Breakdown of Champions League Groups

Courtesy of Lucas Hollister:

First, the Arsenal analysis. Arsenal have a history of favorable group stage draws, and this one was no different. While I think that the Liverpool, Porto, Besiktas, Marseille group is the easiest, if AEK Athens pulls off an upset, Arsenal are looking at perhaps the easiest group in the history of the competition. I will now go out and buy an AEK Athens jersey. That said, Arsenal also have a history of making easy draws much harder than they need to be. Prague and Bucharest were close to best-case-scenario teams for their pots. For pots three and four, the most important thing was to avoid a trip to Turkey (Fenerbahce are dangerous, as are their fans!) or Russia (they spray paint their fields green to hide the fact that they are frozen dirt!).

Now, for the group by group analysis:

Group A (Liverpool, Porto, Marseille, Besiktas):
Tough trips to Turkey, but Besiktas aren't that good a team. Liverpool and Porto should be easily better than Marseille and Besiktas. Marseille could slip ahead of Porto, but I don't see it happening. The departure of Ribery deprives Marseille of the one world-class player they had. The French league has been Lyon and everyone else for four years now. I don't see that changing this year. Benitez is the best Champion's League coach bar none. He has reached four finals in the last ten years, winning one. Never bet against his tactical acumen in a two game tie. Plus, Steven Gerrard is money under pressure and Riise gives you that "goal out of nothing" capability. Like most people, I like Liverpool better this year than last year.

Group B (Chelsea, Valencia, Schalke, Rosenborg):
Chelsea is a given. Mourinho is another great coach, in addition to being a great douchebag. Coach aside, they beat this group on squad strength alone. Valencia has been underrated this decade, in my estimation, but they don't look that strong this year. It's not so much a question of talent for them as chemistry. Read Phil Ball's latest article and you'll see that this is a club in turmoil. Villa is one hell of a striker, though. I still like Valencia to go through, but only because I don't think much of Schalke or Rosenborg. Schalke could be surprising, but the German league hasn't shown much these last few years. Rosenborg have a reputation for being difficult to beat at home, but they can't hang with any of the top three in this group. They'll be lucky to get two points.

Group C (Real, Werder, Lazio, Olympiakos):
Great group. This should be an exciting one. Real finally looks like they might have a balanced squad. They lost Beckham, which was more of a hit than some people might think. More importantly, they fired Capello for no reason. All he did was lead them to a Spanish league title. This guy's been a winner wherever he's gone, and Madrid fired him because he dared to coach defense. As always, the talent is there in spades for Madrid and, as always, chemistry will be the main question mark. Werder are the best German side. I love watching them play. They attack with passion and flair, but give up goals. They know from past experience that they can beat Real, and won't be afraid to take the game to them. I don't know much about Lazio, besides the fact that they fascists and play for my least favorite league in Europe. They may be the second best team in this group, but I'll be rooting against them. Olympiakos have a history of playing hard when outgunned, and Greek sides usually have discipline on defense. This is a fun group.

Group D (AC Milan, Benfica, Celtic, Shakhtar):
Boring group. Milan deserved to win the CL last year, but they didn't deserve to be in the competition. Italian football is a disgrace and these guys are cheaters. That said, they've got some very elegant players. Portuguese teams remind me a lot of French teams from the mid-90's: technical, inventive, disciplined. Porto and Benfica are never easy games, especially away. Celtic pulled off a great win against Spartak Moscow. Nakamura is a game changer from set pieces. I don't see them having enough to get through. Shakhtar will be dangerous at home, and no one wants to have to travel to the Ukraine. I won't be watching any games from this group, supposing they are even televised.

Group E (Barcelona, Lyon, Stuttgart, Rangers):
Very obvious group. Lyon continue to be a great side. Even without Malouda, they are strong at every position. I think that the injury to Eto'o may benefit Barca in the long term. Henry is going to be very good for them. This lets him get familiar with the team.
Stuttgart will be ok. Rangers don't have the quality, though they have the fight. Fun games, but predictable outcomes.

Group F (Manchester United, Sporting Lisbon, Roma, Dynamo Kiev):
Hardest group. Not a single pushover here. Roma will be out for revenge and Sporting Lisbon are another great, technical Portuguese side. Manchester United's injury situation will be key coming into these draws. I'm always pulling for Dynamo Kiev. For those who don't know, the movie Victory is maybe 1/10 as astonishing as what Dynamo Kiev actually did against the Nazi's during WWII. I've told this story to so many of my friends, that I hesitate to put it up on plans, but if anyone hasn't heard it, let me know and I'll type it up. ESPN is constantly overplaying the human interest, drama, glory aspects of various mundane sports stories. Dynamo Kiev's history is legitimately one of the greatest of all time. It deserves to be remembered alongside Jesse Owens' victories in Berlin.
That said, that was then and this is now: they aren't getting out of this group.

Group G (Inter, Moscow, Fenerbahce, Eindhoven):
Inter is competing with Arsenal for weakest 1 seed in the CL. This is an incredibly evenly matched group. Fenerbahce was the 4 seed that no one wanted to draw. Playing in Moscow in the winter is borderline insane. Eindhoven always have talent, although losing Alex to Chelsea (for $1) doesn't help their cause. Unpredictable group. Should be fun games.

Group H:
I've already talked a lot about this one, but I should mention that Sevilla is a really, really good team. If they keep Alves and Juande Ramos, as it looks like they might, watch out. If this team had qualified, they easily could have won the CL last year. They are pure class.

Liverpool v Toulouse

In some hot Champions League qualifying action, Liverpool took the game straight to Toulouse, attacking and controlling the ball throughout both halves.  In the 19th minute, Dirk Kuyt served a beautiful cross to a sliding Peter Crouch, who snuck the ball between the post and the keeper.  Liverpool had many strong chances in the first half, with many coming from service on the wing, one of the major weaknesses Liverpool displayed in the Champions League final against AC Milan.  This Liverpool side, without Steven Gerrard or Jamie Carragher, dominated all aspects of the game and came away with what could only be described as a fair result.  The trend continued in the second half, with an early goal in the 49th minute from Sami Hyypia's head off a corner kick.  Liverpool refused to let up, with Dirk Kuyt scoring in the 86th and 90th minutes.   Liverpool looked like the great attacking side they can be, without Gerrard or Torres.  This bodes well for Liverpool and gets them off to a great start in another Champions League campaign.

International Friendlies and Transfers

I caught most of the England v Germany game, which promised all the usual drama between these exciting international sides. England looked really strong in the first half, taking the lead in the 9th minute on a goal by Frank Lampard setup by a nice run down the right flank by Micah Richards. Richards cut inside toward the goal box, beating a defender and drawing another out to create space for Lampard, who turned on the ball and blasted it past Lehmann, who I thought should have gotten to the shot. Nevertheless, a good goal for Lampard, who has been a bit hounded by the press recently. Shortly thereafter, in the 26th minute, Kevin Kuranyi scored off some poor goalkeeping by Paul Robinson who spilled the ball directly into Kuranyi's path. Germany took the lead off a beautiful strike by Christian Pander, who crushed the ball with his left from 30-35 yards out into the side netting, leaving Paul Robinson no chance at the ball. The second half slowed down, as both teams tightened at the back and England replaced Robinson with David James.
In other news, Gabriel Heinze and Arjen Robben have both left the Premiership for Real Madrid, for more than $60 million. I can't wait to see Arjen linking up with van Nistelrooy and Robinho in attack. I hate Heinze though and I hope he will conceded lots of goals in Champions League play and against Barca. I cannot wait for this weekend: Red Bull flugtag, EPL, Bundesliga and La Liga action, and no work. Good times.

Liverpool v Chelsea

The game started as it seems this matchup normally does, with strong possession play and most chances occurring off the counter. Liverpool controlled the play for most of the first half, although Gerrard seemed off his game with the foot injury. His shots from distance were off target and poor and he will need to regain form for Liverpool to win close matches like this one. Fernando Torres scored in his Enfield debut, controlling a strong forward ball to sneak it into the side netting underneath a diving Petr Cech. The second half saw more of the same, with Jermaine Pennant supplying good balls from the right wing. The referee made his presence felt, with what felt like a dozen yellow cards. The worst call of the game, however, came as a pass came in to Malouda who ran into Jamie Carragher and was awarded a penalty. Neither player touched the ball nor made an effort to play it. I was truly outraged, as Lampard coolly dispatched the penalty to tie the game. The air quickly left Liverpool's sails and the game slowly settled to a 1-1 draw. Good result for Liverpool but they could have done so much better.

Bayern Munich v Werder Bremen

In a highly anticipated match, Bayern stole the show in the second half. In the first half, Ribery scored off a penalty in the 31st minute. Klose was replaced with Hamit Altintop, a strong attacking midfielder who was purchased from Schalke 04. Altintop immediately made his presence felt, assiting Luca Toni in the 51st minute, exploiting a three on two breakaway as Werder tried to push forward in attack. Bayern continued to attack persistently. Following a Bremen corner, Ribery turned a fancy piece of skill, turning around Diego to spark a quick counter, ending in a nice cross from Toni to Altintop, who dispatched the ball to the far post. Andreas Ottl came on in the final ten minutes and, in the 87th minute, took a throw-in to the middle of the field and crushed the final goal into the upper-right hand corner. So far, it seems Ribery, Toni and Altintop have looked like the best strike force in Europe.  

Matchday 2 in the EPL

I had some issues with my pc at work yesterday and was not able to spend all of my time watching Man U take on Portsmouth. I did catch the second half of the Chelsea v Reading match, which saw Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba score on beautiful pieces of skill in the first five minutes, to overtake Reading's 1-0 lead. Chelsea continued to attack and looked particularly strong down the left flank, with Ashley Cole,Malouda and Solomon hooking up to feed the ball into Drogba and Lampard while creating chances for themselves. Malouda has quickly adapted to life at Stamford Bridge and it will be interesting to see his development this year, playing off of Ashley Cole, who arrived last year from crosstown rivals Arsenal. I'm particularly looking forward to Chelsea v Liverpool on Sunday. Portsmouth managed to come back to tie Manchester United, who have now only taken 2 points in as many games. They will have to regain some form, absent Wayne Rooney who will be out six weeks according to original reports. And Cristiano Ronaldo got sent off for a headbutt on Richard Hughes near the end of the match. Ronaldo will miss United's next three games, further compunding their difficulties in attack. As of right now, Everton, Manchester City and Chelsea are top of the table, with six points each. Of the players with two goals, Obafemi Martins of Newcastle United is definitely my favorite.

Bundesliga Kickoff: Stuttgart v Schalke 04

Unfortunately I was only able to catch the second half of this game, but thankfully it was the better half.  Schalke scored the opener on a deflection off a defender, carrying a 1-0 lead to the break.  Stuttgart tied the game on a Sami Khedira strike which curled under a diving Neuer into the lower-left corner of the net.  Just minutes later, on another wonderful piece of attacking football from Stuttgart, Neuer expertly blocked a shot from Cacau, only to chase the attacking player to the rebound and giving up a penaltyin the process.  Mexican Pavel Pardo converted, tricking Neuer into diving the wrong way, to give Stuttgart the lead at 2-1.  But Schalke 04 manager Mirko Slomka correctly subbed Kobiashvili for Ivan Rakitic in the 70th minute, who scored the equalizer in the 76th minute.  The intense form continued for the remainder of the match but ended in a draw.  Neuer looked okay in goal but the Schalke defense will have to improve if they hold hopes of winning the league against strong competition such as Bayern and Stuttgart.

Thanks for the Contribution

One of my secondary sources on football, and in particular, Arsenal, corrected part of my Arsenal post: Ljungberg's first name is Fredrik.  My apologies.  I'm posting his questions/comments below as I think they are strong points:

"-Can Eboue become a competent right winger? It looks like Wenger is thinking of starting Sagna at left back with Eboue in front of him."
-Can Hleb become a competent attacking midfielder? Wenger has been playing him in the middle behind a lone striker (RVR, Adebeyor or Da Silva). I've heard he's been playing well there. He's been a huge disappointment as an outside midfielder. I hope he can adjust and be productive in that new role. 
-Can anyone in the midfield score a damn goal?! I'm expecting big things from Rosicky this season. He's got the talent and he's a proven goalscorer. Look for him to notch 8-10 IF he can stay healthy. Fabregas will always be better at setting up goals than scoring them, but sooner or later he's going to develop into a more potent attacking threat. He's got a good shot from outside and he can beat defenders off the dribble. He's already such an amazing player for his age.
-Can Diaby or Gilberto Silva effectively play the holding midfield role? Gilberto is alternately brilliant and disastrous. Needs more consistency. Diaby is the future at that position (if Denilson, a more attacking midfielder, doesn't steal the midfield spot).
Can the defense defend set pieces and not give up dumb early goals? I have little faith. Our defense somehow seems weaker than the sum of its parts. I'm not persuaded that Wenger knows how to coach defenses well.
In a squad full of question marks, Bendtner and Walcott are perhaps the biggest. Either one could play a big role this season.
A lot of people are saying that Arsenal will struggle to finish fourth above Tottenham. I can see the logic, but I think they are really an unknown quantity going into this season. They could gel, feel liberated by the departure of Henry and challenge for the title. It's a distinct possibility. They have so much talent in their team. They're just so damn young! We'll know what they are capable of early in the season. If they get off to a bad start, I'm not sure they'll have the maturity to right the ship."

From Lucas Hollister

FA Community Shield

Manchester United v Chelsea - in this preseason closer between two of the most exciting soccer teams to watch, there have already been two beautiful goals. The first, scored by Ryan Giggs in the 35th minute, was set up masterfully down the left wing by Evra and Cristiano Ronaldo. Giggs, with his infinite class and patience, deftly redirected Evra's pass into the upperleft corner, leaving Cech no chance at the shot. In the 45th
minute, Chelsea struck back on a counterattack, with a sweet ball over the top to new signing Malouda, who fought off the attentions of Rio Ferdinand enough to slice the ball with the outside of his left foot, curling around Van der Sar to end up in the side netting. At this point, almost midway through the second half, it has been a well-fought match, with hard challenges and excellent wing play. Let's hope for a United victory, because I hate Jose Mourinho. Winning goal should be scored by Rooney. ~63rd minute