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BARCELONA AND INTER Milan shared a compelling 3-3 draw in a high-octane Champions League semi-final first leg clash on Wednesday.
The Italian side raced into a two-goal lead with superb strikes from Marcus Thuram and Denzel Dumfries, before the unstoppable Lamine Yamal pulled Barca back into it with a sublime solo effort.
Ferran Torres levelled for the five-time champions and although Inter nosed ahead through Dumfries again, a Yann Sommer own goal left the tie on a knife-edge at the halfway stage.
Inter were desperately hoping Thuram would be fit to play after a thigh injury and he showed precisely why, scoring the fastest ever Champions League semi-final goal after 30 seconds.
Barcelona’s Copa del Rey final winning goalscorer Jules Kounde hacked a poor clearance to the edge of the box, and Inter capitalised.
Dutch wide man Dumfries aimed a low cross towards Thuram and Inigo Martinez slipped at just the wrong time, allowing the France striker room to finish with an impudent back-heel flick.
Quadruple-chasing Barcelona seized control and pushed forward, roared on by a nervous 50,000 strong Olympic stadium crowd.
Yamal, on his 100th Barcelona appearance, appealed for a penalty after he was shoved by Alessandro Bastoni and then set up Torres, who fired wide.
The Spaniard, standing in for Barca’s injured top goalscorer Robert Lewandowski, lashed a volley narrowly off target.
Against the run of play Inter, whose treble hopes crumbled after three consecutive domestic defeats prior, scored their second, with another fine finish.
Francesco Acerbi nodded on a corner and Dumfries reached the dropping ball first to score with a stunning acrobatic effort.
Barcelona teams over the past few years may have crumbled but Hansi Flick’s youthful side are not burdened by the series of European failures since they last won the competition in 2015.
Least of all teenage wizard Yamal, who pulled Barcelona back into the game just three minutes later with a wonderful individual goal that made him the youngest player ever to score in the semis.
On the eve of the game the Spaniard rejected comparisons to all-time Barca great Lionel Messi, but his goal was straight from the Argentine’s playbook.
Yamal shook off Thuram, floated inside from the right flank and past Henrikh Mkhitaryan into the box, drawing defenders towards him but before they could stop him, stroked an inch-perfect shot in off the left post.
Minutes later Yamal nearly repeated the trick. This time he darted outside, pausing to let Federico Dimarco lunge past him and off the pitch.
From a tight angle the youngster flashed a shot that Sommer tipped onto the crossbar.
High on confidence Yamal set up further chances for Torres and Dani Olmo that went begging, before Barca pulled level.
Pedri hooked a ball into the area for Raphinha to head across goal and Torres to convert from close range after 38 breathless minutes.
Kounde limped off before half-time in a blow for Barca, who also replaced the inexperienced Gerard Martin with Ronald Araujo at the break.
Dimarco hammered over early in the second half before Simone Inzaghi hooked him, after a torrid night up against the relentless Yamal.
Inter took the sting out of the game early in the second half and then sucker-punched Barca, scoring from another corner, with Dumfries’ header bouncing in off Olmo.
Barcelona equalised within two minutes, with Yamal stepping over a corner on the edge of the box, allowing it to run to Raphinha.
The Brazilian’s rasping effort smashed against the crossbar and then in, off the back of the unfortunate diving Sommer’s head.
Pau Cubarsi made a vital recovery tackle to stop Thuram after he got in behind Barcelona’s high line, and Mkhitaryan had a goal ruled out for an extremely tight offside.
Yamal looped a second strike onto the crossbar late on but the sides could not be separated.
The second leg takes place in Milan next Tuesday, with the winner to face Paris Saint-Germain or Arsenal on 31 May in the Munich final.
Written by AFP and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won’t find anywhere else.
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Let’s hope Adrian Bayley will get a taste of his own medicine while inside. Karma is a wonderful thing. :)
I see the trolls ‘ red thumb brigade’ are out again. Bloody morons!!!
He raises a pertinent question though, what the hell point is there having a maximum sentence if it’s not going to be imposed.
With this guy’s previous history and then this case on top, if he didn’t warrant it I shudder, shudder to thing what actually would.
My heart poors for this guy and i agree he was let down by the justice system …. but maybe not something that should be a headline in this country …. rape carries 15 years in Oz.? Try 15 weeks over here
This man had already raped 8 women prior to murdering Jill and only served 10 years altogether. He also broke someone jaw whilst out on parole for rape. Australian justice system is a joke, too focused on the offender as opposed to the community.
These types of yokes should not be getting let out of jail after a set number of years, they should be kept inside if they’re not safe. And most of them don’t even look for help inside but they still get let out.. our own “beast of the east” LM got let out and he’s free now to prey on potential victims. These fiends should stay locked up in my opinion.
They should be locked up for life if they cannot be rehabilitated. Right now we gather the worst in society and throw them into a building where they are expected to be kept for a number of years. Then they’re just thrown back into the world after an arbitrary number of years has been fulfilled. It’s no wonder the western world has such high rates of reoffending with a system like that.
Exactly Jason, that’s what I’m saying, these types shouldn’t get a release date while they’re still a danger..
Was nearly in tears watching this chap on the news. I hope he takes a civil action and sues the a*** off them
A lot of red thumbs again tonight in response to what decent people are expressing. If one has any compassion for Gill, her husband and family what is their problem with decent people expressing their views. All I can say some sickos trolling the journal and in support obviously of vile rapists and murderers. Sad but very true! Lets see how many ref thumbs?
Heartbreaking interview. At least some justice has been served. RIP
He should never be allowed out of prison as long as he draws breath. I don’t know why he can’t get life. And I mean real ‘life’- not like this country. We should also take notice in this country of letter sex offenders out on parole. They’re monsters who will offend again!
I think Tom Meagher is right about the remorse. I’m sure Bayley’s lawyer pointed out to him that if he showed some remorse he’d get a few years off his sentence. Crocodile tears. The man shouldn’t have been out on bail and now he should have a whole-life sentence with no possibility of his ever getting out.
It’s heartbreaking, that poor man
God damn judges are the same all over the world. They play gods and seem to enjoy showing mercy to monsters. Judges should be replaced by a software driven logic.
I agree Mary. Predators such as these, do not have the capacity to experience remorse, let alone understand its meaning. It’s a foreign concept to them, like a foreign language is to us.
Sadly the shit will be on a secure wing, which will be hard to access by any one other than staff.
It is so sad and the family is so brave.
I am ashamed of the Australian Legal System.
RIP
Unfortunately here in Ireland rapists get off lightly too. The kind of sentence given in the article below is an absolute disgrace and sends out the complete wrong message.
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