5 things we learned from this week's Champions League action

Our take on recent events in Europe’s top club competition, including thoughts on Messi, Beckham and Ozil.

1. Bayern capitalise, as Juve out of sorts

Bayern Munich put one foot in the semi-final with a 2-0 win over Juventus on Tuesday night.

Much had been made of Juventus’ defensive record prior to the game, given that they have only conceded 19 goals in 30 games in the league.

However, it took the hosts only 25 seconds to breach the visitors’ venerated defence.

And indeed, it was somewhat of an uncharacteristically flat performance from Juve in general, with Andrea Pirlo having his lowest pass completion rate ever for the club, while another of their star players, Gianluigi Buffon, could have done better for the first goal, with his reflexes leaving a lot to be desired following David Alaba’s slightly deflected shot.

2. Barca noticeably affected by loss of Messi

While they were only seconds away from gaining a vital win in Paris, it was far from vintage Barca on Tuesday night.

At half-time, with the Spanish side leading 1-0, a Barca triumph had seemed inevitable.

However, there was a noticeable drop in the visitors’ second-half performance, ostensibly owing to the Argentinian’s withdrawal through injury – providing emphasis, if any were needed, of his vital importance to the team.

It will come as relief to fans of the side, therefore, that Messi is expected back soon, with his injury not as bad as initially assumed.

3. Beckham shows his PSG move is more than just a publicity stunt

Some cynics suggested that Paris St Germain weren’t buying David Beckham for his footballing ability back in January.
And while his commercial value was surely a factor in the purchase, any suggestions that the French club had no intention of putting faith in his sporting prowess have surely by now been disproved.

The former England captain has featured several times since moving to France, though it still came as quite a surprise when Carlo Ancelotti opted to start him against Barca.

Moreover, Beckham started in a central role, a position he has occasionally played in with less success against far inferior opponents to Xavi and Anders Iniesta.

Nonetheless, he succeeded against all expectations in putting in a respectable display, frequently helping to quell the opposition’s attacks and playing a significant role with his intelligent passes in PSG’s impressive result.

4. Mesut Ozil deserves more credit in Madrid’s success

When football fans discuss Real Madrid, Ronaldo’s greatness tends to dominate the conversation

However, for all the Portuguese winger’s brilliance, there’s no such thing as a one-man team, despite what several of the game’s more hyperbole-prone commentators may suggest.

Mesut Ozil, in particular, illustrated this point tonight, with an accomplished performance, in which he produced his 13th assist of the competition.

Needless to say, Ronaldo’s tally of nine Champions League goals this season would not so high were it not for the German international’s help.

5. Are Dortmund the Arsenal of German football?

During their peak at least, Arsenal were often accused of ‘trying to pass the ball into the net,’ such was their tendency to play teams to death without being efficient enough in front of goal to fully capitalise on their dominance.

Dortmund play a similar brand of football to Arsenal, with an emphasis on quick passing and movement.

Back in October, in the group stages, they completely outplayed Man City at the Etihad for long periods of the game, but ultimately could only draw 1-1, as they failed to take advantage of numerous good chances.

Against Malaga tonight, they were well on top throughout the game, but yet again, they couldn’t convert territory and possession into goals.

Surely therefore, they need to acquire a ruthless streak in order to have any chance of triumphing in the competition.