Champions League Draw

                             

The final sixteen teams in the Champions League now know who they will face in the New Year. Many of the matchups could easily be a Champions League Final.

Celtic vs. Barcelona

Gordon Strachan is excited about drawing Spanish giants Barcelona. But he has to realize that Celtic really doesn’t have much chance against Frank Rijkaard’s team. The Catalan team is stacked with talent and could probably field two teams with their players. That’s not to say that the Hoops don’t have talent Scott McDonald, Shunsuke Nakamura and Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink have had some success in earlier rounds of the CL. They are going to need all of their firepower and more than a little luck if they want to reach the final eight.

Lyon vs. Manchester United

Seven straight French League championships. SEVEN STRAIGHT. Olympique Lyonnaise is the class of French football and they are going to be scrappy. The Red Devils have been through all of this before so they are not going to be looking any further than Lyon. Karim Benzema is a dynamic striker for the French side and if Chris and Juninho are healthy they can be quite a handfull. But, United have something that Rangers don’t, a ball controlling, potent attack. If Lyon can win at home they will more than likely advance to the final eight.

Fenerbahce vs. FC Sevilla

Sevilla have won the last two UEFA Cups so they know big game pressure. They main thing that they will have to deal with will be the Turkish crowd. Past experience says that the Fenerbahce fans are going to give the Spanish side quite the welcome. A hard hat might be of use. But Fenerbahce has some experienced players in the squad so look for them to jump Sevilla at home then stack the defence when they go to Spain. Sevilla is no slouch though and this is going to be a good matchup.

Arsenal vs. AC Milan

Arsene Wenger feels confident and he should. The Gunners have a strong team and they have played well all season. AC Milan on the other hand is 12th in Serie A this year and the San Siro has been anything but a fortress for them. I know they just won the World Club Championship, but Arsenal is stronger than Boca Juniors and the first game is at the Emirates. Kaka will have to show that he is the World Player of the Year to get anything in London. If everyone is healthy I think the Gunners will knock out Milan and advance.

Schalke 04 vs. FC Porto

Schalke played well last year and made the CL. But, their group wasn’t the toughest and Porto have won it all before. Porto should advance here unless the German side play tough, gritty football and ratchet up the defence.

Roma vs. Real Madrid

Roma will be tough to beat at home because you are always waiting for the knife to come from the stands. This team should suffer the same fate as other sides with unruly fans, they should be bounced from the tournament. Real has the firepower to blow Roma aside and for the sake of the rest of the teams I hope that they do. Ruud van Nistelrooy and Raul should give the Italian side nightmares so look for them to make the final eight.

Olympiakos vs. Chelsea

This is a tough call. On paper Chelsea look like they should win this, but no one ever won a game on paper. Olympiakos could surprise the Blues in Greece, making the second leg a bit more interesting. And I think that they just might do it. Chelsea will need everyone healthy and focused or this could be a quick exit for the Blues.

Liverpool vs. Inter Milan

This will be a real test for Liverpool. Inter has been a quality side in Serie A and the CL. While the Reds are 10 points off the pace in the Premiership. So we all know that it’s time for Rafa Benitez to give up on winning the league and concentrate on saving his good players for European matches. Inter won’t play that game though and I think that they have a deeper and more talented squad. Inter could win this one at Anfield so Liverpool had better keep that in mind. This Milan is better than the one they lost to in the last final.

Saturday Wrap Up December 22, 2007

Early Christmas for Arsenal. Tottenham had the lion’s share of possession in this match (69% – 31%), but were unable to give the league leaders their second loss of the season. Emmanuel Adebayor opened the scoring just after halftime with a wicked finish from a Cesc Fabregas feed. Eighteen minutes later Dimitar Berbatov squeezed the ball between two defenders to even the score. Kolo Toure handed the Spurs a golden opportunity when he brought Berbatov down in the box. Gunner’s keeper Manuel Almunia saved Robbie Keane’s penalty and four minutes later substitute Nicklas Bendtner headed home the winner to keep Arsenal atop the Premier League standings. If Berbatov stays at White Hart Lane in January, I can’t think that it will be his choice. Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham.

 

Wanderers show Blues the door at the Reebok. Birmingham had a couple of early chances to take control of the match, but Bolton’s defense were able to keep the Blues off of the score-sheet and in contention for the relegation zone. El-Hadji Diouf broke the deadlock when he fired home in the 72nd minute. Nicolas Anelka added to the Birmingham woes when he intercepted a defensive throw in and dented the net from a tight angle in the 78th minute. The Birmingham defense gave the ball away in stoppage time and Anelka made them pay with his second goal of the match. I know that the money is tempting, but Bolton need to try and hold onto Nicolas Anelka in the transfer window. Bolton 3-0 Birmingham.

Torres tortures Pompey at Anfield. Liverpool always looked like they were in control of this one as Portsmouth never really showed much of an attacking attitude. The Reds opened up the scoring when Yossi Benayoun sent a rocket past David James from twenty yards out.  Sylvain Distin got on the board for Portsmouth three minutes later as he put the ball past James and into his own net. The look on Distin’s face showed his disbelief. The goal was actually set up by Fernando Torres as he flicked the ball at Distin in the Pompey box with enough pace to get the accidental deflection into the net. Torres’ pace tormented Portsmouth throughout the game and he could easily have had more than the two goals in the second half. Benjani Mwaruwari brought Portsmouth to 2-1 when he scored early in the second half, however, Portsmouth never had the control of the ball when they had possession. It was a bit like watching the five year olds kicking it around at the park. Liverpool 4-1 Portsmouth.

Slugfest at Craven Cottage. This match was very much like watching a fight between two well matched boxers. Both threw everything they had at each other creating a game that was just fun to watch. The first half was highlighted by scrambles in front of both nets, with near misses for both teams. Both keepers came up with good saves with Fulham putting a bit more pressure on Chris Kirkland. Marcus Bent looked as though he was going to hand the Latics their second consecutive victory with a brilliant display of control and finishing in the 70th minute. But, Clint Dempsey fired a cracker in from the right corner of the box to give the Cottagers a well deserved point. I thought that there would be more scoring in this one, and there could have been. It was a fun watch though. Fulham 1-1 Wigan.

Other scores: Aston Villa 1-1 Manchester City; Middlesbrough 1-2 West Ham; Reading 2-1 Sunderland.