The Champions League semi-finals are just around the corner and some very competitive teams are here. Real Madrid, Liverpool and Manchester City have all reached the Champions League final in the past four years, and the fourth position is a surprise club, but after beating Bayern and Juve, Huang Qian should be in this position.
Under Emery, Villarreal has experienced many difficulties in the Champions League, with Manchester United and Atalanta in the same group, where they finished second. Juventus looked set to end Villarreal's journey in the round of 16, but the 4-1 win on aggregate shocked everyone.
Defeated Bayern 1-0 in the first leg, drew 1-1 in the second leg, and reached the Champions League semi-final for the second time in history.
The story of the counter-attackers is always loved by people, and such stories happen from time to time, so let's take a look at the five dark horses that reached the semi-finals of the Champions League.
5. Eindhoven – 2004/05 Champions League
In 2005 Eindhoven reached the champions league semi-finals, although their performances were not the best. They are second in the group, behind Arsenal, beating Monaco 3-0 in the round of 16.
Then met another French club, Lyon, who won Ligue 1 for seven consecutive years during that time, having just beaten German champions Bremen 10-2 in the last two-legged match.
Psynceph Eindhoven advanced on penalties after a 1-1 home-away draw before facing Champions League rival AC Milan in the semi-finals, with Ambrosini's goal in stoppage time in the second leg to advance AC Milan to the Istanbul final. But Eindhoven has left their mark with their exciting performances and outstanding players.
Like many Dutch clubs, Eindhoven has a team of talented players, but their names are not yet household names. Park Ji-sung and Lee Young-woo went on to have a brilliant career in the Premier League.
Goalkeeper Gomez, as well as the entire back line at Eindhoven – Alex, Boma and the aforementioned Lee Wing-woo – have all contributed to different clubs in the Premier League. Midfielders van Bommel, Cocu and Vogel have all played for a number of European giants.
Cocu returned to Eindhoven after six seasons at Barcelona, where Van Bommel played for Barcelona, AC Milan and Bayern Munich, and Vogel moved to AC Milan that summer.
Add in the exciting wingers Falfan and Vennigur and you can see why they reached the Champions League semi-finals.
4. Villarreal – 2005/06 Champions League
Not the Villarreal of 2022, who reached the Champions League semi-finals in 2006 but unfortunately lost to Arsenal.
They won a group of Manchester United, Benfica and Lille before they beat the Scottish side Rangers with an away goal in the round of 16 and then the mighty Inter Milan in the same way.
Villarreal is a team that doesn't have much Experience in the Champions League, but they are a group of players who give everything for Pellegrini. In addition to the extremely talented Riquelme and Fran, Riquelme is Thorin on one side and senna on the other side, and the yellow submarine is a force to be reckoned with.
What attracts the attention of football fans is the size of this club, the town's population can accommodate the stadium of most Champions League clubs, which gives fans of other clubs a sense of pride, in fact, they have repeated such a feat this season, which gives them more hope.
3. Ajax – 2018/19 Champions League
Ajax took two Premier League players, Tadić and Blind, into the 2018-19 Champions League, along with an elderly Huntelaar.
They remain unbeaten in the group of Germany's powerhouse Bayern, Benfica and Athens AEK, with Ajax meeting Real Madrid in the round of 16 and the possibility of Ajax being eliminated after a 1-2 home defeat to Real Madrid.
But the 4-1 victory at the Bernabeu showed their level, with goals from Tadić, Nelles and Ziyech helping them out of Real Madrid before encountering Juventus in the quarter-finals.
Ajax was forced to draw 1-1 at home by the old woman, Neres scored again and Cristiano Ronaldo equalized. For Ajax, Italy's second leg was once again too tough, especially after Cristiano Ronaldo scored his second goal.
But goals from Van de Beek and 20-year-old captain De Ligt gave them their first lead, they held on and reached the Champions League semi-finals for the first time since 1997.
Ajax once again showed off the road, with Van de Beek's goal 15 minutes later in the first leg giving Ajax a 1-0 lead. When they led by two goals in the first half of the second leg, the drama had just begun.
Spurs striker Lucas scored a hat-trick in the second half to bring the team to the Champions League final. Ajax was then divided in the transfer window, with De Ligt, Van der Beek, De Jong and Ziech all moving to the big clubs at a high price, but these memories remain.
2. Monaco – 2016/17 Champions League
The team made it all the way to the semi-finals in 2016-17, and apart from Falcao and Moutinho, two veterans, Mbappe is an exciting name.
Monaco finished first in the group and Bayer Leverkusen beat Tottenham Hotspur and CSKA Moscow to reach the knockout rounds against Manchester City. Monaco lost 3-5 to Manchester City in the first leg, with goals from Falcao and Kylian Kylian Mbappe giving them a good chance.
Monaco won 3-1 in the second leg, with goals from Kylian Mbappe, Fabinho and Bakayoko knocking them out of Manchester City.
The quarter-finals met Borussia Dortmund, who eliminated Benfica in the last round. Monaco continued their passion, leaving the Westphalia Stadium with a 3-2 victory. French prodigy Mbappe once again surprised everyone.
Falcao and Germain won 3-1 (6-3 on aggregate) alongside Kylian Mbappe in the second leg, and the semi-finals were summoning them, they met Juventus, who eliminated Barca, and people were expecting them to go further.
But Juventus showed off their experience and kept Monaco out of the way, with Juve ending the march with a 4-1 aggregate score. The inevitable happened, and in the upcoming transfer window, almost all of Monaco's stars left.
Mbappe, Falcao (on loan), Bakayoko, Fabinho, Bernardo Silva and Moutinho all left.
1. Borussia Dortmund – 2012/13 Champions League
In the 2012–13 Champions League season, Klopp's Dortmund were placed in the Death Group. They are number one in the group of Real Madrid, Ajax and Manchester City, with an unbeaten record.
Their round of 16 draw also seemed favorable, with the Donetsk miners not causing trouble for Dortmund. Ukraine drew 2-2 in the first leg and Advanced to advance in the second leg with an overwhelming 3-0 victory.
In the quarter-finals, Malaga, with its talented players such as Baptista, Saviola, Sko, Joaquin and Tulalan, is destined to have problems.
In the second leg in particular, when Malaga regained the lead in the 82nd minute, the game seemed to be over and Borussia Dortmund needed two goals, but Reuss' goal in the 91st minute caused a stir in the whole stadium and Felipe Santana's controversial kill allowed them to escape.
The semi-final with Real Madrid presented an opportunity, with Borussia Dortmund starting with a lead in the first leg of the semi-finals, with Lewandowski taking the lead in the 8th minute. Although Cristiano Ronaldo equalised, the Polish star did not end the game, and Levan scored three more goals in the second half to win Real Madrid 4-1.
The second leg didn't seem like much point, but in the 83rd and 88th minutes, two goals from Benzema and Ramos strained the Germans and Dortmund were eliminated if Real Madrid scored one more goal.
However, Klopp's side eventually met Bayern in the final, with Bayern Munich winning 2-1 thanks to Robben's goal. Borussia Dortmund failed to lift the trophy, but their performances remain in the hearts of the fans to this day.