Champions League Ronaldos and Pogbas…

Ian Watson
Luis Suarez, Dusan Tadic and Paul Pogba feature among Champions League winners and losers.

The Premier League quartet all feature in the Champions League winners column. Paul Pogba joins Luis Suarez among the losers…

 

Winners

Manchester United
A performance that posed the usual questions and offered some familiar answers. But sitting at the top of Group F after being third as they entered added time at Atalanta thrusts them towards the top of the winners column.

In short, United were pretty rotten in Bergamo but saved once more by Cristiano Ronaldo’s ridiculousness. ‘Sloppy, disorganised, muddled. In every position,’ wrote Winty in the immediate aftermath of yet another match that leaves us all utterly befuddled by the Red Devils.

But they got away with it. Just. Until the next time that they don’t. Which could be the derby on Saturday, or the trip to Villarreal in a couple of weeks. We know United can’t carry on like this, but at least for now their Champions League destiny remains in their own hands. Which is all they could have asked for as the clocked ticked over 90 minutes in Italy.

 

Cristiano Ronaldo
The narrative that Ronaldo was somehow a problem – or even the problem – for Solskjaer was always horsesh*t. Yes, his traits pose a specific tactical problem for United, one which can be solved by the shift to the new system Solskjaer employed at Spurs and before Raphael Varane was substituted at Atalanta. But Ronaldo’s plus-one brace highlights once more his importance to this United side. The fact anyone still needs convincing of that is just weird.

 

Ronaldo wrestles the narrative away from Solskjaer again

 

Donny van de Beek
Van de Beek’s manager/captor offered evidence of life with an eight-minute cameo for the Dutchman in which the United outcast showed more impetus than Paul Pogba managed in three-quarters of the match. Mere involvement was a positive step for Van de Beek, who may well still be heading for the exit, but with Pogba more hurried in his dash for the door, the former Ajax midfielder could yet get a chance to save his United career.

Or he could be locked up again in Ole’s basement until January. It’s Solskjaer’s call.

 

Liverpool
Made the group of death look dead easy…

With a dismantling of Atletico Madrid, the Reds secured qualification and top spot from a pool as perilous as any other when it was drawn in August.

But Jurgen Klopp’s side have p*ssed it. And it was fitting that they completed the job by cruising past Atletico.

Liverpool got off to a flier, just as they did in Madrid a fortnight ago, but there was never any prospect of an Atletico fightback this time, not least because Atletico’s fight was channelled in all the wrong ways. The Reds, though, never took the bait and rose above the Spaniards’ shenanigans, allowing Klopp a smug feeling of superiority over Diego Simeone while the two managers don’t bother to hide their disdain for one another.

Klopp could stitch up Simeone further now by fielding second-string sides for the remaining dead rubbers against Porto and Milan. But the manager has already rotated his squad though this group stage and never have Liverpool suffered for it.

Kostas Tsimikas proved once again that he is more than an able deputy for Andy Robertson, while Joel Matip showed Ibrahima Konate that he has plenty to do to dislodge the Cameroonian as the preferred partner for Virgil van Dijk. Roberto Firmino limped off with a hamstring injury, but Diogo Jota’s form means the Brazilian’s absence might not be noticed.

Firmino’s injury meant that is was only a ‘nearly perfect night’ to complete Liverpool’s first perfect start through the first four Champions League group matches.

 

Liverpool ignore tantrums as Makkelie role proves crucial

 

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Pinpointed as the player to watch this midweek, the Liverpool midfielder showcased his desire to prove himself at Anfield by seizing a rare chance to start for the Reds.

This was only Oxlade-Chamberlain’s 11th start for the Reds since Atletico’s last visit to Merseyside just before everything in the world went to sh*t in March 2020. A midfield injury crisis allowed the former England star an inconsistent cameo on Saturday which demanded a positive performance against Atletico.

Oxlade-Chamberlain offered just that. Fabinho’s comeback and Jordan Henderson’s presence doubtless helped him settle in Klopp’s engine room but the Ox looked far more assured than he has in many of his sporadic appearances since returning from a serious knee injury.

His future is still far from assured but this performance provided plenty of encouragement for Oxlade-Chamberlain when another anonymous display could have left his Liverpool career dangling by a far barer thread.

Liverpool score against Madrid

Manchester City
Last season’s finalists are a point from qualifying with two games to go after a mixed performance against Club Brugge.

City showed some signs of a hangover from the weekend defeat to Crystal Palace against the Belgians who were equally as happy as the Eagles to sit deep, dig in and counter at speed.

But Pep Guardiola’s men retained some relentlessness through their sloppiness, which was enough to overpower Brugge for the second time in a fortnight.

City host PSG next safe in the knowledge that they need only a draw from their final two games. Before then, however, comes the Manchester derby – ‘the most important game ever’ about which Guardiola will be feeling rather more at ease after City’s rhythm returned in the second half.

 

Chelsea
The Blues too need only a point to follow Juventus from Group H into the knockout stages after denying Malmo a shot on target in Sweden.

It was a 10th clean sheet in 17 games for Thomas Tuchel, who will have been similarly as pleased to see his a second-string forward line eventually make the difference in the absence of Romelu Lukaku, Timo Werner and Mason Mount.

 

Arno Michels
Even Tactics Tom needs a helping hand from time to time and on Tuesday evening it came from his right-hand man.

“All credit to my assistant,” said Tuchel of the move that saw Hakim Ziyech and Callum Hudson-Odoi switch flanks in the second half. Each struggled to find space before Hudson-Odoi moved to the right, from where he set up Ziyech for the winner.

It was Ziyech’s first goal since the Super Cup final in August and should serve as a shot in the arm as he battles to prove himself after injury, especially after peppering Newcastle’s goal on Saturday without managing to find the Magpies’ net.

 

Juventus
A welcome return to serenity for our early winner.

 

Barcelona
Ansu Fati remains one of the few good things about Barca these days and it was the teenager who once again rode to their rescue with the winner at Dynamo Kiev.

His second-half strike keeps Barca’s fate in their own hands, though with Benfica and Bayern Munich left to play, the possibility remains that they’ll fumble it.

But they have at least offered the illusion of character in these two wins over the Ukrainians which mean they avoid being rooted to the bottom of Group E with two games to go. By which time, Barca will hope Xavi will be in place to bring a new manager bounce all the way from Doha.

 

Ajax
One of four perfect teams so far, Ajax completed a hugely impressive Dortmund double with a come-from-behind win in Germany.

It helped that Dortmund were deprived of Mats Hummels for an hour after the defender’s dubious red card – “an absurd wrong decision,” according to Hummels – but Erik ten Haag still had work to do after a “poor performance” in the first half.

The in-demand coach’s response was to bring on Davy Klaassen at half-time and move Ryan Gravenberch further forward. It worked, with three goals in the last 19 minutes earning Ajax their first perfect record through four opening Champions League group games.

 

Sebastien Haller
The former West Ham striker’s 15th goal in 23 games this season for Ajax puts him among some illustrious company…

Robert Lewandowski
A fourth hat-trick in his 100th Champions League appearance, in which he has netted 81 goals. This latest treble, in Bayern’s 5-2 win over Benfica, was his 22nd goal in 18 games this season.

Just a ridiculous striker in a ridiculous team which, with their 17th goal in four matches, equalled the record for highest scorers by this stage.

 

Real Madrid
The first goal of Karim Benzema’s brace against Shakhtar Donetsk, which kept Carlo Ancelotti’s side at the top of Group D, was Real’s 1000th Champions League goal. The top five…

Real Madrid: 1001
Bayern Munich: 768
Barcelona: 655
Manchester United: 529
Juventus: 468

 

Losers

Paul Pogba
Pogba plays in fleeting bursts and his early season form was shunted further back in the memory with the latest in a long line of half-arsed performances in United’s midfield.

With United chasing an equaliser, it was Pogba hooked rather than Scott McTominay, despite the Scotland midfielder stomping on thin ice around the referee. Whether United play a three or four at the back, Pogba simply cannot be trusted in the deeper role and Solskjaer has better options to play on the left of his forward line.

Pogba will leave next summer, though his head departed months and years ago. Even being in the shop window is failing to motivate the infuriating Frenchman, so there is little point in continuing to give him opportunities he clearly has no intention of taking.

 

Raphael Varane
Only just back from injury, the United defender looks set to miss a month with a hamstring problem, which is more of an issue for Solskjaer given how much softer his side appears in the Frenchman’s absence.

 

Diego Simeone
The Atletico boss is very much a man to hold a grudge so being schooled so easily by Klopp and Liverpool will have left Simeone seething on the flight back to Spain.

In fairness, Simeone was magnanimous in defeat, even if he refused again to offer Klopp his hand. He resisted the opportunity to lay into referee Danny Makkelie after Felipe’s 36th-minute red card left his side light of a man and praised his side for not caving in.

“Other teams would have fallen apart,” he said, but Atletico’s response was still tamer than we have come to expect from the Spanish champions.

Even their customary sh*thousery was half-hearted as Atletico wilted at the prospect of facing a Liverpool side with a numerical advantage and a deserved air of superiority.

Perhaps Simeone kept a lid on his true feelings because he knows he needs a couple of favours from Klopp and Liverpool, with Atletico a point off Porto in the race for second place.

 

Luis Suarez
Booed from the start to his premature finish; booked; barely given a kick; and when he netted a deflected goal to give Atletico some hope, it was disallowed over a close offside call.

This was so far from the glorious return to Anfield that he might have anticipated, but the Liverpool fans who booed him over those who applauded their former hero will insist he made his bed on his last visit to Merseyside with Barcelona.

 

Sevilla
The Europa League specialists were handed a Europa-style Champions League group. But still our early losers are f***ing it up.

 

PSG
Reports suggest the Parisian club is becoming concerned at the lack of French being used in the dressing room these days. But there will have been plenty of it flying around, in the proverbial sense at least, after Mauricio Pochettino watched his men chuck away top spot in added time at RB Leipzig.

Gini Wijnaldum got off the mark for his new-ish club with a brace in Germany, but having already given their hosts one penalty which Gianluigi Donnarumma saved, PSG offered up another in the dying moments when Presnel Kimpembe fouled Christopher Nkunku.

At least Kimpembe showed a desire to get stuck in. Which is more than can be said for Neymar…

Even without the injured Lionel Messi, this one clip sums up Pochettino’s problem. With such a laissez-faire approach to pressing, the coach cannot play the way he sees fit. Nor can he drop his biggest names for fear of the consequences.

PSG next go to Manchester City and should they lose at the Etihad, they could face a final matchday play-off with Club Brugge for a place in the last 16. Which really should not be the case for a squad as strong as any in Europe – for star power if not cohesion.

 

Dusan Tadic’s swimmers
The Ajax star almost went full Phil Babb while netting his side’s leveller in Dortmund.

Winners & Losers Cristiano Ronaldo

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