Upsets Rule Kandaval Cup T’tennis Tourney
Sergi Roberto scored in the fifth minute of stoppage time as Barcelona capped a sensational Champions League comeback to thrash Paris Saint-Germain 6-1 and reach the quarterfinals last night.
Despite Luis Suarez’s early opener, a Layvin Kurzawa own goal and Lionel Messi’s penalty, Barca, who lost the first leg 4-0, looked down and out when Edison Cavani volleyed home what seemed to be the vital away goal for PSG.
However, Neymar restored Barca’s belief as he firstly fired home a sensational free-kick two minutes from time and then converted from the penalty spot.
And Roberto capped the biggest comeback in Champions League history when he stretched to turn home Neymar’s dinked cross to the delight of a near 100 000 at a rocking Camp Nou, making the score 6-5 on aggregate.
Barca also enter the record books by reaching the quarterfinals for a 10th straight season. Messi’s penalty against Paris Saint-Germain saw him equal Cristiano Ronaldo’s 11-goal record as the Champions League’s most potent player from the spot.
Outgoing Barca coach Luis Enrique warned the French champions on Tuesday that his side were capable of scoring six and they needed the full 95 minutes to pull off a miracle revival.
No side had ever come back from a 4-0 first leg deficit in the Champions League, but after much pre-match hype of a historic turnaround, Barca truly believed when Suarez opened the scoring after just three minutes.
The PSG defence was stationary as Marquinhos headed Rafinha’s cross high into the air and Suarez nipped in ahead of the flapping goalkeeper Kevin Trapp to nod in despite Thomas Meunier’s best efforts to clear off the line.
In a role reversal from the first leg, Barca’s high pressing wasn’t allowing the visitors any restbite, while PSG failed to take advantage of the huge spaces in behind the Barca defence on the counter-attack.
Neymar was inches away from delivering a spectacular second when he drilled just wide from well outside the area before Trapp easily collected a Suarez effort from an acute angle.
However, Barca’s hopes were further raised five minutes before the break thanks to more shambolic PSG defending.
Andres Iniesta reached Suarez’s hopeful through ball and his backheel provoked Kurzawa into shanking the ball into his own net on his weaker right foot.
The second period started just as the first ended as Barca edged closer to the history books when Neymar was clipped by the prone Meunier and, after consultation with one of his assistants, German referee Deniz Aytekin pointed to the spot.
Messi made no mistake with the penalty to rifle home his 11th Champions League goal of the season.
Only when 3-0 down did PSG begin to come out in search of the crucial away goal and were nearly rewarded immediately as Meunier got to the by-line and his low cross was turned onto the post by Cavani.
The Uruguayan had to wait just 10 minutes more, though, to find the net.
Kurzawa made amends for his earlier error by heading down a free-kick and Cavani connected sweetly on the volley to register his 38th and seemingly most important goal of the season.
PSG were then to rue to huge missed chances to put the tie completely beyond Barca.
Firstly, Cavani should have had his second as he was played in by Draxler, but this time MarcAndre ter Stegen stood up to block with an outstretched leg.
PSG’s two-goal hero from the first Angel di Maria had started on the bench, but the former Real Madrid man should have rubbed salt in Barca’s wounds five minutes from time when he somehow skewed wide with just Ter Stegen to beat.
Just when Barca looked down and out Neymar restored hope when he curled home a sensational free-kick high into the top corner.
And as the match entered stoppage time, Barca were awarded a second controversial penalty when Suarez tumbled under a challenge form Marquinhos.
Neymar this time took responsibility to send Trapp the wrong way.
And the Brazilian also showed a cool head among a mad final minute when he cut inside before chipping into the box for substitute Roberto to extend his right leg just enough to beat Trapp and leave PSG floored. It was upset galore at the finals of the 6th edition of Kandaval Inter-school Table tennis championship, ‘Kandaval Cup’ as the defending champions in both boys and girls categories were sent packing in the quarter final rounds of the annual tourney which took place at Lagos Country Club, Ikeja recently.
Top seed and defending champion, Gbadamosi Dare of Isheri Grammar School was dismissed in two straight sets by Muiz Adegoke of Birch Freeman High School who went ahead to win the boy’s singles event while Muibi Barakat of Stadium High school who had earlier trashed the Zainab Moruf, the defending champion in straight sets in the semis won the girls’ trophy at the expense of Adetunji Adeola of Oduduwa Senior Secondary School.
In addition to the trophies, each winner got a tablet and Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho has criticised the pitch for his side’s Europa League match against Russian side FC Rostov tonight.
Rostov, fifth in the Russian Premier League, plays at the Olimp-2 which was built in 1930 and has a capacity of just over 15,000.
Ahead of the last-16, first leg tie, Mourinho said: “It’s hard for me to believe we are going to play on that field - if you can call it a field. other prizes including a slot in the high level training program organised by the sponsors. They will be tutored by Coach Sylvester Dominic at Lagos Country Club, Ikeja.
Meanwhile, sponsor of the annual championship, MD/CEO of Kandaval Communications Ltd, Tony Obot, applauded the players for their skills and called on other stake holders to contribute their quotas to the development of table tennis in Nigeria rather than the usual complaints.
‘I have since called it quits with criticising and now put my money where my mouth is, let us all join hands and make the sports great again’ He added.
Kandaval Inter School Table Tennis Championship is an annual competition specially created to develop talents from the grassroots for the sport of ping pong in the country.
“I don’t know which team to play.”
UEFA told BBC Sport the pitch “may not be in perfect condition, but has been deemed playable” following a pitch inspection yesterday.
“The match will go ahead as scheduled,” a spokesperson added.
Mourinho drew comparisons with the quagmire that saw United’s pre-season friendly against Manchester City in Beijing called off.
“In a very similar pitch in the summer in China, we and Manchester City decided not to play. But it looks like we have to play.”
The Portuguese manager insists the pitch could affect his team selection. Armenian midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan is available after missing two games with a hamstring injury, but now Mourinho does not know whether to risk him.
“I don’t know what team to play, really. I don’t know if Henrikh Mkhitaryan is going to play, I don’t know,” said Mourinho.
In December, Mourinho was angered by UEFA making United play the Europa League groupstage decider at Zorya Luhansk on a frozen pitch.
Asked about his latest grievance he said: “I just had a quick contact with one gentleman from UEFA when I was looking at the pitch and when I told him about my concerns, the gentleman just told me, ‘The players are insured, if something happens no problem’.”