The Round Football Column 04.14.08: 147th Edition Champions League Review, Plus More
Posted by Tim O'Sullivan on 04.14.2008
Owen Hargreaves scores a beauty as Man Utd send Arsenal out of the title race, El Nino bags his 30th goal of the season, Barcelona arent very good, plus more. One Click Away.
Wow.
We are looking at a two-horse title race after Man Utd beat Arsenal 2-1 at Old Trafford.
Arsenal did something that no one expected played some really nice football, dominated large periods of the game, missed loads of chances, took the lead and still lost. Seriously, no one saw that coming at all!
As for United, well it feels like it's their season and it's hard to argue with them being the best team in Europe right now. Bringing players like Tevez and Anderson off the bench is something special, especially when they help change the dynamic of a game like they did on Sunday. Despite neither goal being scored from open play, United were certainly a better side after the double substitution.
The race for fourth is pretty much over after Everton suffered the wrath of The Zarate Kid at St. Andrews and Liverpool hammered Blackburn at Anfield.
Despite some incredible saves from Marcus Hahnemann, Fulham grabbed a deserved win at Reading.
Stiliyan Petrov scored a 40-yard screamer as the Villa beat hapless Derby 6-0 at Pride Park. Martin O'Neill said afterwards that Derby deserve to be back in the Prem soon. I disagreed.
Bolton are still in with a fighting chance of Prem survival after a typically awkward Kevin Davies goal against West Ham.
A dodgy penalty and a typical Darius Vassell finish gave Man City a much-needed win at Sunderland.
David James celebrated his PFA nomination with a clean sheet against the rejuvenated Newcastle, pet.
Tottenham and Middlesbrough completed a pointless 1-1 draw.
Barclays Premier League Team of the Weekend
GK - Edwin van der Sar (Man Utd)
RB - Alvaro Arbeloa (Liverpool)
LB - Gael Clichy (Arsenal)
CB - Brede Hangeland (Fulham)
CB - Joleon Lescott (Everton)
CM - Owen Hargreaves (Man Utd)
CM - Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)
RM - Alex Hleb (Arsenal)
LM - Ashley Young (Aston Villa)
ST - Brian McBride (Fulham)
ST - Gabriel Agbonlahor (Aston Villa)
The final four has arrived and three of them are English.
Man Utd 1 Roma 0
Daniele De Rossi not only are you one of the most overrated players in the world, but you also hold the award for worst penalty taker of all-time. Great winning goal from United though.
Barcelona 1 Schalke 0
More mediocrity from the Barca Boys. As much as I'd like to see them win this trophy I can't help but feel like it would be ridiculously unjust. If it happens it'll be because of some exceptional individual moments and not any great tactical team displays.
Liverpool 4 Arsenal 2
It must have been an unbelievable night for the neutrals and Liverpool fans on Tuesday night, in one of the most incredible games in Champions League history.
Arsenal were incredible for the first thirty minutes. They scored a beautiful goal, albeit thanks to Pepe Reina's incompetence, and passed Liverpool off the Anfield park. If Adebayor had the balls to attack Clichy's excellent cross then it could have been two and a different story. However, Senderos being Senderos married with a fantastic header from Hyypia gave Liverpool a lifeline.
The game was more even after that and it took this slice of Torres brilliance to break the deadlock:
After that it was a mix of Liverpool trying for the third and Arsenal going for the equaliser on the counter attack. Adebayor missed a sitter from Hleb's exquisite through-ball, but made up for it with the temporary equaliser:
Adebayor finished it off, but the goal was all about Theo Walcott. Even including Michael Owen in 1998 I've never seen anything like that before. He's still got a long way to go as a player, but in terms of raw pace he's an unbelievable natural talent. If Wenger can bring out the best in him, he could be a very exciting player next season. I mean, c'mon the whole of Europe must have shit watching that run last Tuesday. It was incredible.
I didn't last though, and what followed was just surreal, even looking back on it five days later. It's a really interesting / weird talking point and I still don't really know what to say. In real-time it looked like a stonewall penalty. On the replay it clearly wasn't. Babel clawed onto Toure's shirt and dragged himself down. So yeah, technically it wasn't a penalty. Having said that, I can't help but feel like Toure deserved what he got in a way. I know that's not a good enough reason to award such an important penalty decision, but he was so stupid to be in the position that he was that you can't expect Babel to do anything other than fall to the ground. Anyone would have done what Babel did and Toure's positioning was horrible.
The thing that really baffles me is the media aftermath. Seriously, if they say enough crap in newspapers that generate enough sales then the readers will start believing it. Arsene Wenger made Arsenal a big club. Before he came to North London, Arsenal were what Tottenham are today. The Gunners were a club with a good history and fanbase, but something seriously missing in the current climate. However, Arsene Wenger came along and made Arsenal a hugely admired club.
Three years without a trophy isn't a huge tragedy considering the fact that they were 13 minutes away from Champions League glory and have faced domestic competition that have had seemingly unlimited resources. Of course he's far from flawless. He should have bought more and the continued usage of a certain few players rightly leave fans and pundits alike totally baffled.
The thing about football is that the lines are so wafer thin. Even though it wouldn't have been a correct assessment, the media would have called Arsenal the best team in Europe if that penalty wasn't awarded. That's the way they work. Instead, the penalty decision has made Arsenal a crisis club, with Wenger an under-fire manager. He may be a moaner, but he's still easily one of the best three managers in world football.
Chelsea 2 Fenerbahce 0
Wow, that went on longer than I thought it would. I've only got time to say that Chelsea won without playing well. Nice header from Ballack though.
Roundtable for the semis next Monday.
A Wesley Sneijder goal helped Real Madrid awkwardly edge past Murcia at The Bernebeu. Seriously, La Liga is horrible this season. There are still superb moments and good games, but there isn't one great team.
Samuel Eto'o is back! Unfortunately, Barcelona's defence is awful. They were leading Recreativo twice, but it ended 2-2 and any feint title hopes are clearly gone. They had the best defensive record in the league for most of the season, but there's been no discipline from them recently.
Osasuna piled more misery on Espanyol.
Racing Santander won in Valencia and whatever happens to them in the next month there's no denying the fact that they've had an incredible season.
Ogbeche's last-minute equaliser for Valladolid cancelled out Maxi Rodriguez's opener for Atletico and now Santander have a genuine shot of Champions League qualification.
Sevilla are also in the Champions League race after a 3-2 win at Mallorca.
Despite a brace from Super Pippo, AC Milan lost 3-2 at Juventus and their Bayern Munich-esque failure to make the Champions League is looking very likely. I can't work out if it's a shame or hilarious.
A superb second half performance from Roma in Udinese kept them in the title race. Goals from Guily, Vucinic and Taddei helped Spalletti's side win 3-1.
Apparently Ronaldinho has agreed terms with AC Milan over a summer move from Barcelona. The fee looks set to be around ?20 million, but the wages are obviously insane.
The way I see it is that Ronaldinho had a couple of seasons where he looked like he could be one of the top five players of all-time. Along with Thierry Henry he was leagues ahead of everyone in the world. People think Cristiano Ronaldo is special and rightly so, but Henry and especially Ronaldinho were even better earlier in the decade.
However, both he and Henry have dramatically faded off the radar and everytime I've seen Ronnie play he's been shit. He looks void of invention, fat, slow and undisciplined. Whoever's in charge of AC Milan next season really needs to metaphorically grab him by the bollocks, make him train and bring him back to the front of the queue. As the old saying goes, class should be permanent and I'm hoping he shows his again soon. The only problem is that Serie A is a joke and AC Milan may not even make the Champions League next season.
If you thought Liverpool v Arsenal was good, Getafe v Bayern Munich in the UEFA Cup was perhaps at an even greater level. Here are the highlights, complete with weird soundtrack:
Rangers also reached the semis with a decent win at Sporting Lisbon. The Gers' defence was good, they scored two good goals and that Miguel Veloso fella that everyone's raving about is a pretty nothing player.
Zenit held on despite a second leg defeat to Leverkusen.
Adrian Mutu scored two superb goals as Fiorentina knocked PSV out, including this cracking free-kick:
The semi-finals look like this:
Bayern Munich v Zenit St. Petersburg
Rangers v Fiorentina
The annual PFA awards shortlists have been announced and here they are:
PFA PLAYERS' PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Cristiano Ronaldo
Emmanuel Adebayor
Cesc Fabregas
David James
Fernando Torres
Steven Gerrard
PFA YOUNG PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Cristiano Ronaldo
Ashley Young
Gabriel Agbonlahor
Cesc Fabregas
Fernando Torres
Micah Richards
I think we all know which gimp will win these awards. It hurts.
05 Torres v Arsenal 04 Petrov v Derby 03 Contra v Bayern 02 Casquero v Bayern 01 Walcott's run v Liverpool
It's a big week for Chelsea. It starts off with Wigan tonight and continues with a trip to Goodison on Thursday. The way they're playing I can't see them dropping any points this week.
United face a mildly daunting trip to Ewood Park on Saturday and with a trip to Barcelona coming four days later this could be a huge day in the title race .especially if Chelsea bag six points this weeks.
There are two local derbies in the Prem this weekend and they could both be classics, for the atmosphere if nothing else. I fancy the Villa to win the Brum derby and Newcastle to edge out Sunderland at St. James' Park.
Last Week's Match Predictions (Bold = Prediction . Italics = Actual Result)
UEFA Champions League Quarter Finals, Second Legs
Tuesday 8th
Chelsea v Fenerbahce 3-2 // 2-0
Liverpool v Arsenal 1-0 // 4-2
Wednesday 9th
Barcelona v Schalke 2-0 // 1-0
Man Utd v Roma 2-0 // 1-0
Barclays Premier League
Tuesday 8th
West Ham v Portsmouth 2-0 // 0-1
Saturday 12th
Birmingham v Everton 0-1 // 1-1
Bolton v West Ham 0-1 // 1-0
Derby v Aston Villa 1-4 // 0-6
Portsmouth v Newcastle 1-3 // 0-0
Reading v Fulham 1-0 // 0-2
Sunderland v Man. City 3-1 // 1-2
Tottenham v Middlesbrough 1-2 // 1-1
Sunday 13th
Liverpool v Blackburn 1-1 // 3-1
Man Utd v Arsenal 2-0 // 2-1
Next Week's Match Predictions
Barclays Premier League
Monday 14th
Chelsea v Wigan 2-0
Thursday 17th
Everton v Chelsea 0-2
Saturday 19th
Arsenal v Reading 1-1
Blackburn v Man Utd 0-2
Fulham v Liverpool 1-2
Middlesbrough v Bolton 3-0
West Ham v Derby 4-0
Wigan v Tottenham 2-1
Sunday 20th
Aston Villa v Birmingham 2-2
Man City v Portsmouth 1-0
Newcastle v Sunderland 3-2
Hobbsy hates Manchester United and Liverpool fans. Especially the ones who never go to games, instead watching them in pubs pretending they care oh-so much.
"Rangers also reached the semis with a decent win at Sporting Lisbon. The Gers' defence was good, they scored two good goals and that Miguel Veloso fella that everyone's raving about is a pretty nothing player."
I listened to this on the radio. Sporting came out bad in the first half but turned things around about 30 minutes in and held control until the goal which came completely against the wave of play. Veloso and Gladstone (the "gimp", as you'd say) made a huge fuckup and from there... bah.
Hopefully it's a German-Italian showdown in the final. Lord knows a Scottish-Russian encounter makes no one think of "European Football".
Posted By: Mike (Guest) on April 14, 2008 at 01:03 AM
It's incredible that you got all of your predictions wrong..
Posted By: Shaman of Sexy (Guest) on April 14, 2008 at 01:31 AM
"Before he came to North London, Arsenal were what Tottenham are today. The Gunners were a club with a good history and fanbase, but something seriously missing in the current climate."
As a Spurs fan, it pains me to say it but you're right there. We just lack that something to take us to the next level. Despite winning the Cup, it's been a disappointing season I think. Arsenal were a bit unlucky with penalty decisions in the Champions League. Great game for the neutral though and Walcott's run was top draw. If they don't win anything next year though, something's gotta give I think.
Good column!
Posted By: Guest#9184 (Guest) on April 14, 2008 at 07:48 AM
Barca will beat United in the semis
Aresnal kept the ball very easy against Man U just like Barca will but the gooners lack the firepower that Barca have in Henry,Eto and Messi!
1-0 in both Legs to Barca!
Posted By: steve0 (Guest) on April 14, 2008 at 12:22 PM
As a Liverpool fan, I'm confident that we will reach the CL final. Seriously, there is just this believe that this competetion is ours. I can't explain it.
I would love nothing more than to see Barca put United out. However, United are just unstoppable at the minute.
My prediction is that unless Barca win 2-0 or more, keeping the clean sheet at the Nou Camp, United will tear them apart in the return leg. I can just feel it in my water.
Posted By: Curty. (Guest) on April 14, 2008 at 02:04 PM
And in more important News, Shrewsbury beat Wrexham 3-0 yesterday in a Derby.
It's nearly relegation o'clock in the lower leagues, can we have a bit on that please next week.
Wrexham Preferably. Plenty of Wrexham. Everyone Loves Wrexham.
Posted By: ButchReedMark (Guest) on April 14, 2008 at 06:31 PM
