Champions League Matchday 4: The tops and flops

Highlights from fourth week clashes, where Legia Warszawa produced surprising result against Real Madrid

KARACHI: Match day four of the UEFA Champions League comes to a closure, and this round of matches produced some surprising results to say the least.

The Express Tribune will look at all the hot and cold performances from Tuesday and Wednesday nights with our tops or flops series.

Tops:

Legia Warszawa

Warsaw's Thibault Moulin reacts after scoring a goal against Real Madrid on November 2, 2016. PHOTO: REUTERS

First in the list of tops is Polish club Legia Warszawa who produced the most inspiring performance of the match day four of the UEFA Champions League against defending champions Real Madrid in an empty home ground on Wednesday.

Warszawa went 2-0 down inside the first 35 minutes of the match, courtesy goals from Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema. However, the Polish club, which is currently ranked 78th in the UEFA club ranking, made a remarkable comeback against the reigning champions and made it 3-2 seven minutes from time.

The best performance of the night from the hosts came from defensive midfielder Thibault Moulin, who deservedly scored his side’s third goal of the night, and made some key interceptions during the match.

Bayer Leverkusen

Bayer Leverkusen's Kevin Kampl celebrates scoring their first goal against Spurs on November 2, 2016. PHOTO: REUTERS

Next in the list of tops is Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen, who defeated Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur infront of 90,000 fans at Wembley on Wednesday.

The German club, which was rather unlucky two weeks ago when they managed a 0-0 draw at home against the same opposition,  was far superior against Spurs on the night where they needed a big performance to keep their hopes of progressing to the next stage alive.

Leverkusen dominated Spurs throughout, and looked far threatening side on the night, before going into the lead with a 65th minute strike from Slovenian winger Kevin Kampl.

The most satisfying part for manager Roger Schmidt would be his team’s defence, and their ability to break on the counter, which left the London-based club dumbfounded.

Lyon

Olympique Lyon's Corentin Tolisso celebrates after scoring first goal against Juventus. PHOTO: REUTERS

Third in the list of tops is French club Lyon, who from nowhere produced arguably their best performance of the round matches against strong a Juventus side on Wednesday in Turin.

Lyon, who are suffering from poor form domestically, where they are currently placed on eighth in the league table, as well as in Europe, were 1-0 down courtesy Gonzalo Higuain’s penalty in the 13th minute.

However, Bruno Genesio’s side dug their heels and did not let the opposition play freely, and created chances as well, for which they were rewarded five minutes from time, when Corentin Tolisso got one past experienced Gianluigi Buffon.

The stalemate is not a significant result in terms of Lyon’s group standing as they are still four points behind second placed Juventus. Nevertheless, the result means that the Ligue 1 side is now favourite to finish third in the group H, which means they will get a chance to take part in the Europa League.

Flops:

Real Madrid

Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo reacts during match against Legia Warszawa on November 2, 2016. PHOTO: REUTERS

First in the list of flops are defending champions Real Madrid, who somehow managed to throw a two-goal lead, and at one point were facing defeat against one of the tournament’s minnows.

Zinedine Zidane’s gamble of playing a new formation of 4-2-4 with, with both Karim Benzema and Alvaro Morata starting upfront, backfired miserably for the Spanish giants, as Madrid conceded three goals against a team which ranks 77 spots below them in UEFA’s club rankings.

Real clearly missed three of their first choice defenders, including club captain Sergio Ramos, veteran Pepe and star left-back Marcelo, but their performance in the last-third will be a big cause of concern for Zidane, especially the performance of club legend Cristiano Ronaldo.

Madrid can count themselves lucky enough to secure a rather disappointing draw, thanks to 85th minute equaliser from midfielder Mateo Kovacic. However, the result left reigning champions in the second place, two points behind Borrusia Dortmund, which means Real will now have to win both of their remaining matches to avoid a tougher draw in the round of 16.

Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham's Eric Dier looks dejected after the game against Bayer Leverkusen on November 2, 2016. PHOTO: REUTERS

Next in the list of flops features Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur, who are now facing a serious chance of missing out on a place in the knockout round of the Champions League after suffering their second defeat at home, this time against Bayern Leverkusen on Wednesday .

Spurs once again disappointed the home crowd with a clueless performance, as the hosts just managed four shots on goal in 90 minutes, with just two on target.

Maurio Pochettino’s men never looked in any sort of control, apart from the last 10 minutes of the first half, and the hosts were deservedly beaten on the night.

The London-based club are now facing an uphill task, where they will have to win their last two games to have any sort of chance of making it to the last 16.

Juventus

Juventus' goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon and Claudio Marchisio at the end of the match against Lyon on November 2, 2016. PHOTO: REUTERS

The third in the list of the flops features Serie A giants Juventus, who showed a rather half-hearted performance against Lyon on Wednesday in their home ground.

Leading 1-0 after 13 minutes, the game was there to be taken for the hosts, but Massimiliano Allegri’s men showed a lacklustre performance, which gave visitors a chance to come back.

The Turin-based club just managed to get three shots on target in 90 minutes, and are now facing a prospect of finishing behind group leaders Sevilla, which means they can get a tough opposition in the round of 16.