Upsets

Real Madrid ventured to Celta Vigo’s Balaidos stadium in Galicia needing to overturn a 2-1 deficit to advance to the Copa del Rey semifinals. In the end, Celta held their nerve to secure a 2-2 draw and advance 4-3 on aggregate.

The Celts earned a first half advantage when Danilo turned the ball into his own net, his second own goal in his last three appearances. A shot from John Guidetti was brilliantly saved by Kiko Casilla, but the rebound deflected off Danilo and into the net.

In the wake of the LaMia Flight 2933 disaster which took the lives of 22 members of the Chapecoense football squad, the club has begun the painful process of building towards their new season with the aim of promoting players from their youth teams. While many seasoned professionals and other Brazilian clubs have offered their support with regards to personnel, Chapecoesne president Plinio David de nes Filho has maintained that the club will stay true to its roots and values.

Ze Roberto might just be the most unheralded footballer of all time. The 42-year-old left back has amassed almost 100 caps with Brazil, is a legend at Bayern Munich and has a trophy cabinet that includes (and this is the abridged version):

It’s the age old question we’ve always wanted an answer to: yes, Bayern Munich are a great side, but can they do it on a freezing cold night the federal subject of Russia known as Yaroslavl Oblast? No is the definitive answer — FC Hollywood is soft, and now they're in crisis.

Providence provided the upset of the 2016 Men's NCAA Tournament by shocking top-ranked and previously undefeated Maryland 5-4 in the second round. Even more stunning than the upset was how they went about achieving it.

Down 4-1 in the 54th minute, the Friars' season appeared all but over. However, Providence got a glimmer of hope in the 70th minute, Julian Gressel scoring his second of the match and cutting the defecit to 4-2. Thirty six seconds later, Nick Sailor scored his first goal of the season for Providence with a stunning effort from 30 yards out.

This has been the year of the underdog in soccer. From Leicester City in the Premier League to Wales and Iceland in Euro 2016, upsets have come to the fore. 

Soccer is the most democratic sport in the world. Once the players enter the pitch, there’s little the coach can do to upset the proceedings. The nature of the game lends itself to unpredictability — 90 minutes of continuous action where a single mistake or moment of genius can decide the game’s outcome.