The third installment of this season’s ‘El Clasico’ match-up between Real Madrid and Barcelona could have been renamed ‘El Fiasco’. Depending on your outlook, it may have been surprising to see Jose Mourinho’s Madrid squad setup with such bullying tactics. Both coaches had strong words for one another in the press conference so I was not surprised that the atmosphere was tense.

The game was hyped in some circles as a Lionel Messi versus Cristiano Ronaldo showdown to see who the true best player in the game is right now. That for me was just one of the sub-plots available. To dismiss the array of talent on both squads is naive. According to Deloitte, Real Madrid pay €192m (£170m) in wages to a squad that cost €475m to assemble. Barca hand over €235m to a group who cost €175m to buy. Barcelona spend less on transfers because of the success graduates of Barcelona’s academy — La Masia de Can Planes (loosely translates from Catalan as “The Farmhouse”) have had with the first team. Among the graduates are key first-team players Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets, Xavi Hernández, Andrés Iniesta, Carles Puyol, and Víctor Valdés.

The game itself was a cagey affair in the first half with both teams not looking full sharp and taking more interest in fouling their opponents. The half-time whistle brought no relief to the tension as Barcelona’s backup goalkeeper, Pinto, was sent off for seeming to punch Madrid’s match-day delegate Miguel Porlán “Chendo” in the midst of an argument with Alvaro Arbeloa.

The game changed early in the second half when Pepe and Dani Alves both went for a loose ball and Pepe appeared to catch Alves on the shin. Alves writhed on the floor like his leg had been broekn and referree Wolfgang Stark showed Pepe the red card. Personally, I thought the referee was conned by Alves’ roilling around and at most should have given a yellow card. Don’t believe it? Watch this video!

Jose Mourinho sarcastically applauded Alves as he was stretchered off and gave the fourth official a thumbs-up for good measure. Mourinho’s performance earned him a red card and he will not be on the touchline for the return leg. Alves returned to the pitch less than 5 minutes later and appeared to be just fine.

I suspect that had Pepe not been sent off that the game would have ended as a dour scoreless draw. Pepe and Lassana Diarra had done a good job of harrassing Messi, playing in a deeper position because of Iniesta’s absence, and Xavi which stifled some of Barcelona’s creativity.

A scoreless draw was not to be after the sending off and there are two moments of pure class to discuss with Lionel Messi being at the heart of both of them. His second goal in particular deserves to be celebrated not just by Barcelona fans, but anyone who is even a casual soccer fan. It was an expression of artistry that elevates the game to the heights it should always strive to reach. Watch the marvelous second goal and tell me if you’ve seen a better display in such a big game. Remember, this is not some beer league team, this is a very good Real Madrid squad who were looking to keep the score close.

Unfortunately, things got ugly again during Jose Mourinho’s post-match press conference. Some of his remarks are completely scandalous and Barcelona manager Pep Guardialo refused to acknowledge them.

Barcelona are considering legal action against Mourinho while UEFA confirmed that its Control and Disciplinary Body would hear numerous cases against Real on May 6, ‘in relation to the throwing of missiles, a pitch invasion, the red card shown to Pepe, the dismissal of the coach José Mourinho, as well as the inappropriate statement given by Mr Mourinho to the media after the match’.

Mourinho has essentially conceded the semi-final to Barcelona stating that a 2-0 deficit will be very difficult to overturn.

What do Werder Bremen, Villareal, Atletico Madrid, Panathinaikos, PSV Eindhoven, Marseille, Dynamo Kyiv, Celtic and Fenerbahce have in common (hint: the answer is not “They’re all in the Champions League group stage which starts today”)? Give up?

Well, all of these clubs are in fact in the group stage of the Champions League, but the answer is that all of them have escaped the group stage at one point or another. Sporting Lisbon, however, is another story. Perennially a contender in the Portuguese top division, Sporting’s European history has been mediocre at best. Discounting its 1964 Cup Winners Cup title, Sporting has been to the Champions League four times and never had a sniff of the knockout stage. Its best showing in the old European Champions Cup was in 1982-83 when it reached the quarterfinals, losing to Real Sociedad.

This year may be different. There may be light at the end of the tunnel for the Lisbon club. Sporting begins group stage play Tuesday at Barcelona, and despite this difficult challenge out of the blocks, Sporting was given a favorable draw. FC Basel 1893 and Shakhtar Donetsk round out Group C, and one would have to figure Barca for clear sailing to the knockout round and Sporting and Shakhtar duking it out for second place.

But how about Sporting for favorites to win the group outright? How about a true underdog pulling a shocker?

All we can judge is today, but today, Sporting might be a more well-rounded deeper club, Lionel Messi not withstanding for Barcelona. Sporting has won its first two matches in the Portuguese Liga and knocked off F.C. Porto for the Portuguese SuperCup to open the season. Sporting had a fruitful offseason, signing Helder Postiga Marco Caneira, Leandro Grimi, and re-signing Fabio Rochemback. They also have had another year of maturity for standout youngsters such as goalkeeper Rui Patricio, fullback Ronny, strikers Yannick Djalo, Rodrigo Tiui.

And speaking of seasoning? Joao Moutinho and Miguel Veloso were kept from the plentiful pockets of Inter Milan and Manchester United respectively in the offseason. For the first time in a long time, Sporting has managed to keep some homegrown talent from fleeing for greener pastures–at least temporarily.

Sporting is an interesting package for Barcelona to contend with. The Catalans had a tenuous offseason to contend with as new manager Pep Guardiola settled in. Ronaldinho is gone (some may say that’s a plus), and Messi, Samuel Eto’o, Carles Puyol, Thierry Henry,  Iniesta and Rafa Marquez remain. Yet, Barca has gotten off to a putrid start under Guardiola, losing its La Liga opener to promoted Numancia and battling Racing Santander to a 1-1 draw this weekend. Worse yet, new signee Alexander Hleb from Arsenal will miss the Sporting match with an ankle injury.

If nothing else for Sporting, this year’s draw is a lot less cluttered with billion-dollar clubs. Last year, Sporting had to contend with Roma and Manchester United, and the year before, Inter and Bayern Munich.  In Basel, Sporting sees a familiar opponent having wiped out the Swiss club in the UEFA Cup. Shakhtar, the kings of the Ukraine, are an unfamiliar foe.

Should Sporting gain a result Tuesday and Barcelona continues to be a shaky proposition in a difficult La Liga, Sporting could be poised to surprise and win the group.