Bordeaux Beats Olympiacos 1-0 Ist Leg Last 16 UEFA Champions League
251 viewsBordeaux will take a slender lead into the second leg of their last-16 Champions League match against Olympiacos after a 1-0 victory at the Karaiskakis Stadium.
Despite being outplayed for much of the first half, Michael Ciani gave the visitors the lead on the stroke of half-time with a header from a Yoann Gourcuff free-kick.
Bordeaux – buoyed by that late first-half strike – began the second period in the ascendancy and could have added a second before a late onslaught from Olympiacos that culminated in a disallowed last-minute goal for Enzo Maresca.
Having cruised through a group stage that included European powerhouses Juventus and Bayern Munich with five wins and a draw from six outings, Bordeaux were – when the draw for the last 16 was made – firm favourites to progress to the quarter-finals.
However a patchy stretch of domestic form has seen the French champions’ lead at the top of Ligue 1 cut to three points while suffering domestic cup heartache.
Despite successive wins against St Etienne and Lorient, the air of invincibility that defined Les Girondins’ early season successes has all but disappeared.
Their hosts are faring little better domestically, where they trail arch rivals Panathinaikos by seven points at the top of the Greek Super League. But with the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium at its boisterous best, they began the game on the front foot.
Pressing high up the pitch without the ball and moving forward at pace with it, the Greek champions had their visitors under almost constant pressure during the opening exchanges. And they almost took the lead as early as the fourth minute.
Good work from Lomana LuaLua was rewarded with a free-kick deep in Bordeaux’s half that Maresca whipped into the visitors’ box. Former Juventus centre back Olof Mellberg rose highest but glanced his header just wide.
Much of the rest of the first period was played out through a congested midfield and clear-cut chances were at a premium.
Despite being on the back foot for much of the half, it was the visitors who had the better of the openings. Fernando Menegazzo stung the palms of Antonis Nikopolidis from distance before Wendel thrashed an effort wide of the post.
With the game littered with free-kicks, it was of little surprise that the winning goal came as a result of a set-piece. LuaLua was harshly adjudged to have brought down Benoit Tremoulinas when he had got a large slice of the ball, but Ciani cared little as he rose highest to dispatch Gourcuff’s free-kick.
It was a cruel blow to concede so close to half-time and the home side emerged from the break still out of sorts.
Bordeaux began to carve out more openings as Gourcuff’s influence on the game grew, but they almost came to rue their profligacy as Olympiacos rallied late on.
Wendel and Jaroslav Plasil both fired wide following good build-up play before Olympiacos’ late surge.
LuaLua had three late second half efforts that were well saved by Cedric Carrasso – the last, from point-blank range, had looked to be the final chance of the night. Yet from the resulting corner Maresca headed into an empty net – only for referee Howard Webb to rule that Matt Derbyshire had infringed on Carrasso to deny the hosts a late equaliser.
Source: Marcus Foley / Eurosport
Filed Under: Soccer News • UEFA Champions Legue
