Illogical draw in Madrid

In the main match of the day of the Champions League, the giants of Spanish and English football met among themselves, going through hard times.

The reigning champion Atlético examples fails the season in the national championship and risks being left without a ticket to the main European Cup.

After 25 rounds, Diego Simeone's men are 15 points behind leaders Real Madrid and are only fifth in the table.

This is largely due to the markedly reduced performance of Luis Suarez and the unusually weak game of Jan Oblak.

According to statistical portals, one of the best goalkeepers in the world conceded 11.1 goals more than expected (xGA) and claims to be the biggest disappointment of the year.

Manchester United is also unstable.

The Mancunians, although they have not suffered a single defeat in the last seven meetings of the Premier League, have not shone.

High performance is primarily due to the level of opponents (only one of them was in the top 5), but even against their background, Ralf Rangnik's wards did not always look convincing, and often stumbled offensively.

Suffice it to recall the missed victories over Burnley and Southampton, after which rumors reappeared in the press about the conflict in the locker room and dissatisfaction with the German coach.

At the same time, more and more critical arrows are flying at Cristiano Ronaldo.

Togo is suspected of wanting to lead the team and take the captain's armband from Harry Maguire, all against the background of a drop in performance.

In 2022, the striker appeared eight times in all competitions, but scored only one goal, and The Independent gave him 5/10 for his performance in the match against Leeds.

And this state of affairs does not suit the management of United.

Bosses are reported to be increasingly frustrated with the Portuguese, with some claiming that his level of play is not up to their expectations.

However, in the first half, not only the star forward, but the entire Manchester United as a whole deserved such a characteristic.

The guests could not oppose anything to their rivals and did not create a single dangerous moment at the gates of the Cloud.

For 45 minutes, they never touched the ball in someone else's penalty area, and the expected goal rate was disastrously low - 0.05.

Under the most severe pressure, Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba looked helpless, and Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho, who appeared on the positions of the wingers, could not crack the massive defense of the hosts.

In defense, at times there was a real mess.

The appearance of right-back Victor Lindelof in place did not benefit, to say the least.

Almost all Atlético's attacks were built through the Swede's zone, where Renan Lodi reigned.

In the seventh minute, it was the Brazilian who unimpededly performed a cross into the penalty area, and João Felix struck his head irresistibly.

The captain of the guests, Harry Maguire, missed the Portuguese's spurt and only watched the ball, after hitting it, first hit the post and then cross the goal line.

In the first half, Atlético beat Manchester United three times in the number of shots (6:2), and in the last minute had a great opportunity to double the advantage.

All the same Lodi broke through the flank and shot along the target, but the ball hit the crossbar from the head of Shime Vrsalko.

Not to say that after the break, Manchester United has changed.

Yes, the guests increased their activity, but Atlético could not create serious problems.

Attacks ended on the way to the penalty area, and long-range "shots" did not carry any danger.

It is all the more surprising that Rangnik decided to reshuffle only in the 66th minute.

Lindelof, Pogba and Luke Shaw were replaced by Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Nemanja Matic and Alex Telles.

However, the most important castling occurred somewhat later.

A quarter of an hour before the end of normal time, Anthony Elanga got a chance to prove himself.

He was part of the win over Leeds last weekend and thus earned the right to enter the field in the Champions League.

And the young Swede fully justified the trust of the coach.

Within five minutes, he burst into the penalty area, received a pass from Fernandes and shot irresistibly into the far corner.

The cloud didn't help.

In the remaining time, Atlético turned on the maximum speed and was close to snatching victory in the home meeting.

Antoine Griezmann, who also came off the bench in the 75th minute, had a great chance to score.

The Frenchman opened on the verge of offside and delivered a powerful blow, but shook the crossbar.

Manchester United defended a draw and increased their chances of reaching the quarter-finals.

Goal feast in Lisbon

Despite the absence of a loud sign, the match in Lisbon promised to be no less intriguing.

At first glance, the level of the rival teams was approximately equal, but they were in a completely different state.

Benfica is in a deep crisis, as evidenced not only by the third place in the Portuguese championship and 12 points behind leaders Porto, but also by only two wins in the last five meetings.

Moreover, only the modest Santa Clara and Tondela were beaten, occupying the tenth and 16th lines in the table, respectively.

Such results are quite understandable.

At the end of December, the Benfica management dismissed the most experienced Jorge Jesus, but never found a full-fledged replacement for him.

In this situation, Nelson Verissimo, who had already led the team after the resignation of Bruno Lage in 2020, again tried on the duties of the head coach.

But if at that time the Eagles averaged 2.17 points under his leadership, this time the figure dropped to 1.7.

All this made us consider Ajax the unequivocal favorite - and not only the confrontation in general, but also the away match in particular.

Unlike competitors, Erik ten Hag's men have made a fantastic move and have won the last ten meetings with a total score of 39:1.

Only PSV midfielder Mario Götze managed to upset Remko Pasver, and the last defeat was dated December 12, 2021.

Nevertheless, at the home stadium, Benfica decided to fight the favorite.

The hosts spent the first ten minutes much more confidently and had more possession of the ball, but this fuse was not enough for a long time.

Ajax quickly seized the initiative, and in the 18th minute opened the scoring.

A cross from the right flank was closed by Dusan Tadic with a magnificent volley.

After that, forward Sebastien Aller came to the fore.

Within three minutes, the best scorer of the current Champions League draw managed to score with a minus sign, and then rehabilitate himself for a gross mistake.

At the 26th minute, the Frenchman returned to his own penalty area to help his partners in a corner.

But instead, he cut the ball into the goal after an insidious cross from Thomas Vertonghen.

But after a few minutes, in a similar manner, he upset Odysseas Vlachimos.

The transfer also followed from the left side, and the striker again brought Ajax forward on the second attempt.

The second half was no less eventful.

Finding itself in the role of catching up, Benfica went ahead and began to create one sharp episode after another.

Both Everton and Darwin Nunez could have scored, but the first shot was blocked by Jurrien Timber, and the second lacked accuracy.

Ajax responded with an attack involving Nussair Mazraoui.

He ran into the goalkeeper's area and shot, but hit exactly Vlachomos.

As a result, the football player who appeared on the field during the meeting again played a key role.

Within two minutes, Roman Yaremchuk could score twice, but managed to convert only one of the chances.

The Eagles' lightning-fast counterattack ended with a powerful blow from Goncalo Ramos.

Pasver played very poorly and allowed the Ukrainian striker to finish off the ball into the net.

During the celebration, he showed a black T-shirt with the emblem of the country, but quickly hid it under the club's uniform.

True, the referee managed to react and punished him with a yellow card.

In the end, Ajax could tip the scales in their favor, but Vlachomos managed to manage Anthony's long-range shot.

Like Manchester United, Benfica managed to bounce back in the end and kept the intrigue in the confrontation.

The second leg will take place on March 15 in Amsterdam.