These last four days have been a let down and quite painful for me on a footballing scale. On a scale of 1 out of 10—1 being the most intolerable and 10 being the most euphoric—I’m at a 2 1/2. đ
Why am I so down-trodden? My two favorite football clubs for decades, Arsenal and Barcelona are in a slump at the moment. Arsenal lost a league game this past Sunday to Aston Villa, and their Champions League game today against Bayern Munich. Barcelona was eliminated yesterday from the Champions League by Kylian Mbappé and Paris Saint-Germane.
And if that heartbreaking defeat wasn’t enough for my fragile heart, then came the 2nd leg of the UEFA Champions League Quarter-final today against Bayern, in Munich. As I watched the match, I became acutely aware of my Gunners’ young inexperience in huge pressure-filled games in one of the most elite, acclaimed tournaments in the world, certainly in Europe. Arsenal just did not have the savvy or the savage predatory hunger to take it to Bayern Munich. Credit Bayern for being well-disciplined in defense along with their pedigreed experience in big Champions League fixtures.
And my beloved FC Barcelona were eliminated by PSG, DembĂ©lĂ©, Vitinha, and the phenomenal magic of Kylian MbappĂ©. Despite the disappointing losses of my two clubs, the level of football played, the offensive creativity exhibited by the top clubs in the world, and the exquisite number of goals scored, made this weekend and mid-week truly a footballing experience to last a long, long time! Below is my #1 pick for Best Goal of these CL Quarter-finals, Frederico Valverde’s smasher in the 79′ minute to tie the aggregate. Watch the highlights and be amazed…
Now it is on to the Premier League title race against Man City and Liverpool, and on to the LaLiga title race for Barcelona against Real Madrid and maybe Girona if they gain momentum in these remaining weeks of league play.
âFootball-Soccer: The language the world speaks fluently.â
The Professorâs Convatorium © 2023 by Professor Taboo is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
World's Most Beautiful Game 