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Champions League 2008/2009!

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  Quote Kaysaar Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Champions League 2008/2009!
    Posted: 28-Aug-2008 at 20:34
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I present to you the UEFA Champions League groups stages!

Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D
Chelsea
Inter
Barcelona
Liverpool
Roma
W. Bremen
Sporting
PSV
Bordeaux
Pana.
Basel
Marseille
Cluj
Anorthosis
Shakhtar
At. Madrid

Group E
Group F
Group G
Group H
Manchester Utd
Lyon
Arsenal
R. Madrid
Villarreal
Bayern M.
Porto
Juventus
Celtic
Steaua
Fenerbahce
Zenit
Aalborg BK
Fiorentina
D. Kyiv
BATE

To me it looks like some of last years favorites are going to have a rough time around this year. Groups B, D and G look like the toughest to me. Arsenal has three strong teams to go through if they hope to make it out of the group stages, especially after the very strong run Fenerbahce made last year, and they've only become stronger with Dani Güiza and Luis Aragonés. Both Porto and Dynamo Kyiv are also teams not to be taken lightly.

Liverpool's matches against Atlético de Madrid will provide some nice drama as Fernando Torres faces off against his old team in group D.

In group H, Real Madrid might have their hands full with both Juventus and Zenit.

I think that my querido Barcelona made off well, with their real only challenger being Sporting de Lisboa. Yay!

Discuss!


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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28-Aug-2008 at 20:44
 
....well, out of all the English sides, on paper, it looks like my team Chelsea appear to have the 'easiest' group although as all managers are fond of saying, 'at this stage, there are no easy teams'!!!...
 
.....i cannot see it being an all English final again, but then i did not think it would be an all English final at the start of last seasons Champions League campaign...Wink...
 
..still, i am really looking forward to the competition as we football fans are pretty much guaranteed a feast of quality footie from all the teams involved...and i for one, will try to watch as many games as i can......
 
..all the best then and 'come on you blooz'!!!!!
 
..AoO...
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  Quote Temujin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28-Aug-2008 at 20:49
first of: big LOL at Schalke. i hope Bremen does well in their group. i also hope that Bayern fails vs Lyon like Stuttgart did. i'll take that one as a benchmark (if bayern loses as well) Embarrassed
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28-Aug-2008 at 21:04
Bayern in a Champions League once again
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29-Aug-2008 at 05:24

Semis:

Arsenal v Manchester United
 
Chelsea v Liverpool
 
Final
Arsenal
v
Liverpool
 
Winner
Arsenal!
 
Very unlikely I know, but the I would not have predicted 3 English sides in the semis two years in a row, nor would I have thought it would be Liverpool the winner in 2005. Though I still say; that was not a penalty!
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  Quote King Kang of Mu Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29-Aug-2008 at 06:36

Yeah!  My favorite thread is back!

Starting with Group A
 
Chelsea.  Wow, Scolari, Deco and I hear Robinho finally last minute?  I think it's great!  I wanted Robinho to succeed in Madrid.  But Schuster wasn't much different than Capello.  With Scolari he will feel much more comfortable.  Plus at Madrid they had no one like Deco to serve him the ball.  Only guy who was serving him the ball consistently was Guti, perhaps the only one whose ego wasn't threatened by Robinho's skills.  And think about all the protection he would get from guys like Essien, Lampard, Makalele, Ballack, Mikel...   I also hope that Scolari brings up Ashley Cole more.  High hopes on Bosingwa and I also like Belletti too.  Alex used to be Robinho's teammate back in Santos days. 
 
But It's not just what they added but also they didn't lose much.  Funny how some rich teams seem to do that.  Who did they lose?  Schevchenko?  C'mon, now.   I think he might do well actually back with AC Milan and now that means Ronaldnho and Kaka.  But as far as Chelsea goes you can't hardly call him a loss. 
 
Makalele, I wish they still have him.  I can see why though.  He was little inconsistent toward the end when it counted the most, almost looking like aging.   I still think he's a world class.  What I like him the most about his game in Chelsea is that he allows Essien and Lampard to push up same time if they choose to.  Now you got Deco instead of Makalele and Essien and Lampard has so stay back more.  But Deco can defend actually.  He's no Makalele for sure.  But he doesn't have to be. 
 
Drogba's hurt but he didn't leave.  Lampard didn't leave.  Terry didn't leave.  Carvalho didn't.  When Drogba Comes back it will be something like this.
 
 
                                     Drogba(AnelKa)
                    Robinho(J.Cole)
                                                    Deco(SWP?)
                                 Ballack(Malouda?)
                                                    Essien(Mikel) 
                         Lampard
           A. Cole
                                                            Bosingwa(Belletti)
                           Terry        Carvalho(Alex)
 
                                  Cech
 
I like that line up.  If Lampard or Essien gets hurt, go get Senna.  Villareal's a small club.  They will sell him to you.   Next year, get Deigo and Elano.  OK I'm dreaming now but who knows it might happen. 
 
Anelka's actually doing fine in injured Drogba's place but we will see....  He's not really known for his consistency. 
 
Sorry, it got kinda long on Chelsea with Robinho deal.   Next up, my favorite Italian club for past three years, AS Roma!  
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  Quote Kaysaar Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29-Aug-2008 at 14:29
Shaun Wright-Phillips won't be with Chelsea this year - he left and signed with Manchester City. The pairing of Drogba and Robinho will be an exciting pairing to watch - an intriguing mix of a power striker and a Brazilian Samba striker. 
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29-Aug-2008 at 14:51
I am surprised that Drogba stayed; he was 99% responsible for Chelsea losing the Champions League Final.
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  Quote King Kang of Mu Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29-Aug-2008 at 19:44
Originally posted by Kaysaar

Shaun Wright-Phillips won't be with Chelsea this year - he left and signed with Manchester City. The pairing of Drogba and Robinho will be an exciting pairing to watch - an intriguing mix of a power striker and a Brazilian Samba striker. 
 
He did?  Good news for Man City.  Finally Elano will have someone else other than Petrov to feed off of each other.  I like it. 
 
I got four English teams to cheer for this season.  Chelsea for Robinho, Man City for Elano who has three goals in two games btw, Arsenal because I've always liked them since the days of Bergkamp, and Man U when my Korean boy Ji Sung Park is on. 
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-Sep-2008 at 16:02
 
......my team Chelsea have got off to a cracking start with a convincing 4-0 win over Bordeaux..Clap..although by all accounts 'Big Phil' was not that impressedShocked!!!!! See here
 
..lets hope Chelsea do better next time eh!!!!...


Edited by Act of Oblivion - 17-Sep-2008 at 21:31
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  Quote Temujin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-Sep-2008 at 19:31
Bremen pissed me off yesterday. hope Bayern won't do any better tonight
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  Quote ulrich von hutten Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-Sep-2008 at 20:19
Originally posted by Temujin

Bremen pissed me off yesterday. hope Bayern won't do any better tonight
 
your homecountry could be very proud of you, traitor of bavaria..
but i can't agree more.

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  Quote King Kang of Mu Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-Sep-2008 at 20:48
Ahhhhhh, already the games have started.  I missed all the games yesterday and it looks like I will today too.  I hate it when the life gets in the way of football. 
 
Well since I wrote that post on Chelsea, much has changed.  Of course the biggest event was the Robinho deal to Man City.  But we had another thread for that so I won't go into that here.  But Chelsea also lost SWP who I thought they could only afford to let go if they were getting Robinho.  I think this puts more pressure on Joe Cole and Deco to pick up more wing duties and most of all stay healthy. 
 
But I would assume their biggest challenge is actually losing Essien(how long AoO?).  Drogba's hurt too but I don't think his injury will keep him away as long as Essien's.  Plus, Anelka is actually holding his own as the replacement for now.  But in Essien's case, well you guys know how I feel about Essien.  I think he has been the most important player on this team.  But losing Essien is one thing, losing Makalele thins out the solution even more.
 
But having said all these possible problems, Chelsea has responded well.  Joe Cole is keep stepping up instead of stepping over, not just for Chelsea but even for England!   Deco has proved his first few games with Chelsea why some considered(like me) that even at the height of last Barcelona run, Ronaldinho, Messi, Eto'o might have been the Footballer of the Year kinda players but still Deco was MVP for Barca.
 
I would also like to say a praise on Belletti.  I've always liked him of course since his Barca days.  But after he joined Chelsea he was more of a bench player.  After Scolari signing, I hoped that he would give Belletti more chance to show his skills.  But same time they also signed Bosingwa who was like Scolari's new phenom during the Euro 08.  So Belletti stays in the bench.  But with Makalele's departure and Essien's injury, they need another player who can defend and also handle the ball in the middle.  Of course, Deco, Ballack, Lampard and Mikel are great.  But they need another guy in the rotation least until Essien is back.  And it looks like Belletti is that guy.  I love when a player adjust his game for his team's needs.
 
 
 
 
I was gonna write a series of major contenders before the first game but never got around to it.  So I will try as the games go on I guess.  So next up was AS Roma.  They have been absolutely my favorite Italian team in past three years.  Along with Sevilla, Barca and Arsenal, they have been playing 'the beautiful game'.  But this year I expect a nasty down fall from them.   Totti is still recovering from a major injury perhaps the most important player in their club history.  
 
But another key loss was Mancini to Inter and Mourinho.  Mancini is amazing if you you haven't noticed him yet.  One of those Ze Roberto type who can play any position from right behind the striker to right in front of the backline. Although I don't think he is as good of a defender as Ze Roberto(then again very few are), but when he has the ball very few are better than him.  It was Mancini that defined the style of this club for past three years. 
 
Although I still believe in De Rossi, Perotta, Taddei, Vucinic, Juan and Julio Bapstista, it's just not the same without Mancini.  I think actually them picking up Julio Baptista for losing Mancini illustrates how this team will be affected by the moves they've made very well.  It makes sense in some ways because both of them are Brazilians and both can play offense and defense.  But they are completely different players as far as how they go about it.  Let's just say one plays the 'Small Ball' and the other plays the 'Power Ball'.  There are many big players who can play the 'Power Ball', there are very few who has the skills to play the'Small Ball' the way Mancini does.
 
 
Next up, I will follw Mancini to Inter!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Yesterday's Results
 
Final
Stamford Bridge
Collapse -
  Chelsea  4 - 0  Bordeaux
14' Frank Lampard Goal 1 - 0    
30' Joe Cole Goal 2 - 0    
82' Florent Malouda Goal 3 - 0    
90' Nicolas Anelka Goal 4 - 0    
Report | Match | Gamecast
Final
Stadio Olimpico
Collapse -
  Roma  1 - 2  CFR Cluj-Napoca
17' Christian Panucci Goal 1 - 0    
28'     1 - 1 Goal Emmanuel Culio
49'     1 - 2 Goal Emmanuel Culio
Report | Match | Gamecast
Final
Athens Olympic Stadium
Collapse -
  Panathinaikos  0 - 2  Inter Milan
27'     0 - 1 Goal Alessandro Mancini
85'     0 - 2 Goal Adriano
Report | Match | Gamecast
Final
Weserstadion
Collapse -
Final
Estadio Camp Nou
Collapse -
  Barcelona  3 - 1  Sporting Lisbon
21' Rafael Márquez Goal 1 - 0    
60' Samuel Eto'o (pen) Goal 2 - 0    
72'     2 - 1 Goal Tonel
87' Xavi Goal 3 - 1    
Report | Match | Gamecast
Final
St Jakob-Park
Collapse -
  FC Basel  1 - 2  Shakhtar Donetsk
25'     0 - 1 Goal Fernandinho
45'     0 - 2 Goal Jadson
90' David Angel Abraham Goal 1 - 2    
Report | Match | Gamecast
Final
Stade Vélodrome
Collapse -
  Marseille  1 - 2  Liverpool
23' Lorik Cana Goal 1 - 0    
26'     1 - 1 Goal Steven Gerrard
32'     1 - 2 Goal Steven Gerrard (pen)
Report | Match | Gamecast
Final
Philips Stadion
Collapse -
cookieState('254667|254670|254671|254672|254676|254675|254682|254679',false)
Final
G S Pancypria Stadium
Collapse -
  Apoel Nicosia  1 - 4  Schalke 04
25'     0 - 1 Goal Heiko Westermann
36'     0 - 2 Goal Ivan Rakitic
41'     0 - 3 Goal Vicente Martin Bragunde Sanchez
72' Nenad Mirosavljevic Goal 1 - 3    
88'     1 - 4 Goal Halil Altintop
Match
Final
Farum Park
Collapse -
  FC Nordsjælland  0 - 2  Olympiacos
74'     0 - 1 Goal Kostas Mitroglou
90'       Red%20Card Ieroklis Stoltidis
90'     0 - 2 Goal Sebastian Leto
Match
Final
Collapse -
  Hertha Berlin  2 - 0  St Patricks
50' Maximilian Nicu Goal 1 - 0    
77' Santos Cicero Goal 2 - 0    
Report | Match
cookieState('254952|254953|254996',false)
 
 
 
      
 
     


Edited by King Kang of Mu - 17-Sep-2008 at 20:57
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-Sep-2008 at 21:30
Originally posted by King Kang of Mu

 
But I would assume their biggest challenge is actually losing Essien(how long AoO?).  Drogba's hurt too but I don't think his injury will keep him away as long as Essien's.  
But having said all these possible problems, Chelsea has responded well.  Joe Cole is keep stepping up instead of stepping over, not just for Chelsea but even for England! 
 
..Hi KK.....
 
...Reports have it that Essien might be out for about 5 months and Scolari has been suggesting that he will have to 'buy in' some form of back-up/replacement in the January transfer window although he is keeping tight-lipped over the names on his 'shopping' list....as for Drogs, rumours are that he will be ready for this weekend's game against Man Utd.....
 
..Joe Cole had a pretty decent game against Bordeaux and somehow managed to score from a corner a headed goal on the near post while be marked by three players all much taller than him..bizarre!!!..even John Terry saw the funny side of that goal!!!....Cole was substituted later in the game by Belletti who managed an absolute long range cracker on goal which hit the cross-bar and dropped nicely for Anelka who popped it in the net for Chelsea's fourth goal.....so far so good.......
 
..all the best...AoO...
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
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  Quote Temujin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 18-Sep-2008 at 14:08
Bayern made some unimpressive win yesterday, they won't last long... Big%20smile
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  Quote Kaysaar Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02-Oct-2008 at 01:23
Ha ha!

Leo Messi comes on as super sub, and scores Barcelona's two goals in the last 15 minutes of the game!
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  Quote Temujin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03-Oct-2008 at 19:13
Bremen didn't failed me, they drawed Inter in an overall balanced match. Stuttgart almost got knocked out of UEFA Cup if it was not for Hitzelsperger and Gomez, but Dortmund despite a magnificent match got eliminated in penalties...


Edited by Temujin - 03-Oct-2008 at 19:14
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  Quote Kaysaar Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 23-Oct-2008 at 21:27

Matchday 3 - 21 October 2008

GroupHome
Away

EVillarreal6-3AaBvideo Report »
EMan. United3-0Celticvideo Report »
FBayern3-0Fiorentinavideo Report »
FSteaua3-5Lyonvideo Report »
GFenerbahçe2-5Arsenalvideo Report »
GPorto0-1Dynamo Kyivvideo Report »
HZenit1-1BATEvideo Report »
HJuventus2-1Real Madridvideo Report »

Matchday 3 - 22 October 2008

GroupHome
Away

ABordeaux1-0CFR Clujvideo Report »
AChelsea1-0Romavideo Report »
BInternazionale1-0Anorthosisvideo Report »
BPanathinaikos2-2Bremenvideo Report »
CShakhtar0-1Sportingvideo Report »
CBasel0-5Barcelonavideo Report »
DAtlético1-1Liverpoolvideo Report »
DPSV2-0Marseillevideo Report »


Wow!

A few tight games these matchdays - but a whole mess of goals nontheless, with my Barca, Arsenal, Lyon, and Villarreal dropping five or more goals on their opponents! A couple of surprise games, with an injury plagued Juventus defeating Real Madrid, as well as Sporting falling to Dynamo Kyiv. I think that the other big surprise is that Fenerbaçhe has rolled over and died in the champions league this year after a deep run last year.

I am, of course, please that Barcelona thrashed their opponent, even if it was a club that is outside of the main contenders. It was nice to see that all of the goals they scored came from players who developed in the Barcelona youth ranks.
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  Quote Temujin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-Nov-2008 at 19:01
Bremen was an utter failure. coupled by their bad performance in the Bunfesliga it will have some major consequences...
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  Quote Kaysaar Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 19-Dec-2008 at 20:49
Ladies and Gentlemen, your round of 16 Champions League Draws:

2008/09 UEFA Champions League
First knockout round – to be played 24/25 February and 10/11 March
Team named first at home in first leg
Chelsea FC (ENG) v Juventus (ITA)
Villarreal CF (ESP) v Panathinaikos FC (GRE)
Sporting Clube de Portugal (POR) v FC Bayern München (GER)
Club Atlético de Madrid (ESP) v FC Porto (POR)
Olympique Lyonnais (FRA) v FC Barcelona (ESP)
Real Madrid CF (ESP) v Liverpool FC (ENG)
Arsenal FC (ENG) v AS Roma (ITA)
FC Internazionale Milano (ITA) v Manchester United FC (ENG)

A lot of great match ups here - my initial picks are bolded

I think that the single two best match ups this round are Real Madrid v. Liverpool, and Inter Milan v. Manchester. I think that by February Real Madrid will have righted their ship a little, so they could be dangerous for Liverpool. I think that at this point in the season Liverpool is the superior team, and I think that they will remain the better team.

For Inter V. Man U., I think that Inter is simply in better form than Manchester. Manchester has floundered some this season against stronger opponents, falling to Arsenal, and finding themselves incapable of gaining leverage against Villarreal. Even smaller teams like Celtic, although defeated, gave Manchester a run for their money. Inter simply hasn't suffered form the same lack of form.

I think my Barça will be able to handle the potent attacks of Karim Benzema enough to be able to advance beyond Lyon.
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