Lionel Messi's best goals are a feast for the eyes. He is not a force of nature; he is supernatural, mercurial...pure magic.
Fans of great soccer — even if they root for Real Madrid — are amazed and cannot get enough of Messi. Be it his goals, dribbles or out-of-this-world training routines, "La Pulga" is simply too good to miss.
The powers that be in the National Basketball Association apparently decided that the annual All-Star Game and surrounding weekend activities were not Fergalicious enough for their liking. So, they enlisted Fergie (of Black-Eyed Peas fame, not of Manchester United fame) to sing The Star-Spangled Banner prior to Sunday's game.
It went . . . interestingly.
For at least a decade or two, England and Spain have been home to the two best soccer leagues in the world. La Liga and Premier League clubs have consistently been the two most competitive in the Champions League since the rebranding of the tournament for the 1992-93 season. So what happens when we get an England vs Spain Champions League matchup? Historically, one league has won a lot more often: La Liga.
No surprise really, but the first leg of the Real Madrid-PSG Champions League Round of 16 matchup was a huge success for broadcasters as the two-time defending champions rallied for a 3-1 victory on Wednesday in Madrid. As the numbers from the Real Madrid-PSG TV ratings begin to trickle in, we’re beginning to learn just how big of a deal the match was for countries around the world, especially those without a team in the fight.
Next Tuesday, Chelsea and Barcelona will renew one of the greatest footballing rivalries of the 21st century. Beginning in 2000 and ending with that Fernando Torres goal scored almost six years ago, Barca and Chelsea met 12 times in the Champions League, including the 2000 quarterfinals, the 2005 and 2006 Round of 16 and the 2009 and 2012 semifinals.
WATCH THIS: Greatest Games, 2009 UCL Semifinal
After Sadio Mane and his pals ended Porto's 24-match unbeaten streak at home in destructive fashion Wednesday, one would think the Porto fans would be, like, mad or something.
But they weren't. Or, at least, if they had any anger they pushed it down deep inside themselves to be let out later at (to pick a profession at random) a tow-truck driver. Instead, the Porto fans cheered their team following an embarrassing loss just as loudly as they would have following a big win.
Something caught my eye during Manchester City’s Champions League encounter with Basel on Tuesday, and it wasn’t Amazonian fish-frog god Bernardo Silva. I saw it on City’s Twitter page — a beautiful little animation of their own and Basel’s badges before the game.
Like a good sports hack reporter boy, I had to know more. Had they done this before? Yes. Had they been doing this since the start of the season? Yes.
Okay.
Real Madrid vs PSG was electric. Two of the richest soccer clubs in the world faced each other in the most expected clash in the Champions League round of sixteen. And it was absolutely high voltage.
Of course, soccer fans around the planet were also itching for the Cristiano Ronaldo vs Neymar duel.