Will Barcelona win the Champions League 2015?
The semifinals of the UEFA Champions League had plenty of great performances by some of the biggest names in all of the football world. There were plenty of great goals to choose from, but Barcelona’s Lionel Messi’s sensational goal against Bayern Munich stands atop this week’s Goal of the Week honors.
It was his second goal of the match and a beautiful play by the Argentine-born striker as he received a nice through ball from teammate Ivan Rakitic, before faking one defender, Jerome Boateng, practically out of his shoes right at the edge of the box, then perfectly chipping the ball over the outstretched hands of Bayern Munich’s goalie, Manuel Neuer. The awesome goal and superb individual effort helped Barcelona to a 3-0 win against the German Champions. It was another well earned score for arguably the world’s best player, who has been having an eventful UEFA Champions League Tournament thus far. It seems as though with some support from great players like Luis Suarez and Neymar, Messi is returning to his old form of greatness, and had a resurgence as he stakes claim to the title as the best football player in the world.
Another great showing by Messi has helped his Barcelona club into the finals where they’ll then face-off against Juventus after they advanced past Real Madrid in the semifinals. This year’s finals match is in no shortage of star power as Barcelona’s Lionel Messi squares off against another one of the world’s best footballers, Paul Pogba, as both players try to lead their clubs to their own treble.
So many fans were likely rooting for and expecting another typical showdown between Barcelona and Real Madrid in the final, but Juventus had other plans as they gained the equalizer vs Real Madrid, and eventually earned themselves a spot in the finals to face-off against Lionel Messi and the star-studded Barcelona club. Both teams started the season with slow starts and did not display the potential early on, but both clubs turned it around to now share the main stage of the football world. Despite both teams being prominent clubs who are no strangers to success, the two teams have actually never competed together in a European Cup Final. While the two teams have come close multiple times, this will mark the first meeting on the pitch between the two storied clubs.
With the best frontline in the world of football, Barcelona is the favorite in the championship match. With some of football’s greatest names like Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, and Neymar, any opposing team would have trouble containing the scoring of such a talented force. And while Juventus does have a considerably stronger defense than most of La Liga, they’ll have to deliver a special effort to stop the world’s great frontline from dictating the match.
While Barcelona’s frontline is stacked with remarkable talent, this is by no means a lopsided contest. Juventus has its own star power and talented players with the likes of Carlos Tevez, Arturo Vidal, and Paul Pogba, which are sure to give Messi and Barcelona a run for their money.
Which team will be triumphant on their way to claiming the treble? It should be another awesome UEFA Final to crown this year’s best football club in all the land.
