Key events
The big decision …
First, Paramount presents a parade of missed Parisian chances. Thierry Henry is on their set in Miami, and he is clearly grimacing at the poor finishing.
At last … Unkel comes out and immediately says it is a penalty. The left arm is extended. “Even though there is a deflection, that is no longer part of the analysis.” Not sure if she means that Ifab no longer want us refs to consider that or if there’s something technical there.
Jamie Carragher doesn’t buy it and whips up the crowd gathered by the set. Unkel says she doesn’t like the current interpretation and thinks Ifab may change it.
He’s a bit overbearing about it, but Carragher may have a point. I say that having sent off two coaches in a recreational youth All-Star game when the interpretation at that time said a ball played up into a player’s arm was not a handball call. Ifab “clarified,” of course, by taking out all the specific instances that took out some of the guesswork. No good deed goes … undone, I guess.
Maybe Newcastle shouldn’t give up 30 shots. If it’s any consolation, they looked better than Milan. But not as good as Manchester City once the Premier League powerhouse got their defensive hiccups out of the way.
Anyway, that’s all for today. Enjoy the rest of your autumn.
So what was the key turning point of this evening’s action?
Clearly, it was a comment posted in this space a short time ago …
Jamie O’Sullivan: “I obviously can’t say for certain, but I am 99.9% sure that someone on the City bench read my last email around the 50 minute mark and realized they actually had something to play for.”
I believe it.
Going to hold off on closing down for one more moment here because Paramount is bringing in referee Christina Unkel, surely to ask about that penalty against Newcastle.
Full time scores and standings
Including the early games …
Group E
Lazio 2-0 Celtic
Feyenoord 1-3 Atletico Madrid
Standings: Atletico 11, Lazio 10, Feyenoord 6, Celtic 1
The Atletico-Lazio game is for first place, with both teams safely through. Feyenoord to the Europa after a brief excursion to Scotland.
Group F
AC Milan 1-3 Borussia Dortmund
Paris St. Germain 1-1 Newcastle
Standings: Dortmund 10, PSG 7, Newcastle 5, Milan 5
Oh, what could’ve been! The biggest game in Newcastle in years. It still could be the biggest, but even if Newcastle beat an erratic Milan side, they’ll still be dependent on Dortmund beating PSG.
Group G
Manchester City 3-2 RB Leipzig
Young Boys 2-0 Red Star
Standings: Manchester City 15, Leipzig 9, Young Boys 4, Red Star 1
All places confirmed.
Group H
Barcelona 2-1 Porto
Shakhtar Donetsk 1-0 Antwerp
Standings: Barcelona 12, Porto 9, Shakhtar 9, Antwerp 0
Barcelona are through. Antwerp are not. The big story of Matchday 6 may well be Shakhtar’s visit to Portugal.
Here’s how Barry described it: “The penalty is given for handball, which seems odd considering the cross hit Livramento’s chest and was deflected on to his left elbow.”
As a ref myself, I set a pretty high bar for handball decisions, so I sympathize a bit here.
It’s over. The commentators (not sure who) say PSG were second-best in terms of “endeavor.” They outshot Newcastle 30-5.
And it is indeed a penalty, and Mbappe converts. 1-1. Shattering decision for Newcastle.
Full time: Milan 1-3 Dortmund
Full time: Manchester City 3-2 Leipzig
Full time: Barcelona 2-1 Porto
All eyes turn to Paris for the last game still going.
There’s a check for a penalty in Paris. Check Barry Glendenning’s coverage again. This could be massive.
Full time: Feyenoord 1-3 Atletico Madrid
Will wrap up final scores when they’re all in. PSG-Newcastle is in the eighth minute of stoppage time.
In Milan, it’s the fifth minute of six pointless minutes.
Full time: Young Boys 2-0 Red Star
I don’t think we got a single highlight from this match on the wraparound show in this half. The Swiss side have clinched a spot in the Europa League knockout round.
Barcelona bicycle-ish … it’s an acrobatic attempt, well-saved at the near post to keep Porto’s hopes alive.
Goal! Manchester City 3-2 Leipzig (Alvarez 87)
The turnaround is complete in Manchester, where Foden’s cross slams into a defender’s legs but goes straight to Alvarez, who takes the briefest of moments to recognize his good fortune before depositing the ball in the net.
Chance for Dortmund – a brilliant run down the left by Adeyemi, centered to Fullkrug, who emphatically wins the crossbar challenge. Pity no one else was playing that game.
Chance for Milan – I’d be remiss if I didn’t note a shot off the post, with Jovic nearly halving the deficit with a well-taken header from 15 yards out.
Reminder that Barry Glendenning is covering the PSG-Newcastle match, where the French side have outshot the visitors 23-5 and are still down 0-1.
Goal! Feyenoord 1-3 Atletico Madrid (own goal 81)
Count out Feyenoord.
Beautiful headed goal off a free kick. Just the wrong direction. If you want good news, Feyenoord players have scored three goals to Atletico’s one!
Goal! Feyenoord 1-2 Atletico Madrid (Wieffer 77)
Don’t count out Feyenoord!
Another Dortmund sub: Brandt replaces Reus. Looks like we will not see Gio Reyna in this one.
Leipzig has it in the net! But the AR’s flag goes up, and VAR confirms that a player was offside in the buildup.
Well, “confirms” might be a bit strong. Offside is still a tough call.
Dortmund still seem to be the more likely team to score, which is bad news for the team that needs two goals to avoid plummeting in the group.
Belated news of Manchester City subs …
Ake replaced Ruben Dias at the half. In the 54th, Alvarez and Doku replaced Walker and Grealish.
Justin Kavanaugh writes: “I think Ray Hudson had nipped out to his local bookshop for a new Thesaurus of Superlatives at half time. He’s back now and will be telling us all about the quite majestic, magisterial, and downright magical bagging technique of the assistant any minute now.”
He does say “magisterial” a lot.
Remember when the only way to follow European soccer was to read scores several days after the games? Good times.
Goal! Manchester City 2-2 Leipzig (Foden 70)
This goal thus far exists only in rumor, as the Paramount wrapup show is on its umpteenth replay of the Dortmund goal.
Ah, here we go … foul on the left flank, free kick taken quickly, Leipzig’s defenders all converge in the middle of the field but still leave space for Gvardiol to thread a pass to Foden, and he nonchalantly pokes the ball through the center backs and past the keeper to equalize.
Goal! Milan 1-3 Dortmund (Adeyemi 69)
This one will make them weep in Italy. Adeyemi beats a defender at the top of the area and shoots. Maignan gets a good firm hand to it, but the ball is struck so powerfully that it takes another bounce toward the goal. Maignan jumps back up and scrambles to swat the ball away, but every manner of technology confirms that the ball had already passed over the line.
Back in Milan … Bynoe-Gittens has departed, with Marius Wolf on his place. Wolf is not Reyna.
Milan’s Tomori has picked up a yellow card.
Giroud puts a strong header on target, but it’s saved, and the referee believes Giroud unfairly put his arm on the defender’s shoulder, anyway.
Manchester City-Leipzig stats (at the moment)
Manchester City lead the possession battle (if it exists), 66%-34%.
They also lead in shots taken, 9-4.
They’ve completed 500 passes to Leipzig’s 208.
They’re losing 1-2.
Goal! Feyenoord 0-2 Atletico Madrid (Hermoso 57)
The defender scores on a blooper from an acute angle. Fluke? Brilliance? Doesn’t matter. Advantage doubled.
Goal! Barcelona 2-1 Porto (Joao Felix 57)
How big do those Barcelona saves look now? The home side are in front after the most Barcelona of Barcelona goals, a sequence of precise passes ending in a simple finish.
And speaking of Spain …
Goal! Milan 1-2 Dortmund (Bynoe-Gittens 59)
What poise! Sabitzer glides across the top of the penalty area and dinks the ball over to Bynoe-Gittens, and the young Englishman calmly passes the ball into the net from 16 yards out. Not the most powerful of shots, but it was so perfectly placed that it would’ve taken quite a save to keep it out.
Speaking of saves …
Not Red Star’s night? Brilliant near-post shot, but it hits that near post – the very inside of it, to be precise, an inch or so away from going into the net instead of pinging out to the other side of the field.
Goal! Manchester City 1-2 Leipzig (Haaland 54)
The Leipzig line falters, as Haaland is kept in an onside position by a wayward player nowhere near him, and the dangerous striker makes easy work of it from there.
Now all the kids at the high school where I do some substitute teaching will have more data points for their arguments over the best player in the game at the moment.
Another player down in Milan, and it’s Dortmund defender Schlotterbeck, who is simply sitting on the midfield circle. Replay shows he signaled to the bench and took a seat. He will take a more comfortable seat on the bench, as Salih Ozcan enters in his place. Dortmund will also bring on Adeyemi to replace Malen, bad news for USA! USA! USA! fans who would surely love to see Reyna right about now.
Krunic was the player who replaced Thiaw.
Jamie O’Sullivan asks: “Am I right in saying one more goal would see Leipzig having only to win at home to Young Boys to top the group, and would leave City second with 15 points? That would be pretty remarkable, although obviously I’d rather a straight shootout for goal difference on the final day, 2003 Celtic-Rangers style.”
I believe you are correct.
Ouch. Milan defender Thiaw abruptly pulls up and clutches at his hamstring. He’s down and will be replaced.
More stats … Milan have completed a staggering 93% of their passes. Dortmund isn’t far behind at 88%.
Maybe they should try riskier passes on occasion?
Pulisic scissors kick! A Milan cross caroms off a couple of players in the middle, and Pulisic swings his body around to make solid contact with it. Credit to Dortmund defender Ryerson for literally taking one for the team there.
Stat of the day … our commentators are back, and they inform us that Christian Pulisic completed all 25 of his passes in the first half.
Make that 26, though a five-yard pass backwards under no pressure won’t help much.
And we’re back …
Oddly, no word from our TV commentators on the Milan feed yet. It’s not like Ray Hudson to be quiet for this long. Must be an issue.
An anthem idea …
… combining the two things about Europe that Americans envy the most (excluding political things) …
Each year’s Eurovision winner becomes the Champions League anthem for the next year.
If nothing else, it’ll make people vote very carefully.
From the virtual mailbag …
Harriet Osborn: “I was all set to comment about how City have rather a rotten recent record in Leipzig, then realized this is their home match. So much for that home record- “the longer it goes, the more likely it is to end.”
In fairness, the right side of Manchester City’s defense might as well be in Leipzig. Couldn’t do any worse than they’re doing in Manchester.
Dave O’Leary of Dublin on the Champions League anthem: “Yeah, we’re all definitely tired of it. It’s no Match of the Day. I think we should have different music each season, but from movie soundtracks for that bombastic cinematic feel. So much variety depending on the matches. Terminator 2 title music? Yes please (especially if Haaland is playing.) Battle without Honour or Humanity from Kill Bill? (Bleep) yes please!”
Does the BBC still have a call-in show that uses a Dandy Warhols song as its bumper music? That rocked.
Halftime scores
A good chance goes begging in Milan, with Pulisic playing provider.
Group E
Feyenoord 0-1 Atletico Madrid
Group F
Milan 1-1 Dortmund
PSG 0-1 Newcastle
Group G
Manchester City 0-2 RB Leipzig
Young Boys 2-0 Red Star
Group H
Barcelona 1-1 Porto
So as things stand now, Feyenoord’s hopes are dwindling, Young Boys have one foot in the Europa League, Shakhtar Donetsk still have a shot at winning Group H, and Group F is confused.
