Champions League knockout draw produces a repeat of last year's final!

The draw for the first knockout phase of the 2010-2011 Champions League (CL) has once again produced some mouth watering encounters between teams with with recent past history.

The most amusing match is between the current champions Inter Milan & the team they beat in the final in May, Bayern Munich. On the other hand, Barcelona will meet Arsenal, the team they demolished last year & beat in the final a few years ago. And Real Madrid will have to get past Olympique Lyonnais, the team they were expected to beat but in fact lost to in last year's quarter finals. The following are my predictions for the quarter finals (teams in bold to win)

• Barcelona vs Arsenal: Whilst there is no doubt Arsenal are a much better team this year, so are Guardiola, Messi & this year's Barcelona team. This makes this encounter of two teams with attacking styles the most mouth watering encounter of the round.

However, Barcelona showcased their prowess in the 5-0 demolition of Mourinho's Real Madrid team in the "La Liga Clasico" two weeks ago. In fact this Barcelona team is probably one of the greatest European teams of all time. The only problem in the make of the team last year was Ibramovic. He has now moved back to Italy where Milan's style is more suitable to him & in his place, arguably the best goalscoring forward in the world, David Villa has completed the magical puzzle that is the wonderful Barcelona.

Barcelona are the overwhelming favourites to win back the Champions League.

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Bayern Munchen vs Inter Milan: Last year's Champion League finalists, Bayern & Inter have both been struggling this season in their respective domestic leagues.

Inter are not the same compact counterattacking unit they were under Mourinho last year, and Benitez is not the CL winning coach he was a few years ago either & has simply lost his touch. On the other hand, Bayern have been stuttering without the influential injured Robben & with a very long injury list from 11 tired players returning from the semi final & final of the World Cup.

However, whilst Benitez seems to be incapable of filling Mourinho's big shoes, Van Gaal can look forward to revenging the May final's defeat with an injury free squad which will include Robben, Klose, Ivic & Badstuber. In fact Bayern can once again be one of the dark horses of the tournament as long as they can solve their problematic central defensive issues.

• Real Madrid vs Olympique Lyonnais: Lyon, the perennial CL quarter finalists surprised everyone by defeating Real Madrid in the quarter finals last year & reaching their first ever semi final. But the galacticos of Real Madrid, under the polarising yet brilliant Mourinho are a different proposition this year & should easily dispatch of Lyon. (although I must admit predicted the same last year too!)
• Tottenham vs AC Milan: This is the best AC Milan team since they won the CL by beating Liverpool a few years ago. Ronaldinho seems to have rediscovered his passion for the game & Ibrahimovic has settled in well. However, Spurs have won many hearts with their gallant display in both legs against Inter Milan & could be one of the surprise packs of this year.
• Manchester United vs Olympique Marseille: I think this is one of the weakest & worst Manchester United teams under the long reign of Sir Alex Ferguson. However, they are too strong for a gallant Marseille side & should go through.
• Chelsea vs Copenhagen: Chelsea were the runaway leaders of the EPL & all of a sudden they lost the influential John Terry & more importantly the irreplaceable Frank Lampard to injury, and as a result have lost their way. Copenhagen on the other hand have been one of the surprises of the season & the first Danish team to make it to the knock out stage of the CL. However, with Lampard back, I expect Chelsea to once again mount a serious challenge in both EPL & CL.
• Shaktar Donetsk vs Roma: Shaktar are simply too strong for Roma. On the other hand, except for a come from behind 3-2 win against Bayern Munich, Roma have been unispiring.
• Schalke vs Valencia: Schalke have had a shocking run in the Bundesliga but possess enough quality & in Raul one of the all time greats of the CL, to progress past Valencia.

Champions League football first knockout stage is always full of goals & surprises as well as plenty of great football & bag full of goals. This year's is no exception & we can expect many predictions turn out to be wrong! Let's wait & see!

Football magicians Guardiola, Messi & co taught "Showmen" Mourinho, Ronaldo & co a footballing lesson with their 5-0 win in the latest clasico.

If there was any doubt or debate about the following, all questions were answered after the latest 5-0 "Clasico" thrashing of Real Madrid on Monday night in Camp Nou by Barcelona

• The current Barcelona Team remains a much more cohesive unit that the expensively put together Real Madrid so called galacticos! There are several reasons why Barcelona are a better team:

a) Barca players led by Puyal at the back, & Xavi, Inesta, Messi & David Villa with the able assistance of the likes of Alvez & Bosquet know each others' game blindfolded. The Real Madrid team is on the other hand yet again an expensive selection of what money can buy & it may yet take even Mourinho more than one season to mould the team to his style.

b) Barcelona's all attacking style led by the trio of Messi, Inesta & Xavi, arguably the best three players in the world, & this year spearheaded in the attack by David Villa, arguably the best striker in the world, makes them irresistible as well as admirable. Pep Guardiola therefore is the best club coach in the world at the moment.

• Pep Guardiola is a footballing master tactician & magician whilst the ever polarising & arrogant Jose Mourinho is a showman who tries to stifle his opponents with his tactical mastery.

The fact that Mourinho failed to admit absolute humiliation after the 5-0 defeat in his first ever "Clasico" as a coach demonstrated his narcissism. Mourinho went to the Monday night game attempting to stifle Barcelona the same way he did with the much more defensively disciplined Inter Milan side in the semi final of the Champions League last year. But the current Real Madrid side does not possess the defensive qualities of Inter Milan, and Messi, Inesta, Xavi & co this time around kept 67% of the possession AND had the magical David Villa in attack, greatly assisted by Pedro. Last year they had Ibrahimovic who was totally unsuited to Barcelona's style of play.

• Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo: Messi was mesmerising & taunted & destroyed Real Madrid midfield & defence all the way throughout the match whilst Ronaldo stood as a lonely frustrated figure.

Messi is one of the top 5-10 greaest footballers of all time & has the potential to be another Maradona. His passing, goal scoring, dribling, ball distribution as well as individual technical ability & playmaking skills are simply superb.

Ronaldo on the other hand is tactically superb too. However, as evident in their latest encounter, he is not as good a playmaker & his ball distribution compared to Messi is poor. This is partly due to the fact that "ball hogging" remain Ronaldo's biggest weakness.

The latest Clasico once again provesd the Spanish la Liga is the best football league in the world & the English Premier League has a long way to go to match the skills & tactical ability of the Spanish League, and even the excitement of watching the likes of Ronaldo & Messi battling it out.

European season update: Mourinho is working his magic at Real Madrid whilst Barcelona continue to shine

On the eve of the "Classico" in La Liga in Spain between Guardiola & Messi & co(Barcelona) & Mourinho & Ronaldo & co (Real Madrid), the two teams:

a) are the most attractive to watch in Europe
b) have many of the best players currently playing in Europe
c) have arguably the most effective two coaches in Europe &
d) are most likely to win the 2011 Champions League

Whilst the likes of Inter Milan (current Italian & European champions), Manchester United, Chelsea, Bayern Munich & Arsenal are stuttering in one or more fronts, both Real Madrid & Barcelona are smashing their way through both the Spanish Premira & Champions League.

The much polarising Mourinho has taken his mojo with him from Inter Milan to Real Madrid & after a slow start to the season, Ronaldo & co have now become a free scoring team. Mourinho however is also enjoying the convenience of coaching this latest "Galacticos" ensemble in its second year. He has however lost none of his unprofessional arrogance as was evident in the Champions League match against Ajax last week when two Real players got themselves sent off, according to many as a result of a tactical decision by Mourinho.

Barcelona on the other hand still continue to set the benchmark standards of beautiful, attractive & attacking football & in my view will be able to yet again impose themselves on Real Madrid & win the classico on Monday morning. They are also my tip to lift the Champions League this year.

Elsewhere meanwhile, in Italy, whilst AC Milan & its aging stars are playing a more cohesive football than they have done in the past few seasons, the European Champions Inter Milan are drifting away under the now fading leadership qualities of Rafa Benitez. Rafa's career is beginning to resemble that of Goran Erikson. Erikson was a cutting edge coach in Italy's Serie A when he was lured in a big money signing to manage England. He never reached or recovered his magical Italy days & subsequently faded to obscurity. Rafa did very well in Spain & luckily managed to lift the coveted Champions League at Liverpool. But his methods are becoming less & less effective & his player transfer policy & managements leave a lot to be desired.

In England, I believe all big three, ie Manchester United, Chelsea & Arsenal will stutter from time to time & won't be able to match Barcelona or Real Madrid. Manchester City meanwhile, with all their money have been ordinary & the wonderfully exciting Tottenham team deserves to progress in Europe & win a place in the Top 4 again to do even better next year.

Amongst the rest of the big clubs, the Champion League finalists Bayern Munich are still suffering from Robben's absence & the hangover of having provided 11 players in the semi finals of the World Cup, resulting in tiredness & injuries.

However, Bundesliga is retaining its comfortable position as the League with the highest average attendance per game in the world & as the most competitive in Europe. Whilst the Spanish La Liga is in my view the most attractive football league to watch, & the English Premier League is fast & exciting, these leagues are realistically can only be won by a handful of teams, Barcelona & Real in Spain, & Manchester United & Chelsea (and Arsenal?) in England.

Bundeslia on the other hand is yet again an open ended competition this year with a multiple of teams seriously challenging, something that is unheard of in other major European Leagues

Nevertheless, the 2010-2011 European season so far seems to belong to Mourinho & his Real team, and Guardiola & his Barcelona stars. As fans & spectators, we are lucky as both play attractive attacking football.

The new European Football Season promises another exciting year ahead

It's only a few weeks since Spain won the World Cup in South Africa. Nevertheless, the Domestic Leagues in Europe are in full swings again. The qualifying matches for Euro 2012 have already started & the first matches of Champions & Europa Leagues have also been completed. Another exciting season is well on the way.

In the European scene the main question yet again is whether the free spending Real Madrid & their brilliant new coach, the annoying & arrogant yet masterful Jose Mourinho can put an end to the domination of Pepe Guardiola & his brilliant ensemble of superstars of Barcelona.

Mourinho is undoubtedly a masterful operator & as was evident in teh Champions League match vs Ajax has already done well by bringing his old general Carvallio as well as the young German World Cup stars Ozil & Khedria to Real Madrid.

On the other hand, Guardiola has cunningly replaced the ineffective Henry & Ibrahimovic with the best striker in the world David Villa. With the likes of Villa, Messi, Puyol, Alvez, Piquet, Iniesta & Xavi (in my view, overall the best player in the world by a mile) Barcelona rightly deserve to be considered the best & should overcome Real's threat once again this year.

Champions League:
Favourites: Barcelona
main Challengers: Chelsea, Manchester United, Inter Milan, Real Madrid & Bayern Munich

Here are my prediction for the other 3 major leagues in Europe:

In England, Chelsea have formed a great team capable of winning the EPL & even the Champions League this year.
Manchester United are suffering from lack of funds to nuy> new players &; with Rooney out of form & in strife in his personal life, will find winning major trophies difficult once again.
Arsenla will be brilliat at times but not good enough to go all the way.
Manchester City's big spending is still hap hazard & will not dent the Chelsea/Man Utd grip.
Spurs will find the challenge of European football too demanding on their squad & will not cope in all fronts.
Liverppol will be in a transition phase for the next few years & unable to mount a serious challenge whilst under current ownership.

My prediction: 1. Chelsea 2. Man Utd 3. Arsenal 4. Manchester City
Relegation candidates: Wigan, Wolves, Blackpool & Bolton

In Italy, the European Champions Inter Milan will not find life under the former Liverpool Manager, the now hapless Rafa Benitez as easy as they did with Mourinho. However, with Juventus still in the doldrums & the rest such as Roma & AC MIlan inconsistent, Inter should once again win Serie A this year, as they have done so in the past few years. Nevertheless, the defence of their European crown will be unsuccessful. Their main threat will be their somewhat rejuvuniated city rivals AC Milan.

In Germany even with the long term injury absence of Robben & with their rivals attracting some of the Europe's superstars to the Bundesliga, Bayern Munich with their Barcelona like style of play will win the league & challenge for European honours again.

All in all, another exciting European season is under way & it should be full of thrills & unpredictable results.

The new European Football Season promises another exciting year ahead

It's only a few weeks since Spain won the World Cup in South Africa. Nevertheless, the Domestic Leagues in Europe are in full swings again. The qualifying matches for Euro 2012 have already started & the first matches of Champions & Europa Leagues have also been completed. Another exciting season is well on the way.

In the European scene the main question yet again is whether the free spending Real Madrid & their brilliant new coach, the annoying & arrogant yet masterful Jose Mourinho can put an end to the domination of Pepe Guardiola & his brilliant ensemble of superstars of Barcelona.

Mourinho is undoubtedly a masterful operator & as was evident in teh Champions League match vs Ajax has already done well by bringing his old general Carvallio as well as the young German World Cup stars Ozil & Khedria to Real Madrid.

On the other hand, Guardiola has cunningly replaced the ineffective Henry & Ibrahimovic with the best striker in the world David Villa. With the likes of Villa, Messi, Puyol, Alvez, Piquet, Iniesta & Xavi (in my view, overall the best player in the world by a mile) Barcelona rightly deserve to be considered the best & should overcome Real's threat once again this year.

Champions League:
Favourites: Barcelona
main Challengers: Chelsea, Manchester United, Inter Milan, Real Madrid & Bayern Munich

Here are my prediction for the other 3 major leagues in Europe:

In England, Chelsea have formed a great team capable of winning the EPL & even the Champions League this year.
Manchester United are suffering from lack of funds to nuy> new players &; with Rooney out of form & in strife in his personal life, will find winning major trophies difficult once again.
Arsenla will be brilliat at times but not good enough to go all the way.
Manchester City's big spending is still hap hazard & will not dent the Chelsea/Man Utd grip.
Spurs will find the challenge of European football too demanding on their squad & will not cope in all fronts.
Liverppol will be in a transition phase for the next few years & unable to mount a serious challenge whilst under current ownership.

My prediction: 1. Chelsea 2. Man Utd 3. Arsenal 4. Manchester City
Relegation candidates: Wigan, Wolves, Blackpool & Bolton

In Italy, the European Champions Inter Milan will not find life under the former Liverpool Manager, the now hapless Rafa Benitez as easy as they did with Mourinho. However, with Juventus still in the doldrums & the rest such as Roma & AC MIlan inconsistent, Inter should once again win Serie A this year, as they have done so in the past few years. Nevertheless, the defence of their European crown will be unsuccessful. Their main threat will be their somewhat rejuvuniated city rivals AC Milan.

In Germany even with the long term injury absence of Robben & with their rivals attracting some of the Europe's superstars to the Bundesliga, Bayern Munich with their Barcelona like style of play will win the league & challenge for European honours again.

All in all, another exciting European season is under way & it should be full of thrills & unpredictable results.

http://ricksamimi-football.blogspot.com/2009/12/ancelotti-is-proving-his-genius-stroke.html

I also predicted Hull, Burnley & Wolves as relegation candidates in the EPL. Two out of three! Wolves survived the drop, somewhat more comfortably than predicted.

However, my & I imagine many other pundits' most crucial tip was Barcelona winning the champions League. But like Chelsea before them & Bayern in the final, Messi & co found the well organised Inter Milan defence almost impenetrable & lost to Mourinho's side in the semi finals.

Now to the start of my World Cup blog: I will start by quickly look at the usual suspects:

I have already mentioned in one of my earlier posts that Germany will have a very difficult World Cup ahead of them, although Germany should never be underestimated (7 times finalists & 4 times semi finalists). Injuries to Ballack, Adler, Rolfe, Tresch & Loew's stubborn refusal to recall Frings & Kuranyi will make matters even more critical for the team. Nevertheless, as he mentioned himself, Loew & his team can learn from Bayern's achievements this year.

My prediction: Quarter Finals

Amongst the other big teams, England, Italy & Argentina seemingly have easier paths to the second round:

• Italy's team is however too old & Lippi's reliance on many of the fading stars will prove fatal. France on the other hand have lacked clear tactical directions under Domenech & owe their qualification to that dubious handball by Henry.

My prediction: Round of 16s for both team

• England on the other hand have flourished under Capello & as long as they sort out the following three major issues they will go a long way
  

a) Goal keeping issues. James is well past his best & Hart & Green are unproven at any level!

b) How to tactically accommodate both Lampard & Gerrard in midfield

c) Over reliance on injury hit Rooney! He can not emulate Maradonna winning the Cup for Argentina!

My prediction: Semi Final

• Argentina have massive technical ability & with Messi & others at least on paper have one of the top teams in this year's World Cup. However, Maradona is not the right tactical coach for such talented team & most likely will make naive mistakes as he did eg in the 1-6 drubbing by Bolivia in the qualifiers. However, Argentina will probably meet Germany in the QFs & go to the semi finals.

My prediction: semi final or final

• Spain & Brazil are my tip to reach the final. On paper they, alongside Argentina have the best squads in the tournament. On top of that both Spain (in particular) & Brazil (at times) are capable of playing attractive attacking football

My prediction: Spain vs Brazil final, Spain to win

My dark horses for the tournament: As per usual Germany, and yet again Holland. In Sneijder & Robben Holland possess two of the best "match winners" (alongside Messi of Argentina) in the world & if Holland manage to avoid the infighting they are notoriously well known for, they may at last lift the Cup!

I will be posting regular posts on my blog during the World Cup.

Champions League Final: Bayern Munich vs Inter Milan

It's down to the wire, and the final on may 22nd in Madrid will be between Bayern Munich & Inter Milan. Two old friends & master tacticians in their Barcelona days, Van Gaal & Mourinho have guided their respective teams through the tricky maze of the competition into the richest final in the world.

Those of you who from time to time read my blogs may remember that at the beginning of the season I nominated Barcelona as the best team in the world and my tip to successfully defend their European crown. Having declared my interest as a life long Bayern Munich supporter, I also cautiously labeled Bayern as one of the dark horses of this year's Champions League.

And my predictions nearly came true! Bayern admittedly rode their luck with brave away leg performances & wonderful away goals by Robben (amongst others) to the final. Van Gaal has slowly but surely blended the tough German mentality with the skillful Dutch/Barcelona style possession game into one of the best Bayern teams I can remember in my 35 odd years of being a die hard fan.

And as for Inter Milan, in Mourinho they undoubtedly have the most flamboyant, arrogant & polarising master tactician in the world of football today. His chess game got them past the might of Chelsea & Barcelona. And the quality of the players in their squad speaks for itself. Any team that manages to get through battles with Chelsea & Barcelona fully deserves its place in the final.

So for me, the final will be a match of Mourinho's tactics vs the Mini Me of Barcelona!

My heart says Bayern will win, my mind knows it will be tough on the night & 50:50........and my life & work schedule are doing everything it can to stop me from dashing off to Madrid for the final......................and in my dreams I am hoping to be there when Bayern li

Champions League quarter final pairings: What to expect

The Champions League final will be held in Madrid in May. Sadly however, the start studded Real Madrid will not be there to win the title at their Bernabeu Stadium! The star studded but at times misfiring Madrid side lost to the gallant Lyon side who despite going to the return leg with the narrowest of margins never lost their self belief.

Whilst I wrongly underestimated Lyon's depth & predicted Madrid would easily go through, I can still save face by referring to my several blogs at the beginning of the season when I claimed Real were a collection of great but selfish players who would not be able to deliver Mr Perez instant gratification, at least in the first year of his reign. The fact that Real have given Barcelona & the out of this world Messi a run for the Primera in fact comes as a surprise!

My other major flop for the round was Chelsea's loss to the arrogant master tactician, Jose Mourinho & his Inter Milan side. Mourinho simply rubbed salt to the Chelsea supporters' wound by reminding what they are missing out of since his departure!

Overall, this year's quarter finals amazingly are littered with surprise qualifiers. The elimination of giant former winners AC Milan, Juventus, Liverpool & Real Madrid as well as Porto & the newcomers Chelsea mean that the less fanciful CSKA Moksva, Bordeaux & Lyon have made the quarterfinals easier to predict, at least on paper!

The most exciting match up is undoubtedly Manchester United vs Bayern Munich. Manchester United comfortably disposed of a misfiring AC Milan whilst Bayern at the just scrapped past a gallant & unlucky Fiorentina side on away goals rule due to a masterful goal by Arjen Robben.

The last gasp heartbreaking final win by Manchester United in 1999 & the subsequent home & the subsequent quarter final home & away win by Bayern on their way to win the CL in 2001 means these two teams have an unbreakable history. Also, in Robben & Rooney, I believe we will witness the second & third current best players in the world going to the battlefield.

My Prediction: If Bayern's defence holds off Rooney & co in the first leg in Munich, Bayern may go on to win the tie. Otherwise, Manchester United are the favourites to go through.

Barcelona vs Arsenal: Arguably the two most skillful & entertaining club sides in the world repeating their CL Final encounter of a few years ago. With Messi in his current form speeding towards the super stardom legendary status, Barcelona are favourite to take advantage of Wenger's side's occasional lapses & go through.

Lyon vs Bordeaux: The all French tussle will produce the first French side in the semi finals of the CL since Monaco reached the final & lost to Mourinho's Porto a few years ago. Lyon have been a consistent performer in the CL League & go the battle with the confidence boosting elimination of Ronaldo & Co of Madrid. On the other hand, Laurent Blanc has built a masterful compact unit at Bordeaux capable of many surprises. I believe Bordeaux will continue their dream run to the semi finals.

Inter Milan vs CSKA Moskva: Whilst CSKA have quietly enjoyed good solid performances & slightly easier draws to get to the quarter finals, they are also a great team which fully deserve their position at this level. On the other hand, hats off to Mourinho for getting Inter Milan through the battle with Chelsea. I still feel uncomfortable about Inter & believe CSKA are capable of causing a huge upset!

No matter which team you are following, the quarter finals will be as exciting as ever. Let's just hope they do not get too tight & defensive. The away goal rule is making home teams timid & nervous & has a negative impact on the game as a spectacle.

Champions League knockout stage in 2010 promises to be exciting as well as intriguing

UEFA Champions League (CL) knockout stage kicks off on Tuesday 17th Feb 2010. As the world's richest and most watched annual sporting tournament, the real excitement starts in the round of 16 as the knock out stage commences.
In the absence of any form of salary cap system in Europe, the disparity amongst football teams in the CL is becoming more & more evident by the fact that most of the same usual suspects reach the quarter finals, ie teams from the powerhouse nations in Europe.
This year is no exception. The surprise casualties of the group stage were past winners Liverpool & Juventus, both of which are also having a relatively lean domestic season as well. the other surprise is the timely return to form of another former winners Bayern Munich.
Here are the round of 16 encounters & my predictions:

• Olympique Lyonnais vs Real Madrid: Whilst my pre season prediction that Real Madrid will need time to mould their star studded team to a force is still a valid point, Real are far too good for a mediocre Lyon that are a shadow of the perennial quarter finalists of the last few year. This is regardless of whether the recently back from injury Ronaldo or the out of form Kaka are present to help them.



• AC Milan vs Manchester United: This is a far more intriguing contest with the added spice of David Beckham's return to Old Trafford in Milan's colours. I am not a fan of either team this season (or any season for that matter!) & like many others believe selling Ronaldo has substantially weakened Manchester United, even though Rooney is playing the best football of his career. Milan on the other hand have dipped in form again after a mid season revival led by the resurgent Ronalidino. I think Manchester United will survive & pip Milan to the quarter finals. However, I don't think the eventual winner of this year's Cup will be either of these two teams
  
• Bayern Munich vs Fiorentina: A classic case of reversal of fortunes. Fiorentina played great football in the group stage & topped their group which included Liverpool. Since then however, Fiorentina's form in Serie A has dipped & Mutu has got suspended. On the other hand, Bayern were seemingly down & out & had to win their last match in Turin to qualify for the knockout stage. They fell 0-1 behind in the match, but in perhaps the best match of the current season ended up winning 1-4, their best ever away win against a top Italian side. Since then, they have had 12 consecutive wins in all competitions & scored 40 goals in the process. With Ribery rumoured to be starting against Fiorentina & Mutu suspended, Bayern should be win reasonably comfortably. If they can maintain their current form, they may even be an outside chance to win the CL this year! (Disclaimer: For those of you who don't know, I am a life long Bayern supporter!)



• Porto vs Arsenal: At the beginning of the season I predicted arsenal's attractive & flowing style lacked the experience factor. This is showing & I believe Porto, another former winner, whilst upstaged by Benfica in their domestic league this year, are too tricky & experienced for Arsenal & will win this close tussle.
  


• Stuttgart vs Barcelona: Barcelona will comfortably win against out an out of sorts but reviving Stuttgart & remain my tip to win the CL back to back. Pep Guardiola has done a magnificent job even if I believe Ibrahimovic is not suited to Barcelona's & Spanish football & is over rated.


• Olympiacos vs Bordeaux: Bordeaux are the refreshing surprise of the current season & disposed of Juventus & Bayern in style. Alongside Guardiola, Laurent Blanc is a rising star coach. Bordeaux should win this encounter comfortably even though their form in the French League has recently been inconsistent & Olympiacos are difficult to beat in Athens


• CSKA Moskva vs Seville: This is a hard one to predict simply because both teams can and do score goals & have proven themselves to be hard to beat. Seville have a better team on paper & should prevail.
  


• Chelsea vs Inter Milan: The last & most intriguing encounter is the return of Jose Mourinho with Inter Milan to Chelsea. I must say I am not a fan of Mourinho & believe Inter Milan would currently win the Serie A even if they don't have a coach! Both teams ae frustrated with lack of European success & are hungry. How much of a distraction John Terry's personal life & Ashley Cole's untimely injury are to Chelsea is open to speculation as they have been wobbly lately & lost to Everton this week with John Terry at fault. On the other hand, Inter Milan have a lot to prove in the european stage & this plays heavily on their players' minds. I believe Ancelotti is a better tactician than Mourinho & predict Chelsea will win the battle & in doing so will start the end of Mourinho's time at Inter Milan.

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FC Barcelona 2009/2010 Schedule Released

This morning the 2009/2010 La Liga schedule was released. The schedule revealed that FC Barcelona will begin their season at home on August 31 against Sporting. The teams late start is due to their participation in the Supercup in Monaco on August 28. The first matchup between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid will take place on November 29 at the Camp Nou, the second round at the Santiago Bernabéu will be played on April 11.

Barcelona’s 2009/2010 complete schedule click here
For a look at the complete La Liga 2009/2010 schedule click here

Being a Barca Supporter Gets you Jail Time?

Kind of a weird story coming out from Morocco ... but bear with me ...

According to news reports, an 18-year old Moroccan schoolboy was jailed for insulting the country's king after replacing the monarch's name with that of his favorite football club FC Barcelona.

He altered the phrase "God, The Nation, The King" on the school blackboard to read "God, The Nation, Barcelona".

FC Barcelona says it has appointed a lawyer to look into whether they can help the boy, within the framework of Moroccan law.

The BBC's James Copnall in Rabat says it is not completely clear whether the court felt the remarks about the football club or other apparent insults to the king were the problem.

The Moroccan justice ministry has not commented on the case.

The family of the boy, Yassine Belassal, is appealing against the ruling, and his father told local news papers he was preparing to write a letter to King Mohamed VI asking for a royal pardon.

An internet campaign is also under way to have Mr Belassel freed.

Earlier this year one man received a three-year sentence for creating a mock Facebook profile of the King's brother, before receiving a royal pardon.

Last month, another man was jailed after suggesting that some royal practices did not help the development of the country.

He was cleared on appeal following a media outcry.

MY POV: I'm definitely not a Barcelona fan, but I doubt I'd ask for jail time for any of the club's supporters ... well, on second thought ...

Tough case and I'm unsure about what this says of Morocco's legal and free speech system ... maybe, that it's null and void? Let's see how this plays out.

Eto'o to Stay at Barcelona

Now that Barcelona are done batting their eyes and flipping up their skirt to Arsenal and Togo Emmanuel Adebayor, they've settled into reality: Star striker and Cameroon international Samuel Eto'o is staying.

Didn't we know this all along? Did any of us really think he was off to play in Antarctica or whatever place he was rumored to go?

New Barca coach Pep Guardiola made it official today.

"When I was unveiled I said I was not counting on him but I also said we would treat him as any other player," he said.

"During the past two, three weeks, the past month that we have been together I have been very pleased with his performance. I only have words of praise."

Eto'o had been linked with a number of high profile clubs, including Inter, AC Milan and Arsenal.

But Barca couldn't find a suitor. So instead of marginalizing him a la David Albelda of Valencia fame, Barcelona did the wise thing and invited the scorer back.

Ahh, the transfer season ... also known as the 'silly season.'

Can't live with it, can't live without it.

Doesn't it feel that this season, in particular, was way more silly than interesting?

Let's just start the football already!

Eto'o Update and Nigerian TV Row

**Note: I still haven't found a place in New York City to watch the African Cup of Nations. If anyone knows a place to watch, please e-mail me at cesarman@yahoo.com and let me know! Thanks!**

An update on Cameroon striker Samuel Eto'o's Cup of Nations situation. As reported in yesterday's entry, Barcelona and Cameroon have been arguing over when the star striker would report to Cameroon's pre-Cup camp in Burkina Faso. The Cameroon FA wants him there now, Barcelona want him in Spain for their upcoming matches in the Copa Del Rey and La Liga.

It's finally been sorted out. Barcelona have permission to retain Eto'o for the two games before he joins up with Cameroon, the president of the Cameroon FA confirmed on Tuesday.

"There is no problem. The coach (Otto Pfister) has spoken with the player and accepts that he plays this weekend and then joins the squad, having played two more games with Barcelona," Mohammed Iya told Spanish radio station RAC-1.

Iya admitted Pfister had needed convincing but that the German coach had accepted it would help Eto'o improve his physical fitness after having missed most of the season so far with injury.

Iya's comments supported Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard's assertions that the La Liga club had written permission to retain the player.

"The important thing for Samuel is to play and the federation and their coach have seen that that is best for them and for us," Rijkaard told a news conference on Tuesday.

Barcelona included Eto'o in their squad to face Sevilla in the first leg of their King's Cup (Copa Del Rey) last-16 tie on Wednesday and expect to field him at home to Real Murcia in La Liga on Saturday before he hooks up with Cameroon.

So that's that. Glad the situation was rectified.

But here's an interesting situation that could spell gloom for Cup of Nations viewers in Nigeria.

According to today's BBC, Nigerian broadcasters say they cannot afford to buy the rights to the Cup of Nations.

The Broadcasting Organization of Nigeria (BON) says the company that owns the rights wants 3m euros ($4.4m).

More than 30% of Africa's TV audience for football is in Nigeria, BON says.

The group says it can only offer 1.25m euros ($1.8m) for the rights.

"They said our offer was not acceptable, so we said: 'Fine, you can go and set up a TV channel in two weeks, we won't deal with you'," BON chairman Abubakar Jijiwa told the BBC Focus on Africa program.

Many Nigerians fanatically follow their national team, the Super Eagles, and the country is the most populous in Africa. "If you want to ignore Nigeria, good luck to you," Mr Jijiwa said.

Wow, this could get heated. And here we thought the club v. country row was the hottest topic of debate.

Can you imagine Nigeria being shut out from watching the Cup? Tragic.

Club vs. Country Over African Players

As squads begin training for the upcoming African Cup of Nations, two stories of the age-old club vs. country row that affects football from time to time.

This year, the situation's been magnified by the timing of the Cup of Nations. With more Africans playing in major football leagues, the mass exodus of players for up to six weeks is worrying big clubs like Chelsea of England and Barcelona of Spain.

Today, we begin with Barca star and Cameroon striker Samuel Eto'o. Cameroon's Football Federation says it wants the star scorer in camp now. The Catalan giants claim they've reached an agreement for Eto'o to stay in Spain for another week. Cameroon's saying that is unacceptable and that no agreement exists.

Having Eto'o around would allow Barca to play him in two more matches before he leaves for training in Burkina Faso, where Cameroon's camp is.

Eto'o will be a key part of the Indomitable Lions plans, and the Federation says it is essential that he joins the squad on time.

New coach Otto Pfister will want as much time as possible to work with his players, many of whom he has yet to meet.

Under FIFA regulations, players are required to be available for their national sides two weeks before the start of a major tournament.

It is understood that Barcelona have written to Cameroon saying that the player's recovery schedule would be badly affected if he traveled this weekend.

Eto'o has only just returned to first team action after many months on the sidelines through injury.

Interesting situation. But wait, it gets worse ...

The South Africa Football Association (SAFA) has asked FIFA to punish Everton FC of England following the club's attempts to hold on to midfielder Steven Pienaar.

FIFA forced the English Premier League club to release Pienaar (below) for the Cup of Nations.

Everton had tried to keep Pienaar for Tuesday's Carling Cup semi-final against Chelsea.

The club had hoped South Africa might take a flexible approach.

Everton argued they did not need to release Pienaar until after Tuesday's first leg as South Africa's opening game in the tournament is not until January 23rd.

But FIFA backed South Africa's stance citing the 14-day rule for international players related to the start of the tournament on January 20th.

Now that their stance has been vindicated, the South Africans have called for action against Everton.

"Our intention is not to punish the player, because the player is not to be blamed in this particular instance," said a SAFA spokesman.

"We've played the game by the rules, so FIFA will have to sanction the team."

Pienaar trained with Everton on Monday but by mid-afternoon, SAFA had formally asked FIFA to intervene to end the confusion.

Nigeria gave Everton permission to use Yakubu Ayegbeni and Joseph Yobo in Tuesday's game before releasing them the following day to join their country's training camp.

Couldn't this situation have been avoided? Couldn't SAFA have bent just a bit?

We'll see this continue until the African Cup's schedule is changed, unfortunately. The only people who really suffer are the players, who can't really be blamed.

Samuel Eto'o is the Face of 2010 World Cup

Talk about a great honor!

Barcelona star Samuel Eto'o was unveiled as the face of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa on Friday.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter on Friday unveiled the poster for the first tournament to be staged in Africa.

An image of the Cameroonian striker about to head a football, his face and neck superimposed on a map of Africa, will form the center piece of the publicity campaign for the tournament.

"You will have no problem to recognize first of all that it's Africa and you have the face of one of the most popular and well-known faces of the continent," Blatter told reporters.

"He was not able to participate in the last World Cup but what is more important here is to give this continent a face, a human face in football," he said ahead of Sunday's draw for the qualifying rounds.

Eto'o was only 17 when he appeared in the 1998 tournament in France but the "Indomitable Lions" failed to qualify for the last World Cup in Germany.

In other news, South Africans will get cheap tickets to watch the 2010 World Cup on home soil, local organizers announced Friday.

Certain tickets will be sold only to South African residents, they said. Details would be announced over the weekend after FIFA's World Cup organising committee meeting in Durban.

South Africa's 2010 Local Organizing Committee chairman Danny Jordaan said the special tickets were an attempt to make watching the finals as accessible as possible to South Africa's population, more than half of whom live below the poverty line.

Good move, as the spirit of the World Cup can now be shared by all.

Eto'o Commits to Cup of Nations

Finally, a superstar player has come out to say he's definitely playing in the upcoming African Cup of Nations.

Cameroon striker Samuel Eto'o, who plies his trade for FC Barcelona, has committed to play for Cameroon at the African Cup of Nations in January, according to reports in the Spanish media.

Spanish sports daily MARCA reported that Barcelona sports director Txiki Begiristain had met earlier this week with the player's representative Jose Maria Mesalles to discuss the issue.

During the meeting it was made clear to the Catalan club that Eto'o would play for his country.

Eto'o has missed much of the season with a thigh injury.

But he is expected to return to action before the end of November which will give him just a handful of games to get match fit before traveling to Ghana for the tournament.

He could miss up to four of Barcelona's league games at a critical period in the season. He could also miss the Spanish Cup quarter-finals, which are scheduled while he is to be on international duty.

Barcelona are currently second in the Spanish La Liga but only one point behind league leaders and bitter rivals Real Madrid.

"I don't know if they'll go (the African Nations Cup) and I hope they don't but we can't force them," said Begiristain last month, referring to Eto'o and the club's other African star, Ivory Coast midfielder Yaya Toure.

Eto'o refused to reveal what his plans were when he appeared at a promotional event earlier this week.

"All I want to do is play football. This issue about the Cup has to be resolved between my club and the Cameroon federation," said Eto'o, answering the inevitable question about whether he would be playing for Cameroon.

Sources close to the player have told Spanish newspapers that Eto'o is frustrated because he feels he is in a no-win situation, and will inevitably be viewed as disloyal by whichever set of fans he abandons.

Eto'o is among several of Africa's leading footballers to have called in recent months for the African Nations Cup to be re-scheduled so that it does not conflict with the European leagues.

Cameroon face defending champions Egypt as well as Sudan and Zambia in their first round of the competition, which starts on January 20 and runs until February 10.

Drogba Wants to Leave Chelsea

I've been away from the screen for the past few days, due to various reasons.

In the meantime, African football has been providing fans with saucy plotlines to follow.

First comes attacks on Mali players that followed the 2-0 away win over Togo in their decisive African Cup of Nations qualifier in Lome, Togo on Friday. The BBC reports that the Confederation of African Football (CAF) is looking into the incidents. Today, the CAF said they will order an indefinite ban on Togo's Kegue stadium following attacks on Mali players after a key African Nations Cup qualifier last Friday. Further disciplinary action is to follow.

Then, FC Barcelona have asked their African stars to skip January's African Cup of Nations. Let's hope this request is emphatically turned down.

Next, the Confederation of African Football released their seedings for January's Cup of Nations in Ghana. The draw takes place tomorrow (come back and check out our analysis of the groups for the tournament). Nigeria, Egypt, Tunisia and Ghana head the list of the 16 countries that have qualified for the African trophy.

But today's news is probably the biggest shocker, coming from Africa's best player.

Current African Footballer of the Year and Chelsea FC starlet Didier Drogba told a journalist he wants out from Chelsea.

"I want to leave Chelsea. Something is broken with the club," Drogba was quoted as telling France Football magazine due to be published on Friday.

However, the west London club were quick to dismiss the idea of a possible transfer.
"Didier Drogba signed a new four-year contract last year. As a top professional we are sure Didier is committed to Chelsea and intends to honour that contract," the club said on their Web site (www.chelseafc.com).

Drogba was one of the players most affected by Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho's departure last month.

The coach, who led Chelsea to back-to-back league titles in 2005 and 2006, along with two League Cups and the FA Cup, has been replaced by Israel's Avram Grant.

"I can't hide the fact that I've taken this whole business very badly, probably because I made the mistake of allowing too much of an emotional attachment in my relations with the coach," Drogba said.

"I can only say that I have been unpleasantly surprised by some people."

He added: "Ever since I arrived, I've been mulling a lot of things over, because I hadn't chosen my destination. My relations with Chelsea have always been bizarre."

"Right from the very first day, I wanted to leave. And every summer after that. But, despite that, I've stayed here for four seasons -- the best of my career."

Drogba, whose last comment indicated he would stay until the end of this season, added he would like to play either in Italy's Serie A or Spain's La Liga.

"I've got the impression that I have nothing else to prove here. I need to go and look somewhere else. I need new challenges and these two countries really attract me."

"I have made my decision. Nothing will hold me here. I know people are saying that Ronaldinho and Kaka will be here next season but it will not change my desire (to leave). I will not change my mind, probably because something has broken (in my relations) with Chelsea."

Drogba added that only five clubs attracted him: "AC Milan, Inter Milan, Barcelona, Real Madrid. And Marseille."

Mourinho spent 24 million pounds ($49.06 million) when he bought Drogba from Marseille in July 2004.

The striker took a while to settle before finding his form with a vengeance last season, scoring 33 goals for Chelsea, the most in the English Premiership.

Where will Drogba land? Will he change his mind? How will the Chelsea faithful react to the Ivorian's strong words? Will Chelsea management attempt to wash their hands of Drogba and sell him during the winter transfer period, when he's set to miss time due to the African Nations Cup?

All intriguing questions ...

Barcelona and Inter Milan Speak Out on Club v. Country

The debate continues. Which is more important? Playing for your club or playing for your country? As you know, with the 2008 African Cup of Nations due to begin in January, many Africans playing in Europe will have to leave their squads mid-season to represent their country.

We've covered this often in the past. Today, two reports of big clubs making their feelings known over this issue.

First, Barcelona.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta said on Tuesday that national teams should pay clubs for the use of their players.

"It's a disgrace that we have to let our international players go to national teams and we don't receive any compensation," Laporta told the Spanish club's Web site (www.fcbarcelona.com).

"The national teams are doing business using our footballers. It's an issue being looked at by UEFA and FIFA but I don't see a willingness to resolve it when they could do something immediately. If they don't resolve the situation we'll have to consider not releasing our players for international duty."

Strong words from the Barca president. Will this affect Samuel Eto'o in his comeback from injury and his play for Cameroon in the Nations Cup?

Then this, from Inter Milan, whose Director of Sport Marco Branca told L'Equipe's Web site (www.lequipe.fr) on Tuesday that he believed midfielder Patrick Vieira was at risk for injury in Wednesday's Euro 2008 Group B qualifier against Scotland in Paris because he has just recovered from a hamstring injury.

The Serie A champions also expressed concern about Vieira's fitness before Saturday's 0-0 draw with Italy in Milan, which the France captain played from start to finish.

"I have never chosen between club and country. If I'm all right I play for one and for the other," the 31-year-old midfielder told a news conference later on Tuesday.

"If Inter prefer to speak via newspapers instead of telling me what they think, it is their problem. I don't usually talk about this sort of thing in the newspapers. I'm disappointed."

The issue won't go away and it's one that effects Africa specifically, what with their scheduling of the Cup of Nations smack in the middle of the European season.

What can be done to rectify this and appease the countries? A fee system? Compensation of some sort?

More on this soon ...