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Apoorv Dwivedi
Football fans saw the resumption of National football tournaments in Europe last night. All the matches are played on a knockout basis amongst all the clubs of the country. The clubs which play in top-tier national leagues get a bye.
FA CUP
The prestigious cup’s fifth-round saw a major upset. Tottenham Hotspur suffered another upset in a week, they were beaten 1-0 by Middlesbrough in extra time. Last week they suffered a defeat against Burnley (1-0) in Premier League.
Middlesbrough a second-tier team is having a dream run. They had beaten a Manchester United side fielding Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes in the previous round.
Table-toppers Manchester City had a successful trip to Peterborough. They registered a 2-0 win against the minnow side. Jack Grealish scored his first FA Cup goal for the club.
Another highlight of this match was Ukrainian Defender Oleksandr Zinchenko sporting the Captain’s armband. He was made captain to show Solidarity and support for Ukraine.
COPPA ITALIA
It was time for Milan derby as AC Milan and Inter Milan came head to head for the Semi-Final clash. This was the first match of the two-legged semifinal. Both the teams use the same stadium (San Siro).
There weren’t many talking points in the match as the match ended with a goalless draw. The second leg clash will take place on 20th April.
Juventus and Fiorentina will meet tonight in the second semifinal.
COUPE DE FRANCE
Nice has defeated Versailles to reach the final of the French tournament. Nice has been in stupendous form as they had beaten 14-time winners Paris-Saint Germain to reach the semi-final. PSG played with Messi, Mbappe, and Angel Di Maria in the attack.
Versailles was the dark horse of the tournament as they are a 4th division team but managed to reach the last 4.
The second Semifinal will be played between Nantes and Monaco. Monaco will enter the match as favorites.
With the top 2 teams in the history of the tournament, PSG and Marseille out. This is the perfect time for the other clubs to shine.
COPA DEL REY
The annual Spanish tournament’s semifinal will be played tonight between Athletic Club and Valencia. With both sides 1-1 in the first leg, they have a lot to play for.
DFB-POKAL
Union Berlin beat St.Pauli to advance to the semifinal of the German football competition. With the 20-time champions, Bayern Munich, and current champions Dortmund out of the competition. This is the biggest opportunity for RB Leipzig to add a prestigious trophy to their trophy cabinet. Germany’s football has been a duopoly of Munich and Dortmund for a long time now.
These annual competitions provide ample opportunity for low-ranking clubs to make a name for themselves at the expense of some big names. Middlesbrough and Nottingham FC did that in this year’s FA Cup and Nice in Coupe de France.
The winners of all the aforementioned tournaments earn a spot in the UEFA Europa League Group Stage.