Group F:
Headlines were made early on in this group, as Barcelona struggled at home with Apoel from Cyprus and Paris Saint-Germain tied Ajax on matchday 1. It happened again as PSG took care of Barcelona on matchday 2 in the city of lights.
Matchday 3 made it very clear that Barcelona wouldn’t go down without a fight though, as they dumped Ajax in convincing fashion, 3-1. They were in so much control that Messi and Neymar were subbed off with just over 25 minutes left to play and the score was just 1-0.
PSG may have made the biggest statement with its home win over Barca, but it’s pretty clear the overall statement of this group is that those two teams are head and shoulders above the rest of Group F.
Standings:
[table id=2 /]
Predicted Finish:
1. Barcelona – 15 points
2. Paris Saint-Germain – 13 points
3. Ajax – 5 points
4. Apoel – 1 point
Yes, PSG got Barcelona the first time around, but let’s be real…that was on the road and Barcelona is likely to get revenge. Besides, it also will add Luis Suarez to its attack to join Messi and Neymar for the second half of the group stage. Let’s see anyone in this group compete with that kind of varied attack.
The real question is if Apoel can find the points to get itself in to the Europa League. Apoel’s quest is likely to come down to the final matchday, as it plays host to Ajax. Unless Apoel finds a way to earn points against the two heavyweights its best chance will come in that final matchday. I just don’t see it happening though, as Ajax has the talent to at least get to the Europa League out of this draw.
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