UEFA Champions League quarterfinals, first leg round-up

In the aftermath of the quarter-final first legs, I would ask one to remind me of a better sequence of matches in two days in the Champion's League, at any point, let alone first legs of a tie. Each tie still hangs in the balance, not a fixture done and dusted. The brand of football seen world-wide in the past three days(yes, I am including the Europa League) has been some of the best football I have seen in recent years. The level of play and some of the drama witnessed reminds all of us as to why we follow the beautiful game.
Many are calling the match between Arsenal and Barcelona one of the best of all time. The match had everything one could dream of: beautiful flowing football, lightning fast counter attacks, last-ditch tackles, great saves, beautiful goals, extremely consequential bookings, and to top it off late drama, injury, and a penalty kick. Sets us up for a bit of a let down in the second leg, no? The bar has been set so high anything but a footballing masterclass will be a disappointment, yet I am optimistic that it will not disappoint. My good friend Nacho will be around to break down that fixture in the next couple days, look forward to it.
The end all is that not a tie is dead and buried and there is still everything to play for. It would be easy to pick Barcelona, Inter, Lyon, and Manchester United to get the job done in the second leg, but I wouldn't put my money on these four advancing. There is much work to be done and I expect plenty of drama next week before it is all said and done.
As Mr. Cleo predicted, Rooney has inevitably picked up an ankle injury and looks set to miss a least four weeks, seriously hurting United's chances in the UCL, not to mention their Premier League title ambitions. Then we look at an equally as big if not more important injury to Cesc Fabregas in Arsenal's match against Barca. Both players' seasons are in jeopardy with only Rooney looking to possibly figure before the end of the season with both players thinking their World Cup prospects jeopardized as well.
Chelsea fans must be considering themselves a bit lucky to have been knocked out of the champions league in the round of sixteen, having seen both their title rivals losing their most influential and best players respectively. The title lies in their hands and they can make a statement this Saturday by beating a Rooney-less United. The season has taken another interesting twist and one can only look eagerly ahead to the coming week for more of the magic to unfold.
The 4:45 AM kickoff will come too early for those of us who don't plan on sacrificing our Friday nights, but wake I shall to see this top of the table clash, albeit bleary eyed and hazy to get to the pub and relish the atmosphere. The match will be aired live here in the States on ESPN 2.