Sick, old men of Europe

Manchester United 4-0 AC Milan (agg 7-2)
Real Madrid 1-1 Lyon (agg 1-2)

So, the two most successful clubs in Europe (in terms of total European Cups won, 16 combined) are dumped out today. AC Milan was clobbered by Man U at Old Trafford, and more surprisingly, Real Madrid knocked out when they could only draw 1-1 at home. Whatever their grandeur, these clubs are sick; they are old; they are unsuited for the elite of the European club game.

AC Milan came in with little expectation after losing the first leg at home. However, in that game, they were at least competitive and gave Man U a good game. In today's match, they were simply horrible. A makeshift defence contained Ronaldinho, and more worrisome in the long term, the back four just could not keep up with Wayne Rooney and the Man U strikers. The whole team is old, and desperately needs rejuvenation. It was nice to see David Beckham get a rousing ovation from the home crowd, and he did show some skills. But all in all, AC Milan were horrible and just look plain old. Soon they'll be eligible for Medicare.

More surprising is Real Madrid's draw, which eliminated them on aggregate since Lyon won in the first leg. Once again, for six years running, they were knocked out in the last 16. For a club that spent over $400m, it is an embarrassment of riches, especially since the final will be played in their home stadium in May. Their loss was surprisingly since they were heavily favoured. Once again, the midfield and attack, so prolific in La Liga, just could not measure up to European competition. The defence, long a weakness, crumbled by conceding a fatal equalizer. Something sick is going on at Real Madrid, which nobody - the team, management, the media, or people like me - can figure out. On the plus side, maybe it feels right that excess spending leads to no results.