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"Golden Ball" Serial (1) Ancient Football Sources
Because it's real, so excellent...-_-#
My View on Outdoor Watches
Sina Sports News: At 02:45 Beijing Time (19:45 local time in the UK on April 12), a focal match of the second leg of the quarter-finals of the 2010/11 season UEFA Champions League was held at Old Trafford Stadium. Manchester United defeated Chelsea 2-1 at home. Giggs assisted Hernandez to score first, Ramires was sent off for accumulating two yellow cards, and Drogba equalized as a substitute, but Giggs then assisted Park Ji-sung to score the decisive goal. Manchester United advanced to the semi-finals with a total score of 3-1.
Manchester United had won their first away victory against Chelsea in 9 years in the first leg, with Rooney scoring the decisive goal. This was Chelsea's 101st Champions League game. Since their first encounter in the Second Division in 1905, this was the 160th meeting between the two teams, with Manchester United having an advantage with 68 wins, 47 draws, and 44 losses. Chelsea hoped to enter the Champions League semi-finals for the 6th time in 8 years. The Blues had advanced 4 times in previous 6 two-legged knockout ties within England, while Liverpool eliminated them twice. Manchester United also aimed to reach the Champions League semi-finals for the 4th time in 5 years, and they remained unbeaten at home in all competitions this season.
Despite not scoring in 817 minutes since joining Chelsea, Torres was still included in the starting lineup by Ancelotti. Malouda and Anelka respectively replaced Drogba and Zhirkov in the starting eleven. Boswingwa was left out due to poor performance in the first leg, and Alex made his first appearance since a knee injury in November last year. Manchester United made 2 changes, with Nani and O'Shea replacing Valencia and the injured Rafael.
In the 5th minute, Terry's backfield pass was intercepted by Park Ji-sung, but Rooney's cross from the right flank lacked threat. A minute later, Nani won a free kick on the left flank, but Cech easily caught the cross. In the 8th minute, Ramires forcefully broke into the penalty area, but Van der Sar timely came out to catch the ball. In the 9th minute, Rooney passed to Park Ji-sung, who feinted past Alex and then backheeled to return the pass. Lampard cleared before Rooney could get to it. In the 12th minute, Anelka crossed from the right flank, and Torres headed wide from 14 yards out.
In the 14th minute, Ashley Cole crossed from the left flank, and Ferdinand barely headed it out. Torres returned the pass, and Anelka powerfully shot from outside the penalty arc but missed. Then Hernandez headed the ball to Rooney, whose long-range shot from 30 yards out was caught by Cech. In the 15th minute, Malouda broke into the penalty area on the left side and crossed. Lampard's low shot from the edge of the penalty area was caught by Van der Sar. In the 19th minute, O'Shea was penalized with a yellow card for fouling Malouda on the wing. Lampard's free kick from the left flank slightly went over the crossbar. Park Ji-sung's left eyebrow was broken in the tackle and he received treatment on the sidelines.
In the 23rd minute, Ashley Cole crossed from the left flank. Torres controlled the ball and attempted a scissor kick shot but missed, and O'Shea barely headed it clear. Anelka's shot from just outside the penalty arc narrowly missed the top-left corner. In the 27th minute, Rooney crossed from the right flank, and Hernandez dived to head the ball into the net but was ruled offside and the goal was disallowed. In the 30th minute, Anelka stole the ball in the frontcourt, and Van der Sar rushed out of the penalty area to successfully clear it. In the 33rd minute, after Manchester United cleared the corner kick, they quickly counterattacked. Ramires was shown a yellow card for a tactical foul on Nani.
In the 37th minute, Malouda was penalized with a yellow card for fouling Hernandez in midfield. In the 40th minute, Nani's shot from inside the penalty arc after cutting in from the left flank was blocked by Ramires. Then Giggs passed the ball, and Nani's powerful shot from outside the penalty area again missed the target. In the 42nd minute, Terry was penalized with a yellow card for elbowing Hernandez in a header contest. Manchester United took the lead in the 43rd minute. Nani's free kick from the right flank was cleared, and Rooney diagonally passed the ball. After a wall-pass with O'Shea, Giggs broke into the penalty area on the right flank and crossed. Hernandez easily scored at the far post. This was his 18th goal of the season.
In the second half, Drogba replaced Torres. In the 50th minute, Malouda passed the ball, and Lampard's long-range shot missed. In the 52nd minute, Ashley Cole's cross from the left flank was cleared, and Malouda's powerful shot from outside the penalty area missed the near post. In the 57th minute, Anelka passed the ball, and Drogba's powerful shot from 30 yards out missed. In the 59th minute, Evra was penalized with a yellow card for fouling Drogba outside the penalty area, and Drogba's cross-shot from the right flank was tipped out by Van der Sar. Then Kalou replaced Anelka.
In the 67th minute, Lampard took the corner kick, and Alex's header from 10 yards out missed. A minute later, Alex headed the clearance, and Nani's powerful shot from 20 yards out was tipped out by Cech. In the 70th minute, Rooney crossed the ball, and Giggs' header was caught by Cech. Then Ramires was sent off for accumulating two yellow cards for a foul on Nani from behind. In the 73rd minute, Malouda passed the ball, and Drogba turned to escape Vidic after entering the penalty area on the right side, but his shot was directly into Van der Sar's arms. Two minutes later, Valencia replaced Nani.
Chelsea pulled one back in the 77th minute. Essien through passed, and Drogba scored with a low shot from 10 yards out in the penalty area on the right side. This was his 12th goal of the season. But less than a minute later, Manchester United regained the lead. Giggs passed the ball, and Park Ji-sung scored with a diagonal shot from 10 yards out on the left side of the penalty area. This was his 7th goal of the season, and also his first Champions League goal in 13 months. Then Ferreira replaced Alex. In the 90th minute, Ivanovic crossed the ball, and Lampard's header missed.
Manchester United Starting Lineup (4-4-2): 1-Van der Sar; 22-O'Shea, 5-Ferdinand, 15-Vidic, 3-Evra; 17-Nani (75', 25-Valencia), 16-Carrick, 11-Giggs, 13-Park Ji-sung; 10-Rooney, 14-Hernandez
Chelsea Starting Lineup (4-3-3): 1-Cech; 2-Ivanovic, 33-Alex (82', 19-Ferreira), 26-Terry, 3-Ashley Cole; 7-Ramires, 5-Essien, 8-Lampard; 15-Malouda, 9-Torres (46', 11-Drogba), 39-Anelka (61', 21-Kalou)
Champions League - Messi Scores 48 Goals to Break Ronaldo's Record, Barcelona Wins Away 1-0 to Advance to Semi-finals
Sina Sports News: At 2:45 AM Beijing Time (8:45 PM local time in Ukraine on April 12), the second leg of the quarter-finals of the Champions League began at the Donbass Arena. Barcelona won 1-0 away against Shakhtar Donetsk, advancing to the semi-finals with a total score of 6-1. Messi scored his 48th goal of the season, surpassing Ronaldo's record of 47 goals in a single season at Barcelona, and became the first player in Spanish football history to score 48 goals in official matches in a single season. Guardiola's team won their first away game in 9 Champions League knockout rounds.
In the first leg, Barcelona won 5-1 at home, almost eliminating any suspense. In European competition history, only 3 teams have overturned a 4-goal deficit in the first leg, all occurring in the UEFA Cup and Intertoto Cup, never in the Champions League. The most remarkable comeback was in the 2004-05 season quarter-finals when RCD Espanyol beat AC Milan 4-0 after losing 1-4 at home. Despite facing the El Clasico weekend, Guardiola still fielded his main players. Compared to the first leg, there was only one change, with Afellay replacing the suspended Iniesta.
Shakhtar Donetsk had a perfect 4-match winning streak at home in the Champions League this season, conceding only 1 goal. Due to injuries, coach Lucescu was forced to make changes in both full-back positions. Captain Srna was injured, and left-back Raz was suspended, giving opportunities to Kobin and Shevchuk.
After the start, Shakhtar Donetsk surprisingly pressed Barcelona. In the 8th minute, Jadson cleverly passed through the defense into the penalty area on the left side, and Douglas Costa's left-footed push shot was blocked by Valdes, and his follow-up shot was blocked by Mascherano out for a corner. In the 14th minute, Douglas Costa cut back into the penalty area from the right flank and returned the pass. Jadson's low shot from 14 meters out was caught by Valdes. In the 18th minute, Shevchuk's left-flank cross was headed out, and Mkhitaryan's left-footed low shot from 24 meters out was caught by Valdes.
Xavi's long-range shot went wide, becoming Barcelona's first attempt on goal. In the 24th minute, a cross from the right flank, and a point-blank push shot was caught by Valdes. In the 28th minute, Messi's left-footed powerful shot from 22 meters out on the left side made Pyatov drop the ball before catching it. Afterwards, Afellay returned the pass from the left flank, and Keita's left-footed shot from 25 meters out went high. In the 31st minute, Afellay passed into the penalty area on the left side, and Adriano's right-footed small-angle push shot from 7 meters out was blocked on the goal line by Kobin. Then Messi's pass was blocked, and he skillfully bypassed a defender to challenge the goalkeeper, and his left-footed chip shot from 12 meters out was caught by Pyatov.
Messi's left-footed shot from 20 meters out went high. Pique was hit in the face by Adriano and fell, receiving emergency treatment on the sidelines. In the 42nd minute, Xavi passed the ball, and Afellay skillfully bypassed a defender with his left foot and powerfully shot with his right foot from 27 meters out, which was caught by Pyatov. Barcelona took the lead in the 43rd minute! Messi distributed the ball and then inserted himself. Alves crossed low from the right flank, and Messi skillfully avoided the sliding tackle of a defender and pushed the ball into the near post with his left foot from 10 meters out, 1-0. In stoppage time of the first half, Jadson's free kick from 25 meters out on the left side went wide of the near post.
In the second half, Mkhitaryan was shown a yellow card for a tackle from behind on Busquets. In the 57th minute, Hubschmann's long-range shot was caught by Valdes. Lucescu made his first substitution, with Eduardo replacing Douglas Costa. In the 59th minute, Messi broke through Hubschmann in the middle and distributed the ball, and Afellay's push shot from 12 meters out was saved by Pyatov. Alves' low shot from 20 meters out on the right flank slid wide of the far post. In the 63rd minute, Afellay passed a ground ball from the left flank, and Villa's shot from 9 meters out was deflected wide by a defender.
Pedro replaced Xavi, and Adriano was substituted out due to injury by Moreno, followed by G-Milito replacing Busquets. In the 71st minute, G-Milito fell and kicked Eduardo in the thigh with his raised right leg, being shown a yellow card. In the 74th minute, Eduardo broke through in the middle and distributed the ball. Mkhitaryan's left-footed shot from 13 meters out on the left side was saved by Valdes with one hand!
Hefren replaced Villa, and Fernandinho replaced Hubschman, using up all substitutions for both teams. In the 75th minute, Kobin's shot from the right side of the penalty area went wide of the near post. In the 78th minute, Eduardo's low pass from the right flank, Mkhitaryan's through pass into the penalty area on the right side, and Eduardo's left-footed push shot from 9 meters out went wide of the near post. In the 80th minute, Alves crossed from the right flank, Messi controlled the ball with his chest and attempted a left-footed chip shot from 13 meters out, which was saved by Pyatov. Afterwards, Messi returned the pass from the right side of the penalty area, Pedro sidestepped the defense and attempted a left-footed shot from 12 meters out, which went high. In the 84th minute, Mkhitaryan crossed from the right flank, and Moreno's flying left-footed shot from 5 meters out at the near post went wide of the right post! Barcelona ultimately won 1-0.
Shakhtar Donetsk (4-2-3-1): 30-Pyatov / 14-Kobin, 32-Ysenko, 44-Rakitsky, 13-Shevchuk / 22-Mkhitaryan, 3-Hubschman (75'7-Fernandinho) / 20-Douglas Costa (58'11-Eduardo), 8-Jadson, 10-Willian / 9-Luis Adriano (65'99-Moreno) (Unused Substitutes: 12-Khuzamov, 15-Stepanenko, 19-Hay, 29-Alex Teixeira, 38-Klevtsov)
Barcelona (4-3-3): 1-Valdes / 2-Alves, 3-Pique, 14-Mascherano, 21-Adriano / 6-Xavi (C) (66'17-Pedro), 16-Busquets (69'18-G-Milito), 15-Keita / 10-Messi, 7-Villa (75'11-Hefren), 20-Afellay (Unused Substitutes: 13-Jose Pinto, 19-Maxwell, 26-Fontas, 30-Thiago)