The Champions League Report

This season’s Champions League started February 14th and will be full of hard-fought matches with great competition.

Jacob Vogel, MHS Media Writer

Tottenham vs Milan: Tuesday, February 14th, 2:00 pm CST

Tottenham: Tottenham has many good players on their team but could not pull anything out in this game. They had 11 shots with 3 on goal and had possession 53% of the game.

Milan: Being one of the best Italian teams, Milan showed it during this game scoring in the 7th minute of the game.  After this, Milan defended well and didn’t take crazy shots.

Outcome: Milan and Tottenham play next on March 8th. Tottenham is in a very competitive position but must score 1 to tie or 2 to win the series.

PSG vs Bayern Munich: Tuesday, February 14th, 2:00 pm CST

PSG: Despite missing Kylian Mbappe for the first half, PSG still held their own against Bayern. When Mbappe entered the game at 51’, he made an impact and had two goals called back due to being offside. This past Saturday, Neymar Jr. was injured in a game against Lille and he isn’t expected to play against Bayern in their next matchup.  This is a big loss to PSG, so Mbappe and Messi have some holes to fill on offense.

Bayern: In their game against PSG, Bayern dominated the entire game having possession 54% of the time and had 18 shots with 7 on goal. Kingsley Coman scored in the 53’ minute with an assist by Alphonso Davies. Yann Sommer, Bayern’s goalie, had a clean sheet with 4 saves to help Bayern secure the win.

Outcome : Bayern bested PSG last Tuesday with a score of 1-0. Expect their next matchup on March 8th to be a very hard-fought game.

Club Brugge vs Benfica: Wednesday, February 15th, 2:00 pm CST

Club Brugge: Brugge had a very difficult time doing everything this game. Only having possession for 45% of the game hurt them, and only having 4 shots with 1 on goal hurt them even more.

Benfica: Benfica did the opposite. Benfica had the ball for the other 55% of the game and had 14 shots with 4 on goal. A penalty goal in the 55th minute put Benfica up 1-0 and one in the 88th minute sealed the game for Benfica.

Outcome: Benfica bested Brugge with a score of 2-0. They play next on March 7th. I expect Benfica to seal the series and beat Brugge.

Dortmund vs Chelsea: Wednesday, February 15th, 2:00 pm CST

Dortmund: Dortmund has always been a strong team, and they have continued to show it this year. Dortmund took advantage of their opportunities but only came out with 1 goal. Jude Bellingham is a young player to look out for on Dortmund and will hopefully put on another show during their next matchup.

Chelsea: Despite spending around $600 million on players this season, Chelsea has not been able to perform.  Chelsea struggled with almost everything in this game and could not convert their shots.

Outcome: Dortmund bested Chelsea with a score of 1-0. Their next matchup is March 7th and I expect Dortmund to come away with another victory.

 Liverpool vs Real Madrid: Tuesday, February 21st, 2:00 pm CST

Liverpool: Liverpool came out on fire against Madrid scoring 2 goals within the first 15 minutes. After that Liverpool fell apart. Madrid took advantage and dominated the rest of the game. If Liverpool wants to compete with Madrid next game, they must play better defensively.

Real Madrid: Starting out slow against Liverpool backfired quickly. Madrid was down 0-2 within the first 15 minutes of the game and came back to tie 2-2 by halftime. After halftime, Madrid goes on to score 3 unanswered goals to make the game 5-2. Vinicius Jr. helped start Madrid’s comeback scoring the 2 goals before halftime.

Outcome: Real Madrid bested Liverpool 5-2. Their next matchup is on March 15th and I expect Liverpool to come out strong and play hard team defense.  That being said, Madrid will come away with another victory.

Frankfurt vs Napoli: Tuesday, February 21st, 2:00 pm CST

Frankfurt: Frankfurt struggled within this game against Napoli. Their red card hurt them, but it did not matter because Napoli is on a much different level. To compete in their next game Frankfurt will have to change a lot of their game plan.

Napoli: Napoli showed off why they are one of the best teams in this Champions League. Napoli went up 1-0 right before halftime. 13 minutes later, Frankfurt received a red card and Napoli fired back at them scoring at the 65th minute mark. Napoli held them off for the rest of the game winning 2-0.

Outcome: Napoli dominated the entire game and Frankfurt could not perform. Their next matchup is March 15th and Napoli will come away with another win.

Leipzig vs Manchester City: Wednesday, February 22nd, 2:00 pm CST

Leipzig: Leipzig had very low expectations for this game, and they proved these wrong. After falling short in the first half, Leipzig kept fighting until the end and scored in the 70th minute tying the game 1-1.

Manchester City: Manchester City is always a dominant team and showed it for the first half of this game. Mahrez scored in the 27th minute and put Man City up 1-0. City continued to dominate this half and kept Leipzig from scoring until the 70th minute in the second half.

Outcome: Man City and Leipzig play again on March 14th. I expect City to win this next matchup because of their missing players that will come back.

Inter vs Porto: Wednesday, February 22nd, 2:00 pm CST

Inter: Inter Milan was having a hard time finding goals with 18 shots and only 4 on target. In the 78th minute Porto received a red card allowing for Inter to score in the 86th minute to seal the game at 1-0.

Porto: Porto kept the game close until the 78th minute and they received a red card. Despite having the ball for only 40% of the game, Porto had 10 shots with only 4 on goal. Porto could not convert any of those 4 shots and fell short.

Outcome: Inter and Porto had a close matchup with Inter scraping in the end. Their next matchup is March 14th and I expect Inter to come away with another win.