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An enthralling, nerve-wracking and an exasperating (for a few) quarter-final round of the UEFA Champions League 2017/18 came to an end last week. Liverpool, AS Roma, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich sealed their places in the top four after emerging victorious in their respective ties.
Real Madrid showed the world that great teams always find a way to sneak through despite all adversities surrounding them. A late and controversial penalty was converted by Ronaldo and all the Juventus hard work only added to the jubilation of the Los Blancos fans.
AS Roma scripted a fairytale comeback to defeat the five-time UCL champions FC Barcelona. They wiped away a 3-goal deficit in a grandiose way and booked their spot in the last four courtesy Edin Dzeko's away goal in the first leg.
Liverpool entered the tie against Manchester City as the underdogs but ended up humiliating Pep Guardiola and his troop in both the legs. It was a thoroughly clinical performance from Liverpool and who says they can't win it for the sixth time?
Bayern Munich were always the favourites to go past Sevilla and it's barely surprising to see them go through. Jupp Heynckes would be eager to add another treble to his tally and as it stands, they have a great chance of replicating their 2013 heroics.
Real Madrid, the 12-time UCL champions, have drawn the Bavarian giants in the Semifinals whilst the Reds will be facing an on-song Roma side. In less than a week from no, the games will kick-off and before that, let's analyze and rank these four sides' attacking prowess.
#4 - AS Roma
It well and truly was a remarkable rendition from AS Roma and to have turned the tables the way they did against a top-notch Barcelona side.
But it's imperative they get over it and as they have to face Liverpool up next. Their attackers have been in good form and this ranking is not exactly a fair reflection of their offensive adroitness.
But when compared to the other three attacking corps, theirs is a slightly vulnerable and untested one on such a massive platform. There's a good chance that all of this prediction can go wrong, but as it stands, it's hard to see them going past Jurgen Klopp's men.
Edin Dzeko got the crucial away goal, the moment when the Giallorossi resurrected in the tie against Barcelona. Of the 15 goals Roma scored this season in Europe, six of them have come from Dzeko and given he continues his purple patch, Roma can hurt anyone home and away.
Patrik Schick started up front with Dzeko, who is yet to score a goal since donning the Roma jersey. But their attacking mid-field looks solid with the likes of Radja Nainggolan and Kevin Strootman.
Daniele De Rossi played his part in the offensive duties in their previous outing, where they went in with a back-3. It'll be interesting to see if Eusebio Di Francesco will opt for a similar lineup.
Cengiz Under has been in prolific goal-scoring form as well and it won't be surprising if he gets to start in the Semifinals. The likes of Gerson Santos and Stephan El Shaarawy are some other decent options for the coach to choose from.
Overall, they look compact as a unit, but can their attacking unit deliver on the biggest stage once again is the conundrum.
#3 - Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich have a stellar forward line and an attacking midfield unit that can churn things out of nothing, but I'd still rank them below the likes of Liverpool and Real Madrid.
They demolished all their Bundesliga opponents and won their 6th successive league title. Yet, Munich could only manage a 0-0 draw against Sevilla in the second leg of the quarterfinal but that was enough to take them through to the final 4.
Robert Lewandowski always finds himself in good poaching positions and he's probably one of the most clinical finishers of the era. He has five goals after his name in the Champions League this season.
A stat to take notice is that none of the Bayern Munich players are in the top 10 in the highest goal scorers list for this season's Champions League. Thomas Muller, Corentin Tolisso and Thiago found the net thrice for the German Champions.
Goals come in from different sources for their side and they managed to grab 23 goals in 10 games in the 2017/18 campaign. The stat is quite a significant one considering Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben haven't scored even once in Europe this season.
Jupp Heynckes will be wary that Real Madrid are a side who more often than not end up scoring home and away. Hence their side should somehow score a goal more than them and it'll be interesting to see who steps up for Bavarian giants.
On their day, they can sabotage anyone's mission. But it takes a lot to get the better of this Los Blancos side, who just humiliated the likes of Juventus and PSG. This is a huge test for them but they certainly have enough firepower in their arsenal to beat them.
#2 - Real Madrid
Real Madrid are looking way too threatening and imperious right now. They'd probably get the better of an All-star team with ease as well considering how well they counter-attack.
They managed to score in each and every game thus far in Europe. Their performance in Turin was a testament to a fact that this is one of the all-time great Football teams.
Paris Saint-Germain suffered a similar fate as well, bowing down to the Los Merengues both home and away. Cristiano Ronaldo's flabbergasting purple patch played a massive role in their success in the last few weeks.
Ronaldo finds himself in a different role currently, but that can't stop him from scoring. Even the Juventus faithful had no other choice but to stand up and applaud this genius after he scored off a bicycle kick in the first leg.
Whilst Ronaldo has 15 goals to his credit this season in the Champions League, no other player managed to hit the double digits. Salah, Firmino, and Ben Yedder scored 8 goals each and are joint-second in that elite list.
Karim Benzema with 2 goals is their second best goal-scorer in Europe this season and this stat proves that Ronaldo is carrying the burden of this side all by himself.
The ever-exuberant Isco has risen to the occasion as well this season and has served Ronaldo with some incredibly delicious balls. Gareth Bale's return is also a huge boost for Zidane.
Luka Modric and Toni Kroos always ensure their presence is having an impact and their contributions have been priceless as well.
One of the scariest and frightening sights for any defensive contingent is the counter-attack by Los Blancos. Goodness, gracious! They romp through from one end to the other so smoothly and swiftly that the balls will be inside the netting within a blink of an eye.
A fact that they're a little too dependent on Ronaldo to get the goals might haunt them. Given the Portuguese legend fails to score, will other players step up and complete the job is the conundrum right now.
Having said that, Ronaldo is a perfectionist and a man born for the big occasions. It'll be way too surprising to see Real Madrid not winning the title for the third consecutive time.
#1 - Liverpool
After quite a long time, Liverpool have managed to enter the final 4 of the Champions League and they're firmly in contention to get their sixth title, a number which is way too far for other English clubs to eclipse.
Jurgen Klopp deserves a lot of credit for the way his side defeated Manchester City, who've been breathtaking this season. Klopp got the better of Pep Guardiola home and away, a feat achieved by very few managers in the contemporary world.
Liverpool have registered a whopping 33 goals in the Champions League this season, which is simply outstanding. The Roman defense will be difficult to breach, but nothing is impossible for a side with Klopp at the helm.
Coming to their frontline, Mohamed Salah's rendition this season has been beyond description. He's second only to Cristiano Ronaldo in the Champions League this season, having amassed 8 goals already.
Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino are resigned to a fact that Salah is their main man and are trying to ensure he's on the ball when it matters the most.
Having said that, Firmino has as many goals as Salah in the Champions League, having netted 8 times for the Reds. Mane, on the other hand, has 7 goals to his credit.
So clearly, this trio is working brilliantly together and the versatility of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlin came in handy when Salah was substituted early in the second half in the first leg against Manchester City.
Going by how they've reciprocated to some obnoxious situations this season, Liverpool should get the better of Roma and book themselves a ticket to Kiev.
They certainly have the best attacking trio in Europe going by the stats, but their defense is equally vulnerable. But the way they held the 3-goal cushion in the first leg against City for over 50 minutes was an encouraging sight.
They're slowly regaining their status as one of the best in England and winning Europe's most elite competition is probably the best way to do so. The task is not easy, but certainly not impossible.
