Review of yesterday's four matches: Real Madrid 3-1 Manchester City, Flamengo, Toronto, Boca Juniors, and others

A quick summary of yesterday’s four matches:

• 1. UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg: Real Madrid 3-1 Manchester City

Manchester City controlled the game for 180 minutes but was shattered in just 90 seconds.

So much to say, yet I don’t know where to begin.

Perhaps it was destiny’s gift: Guardiola was given a genius mind and the chance to coach the “Dream Trio” Barcelona, but not the courage to burn the boats or the decisiveness to cut through problems quickly.

Until the 85th minute, Manchester City unquestionably overwhelmed their opponent. Real Madrid relied solely on Courtois to keep the score at a narrow 0-1 deficit.

Courtois’ extreme split save was truly godlike — a real wall descended from heaven!

However, at the 85th minute, Guardiola substituted forward Mahrez for defensive midfielder Fernandinho, seemingly signaling to the team: in the final minutes, we must hold on.

What you fear comes true. Facing a Real Madrid squad known for countless last-minute comebacks, once you lose that fighting spirit, collapsing within 90 seconds seems inevitable.

Also, Manchester City urgently needs to buy a striker; wasting chances in crucial matches like this... How will Guardiola explain to his children why all those easy chances just don’t go in?

Fernandinho missed an open goal

Suddenly remembered when Mourinho led Real Madrid, and once without Ronaldo, he said:

“If you don’t have a dog to hunt with, then take your cat.”

Unexpectedly, after nine years living in Ronaldo’s shadow, Benzema shows no “dependency syndrome” and, at 34 years old, has become the strongest pillar in the world.

In six knockout matches, 10 goals and 1 assist — directly involved in 84.6% of Real Madrid’s 13 goals. A true national hero.

• 2. Cincinnati 2-0 Toronto FC

Toronto made some rotations, so Cincinnati’s support on the field slightly improved.

Toronto’s performance was, how to say, a bit strange.

For example, this red card:

At 6 minutes in, Peso committed a serious foul and was directly shown a red card.

Look closely at the picture: (1) leg fully extended; (2) studs visible; (3) above the ankle.

All three conditions met — a 100% certain red card with no escape.

*VAR also considered: excessive force.

But the problem is... the kick landed around the knee. Even if it was a mistake, could the error be this big?

We’ve seen many direct red cards, but such a large margin of error is rare.

Also, Cincinnati’s forwards were really poor... 4.54 expected goals, 7 big chances, yet only scored 2...

Cincinnati’s shooting positions

• 3. Talleres 2-2 Flamengo

Before the match, Talleres unusually praised Flamengo heavily.RainbowRainbowFartCould it have moved Flamengo, who are indifferent, playing 3 games in 7 days and traveling over 10,000 kilometers?

Flamengo also rotated several positions, so their on-field strength dropped a whole level.

In the end, both teams shared 1 point, which can be seen as a win-win. Talleres now leads Chile’s XX University by 3 points, greatly increasing their chances to advance.

• 4. Always Ready 0-1 Boca Juniors

Remember the saying from Sun Tzu’s Art of War:

“A general who thinks about defeat before victory will never be defeated.”

When Boca set up their 4-1-4-1 defensive formation, the data immediately flipped — from Always Ready’s advantage to Boca’s, a full two-level shift!!

Boca surprisingly used the 4-1-4-1 formation

Why?

Because Boca grasped the key to this match.

(1) The altitude effect mainly reduces players’ running ability.

Boca’s defensive approach was to reduce running for defenders and let attackers push forward; if they get tired, then switch tactics.

Therefore, defenders conserved energy very well, using only 4 substitutions, all for attackers.

(2) This was Always Ready’s last home game; they have no fighting strength away and must try to secure 3 points at home.

If Boca weren’t in a hurry, then Always Ready would be. Lacking big-match experience, Always Ready is more likely to panic and make mistakes.

Sure enough, they gave away a penalty.

In attack, Boca had only one player pushing forward, reflecting their defensive-first, win-or-lose-later strategy.

Parana lost 5-0 to the strongest team because their chances of advancing looked slim, so they had to attack aggressively to earn points.

But Boca still has two home matches left and can accept just 1 point. However, I really didn’t expect Boca, a South American attacking football giant, to park the bus against a weak opponent.

This decision was probably made by Boca’s second-in-command Riquelme, since head coach Battaglia is very stubborn and has openly clashed with club management.

Riquelme personally directed personnel arrangements in the last match and for the first time traveled abroad with the team for this game — likely to ensure his defensive strategy was strictly followed.

After watching the video today, I’ve been reviewing yesterday’s matches, so I wrote this recap. I haven’t posted on Toutiao before; I’ll try it today to see if anyone is interested. After watching other games tonight, I’ll keep sharing updates.