Manchester United vs Arsenal Live Score and Preview: UEFA Champions League Semifinal 08-09

For live score of the match, visit this link:

Manchester United and Arsenal Match Live Updates

(This entry was originally published on Monday, April 27th, 2009)

It is a match that millions of people are waiting for not only in England but also in the whole world. I know from my previous experience that tomorrow, millions of people in Asia, Africa, Australia and even in USA will keep their eyes on this match of Manchester United vs Arsenal UEFA Champions League Semifinal. It is the first leg and it will take place in the stadium of Man U. So, they are home team and hot favorite to win the first leg. However, you cannot count out the Gunners at all because we have seen some fighting sprit and resurgence of form in London in the last few weeks.

First, I want to talk about Alex Ferguson’s team because they are home team. On Saturday, they played against Tottenham in an EPL clash and in half time, Tottenham took 2-0 lead. Then in second half, Ronaldo and his teammates scored 5 superb goals to win the match by 5-2. Can you believe it?

The event: Uefa Champions League 2008-09 Semi-final (first leg)

The Clubs: Manchester United vs Arsenal

Date: 29 April 2009 (Wednesday)

Kick Off time: 1945 BST

Stadium: Old Trafford

Yes, it is difficult to believe unless you watched the match. This is the thing that has amazed everyone and it happened more than once this season. Alex Ferguson is happy to see that his club is in the top of the football world at this moment. They have already won the carling cup. They are in course to win the title of English Premier League and UEFA Champions League is also just 3 matches away.

Well, after saying so many good words about Man Utd, it is difficult to say similar thing about Arsenal this season. They are already of hope of every title in this season except the Champions League. This is the only thing to play for the Gunners at this moment. The next best thing that they can hope for is perhaps 3^rd position in EPL which most probably would not happen. So, tomorrow nigh can be a decisive night for them.

Arsene Wenger is also in happy and confident mood after seeing his team performed in an excellent manner in the last two matches. They drew with Liverpool in Liverpool last week by 4-4 and although Liverpool played well Arsenal never gave up. Then yesterday, they totally dominated against Middlesbrough and it was the match of Cese Fabregas. Fabregas is back on top form and he scored both the two goals of the match.

BBC wrote:

The Gunners extended their Premier League unbeaten run to 20 games with a 2-0 win over Middlesbrough on Sunday.

“We will go to United with belief and to enjoy it - and also to be faithful to the game we play,” said Wenger.

“What is important on Wednesday is that we are at our best. When we are at our best we can beat everybody.”

The good thing for Man Utd is that there is no major injury at this moment. Gary Neville will not be there but I believe that they have enough quality players in the defense. For Ryan Giggs, it will be an special match. If he plays then it will be his 800^th appearance for Ryan Giggs for Manchester United. They will go in the match with some impressive records in their mind. They have not lost any match in Champions League in the last 23 matches. Secondly, they are unbeaten at Old Trafford for 20 matches in CL. This is a record to be proud of. It will be Cristiano Ronaldo who have something to cheer about because it will be his 5oth Champions League match. So, naturally, he will want to make it memorable by scoring a goal or two. Rooney is in good form too. Tevez and Berbetov are doing well. So, there is less worry for United in tomorrow’s match. They will entertain Arsenal with full confidence. The fans at Old Trafford from the first minute will start discussing what will be the score line 2-0, 3-0 or 4-0.

Arsenal has some stats to remember too. They have never lost in any match whenever they played in the semifinal level in any competition in Europe. It means that each time they played in the semifinal, they reached to the final in Europe. This is something to cheer about surely. This should give some confidence to all the players.

Injury is a big problem for Arsene Wenger. There is doubt about Mikael Silvestre. Robin van Persie and Left back Gael Clichy are still injured and most probably will not be available tomorrow. Arsene Wenger is delighted to see his main weapon Cese Fabregas in superb form in right time. Samir Nasri is also a good player. However, the fans will surely miss Arshevin. So, the striking position looks weak for the Gunners. Well, Arsene Wenger is surely hoping that Cese Fabregas can provide some kind of magic.

Telegraph wrote:

It is thought most likely that he will shift Nasri into the position on the left that has been occupied in recent league games by Andrei Arshavin, with Denilson and Alex Song providing the central platform.

However, he could now use Abou Diaby or Nicklas Bendtner on the left and integrate Nasri in the centre.

After going through the players, my feeling that Manchester United is the host favorite in the match. It will be either a draw or a win for them. I don’t see any prospect of the Gunners getting 3 points in this match. What about you?

Barcelona vs Chelsea 08-09 Champions League Match: Didier Drogba in Confident Mood

(This entry was originally published on Sunday, April 26th, 2009)

Didier Drogba is perhaps now the key striker of Chelsea football club. He has scored 9 goals in the last 12 matches. It shows that he is in good touch and his club can rely on him for getting goals. He recently expressed his feeling to the Guardian newspaper and Didier Drogba stated that he understood the expectations of the fans and he would definitely try to make the fans happy.

Last year, Chelsea came very close to winning the trophy in Champions League but in the final, lost to Manchester United in tie breaker. Didier Drogba’s team is going to play Barcelona this Tuesday night and the match will take place in Spain. So, the first leg will be held in the home stadium of Barcelona and Barcelona will have home advantage. The main focus of Chelsea should be to get a draw. If they can get a draw then they will be the favorite in the second leg at England.

Wayne Rooney in trouble in Champions league?

(This entry was originally published in this blog December 2008 and it is based on the information of that time.)

Wayne Rooney is one of the most gifted players of England national football team today. He is also a big star in Manchester United Club and millions of people are crazy for him. So, I can not find any justification of his bad challenge in the match this weak in the Champions league. He did it against Denmark club and he offended a player that was not marked by the referee but it got a lot of negative coverage in the media.

Now, UEFA official are investigating about it and even there is fear of getting banned for a match or two or even more because of this bat tackle. I really can not understand why Rooney acted this way because this match was not important for Manchester United. Manchester United has already qualified for the knock-out stage and even if Manchester United lost it would not have any difference for them. They would go to the knockout stage.

Anyway, Wayne Rooney is not a person who should do serious and bad tackle because it is the work of defender and he is a striker.

Related Article

CNN

Barcelona vs Manchester United: Different Business Models

It is that clash of two of the largest clubs in Europe and whoever will win tomorrow will take away the coveted prize of championship of champions league. They are from two different countries: England and Spain. Manchester united Is the top level of England football and this season, they have on the title of the English premier league very easily. On the other hand, Barcelona is one of the top two teams of Spain and they have achieved a similar success in Spanish league football this season. There is no doubt that some of the greatest players of our time to play in these two clubs. However, despite all the similarities there is one big difference in the way they do business.

Guardian has written a very excellent report about it:

The contrasts appear so clear as to be blinding. Barça, who cannot be bought and whose president must stand for election by the fans; United, taken over against the wishes of the fans and the board itself by the Glazer family, who have loaded the club with around £700m of debt and own it, via a thicket of companies, in the low-tax US state of Nevada. Barça, flagbearers for the idea that a football club is a home of belonging; United, epitomising the English belief that the free market, and billionaires, must rule even sport.

So, Tomorrow we will see the conflict of to business models and two business cultures. We will have to wait another 24 hours to know the result.

Arsenal vs Manchester United Champions League Semifinal Live in Ten Sports TV Channel

No, not even 24 hours are left now. In fact, all the players are now perhaps thinking about tomorrow’s match in both the camp. In London, the players are thinking that this is the last chance of glory in this season. If they lose tomorrow then they will be without any trophy this season. If they win then it will be something memorable. They have to something to play for because they know that the goal difference is not that much. The Gunners lost the first leg by just one goal and that is why they have something to be really hopeful.

On the other hand, Manchester United players also know that this is a match they must at least draw. They must go out the final or else the whole season will become meaningless despite the fact that they are going to win the EPL championship. UEFA Champions League is the most prestigious football trophy to win in club football. Manchester United is the reigning champion and their fans expect that they will defeat Arsenal very easily. The coach and the players are also in confident mood. However, the only thing that is against them tomorrow is that they are traveling London and at home Arsenal is always very strong in front of the supporters.

If you live in India and you still do not know which channel to tune it for this match then let me inform you that you must be in Ten Sports TV Channel. Yes, Ten Sports is going to provide live telecast of the match not only in India but also in other South Asian countries too. The match is going to start at 19:45 BST (British Standard Time) and it means that it will be 00:15 Indian Time, 00:45 Bangladesh Time and 23:45 Pakistan time. For more information on the match visit this entry: Arsenal vs Manchester United CL 2008-09

I just hope that you have Ten Sports channel in your home. This is a must if you want to enjoy Champions League matches in South Asia.

Arsenal v Villarreal UEFA Champions League Quarterfinals: Who Will Win?

Arsene Wenger suffered a lot of criticism in the last few months for the poor performance of his club. It is not that he plays in the field but it is the norm in our time that when a club cannot perform well the lion’s share of the responsibility comes to the coach. Well, many Arsenal fans understand the dilemma in which Arsene Wenger has to work with. The club has to arrange a lot of money for paying back the loans that happened because of building the new Emirates stadium. So, he has to maneuver within a very tight budget. He cannot think of buying a player like Messi or Christiano Ronaldo. However, there are a lot of expectations for the club to perform well because they have a very large fan base not only just in UK but also in many other countries in the world.

For Villarreal, the problem is of different kind. They have suffered from consistency. They are sometimes playing very well and sometimes not so good. For example, in the last week match, against the Gunners, Villarreal players could not perform well. They were at home and their fans felt frustrated. The draw has made many of their fans very disappointed.

For Arsene Wenger, there are now two big problems. The first one is injury. Many key players are injured and will not be available for the match. I am worried for the defense of Arsenal. Their top goalkeeper is injured. William Gallas will not be there. Clichy is out too. Thus, they will be without at least 3 top players in defense. A highly inexperienced defense will be put to the maximum test in this match. Of course, they played very well against Wigan this Saturday and defeated Wigan 4-1. However, you have to remember that Villarreal is a different club and it is UEFA Champions League. Another major problem is the pressure of the fans. They want some results at last and they don’t care how many players are injured or fit.

So, who will win in the match between Arsenal and Villarreal? What do you think? I feel that Arsenal has more chance to do it infont of home crowd.

Barcelona vs Bayern Munich Quarterfinal Clash in CL 2008-09

The quarterfinal line up of Champions League 2008-09 is up and it looks like a very exciting line up for the fans. Of course, English clubs are dominating the scenario but there is life after the EPL clubs. I think that one of the top clashes in quarterfinals to enjoy is the match between Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

Bayern Munich is one of the most successful clubs in the history of Champions league with four titles to their credit. The ease with which German champion Bayern Munich outclassed Sporting Lisbon 12-1 on aggregate in the first knock-out round, it seems that Bayern is playing at their best. Bayern Munich defeated Sporting Lisbon 7-1 at home and 5-0 on the road. No doubt, the two victories must have increased the confidence level of Bayern Munich and they would now go into the quarter final stage full of confident. I think, confidence is one of the very important things when it comes to getting over a knock out stage like Champions League quarter final.

Bayern Munich defeated VfL Bochum 3-0 on the road in their recent German Bundesliga match last week. Overall, the Bavarians are enjoying their best form this season and that is where their hopes in Champions League lie. However, the German club has a couple of injury woes to contend with. Key striker Miroslav Klose is now out of action as he has recently undergone a surgery on his ankle and it is expected that the German international would require 6-8 weeks to be back in action. So, it is less likely that Klose will be able to take part in any of the two quarter final legs of Bayern Munich in Europe. Striker Luca Toni is also injured though he is expected to be fully fit before Bayern Munich play the first leg of quarter final match. Meanwhile, Los Angeles Galaxy striker Landon Donovan already joined his US team following a loan spell at the German club.

Still, Bayern Munich has a quality striker in Lukas Podolski, but if Toni can not recover in time, the German club will be left with a very few options in its attacking line up. However, they have an excellent midfielder in Franck Ribéry who could be lethal for any opposition. In the presence of Captain Mark van Bommel, Hamit Altıntop, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Munich has a very strong midfield. Their defense features the players like Lúcio, Philipp Lahm, Daniel van Buyten and Martín Demichelis who all are well known for what they are capable of when it comes to on-field performance. Goalkeeper Michael Rensing is also doing a good job.

So, I think, Bayern Munich has every chance to progress into the last four in Europe this season, though I am not quite sure if they will be able to continue their current scintillating form in the coming weeks as well.

In UEFA champions league, the Spanish clubs used to dominate and Barcelona and real Madrid are the two key figures in the Spanish dominance of this tournament. In this season, There is no real Madrid because they have been eliminated in the group stage. So, I did up to Barcelona now to do something substantial and they have the players to go all the way. IN the group stage, Barcelona was in Group C and they emerged as the group winner. IN fact, they did not lose a single match and just drew one and won the other 4. This shows that they are in superb form in Champions League. IN the group stage, this Spanish club scored 18 goals and suffered just 8 goals.

Of course, some critics may say that Barcelona had an easier group compared to other big clubs. May be they are right still +10 goal difference is impressive to me in European stage. In the knockout stage, it faced Lyon and in the first leg, the match was 1-1 draw. Then, in the second leg, Barcelona thrashed Leon 5-2. This is the background of the Spanish club in CL this season. In the domestic form, it is in superb form. It has dominated the La Liga this season right from the start and is poised to win the title. In fact, after 27 matches, Barcelona has managed to get 66 points and is ahead of its nearest club Real Madrid by 6 points.

Barcelona has undoubted some of the top players in the world today. Just look at their attacking side: Eto, Henry, Messi. They can destroy any defense any day. All of them are in excellent form. Messi is indeed the most attacking forward playing in La Liga today. Henry is perhaps at last getting his form in Spain. All of them have got decent number of goals and this the most important part.

Chelsea vs Juventus CL 2008-09: Preview and Live Score

English club Chelsea will face Italian club Juventus in the opening leg of the first knockout round of UEFA Champions League 2008-09 on Wednesday (25 February) at Stamford Bridge. Neither side is enjoying their best form at this moment in their domestic leagues. Chelsea sits at the third place in premier league with 10 points adrift of leader Manchester United. Juventus is 9 points behind leader Inter Milan in Serie A. So, both sides seem to be out of the title race in their respective domestic leagues and that is why, Champions League seems to be best option for both clubs to win silverware this season. Another interesting thing is that the manager Claudio Ranieri will face his former club when the it travels to Stamford Bridge on Wednesday.

Match: Chelsea vs Juventus, First Knockout Round, UEFA Champions League 08-09

Date: 25 February 2009, Wednesday

Venue: Stamford Bridge, London, England

Kick off: 19:45 GMT (British Standard Time)

Live TV: Ten Sports

Chelsea is not anywhere close to their best at this moment, having suffered a number of morale-denting defeats against Manchester United and Liverpool, and struggled against low-profile teams like Burnley and Southend United at home. So, Stamford Bridge is no more an unattainable fortress for the other teams. Chelsea kick started their mission under new manager Guus Hiddink with a 1-0 victory over Aston Villa last weekend. Now, Chelsea fans will look to similar success against the Italian opponent.

The main problem of The Blues squad is that they lost the depth of the squad following the departure of a number of key players since last Summer and they have suffered a lot due to a series of injury blows in the first half of the season and I do not see any justification of sacking a coach halfway through the season. However, Hiddink is also a world class coach and he has showed his managerial talent earlier with South Korea. So, I think, it now need to be confident as they do not have any major injury woe and some of their players like Nicolas Anelka are currently playing at their best. The former Arsenal striker scored 21 goals so far this season and is currently leading the top scorers’ list in premier league with 15 goals to his credit.

Juventus is also struggling in domestic league mainly because of their indifferent form. However, after their 2-0 victory over Palermo last weekend, Juventus is expected to go into the Chelsea showdown full of confidence. Moreover, Juventus has not lost any of their last 7 Champions League matches and reached the first knockout round as Group H champion with 3 wins and 3 draws. There are unbeaten in their last three away fixtures in Europe and this indicates their away form.

Juventus has some key players like striker Alessandro Del Piero and his striking pair Amauri who is the highest scorer for Juventus in Serie A so far with 12 goals. They have defenders like Olof Mellberg and most importantly, they have one of today’s best goalkeepers Gianluigi Buffon. Chelsea is expected to deploy both Didier Drogba and French striker Nicolas Anelka up front together as they did against Aston Villa successfully. Captain John Terry will lead their defense that was tested severely on a number of occasions over the last couple of months. Chelsea’s performance in the group stage of Champions league was not ordinary as they could manage to clinch a last 16 spot with 3 wins, 2 draws and a defeat to Roma on the road. However, there is one statistics that would surely make the Blues hopeful about their upcoming match against Juventus. Chelsea is now unbeaten in their last 15 Champions league matches at home. Moreover, Juventus’ record in England is really very poor as the Italian giants could manage to win only 2 out of their 17 games in England and lost each of their last five away matches against English clubs.

I think, it is going to be an exciting match with both sides looking to regain their top form, knowing the fact that Champions league is their most realistic option to win silverware this season. Chelsea will have home advantage, but they will be under pressure to win that match in what would give them an advantage while traveling to Turin in the return leg. Juventus, on the other hand, would not be disappointed with a scored draw at Stamford Bridge and in this sense, they might feel less pressure on the ground. Overall, Juventus seems to be very balanced considering their excellent mix of experience and youth. Chelsea seems to have found some rhythm in the last match and looked very organized and is expected to show the same against Juventus if they want to have some advantage before the second leg in Italy.

Online Live Score and Updates

Here, I am giving some live score websites from where you can get the live score and updates of the match:

Live Score

Goalzz

Live Football Scores

Goal.com

Footie Scorez

I would not pick up any favorite for the match because I think, both sides are currently in the same state of condition, considering their recent form and performance. What I would like to say is that the team who will show more guile and confidence on the pitch will be the winner of the match.

Arsenal vs Roma CL 08-09: Preview, Live Score & TV Channel

Final Result: Arsenal won the Match.

Live Updates

Arsenal (1)---- Roma (0)

90 minutes: The match just finished and Arsenal won it by 1-0

85 minutes: Just 5 minutes left

80 minutes: Change of player for Arsenal. Ramsey came in the field in place of Eboyo

75 minutes: ROma attacked but offside

70 minutes: Freekick for Roma

66 minutes: Vella has come in the field in place of Bentdnar

63 minutes: Arsenal on attack.

60 minutes: Arsenal is leading 1-0

56 minutes: Roma on attack

53 minutes: Lovely attack from teh Gunners. Arsene Wenger felt frustrated

49 minutes: Arsenal is looking for the second goal

46 minutes: Second half just started. Be with us for live updates

Half Time. COme back within a few minutes for live updates.

45 minutes: It is half time now and Arsenal is leading 1-0.

43 minutes: Roma missed the best chance of the match perhaps they could create

40 minutes: THe supporters at teh Emirates are very happy as their club is playing well after many days

37 minutes: Goal for Arsenal. Van Persie scored from a penalty. Arsenal is now leading 1-0

33 minutes: Roma attacked and now Roma is playing some better.

29 minutes: The match is still goalless

25 MInutes: Roma player (33) Brighi shown yellow card.

22 minutes: Rare attack from Roma but then counter attack

18 minutes: Good effort from Nasri. The shot was just wide

14 minutes: AT last, some life in the match. Arsene Wenger's men lost a good opportunity just now. Arsenal had 70% ball possesion until now in the match

11 minutes: Arsneal has more possesion. Now, Roma has got a freekick

8 minutes: Arsenal is again on atack. They are dominating the midfield but lacking a good striker tonight

5 minutes: Arsnelal played some better in the first 5 minutes.

3 MInutes: Attack from the Gunners but not good

0 minutes: The match just started now. Arsenal is on the first attack

Just 1-2 minutes left before the kick off. The players are ready now.

The match will start shortly. Be wtih us for live updates

We will provide live score of the Arsenal- Roma match. The match will start after few minutes. Be with us for live updates.

I am a very big fan of Arsene Wenger but and I still have a lot of faith on him and I believe that his way is the right approach for Arsenal club during the time of economic recession. Well, I know that most people do not share my view and many arsenal supporters have started to feel impatient because of the poor performance of the club for the last few years. This time, there is no hope of the club in English Premier League and the most optimistic supporters are now putting their hope on something miracle to take place in Europe.

Tomorrow night, arsenal is going to play against AS Roma in the First knock-out round, first leg of Uefa Champions League 2008-09. Now, all the supporters of the London club are eagerly waiting for this match and they are praying to God that a miracle can happen. If you looked at the history of the two clubs then you may feel that the Gunners have slight advantage. The two clubs met in 2002-03 them to big and Arsenal won one match while the other was draw. Except history, nothing is on the side of coach Arsene Wenger. But the recent performance of the club is really miserable and there is nothing that you can be hopeful about for tomorrow’s match.

The main problem for the London club is injury and lack of form. Theo Walcott, Cesc Fabregas, Tomas Rosicky, Emmanuel Adebayor and Eduardo- these five key players will not be available tomorrow and there is even a bigger problem for Arsene Wenger is that Andrey Arshavin cannot play in this tournament because he has already played for another club- Zenit St Petersburg. I’m really concerned with the strikers and I can feel that even in the midfield if there is serious problem.

Niklas Bendtner and Robin van Persie are most likely to play in the top as strikers and Almunia is likely to play in the goalkeeper. But the defense looks good to me with Sagna, Gallas, Toure, Clichy. This weekend, arsenal suffered a draw despite dominating the match. This season, they are seriously lacking a quality striker who can score goal in almost every match. I’m afraid of this thing about tomorrow’s match.

For Roma, Francesco Totti, Daniele De Rossi and Julio Baptista but will be there to test the defense of the gunners. They will be surely very happy with the draw and they will try their best to get a goal. In this kind of competition, an away goal is very important and is indeed priceless. Now, Arsene Wenger is mainly worried about this matter.

Time of the match:

24 February 2009 Tuesday

Kick-off Time: 1945 GMT

Venue: Emirates Stadium (Home Ground of Arsenal)

Depending on your location, the match will be broadcast live in different TV channels around the world. If you live in India or any other south Asian country then Zee sports is the channel for you.

You can find live a score of the match in some web sites and of them, I’d like to recommend you Live Score dot com.

Arsenal back in old form against Porto

In the end, it was an amazing win for arsenal. The score was in the end 4-0. of course, All the fans are very happy and they felt that their favorite club is a game favorite in this season. I think that it was the best win for the club in many weeks. Well, I am happy to see that Arsense Wenger thinks this way too. Arsenal dominated in the whole match and scored two goals each in both half. Robin Van Persie and Emmanuel Adebayor scored 2 goals each for the London club.

If arsenal players could make use of some more opportunities then the final score could have been double for them. With this win, arsenal is now at the top of Group G in UEFA Champions League 2008-09. Before the start of the group stage, some people including myself thought that arsenal was in the group of Death. Now, it seems that arsenal may just when the group is very easily. Of course, there is a long way to go.  

UEFA Champions League 2008-09 Starting Tonight

We are back again with UEFA Champions League. This week is going to be the beginning of UEFA Champions League 2008-09 Group Stage. 32 best teams from different European countries will for the most prestigious trophy in club football. You may argue that it is only limited to Europe but European clubs are the best in the world and have the top players from all over the world. Last season, it was all the English clubs who dominated. In fact, in the semi finals, 3 clubs were from England out of 4. The final was an all English affair and Manchester United defeated Chelsea just on penalties.

Now, English clubs are back in again to take the challenge of this season. Later tonight, Liverpool will travel France. Chelsea will play tonight too. Tomorrow, Arsenal will be in action and Manchester United too. So, let us see how these 4 English clubs do in UEFA Champions League 2008. If you want more information about tonight’s matches then visit these two entries:

Chelsea vs Bordeaux CL: Preview and Live Score

Olympique Marseille vs Liverpool CL 08-09: Preview and Live Score

What is your prediction regarding these two matches?

Group C of UEFA Champions League 2008-09 Preview

Here in this post, I am going to write about the Group C of Champions League 2008-09. Spanish giant Barcelona has been drawn into Group C along with Portuguese club Sporting CP (Sporting Lisbon), FC Basel of Switzerland and Ukrainian club FC Shakhtar Donetsk.

Clubs Drawn in Group C:

Club Name	Country Name	Performance in the last domestic season
FC Barcelona	Spain	Third
Sporting CP (Sporting Lisbon)	Portugal	Second/ Runner up
FC Basel	Switzerland	Champion
FC Shakhtar Donetsk	Ukraine	Champion

Two-time Europe champion, Barcelona has not been at their prime recently. Last season, they finished third in domestic league which disappointed the fans. However, still Barcelona is favorite to progress from Group C, given their currently stronger squad and previous record in evidence.

After Barcelona, I think, Sporting Lisbon will be top most favorite for the second place in the group, while FC Basel and Shakhtar Donetsk will try their best to challenge Barcelona and Sporting CP. In fact, I would not be surprised to see Basel pose some threat for both Barcelona and Sporting CP. Basel is the reigning champion of Swiss domestic league, while Shakhtar Donetsk holds the title of the Ukraine premier league.

Group B of UEFA Champions League 2008-09 Preview

All the teams for eight groups of Champions League 2008-09 has been finalized today in the presence of some football legend today at the at the Grimaldi Forum, Monaco. In this post series, here I am going to write about the draw of Group B:

Clubs Drawn in Group B:

Club Name	Country Name	Performance in the last domestic season
Inter Milan	Italy	Champion
Werder Bremen	Germany	Second/ Runner up
Panathinaikos F.C	Greece	Third
Anorthosis Famagusta FC	Cyprus	Champion

Italian giant Inter Milan is the most favorite in Group B, while German side Werder Bremen and Greek club Panathinaikos will be the main competitors for the second place. However, you can not simply write Anorthosis Famagusta off, knowing the fact that they are the first club from Cyprus to have made to the Champions League group stage defeating Greek champion Olympiacos FC in the third qualifying round.

Inter Milan did not have a successful last season in Champion League, but they did not have any problem to clinch the Serie A title with sheer ease. Werder Bremen finished second to Bayern München in Bundesliga last season. Greek side Panathinaikos, on the other hand, did not have a good season at home with finishing third in the league standing, but they clinched a spot in group stage. I think, Werder Bremen and Panathinaikos will lock horn for the second sport in group B, while the surprise side Anorthosis will appear as a threat for the favorites. To me, Anorthosis will be very confident while taking on the oppositions, knowing the fact that they have nothing to lose, but has everything to win in the way. Herein lies an indication of some exciting matches in Group B.

Group A of UEFA Champions League 2008-09 Preview

The much-awaited draw for Champions League 2008-09 group stage has been completed and all of the eight groups have been finalized today (28 August 2009) at the Grimaldi Forum, Monaco. Football extravaganza of Europe’s 32 clubs will kick off on 16 September and the group stage matches will be finished by 10 December 2008. Here, in this post I am going to write about Group A of UEFA Champions League 2008-2009:

Clubs Drawn in Group A:

Club Name	Country Name	Performance in the last domestic season
Chelsea	England	Second/ Runner up
AS Roma	Italy	Second/ Runner up
FC Bordeaux	France	Second/ Runner up
CFR Cluj	Romania	Champion

Last year’s Champions league runner up Chelsea seems to be the most favorite to go into the next round from Group A. They will face Italian club AS Roma, France’s FC Bordeaux and Romanian league champion CFR Cluj in group stage. So, apparently Roma is favorite for the second spot in the group. Even they had a successful last season at home with finishing second to Champion Inter Milan.

French club Bordeaux had a tremendous domestic season last year with occupying the second place with four points behind the champion Olympique Lyonnais. CFR Cluj seems to be underdog in Group A, at least on pen and paper, but remember that they are the defending champion in Romanian league their recent form is good too. So, CFR Cluj might pose some trough challenges for the favorites like Chelsea and Roma.

I think, Chelsea should not have any problem to progress, while Roma and Bordeaux will be the main contenders for the second place in Group A, but I would ask you not to entirely write CFR Cluj off before at least a few matches being taken place because you are not sure yet whether CFR Cluj has the ability to appear as a dark horse in Group A.