The Champions League. By its very definition, this is a competition where the best play the best. However, it does not mean that, on occasion, an underdog can’t stun a favourite in the pursuit of European glory.
Tonight, Man United take on Bayern Munich in a Champions League quarter-final. Munich, who have swept all before them like a giant German juggernaut will be confident of beating a United side who have spent the last few months playing like their shoelaces have been tied together.
But shocks CAN happen. Here, we take a look back at five of the best Champions League upsets.
Chelsea 3-2 Barcelona
Chelsea had spent the season struggling domestically and would eventually finish 6th in the Premier League, behind Newcastle and Tottenham. For them, a match against mighty Barcelona – reigning champions of Europe – seemed like a write-off.
Did Chelsea ‘park the bus’? No, they parked the bus, a plane and the 7:32 to London Victoria in front of their goal as it was besieged by relentless Catalan attackers. Pass, pass, pass was the offensive. Block, block, block came the reply. Try as they might, Barca could not breach the blue wall, and they were eventually stung as Didier Drogba fired home what proved to be the winner in London.
If Chelsea rode their luck in the first-leg, they hijacked it in the second. Despite falling two goals and a man down to the swaggering Spaniards, they conjured a reply through Ramires and held their nerve as passes, shots, and dives reigned down upon them. To give this fantasy one final gloss of madness, Fernando Torres popped up to score a finishing goal in stoppage time.
Monaco 5-5 Real Madrid
The 2004 Champions League will be remembered mostly for José Mourinho and his all-defending, all-dancing Porto side. However, in a tournament of shocks, including Porto’s win at Old Trafford, this one stands out.
In a quarter-final round which was the equivalent of a violent football rebellion, where Europe’s aristocrats were torn from their castles as a new order took centre stage, Monaco slayed the biggest giant of them all. Real Madrid, with Figo, Zidane, Ronaldo et all, were cruising with a 4-1 lead in the first-leg until a late Fernando Morientes (a former Madrid favourite himself) goal gave the French side hope, although it remained a faint one.
In the return leg, Madrid seemed to douse any hopes of a fight-back by taking the lead in Monaco through Raul, before Ludovic Giuly (twice) and Morientes scored to turn the tie around and send Monaco through. The ‘Galacticos’ were beaten, and Monaco progressed to the final, where Porto would win 3-0.
Liverpool 3-3 AC Milan
The mother, father, strange uncle and third cousin of comebacks and surprises. An AC Milan side who had blown away all before them faced up to the best of England in this incredible final.
Like Chelsea in 2012, Liverpool were awful in the Premier League and would finish fifth, making them massive underdogs for this clash, and so it seemed to prove when Hernan Crespo inspired them to a 3-0 half-time lead. Things were so bad for Liverpool, even Paolo Maldini – who hadn’t scored in about 5,437 games – gave Milan the lead.
However, inspired by what must have been typically passionate advice from Rafael Benitez (‘mountains of sugar’, ‘facts’, etc), Liverpool stunned the Milanese with three goals in six minutes, as Steven Gerrard, Vladimir Smicer (remember him?) and Xabi Alonso pulled Liverpool level. Milan awoke from their slumber to test ‘keeper Jerzy Dudek, but could not find a way through, and they were made to pay when they were beaten on penalties. A crazy game got a crazy finish as Liverpool won a fifth European title.
Leverkusen 3-3 Man United
As a United fan, this one hurts. IT HURTS SO BAD.
After a domestic season of disappointments and an embarrassing F.A Cup exit, United found the Champions League as their only salvation. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?
After defeating Deportivo La Coruna (remember them?), United faced Leverkusen in a Champions League semi-final they were expected to win comfortably. They did not. A great match at Old Trafford finished 2-2, with Michael Ballack inspiring the Germans to two crucial away goals and a vital draw.
Still, United remained favourites going into the second-leg, and made their apparent superiority tell as Roy Keane gave the visitors the lead. Back came Leverkusen, with Oliver Neuville scoring an absolute belter to give Leverkusen the edge. Chances came and chances went, but United couldn’t find a way through. I had to take the next day off school with grief, and the harsh reality of the Champions League took hold.
APOEL Nicosia 1-1 Lyon
Lyon, for so long a team capable of punching above their weight at Europe’s top table, were themselves the victims of a major shock as little APOEL stunned them on penalties.
Lyon won the first-leg 1-0 at home, but were ultimately made to pay for a host of missed chances when they went to Cyprus. Somehow, Nicosia levelled the tie and survived a late red card to reach the sanctuary of penalties. Against all expectation, they held their nerve to knock the French giants out.
However, they then drew a small team called Real Madrid and got battered by the Spanish supremoes 8-2 on aggregate. Still, this was a victory which ranks among the best achievements in Cypriot football, right alongside… Yeah!
