Minnows Apoel Nicosia Make Quarter Finals of the Champions League

Published: 8^th Mar 12 12:58 pm

by Alan Dymock
Alan Dymock

RANT It!

Minnows Apoel Nicosia Make Quarter Finals of the Champions League

Mike Tedesco-US PRESSWIRE

Every so often the beautiful game brings you uplifting results, not from the juggernauts of Barcelona or of Manchester, but from that corner you had previously been blissfully unaware of.

Last night, for the first time in history, a Cypriot side progressed to the quarter finals of the Champions League.

You may never have heard of them, but Apoel Nicosia are sitting in third place in their domestic league. They had to qualify for the Champions League and they had to negotiate their way past Zenit St. Petersberg, Porto and Shakhtar Donetsk in the group stages. According to their Vice-President, “We have a budget of around 9million euros. The maximum amount of money we have spent for the last four years was 1.2million euros for three players altogether.”

These guys are minnows, make no mistake about that. However, last night this did not stop them from scoring a goal to rapturous local applause, rendering their tie with French giants Lyon 1-1 on aggregate and taking their game to penalties.

They triumphed in the shoot-out, 4-3. The atmosphere in Nicosia was thunderous and caused Lyon President Jean-Michel Aulas to remark that “Playing for qualification here is like playing with fire. I tip my hat to Apoel.”

Apoel’s goalscorer on the night, Gustavo Manduca, turned his goal in at the post within 9minutes, but was sent off in the dying moments of the game. He didn’t have the chance to take a penalty, but heroic goalkeeper Dionisios Chiotis saved two spot-kicks and almost batted away Lisandro Lopez’s penalty.

Both celebrated with everyone else as the result sank in. This is proof that no result is guaranteed in knock-out soccer. This is proof that soccer can still shock, but in the most inspiring way. This is why I love soccer.

Whoever Apoel get in the last 8 they’re ready for them…