The Champions League Moving To Fox Is The Best Move Ever

I heard the devistating news back in April as I was on my way to the FBI Academy that the bidding for the rights to the Champions League broadcasts here in the US.

I have been watching the Champions League on ESPN2 for the last four years now. It's because of the Champions League that I became a fan of Chelsea.

So to see that the broadcast rights to the premier club competition in the world were going over to Fox Soccer Channel, a station that I don't have, I almost cried.

So imagine my surprise that when I flipped it over to TV Guide Channel to see if Sports Science was coming on, I saw those sacred words, UEFA Champions League.

I have the kettle on, getting ready for my tea and ready to watch Arsenal take on Celtic as they play for their right into the group stages.

So I know have the best of both worlds. I have the EPL on ESPN2 on a weekly basis and now I have Champions League football as well.

You Don't Need To CGI My Kicks To Get them To The Bar

I have went down to the field for a second day and for a second day I hit the crossbar on the goal about six times on my free kicks. Now, I did punch the back of the net more times than I punched the bar but it is still a bit discouraging unless I want to be a stand in for Ronaldnhio in the next Nike commercial.

So why did I go down to the field for therapy? Chelsea lost to Man U in Moscow earlier today. Now mind you, I thought they would beat Chelsea but it was seriously touch and go for a moment. When it came down to penalties I started to pace around the living room and my mother looked at me like I had lost my mind and my friend Shibley just laughed at me.

I am not going to make excuses for Chelsea but I think the poor pitch conditions combined with the rain was the eventual downfall of the Blues. I think that UEFA really should have dealt with this problem well before the game instead of having to relay the pitch so soon to the match time.

Regardless of the pitch, United have won their third Champions League final and did it in amazing fashion. I do think that United started to back off in the second half and Chelsea had a few descent chances that could have ended it before the need for either extra time or penalties.

How does this effect the teams? Manchester is probably still partying at this hour even though it's close 4 AM on the other side of the pond. United are looking to dip their fingers into the transfer pool that will be opening soon and very well could increase the strength of their team even if Ronaldo decides to move.

As for Chelsea, I really think this will be a strong catalyst for them when next season rolls around. With or without Avram Grant at the helm, this will be a highly motivated team that will certainly be ready to take on the any of the worlds champions.

Congrats Red Devils. We will get you next year.

Sunny Spring Days in Moscow

Europe's premier club competition comes to an end tomorrow in the capital city of Russia and as a Chelsea fan, I can not wait for it to start. I have some bratwurst thawing in the fridge and I plan to toss on my Chelsea jersey and tuck in for the match. I will probably skip training tomorrow because I will either be too happy or too sad to really want to. But that is beside the point. The point of this blog is to discuss the match itself and who I think will hoist the trophy that hardly ever graces England.

For starters, this is the first all English final and I could not think of two teams that are more deserving than Chelsea and Man U. I do not know what made Didier Drogba wake up at the end of the the second tie between Chelsea and Liverpool, but the docile tones of the Ivorian were reversed when he banged home a splendid shot in extra time to help carry the Blues to their first ever Champions League final. This will truly be one of the most splendid finals in Champions League history.

Moving on for a look at the teams and you see that there is no lack of talent on either bench. The question is, who will be sitting on the reserve list and who will be in the starting eleven. The team sheets are not out yet but it is worth speculation. The Blues will more than likely field the side that they have in the past few games and I do not know if playing Drogba up front alone will really do any good. I hope that Grant has used his time off to work the Drogba, Anelka combo. A 4-3-3 with the addition of Lampard could prove trouble for the Red Devils back four. With Ballack and Essien in the midfield feeding crosses in, it is likely that United will have something to deal with.

United have a completely fit side to square off with and there is no doubt that it is the most talented side in Europe right now. They will likely field a stunning eleven that will clamp down on Chelsea early on. The one thing to consider with United is that they lost earlier in the season to Chelsea during the run down of the Premiership.

Despite the loss, I really do not see an easy going for either team. Both teams are hungry for the win and their motivations are more than enough to add up to a shocking final that will really astound the fans of both teams. So, who do I think will lift the trophy? As much as I hate to say it, I think United will win on penalties.

What does this mean for the two teams? Avram Grant is possibly looking at packing his bags and leaving the Bridge after the end of the season due to his rough and tumble performance the past eight months. Out of the potentials, it is likely that Roberto Mancini from Milan fame will be making a residence in west London in the fall. Hopefully he will speak better English than Mr. Cappello.

As for Fergie, he is probably the safest manager in the Premiership these days. If anything, this is practice for next year when United may very well win the Treble next year. Reports out of the camp have said that they are looking to snag up talent over the summer that could truly make them the best team in the world. I would not be surprised if Fergie was elevated to the gaffer of the English national team at some point in the future.


If there is one thing that is for certain when the Champions League anthem is played over the PA system at the dilapidated Luzhniki Stadium, truer lyrics will never be sung about the two teams that are on that pitch. Go Blues!!

Will Barca be less messy with Messi back?

With the Champions League Final around a month away, the competition is truly heating up and as we head into the semi-finals that start tomorrow, the players themselves are starting to speak out about the key factors that they see will effect the upcoming matches.

One individual speaking out is Carlos Tevez. The Manchester striker told the BBC that he thinks that the return of Lionel Messi will be the make or break for Barcelona in their upcoming Champs League tie.

Does Tevez's claim have any weight to it? You can look at it from two angles. From an individual players perspective, Messi is an amazing player. I zoomed over to soccernet and had a look at his stats for the Champions League and he outscores everyone on the team. You could also argue that from the individual level, he could be a rallying point for his side and could lead them on to win against United.

The other major view would be that from the team level. This gets subdivided into the two teams. Barcelona have had a rough end to their La Liga campaign this year and with Real Madrid to be the sure winners of the title, there is no way that the Catalan's can mount a return for the season. There are also grumblings in the club itself of the bigger stars leaving after this season. Ronaldinho, who will finish the season on the bench do to a leg injury, is hinted to be going to both Milans and possibly Manchester City over the break. Samuel Eto'o is discussing leaving after next season if the Nou Camp fails to gain silverware for another season. And lastly, everyone pretty much knows that Henry has become a cry baby but that he is trying to be mainly about it. Does this hurt the team that will played on Wednesday? Sure it does. If your major first team players are not really in the game to win, then sure it hurts you. This is just a ninety minute kick about for them and it is a situation that United will exploit.

Speaking of Manchester United, how does this match look for them? Anyone who knows me, know that I hate Manchester United more than I hate the fact that my alma matter is starting to charge students for the football tickets this coming season, but I think despite Tevez's reassurance that this will be a different game with Messi in, I doubt it will be. United are the best team in the world right now with the best players in the world. They are the Yankees of world football (yet another team that I despise). The striker core for the team and their midfield will do 95% of the work against Barcelona over the next two legs and I think this will be a huge victory for the Fergie's lads, Messi or not.

But, it is hard to say who will win the match. Football is more fickle than a group of teenage girls trying to pick a dress for prom. There are simply too many factors to calculate for these ties and if you only look at the factors that rest on top (like I just did) you are going to get a somewhat accurate picture but odds are no greater than 60% that your outcome will happen. Happy footy, all.

But Who Will Stop Wigan?

That's the question at the Bridge after both Carlo Cudicini and Petr Chech were injured in the past two weeks. Chech had to get an astounding 50 stitches after a misplaced hit on the traing pitch. Cudicini, who filled in for a better part of last season after Chech was injured, injured his hamstring in last nights Champions Leage win against Fenerbache.

So in comes Hilario. This kid isn't half bad in goal and he will step up to the task at hand. I don't know why the BBC consider this to be a setback. The keepers for Chelsea have proven themselves time after time as some of the best in the world. Sure, it's not a a goalkeepin core built of Chech's but they are all trained by the same coach and while Chech is a better keeper overall, there is no reason to be moaning about the third keeper coming into play. Chelsea have been in far worse situations and have come out smelling like a rose. But, only time will tell if the Blues will continue to climb the Premiership ladder and hop over United to take the league this year.

You Win Some. You Draw Some

That seems to be the story of the start of the round of sixteen for the UEFA Champions League. The best clubs that Europe can offer took to their respective pitches on Tuesday and Wednesday evening and gave their fans something to talk about for the next fortnight.

I dug into the previous posts and found that I called some of the groups right but others I called wonderfully wrong. Valencia did not make it through. And I certainly do not remember picking Olympiacos to make it this round. But if I remember correctly, they are not teaching me to predict the future, here in grad school, they are only teaching me how to make educated guesses off the available information.

The match action itself over the last two nights was descent. I will focus on the two games that I got a chance to watch, since I do not have Deportes. Liverpool and Inter from Anfeild. If you can not play at the San Siro, then by God Anfeild is just as good. The fans were getting their Merseyside pride on for the better part of the match. However, I'm not too sure what they really had to cheer for, apart from the two late goals right before the whistle. Inter went down to ten men at the 30 minute mark off a rather poor call by the ref. Materazzi was cautioned early in the game for a foul against Torres and then he was carded a second time for "fouling" Torres yet again. This would get him sent off and saw Inter go down to ten men.

It is interesting that it would take the Anfeild boys almost an hour to poke a hole through the ten men that were out there. Inter responded well to the hasty send off and really displayed what a minimum amount of effort was needed to hold off a Liverpool squad that has been knocked out of any hope of a domestic cup this season.

The goals in this one came almost at the full time whistle and the first goal by Kuyt, should have been handled better Cesar. The second goal by Stevie G was just poor pick up by the Brazil national teams keeper. All in all, this was a game that Liverpool should have won by a larger amount but the lack of cohesiveness within the squad played a large role in this, I think. Needless to say, it will be an interesting home leg for Milan at the San Siro in three weeks. With a full squad and fresh hit of steam, it is not unlikely that they could pull a three-nil victory and send Liverpool and Rotating Rafa back to England.

Arsenal and AC Milan. I have been excited to see this fixture since the round of sixteen draw was announced. You have a wonderful marriage of Premiership talent mixed with the technical and aged play of AC Milan. Early on, I don't think that AC were expecting Arsenal to come out and play at Premiership speed, but the Gunner surprised the current club champs. On the contrary, I do not think Arene Wengers side expected AC to be able to shut down their offense. Inter did an amazing job of shutting down Eboue, Fabregas, and Adebayor. Even after the start of the second half, when the Gunners seemed to find their boots, the back four of AC turned away attempt after attempt, making it look like child's play.

The chances in this match clearly favored Arsenal. Kalac, in goal for the injured Dida who hurt his back while sitting on a bench at the weekend against Palma, faced an amazing six shots on goal and performed with little strain even though there were concerns over his injured finger. With all these chances and four minutes of stoppage time, one would consider that the Gunners could get at least one goal out of this one and they almost did. However, Adebayor's header would ring off the crossbar and get sent out into touch, effectively ending any hope for a score in this one.

So, who do I favor for the return leg? I would have to put my money on AC. For starters they are playing at home. The San Siro is one of the most intimidating stadia to play at in all of European football. Secondly, Pato. The "Duck" had his first taste of European competition against the Gunners and had he calmed down just a tad, he would have had a goal and gave his team an away advantage. Lastly, it's AC. One of the most successful European club sides ever. It should be renamed the AC Milan League. Yeah, I know that is pushing things but hey, it's my blog. You don't like it, go read 90 Minutes magazine.

Champions League draws announced

(arsedup.com)


It's nearly September and that means one thing: the Uefa Champions League is heading into group play. After the qualifying rounds drew some familiar and favorite faces(Liverpool & Arsenal), Europe's premier cup competition will begin it's group play later in the month. For a full listing of the tables you can zoom over to the BBC's sport section and look under the football tab and from there look for the Europe tab on the left side bar.

Looking at the group stages, there are some familiar battles from last year. Manchester United and Roma who met in the round of 16 and whom Fergie's lads destroyed in the home leg, will meet in the group stages. I look for these two teams to be the top of their group, honestly. The only thing that could hurt United is the loss of Rooney. Hell, the loss of Rooney is impacting the whole of English ball as well.

We will also see a rematch of Chelsea and Valencia. Chelsea barely scraped past the Spanish team last year and I remember sitting there watching the match with my friends, trying to put off going to work as late as I could. Just like Uniteds group, I take Chelsea and Valencia to get past the group stages.

As far as the other groups go, I have to take the elusive Liverpool from group A. This is a team that can't win the Premiership, but they can win against the rest of Europe. The FA should talk to the British government and see if they can extend dual citizenship to the players on Liverpool that aren't from Great Britain. Then they can field Liverpool's starting 11 as the national team. Also in Liverpool's group, I have to take Marseille over Porto. Marseille is a wonderful team with a good record in French football but I think they have a little more gusto than Porto does. And to add to Porto's folly, Chelsea are trying to wrangle one of their best players away, Quersma.

For group C, I am taking Real Madrid and Werder Bremen. These are both teams that know what they are doing when it comes to European football and they should breeze past their competition.

Group D has one obvious prospect and two circumspect prospects. AC Milan will lead the group. And as a runner up I am saying Celtic. The Scottish side is always a joy to watch and I think that they will give the group a run for the money. The other "upset" roles that might come out would be Benfica but I don't see that happening.

Group E is the group of death. You have Barcelona, Lyon, Rangers, and Stuttgart. These are all wonderfully composed teams. Lyon and Stuttgart won their respective leagues last year and Barcelona was a runner up. Despite loosing Eto'o for two months, I still think that Barcelona will be the first team safely clear of the group. Then comes the fight for the other position. I have to put my money with Stuttgart. German football is more aggressive than French football and while the intensity of Champions league games does not get turned up until later in the competition, by that time Stuttgart will have knocked Rangers and Lyon out of the running.

Groups G and H are the two groups that I think no one will pay much attention to. Your top draws are Inter and Arsenal, respectively. I think they will both emerge from the group stages but as for the second teams in the groups, I've got nothing.

By looking at the groups as we have them now, it is going to shape up to be another cracking year for the Champions League. I think the group stages will see more knockouts of bigger clubs this time around as opposed to last year, where there were still formidable clubs up until the semi finals. As far as picking a winner, it's too early on. However, I think if Chelsea can get it's players fit and not end up drawing Liverpool again this year, I think Chelsea could get to the final and probably face AC Milan or perhaps Liverpool. I do think AC or Liverpool will be in the final and who knows we might have a repeat of Istanbul and Greece, all over again. Good luck to all the teams. And to the fans, don't be upset if your team goes out in the group stages. It takes a great commitment to get to the Champions league. The winner wouldn't be referred to as the Kings of Europe if it wasn't so prestigious. Once again, good luck to all and go Chelsea.