In a week that saw Neymar battered and bruised at the hands of Manchester City, Christian Pulisic dazzle against Real Madrid, and Edinson Cavani terrorize Roma to bits, the UCL and UEL semi-finals threw up a ton of action and intriguing sub-plots. Here is what we learned this week in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League semi-finals.
After a fantastic midweek win in the CONCACAF Champions League against Club Leon, Toronto FC looked beaten and battered before the whistle even blew on Major League Soccer's opening day. The Reds looked lackluster throughout the match, struggling to put up a fight against a Montreal defense full of mistakes. This is our tactical analysis of Montreal's 4-2 win over Toronto FC on the opening round of the 2021 Major League Soccer season.
Earlier this week, Adi Hütter was announced as the next Borussia Monchengladbach boss. Unfortunately for him and his current Eintracht Frankfurt team, he didn't make the best impression on his new club this weekend, suffering a 4-0 defeat. Adi Hütter's team were lifeless and ineffective, and let Gladbach walk all over them. So as this managerial merry-go-round saga continues, we analyze Borussia Monchengladbach's 4-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt.
Guts, gusto and gifted talents galore: Eintracht Frankfurt's clash with VFL Wolfsburg was a seismic occasion in the race for third place, and did not disappoint - not even for a second. Not only was it a seven goal thriller, but you'd do well to find a match with more energy, heart and determination than this electric fixture. Both teams were full of spirit right from the very first whistle, and never slowed down. This is a Tactical Analysis of Eintracht Frankfurt's important win over VFL Wolfsburg on Matchday 28 of the 2020-21 Bundesliga season.
Over the past decade at Manchester City, Sergio Aguero has established himself as one of the best strikers in Premier League history. After the announcement that he will be leaving City at the end of the season, the Futbol Masterminds examine the Argentine's career and whether or not Pep's team need to replace him with a summer buy. The panel also break down Tuchel's first defeat as Chelsea boss, Timo Werner's lack of goals (again), Liverpool's hot streak, and Lampard's future. To cap it all off, Russell has some strong takes about Serie A and whether or not it's truly a top four league. Follow @futbolmasterminds on Instagram to see more of the show and subscribe via Itunes and Spotify!
TheMastermindSite covered Thomas Tuchel's first win and first draw at Chelsea, so it's only fitting we also cover their first loss under the German manager as well. Chelsea were absolutely atrocious on Saturday, red card aside, and West Brom had their best game in the Premier League in several years. This all culminated in a stunning 5-2 win, with West Brom in full flow and suddenly with a false sense of hope about their survival chances for the rest of the season. Chelsea meanwhile had their dreams of third place dashed before their eyes, as they will likely now need to scrap to the finish line to now scrape into fourth. Here is a Tactical Analysis of West Brom's big win over the Blues at Stamford Bridge.
Ahead of the upcoming UEFA Champions League quarter final matches, Kausty, Russell and Rhys break down their predictions for each enthralling match-up. After the panel give their predictions, chaos ensues as Russell forgets the recording is still live and goes on a tangent about Virgil Van Dijk and Erling Haaland's dad. Follow @futbolmasterminds on Instagram to see more of the show and subscribe via Itunes and Spotify!
Since arriving at West Ham, Jesse Lingard has revitalized his career and transformed the Hammers into one of the most dangerous attacking outfits in the Premier League. This week the Futbol Masterminds discuss whether or not he could start for Manchester United next season and why he's had so much success with David Moyes' team. The panel also discuss the Bundesliga top four race, Mane and Salah's 2021 relationship, and racism in football following this week's disappointing incident in the Europa League involving Glenn Kamara and Ondrej Kudela. Subscribe via Itunes and Spotify below!
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