Random thoughts.

Champions League Quarterfinals

  Champions League was back these last two weeks, but not without some controversy. Before we get into the controversy let's go to Atlético Madrid vs. Leicester City: Aggregate 2-1. Atlético move on. With a goal from Griezmann in the first leg in Madrid, Leicester needed two goals to move on to the semifinals, but with a goal from Saúl in the second leg at King Power Stadium in the UK, Leicester's dreams were almost over as now they needed three more goals to move on because of the away goal. However Jamie Vardy was able to pull one back, but with all of the missed chances the fairy tale team's dream of going on in the Champions League had come to an end. Next we come to Barcelona vs. Juventus, a rematch of the 2015 final. The first leg was in Turin, Italy where Juventus got their revenge beating Barcelona 3 nil. The next leg was in Barcelona, Spain where about a month earlier had made a historic comeback against PSG after PSG had beat them four nil in Paris, but the Blaugrana couldn't do it again as Juventus sent them out of the Champions League with a nil nil draw. Aggregate 3-0. Now before the first leg of Borussia Dortmund vs AS Monaco there was a bit of a scare as the Dortmund team bus was attacked with some roadside bombs as they were going to Westfalenstadion in Germany. Thankfully only one player was hurt, and the two teams squared off the next day. Monaco won both legs 3-2, and 3-1 in competitive games between two young sides. Monaco moves on 6-3. Well here is where the controversy starts, two of the biggest clubs in the world. Real Madrid vs Bayern Munich. Real Madrid won the first leg in Germany 2-1, Bayern missing the chance to tie it up with a missed penalty. The second leg was at the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid where it was all going well til everything fell apart. Casimero (RM) dived inside the box to try to get penalty. Casimero was already on a yellow card, and diving is a yellow card offence. The ref didn't give Casimero a yellow card, which would have had him sent off (Two yellow cards make a red card). Then Vidal challenge a Real Madrid player for the ball, and the ref gave Vidal his second yellow of the night, but the only problem was that the yellow card wasn't a yellow card, it could even be fought that it wasn't even a free kick. Bayern Munich now only had ten players on the field, and Real Madrid had eleven even though it should have been switched. With the aggregate tied at 3-3, the away goals canceling each other out, it headed to extra time. That was where two of the worst decisions were made. See offsides is a rule in soccer where if you are past the last defender, or soccer ball before the ball is played, and the offsides player makes contact with ball or gets involved with the play. Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hattrick, but the problem with that hattrick is that two of the three goals were offside, and the ref, and the assistant referee didn't call either of them. It was quite a shame how this match turned out. Two of the biggest teams against each other ruined by poor calling, and decision making. Real Madrid moves on. Aggregate 6-3. Now onto the semifinals! The Madrid Derby, Atlético Madrid vs Real Madrid, and Juventus vs AS Monaco, where two of the four teams left will face each other in Wales at the Champions League final.

Soccer Vocab

Nil-0 Away goal rule-A goal at an away game in Champions League is counted for more than a goal at a home game. Ex: the aggregate is 1-1, if there is an away goal, the team with the away goal moves on. Diving- going down when there is no foul, and trying to get a call for their team. It is a yellow card offence. Two yellow cards make a red card. A red card means you are sent off the field, and your team must play without you. Westfalenstadion- Dortmund's stadium Santiago Bernabéu- Real Madrid's stadium  

A/N: This is an article I wrote for my school's newspaper, and I decided to put it up here too.