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Champions League Briefing: Does this make Amorim the new Fergie? Why did Vinicius Jr stand still?

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Simply while you thought the group stage was turning into predictable…

Manchester Metropolis and Actual Madrid, the 2 groups largely prone to win this season’s Champions League, took two beatings on Tuesday night time to shake the competitors up.

New Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim fairly probably saved his best possible for final at Sporting, signing off from his closing dwelling sport with a well-known 4-1 victory, whereas over within the Spanish capital, AC Milan added to Madrid’s many issues with an enormous 3-1 victory.

The third almost certainly crew to win the 2024-25 Champions League? Liverpool. And so they brushed apart Bayer Leverkusen and Xabi Alonso 4-0 at Anfield to strengthen their credentials.

These are the large speaking factors from Tuesday’s motion…

Does this make Amorim the brand new Fergie? 

“If we win they’ll suppose the brand new Alex Ferguson has arrived, which could be very tough to take care of.”

Come up Sir Ruben. The brand new Fergie’s phrases, spoken on the eve of his closing dwelling match answerable for Sporting, really feel fairly pertinent don’t they?

Manchester United are actually favourites for the 2025-26 Premier League title and Pep Guardiola’s Manchester Metropolis dynasty is about to come back crumbling down.

Okay, advantageous, let’s simply all relax a bit. But additionally, let’s get massively carried away with this exceptional consequence.

Two years in the past Manchester Metropolis blitzed the Portuguese crew 5-0 on mixture within the Champions League final 16, however right here they showcased simply why United had been so eager to land Amorim after his crew walloped Guardiola’s shellshocked aspect.

It should have been an extremely bittersweet night time for Sporting’s followers, who celebrated probably the greatest victories within the membership’s latest historical past within the data that they could not see the like once more for some time. They stated goodbye with an enormous tifo which learn ‘Obrigada’ (thanks) and he returned the favour with an evening to recollect without end.

Within the battle of the Nordic goal-loving strikers, the clear winner was Viktor Gyokeres, whose hat-trick took his tally to 23 targets in 15 matches for membership and nation this season. He has solely failed to attain in two video games.


(Gualter Fatia/Getty Photographs)

Amorim will certainly need to take Gyokeres with him to Previous Trafford through that rumoured €100 million launch clause, though with Ineos tightening the purse strings maybe the Etihad, through their soon-to-be director of soccer Hugo Viana, who leaves Sporting on the finish of the season, could be a extra doubtless vacation spot. Gyokeres and Haaland up entrance collectively? The nets will want reinforcing.

 

Anyway, the 2 managers gained’t have to attend lengthy for a rematch. And if Amorim can do the identical with Rasmus Hojlund or Joshua Zirkzee up entrance when his new Manchester United crew tackle Metropolis and Guardiola on December fifteenth, you may make plans for the statue already.

Inconsistent Milan flip it on on the Bernabeu

AC Milan’s 3-1 victory within the Bernabeu was equally as stunning and gorgeous as Sporting’s win.

Milan will be infuriatingly inconsistent – they’re a lowly seventh in Serie A, already eight factors off leaders Napoli albeit with a sport in hand, whereas they misplaced their first two Champions League matches (to Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen) earlier than struggling previous 10-man Membership Bruges to assert their first victory on Matchday 3.

Right here, although, they had been at their best possible, and uncoincidentally so had been Rafael Leao and Theo Hernandez, who on their day have to be one of the vital thrilling left-sided pairs in European soccer.

Newish supervisor Paulo Fonseca boldly dropped each of them earlier within the season and Leao has been left on the bench within the league recently, however as Alvaro Morata advised The Athletic final week: “He’s the perfect participant on the crew and simply must preserve doing what he’s doing.”

Speaking of Morata, it was the Spaniard who restored Milan’s lead when placing them 2-1 up after Leao’s shot was saved. After which Leao arrange Dutch midfielder Tijjani Reijnders, who had scored twice in opposition to Bruges final outing, to seal a memorable victory on this conflict of European soccer giants.


(Angel Martinez/Getty Photographs)

With AC Milan now going through Slovan Bratislava, Purple Star Belgrade, Girona and Dinamo Zagreb of their closing 4 matches, the trail of development to the final 16 through an automated qualification spot ought to be easy.

However provided that they’ll discover that elusive consistency.

Noel Gallagher was Metropolis’s greatest performer on the night time

For those who thought TNT Sports activities had been dumbing down their protection much more by inviting Oasis legend Noel Gallagher into the commentary field for Metropolis’s sport at Sporting… properly, you’d be fallacious.

In what in all probability says way more about the usual of punditry on English soccer screens, Gallagher was truly a breath of contemporary air in that he… spoke widespread sense. Sure, it’s a wacky idea, follow us.

Positive, he stated ‘we’ when speaking about his beloved Metropolis, however this was no Sky Sports activities Fan Zone-style gimmick, nor was he overly biased (he thought the choice to award Metropolis a penalty for handball was harsh and questioned issues like bringing Kevin De Bruyne on for the ultimate seven minutes, in all probability fearing for his hamstrings).

There was no melodrama, or foolish noises, or horrible ‘banter’, such as you get when sure different pundits commentate or discuss concerning the groups they help.

However then Gallagher is an precise fan (he was within the away finish at Bournemouth on Saturday) and simply says issues like they’re, backed up right here by perception and statistics, and even a foreshadowing of Metropolis losing probabilities and needing to attain a second purpose, which got here 37 seconds earlier than Sporting equalised. It will be straightforward to ridicule his feedback as a result of he’s Noel Gallagher, like evaluating Gyokeres’ penalty approach to Troy Deeney’s, till you cease and realise that it’s true.

He did let himself down by saying: “Some songwriting genius wrote as soon as; ‘We see issues they’ll by no means see’, and that’s Guardiola for ya,” resulting in raucous laughter from commentator Darren Fletcher. However we’ll forgive him that one.

Anyway, Gallagher’s was in all probability the perfect Metropolis efficiency of the night time as they suffered a 3rd successive defeat in all competitions for the primary time in six-and-a-half years.

They wasted probabilities within the opening half an hour, solely having Phil Foden’s fourth minute purpose to indicate for his or her dominance, then Haaland blasted a penalty in opposition to the bar when he had the possibility to tug it again to 3-2.

Accidents are clearly having an affect, significantly in defence with teenager Jahmai Simpson-Pusey making his first senior begin on the again, and with 73 per cent possession and 20 photographs to 9 it’s not as if Metropolis had been outplayed, removed from it.

However they are surely lacking Rodri, who might change into a extra deserved winner of the Ballon d’Or in some folks’s eyes by advantage of not enjoying.

Speaking of which…

Vinicius Jr stood tall, then stood nonetheless

It was a combined night time for Vinicius Junior, who was having a great night when he levelled issues up for Actual Madrid with a Panenka penalty, minutes after the Bernabeu had booed the Champions League anthem to precise their displeasure at him not successful the Ballon d’Or.

 

Vinicius Jr had gained the penalty himself from a foul by former Tottenham Hotspur defender Emerson Royal, however from then on Madrid melted and the sight of Vinicius Jr stood utterly nonetheless as an Aurelien Tchouameni cross didn’t attain him (seconds later Milan had been 2-1 up) was one of many night time’s defining pictures.

So too was Jude Bellingham kicking a water bottle in frustration after being substituted.

This was Madrid’s second defeat of the competitors in 4 video games (additionally they misplaced 1-0 at Lille) and, coming off the again of the 4-0 humiliation at dwelling to Barcelona of their final league match, it encapsulates a season that’s threatening to unravel.

They’ll absolutely nonetheless attain not less than a play-off for the final 16 with ease, however with a visit to Liverpool subsequent on Matchday 5, the normally composed Carlo Ancelotti might have to start out sweating a bit.

Alonso’s Leverkusen stumbling as Slot’s Liverpool fly

Anfield is just not a spot you need to should go and get a consequence proper now.

Liverpool maintained one in every of solely two 100 per cent information within the new Champions League format (the opposite being *checks notes* Aston Villa, who go to Membership Bruges on Wednesday) with a serene 4-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen.

In distinction to Amorim, whose inventory is sky excessive as he prepares to maneuver to the Premier League, Xabi Alonso’s popularity is beginning to take a bit little bit of successful, simply months after he was touted as the perfect factor since sliced bread however had the gall to withstand the temptation of a Premier League transfer.

Arne Slot acquired the Liverpool name as an alternative and the above stats mirror but once more how he has acquired this Liverpool crew purring in a short time.

Luis Diaz scored a second half hat-trick together with a chip that might solely have regarded extra scrumptious with a dollop of mayonnaise on the tip.

 

Slot and Liverpool are completely flying, prime of the Premier League and prime of the Champions League. Alonso and Leverkusen had been by no means going to achieve the impeccable heights of 2023-24, however the tough second season syndrome is kicking in.

Tuesday’s outcomes

  • PSV 4 Girona 0
  • Slovan Bratislava 1 Dinamo Zagreb
  • Bologna 0 Monaco 1
  • Borussia Dortmund 1 Sturm Graz 0
  • Celtic 3 RB Leipzig 1
  • Lille 1 Juventus 1
  • Liverpool 4 Bayer Leverkusen 0
  • Actual Madrid 1 AC Milan 3
  • Sporting 4 Manchester Metropolis 1

What’s subsequent?

The remaining 9 fixtures for matchweek 4 of the eight-round league section happen on Wednesday.

  • Membership Bruges vs Aston Villa (5.45pm BST/12.45pm ET)
  • Shakhtar Donetsk vs Younger Boys (5.45pm BST/12.45pm ET)
  • Bayern Munich vs Benfica (8pm BST/3pm ET)
  • Feyenoord vs Purple Bull Salzburg (8pm BST/3pm ET)
  • Inter Milan vs Arsenal (8pm BST/3pm ET)
  • Paris Saint-Germain vs Atletico Madrid (8pm BST/3pm ET)
  • Purple Star Belgrade vs Barcelona (8pm BST/3pm ET)
  • Sparta Prague vs Brest (8pm BST/3pm ET)
  • Stuttgart vs Atalanta (8pm BST/3pm ET)

(Gualter Fatia/Getty Photographs)



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