Here’s what happened in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, in case you missed it…
The results
Watch match highlights: Zenit St. Petersburg 2, Borussia Dortmund 4 | Olympiacos 2, Manchester United 0
Read match reports: Dortmund take big step toward quarters | Listless United bested by Olympiacos
Three thoughts on the day
1. Olympiacos conquers United: This wasn’t a case of what Manchester United didn’t do—although the English side did look poor, especially in defence and when trying to build out of the back. But nothing was handed to Olympiacos. The Greeks fully earned this win, and deserve nothing but praise for continuing to press United and going forward with purpose in search of more goals while leading 2-0 and having the game fully in hand. Buoyed by the outstanding central defensive pairing of Kostas Manolas and Iván Marcano, and midfielder Delvin N’Dinga (who did his best Roy Keane impersonation), Olympiacos shut down United, limiting the Red Devils to just one shot on target—and it came in the 89th minute. Alejandro Domínguez was a whirlwind of action as the team’s chief creator, opening the scoring with a deft flick and knitting attacking sequences together with his neat passing. Olympiacos dictated the pace, which proved to be too much for United, who chased shadows and struggled to close down its Greek opponents. Rio Ferdinand and Michael Carrick were statues on Joel Campbell’s stunning goal that gave the home side a 2-0 lead—that moment perfectly encapsulated the different levels of urgency displayed between the two teams. Olympiacos had it, and that’s a big reason why they won.
2. Zenit underwhelms: Maybe it’s the layoff. The Russian league is currently in its annual winter break, and Zenit St. Petersburg hasn’t played a competitive game since the final matchday of the group stage on Dec. 11—they’ve played 10 friendlies and held three training camps since then. So there was some rust in those Russian legs on Tuesday. But it’s more than that. The fact is, Zenit, for all of its wealth and domestic domination, are out of their depth when they take on Europe’s best. Consider the fact that they qualified for the knockout stage with a record-low six points—Dortmund collected 12 points, further underlining the gap in quality between the two sides. This was far from a glittering performance from Dortmund, who because of a rash of injuries was there for the taking. But the Germans took advantage of a Zenit team who suffered from several defensive lapses and just doesn’t have the quality to test a club like Dortmund. Questions must also be asked of manager Luciano Spalletti, who played star man Hulk on the right side, instead of giving him more of a free reign to roam and create. Dortmund did a good job of shutting the Brazilian down (often double and triple teaming him), which resulted in forward José Rondón being deprived of service and totally isolated up front.
3. Time to revisit away goals rule: Of the six games that have taken place so far in the round of 16, only one home side managed to win, and somewhat surprisingly it was Olympiacos. The closest of the six games saw Atletico Madrid earn a 1-0 decision over Milan at San Siro—the five other games saw the visitors take a comfortable lead into the second leg when they return home in two weeks. And that number could increase, depending on what happens Wednesday when Real Madrid plays Schalke 04 in Germany and Chelsea visits Galatasary in Turkey. There could be as many seven “dead” games for the return legs—not exactly what UEFA and the viewing public were hoping for when the draw was made back in December. Maybe it’s time to revisit the away goals rule as a tiebreaker. It made sense in the 1950s and 1960s when air travel across Europe wasn’t that comfortable or easy. But times change, and playing on the road is no longer the obstacle and hardship it once was. Barcelona squeaked past PSG last year in the quarter-finals courtesy of the rule, even though it could be argued the French were the better side over the two legs. Do we really want two-legged series essentially decided after the opener?
Wednesday programming alert: Watch Galatasary vs. Chelsea (on Sportsnet, 2:30 pm ET) and Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid (on Sportsnet World, 2:30 pm ET). | Sportsnet World Online | TV schedule
Stat of the day
1984 – Man Utd last overturned a two goal deficit from a first leg in 1984, versus Barcelona in the Cup Winners' Cup. Mountain.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) February 25, 2014
Goal of the day
Joel Campbell’s goal for Olympiacos in the 55th minute was a beauty. The on-loan striker (from Arsenal) scooped up a loose ball, gave Carrick the slip and then unleashed a gorgeous, curling shot from 25 yards out that arrowed into the lower left corner beyond the reach of David de Gea.
Save of the day
Yuri Lodygin had to pick the ball out of his net four times, but he did come up with an excellent stop early in the second half. Robert Lewandowski had his sights on goal, and unleashed a stinging shot from a tight angle inside the box, only to see Lodygin expertly tip the ball around the post and out of danger.
Question of the day
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Tweet of the day
The last time Olympiakos beat MUFC was in 350BC. It was 2-1. Aristotle & Plato for the Greeks, Giggs with the consolation for United.
— Nooruddean (@BeardedGenius) February 25, 2014
3 stars
1) Marco Reus: The German midfielder put in a man-of-the-match effort, scoring one goal and setting up two others. He routinely opened up Zenit’s defence with sublime passes and quick runs.
2) Alejandro Domínguez: The Argentine playmaker gave United plenty of fits with his quick movement and the way he always seemed to be one move ahead of them.
3) Robert Lewandowski: The Polish striker bagged a brace, and proved a constant thorn in Zenit’s side, using his size and strength to boss around the Zenit defenders.
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