Nine goals, three penalties and goalkeeping blunders on both sides - the spectacle between Benfica and Barcelona provokes both excitement and horror in the blue Sport Champions League studio.
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- Benfica Lisbon and Barcelona deliver a thrilling exchange of blows with nine goals in the Champions League on Tuesday evening.
- Barça initially fell behind, partly due to the mistakes of goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, but then managed to turn the game around - also because Benfica goalkeeper Trubin also made mistakes.
- In the blue Sport Studio, the game arouses enthusiasm and Marcel Reif says: "Whenever you think you've seen everything in this idiotic game over 50 years, you get something like this."
"It's football like it used to be in the school playground. I want to win - and not: How can we prevent a defeat?" is how Marcel Reif summed up the football spectacle in Lisbon shortly after the final whistle. Benfica and Barcelona had previously been engaged in an open exchange of blows on the penultimate matchday of the Champions League group stage.
"This game had everything - and a chapter to boot," says Reif enthusiastically, laughing about the Catalans' 5:4 victory: "The coaches must be going crazy. Pep Guardiola jumps out of the window at a 5:4."
Szczesny's daring excursions
In fact, Barça coach Hansi Flick would probably have preferred to run away after the first half hour. The main reason for this is goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, who was brought out of retirement by the Spanish top club to replace injured regular goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen.
Against Benfica, the reactivated Pole made several mistakes and conceded two goals with his unsuccessful excursions. In the 22nd minute, Szczesny stormed out of his box without any need to do so, picked off teammate Balde and handed the Portuguese the 2:1 lead on a silver platter.
"I've said maybe 60 times in my career as a reporter that if one of your own players is there, the goalkeeper has no business being there because the two of them will crash into each other," says Reif in the blue Sport studio. Marco Streller confirms: "That's negligent."
Benfica goalie Trubin follows suit
But that was not enough. Just a few minutes later, Szczesny made the next unfortunate excursion, causing a penalty, which Evangelos Pavlidis converted with ice-cold precision. "That's madness," Reif says plainly. "But goalkeepers have to make decisions. They can all fly, but deciding whether to go out ..."
Fortunately for Szczesny, Benfica goalkeeper Anatoli Trubin also made a serious mistake. In the 64th minute, the 23-year-old tried to play a long ball away, but it hit the head of the baffled Raphinha, who actually deflected the ball into the goal - and thus initiated the crazy Barça turnaround.
"Every time you think you've seen everything in this idiotic game over 50 years, you get something like this," said Reif, hardly believing his eyes. "I've never seen that before. Raphinha is still shocked now. It's madness, it goes with this game."
