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Borussia Dortmund – Mario Gotze & Marco Reus Pave Way for Robert Lewandowski
While Robert Lewandowski made Champions League history by scoring four goals for the first time ever in the competition’s semifinal, it was the departing Mario Gotze and the remaining Marco Reus that did all of the work behind him, creating the space and freedom for the Polish striker to give Borussia Dortmund one of its biggest wins ever.
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Real Madrid – Cristiano Ronaldo Fails Along With Jose Mourinho
If this was one of the final matches for Jose Mourinho as a Real Madrid manager, it will be an arrogant display that shows the Portuguese manager doesn’t always learn from past mistakes, while giving Cristiano Ronaldo hardly any help to try and do something against an opponent he knew he’d struggle with, relying too much on his ability to win matches on his own.
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Robert Lewandowski, the Best Striker in Europe (Borussia Dortmund vs Real Madrid)
If someone needed more proof to the quality of the Bundesliga, Borussia Dortmund nailed the last of the remaining stakes into the bleeding heart of the Clasico duo, beating Real Madrid 4-1 in the first leg with an incredible performance from Robert Lewandowski, in what might be his final home appearance for the club in the Champions League.
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Miami Heat – The Turn of Dwyane Wade to Step Up
It’s not always about LeBron James when it comes to the Miami Heat. Dwyane Wade might be playing second fiddle in this show, but he can take the lead once in a while, which doesn’t make the NBA champions any less of a team. In a game in which they needed a little bit of a different spark, Wade was the one to provide it as they took a 2-0 in their first round series.
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Bayern Munich – Javi Martinez in the Center of a Demolition
Every single player for Bayern Munich did his part, while Manuel Neuer never had to do anything. At the center of everything was Javi Martinez, who completely destroyed the passing game of his opponents, allowing Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery, Thomas Muller and Bastian Schweinsteiger to roam free and create counter attack at a relentless pace.
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FC Barcelona – Lionel Messi Was Abandoned By Tito Vilanova
To some it felt like giving up. Tito Vilanova forgot he has a bench, but worst, he failed to realize Lionel Messi, the man his entire game plan is based on, wasn’t really fit for the match, thus sending Barcelona on something close to a hopeless mission, from which they return home battered and bruised like never before.
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Lionel Messi at His Worst (Bayern Munich vs Barcelona)
A 4-0 win by Bayern Munich might signal the end of an era, but those things are usually figured out through a longer period of time. What we’re left with are the facts, and they are that the best team in Germany is much better at the moment than the best team in Spain, as the group of players Lionel Messi usually carried on his back didn’t show up, just like their star player, probably still injured, and giving his worst display of football in recent memory.
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Champions League – Bayern Munich vs Barcelona Predictions
Even if Bayern Munich are the finest footballing machine we’ve seen in a very long time, it’s hard to think of anyone as clear favorites against a Barcelona team that has the best footballer in the world playing for it, although if he doesn’t, it might mean everyone needs to recalculate their predictions.
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Manchester United – Robin van Persie Finds Scoring Touch in Perfect Timing
It wasn’t the first hat-trick for Robin van Persie in his young Manchester United career, but it was probably a little more special than his first one at the beginning of the season, when everything about Manchester United seemed to be about his scoring touch. It’s been a rough couple of months for the Dutch striker, but he has regained his scoring touch just in time to secure a 20th championship for his club, and a first one for him personally.
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Chelsea FC – Eden Hazard & Juan Mata are the Present & Future
They talk of a magical trio, but in the truth it’s just two players – Eden Hazard and Juan Mata that are truly special. Oscar still has some consistency and physicality issued to tend to before he can be considered as good, giving Chelsea a truly unique threesome that plays behind a striker, Fernando Torres, that can’t seem to provide the right kind of outlet to his talented teammates.