Saturday, May 25, 2013

Champions' League Final: Deutschland Uber Alles

I'm watching LSU play Arkansas in the semi-finals of the SEC Baseball Tournament.  But my other TV is set for the UEFA Champions' League final, which will determine the championship of European club soccer.  For the first time since 2001, the European Cup will be going to Germany, as both of today's finalists are from that country.  They are Bayern Munich, the Kansas of European Soccer, a team that dominates the German League and which won the European Cup in 1974, 1975, 1976, and 2001.  You may recall that last year Munich lost the final to Chelsea on penalty kicks.  This year, they have torn through all opposition, running away with the German championship and crushing all opponents in Europe.  They are heavily favored.  But they were heavily favored last year as well.

Their opponent is Borussia Dortmund, who won the European Cup in 1997 but who normally plays second-fiddle to Bayern Munich.  Imagine if Kansas State was playing Kansas for the national title -- in a year where Kansas totally dominated the Big XII -- and you'll have a good sense of the expectations for this game.

Today's game is being played at Wembley Stadium in London, and the German fans are ecstatic that their league -- with its emphasis on prudent budgets and careful player development -- has so out-performed the high-flyers in the English Premier League.  We are happy for the German fans, although they should remember that since the last time a German team won the title, teams from England, Spain, and Italy have each won at least three titles.  So it will take more than this one season to convince me that Germany's Moneyball approach is the way to go.

15 comments:

  1. I spent the entire first half working with Number 2 Son on an assignment involving the song "We Didn't Start the Fire." Apparently, they are now using that song to teach social history.

    Anyway, the Guardian says that the first half was excellent, but that no one scored. Onto the second half!

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    1. They should've used the Aerosmith/Run DMC version of "Walk This Way."

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  2. In the SEC Baseball tournament, LSU leads Arkansas 3-1 going into the bottom of the 8th. The Razorbacks only have one hit.

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  3. In the 60th minute, Bayern finally breaks through the Dortmund defense and scores to take a 1-0 lead. The last 30 minutes should now be pretty entertaining, as Dortmund will have to attack.

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  4. Sure enough, it takes only about 8 minutes of attacking for Dortmund to get a penalty kick. They bang it home and we're all tied, 1-1.

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  5. Now I think we're heading for penalty kicks.

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  6. They've now gone 75 minutes. Munich have had two more great chances to score, but Dortmund made great saves both times.

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  7. 77 minutes: Munich gets a breakaway, but it goes for naught as the Dortmund defender grabs the Munich player's arm, and the ball ends up being kicked into the side of the net.

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  8. To Bayern's credit, they are trying to score, and so this is a very entertaining game right now.

    But I still think we're headed for PK's.

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  9. 87th Minute: Munich has been all over Dortmund for about 15 minutes, but they can't score. Dortmund's keeper just made another great save.

    The Munich players all have four stars on their uniforms, to represent their team's four European titles.

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  10. 89th minute: Finally! Arjen Robben (Netherlands), Munich's determined striker, pounces on a ball in the penalty area, and BANGS IT HOME to give Munich the lead.

    Munich lead 2-1, and now they only have to hang on for a few more minutes.

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  11. To put these teams in perspective, this year Dortmund came in second in Germany with a record of 19-6-9.

    Munich won the league with a record of 29-1-4. That's how much better they are. They are by far the best club in Europe, and they really deserve the crown.

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  12. And it's all over! Bayern Munich, who lost the final in 2010 and 2012, are the Champions of Europe for the first time since 2001. They are very worthy champions.

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  13. This was fun--thanks, Go Heath. All this afternoon, a college friend of mine was on Facebook rooting for Dortmund because she said the coach was good-looking.

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