1. Real and Atletico deserve each other
IT WAS PERHAPS no surprise that tonight’s Madrid Derby turned into somewhat of an unsavoury spectacle.
The moment that stands out will inevitably be Sergio Ramos’ obvious overreaction that led to the match-changing red card awarded to Arda Turan.
Atletico were clearly upset with the behaviour of Ramos and others — players at one stage attempted to lift Javier Hernandez to his feet, as with Real leading, the striker ostensibly attempted to waste time by exaggerating an injury.
Yet the visitors could hardly have questioned the ethics of Real’s plainly Machiavellian style, as they themselves are no stranger to unfair play — after all, in Turan, they have a player who once threw his boot at a linesman, and tonight’s game in reality was littered with theatrics and cynicism on both sides.
It’s not great to watch, but as long as it continues to go unpunished, and as long as it keeps producing positive results for these two teams, such questionable methods of play will surely continue indefinitely.
2. Juventus triumph in inevitable fashion
Juventus are in the semi-finals after what many would consider a typically Italian footballing performance.
The Turin club reached their first Champions League semi-final since 2003 thanks to Arturo Vidal’s first-leg penalty, after a stalemate in Monaco tonight.
The Italians rode their luck at times against their Ligue 1 opponents, who passed up a number of chances particularly in the first half, but ultimately the visitors did enough to grind out a draw on the night and a slender win on aggregate.
The end result was by no means a surprise though, with many predicting a cagey affair beforehand, as Monaco, who conceded just once and only scored four in the group stages, came up against a side who have one of the best defences in Europe statistically.
3. Hernandez proves his worth
https://vine.co/v/eap2verLwiP
It’s been a tough few months for Javier Hernandez. The Mexican striker was deemed surplus to requirements at Old Trafford at the start of the season, and has found regular game time hard to come by at Real.
Tonight, with regulars like Luka Modric, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema injured, coach Carlo Ancelotti was more or less forced to throw him into the team.
The pressure of the occasion appeared to be weighing on his shoulders initially, as he missed two clear-cut chances — the type Hernandez is well capable of dispatching at his best.
Nonetheless, Chicharito showed good character to persevere regardless, and eventually got his goal, as he was in the right place at the right time to slot home Cristiano Ronaldo’s unselfish cut-back.
Whether the 26-year-old is good enough to start regularly for a club with such high standards as Real remains doubtful, but he certainly has gone some way towards repaying the faith put in him by Ancelotti, who signed him on loan back in September, with the decisive goal in this evening’s tight, tension-filled affair. So for that moment alone, the Italian boss will feel the striker was well worth the investment.
Originally published Wednesday at 23.23
