European Round-Up

Champions League

Inter Milan 4 – 3 Tottenham Hotspur

Spurs’ comeback wasn’t quite enough in the end, and Gareth Bale will probably never be more unhappy after scoring a hat-trick. Inter scored in the first minute, and in the seventh minute goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes was sent off. Samuel Eto’o converted the subsequent penalty, and when a third goal was added a matter of minutes later the game really looked dead and buried. Eto’o grabbed a second before half-time, meaning that Spurs were four goals down at the break. Bale scored a sublime goal to begin reducing the deficit, scored an identikit second with only a few minutes to go, before completing his hat-trick with an accomplished finish from the edge of the area. There really was not enough time left to even think about grabbing the unlikeliest of equalisers, though, and Inter completed a deserved win.

The scoreline flattered Spurs in the end. For almost all of the first half, Inter were untouchable, the Spurs defence looking scared and making error after error. This will have been an important learning experience for the team and Harry Redknapp, and the fact that mistakes of any kind will be ruthlessly punished at this level has surely been hammered home. Spurs welcome the Italian and European champions back to White Hart Lane next, and Bale’s late hat-trick might just give them the belief they need to take something from that game.

Manchester United 1 – 0 Bursaspor

A very drab game by all accounts, lit up by a sumptuous early strike from Nani. Wayne Rooney was nowhere to be seen, still recovering from his ankle injury, and his presence was missed. United fans must be beginning to fear the worst. This really was a laboured victory against a side that Sir Alex Ferguson’s team would normally swat away at Old Trafford without breaking a sweat. Javier Hernandez, whilst good, does not yet have the breadth of skills to replace Rooney completely if the United talisman does indeed leave in January. Federico Macheda is still far too green, and perhaps may never mature into a truly Premier League-quality striker. We all know that Berbatov is extremely talented; but he is a very different player to Rooney, and one who does not seem the type to carry a team to a trophy on his own. If Rooney leaves, games like this will become much more commonplace at Old Trafford, and worse may yet be to come.

Rangers 1 – 1 Valencia

A fantastic point for Rangers here, and it really should have been more. After going ahead before the break through a towering header from Edu, Rangers missed a whole host of clear-cut chances (including a couple of open goals) before Edu was unfortunate enough to put the goal into his own net just after half-time to level the scores. Rangers seem to have ditched their habit of losing European games at Ibrox, and if they can scrape a draw away at Valencia they will have a very decent chance of qualifying for the knockout stages.

Spartak Moscow 0 – 2 Chelsea

Not much to note in this game. The result went entirely as expected, Yuri Zhirkov scoring his first Chelsea goal upon his return to his native Russia. Nicolas Anelka added the second, picking up the slack from Didier Drogba’s absence. John Terry will probably have relished the opportunity to return to the scene of his infamous penalty miss in the 2008 Champions League final, but nobody except him really cared all that much.

Arsenal 5 – 1 Shakhtar Donetsk

Similar to the Chelsea game in that the result went as expected, although credit must be given to Arsenal for playing some wonderful football and winning more comfortably than many might have expected. Jack Wilshere started alongside Cesc Fabregas in the Arsenal midfield, playing well once again and grabbing a nice goal as his development into Fabregas’ natural replacement continues apace. Shakhtar are a very good footballing side, and were probably Fulham’s toughest opponents during their run to last year’s Europa League final, a fact overlooked by many. It was nice to see Eduardo score on his return to the Emirates too; the Arsenal fans were more than willing to accommodate him and celebrate the goal as their team were 5-0 up at the time. If that had been the go-ahead goal, I’d wager they might not be quite so pleased.

 

Europa League

Napoli 0 – 0 Liverpool

This was a very good result for Liverpool. Roy Hodgson decided to rest many key players and give some of his reserves a chance to shine, and the gamble paid off. Napoli are a solid side, and can be an intimidating place to visit (as evidenced by their fans’ “hunting” of Liverpool supporters before the game). By choosing to prioritise the Premier League at the weekend, Hodgson took a gamble that paid off. His second-string players rewarded him by putting in a performance well worthy of a point. A 0-0 draw away from home in Europe without Steven Gerrard or Fernando Torres in your starting XI is not to be sniffed at.

Manchester City 3 – 1 Lech Poznan

City claimed all three points in comfortable enough fashion here, Emmanuel Adebayor grabbing a hat-trick in the process. Lech Poznan did make the score 2-1, which would have given City fans a few nervous moments, but in the end the result was never in too much doubt. City are now in a very strong position in their group and will almost certainly qualify for the knockout stages.

Midweek European Round-up

Here’s a quick look at this week’s midweek European games:

Champions League

No major upsets for the British clubs in the Champions League this week (unless, of course, you consider a Rangers victory to be an upset). Chelsea cruised past Marseille 2-0, putting them firmly in control of Group F.

Arsenal eventually overcame Partizan Belgrade 3-1 after the scores were level for a large part of the game, and Marouane Chamakh missed a penalty at 1-1. The Gunners’ victory also puts them in pole position to qualify at this early stage.

Manchester United faced a tougher task as they faced Valencia at the Mestalla. A drab game livened up after the break, with Javier Hernandez getting the breakthrough in the last ten minutes to give United a very good victory.

Also in United’s group, Rangers overcame Bursaspor 1-0 at Ibrox to put them level on points with the English team at the top of Group C. The win ended a long run without a European win at home for Rangers, and Walter Smith will be glad to have got that monkey off his team’s back.

Finally, Tottenham thrashed Dutch champions FC Twente at White Hart Lane, thanks in no small part to three penalties awarded to them by the referee (although in fairness, one of them was missed and Rafael van der Vaart was eventually sent off).

All in all, it means that all five British teams are in decent positions as we approach the halfway mark of the group stages. Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United will almost certainly sail through to the knockout stages now, whilst Rangers and Spurs are perhaps in better positions than they might have hoped when the competition kicked off. Rangers, certainly, will be ecstatic with 4 points from two games, and Spurs will not be too disappointed with the same total. A draw away to Werder Bremen in their first game was a great result considering Spurs’ relative lack of experience in European competition.

There were some other notable results from around Europe in the Champions League this week. Inter Milan battered Werder Bremen 4-0, Samuel Eto’o grabbing a hat-trick as the Italians made a big statement of intent. In Group D, Barcelona were held at home by Rubin Kazan, both sides scoring a penalty apiece as the game finished 1-1. The result now means that Rubin are unbeaten in their last three games with Barcelona, even winning the game at the Camp Nou last season. A truly remarkable statistic for the Russian team.

Barca’s great rivals Real Madrid laboured to a win away at Auxerre, winning 1-0 thanks to a second-half strike from Angel di Maria. Jose Mourinho’s shaky start to his tenure at the Bernabeu continued in this visit to France, with the goals failing to come as freely as might be expected. Many Madrid fans are beginning to grow restless with Mourinho’s pragmatic tactics, and although Real are having far more shots than any of their opponents so far, most of them are pointless long-range efforts. Something is not quite right, and Mourinho will need to fix it quick.

Also in Real’s group, Ajax and AC Milan played out a 1-1 draw, Zlatan Ibrahimovich scoring the equaliser upon his return to his old club. Second spot in this group is wide open (assuming that Real sort their problems out and win the group as they should), and this result doesn’t make things any clearer.

All in all, then, an intriguing if not overly exciting round of Champions League games. The group stage is bloated in this format, leading to many relatively meaningless games. A streamlining of the competition’s format would make it far more interesting in the early stages, but as it is now, the real interest doesn’t begin until the knockout phase begins next year.

Europa League

A quick look at the Europa League, then, with Liverpool once again struggling to find form and goals as they were held to a goalless draw at Utrecht. Roy Hodgson seems to be finding it hard to get his team playing to their potential, and the Reds couldn’t find a way through the Utrecht defence even though Fernando Torres was back from injury and supposedly 100% fit again. Dirk Kuyt was also poor in his first game back after injury. Things just do not look like getting better at Liverpool, and this season may have to be one of consolidation whilst the ownership situation is sorted out.

Manchester City were more impressive in a 1-1 draw with Juventus, and might even feel disappointed not to have taken all three points. A long-distance strike from Vincenzo Iaquinta opened the scoring (with Joe Hart perhaps at fault), and Adam Johnson levelled things up after finishing off Yaya Touré’s exquisite through-ball. Alessandro Del Piero almost won the game with a late free kick that cannoned off the crossbar, but City also had their chances to claim victory. It says a lot about how far City have come when they can feel disappointed not to have beaten Juventus.

Champions League Group Stage Draw

A few thoughts on the draw for the group stage of the Champions League:

Group A

Internazionale Milan
Werder Bremen
Tottenham Hotspur
FC Twente

All things considered, this could have been a lot worse for Spurs, although this group is still no walkover. Despite Jose Mourinho leaving Inter Milan, they are still the defending champions and are the overwhelming favourites to win Serie A for a seventh successive season. They should not be taken lightly, and Spurs will do very well to get a point off them in either of the games they play against them.

Werder Bremen may have done well in the Bundesliga last year but they have since lost Mesut Ozil to Real Madrid. They were defeated 5-1 by Fulham in a pre-season friendly and were also thrashed 4-1 by Hoffenheim last weekend. FC Twente’s is a similar story. Winners of the Dutch Eredivisie last year, Steve Mclaren has moved on to bigger and better things. The much-maligned Mclaren was probably the biggest part of their success, so expect Twente to be weaker for his departure this year – they seem unlikely to repeat their domestic success.

As such, Spurs would appear to be in a three-way battle for second spot in this group, a battle which they have a very good chance of winning. As long as they keep it tight at the back away from home and make sure they win their home games against Bremen and Twente, they should claim second place. Spurs definitely have enough quality to give these teams a run for their money, and may even be able to test Inter.

Group C

Manchester United
Valencia
Rangers
Bursaspor

United, as with the other established English teams, have picked up a relatively easy draw. Valencia have been a dangerous teams in years gone by, but their extreme financial difficulties have led them to sell their two best players, David Villa and David Silva, to Barcelona and Manchester City, respectively. Without those two, particularly Villa, they are a far weaker team. Villa has consistently scored over 20 goals a season for them, and even with his goals they finished a very distant third to Barcelona and Real Madrid last season. They will find it harder to qualify for the Champions League this year, and injuries permitting, United should have little trouble beating them.

The same can be said of Rangers. Despite being the Scottish Premier League champions, Rangers will not put up much of a stern test. The quality of Scottish football has unfortunately dipped dramatically in recent years as the money in the game has drifted south of the border, and Rangers have made very few additions to a squad that crashed out of the Champions League in embarrassing fashion last season. Kris Boyd, their most potent goalscorer, has left to ply his trade in the Championship with Middlesbrough, and whilst they are usually well organised at the back they shouldn’t trouble United too much, especially at Old Trafford.

Bursaspor are one of the minnows from Pot 4 in the draw, and as such will almost certainly struggle. Whilst a trip to Turkey is never the easiest one to make, United have experience of going to that country in the past and winning, and should repeat the trick here. United will cruise to victory in this group.

Group F

Chelsea
Olympique de Marseille
Spartak Moscow
MSK Zilina

Chelsea’s group should also pose few major problems. Marseille are the current French Ligue 1 champions, and did the double by winning the French Cup as well. Didier Deschamps has brought the club their first silverware for many years and they appear to be in the ascendancy. If they can keep this form going into the new season they will provide Chelsea’s sternest test in this group. Having said that, Chelsea should still beat them at Stamford Bridge, and will expect at least a draw on the away trip.

Spartak Moscow finished second in the Russian league last year, but will not be too tough for Chelsea to beat both home and away. The main factor in their favour is the sheer distance to Moscow from London, so a draw in the away game might not be a terrible result, but again Chelsea will be the favourites.

MSK Zilina, the Slovakian champions, will also struggle in the Champions League and should pose Chelsea absolutely no problems at all. If Chelsea fail to beat them home and away, it will be nobody’s fault but their own. Like United, Chelsea should cruise through the group in first place.

Group H

Arsenal
Shakhtar Donetsk
SC Braga
FK Partizan

Arsenal also have a reasonably straightforward group. Shakhtar Donetsk are a very solid side, and have a large Brazilian contingent in their first team. The Brazilians combined very well in the Europa League during the last two seasons, and the Ukrainian side were very unfortunate not to beat Fulham over two legs in the second round of the competition. As they are primarily a passing team, however, this may play into Arsenal’s hands. They are not the most physical, and although a trip to the Ukraine is not the most attractive for the Gunners, they should be able to impose their own style on Shakhtar and get a result away from home.

Braga impressively overcame Sevilla 5-3 on aggregate in their qualifying play-off, beating them 4-3 in the second leg in Sevilla. This is an impressive result for one of Portugal’s lesser fancied teams, and Braga should not be written off completely as a result. Arsenal should have too much quality for them though, and the Portuguese will struggle both at the Emirates and back home in Portugal.

Partizan’s stadium in Belgrade will also be a very unwelcoming place for the Arsenal players and supporters to visit, but it took a penalty shootout for them to overcome Belgian side Anderlecht over two legs in the play-offs. As with most of the teams drawn from Pot 4, Partizan should pose little threat to the class that Arsenal have at their disposal. Arsenal should win all 3 home games and at least 2 of their away games in this group, meaning that they too should finish top and progress comfortably to the second round.

Second Round:

It is the second round that will be slightly more problematic for the Gunners, however, as they will have to face one from Real Madrid, AC Milan, Ajax, and Auxerre. Auxerre and Ajax will probably struggle here, but facing Madrid or Milan this early is not an appetising prospect for Arsenal fans.

Assuming that Manchester United and Barcelona both finish top of their groups (as they almost certainly will), then United will have to face off against one from Panathinaikos, FC Copenhagen and Rubin Kazan, none of which will fill them with any great fear.

Tottenham, too, will feel reasonably confident if they progress to the second round, as the will likely play one from Benfica, Schalke 04 and Hapoel Tel-Aviv. Whilst none of those three are easy opponents, they are certainly all beatable over two legs.

Chelsea, like Arsenal, will face tougher opposition. They will almost certainly face Bayern Munich or AS Roma, depending on which of those two comes second to the other. Both of those teams would provide a stern test.

The group stages are usually pretty straightforward and not hugely interesting, largely because there are normally two teams that are expected to go through, and they invariably do. This year, Spurs add some extra intrigue for English supporters, and Group G (featuring Real Madrid, AC Milan, Ajax, and Auxerre) in particular will be an interesting one to watch. Group B (featuring OIympique Lyonnais, Benfica, Schalke 04, and Hapoel Tel-Aviv) also appears very open, even if this is because there are no huge names in there.

As always, the competition will begin to get really interesting in the second round, when both Chelsea and Arsenal should be playing against some of the giants of European football. Bring it on.

Tottenham Hotspur 4 (6) – (3) 0 BSC Young Boys

And so Spurs ran out comfortable 4-0 winners, 6-3 on aggregate. This was how the first leg should have gone too. Young Boys were always the easiest team Spurs could have drawn, and the fact that they play on a plastic pitch really should not have made any difference to a team of highly-paid Premier League footballers. Harry Redknapp’s excuses were utter rubbish, made to distract from how poorly his team had performed in the first half hour.

It was interesting to note how influential Gareth Bale was once again. He was involved in all four of Spurs’ goals again tonight, and he has apparently either assisted or scored all but one of their goals so far this season. This is a remarkable transformation. Some credit must be given to Redknapp (as much as it pains me to say so), who has given up on playing Bale in his initial left-back position and is willing to play him as a marauding winger, fully unleashing his attacking potential.

Spurs should take this two-legged tie as a useful warning of the dangers they will face in the Champions League, though. Despite the scoreline, Spurs did give Young Boys a number of decent chances – chances that would surely have been punished by Europe’s better strikers. Play like this against the Barcelonas and Inter Milans of this world, and they won’t get far. Gomes’ injury is a worry too, but Redknapp will need to tighten things up a bit more to get through the group stages.

Carling Cup:

No shocks at all in the Carling Cup this week. The only Premier League scalp was Blackpool, who lost 4-3 to MK Dons after extra time. Everton and Fulham ran out comfortable winners tonight against Huddersfield and Port Vale, respectively, and Newcastle even managed to overcome Accrington Stanley despite making eleven changes to their starting line-up.

The big guns enter in the next round, and will all surely advance. It was good to see Fulham, in particular, taking the competition seriously and fielding a full-strength side. The Carling Cup is ideal for teams of their stature as a competition that they realistically have a chance of winning. Mid-table Premier League teams should all try to take it more seriously, especially as the big teams tend to field weakened sides. Perhaps then the competition’s value would increase. If even Newcastle and Blackpool put out second strings then the League Cup is in dire straits.