Here is part 2 of Yomi Akinyemi’s two part UEFA Europa League semi-final preview. Part 1 can be read here.

Liverpool  vs Atletico Madrid

Liverpool

Who was your favorite superhero as kid? Batman? Incredible Hulk? He-Man? Certainly not He-man i hope. I always wanted to be Superman. Not because he could fly and all the other amazing stuff he could conjure up. I wanted to be Superman because he was from another planet, he was almost indestructible. The only thing that could kill him was kryptonite which Rafa Benitez’ seems to have inherited in European competitions.

Here’s to hoping I never run into Benitez.

While the debate and merits of Rafa Benitez’ current reign at Liverpool can be argued back and forth, the fact is the man is head above shoulders a master tactician and has substantial proof to back it up. Rafa, often criticized for his suicidally defensive approach to matches, is still widely regarded as one of the best in Europe and will be in great demand should he depart Liverpool.

With 2 La liga titles, a Champions League and UEFA Cup trophy to his resume, his tenure at Liverpool has been highlighted by his in-ability to lead Liverpool to a domestic title. After narrowly missing out on the title last season, much was expected this year from the enigmatic character yet the season can be tagged as failure even by the most optimistic supporter.

Liverpool were favorites to progress from the a Champions league group which consisted of Fiorentina, Lyon and Hungarian side Debrecen. The Reds finished a disappointing third. Most fans did not consider Europa League participation a consolation. Who was to blame for this disaster?

Some fans blamed Rafa. Most blamed the club’s quarreling American owners as the catalyst for the club’s underachievement this season due to lack of funds and ever rising debt which has limited the purchase of world class players in the mold of Fernando Torres to strengthen the team. A minority of supporters blamed Rafa and the owners pointing out that Benitez’s purchases have been poor and the club is littered with tons of youth players unworthy of wearing the club’s shirt.

Rafa on the other hand stopped short of pointing fingers at his employers and focused his attention and CV towards the Europa league campaign. Liverpool displayed a fluid performance as it dispatched Romanian side Unirea and overcame a slim first leg deficit to advance past Lille in the second round.

As the Spaniard returns to his hometown of Madrid to face Atletico, his future is all but settled. Juventus have been openly exposing  themselves at him like a one-armed lady of the night while Real Madrid, like a thief in the night, will surely come knocking on his door.

Moreover the future of Liverpool hangs in the balance. American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillet have publicly put the club up for sale to a tune of £500 million -  a third of its purchase three years ago. A whopping £80 million profit for each year it was owned. And that’s not including an enormous bank debt and the little problem of a new stadium.

Win or lose the Europa League, Benitez future lies in his hands. The club cannot afford to sack him and pay a reported £20 million compensation. Also since the club is up for sale, it is unlikely they will be a massive transfer kitty for its manager  – Benitez or whomever – to dip into and recruit the  players it needs to challenge for domestic honors.

Oh, and add the little dilemma of the club residing in 6th place – a point and a game ahead of Aston Villa in the Europa league spot. Should Liverpool finish out of a European spot for next season, the financial windfall would be rather harsh. That’s about £20 million lost in T.V. and ticket revenue and the irk of its top players such as Torres, Gerrard or Mascherano who may or may not seek new pastures.

The grass is not so green on the other side for Liverpool. It’s red, bathed in blood.

Atletico Madrid

I’ll go ahead and say this: I’m not an Anti-Madridista. In fact, Getafe are one of my beloved Spanish sides, and while they may never achieve the lofty heights of their neighbors Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid, they are definitely a team worth paying ever so close attention to.

That being said, this is Atletico Madrid – the blue print of failure at all costs. Yet, the calamitous merry go round circus find themselves in the Copa Del Rey final, and more surprisingly a semi-final berth of the Europa League.

And this is the same team that has won a total of ONE game in Europe all season. Let’s not forget Atletico Madrid started its European campaign in the Champions League promptly exiting the competition with a record of 0 wins, 3 draws and 3 losses. Level on points 4th place with APOEL, Atletico  barely scrapped a 3rd place Europa League spot courtesy of a better head to head tie with the first time Cypriot participants.

That tie-breaker was a 1-1 away leg result after playing a goalless draw at home in Madrid. APOEL actually scored more goals (4), conceded less (7) with a superior goal difference of -3 compared to Atletico’s 3 goals scored, 12 conceded and a -9 goal difference.

So the question beckons:  how has Atletico Madrid – a team who have overspent and underperformed for years, languishing 10th place in its domestic league and  currently on its 2nd manager this season – found itself playing for a spot in a European cup final?

The short answer is luck. The long answer is loads, loads and loads of luck. It should be noted that Atletico are not only a very well supported club, they are statistically the third most successful club in Spain with 9 league titles, 9 Spanish cups with a UEFA and World Club Championship cup in the trophy cabinet.  Nonetheless,  it’s been almost 15 years since Atletico have won anything despite being the third highest spending team in Spain during this era.

Atletico won its only game of its current European season away against Galatasaray in the first knock-out round of the Europa league. The 3-2 aggregate, thanks to a 90th minute goal by Diego Forlan, led their passage to the second knockout round when an Aguero double was enough to send Sporting Club de Portugal packing as Atletico progressed on away goals rule.

Fellow Spanish quarter-finalists Valencia suffered the same fate as Atletico, similar against Sporting CP,  mirrored the same 2-2 away score aggregate to set up a date with Liverpool in the semi-final. As Liverpool await, the onus is on lady luck – will she smile on the Spanish side one more time or will the volcanic ash cloud the air, engulf Atletico’s breathing space and leave Quique Flores’ side stranded at the final gate?

If history has told us anything it surely is that never bet on Atletico Madrid.

As the joke goes, a boy asks his father “why do we support Atletico Madrid?”. His father looks at him puzzled and sighs. There is no answer.

Ladies and Gentlemen, unlike the Champions league, the winner of the Europa league DOES NOT get an automatic qualification as a participant next season. For Atletico fans, you need not worry.

While the other semi-finalists Fulham, Hamburg and Liverpool may endure next season bereft of European football, Atletico Madrid will more than likely strut its stuff in Europe next year as either automatic qualification via winner of the Spanish cup or runners-up as Sevilla will undoubtedly secure a Champions league or Europa Cup spot through league standings.

There is no logical explanation why Atletico fans fill the seats each week at the Vicente Calderon. It’s pure madness.