For the first time all season, there is some drama in the UEFA Champions' League. On Tuesday, Bayern Munich upset Real Madrid 2-1 in Munich in the first leg of their two-match semi-final. The next night, Chelsea -- currently mired in sixth place in the English Premier League -- stunned defending champion Barcelona 1-0 in London in the first leg of their match.
So both of the Spanish favorites will need to come from behind in their rematches next week. My guess is that both of them will do so -- they will be at home, and Barcelona in particular can usually count on a very favorable whistle when they need one. But it's a tough week for both Spanish giants -- they play each other in a league game on Saturday that will be huge for both sides, and then they have to turn around and get ready for their biggest games of the year.
By the way, just to give you a sense of how dominant these two clubs are, they are roughly 30 points ahead of the remainder of the Spanish league -- traditionally one of the strongest leagues in Europe -- with five games left in the season:
1. Real Madrid: 27-2-4 (85 points)
2. Barcelona: 25-2-6 (81 points)
3. Valencia: 14-9-10 (52 points)
4. Malaga: 15-12-6 (51 points)
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