
Champions League is always exciting and for the neutrals, we sometimes enjoy the upset. I don't know why we mostly root for the underdogs and maybe because they tell a story about ourselves where we want to be given a chance to thrive, so when we see underdogs doing well, we always want to get drawn to them because we can relate to them.
Even before the ball was kicked, I already bragged to so many people that Bayern Munich would thrash Salzburg and it wasn't an act do disrespect to Salzburg but more of the experience that Bayern Munich has within their ranks. I was expecting an easy passage for Bayern but I was treated to a shock as early as the 21st minute when Salzburg took the lead. The moment I saw how impressive and prepared they were, I switched my allegiance for the night to Salzburg because they have incredible talents within their ranks too.
I saw how they held Bayern Munich and kept them at bay as they defended resolutely too. Bayern Munich dominated the play but they were left clueless and unlucky for the larger part of the game. I was impressed with the organization of Salzburg. Salzburg also showed moments of brilliance where they should have punished Bayern Munich even more and what a story it would have been if they managed to pull a 3-0 victory against Bayern which would heap more pressure o Bayern Munich.
The good thing was that Salzburg went into the match as underdogs. They had nothing to lose and this allowed them to ease into the game and took the game to Bayern Munich. Despite their valiant effort, I am so sure they would meet a different Bayern side in the second leg. Well, I said that for the first leg and we were treated to a massive shock.
I really didn't see this coming at all because I was expecting a landslide victory from Bayern Munich but it took a last-minute effort from Coman to force a draw in the 90th minute. That's the cruel thing about football. All the efforts you have put in for 90 minutes can be lost in a moment where you lacked concentration and it can be for split seconds. 1 minute can undo the effort you have put on for 90 minutes and that was what happened to Salzburg yesterday. They took their foot off the gas and they got burned as a result of that moment of relapse. A 1-0 win would have been better than a 1-1 draw against Bayern with the second leg still up for grabs.
For what's worth, it was a good show from Salzburg and I didn't see that coming at all. It was a well-taken goal by Adamu to give Salzburg the lead and an equally instinctive, brave and timely effort from Coman to draw Bayern level.
Another one that I didn't see coming was Inter Milan v Liverpool's game. Of course, I expected Liverpool to win their game but I would have expected at least a goal from Inter Milan. Inter Milan played their 191st Champions League game against the in-form Liverpool side who has won 6 games out of their 6 Champions League fixtures. It is also the first time Inter Milan would appear in a knockout phase since they were beaten by Marseille in 2012.
I understand that Inter Milan were not in form, especially with the Derby defeat to AC Milan and coming from behind to draw against Napoli over the weekend but I didn't expect that they wouldn't score a goal against Liverpool even though I expected Liverpool to win. A goal from Inter Milan would have made the difference because when it comes to aggregate, it can tilt it into their favour.
Liverpool showed that they meant business and discussion with cryptoandcoffee yesterday strengthened the claim that the title this season might be between Manchester City and Liverpool because of their devastating form.
Firmino did well with his header to get Liverpool ahead before Salah did what he knows how to do best in sealing the victory with a lovely finish. Liverpool holds the advantage for this first leg and hopefully, they can get the job done for the second leg and Inter Milan would feel hard done by especially when Hakan Çalhanoğlu struck the crossbar from the near post which would have helped since they played at home.
Let's see what happens in the second leg and maybe we would be treated to another surprise from these teams.
Thank you for your time.
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