The European Leagues & Competitions Thread V2

[killer1257 3,282]

I don't rate him as a great manager at all, never have
surprised PSG did not go for Massimiliano Allegri who I think would have been a better option dealing with all those egos

Allegri is very much needed at PSG. Tuchel will probably go to Bayern if he gets sacked. In Germany, all the Bayern fans I know want him.
He used to be good at BVB most of the times. But he makes weird decisions in the big games.

I still don't get why nobody went for Allegri.

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[Vesper 27,313]

29 minutes ago, killer1257 said:

Allegri is very much needed at PSG. Tuchel will probably go to Bayern if he gets sacked. In Germany, all the Bayern fans I know want him.
He used to be good at BVB most of the times. But he makes weird decisions in the big games.

I still don't get why nobody went for Allegri.

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I think Bayern is crazy to not go for Julian Nagelsmann

but that is just me, lolol

I so so would love him here

[killer1257 3,282]

I think Bayern is crazy to not go for Julian Nagelsmann
but that is just me, lolol
I so so would love him here

Nagelsmann seems pretty good, but I still need to see more of him. The Bayern job is one of the hardest jobs in world Football because their Idiot board and fans think that Bayern should win CL all the time. That is why many Bayern fans criticise Guardiola because they think they should have won the CL but underachieved with Guardiola . Idiots...

Funny Thing is that Nagelsmann is very young, so he will eventually get the Bayern job one day anyway



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[NikkiCFC 7,582]

Liverpool 7 defeats in last 11 Champions League away games (Roma, Napoli x2, PSG, Red Star, Barcelona, Atletico). How is that one of the best sides ever? I wish PL teams have different approach when facing them. 

[LAM09 6,547]

Liverpool 7 defeats in last 11 Champions League away games (Roma, Napoli x2, PSG, Red Star, Barcelona, Atletico). How is that one of the best sides ever? I wish PL teams have different approach when facing them. 

Games are decided over two legs. What results have they had at home?

[NikkiCFC 7,582]

5 hours ago, LAM09 said:

6 hours ago, NikkiCFC said:

Liverpool 7 defeats in last 11 Champions League away games (Roma, Napoli x2, PSG, Red Star, Barcelona, Atletico). How is that one of the best sides ever? I wish PL teams have different approach when facing them. 

Games are decided over two legs. What results have they had at home?

That is not my point. I said they are not one of the best sides ever like some say. If CL become Super League with league system (like it should) they would be nowhere near top of the table with that record. 

At home they draw with Bayern, Porto and Napoli. But yeah, in CL with this system luck is very important thing. This Liverpool side is nowhere near best Chelsea, Milan, Real or Barca sides from the last 15 years...

[NikkiCFC 7,582]

BOLT WATCH OUT?!

[Special Juan 27,103]

That Dortmund game was just glorious to watch

[Jase 43,479]

10 hours ago, NikkiCFC said:

Liverpool 7 defeats in last 11 Champions League away games (Roma, Napoli x2, PSG, Red Star, Barcelona, Atletico). How is that one of the best sides ever? I wish PL teams have different approach when facing them. 

It might sound like a cliche but it's not easy to win away from home in Europe. Guardiola, who is lauded as the best manager in the world for example, has a pretty dodgy away record when it comes to the CL knockout stage. I can't remember the exact numbers but he has rarely won the away games. Has always depended on the home leg to get the job done. 

[Jase 43,479]

Liverpool's post-match reaction last night has been nothing short of embarrassing.  

[OneMoSalah 8,614]

Regardless of how good Liverpool are the amount of disrespect for how good a team Atletico can be, how they manage games and how good a manager  Simeone is, is frightening. In a knock out competition he and Atletico are probably one of the teams you want to avoid because they never seem to give up and love big games.

[ZaynChelsea 423]

Simeone: Fire.Passion.Fight.Never Give up.

[LAM09 6,547]

That is not my point. I said they are not one of the best sides ever like some say. If CL become Super League with league system (like it should) they would be nowhere near top of the table with that record. 
At home they draw with Bayern, Porto and Napoli. But yeah, in CL with this system luck is very important thing. This Liverpool side is nowhere near best Chelsea, Milan, Real or Barca sides from the last 15 years...

If they win back to back CL titles, they'll be in that bracket regardless of those thoughts.

At the moment, I can't imagine anyone actually thinking that highly of them, providing they aren't Liverpool fans.

[Laylabelle 9,296]

Blah blah ready for Anfield blah blah. Hope they dont collapse but somehow they manage to pull things off.

[communicate 2,703]

12 hours ago, NikkiCFC said:

That is not my point. I said they are not one of the best sides ever like some say. If CL become Super League with league system (like it should) they would be nowhere near top of the table with that record. 

At home they draw with Bayern, Porto and Napoli. But yeah, in CL with this system luck is very important thing. This Liverpool side is nowhere near best Chelsea, Milan, Real or Barca sides from the last 15 years...

They are really 2 good. Ever? Maybe. Collectively they are one of the best ever , individually myabe not so much. 

Currently they are better than Madrid, barca, Juve and Munich. 

[Special Juan 27,103]

Andy Robertson acting like a a fucking dick afterwards thinking he is a prime Dani Alves in his interview......Jock twat

[Atomiswave 6,072]

29 minutes ago, Special Juan said:

Andy Robertson acting like a a fucking dick afterwards thinking he is a prime Dani Alves in his interview......Jock twat

VVD the same....their asses are burning. They have gotten so used playing in a piss poor league that whenever they actually meet a good team they get high and mighty when they get burned. Doesnt help that the patahtic Eng media deem them the best thing since sex. And another yellow for that victim klopp in a CL game. Only in Eng the refs cheer him on.

[Vesper 27,313]

Simeone outfoxed Klopp as Liverpool lost their heads in the din

https://theathletic.com/1611537/2020/02/19/liverpool-atletico-simeone-klopp-saul-anfield-champions-league/

“We started winning the game at the roundabout when we arrived on the bus. We saw so many people with so much ambition, with no fear. In my eight years here, we have never had a reception like that.” — Atletico Madrid head coach Diego Simeone

At the scene of the club’s finest hour under Jurgen Klopp, the Liverpool juggernaut was halted.

The nine-mile journey from the Wanda Metropolitano back to the Eurostars Madrid Tower was decidedly quieter on their team coach this time. Where last June the champagne flowed, the music blared and the party went on past 5am, this time around the only ice requested at their plush five-star hotel was for treating weary limbs.

It was a bruising night for Liverpool in the Spanish capital and the post-match mood in their camp was described by one member of the backroom staff as “frustration mixed with defiance”. For a team which hadn’t experienced defeat since September, Tuesday night was a bitter pill to swallow.

The dark arts of Atletico Madrid — the time wasting, the play acting and the haranguing of the officials — had enraged players and manager alike. So too had the erratic display of Polish referee Szymon Marciniak, who, Liverpool felt, fell for every trick in the book after Saul Niguez’s early goal gave Atletico a precious lead to cling on to.

There was concern for captain Jordan Henderson, who limped towards his room after being forced off with a hamstring problem late on and will now undergo a scan to determine the extent of the damage.

Another topic of discussion as the European champions dissected the evening’s events was Atletico’s wild celebrations that followed the 1-0 win in the first leg of a Champions League last 16 encounter.

“It was like they had won the tie,” says left-back Andy Robertson. “Let’s see what happens at Anfield.”

You can guarantee those scenes will be used by Klopp as added motivation in the team meeting before the second leg.

The memory of overcoming a 3-0 deficit against Barcelona in last season’s semi-finals is still fresh in their minds, so the challenge facing Liverpool on March 11 can hardly be described as daunting. However, it’s difficult to envisage Atletico wilting in an Anfield cauldron in similar fashion.

Liverpool’s proud record of having never lost a two-legged European tie during Klopp’s reign is on the line. Dogged Atletico, who clearly relished their underdogs tag after recent struggles domestically, will be a tough nut to crack.

Klopp versus Diego Simeone the sequel promises to be compulsive viewing and the German certainly has work to do after coming off second best in their first competitive meeting.

They are two of the most passionate, animated managers around and the intensity of this contest was testament to how they have both fashioned a team in their own image. Both have instilled a burning sense of loyalty in their players and a willingness to strain every sinew for the cause.

“People say I’m emotional on the sideline, but if I’m level four then Diego is on level 12. I’m the kindergarten cop compared to him,” joked Klopp on the eve of the game.

He wasn’t wrong.

As Klopp stood with his hands deep in the pockets of his tracksuit, Simeone was hyperactive in (and out of) his technical area. He must have covered nearly as much ground as his impregnable backline.

The Argentine was relentless — constantly on the move, barking orders, wildly gesticulating, applauding, protesting and organising.

When Liverpool enjoyed spells of sustained pressure he turned and threw his arms in the air, demanding that the Atletico fans cranked up the noise. They duly obliged as the intimidating Wanda Metropolitano was whipped into a frenzy. Even before the game they did their bit, a sea of flares and clouds of smoke greeting the home team bus outside the ground.

“We speak from time to time about the power of Anfield and the power a stadium can have, and tonight you saw that,” says Klopp. “They were going constantly to the petrol station and we drove with one tank [of fuel]. I’m not sure if Diego Simeone saw a lot of the game because he was continually animating the crowd.”

Klopp is no stranger to taking on the role of conducting the fan orchestra himself and this was reminiscent of the memorable Anfield nights that he has inspired through his own force of personality.

Klopp and Simeone have plenty in common when it comes to motivating and man-management. They are demanding but have a close bond with those they send into battle.

“Nobody ever steps out of line here because there’s so much respect for him within the dressing room,” Atletico full-back Kieran Trippier told The Athletic earlier this season about Simeone. “You can see how passionate he is. He’s always pushing you on and encouraging the players. It gives you a lift.”

Liverpool striker Roberto Firmino has talked about how “Jurgen motivates us in a different way every day”, while assistant Pep Lijnders says he “speaks from the heart and it goes directly into the hearts of the players… the character of the coach becomes the character of the team. That’s the power of Jurgen’s personality.”

Yet that’s where the similarities between the two managers end. When it comes to playing style, the contrast could hardly be greater between Klopp’s commitment to attack and Simeone’s dogged defensive approach. One feels a duty to entertain, the other simply feels a duty to win at all costs.

Klopp prides himself on the fact that Liverpool are not only runaway Premier League leaders but are also top of the Fair Play table again this season. Simeone has Atletico pushing the boundaries of fairness at every possible opportunity.

“We gave them the best possible start to get their fans up and then they started falling over and trying to get under our skin but we handled it well. We are better than that,” adds Robertson.

Klopp was furious with the referee for failing to clamp down on Atletico’s spoiling tactics. He felt he was influenced by the hostile atmosphere. The pair have previous. Klopp accused Marciniak of “not being prepared” and making Liverpool “look like butchers” after he booked six of them in a 2-1 defeat away to Paris Saint-Germain in November 2018.

The Liverpool manager, who was shown a yellow card for his prolonged protests to fourth official Tomasz Musial late on, felt he had no option but to substitute Sadio Mane at the break because Atletico were doing their best to get him sent off. “I was afraid his opponent would go down even if Sadio just takes a deep breath,” says Klopp.

Losing Mane hurt them but the general lack of creativity was Liverpool’s biggest issue. They had 73 per cent possession but did precious little with it.

Trying to break down a team who had conceded just two goals in 12 previous Champions League knockout home games under Simeone was always going to be tricky.  However, the visitors played into their hands by moving the ball too slowly. Their delivery from wide areas was wretched and there was little guile from midfield. They lost their heads in the din. It was far too easy for the hosts.

It was only the second time in 251 games during Klopp’s time at the club that Liverpool failed to muster a single shot on target – the previous occasion being away to Napoli in 2018.

Klopp has proved adept at making match-changing substitutions this season but this time his touch deserted him. He was outfoxed by Simeone’s ability to stifle and deny Liverpool space in the final third.

Divock Origi struggled badly after replacing Mane and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain couldn’t make an impact after the ineffective Mohamed Salah was withdrawn. When James Milner was brought on for the injured Henderson it was a sign that Klopp was content to accept a narrow defeat rather than throw caution to the wind in search of an away goal. Naby Keita and Takumi Minamino had both been overlooked.

Considering Liverpool’s record-breaking achievements, it’s a ridiculous statistic that they have lost six of their 10 away games in the Champions League since the start of last season. No club has lost more in that time.

Once again they will have to rely on the power of Anfield to drag them through.

“Our people will be ready. It isn’t over yet,” Klopp warned Atletico.

Round one to Simeone and his gang of street fighters. It wasn’t pretty but it was effective. Klopp has three weeks to plot his response.