Champions League Preview (Wednesday 09.19.07)
The Group E match featuring Barcelona at home against Lyon has lost some of its luster given both sides have not gotten off to the cracking start in league play most would have expected. Barca in particular have looked toothless in the attack despite the presence of Thierry Henry. With each French title won, Lyon appear less and less interested in that competition and more determined than ever to prove their worth in the Champions League. Neither side should be worried about advancing to the knock-out stage and staying healthy will probably be the #1 concern in what I expect to be a match played at a slower tempo than would be achieved were this an occasion that could actually send either out of the competition. In the other match, Rangers will host German champions Stuttgart. This appears - on current form - to be the Scottish club's best shot at earning 3 points. Playing at Ibrox is never easy for the away side and considering Stuttgart's poor start in the Bundesliga I think Rangers will rise to the occasion.
Prediction: Barca 1 - Lyon 1; Rangers 1 - Stuttgart 0
I am quite interested in the Group F fixtures today. Roma hosts Dynamo Kiev, and I fully believe this Roma side is ready for a special season. I love their close season moves and their current Serie A form has been stellar. My only concern here would be that the club may be looking ahead to a huge league match against Juventus on Sunday. However, this is at home and I think it will serve as a nice warm up for the weekend. Manchester United will be visiting Sporting Lisbon. The English champs did not play well on the road last season in this competition. Considering they too have quite the match on Sunday (against Chelsea) in what some are considering a title decider already I think United fans should be ready for disappointment tonight. Look for the Portuguese to use the Cristiano Ronaldo returning home story line to inspire them to full points!
Prediction: Roma 2 - Dynamo Kiev 0; Sporting Lisbon 2 - Manchester United 1
Italian champions Inter Milan will travel to Fenerbahce with last season's poor Champions League performance fresh on the brain. Turkey is always a tough place for clubs to visit and I expect Inter to have a fight on their hands. A couple of injuries will also add to their struggles tonight, but they have enough class in the attack to do away with Fenerbahce. The other Group G match has PSV Eindhoven hosting CSKA Moscow. Seems to me a lot of people think this is Inter and PSV's group to win. However, something about the Moscow club intrigues me and I like them to begin their way to the knock out round with a resounding win tonight in Holland. It won't be an easy task, but I have a feeling the Russian football federation is insistent that their clubs mark a serious arrival on the competition this time round and prove they can compete with the other big leagues.
Prediction: Fenerbahce 1 - Inter Milan 3; PSV Eindhoven 1 - CSKA Moscow 2
My oh my, is it about to kick off in London tonight! Without question the best fixture of the week is Arsenal hosting Sevilla. Forget the off pitch storyline involving Sevilla manager Juande Ramos' interest in managing another North London club (or is it the other way around?) these two have the ability to play the best attacking football on the continent. Arsenal are top of the Premier League table and Sevilla torched the competition last weekend in La Liga. I know both of these sides will advance and only hope the two times they hook up in the group stage nothing is held back. The other two teams offer opportunities for Arsenal and Sevilla to claim full points so I would love to see nothing held back tonight and some truly beautiful football unleashed. Group H also has Slavia Prague hosting Steaua Bucuresti tonight and to be honest I couldn't care less.
Prediction: Arsenal 2 - Sevilla 2; Slavia Prague 1 - Steau Bucuresti 0
Prediction: Barca 1 - Lyon 1; Rangers 1 - Stuttgart 0
I am quite interested in the Group F fixtures today. Roma hosts Dynamo Kiev, and I fully believe this Roma side is ready for a special season. I love their close season moves and their current Serie A form has been stellar. My only concern here would be that the club may be looking ahead to a huge league match against Juventus on Sunday. However, this is at home and I think it will serve as a nice warm up for the weekend. Manchester United will be visiting Sporting Lisbon. The English champs did not play well on the road last season in this competition. Considering they too have quite the match on Sunday (against Chelsea) in what some are considering a title decider already I think United fans should be ready for disappointment tonight. Look for the Portuguese to use the Cristiano Ronaldo returning home story line to inspire them to full points!
Prediction: Roma 2 - Dynamo Kiev 0; Sporting Lisbon 2 - Manchester United 1
Italian champions Inter Milan will travel to Fenerbahce with last season's poor Champions League performance fresh on the brain. Turkey is always a tough place for clubs to visit and I expect Inter to have a fight on their hands. A couple of injuries will also add to their struggles tonight, but they have enough class in the attack to do away with Fenerbahce. The other Group G match has PSV Eindhoven hosting CSKA Moscow. Seems to me a lot of people think this is Inter and PSV's group to win. However, something about the Moscow club intrigues me and I like them to begin their way to the knock out round with a resounding win tonight in Holland. It won't be an easy task, but I have a feeling the Russian football federation is insistent that their clubs mark a serious arrival on the competition this time round and prove they can compete with the other big leagues.
Prediction: Fenerbahce 1 - Inter Milan 3; PSV Eindhoven 1 - CSKA Moscow 2
My oh my, is it about to kick off in London tonight! Without question the best fixture of the week is Arsenal hosting Sevilla. Forget the off pitch storyline involving Sevilla manager Juande Ramos' interest in managing another North London club (or is it the other way around?) these two have the ability to play the best attacking football on the continent. Arsenal are top of the Premier League table and Sevilla torched the competition last weekend in La Liga. I know both of these sides will advance and only hope the two times they hook up in the group stage nothing is held back. The other two teams offer opportunities for Arsenal and Sevilla to claim full points so I would love to see nothing held back tonight and some truly beautiful football unleashed. Group H also has Slavia Prague hosting Steaua Bucuresti tonight and to be honest I couldn't care less.
Prediction: Arsenal 2 - Sevilla 2; Slavia Prague 1 - Steau Bucuresti 0
posted by Anonymous at 9:02 AM
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