Will the Cinderella Story of Bodo/Glimt Continue?

Bodo/Glimt Fairy Tale Echoes in Europa League

Before eliminating Lazio in the quarter-finals of the Europa League, Bodo/Glimt was merely a speck among elite European clubs. Slowly but surely, Bodo/Glimt compelled the public to pay attention to their achievements. The dramatic victory over Lazio, which also made them the first Norwegian club to advance to the semifinals, created a captivating tale that enchanted the public.

Every competition is indeed destined to have its own tale. The tale in football refers to the rise of a small club that defies predictions and emerges as a hero. The English Premier League has already narrated its tale with the success of Leicester City in becoming champions in 2016.

The UEFA Champions League is not lacking in heroic tales of clubs turning the tide after suffering a heavy defeat in the first meeting. In the Europa League, this story was illustrated by Bodo/Glimt. Their presence in the Europa League had gone unnoticed or at least disregarded by the public. However, they proved their worth by defeating Lazio in a penalty shootout at the Olimpico Stadium in Rome, Friday (18/4/2025) early morning WIB.

Armed with a 0-2 defeat in the first meeting in Norway, Lazio played tenaciously and with determination to turn the situation around. This effort bore fruit when goals from Valentin Castellanos (21st minute) and Tijjani Noslin (90+3) brought Lazio to equalize the aggregate score to 2-2.

How can Manchester United recover against Lyon?

It would not be Manchester United if they chose the easy path to victory. From leading, falling behind, to turning the game around and winning in the final minutes, this was the journey of the team coached by Ruben Amorim at Old Trafford Stadium. From the stadium nicknamed the "Theatre of Dreams," one of the most magical nights in the club's history was created.

The comeback that has been discussed by Real Madrid over the past week did not occur at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium when facing Arsenal in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-finals. A day later, on Friday (18/4/2025) in the early hours of WIB, the term from the Spanish language meaning to turn the situation around was instead realized by MU.

Old Trafford was on the verge of witnessing a comeback from the visiting team, Olympique Lyon. However, Manchester United successfully turned the situation around, trailing 2-4, by scoring three goals within a span of seven minutes at the end of the second half of extra time. The home team advanced to the semifinals of the Europa League thanks to a 5-4 victory, winning with an aggregate score of 7-6.

"Certainly an extraordinary match," said MU defender Harry Maguire, who scored the decisive goal in injury time (120+1). "We worked very hard to achieve that. In fact, we had full control in the second half, but they suddenly scored two goals from seemingly nowhere," he continued.

The victory of MU feels so miraculous as it came unexpectedly when the momentum had shifted and the players' morale was in ruins. This emotional seesaw is reflected in the expressions of the fans. They smiled during the halftime break, were anxious when the match entered extra time, and were engulfed in euphoria after the final whistle.

With Onana in goal, can Manchester United continue their journey to the final?

Onana proved himself the reason why he deserves to be called the worst goalkeeper in the history of Manchester United. His two fatal mistakes caused MU to fail to win at home against Olympique Lyon. In fact, the victory was already within reach for the "Red Devils."

MU only needed to hold on for less than a minute more to secure a victory from the home ground of Lyon, Groupama Stadium, on Friday (11/4/2025) early morning WIB. However, they were caught off guard by a goal from the home player Rayan Cherki in the final moments of injury time. The match ended in a 2-2 draw.

Onana became the "scapegoat" for the anticlimactic result in the first leg of the Europa League quarter-finals. The goal was initiated by a low shot from Georges Mikautadze that was directed straight at the goalkeeper. Onana was able to anticipate it, but the ball slipped from his hands. The ball then fell to Cherki's feet.

In the first half, Onana was also the one who caused MU to fall behind initially. He failed to anticipate a free kick that bounced right in front of his face. The ball appeared to be slow and could have been anticipated, but the 29-year-old goalkeeper hesitated due to the movements of the opposing players in the penalty area.

Although MU eventually reached the semifinals after performing a "remontada" in the second match, there is no guarantee that Onana will not make another blunder. Facing a higher-quality opponent like Athletic Bilbao, MU's goal will face more threats. In contrast to MU, which is at the bottom of the English Premier League standings, Bilbao is currently in fourth place in La Liga.

Is Ange Postecoglou's fate at Tottenham Hotspur secure?

Ange Postecoglou is perhaps the person who feels the most relieved and happy with Tottenham Hotspur's success in advancing to the semifinals of the Europa League. The immense pressure looming over him has slightly diminished. He can momentarily postpone his departure from Spurs thanks to the 1-0 victory over Frankfurt at Deutsche Bank Park Stadium, Frankfurt, on Friday (18/4/2025) early morning WIB.

The result of the second meeting put Spurs ahead 2-1 on aggregate. In the first encounter at Spurs' home ground, both teams played to a 1-1 draw. The struggle in the second meeting is expected to be more difficult for Spurs, considering that Frankfurt has never suffered a defeat when playing at home in the Europa League.

However, James Maddison and his teammates dispelled the pessimism. The solitary goal that secured victory for Spurs was scored by Dominic Solanke through a penalty kick in the 43rd minute. Referee Davide Massa awarded the penalty after Maddison was fouled by Frankfurt goalkeeper Kaua Santos while contesting for an aerial ball.

After falling behind, Frankfurt made a strong effort to equalize. Coach Dino Toppmoller instructed his players to apply more pressure and increase the intensity of their attacks.

However, the Spurs defense led by Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven was too solid to be defeated. Frankfurt created five shots on target, but none of them were too troublesome for goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario. This was reflected in Frankfurt's expected goal (xG) value which touched 0.91. That number is still smaller than Spurs who appeared more efficient. Despite only releasing three shots on target, Spurs' xG value reached 1.71.