With seven minutes left his team’s fans were also leaving early as Davids, spotting Kluivert’s diagonal run, set up the second. He advanced to score with aplomb.Germany’s most raucous crowd dragged Dortmund back and, in finishing the half stronger, they created several half-chances, but no clear ones. With Sammer usurping Davids as the dominant influence Dortmund continued to press until, from a 65th minute Ajax breakaway, Sammer brought down Kiki Musampa. Kluivert, the destroyer of Ireland, turned his marker, Steffen Freund, and fed Davids, coming late and unmarked from midfield. They also confirmed the idea of time-outs during matches had been dropped following opposition from coaches.Thus there was plenty at stake, as well as the traditional Dutch-German emnity, for Gallagher to contend with Within eight minutes he was signalling a goal.
Uefa’s two most senior officials yesterday confirmed that major countries (i.e. with major television companies, like England and Germany, but not the Netherlands) would have a second team in the Champions’ League – but not next season.Gerhard Aigner, Uefa’s general secretary, and Lennart Johannson, the president, said extra knock-out rounds would probably be introduced to cope with the expansion. Yet, with PSV Eindhoven leading at home, qualification is no longer a formality. The planned changes to the Champions’ League are unlikely to help.
The Bosman ruling threatens to deprive the club of its economic lifeline – the bulk of the team are out of contract at the end of the season and may leave for nothing. A clutch of players, and possibly, Louis van Gaal, the coach, could be en route for Milan.Such outside temptation makes continued Champions’ League success esential. A late goal from Patrick Kluivert, set up by Davids, then made the second leg a virtual formality.Ajax had gone into the game with reasons to be fearful. They had lost two of four league games this year, ending a 20-month unbeaten record, and were without several front-line players including Marc Overmars, Frank de Boer and Jari Litmanen.They also have long-term concerns. An Englishman, Dermot Gallagher, sealed their win when he sent off the Dortmund captain, Matthias Sammer, who was driving his team back into contention. With Terry Venables, one of their devotees, watching, they emerged from the impassioned Westfalenstadion with a place in the European Cup semi- finals all but assured.The holders went ahead after eight minutes through Edgar Davids, the night’s outstanding player. Football
GLENN MOORE
reports from DortmundBorussia Dortmund 0 Ajax Amsterdam 2Ajax last night showed that reports of their decline had been exaggerated.
Raul, particularly, felt his loss and drifted out of the game. The Chilean striker Ivan Zamorano, however, was a picture of industry for Real and the excellent Fernando Redondo came close with an inventive free-kick.Ravanelli and Antonio Conte squandered easy chances for Juventus during a second half of enthralling play.Real Madrid: Buyo; Chendo, Garcia Calvo, Alkorta, Redondo, Hierro, Raul, Soler (Quiqe, 27), Zamorano, Laudrup (Michel, 65), Luis Enrique.Juventus: Peruzzi; Ferrara, Torricelli, Carrera (Ressotto, 76), Vierchowod, Sousa (Jugovic, 64), Lombardo, Conte, Ravanelli, Del Piero, Deschamps.. However, Juventus recovered their poise after the Real Madrid coach, Arsenio Iglesias, inexplicably replaced the Danish international with Michel in the 65th minute.That move changed the nature of the game as Real, so assertive in attack before then, lost their driving force. It was the Madrid-born teenager’s sixth goal in the competition.Laudrup combined well with the substitute, Quique, down the wings as the Spaniards asserted their hold on the match after the break. The former Juventus player then squared the ball to the advancing Raul, who neatly delivered his shot past a helpless Angelo Peruzzi. But Gallen’s kick lacked conviction, Lukic saved it comfortably, and from then on Leeds were never in serious difficulty. Only a goal-line clearance by Karl Ready prevented Yeboah from completing his hat-trick.Queen’s Park Rangers (4-4-2): Sommer; Bardsley, Ready, Yates, Challis; Sinclair, Barker (Brazier, 69), Holloway, Quashie; Gallen (Goodridge, 83), Dichio.
Substitute not used: Plummer.Leeds United (4-4-2): Lukic; Radebe, Beesley, Wetherall, Worthington; Gray, Palmer, Ford, McAllister; Yeboah, Brolin (Masinga, 76). Substitutes not used: Bowman, Tinkler.Referee: G Poll (Tring).. Real Madrid 1 Juventus 0
A solitary goal from the 18-year-old Raul was enough to give the Real Madrid victory over Juventus in a pulsating European Cup quarter-final first leg game at the Bernabeu stadium last night.
The Italian champions’ predicament will have been further hampered by the bookings of Massimo Carerra and their prolific striker, Fabrizio Ravanelli, who will both miss the second leg in Turin.After the tentative initial exchanges, Real went ahead with only their second shot on goal in the 21st minute when Michael Laudrup broke down the left flank and cantered into the Juventus area with the assurance of a colt. Son of the former Leeds man, Frank Gray, the 18-year-old right winger gave an assured performance on his first full appearance.A quarter of an hour later Yeboah played a one-two with Tomas Brolin before sweeping in his 19th goal of the season.The darting runs of Nigel Quashie and Trevor Sinclair carried some threat and in the 31st minute Kevin Gallen hit a lovely shot on the turn to make it 2-1.As QPR pressure mounted, David Wetherall handled a cross by Quashie to give away a 64th-minute penalty. This time the freedom the Ghanaian enjoyed was evident from the 11th minute when nobody challenged him as headed in a cross from Andy Gray.
