1. Liverpool is far from done:
Liverpool may have lost 3-0 in the first leg away to Barcelona but the tie is not sorted yet as I am positive they can mount a comeback. On Wednesday, for the better part of 60 minutes or so, Jurgen Klopp’s side outplayed Barcelona in their own back yard, yes u hard me right, Liverpool out played Barca at the Camp Nou. Unlike many other sides, the Reds took the game to Barcelona and were only undone by their forwards’ who consistently failed to tuck-away clear-cut chances.
Failure not to get an away goal complicates the issue here but aside from that, Liverpool have the capacity to score three or more goals against Barcelona at Anfield. The other small issue of the whole matter is; can they stop Barca from scoring at least once? Will leave you all out here to answer that.
2. Messi has almost secured a 6th Balon D’or:
The battle for Supremacy between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo will always go on even 50 years after their retirement. Currently, each one has won 5 Balon Do’rs, but as we are almost half way 2019, Messi looks set to securing a 6th.
After his demolition of both Manchester United and Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League quarter and semi-finals respectively, it would be absolute madness not to appreciate how close the Argentine has come towards securing another Balon D’or. With another Spanish La Liga title already in the bag already and a Copa del Rey final to come later this month, Messi is indeed odds-on favorite to win football’s most treasured individual honour.
Not to forget that this is not a World Cup year but rather one which will also see Messi at the Copa America.
3. Ajax poised to make huge sums in the transfer window:
Ajax has been the revelation of the Champions League and they keep on winning admirers by the day thanks to its beautiful football and youthful players who continue making a name for themselves. Much talk has been about Barcelona-bound Frenkie De Jong and Ajax’s inspiring captain Matthijs De Ligt, but there are so many other impressive components of a side that is sure to be broken up sooner rather than later.
Hakim Ziyech, the fleet-footed Morocco star, shone at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Van De Beek continued to impress as he complemented a fine finish with impressive running. Neres is another star in the making and head coach Ten Hag is sure to be lined up by another European big boy when a vacancy opens up.
All in all, Ajax are going to sell and their bank account in Amsterdam should be cleared as huge amounts are set to come in, this summer.
4. Tottenham need Harry Kane if they are to reach the final:
‘To dare is to do’ read the huge mosaic as the teams emerged onto the pitch this past Tuesday– but there was preciously little daring football when play got underway and much of that was due to Tottenham’s lack of firepower up-front.
Pochettino spoke about the importance of imposing Fernando Llorente’s presence before the match, but the Spaniard failed to hold up the ball particularly well and wasted several opportunities in the air. Son Heung-min’s suspension robbed Spurs of a key attacker and compounded the absence of star turn Kane.
There is hope that the striker could make the return fixture in Amsterdam and his absence was keenly felt here, more so not helped by Son’s accumulation of Yellow cards. To sit here as I write this, and say Tottenham are very much still into it, the Spurs faithful should also pray Kane is back by next week otherwise, otherwise, Llorente will most definitely not take them to the final in Madrid.
