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On Tuesday, four second-leg UEFA Champions League round of 16 matches took place. Last season's winner, "Barcelona", despite defeating the "Liverpool" team away, was forced to withdraw from the tournament due to the away goals rule. Surprisingly, the "Roma" team also lost at home and left the tournament while the French champions, "Lyon". The goalless draw with the recent dominant "Inter" allowed Spain's "Valencia" to advance. A tough victory against "Porto" was celebrated and London's "Chelsea" also reached the quarterfinals.
The match at "Anfield" stadium between the two recent tournament winners was a very fierce and dramatic battle.
Liverpool" could have built a solid lead in the first half and secured a comfortable life if they were able to take advantage of "Barcelona"'s helplessness and convert the chances they created.
At the beginning of the match, John Arne Riise dangerously shot from long distance twice. The first attempt went wide, and the second hit the crossbar.
In the 26th minute, the hosts had three excellent chances to score. Initially, Victor Valdes saved a close-range shot from Craig Bellamy, and soon after - Dirk Kuyt's attempt. The ball rebounded to J.A. Riise, but his header was cleared off the goal line by defender Carles Puyol.
In the 32nd minute, V. Valdes made a mistake. Trying to pass the ball, he sent it directly to Mohamed Sissoko, but the Malian's shot from about 35 meters shook the crossbar.
"Barca" controlled the ball longer in the first half but often made mistakes and rarely got close to Pepe Reina's goal.
In the second half, the situation changed slightly. In the 53rd minute, Ronaldinho penetrated the penalty area and hit the crossbar. The European champions began to create more precise and dangerous attacks, taking the initiative in the midfield.
The intrigue was restored with 15 minutes left to play, when Eidur Gudjohnsen scored a goal, appearing on the field in place of defender Lilian Thuram just a few minutes earlier. After a perfect pass from Xavi, the Icelander broke through alone against goalkeeper P. Reina, beating him and sending the ball into the empty net - 0-1.
Although "Liverpool" lost, they advanced to the next stage due to two goals scored in Barcelona.
Another English team, London's "Chelsea", also crossed the round of 16 barrier, beating former J. Mourinho's club "Porto" with a draw in Portugal.
The visitors took the lead and created intrigue when Ricardo Quaresma scored in the 15th minute after a pass from Lucho Gonzalez. "Porto" defended carefully for the rest of the half, while "Chelsea", although controlling the situation, did not create dangerous chances.
Immediately after the break, Arjen Robben equalized. The Dutchman shot from the penalty area, and goalkeeper Helton failed to catch the ball, which was flying slowly, scoring his first goal in European tournaments this season.
The hosts continued to press the withdrawn opponents and finally achieved their goal in the 79th minute. After Ashley Cole's pass, Didier Drogba crossed the ball to Andriy Shevchenko, who headed it into the center of the penalty area for Michael Ballack to score the decisive goal from a few meters away.
After a goalless draw away with the 2-2 at home, Milano's "Inter", "Valencia" nervously held on in the match and advanced to the quarterfinals. After the final whistle, mass clashes erupted on the field, which resulted in several players from both teams being injured.
Statistics:
"Liverpool" 0 - 1 "Barcelona" (First leg 2-1, total result 2-2) 75‘ [0 - 1] Eidur Gudjohnsen
"Chelsea" 2 - 1 "Porto" (First leg 1-1, total result 3-2) 15‘ [0 - 1] Ricardo Quaresma 48‘ [1 - 1] Arjen Robben 79‘ [2 - 1] Michael Ballack
"Lyon" 0 - 2 "Roma" (First leg 0-0, total result 0-2) 22‘ [0 - 1] Francesco Totti 44‘ [0 - 2] Alessandro Mancini
"Valencia" 0 - 0 "Inter" (First leg 2-2, total result 2-2)
