[인터풋볼] Reporter Dong-Hoon Shin = It has been proven that just because you shoot a lot doesn’t mean you win the game.
As the second leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals of the 2021-22 season ended, the teams that made it to the quarterfinals were decided. Real Madrid and Manchester City will clash, and Liverpool and Villarreal will meet. It is not intentional, but the English Premier League (EPL) and Spanish La Liga are being structured and interesting.
A striking lesson from this UCL quarterfinal, especially the second leg, is that ‘a lot of shooting may not have much to do with winning’. Bayern Munich’s loss to Villarreal is a prime example. Munich came out with an aggressive tactic at home following a 0-1 defeat at home. He drove all the time and shot 23 shots, but only one goal. On the other hand, Villarreal scored one out of four shots and won the final score 2-1.
Including the first leg, Munich only shot 45 times. It was a one-sided offensive, but only 8 shots on target and only one goal were scored. Villarreal, who played efficient football, got it right. Repeating only simple crosses from the side was a loss to the sluggish attack. It was also very painful that Thomas Muller, the distributor, was blocked.
So was Chelsea. Chelsea lost 1-3 in the first leg as they failed to prevent a hat-trick from Karim Benzema following hitting 20 shots. In the second game, he made 28 shots, but conceded two runs, and in the end, advancing to the quarterfinals was frustrated. Chelsea created numerous opportunities and missed the opportunity to gain the upper hand by failing to finish accurately.
Atletico Madrid did the same. Atlético, who lost 0-1 in the first leg with only 0 shots in extreme defense, attacked Manchester City in the second leg, and recorded 14 shots. 10 more shots than City, but no goals. Manchester City also did not score, but City moved up thanks to the result of the first leg.
Like Munich, Chelsea and Atlético, Liverpool shot more than twice as many as Benfica in the second leg and drew 3-3, leaving a disappointment. But the results were different. Unlike the three teams mentioned above, they won 6-4 overall and got a ticket to the quarterfinals. As such, in the UCL quarterfinals, especially the second leg, it has been clearly demonstrated that how accurately and efficiently it is more important than a lot of shooting.
