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With the 1-1 draw against strong Sporting Lisbon, YB’s 2023/24 European campaign ends on a very positive note. Sure, they didn’t make the knockout round play-offs and the draw came about incredibly fortunately. But the fact is: apart from YB, only one team took points from the Alvalade in Lisbon in this strong Sporting season: Atalanta Bergamo. That says everything about the value of this counter. But what are the moments that remain from these ten games? Who are the winners and losers?
Highlight
Two. Two home games of course. They are the games where YB did the work. At the same time, these are the only two victories of the campaign. The 3-0 in the Champions League play-offs against Maccabi Haifa and the 2-0 against Red Star Belgrade in the direct match for third place and thus for the European winter. It’s important to emphasize: both games went all YB. Both could have ended differently. For example, the Israelis hit aluminum three times. And the Serbs screw up no less than seven hundred percent. Logically you lose 0:2. Coach Raphael Wicky about the two highlights: “Those two moments were very special. Above all, the wonderful emotions after qualifying for the club’s biggest competition.”
Little light
Did it have one? Okay, there were four defeats against Manchester City and RB Leipzig. But couldn’t they have been expected? On the one hand there is the best team in the world, the current winner of the premier class. On the other hand, a top team from the Bundesliga. And yet: the way YB was dissected in every respect at the Etihad was worrying. Zero chances to score. Yes, zero shots on target. Zero. Nada! But the biggest embarrassment comes during the break when captain Ali Camara sprints after superstar Erling Haaland to secure his shirt. Wicky looks back on this match: “We had absolutely no chance. But I don’t want to call this a low point. “It could happen at Manchester City.”
Exploit
No. Of course there were Meschack Elia’s goals against RB Leipzig and Manchester City. These were small, temporary exploits. But not anymore. There was no exclamation point in the form of a win against any of the big three we faced. Neither against the two mentioned, nor against Sporting. In the first two Premier Class campaigns, YB probably finished last both times. But there were wins against Juventus Turin and Manchester United.
The winners
On the one hand, there is Meschack Elia, who caused such an international stir with his goals against City and RB that iconic coach Pep Guardiola started praising him so highly. But: Elia still plays for YB. The Congolese is still waiting for the big transfer today. On the other hand, goalkeeper David von Ballmoos must be mentioned. In early December he regained his place in the Berner Tor. He will then play three more European matches. The one in the Alvalade is excellent, including a saved penalty from superstar Gyökeres. Blick group six.
The loser
If there is a winner in the goal, you also need a loser. And this is Anthony Racioppi. It is mainly his failures in the Champions League – for example against RB or Red Star – that lead to the loss of the number one position. Certainly, the number of major rescues is also regularly high. But the bottom line is that a consistent goalkeeper is more valuable than one who repeatedly makes misjudgments or gives the opponent great opportunities to score by misplaying his foot.
Source : Blick
I’m Emma Jack, a news website author at 24 News Reporters. I have been in the industry for over five years and it has been an incredible journey so far. I specialize in sports reporting and am highly knowledgeable about the latest trends and developments in this field.
