Champions League semifinals first leg: 5 talking points
The first leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinals delivered what was promised as the four sides went against each other while playing some mesmerizing football in the process.
Ajax managed to take a slender lead over Tottenham through Dutch midfielder Donny van de Beek after working around the Spurs defense with slick passing. They were then able to hold on to their lead after withstanding a barrage of attacks by the English club who were without key players in captain and star striker Harry Kane and Heung Min Son.
On the other hand, a clinical Barcelona side led by captain Lionel Messi left Liverpool needing a miracle during the second leg at Anfield after securing a 3-0 victory at the Nou Camp.
Messi yet again proved to be the difference by scoring a brace on a night his club expected him to lead them to the promised land. Here are a few key talking points from the two matches:
#1 Magical Messi at it again
It is sporadic that you get to witness pure genius at work and this was another night that football fans all over the world got to witness moments of sheer brilliance along with childlike enthusiasm from Lionel Messi as he ripped an in-form Liverpool side to shreds.
Rarely do you see someone who mixes an artist's skillsets with the precision of a surgeon and that is precisely what Messi has been doing on a nightly basis while giving it his all for the badge that he has been representing since he was a kid.
There is not a defender nor a defense in the world that can stop the diminutive genius once he gets going as a Liverpool defense, led by PFA Player of The Year, Virgil Van Dijk, learned the hard way. Liverpool did an excellent job in the first half containing him and yet he still managed to find pockets of space as he weaved his way around despite being met with crunching tackles every step he took.
That rare combination of grit and mastery over his art is what makes Messi arguably the greatest ever to play the game. We are truly blessed to have lived in an era where we have been left mesmerized by his exploits and can relay them to future generations like the previous generations have told us about players such as Pele and Maradona.