Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Welcome into the latest edition of ESPN FC. I'm Dan Thomas, joined by Ali Moreno, Craig Burley and Stevie Nicholl. What a final round of matches we saw in the Champions League today. Of course, sides vying for a place in the top eight, including Real Madrid. However, they would fail to do that. Benfica, who looked like they were completely out of the competition, would win by four goals to two.
It would be Trubin. their goalkeeper who came up the last minute and scored the header that would give Benfica a better goal difference than Marseille. Jose Mourinho's side then, through to the next round. Real Madrid through as well, but not in the top eight. As we welcome in Frank Leper, Jurgen Klinsmann will be keeping an eye on some of the big games.
Vali, you were watching this match in particular. Did Benfica deserve it? What's going on with Real Madrid? What drama? There's so much to talk about.
Well, let's start with the goalkeeper. Yeah. Because I think that's the story.
Chapter 2: What dramatic victory did Benfica achieve over Real Madrid?
They need a goal. Who do you count on? Is it Pablidis? No. Yeah. Xhaka's at home going, yeah. Where is Xhaka? And of course, it had to be the case that right before the free kick is taken, they pan to Jose Mourinho, who is seen telling the goalkeeper, you, forward.
Chapter 3: What role did the Benfica goalkeeper play in their victory?
You, go into the box. And of course, any manager at that time would have done exactly the same thing. But it has to be Mourinho that then gets the shot on him. He tells the goalkeeper to go there. Real Madrid playing two men down. They swing the ball in. And of course, it had to be the goalkeeper who gets the sort of header that he did. And that in itself is a story. That by itself is a story.
But a big part of the story is Real Madrid, in which you're thinking this team has turned the corner. They haven't. And over the weekend, what we were talking about is, can they sustain what they showed against Monaco? Can they sustain what they showed against Villarreal?
And the truth of the matter is that today, when they were pushed, when the game got stretched, they didn't have a reset position. They didn't have any structure. They didn't have any organization. They were exposed time and time again in transition. And Benfica deservedly so win the game and deservedly so get into the playoffs.
You take a look at the starting 11, Arbeloa put out. Craig, he's taking this seriously. They wanted a top eight spot. And yet again, his big names don't turn up when they have to.
and it's going to be an interesting second half of the season.
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Chapter 4: Why was Real Madrid's performance considered poor in this match?
There's a title race back on in Spain because of the way they've started. But the problems that were there for Xabi Alonso are just not going to go away overnight. Heavier reliant on Kylian Mbappe, a lack of discipline from other players. You've got Asensio, you know, chucking himself to ground, making silly and rash decisions, getting sent off. Rodrigo following him for descent.
All these things were sort of brewing up under Xabi Alonso and were issues that he wasn't able to solve, certainly not in the eyes of Florentino Perez. And now Arbeloa, who... Partly is well thought of, but at the end of the day, he's going to have the same issues.
And when you think about the team Real Madrid put out, and when you think about where Benfica are, and the whole lexicon of European football at the moment, they're not a strong side. And they're probably, regardless of who they get, Real Madrid or Inter, they're probably going to go out over two legs.
So when you look at the opposition, even though it was away from home, not a great night for Real Madrid or Arbelor. And that's the extra games for them that they really didn't want, particularly with the injuries that they've had this season.
But JĆ¼rgen, from a Benfica point of view, this is why we love football, isn't it? This sort of drama, this last minute, and it's the goalkeeper as well. That's why we enjoy this sport so much.
Yeah, and that's where you see that it's all down to mental moments. It's the psychology of the game. And to beat Real Madrid in such a big, big, big game in the way they did, I mean, you can only give them huge compliments. I mean, these are the games you live for, you hope for.
And then the story, obviously, with a goalkeeper going forward in the last second there and deciding that game, it's fantastic. I mean, it's wonderful. I mean, the whole drama that the Champions League is giving us... And the last day of the group stage is wonderful.
Do you think Shaq has ever gone up for a header?
No. Famously, he's gone up and he's diked out the way. What's interesting, Frank, as well, Jose Mourinho absolutely milked this and loved every minute of it. Of course he did.
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Chapter 5: How did Antonio Conte's Napoli fare in the Champions League?
But they clearly aren't. Well, they are, but... Borussia Dortmund, they just knocked them aside last week. How do you explain Napoli being down the bottom? Because they're not good enough. Well, they are.
Chapter 6: What are the implications of Napoli's elimination for their season?
In this competition, they've not been good enough. You mentioned Conte's recent results in European football with different clubs. There's no way Tottenham are the fourth best team in this competition. So this table is a bit of an anomaly to me at this moment in time. And I think what we'll see is... Everything coming out in the wash.
As soon as we get to this knockout stage, however teams have made it to where they are, I think it's all going to come out in the wash when it gets to the two-header games.
I understand that, but when you say come out in the wash, you mean Barcelona, Real Madrid, PSG, Bayern Munich. The problem is the rest that they also ran can't compete anymore, can they? with the bigger boys. But they never could. But there was always, you felt, a chance. But now because of the budget, now because as JĆ¼rgen said. But who's the other boys? I mean, even in the old format,
Even in the old... Well, we saw Inter Milan, of course, make it well last year, Borussia Dortmund the year before.
You know, there always seems to be other teams that are playing... Well, Inter Milan, you know, their team has got older and their manager left, went to Saudi Arabia. You know, Lautaro Martinez was very vocal about that in the summer. You know, he was vocal about Calhanoglu wanting to leave and go somewhere else. And, you know, players...
I think the scenario is the Inter squad was a big squad, but as JĆ¼rgen said, it's kind of at the end of its tether. It's needing a rotation now of younger players. I get what you're saying. There isn't the money in Italy. There isn't the money in Germany. There isn't the money in France. Even in Spain, to a certain extent, with the big two, there is in England.
But I think at the end of the day... It's only my opinion. It doesn't matter how much money there is in England. When it comes to the crunch, I think Liverpool will get knocked out. I think Tottenham will get knocked out. And I think Manchester City will get knocked out.
I think the only team in England, for all the money they've got, that are going to be standing up with a puncher's chance, is Arsenal. I might be wrong, but for Liverpool and Man City to even have a chance of damaging the best teams in this competition, their seasons are going to have to go full circle. And we haven't, particularly Liverpool, we haven't seen that.
Arsenal, I think, for all the Premier League's money, Unless I'm missing something with Liverpool and Man City defensively. Would you sit here, Stevie? No, but my point isn't who's going to win it.
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