalts himself with the help of the crossbar (56 ‘). The forcing of the English becomes more effective towards the end, with the huge double chance in the 86th minute: James’s sharp shot is printed on the post, on the developments of the action Jorginho crosses for Mount but his turn is neutralized by Livakovic.

BORUSSIA DORTMUND-COPENHAGEN 3-0

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The game seems to promise balance, since after only eighteen seconds Copenhagen close to scoring with Zeca, who kicks from outside and hits the post. In reality, the Germans do not get scared and play game. Brandt inspires Modeste in the 9 ‘, serving him a good ball in the center of the area that the attacker shoots high. The quality of the dribble remained unchanged even after the exit of Hazard in the first half, substituted for a muscle problem in his thigh. In his place, Reyna enters, who will not make him regret it. Borussia Dortmund goes on in the 35th minute: the initiative is from the usual Brandt, who serves the cut of Reus; Dry dribble on Vavro and shot at the near post that leaves no chance for Ryan. Seven minutes and Terzic’s training mortgages success. This time Reus defends possession on the trocar, yields to Guerreiro who triangulates with Reyna and scores with an empty net. Upon returning from the locker rooms, the rhythms drop and then intensify near the end. Brandt warms up Ryan’s gloves, Moukoko misses an empty goal in precarious balance (80 ‘). Bellingham, however, thinks to close the game in the 83rd minute, when he concludes a good choral action on Reyna’s assist.