The best individual performances in the Champions League semi-finals
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Footballmight be a team game but on the biggest occasions it’s often the individual whomakes the difference. Rarely is that more evident than in the semi-finals ofthe Champions League.
We’vewitnessed the good, the bad and the ugly in the last-four stage of thecompetition, and a lot of Chelsea versus Liverpool too. But which playersgodown in history with tournament-defining individual performances?
Check out ourtop four below and let us know what you think either by commenting or tweeting@Ladbrokes.
Keane vJuventus (1998-99)
Man Unitedhave had more than one great night in Turin over the years. Yet it’s the 1999semi-final second-leg against Juventus that lives longest in the memory, notleast because of an inspired turn from Roy Keane.
With the Red Devils trailing 2-0 on the night, Keane sparked an unlikely revival with a glancing header to make it 2-1. That set the tone for what was to come, but it was his display after receiving a booking that would rule him out of the final which goes down in legend.
From thatpoint on, his focus was unerring and his passing exquisite. Wes Brown latersaid the Irishman went into “Terminator Mode”. It’s hard to disagree, with Keaneinspiring United to their date with destiny at Camp Nou.
Kaka vMan United (2006-07)
The 2006-07 semi-final between Man United and AC Milan was all about Kaka. The mercurial Brazilian dominated over not one but two legs as I Rossoneri set out to avenge the previous season’s semi-final defeat to Barcelona.
Kaka was ahuge part of that, scoring two vital away goals in the first-leg at OldTrafford to keep Milan in the tie, even if an inspired Wayne Rooney doublemeant they still had it all to do back at the San Siro.
That was noproblem for Kaka, though, with the future Ballon d’Or winner netting the openerin a 3-0 return-leg victory to send Carlo Ancelotti’s men through to anothermouth-watering battle with Liverpool.
Lewandowskiv Real Madrid (2012-13)
It’s longbeen established that Robert Lewandowski quite likes scoring goals. Never wasthat more evident than against Real Madrid in 2013, when the Polish hitmanslammed four past Los Blancos in one night.
Three poacher’s efforts and one superbly taken strike in the first-leg at Signal Iduna Park all-but guaranteed Borussia Dortmund a first Champions League final appearance since the 1996-97 season.
CristianoRonaldo’s consolation effort gave Real hope, and despite a 2-0 win in thesecond-leg for the La Liga side, it wasn’t enough as Lewandowski’s quartet ofstrikes set-up a Wembley date with rivals Bayern Munich.
Moura v Ajax (2018-19)
Football isa funny old game. Lucas Moura probably wouldn’t have even started thissemi-final had Harry Kane been available. But the Tottenham captain wasn’t fit,and Moura got the nod up-front instead.
Fate worksin mysterious ways. And the Brazilian would end up responsible for one of thegreatest comebacks in the Champions League history, scoring a hat-trick to takeTottenham through to the unlikeliest of CL finals.
Afterfinishing a superb first-time chance to make it 2-1 the forward then produced afine solo effort to draw things level at 2-2.
It wasn’tuntil the sixth minute of added time that he completed the job, latching on toDele Alli’s perfectly weighted through ball before passing it beyond AndreOnana to send Spurs through on away goals.
All oddsand markets correct as of date of publication.
