Emotions run the gamut in European Champions League soccer games

By Grahame L. Jones

Feb. 15, 2011 12 AM PT

Raul Gonzalez showed class and Gennaro Gattuso showed none.

That, in 10 words or less, was the story of Tuesday’s two European Champions League round-of-16 soccer games played in Spain and Italy, respectively.

Tottenham Hotspur, ignoring as best it could the outrageous and disgraceful behavior of AC Milan and Italian national team midfielder Gattuso, defeated the seven-time European champions, 1-0, in Milan on a sublime fastbreak goal set up by winger Aaron Lennon and scored by striker Peter Crouch.

Spurs grabbed the winner with only 10 minutes to play and needs only to tie the second leg of the series in London on March 9 to advance to the quarterfinals.

Elsewhere, Schalke ‘04, playing on the road against an arguably more gifted team, came from behind to tie Valencia, 1-1, with Raul netting the vital goal to increase his leading total in major European competition to 71 goals.

The 33-year-old former Real Madrid and Spanish national team striker this season overtook AC Milan veteran Filippo Inzaghi and former German great Gerd “Der Bomber” Mueller on the all-time scoring charts.

Valencia had taken the lead on a fine goal by another former Real Madrid player, Roberto Soldado, but squandered several chances to put the game out of reach before Schalke’s Raul-inspired comeback.

The German club, languishing at mid-table in the Bundesliga, can turn Raul’s goal into a quarterfinal spot if it defeats or holds Valencia to a scoreless tie when the teams play each other in Gelsenkirchen on March 9.

“They managed to equalize, so they undoubtedly deserved to do so,” Coach Unai Emery said. “If it weren’t for the fact that Raul’s goal damaged us, I would praise it. … It’s not the worst result for us, but not the best either. Schalke have taken a slight advantage.”

The AC Milan-Tottenham game was the night’s headliner, though.

Gattuso appeared out of control at times during the game. At one point in the second half, during a sideline confrontation sparked by who knows what, he grabbed the throat of Spurs’ 59-year-old assistant coach Joe Jordan, a former Scotland international.

After the final whistle, Gattuso was at it again, and aimed a headbutt at Jordan’s face before being restrained by teammates in a bizarre melee that was caught on camera.

Massimiliano Allegri, AC Milan’s coach, tried to play down the incident.

“I didn’t understand what happened there,” he told Sky Sport Italia. “It was just a scuffle, nothing serious.”

Not so.

Gattuso was yellow-carded during the game by French referee Stephane Lannoy and will sit out the second leg at White Hart Lane. He could spend even longer on the sideline if UEFA, European soccer’s governing body, deems his behavior unacceptable.

Tottenham Coach Harry Redknapp, obviously buoyed by the unexpected road victory on a day when his best player, Welsh winger Gareth Bale, was unavailable because of a back injury, saw some humor in it all.

“There would be only one winner there — Joe,” Redknapp said. “I’d have my money on Joe. Of all the people to pick on, don’t pick on Joe.”

To his credit, Gattuso admitted the error of his ways.

“I lost my head,” he told La Gazzetta dello Sport. “There is no justification for what I did. I’m not going to say what was said, that’s between us, we were speaking Scottish. Do I expect a ban? I’ll accept whatever I get.”

The Italian team, which leads the Serie A but is coming under increasing pressure from the chasing pack, including defending Italian and European champion Inter Milan, had a rough night on a rainy Tuesday.

Goalkeeper Christian Abbiati lasted barely a quarter of an hour before being taken to a hospital for tests for an apparent concussion.

Milan’s Mathieu Flamini was lucky to escape a red card for his two-footed tackle on defender Vedran Corluka that knocked the Croatian out of the game and put him on crutches.

Redknapp was more furious about that than about Gattuso’s antics, calling it is “a horrendous tackle.”

“It was a sending off,” Redknapp said. “He was two or three feet off the floor with his two feet raised. It was a leg-breaking tackle.”

On offense, AC Milan raised its game in the second half with the introduction of Brazil’s Pato in place of Dutch veteran Clarence Seedorf, but the Italian team, despite the efforts of Robinho and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, could not break through.

Tottenham had a Brazilian of its own to thank for that, with Heurelho Gomes making two superb saves of close-range headers by Mario Yepes.

The Champions League continues Wednesday with Arsenal playing host to Barcelona in London and AS Roma at home against Shakhtar Donetsk of Ukraine.

[email protected]