Welcome aboard
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The first quarter-final of the other side of the bracket sees @The Ducking Ducks take on the Italian Stallion himself, @Bagels. Not as big of a rivalry as the previous matchup, but Bagels has not forgotten The Duck's role in the controversy surrounding his Dida pick.
The game starts with a slow pace as the seven midfielders on the pitch grapple for possession. De Bruyne looks to drive forward with the ball but gets hacked down almost immediately...
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An early yellow for Rodri!! The first foul sends him into the book and he's not impressed with the referee!! His manager doesn't seem amused either:
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The midfield battle continues as the both sides struggle to find a way through, until Claude Makelele decides to have a go himself from distance...
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He catches it perfectly...
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Great save by Dida to push it out of the danger zone!! The first real sight of goal ends with a big stop from the Brazilian!!
Anxiety increasing for Bagels as it looks like The Ducks are seizing control of the match:
He tries to coax his men forward and does get a response from the team as they start to get a grip on the game. They work the ball through midfield until it gets to Nedved, and instead of playing it back to De Bruyne he chips the ball forward for Vieri to run on to...
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Vieri catches it first time...
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Oblak leaps like a salmon out of water to keep it out!! The first shot on target for Bagels and it took a world class save to prevent them from scoring!! That ends the first half action as we're still goalless with both keepers now being called into action.
Surprising change at half time with The Ducking Ducks bringing on Panucci for Evra, who seems annoyed by being replaced. As he walks back to the bench after the halftime interval, he exchanges words with someone in the crowd...
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My word, he's kicked out at commissioner @Rex Caudillo!! What on earth is he thinking?!! Coaches rush to separate the two as it's unclear what sparked the melee!!
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He's ushered away by staff members and even though he can't be red carded after being subbed, attacking the commissioner will surely result in a suspension.
The fallout from the brawl transmits to the pitch as the crowd and teams are all stunned after the goings on of the break. The substitutions on both sides lead to a stop start game with constant disruptions, with The Ducks being frustrated by the classic Italian sh*thousery on display. They're forced into shots from distance, with Rodri stinging the palms of Dida with a low driven shot. He gets the ball in a dangerous area once again and aims for goal...
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Cannons off the post!! No Rodri rocket this time, but a placed shot bending towards the far post just doesn't have enough curl on it and ends up going out for a goal kick after kissing the post.
Bagels wants more from his team:
The Ducking Duck meanwhile is the picture of calm:
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Bagels Athletic begin to time waste as it's clear they are going to play the long game and hope to win it in extra-time. Minutes tick off the clock as they take the sting out of the game, but suddenly they see an opportunity to break and push forward in numbers. With a lack of width, they try to play their way through the middle and nearly succeed before Barzagli clears. It only goes as far as Zola, who takes a touch and fires at goal...
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The ball beats Oblak...and the post!! A letoff for The Ducks as Zola's shot grazes the post on its way out of play!!
That proves to be the final action of normal time as catenaccio wins the day. 30 more minutes to decide it.
The first half of extra-time comes and goes with little goalmouth action as the tiredness and caution begin to take over.
Into the last 15 minutes before the dreaded penalty shootout and it looks like The Ducking Ducks will be the side to take the initiative. The controversial Swede gestures for his players to get forward, despite the huge physical toll the game has taken on his players. Griezmann has fresh legs after coming on towards the end of normal time and he looks to find a way through a packed defence, but he can't dribble his way past Ferdinand. He loses it cheaply and suddenly there's a last minute break on for Bagels as Yaya Toure drives forward. He decides to play the ball back to De Bruyne who steps up and has a go...
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The ball dips and swerves meaning Oblak can only stand and watch....
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My goodness, it's smashed off the crossbar!! Oblak had no chance to stop it, but the ball doesn't dip quite enough to sneak in!! De Bryune nearly wins it at the death for Athletic!!
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The Belgian is in disbelief as the referee blows for full time. This match will be decided by a penalty shootout.
The Ducking Ducks 0-0 Bagels Athletic (AET)
Athletic have won the toss and will be kicking off the shootout.
ROUND 1
Sinisa Mihajlovic will be first up for Bagels.
Sends Oblak the wrong way and finishes calmly. 1-0 Bagels
Cesc Fabregas takes a deep breath as he walks up the spot.
He opts for power and sends it crashing into the side netting. 1-1 The Ducks.
ROUND 2
George Weah will be up next for Bagels Athletic. No nerves showing for the Balon d'Or winner.
Oblak guesses the right way but it's just out of his reach. 2-1 Bagels.
Arjen Robben is the second taker for The Ducks. Not his first high pressure penalty.
A slow run-up from the Dutchman, but he finds the net with a powerful shot. 2-2 The Ducks.
ROUND 3
The great Gianfranco Zola will be the next taker for Bagels.
An immediate run-up after the whistle and he buries it. Never looked like missing. 3-2 Bagels.
Antoine Griezmann walks forward to take the next penalty for The Ducks.
A low finish past the outstretched arm of Dida leads to a trademark celebration as his manager looks on disgusted. 3-3 The Ducks.
ROUND 4
Pavel Nedved is the next chosen taker and he walks confidently to the spot.
He opts for power over placement and rifles it into the roof of the net. Oblak had no chance. 4-3 Bagels.
A surprise for The Ducks as Daniele De Rossi is up next for them with several attackers still on,
It proves to be the right choice as he manages to send Dida the wrong way. 4-4 The Ducks.
ROUND 5
Big Yaya Toure walks up to the spot, one of the most seasoned penalty takers left on the pitch.
He takes a deep breath as the whistle blows, and side foots a perfect penalty into the top corner. 5-4 Bagels.
The first pressure penalty of the match as notorious bottler Higuain must score for The Ducks to carry on.
With the weight of the world on his shoulders, he aims for the far corner...and scores!! 5-5 The Ducks.
ROUND 6
The man who nearly won it in extra-time will take the next penalty as we head into sudden death...
Kevin De Bruyne steps up and looks to go to the keeper's left...
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Saved by Oblak!! The penalty wasn't far enough in the corner and the Slovenian keeps it out!!!
De Bruyne is gutted!!
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Just wait until he gets back to see Bagels who has totally lost it by now!!!
De Bruyne's miss means that The Ducks can win it with their next attempt. Here comes Rodri to send his team through to the Semi-Finals...
He takes a deep breath and waits for the keeper to move...
He slides his penalty right down the middle and scores!!!
Wild celebrations from The Ducks as they battle through a difficult match to move onto the next stage!!
The Ducking Ducks win 6-5 on penalties
Did Bagels make a bunch of illegal picks as well or something?Welcome aboard
Any thoughts on G calling you one of A-M’s golden boys two drafts in a row?Got to take one out of his playbook
This might finally be it.
has this draft game mixed up with Love Island auditions it seems:
Gary’s cool but he’s bugging there
LEE 3 - 1 NFO
MUN 2 - 0 TOT
BOU 1 - 1 AVL
WOL 1 - 3 CHE
FUL 1 - 2 EVE
ARS 3 - 0 SUN
BUR 0 - 2 WHU
NEW 2 - 3 BRE
BHA - CRY
LIV - MCI
| Team | P | W | D | L | Goals | GD | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
W
W
L
D
D
W
|
25 | 17 | 5 | 3 | 49:17 | +32 | 56 | |
| 2 |
D
W
L
D
D
D
|
24 | 14 | 5 | 5 | 49:23 | +26 | 47 | |
| 3 |
D
L
W
L
D
W
|
25 | 14 | 5 | 6 | 36:27 | +9 | 47 | |
| 4 |
W
W
W
W
D
D
|
25 | 12 | 8 | 5 | 46:36 | +10 | 44 | |
| 5 |
W
W
W
W
L
D
|
25 | 12 | 7 | 6 | 45:28 | +17 | 43 | |
| 6 |
W
L
D
D
D
D
|
24 | 11 | 6 | 7 | 39:33 | +6 | 39 | |
| 7 |
W
W
L
L
W
W
|
25 | 12 | 3 | 10 | 39:34 | +5 | 39 | |
| 8 |
W
D
D
W
D
L
|
25 | 10 | 7 | 8 | 28:28 | 0 | 37 | |
| 9 |
L
W
L
W
L
D
|
25 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 27:29 | -2 | 36 | |
| 10 |
L
L
W
L
W
D
|
25 | 10 | 4 | 11 | 35:37 | -2 | 34 | |
| 11 |
D
W
W
D
W
L
|
25 | 8 | 10 | 7 | 41:44 | -3 | 34 | |
| 12 |
L
L
L
D
W
W
|
25 | 9 | 6 | 10 | 35:36 | -1 | 33 | |
| 13 |
D
L
D
D
W
D
|
24 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 34:32 | +2 | 31 | |
| 14 |
L
D
D
L
L
D
|
25 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 35:35 | 0 | 29 | |
| 15 |
D
L
L
D
L
D
|
24 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 25:29 | -4 | 29 | |
| 16 |
W
L
D
W
L
D
|
25 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 34:43 | -9 | 29 | |
| 17 |
L
D
W
D
W
L
|
25 | 7 | 5 | 13 | 25:38 | -13 | 26 | |
| 18 |
W
L
W
W
L
L
|
25 | 6 | 5 | 14 | 31:48 | -17 | 23 | |
| 19 |
L
L
D
D
D
L
|
25 | 3 | 6 | 16 | 25:49 | -24 | 15 | |
| 20 |
L
L
L
D
D
W
|
25 | 1 | 5 | 19 | 16:48 | -32 | 8 |
