On Wednesday, both Barcelona and Real Madrid played their quarter final matches in the Champions League, against Shahktar and Tottenham respectively. Both came out with overwhelming victories.
Barcelona were strong favorites to win the match, as few thought that Shahktar Donetsk, despite leading the Ukrainian league by twelve points, could match up to the Spanish club. The match played out as expected with very few surprises. Barcelona quickly took control of the game, scoring their first goal after barely 90 seconds of playing. Messi had broken into the goal area, and his deflected shot fell to Iniesta, who beat several defenders and kicked the ball into the net. Barcelona went on to score four more goals, three of them coming in the second half. Shahktar had several great chances to score. They managed to pull a goal back, but by that time, they were already trailing by three goals. The final score ended as 5 - 1.
Real Madrid also won a convincing victory against Tottenham Hotspurs, a club in the English Premier League. This game was expected to have much more tension and competition, as both teams play a high level of soccer; however, Real Madrid managed to win by four goals. Tottenham started off the game on a bad foot and perhaps were unlucky. Peter Crouch, one of their key players, was dismissed in the 15th minute, after the referee showed him a red card for a reckless tackle. Real Madrid took control of the game from then on.
Barcelona and Madrid still have to travel to Ukraine and England respectively to play the second leg of the quarterfinals, although it is doubtful that their opponents have the capability to overturn such large scorelines. Their second matches are more of a formality than anything else. Sports headlines have already proclaimed that these two teams have "the semis in their pocket."
In the likely case that both teams will progress, Barcelona and Real Madrid will be facing each other in the semi-finals and playing two legs. When the league and the Spanish cup are included, Barcelona and Real Madrid will be playing each other a total of five times by the time the season ends. These two clubs are fierce and hated rivals, so fans are guaranteed some exciting and intense matches!
