Champions League 2022/2023

Who will win the CL?


  • Total voters
    68

serghei

Senior Member
It is especially hilarious how often keepers hand out free goals to Madrid tough.

Like, Karius in CL final twice, Ulreich in semis before that, then Mendy and Donnarumma last season, now Allisson.

:lol: Come on... it's too much.
 

Blackened

Well-known member
2-5 isnt really fair for Liverpool. Pool started really well and for a time looked like their old self. They deserved their lead and I thought it was going to end up like 3-0 or 4-0. But.... something happened. They after Madrid levelled, Liverpool just lost their cool and allowed Real to take the reigns and expose their rhytmn on them. Everyone knows about the supposed "DNA" Real is supposed to have in this competition. But that cannot explain it all. Make no mistake about it... This is not in any way a top Real Madrid side. This is an unbalanced team of old, semi-washed up players and young second-rate talent. The only player who might be (or become) truely world-class is Vinicius. Other than him, this is a shell of that 2014-2018 vintage. Liverpool are in an urgent need of a rebuild, yes, but that doesnt explain everything. This game was one of the most fucked-up, fluekiest, inexplainable, absurd and punch-drunk games I've ever seen. On another day it could have ended 5-1.... for Liverpool! I've lost for words.
 

FC B

Senior Member
I think this CL is destined for Real Madrid, the competition is too far apart and Madrid turn it up, tbh whos Real biggest fear? Bayern or Man City? or is it the in form Napoli (believe me they will collapse if they face RM).

Would be too much and too soon after the last season of CL, particularly if we look at the manner they won it.
 

CatalinR10

Senior Member
FR8lP4jXwAo_Zbj.jpg:large



Yeah , sure you do.



Fpjihl4X0AA3LFG





They really are RM's bitches.


Shame.
 

Morten

Senior Member
I see it the same. Still think there is room for a great underdog win like a Porto 2004 stuff. Napoli seem in the zone. The bad news is that Madrid built a dinasty out of winning CL in average years, smashing the pretender good clubs. And average years are called that because they are the most common type of years in interclub knockout competition. You don't see Madrid winning when there is an elite dominant team around. Just when you have these periods of good, not great teams being around in the competition, waiting for a giant mental monster like Madrid to kick them out while exposing their flaws.

Hence why their wins are not against likes of mid 00s Milan, late 00s and early 10s Barca etc, or what could be qualified as an elite complete team. But Leverkusen, Atletico, Juventus, Valencia types. They do seem to kick out Bayern often though, which is their favorite most impressive recurring victim among the big boys, until Klopp's Liverpool got jealous and decided to challenge them as Madrid's favorite callgirl. But then Klopp Liverpool showed on Camp Nou, losing 0-3 to an average Barca, that they are not quite what they seem. And then got knocked out at their peak, at home, by a fucking average Atletico version.

Liverpool got exposed big time. And Madrid are just proving they have the 2-3 pieces that Valverde Barca lacked to win the CL back in 2019.

That has literally nothing to do with it, we were simply shit in the mid 2000s, a meme in Europe, has nothing to to with "elite" teams, whatever that even means.

We beat plenty of great teams last decade on our way to the UCL anyway.
 

Gaudi

Senior Member
Yes, they do some weird voodo magic in CL, but not everything can be just down to luck. Mentality, bravery and brains is what they have. Small detail:
If we went down 2:0 in then minutes we would fall appart
If, after going down, we (through some pure luck) got back to the game like RM did we would stop at 2:2 and probably loose 3:2 at the end and then complicate everything in the second leg. They smelled blood and went for the jugular in the first game. They know Lpool is not much worse than them and why play another 50-50 game in Madrid when you can destroy them right now.
 

El Gato

Villarato!
Folk proper weird complaining how much extrinsic factors decide the Madrid wins. The bare minimum is to persevere in face of adversity. Most teams nowadays cant do that bar very few as been conditioned to think negatively of themselves in general (i.e. I conceded/made mistakes therefore I'm shit etc).
Other than RM doing it on the regular to set standard, there aren't all that many comebacks and nobody is a massive specialist.
Pool vs Barca
Roma vs Barca
Barca vs PSG
Real spoiling Juve and Chelsea

RM is so reactive that it almost benefits them to let opponents score as, predictably, nobody seems to hold nerve in the CL enough to react to RM turning tide and having momentum in their favour. You can dislike it, I can dislike it, but it works. RM players thrive in that, in silencing opposing crowd away and riding a wave of support at Bernabeu as they watch others piss their pants. It's on other teams to realise the trend and come up with a way to stop it. Pool just not good enough. In 13/14 Atleti did basically same thing when scored early and did everything correctly until 92:46 even though there was the air of inevitability about RM scoring. In a way, Pep got the closest to stopping it as City scored very late in the tie last year to widen the gap to 2 goals with 10-20 mins left to play. Somebody will eventually do it or RM will fall on own sword and get too overconfident on their own ability to do remontadas on recurring basis. So far not looking like it. Folk like Jammy can talk all the way how last year was 'freak win' and it wont repeat. We'll see. So far we're seeing it's as much a freak win as it is EPL + PSG sides having poor awareness how to stop RM who have clearly identified a recipe of playing the tie in a way they're comfortable with. And it could repeat.
I genuinely think because there is no clear favourite that's far ahead of everyone else, it effectively makes RM the favourite to win. Especially since squad is now deeper than last year even if Benzema poorer scoring season.

As for errors Barca benefitted often enough in their hayday too, as did other teams. And before anyone complains how there was a balance of decisions going both ways, it doesnt really matter, it's part of the game. Argument only ever normally used out of frustration and insecurity of some Cules and reactionary fans alike who seek conspiracies. Real also got done over a barrel (i.e. Higuain goal disallowed in 2nd leg 10/11 over Masche dive when in a comeback dynamic) and had terrible luck (pens vs Bayern). Doesn't mean much.
 
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Blackened

Well-known member
The only kryptonite Real has is Barca. In their prime CL-run from 2014-2018 they always lost to Barca even when Leo wasnt playing. Football is strange.
 

Morten

Senior Member
The only kryptonite Real has is Barca. In their prime CL-run from 2014-2018 they always lost to Barca even when Leo wasnt playing. Football is strange.

Clasico record was surprisingly even against Lucho, but then EV came along, was just no way to beat him.
 

KingLeo10

Senior Member
Clasico record was surprisingly even against Lucho, but then EV came along, was just no way to beat him.

Because 14/15, 15/16, and 16/17 were RM's peak years when you combine CL + LL performance (RM had 90+ league points all 3 seasons)

1-3 RM
2-1 Barca
4-0 Barca
1-2 RM
1-1
3-2 Barca

3 W, 2 L, 1 D in favor of Barca with 12 - 9 (+3) GD.

So even at your absolute best, Barca were still better H2H.

Other teams just don't know how to play you :lol:
 

serghei

Senior Member
That has literally nothing to do with it, we were simply shit in the mid 2000s, a meme in Europe, has nothing to to with "elite" teams, whatever that even means.

We beat plenty of great teams last decade on our way to the UCL anyway.

You didn't. MSN Barca, Pep Barca, 2008 and 2009 United, Heynckes Bayern. Those are great teams, full of elite players of the quality of your main core, or even higher. Barely faced any of them, you faced only Pep Barca of that class and got beaten.

It's normal though, teams of a very high caliber don't appear often, maybe once a decade or even rarer.

Atletico, Juve, faded versions of Bayern... some oil clubs, not sure you can count those as great teams.
 
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Morten

Senior Member
Better yes, but hardly kryptonite or anything like that.

You had a grand total of one win more during Lucho's time over us, EV was our real kryptonite.
 

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