Set piece chaos

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Head Start

Borussia Dortmund vs PSG

Semi-final | Leg 1 of 2 | 20:00 BST

Not to bring down the mood… but there’s only one Champions League between these sides…

… and it was when Borussia Dortmund beat Juventus in the 1997 final.

So, if last night’s game was the battle of the European giants, this game is more like the battle of the younger brothers.

On paper, it looks like Paris Saint Germain’s game to win…

• PSG have only lost one of their last 32 games in all competitions.

• And… Dortmund have been less consistent with only two wins in their last six matches.

But, the semi-finals are Dortmund’s territory. The German side have won three of their last four Champions League semi-finals…

… on the other side, PSG have lost all four games in their two previous two-legged ties at this stage. 

(Side note: the Parisians have only progressed to the final in a one-leg format… you know…  because of the word starting with C and ending with 19). 

Anyway, the question is: experience (Dortmund) or form (PSG)? 

It’s hard to tell…

• 💉 Dortmund Quick Hit: Dortmund are unbeaten in their last 10 Champions League home games.

• 💉 PSG Quick Hit: Kylian Mbappé has eight Champions League goals this season, and he’s just two away from reaching 50 goals in the competition.

Plus…

Everton hires insolvency adviser as the proposed takeover by 777 Partners is in doubt due to their low-cost airline collapsing (More) 

Manchester United are open to offers for virtually all of their first-team squad, except Mainoo, Garnacho and Hojlund (More)

Ipswich’s 2-1 victory against Coventry moves them into second spot in the Championship and one point away from promotion (Watch)

UCL Summary

Bayern Munich 2 - 2 Real Madrid

Leroy Sané 53’, Harry Kane 57’ (P) | Vinícius Júnior 24’, 83’ (P)

→ Harry Kane has been directly involved in 11 goals in the Champions League this season, the most ever by an English player in a single campaign.

→ No player has been directly involved in more goals in the Champions League than Vinícius Júnior since the start of the 2021-22 campaign.

Highlights here.

Set Pieces

WANTED: Set piece specialist

Set-pieces are the talk of the town - and it’s been a long time since that was the case.

Oh, wait, there was that time that Harry Kane was put on corners… anyway, let’s not get into that one. 

This week, everyone is talking about set-pieces…

• Ben White’s “dirty” tactics at corners (More).

• Arsenal’s set-piece ‘genius’ Nicolas Jover (More).

… but, most fascinating, is Ange Postecoglu’s reluctance to introduce a separate set piece specialist at Spurs (More).

Instead, he has split the role between two coaches - Mile Jedinak and Ryan Mason.

So, what you’re saying is… Arteta hired a set-piece specialist… and Ange has entrusted Jedinak and Mason?

Yup. That’s exactly what I’m saying. 

The result? Well, Arsenal have scored 22 goals and conceded six from set-pieces. Spurs have scored 11 goals and conceded 14 from set-pieces. 

In other words, Arsenal and Spurs are at different ends of the spectrum for set piece success…

Worse still, managers know Spurs don’t like conceding corners. On average, opponents put 2.25 players in Spurs’ six-yard box at corners.

That’s the third most in the league - only Manchester City (who don’t concede many) and Burnley have more.

Route One take: If this weekend taught us anything, it’s that set-piece coaches are no longer a luxury - they’re a necessity. 

Morale of the story, kids, you get what you pay for.

Off The Pitch

😬 UK government denies losing track of around 4,000 Rwanda deportees (More)

🐶 Scooby-Doo series is in the works at Netflix (More)

🩺 The NHS is to declare that sex is a matter of biology in a landmark shift against gender ideology (More) 

🎶 Live music industry shatters records in post-Covid comeback (More)

🎂 People are starting to throw half-birthday parties (More)

🕷️ Images show ‘spiders’ on the surface of Mars (More)

💰 The Daily Telegraph is back up for sale after an Abu Dhabi-backed fund abandons takeover (More) 

Around The Football World

🇧🇷 Ronaldo Nazario has agreed to sell his stake in Brazilian club Cruzeiro (More)

🇺🇸 NBC executives continue to push for top-flight Premier League matches to be played in the USA (More)

🇪🇸 Former Spain manager Vincente del Bosque has been hired to head a new committee that will supervise Spain’s football federation (More) 

🇧🇪 Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois will miss Euro 2024 following a knee ligament injury despite a potential return for Real Madrid (More) 

🇩🇪 Xavi Simmons will decide on his future before the start of the Euros, as RB Leipzig would like to keep him on loan but Chelsea have shown interest (More)

Extra Time

Groom's father reminds his son about Arsenal’s halftime lead.

Ter Stegen’s tricks led to Valencia’s equaliser.

There’s always one person on the team who is desperate to add to their goal tally.

Someone needs to tell Antonio Rüdiger that some things are better left in private.

Scenes as Ipswich Town take one step closer to promotion.

Moises Caicedo and Nicolas Jackson are hoping for better times at Chelsea next season.

Game Face On

Question: Who are the only French club to have ever won the Champions League?

Hint: Cantona and Drogba.

Scroll below for the answer.

On Today

FOOTBALL

Champions League: Borussia Dortmund vs Paris Saint Germain (20:00 BST, TNT Sports 1)

Women’s Super League: Liverpool vs Chelsea Ladies (19:00, Sky Sports Football)

TENNIS

ATP: Mutua Madrid Open (17:00, Sky Sports Tennis)

*EST -5. PST -8. CET +1. CST +8. JST +9.

Answer: Marseille

“What Carew does with a football, I can do with an orange.”

-Zlatan Ibrahimovic