5 famous Champions League shocks
The Champions League is the world’s greatest club competition. Year in, year out, Europe’s elite clubs battle it out for the biggest prize in club football.
Over the years we have seen some memorable moments in the competition, with some of the world’s finest players producing their best form. In recent years it has been Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo who have been the stars of the show, with the pair the only two in the competition’s history to have scored more than 100 goals.
It has been the Spanish clubs who have dominated the Champions League over the past decade. Seven out of the last ten winners have come from Spain, with Real Madrid emerging victories in each of the last three years under Zinedine Zidane.
But, at times, the Champions League gives opportunities for a shock. While we have seen these giants of European football succeed on a number of occasions, there have been times when they have been shocked by smaller teams, with squads which are on paper much weaker.
Here are five of the biggest shocks we have seen in the Champions League since the turn of the century.
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#1 Barcelona 2-2 Chelsea (2012)
This one may have ended as a draw on the night, but it was enough to see Chelsea through on aggregate. Having won the first leg of their semi-final 1-0 at Stamford Bridge, the Blues went into the game at the Nou Camp with a slight advantage, but coming up against one of the best club sides we have ever seen.
They trailed early on to a Sergio Busquets goal, and had John Terry dismissed, before Andres Iniesta added a second for Barcelona. But with a makeshift back four, now including Branislav Ivanovic and Jose Bosingwa at centre back, Chelsea put themselves in a position to progress thanks to Ramires’ superb chip just before the break.
They defended excellently after the break, with Lionel Messi also missing a penalty for the hosts. Roberto di Matteo’s side secured progress in injury time, when Fernando Torres rounded Victor Valdes to score.