Manchester City and Inter Milan are the final two teams to secure their spots in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals. City advanced thanks to a 4-1 aggregate win against Bayern Munich, while Inter punched their ticket with a combined 5-3 score in two games against Benfica.

City will now play against the reigning UCL champions Real Madrid in the semis, while Inter faces their cross-town rivals AC Milan. The semifinals phase of the competition is scheduled to start in early May.

Both Man City and Inter entered the second leg of the quarter-finals with healthy leads from the first matches and focused on keeping their opponents at bay.

Bayern needed a miracle to negate City’s 3-0 league from the first match but never got close, even with their home fans giving them some extra motivation. After the first half went scoreless, it was City that got the first goal via Erling Haaland in the 57th minute. The Bundesliga champs managed to tie the game when Joshua Kimmich converted a penalty late in the game, but the goal didn’t make much difference at that point.

On the other hand, Inter and Benfica delivered a goal fest for fans in their Wednesday night’s game. Inter opened the scoring through Nicolo Barella in the 14th minute before Benfica’s Fredrik Aursnes made it 1-1 before the end of the half.

Inter went on to build a two-goal lead midway through the second half, with Lautaro Martínez and Joaquin Correa each finding the net to put an end to Benfica’s hopes. The Portuguese club did respond with two goals of their own, but they came at a point where Inter was already thinking about the next stage.

The post Man City and Inter Secure Spots in UCL Semi-Finals appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Darwin Nunez is an injury doubt ahead of the first leg of Liverpool’s Champions League Round of 16 clash with Real Madrid at Anfield on Tuesday night.

Nunez scored his first Premier League goal since the restart after the World Cup to help his team secure a valuable 2-0 away win at Newcastle United on Saturday. Nunez was replaced by Roberto Firminho at the 59-minute mark after he incurred a shoulder injury.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp revealed that Nunez is set to undergo tests on the problem area and that nothing is yet known about the extent of the injury. He did, however, reveal that Nunez is experiencing pain.

Although Nunez remains a doubt for the Real Madrid game, Klopp believes his team is on the path to turning their season around following the away win at Newcastle.

“We are a step further forward,” Klopp stated. “Both goals were outstanding. The pass from Trent [Alexander-Arnold] for Darwin [Nunez] and from Mo [Salah] to Cody [Gakpo] [was] top class. A bit more of that would have been really great, but for today it’s absolutely fine.”

The post Darwin Nunez Doubtful for Liverpool Champions League Clash appeared first on SportzBonanza.

UEFA reportedly came up with a plan to resume the Champions League and Europa League, two main European club competitions. According to ESPN, both competitions could wrap up as “mini-tournaments” held over two weeks on one location.

The standard format of away and home games present in European club competitions isn’t considered a viable option anymore due to restrictions caused by the coronavirus. This is why UEFA came up with a plan to have a centralized competition, described by BILD as a “World Cup-style” tournament in order to crown a champion. The competitions would resume from round-of-16, with later stages assuming knock-out format.  

This year’s UEFA Champions League finale was set to take place in Istanbul, but the city reportedly isn’t in consideration due to restrictions imposed by the Turkish government. Instead, Lisbon, Frankfurt, and Moscow emerged as the main options to host the tournament.

Lisbon is viewed as a favorite among the three cities, as it offers two stadiums and complexes in Benfica’s Estadio da Luz and Sporting CP’s Estadio Jose Alvalade. The stadiums are also just a few miles within each other, giving UEFA more scheduling options.

The Eintracht Frankfurt’s Commerzbank Arena in Germany is also an appealing option for UEFA, due to travel benefits and the stadium’s high-end facilities.

The final decisions about the Champions League and Europa League will most likely be made in late June when all other details should be revealed.

The post UEFA Considers Resuming Champions League and Europa League appeared first on SportzBonanza.

After winning by a 2-0 final in the first leg of their Champions League draw against Juventus, Atlético Madrid was feeling pretty good about their chances to advance to the competition’s quarter-finals.

That dream went up in smoke after Juventus and a masterful Cristiano Ronaldo performance led to their defeat by a 3-0 margin in Turin on Tuesday night.

Juventus, who is considered one of the top favorites to take home the Champions League title, found itself in desperate straits going into Tuesday’s game.

Manager Massimiliano Allegri made a few tactical changes to let Cristiano Ronaldo loose and shore up his team’s defense, and they made all of the difference in a dominant performance.

Cristiano Ronaldo cemented his place as possibly the greatest Champions League player in the history of the league after scoring a hat trick to lead his club to victory.

Ronaldo scored his first goal on a header in the 26th minute, which gave Juventus a halftime lead of 1-0.

After the break, he scored with his head again to even the draw and put his team up 2-0 in the game. The ball was touched by Atleti goalkeeper Jan Oblak, but the referee’s watch confirmed that the ball crossed the goal line.

Finally, Juventus sealed its win after a penalty was called against Atlético. In the 88th minute of the game, Ronaldo calmly buried a penalty kick past Oblak to put his team in the quarter-finals.

The post Juventus Comes from Behind to Stun Atlético Madrid appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Diego Simeone’s Atlético Madrid took a commanding step to shocking the world and advancing past Italian giants Juventus with a 2-0 home win on Wednesday night.

Juventus, one of the most star-studded teams in the world with players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala, was frustrated and held goalless by Atletico´s tenacious defense.

The game, which was played in front of a raucous and intimidating atmosphere at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium, was full of memorable moments.

The first was when Atlético striker Alvaro Morata, in the 70th minute of the match, scored what appeared to be a goal to give Atlético a 1-0 lead. However, referee Felix Zwayer ruled after consulting with VAR that Morata had pushed Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini before heading the cross into the net.

The goal was disallowed to the shock of many.

However, it didn’t take long for Atlético to score a valid goal and gain the lead after this. Center back José María Giménez scored a goal after a corner kick in the 78th minute to give Atlético a 1-0 lead.

Just five minutes later, another center back, Diego Godin, scored a goal that caromed off of Cristiano Ronaldo and into the net to give Atleti a 2-0 lead that they would not relinquish.

The second leg, which will be played on Tuesday, March 12th in Turin, will be an extreme challenge for Juventus if they want to advance to the next round in the tournament.

The post Atlético Madrid Dominates Juventus 2-0 in Champions League appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Champions League round of 16 draw on Monday brought us some exciting matches. Reigning champion Real Madrid will face Paris Saint-Germain while Chelsea will play against Barcelona.

Real Madrid will look for a chance to grab their third straight Champions League trophy after finishing second in group H, while group B winner PSG is one of the favorites in this season after reinforcing their team with Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Dani Alves over the summer.

“It could have been the final, for the power of the two clubs, but that happens in a draw — luck plays a role,” – said Real Madrid’s director of institutional relations, Emilio Butragueno to beIN Sports.”We will meet them in the last 16, which is a bit early, we could say. Logically we are both challengers for the trophy.”

The second most interesting matchup has a struggling between the always dangerous Chelsea and Barcelona – a team that is still undefeated in this season.

“We knew there was a high chance we could get Chelsea and so it was,” – said Guillermo Amor, Barcelona’s director of institutional relations. “It’s welcome. If you want to win the competition, you have to beat everyone. It’s going to be a great knockout tie. We’ll go into it with optimism, confidence and a huge desire to get through.“

After finishing behind Barcelona in group D, Seria A champion Juventus will try to overcome an obstacle in group H winners Tottenham. Another English club Manchester United will face tough competition in Sevilla while Liverpool will be tested by Porto.

Champions League round of 16 begins on February 13, 2018. You can check out the full draw below.

Juventus vs. Tottenham Hotspur
Basel vs. Manchester City
Porto vs. Liverpool
Sevilla vs. Manchester United
Real Madrid vs. Paris Saint-Germain
Shakhtar Donetsk vs. Roma
Chelsea vs. Barcelona
Bayern Munich vs. Besiktas

The post Champions League Round of 16 Draw Has Real Madrid Facing PSG appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Manchester City and Inter Milan are the final two teams to secure their spots in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals. City advanced thanks to a 4-1 aggregate win against Bayern Munich, while Inter punched their ticket with a combined 5-3 score in two games against Benfica.

City will now play against the reigning UCL champions Real Madrid in the semis, while Inter faces their cross-town rivals AC Milan. The semifinals phase of the competition is scheduled to start in early May.

Both Man City and Inter entered the second leg of the quarter-finals with healthy leads from the first matches and focused on keeping their opponents at bay.

Bayern needed a miracle to negate City’s 3-0 league from the first match but never got close, even with their home fans giving them some extra motivation. After the first half went scoreless, it was City that got the first goal via Erling Haaland in the 57th minute. The Bundesliga champs managed to tie the game when Joshua Kimmich converted a penalty late in the game, but the goal didn’t make much difference at that point.

On the other hand, Inter and Benfica delivered a goal fest for fans in their Wednesday night’s game. Inter opened the scoring through Nicolo Barella in the 14th minute before Benfica’s Fredrik Aursnes made it 1-1 before the end of the half.

Inter went on to build a two-goal lead midway through the second half, with Lautaro Martínez and Joaquin Correa each finding the net to put an end to Benfica’s hopes. The Portuguese club did respond with two goals of their own, but they came at a point where Inter was already thinking about the next stage.

The post Man City and Inter Secure Spots in UCL Semi-Finals appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Darwin Nunez is an injury doubt ahead of the first leg of Liverpool’s Champions League Round of 16 clash with Real Madrid at Anfield on Tuesday night.

Nunez scored his first Premier League goal since the restart after the World Cup to help his team secure a valuable 2-0 away win at Newcastle United on Saturday. Nunez was replaced by Roberto Firminho at the 59-minute mark after he incurred a shoulder injury.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp revealed that Nunez is set to undergo tests on the problem area and that nothing is yet known about the extent of the injury. He did, however, reveal that Nunez is experiencing pain.

Although Nunez remains a doubt for the Real Madrid game, Klopp believes his team is on the path to turning their season around following the away win at Newcastle.

“We are a step further forward,” Klopp stated. “Both goals were outstanding. The pass from Trent [Alexander-Arnold] for Darwin [Nunez] and from Mo [Salah] to Cody [Gakpo] [was] top class. A bit more of that would have been really great, but for today it’s absolutely fine.”

The post Darwin Nunez Doubtful for Liverpool Champions League Clash appeared first on SportzBonanza.

UEFA reportedly came up with a plan to resume the Champions League and Europa League, two main European club competitions. According to ESPN, both competitions could wrap up as “mini-tournaments” held over two weeks on one location.

The standard format of away and home games present in European club competitions isn’t considered a viable option anymore due to restrictions caused by the coronavirus. This is why UEFA came up with a plan to have a centralized competition, described by BILD as a “World Cup-style” tournament in order to crown a champion. The competitions would resume from round-of-16, with later stages assuming knock-out format.  

This year’s UEFA Champions League finale was set to take place in Istanbul, but the city reportedly isn’t in consideration due to restrictions imposed by the Turkish government. Instead, Lisbon, Frankfurt, and Moscow emerged as the main options to host the tournament.

Lisbon is viewed as a favorite among the three cities, as it offers two stadiums and complexes in Benfica’s Estadio da Luz and Sporting CP’s Estadio Jose Alvalade. The stadiums are also just a few miles within each other, giving UEFA more scheduling options.

The Eintracht Frankfurt’s Commerzbank Arena in Germany is also an appealing option for UEFA, due to travel benefits and the stadium’s high-end facilities.

The final decisions about the Champions League and Europa League will most likely be made in late June when all other details should be revealed.

The post UEFA Considers Resuming Champions League and Europa League appeared first on SportzBonanza.

After winning by a 2-0 final in the first leg of their Champions League draw against Juventus, Atlético Madrid was feeling pretty good about their chances to advance to the competition’s quarter-finals.

That dream went up in smoke after Juventus and a masterful Cristiano Ronaldo performance led to their defeat by a 3-0 margin in Turin on Tuesday night.

Juventus, who is considered one of the top favorites to take home the Champions League title, found itself in desperate straits going into Tuesday’s game.

Manager Massimiliano Allegri made a few tactical changes to let Cristiano Ronaldo loose and shore up his team’s defense, and they made all of the difference in a dominant performance.

Cristiano Ronaldo cemented his place as possibly the greatest Champions League player in the history of the league after scoring a hat trick to lead his club to victory.

Ronaldo scored his first goal on a header in the 26th minute, which gave Juventus a halftime lead of 1-0.

After the break, he scored with his head again to even the draw and put his team up 2-0 in the game. The ball was touched by Atleti goalkeeper Jan Oblak, but the referee’s watch confirmed that the ball crossed the goal line.

Finally, Juventus sealed its win after a penalty was called against Atlético. In the 88th minute of the game, Ronaldo calmly buried a penalty kick past Oblak to put his team in the quarter-finals.

The post Juventus Comes from Behind to Stun Atlético Madrid appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Diego Simeone’s Atlético Madrid took a commanding step to shocking the world and advancing past Italian giants Juventus with a 2-0 home win on Wednesday night.

Juventus, one of the most star-studded teams in the world with players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala, was frustrated and held goalless by Atletico´s tenacious defense.

The game, which was played in front of a raucous and intimidating atmosphere at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium, was full of memorable moments.

The first was when Atlético striker Alvaro Morata, in the 70th minute of the match, scored what appeared to be a goal to give Atlético a 1-0 lead. However, referee Felix Zwayer ruled after consulting with VAR that Morata had pushed Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini before heading the cross into the net.

The goal was disallowed to the shock of many.

However, it didn’t take long for Atlético to score a valid goal and gain the lead after this. Center back José María Giménez scored a goal after a corner kick in the 78th minute to give Atlético a 1-0 lead.

Just five minutes later, another center back, Diego Godin, scored a goal that caromed off of Cristiano Ronaldo and into the net to give Atleti a 2-0 lead that they would not relinquish.

The second leg, which will be played on Tuesday, March 12th in Turin, will be an extreme challenge for Juventus if they want to advance to the next round in the tournament.

The post Atlético Madrid Dominates Juventus 2-0 in Champions League appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Champions League round of 16 draw on Monday brought us some exciting matches. Reigning champion Real Madrid will face Paris Saint-Germain while Chelsea will play against Barcelona.

Real Madrid will look for a chance to grab their third straight Champions League trophy after finishing second in group H, while group B winner PSG is one of the favorites in this season after reinforcing their team with Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Dani Alves over the summer.

“It could have been the final, for the power of the two clubs, but that happens in a draw — luck plays a role,” – said Real Madrid’s director of institutional relations, Emilio Butragueno to beIN Sports.”We will meet them in the last 16, which is a bit early, we could say. Logically we are both challengers for the trophy.”

The second most interesting matchup has a struggling between the always dangerous Chelsea and Barcelona – a team that is still undefeated in this season.

“We knew there was a high chance we could get Chelsea and so it was,” – said Guillermo Amor, Barcelona’s director of institutional relations. “It’s welcome. If you want to win the competition, you have to beat everyone. It’s going to be a great knockout tie. We’ll go into it with optimism, confidence and a huge desire to get through.“

After finishing behind Barcelona in group D, Seria A champion Juventus will try to overcome an obstacle in group H winners Tottenham. Another English club Manchester United will face tough competition in Sevilla while Liverpool will be tested by Porto.

Champions League round of 16 begins on February 13, 2018. You can check out the full draw below.

Juventus vs. Tottenham Hotspur
Basel vs. Manchester City
Porto vs. Liverpool
Sevilla vs. Manchester United
Real Madrid vs. Paris Saint-Germain
Shakhtar Donetsk vs. Roma
Chelsea vs. Barcelona
Bayern Munich vs. Besiktas

The post Champions League Round of 16 Draw Has Real Madrid Facing PSG appeared first on SportzBonanza.