10 biggest upsets in European football this season

There’s now only around one more month left before the curtain comes down on most of the league football in Europe. Most of the league tables are currently headed by traditional big boys and there’s next to little chance of a major shock.However, the final tables will not tell the stories of some stunning upsets that happened during the course of this season. There were many matches that had one winner written all over it, only for the favourite to be shocked by the unfashionable underdog. Those upsets may now only be forgettable blips in an otherwise ordinary season for most of these big clubs but when they happened, they were results that sent shockwaves all around. Here’s a look at the 10 biggest upsets this football season so far:Note: All competitions have been considered, not just league football

#1 Bastia 4-2 Paris Saint-Germain

This could have been the match where Laurent Blanc and his boys finally turned their season around. Instead, it ended up putting Blanc’s job at risk.

There was disbelief all over France when lowly Bastia, who had been fighting for survival at the bottom of the table, pulled off an impressive comeback win against the defending champions Paris Saint Germain.

PSG just needed a win by a two-goal margin to reach the top for the first time in the season and within 20 minutes, it seemed they were well on their way. Goals from Lucas Moura and Adrien Rabiot had put the Parisiens in the driving seat, but it was then that the unthinkable started to happen.

Bastia had equalised by half-time and in the second half, PSG simply gave way as the Corsicans pumped in two more goals. At the end of the night, the 4-2 result on the scoreboard was an unexpected morale-booster for Bastia whereas the men from the capital went home shocked at their inability to win a straightforward game.

#2 Leicester City 5-3 Manchester United

This match began the way everyone thought it would and ended in a manner that nobody would have ever imagined. When Manchester United raced into a 3-1 lead at the King Power Stadium, it seemed that newly-promoted Leicester City were heading for another loss while Louis van Gaal and his multi-million pound signings had finally started looking like a class team. How wrong were all of us.

Angel Di Maria’s delightful chip was the pick of United’s three goals as they sat comfortably with a two-goal lead at the hour mark. And then, suddenly, things started spiralling out of control.

First, it was a controversial penalty, converted coolly by David Nugent in the 62nd minute. Two minutes later, the evergreen warhorse Esteban Cambiasso smashed home the equaliser for the Foxes.

Panic had started to penetrate the United ranks. And instead of responding to it, the Red Devils’ defence crumbled spectacularly. A quick Leicester counter-attack resulted in Jamie Vardy putting the Foxes in the lead for the first time before Leonardo Ulloa went on to get his second of the afternoon with a penalty.

Seven minutes of stoppage time wasn’t enough for United to get back into the game as they lost a match they had under control.

#3 Parma 1-0 Juventus

For Juventus, this was a minor setback in what is turning out to be one of the most comfortable title campaigns for the Bianconeri in recent years. For everyone else and for Parma in particular, this was the result of the season.

The Parma players had absolutely nothing to play for except pride, with relegation already confirmed following their club’s bankruptcy and yet, Roberto Donadoni’s men came up with a shocker against the mighty league leaders. A Jose Mauri goal in the 60th minute did the job.

The result was significant for a couple of reasons - one, as mentioned above, was the financial situation of Parma. Credit must be given to the players for continuing to give their all to a club that can’t afford to even pay their salaries. Parma’s game against Udinese was postponed after club authorities announced their inability to pay stadium stewards.

In a situation like this, it is a huge task to remain focused and get results. Secondly, Juventus had won the corresponding home fixture with a resounding 7-0 thrashing earlier in the season. Parma, on the other hand, were poor all season. After all that, nobody saw this coming.

#4 Manchester City 0-2 Middlesbrough

2014-15 has not been easy for the blue half of Manchester. The Citizens are on course to end the season trophyless, which will probably sound the death knell for coach Manuel Pellegrini. The Chilean could have at least led his team to a Cup win had it not been for a shocker of a result at home to Championship side Middlesbrough.

In the fourth round of the FA Cup, City hosted Middlesbrough at the Etihad Stadium, looking to sweep their opponents away. Sadly for them, it ended up the other way round.

On-loan Chelsea striker Patrick Bamford was in the right place at the right time to put his side in the lead in the 53rd minute after a clearance rebounded off him. Another player with quite a significant Chelsea connection then had a chance to pull City level.

Frank Lampard, a second-half substitute, saw his deflected shot hit the post in the 89th minute. It seemed destined that Middlesbrough would get their win and it was confirmed when minutes later, Bamford set up Kike to score a late goal and send Boro through to the fifth round.

#5 Real Sociedad 1-0 Barcelona

It was the day David Moyes smiled again. After a forgettable year of failure at Old Trafford, the Scot had got an opportunity to redeem himself when Real Sociedad came calling a few months into the 2014-15 season. Whether he has achieved redemption or not is a question that is yet to be answered, but he took a big step towards it in January when his Basque side shocked none other than Barcelona at home.

Barca coach Luis Enrique started without a number of his stars, including Lionel Messi, Neymar, Dani Alves and Gerard Pique. Yet, his first XI was supposed to see this off pretty easily and leapfrog Real Madrid at the top of the table.

However, Enrique was forced to rethink his bold decision quite early when Jordi Alba put into his own net in the second minute itself. And from then on, Moyes’ men held on defiantly, simply refusing to concede.

Not even the introduction of Messi and Neymar in the second half could help the Blaugrana and the match went on to end 1-0 to the home side, giving the Basques a famous triumph.

#6 Chelsea 2-4 Bradford City

On the same night that Manchester City were stunned by Middlesbrough, FA Cup romantics were gifted with another huge upset, one which could probably rank among the greatest in the tournament’s storied annals.

When Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea side hosted League One outfit Bradford City, it was supposed to be business as usual for the Blues, against a side ranked 49 places below them in the English football system. However, what transpired was something quite unusual.

Although Mourinho left out a number of first-team regulars, his selection had enough firepower to easily see off a Bantams side that were trying to do what many before couldn’t – beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

And so it began – Gary Cahill and Ramires scoring in the first half to give Chelsea a 2-0 lead within 38 minutes. A Jon Stead strike in the 41st gave Bradford something to cheer about going into half-time.

Coming out of the tunnel in the second half, Mourinho’s men wanted to put the game to bed, but their plans went awry when Filipe Morais popped up with the equaliser. And then came two more, Andy Halliday and Mark Yeates getting their names on the scoresheet and leaving Stamford Bridge shell-shocked.

Little Bradford had completed an unbelievable comeback against a seemingly unbeatable team at an unwinnable ground.

#7 Guingamp 1-0 PSG

Paris Saint-Germain may well win the Ligue 1 title this season, but that doesn’t stop them from appearing in this list once again. In a topsy-turvy season, the Parisiens have somehow managed to remain at the top but results like the one away to Guingamp in December seriously threatened to derail their campaign.

Coming from a loss to Barcelona in the Champions League group stage, PSG were determined to get back to winning form. Laurent Blanc started with his preferred line-up but ten minutes in, he was left to wonder as Jeremy Pied headed in the opening goal for Guingamp. Pied and his mates celebrated wildly while PSG plotted an equaliser.

However, even the intimidating strike force of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani could not break open a stubborn Guingamp defence, with keeper Jonas Lossl in exceptional form.

The Guingamp custodian kept out efforts from Ibrahimovic and Marco Verratti as Paris Saint-Germain struggled to find a way through. Knowing that a win would take them temporarily to the top of the league, they attempted to find a late equaliser but their opponents held on for a surprise win.

#8 MK Dons 4-0 Manchester United

Manchester United also make a second appearance in this list, this time with a Cup disaster against lower-league opposition. The season was only two weeks old when Louis van Gaal and his group of millionaire footballers strode into the Stadium:mk, the humble abode of Milton Keynes Dons to play a second round League Cup tie.

With two games played in the Premier League, Van Gaal had seen his side yet to register a win. This was the perfect occasion to kick-start the season at last and although the Dutch gaffer saw fit to hand debuts to Saidy Janko and Reece James, his first XI still featured the likes of Javier Hernandez, Danny Welbeck, David de Gea, Anderson and Shinji Kagawa – enough to put fear in the hearts of a team from the third tier of English football.

The fact that all but one of the above-mentioned five no longer play at United provides some sort of an inkling as to how the game went.

United have won the League Cup four times but were unable to show any quality on a night when MK Dons pumped in four goals past De Gea. Will Grigg and on-loan Arsenal striker Benik Afobe got the famous goals while United to struggled to even get a shot on target as Van Gaal oversaw yet another defeat.

#9 Arminia Bielefeld 3-1 Werder Bremen

While it is true that Werder Bremen are nowhere near to being title contenders or Champions League hopefuls in the Bundesliga this season, even the most pessimistic of Die Werderaner fans would have expected an easy game against third-division side Arminia Bielefeld in the DFB Pokal Round of 16.

The game started off with six-time champions Werder dominating and looking the more dangerous of the two but against the run of play, it was Arminia who took the lead in the 32nd minute. Junglas scored for the hosts with a great finish that saw his team go into halftime with a surprise lead.

After that shocker, Werder came out in the second half all guns blazing but were still unable to put the ball in the net. As they struggled to find a goal, Arminia showed them exactly how it should be done, with Sebastian Schuppan connecting with a corner to double the lead.

Werder managed to pull one back in the 75^th minute, through Clemens Fritz, only for Junglas to restore the lead eight minutes later with his second and the match’s final goal. Bielefeld celebrated an unlikely victory which saw them move into the last eight.

#10 Burnley 1-0 Manchester City

Just like their city rivals, Manchester City also make another appearance here with a match that signalled the beginning of the end of their Premier League title challenge.

At the beginning of the 2014-15 season, there were some concerns among all of Chelsea’s potential rivals that the Blues would run away with the title this time around. Those concerns have become real fears during the course of a season when Chelsea rarely put a foot wrong.

Widely touted as their closest possible challengers, Manchester City’s chances were almost extinguished after a game against Burnley in March. Needing to win to keep up the pressure with Chelsea having to play two more games, City went into the game at Burnley’s Turf Moor with their array of stars all looking to be the heroes.

However, it was George Boyd who emerged as the unlikely hero with his fifth goal of the season that gave the struggling Clarets a much-needed 1-0 win. The result took Burnley to 18th place in the table, while it all but ended City’s title hopes. The Citizens have since lost further ground after defeats to Manchester United and Crystal Palace.