Chapter 170: Champions League Final Four

Manchester United eliminated Real Madrid to reach the semi-finals of the Champions League, which undoubtedly became the focus of discussion after the game.

In Manchester, Manchester United fans were buzzing with interest.

Manchester United briefly sank for two seasons after Alex Ferguson's retirement, before re-emerging immediately after Carlo Ancelotti took over. The league is on the verge of winning the league and the Champions League is reaching the semi-finals, which is undoubtedly quite a boost for Manchester United fans.

But having said that, whether Manchester United's revival is the credit of Ancelotti, the manager, or because of the reason why Li Qingshan was spent a lot of money, has caused many fans to discuss.

There is no doubt that the most crucial player on Manchester United's side this season is Li Qingshan, and the 38 league goals alone in the league are enough to make Li Qingshan the best player in the Manchester United team this season.

Without Li Qingshan, not to mention how Manchester United performed in the league, at least in the Champions League, it would not have been possible to reach the semi-finals so smoothly.

But now that the team is doing well and the fans are happy, the discussion is also lively, but it doesn't turn into a debate. Anyway, no matter whose credit it is, in short, Manchester United's current results have made the fans quite satisfied.

For the players, the next round of fixtures in the Champions League is two weeks away, with United's semi-final opponents waiting for the quarter-finals to be completed and the Champions League semi-finals to be decided by draw.

There is still some time to go before the next stage of the Champions League competition, and what is more crucial for Manchester United is the battle for the league title.

'Now we're 10 points ahead of Leicester, we have six games left in the league and we have to win three of them! We have two games to go before the Champions League semi-finals and two at home!! Aston Villa and Crystal Palace!! These two games!! These two opponents!! We've got to win!! ”

On the plane back to Manchester, Carlo Ancelotti shook his fist and said he needed his players to forget about the Champions League as soon as possible and focus on the league.

Three days later, they will host Aston Villa at home. With six games left in the league, every three points is a big step towards the league title!

They want to lock up the Premier League title as soon as possible before they can move their energy to other fronts!

League title is within reach, with the FA Cup and Champions League reaching the semi-finals.

For Manchester United, perhaps this season can relive the glory of the '99 treble......

However, the chance of the cup is still very large, even if you reach the semi-finals, you still have to go through two hurdles if you want to win the championship, especially in the Champions League.

Manchester United's local rivals Manchester City's Champions League tie kicks off at the same time as Manchester United's game.

Manchester City host Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain. The two sides met at the Parc des Princes in the first leg, and the match ended in a 2-2 draw. This time to the Etihad Stadium, at the beginning of the game, Paris Saint-Germain launched a fierce offensive, in the sixteenth minute, Ibrahimovic tested Joe Hart with a free kick, and then the two sides fought against each other, in the 30th minute, Aguero burst into the penalty area to create a penalty, but let himself take the penalty missed.

Manchester City, who missed the opportunity, did not reach the semi-finals until the 76th minute of the second half, with De Bruyne's right-footed curling goal, Manchester City, who was playing at home, defeated Paris Saint-Germain with a score of 1-0 and reached the semi-finals.

The fact that two English teams reached the last four of the Champions League at the same time really made the English media excited.

The other two quarter-finals were played the next day.

Benfica is at home against Bayern Munich, although Benfica is considered to be the "weak team" in the quarterfinals, but as a Portuguese Super League giant, Benfica's combat effectiveness at home is not false at all.

At the beginning of the game, Benfica showed a strong attack, with the active scrambling in the front court and the use of set-pieces, so that Bayern Munich's defense was tested, although after the chaos in the first few minutes, Bayern still got back possession, but under Benfica's pressing, Bayern Munich's attack was not very well organized.

With Benfica's efforts, in the 27th minute, Benfica played a wave of counterattacks, Eliseu crossed at a 45-degree angle, Neuer made a mistake, Gimenez grabbed a header before Martinez and Alaba and scored, Benfica equalized the score 1-1 on aggregate. After conceding the goal, Bayern stepped up their attack and advanced the overall formation, while Benfica reverted to the defence and the two sides entered the most common offensive and defensive positions. Then, Bayern's goal paid off, in the 38th minute, Lahm's cross was blocked by the goalkeeper, and Vidal on the periphery volleyed directly without stopping, and the ball went straight into the net, Bayern led again 2-1 on aggregate.

In the second half, Muller's goal helped Bayern Munich seal the win, and the score became 2-1, and Bayern Munich led 3-1 on aggregate. Although Benfica pulled a goal back in the closing stages of the game, the lack of away goals meant that Benfica were effectively on the losing streak. In the end, the Bundesliga giants also reached the last four of the Champions League without danger.

In the other La Liga civil war, Simeone's side played perfectly at home.

Atletico Madrid lost 1-2 away to Barcelona in the first leg, and this time back at the Calderón Stadium, Atletico Madrid disrupted Barcelona's rhythm with a tough midfield strangulation, especially for Messi's defense, Atletico Madrid did quite well.

In the 36th minute of the first half, Saul picked up a pass at a 45-degree angle outside the periphery, and Griezmann scored with a header, 1-0! Atletico took the lead at home and levelled on aggregate.

With an away goal in hand, Simeone's side played a defensive counter-attack at home, and with a suffocating strangulation in midfield, Barcelona's attacking group fell into a situation of isolation, the connection between them was completely severed by Atletico Madrid, and Messi's sluggish form made Barcelona's attack even more difficult to function.

In the 87th minute, Iniesta cut in the penalty area, the referee decisively showed a yellow card and awarded a penalty, Griezmann took the penalty straight to the corner of the goal, 2-0! Atletico sealed the win.

Simeone's side won the game with a textbook midfield strangulation that broke Barcelona's pass-and-possession football and reached the last four of the Champions League.