Europa League Latest! 2/27/2014.

First off I hope everyone is having a great week thus far - happy Thursday and a pleasant weekend to you! Now, for why you all are reading: a round-up of the results from today's Europa League games. Fiorentina were able to see off Esbjerg on aggregate despite a well-fought performance by the Danish side away from home. The fact that Esbjerg left it until the 1st minute of stoppage time of the 2nd half indicates that their Italian hosts were much the better team. All the same, they did hold off wave after wave of assaults from Fiorentina. The Italians had about double the possession and the opportunities as their Danish guests. After a tense 1st half, Josip Ilicic was the man to put Fiorentina ahead in the 47th minute from a set-piece. It should be said that the first leg's 1-3 scoreline in favor of Fiorentina allowed them to play a controlled match to say the least.

Onwards to another Italian representative, Juventus! After a 2-0 home victory, the Europa League Final hosts could well have considered themselves on their way to the next round. Their opponents, Trabzonspor of Turkey, didn't seem to have much in the tank as they hosted Juve and witnessed another 2-0 result, again in the favor of the Italians. Arturo Vidal opened the scoring in the 18th minute while Pablo Osvaldo tacked on a 2nd in the 33rd minute to sink the hopes of many a Trabzonspor fan. The victory means that it will be two Italians facing each other in the next round: Fiorentina hoping to perform well against their domestic rivals.

As for Maccabi Tel-Aviv versus Basel, a 0-0 first leg meant the Swiss side had an advantage going into the return leg at home. The hosts frankly dominated the match, taking a majority of possession but more importantly using it to great effect: Valentin Stocker opened the scoring account in the 17th minute and Basel never looked back. Marco Streller plucked two more peaches in the 2nd half - the 60th and 71st minutes respectively - to make it Basel's night. While Maccabi Tel-Aviv did show some life at the end of the game, they never really looked like the kind of team that deserved to make it into the next round.

Who will Basel be facing though? That'd be Salzburg, of Austria, who absolutely went to town on the Netherlands' Ajax. Following a first leg that saw Ajax lose 0-3 at home, I must admit that opinions were low that they would be able to mount a comeback. And - well - those thoughts were validated with Salzburg winning 3-1 at home. Sure, the Dutch side did have more of the possession, but attempts were very clearly in Salzburg's favor. It all started falling apart in the 56th minute when Mike van der Hoorn put the ball into his own net. True, the Austrians looked the better side throughout the 1st half, but the floodgates finally broke with Sadio Mane making it 2-0 in the 66th minute and Jonatan Soriano striking Salzburg's 3rd in the 77th. While Davy Klaassen did bring the visitors one back in the 82nd minute, it was smooth sailing for the hosts. The lack of any clinical goal-scorers should probably noted as Ajaxs' most pressing problem. That and their defensive frailty that is.

Over to Iberia now where Benfica convincingly dealt with their opposition - PAOK - by a 3-0 scoreline for a 4-0 aggregate. In all honesty though, two things should be noted about the Greeks: first of all, goalkeeper Panagiotis Glykos was the only reason that the scoreline was not more embarrassing. Having said that, much of the blame for why PAOK ended up losing as badly as they did was because Kostas Katsouranis was sent off in the 69th minute. A minute later, Nicolas Gaitan was celebrating Benfica's first goal of the night and Lima and Lazar Markovic added one each in the 78th and 79th minutes respectively. Would the Greeks have been able to pull something out of the hat if their captain had remained on the field? I doubt it. But it happened and Benfica will be facing Tottenham Hotspur in the next round!

Winning 3-2 on aggregate, Spurs honestly edged Ukraine's Dnipro. It could very well have gone the other way. Roman Zozulya actually put the Ukrainians ahead in London for all of about eight minutes of the 2nd half after scoring in the 48th minute. While Christian Eriksen equalized for Spurs in the 56th, the Ukrainians finally broke in the 65th minute: Zozulya had been sent off 2 minutes earlier and Emmanuel Adebayor found a brilliant run of form to make it 3-1 on the day. Unlucky for Dnipro but well deserved for Adebayor and his Spurs teammates.

The other Round of 16 tie will be a face-off between Sevilla and Real Betis after the two Spanish clubs beat back stiff competition from Maribor and Rubin Kazan respectively. In the former, the Slovenians could well have tallied several more strikes if they had their heads on right - Sevilla were not the most well-put-together side today. All the same, Maribor were hammered Jose Antonio Reyes and Kevin Gameiro on either side of the half before the Slovenians finally got through, courtesy of Dare Vrsic in the 2nd minute of stoppage time of the 2nd half. As for Betis' showdown with Kazan, the Spaniards didn't have any easy time against the Russians. Betis' advantage in terms of possession eventually allowed them to tally a couple of their attempts - arriving through Nono and Ruben Castro in the 45th and 64th minutes.

In France, yet another game was decided by a booking with Chornomorets Odesa of Ukraine holding their own until Evgeniy Zubeiko was sent-off with a second yellow in the 76th minute. Jumping on a glorious opportunity, Lyon finally broke the deadlock that had lasted almost 180 minutes with Alexandre Lacazette striking with 10 minutes left to play. Lyon will then face Plzen who saw off Shakhtar Donetsk by an aggregate score of 2-3. While Luiz Adriano helped the Ukrainians keep it close, the Czech Republic will have a representative in the Round of 16 thanks to Daniel Kolar and Milan Petrzela.

In my opinion the tie of the Round of 32 was the one that saw Eintracht Frankfurt and Porto punch out a 5-5 aggregate scoreline with the Portuguese side claiming victory thanks to away goals. It was certainly the way football was meant to be played. As sorry as I am to see Frankfurt drop out, they performed at an excellent caliber. Porto will be facing Napoli in the Round of 16 after the Italians defeated England's Swansea by a scoreline of 3-1 after going 0-0 in England. Insigne, Inler, and Higuain were the ones who made it happen for the Italians - promising an exciting tie when the Mediterranean countries face-off.

After beating Dynamo Kyiv 2-0 in Ukraine, Valencia held onto a 0-0 draw in Spain to set-up a date with Bulgaria's giant-slayers Ludogorets who took down Lazio by an aggregate score of 4-3. Scoring early and often, I am really enjoying seeing how far the Bulgarians can go; I wouldn't mind seeing them take Valencia down too! Roman Bezjak is definitely the engine of the machine: 5 goals to his name in this year's competition and he has the support of other unknowns such as Virgil Misidjan and Juninho Quixada. If Vladislav Stoyanov and his defenders can keep things a little tidier in the back, we just might see a miracle.

Last but certainly not least, Anji Makhachkala vs AZ Alkmaar! While certainly putting two of the remaining minnows into the same Round of 16 birth should prove competitive, I would be surprised to see either of these teams make it through the Quarter Final stage. Nevertheless, Russia's sole representative in the Europa League is Anji who got by Genk (of Belgium) through a combination of luck - an own goal to open the scoring in the 64th minute - and skill, courtesy of Olexandr Aliyev. As for AZ, they remain the last team from the Netherlands at this stage of the competition. The fact that they were tested so strenuously by Slovan Liberec of the Czech Republic would lead me to tip the Russians as the side who reach the Quarter Finals. Make sure to check back here next week for more of the action!

Champions League Performances from Today - 2/26/2014

A tale of two cities this week as Galatasaray met Chelsea on the field of battle while Schalke cowered against the awesome might of Real Madrid. In the first match-up, Fernando Torres put the Blues ahead in the 9th minute of the first half. While both sides had about the same number of opportunities, the Turkish side had slightly more of possession. Aurelien Chedjou's 65th minute strike was well-deserved and the fact that Chelsea tallied a total of four yellow cards to Galatasaray's one illustrates that the English side did not have a good game. Nevertheless, a 1-1 scoreline is relatively good for Chelsea, meaning Turkey's last surviving representative in the Champion's League will have to give it their all in the away fixture. I wouldn't put their chances too high but with the likes of Muslera (and replacement Eray Iscan) in goal, Sneijder, Drogba, and Umut Bulut - well - you can't quite count them out just yet. Injuries may prove to be an issue for the Turks.
Over in Gelsenkirchen, the first ten minutes of the game could have gone either way. In truth, that was the last time Schalke looked like much of a team though. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar's goal in the 91st minute of stoppage time was a consolation goal after Benzema, Bale, and Ronaldo each struck twice to make it a 1-6 game. The French and Welshmen were the only scorers of a tense first half though the second half witnessed an explosion of goals. Not the kind of start that the Germans would have wanted to their Round of 16! With that kind of scoreline, I wouldn't be surprised if the return leg in Madrid was just a formality because the chances of Schalke turning this around are next to zero. Having said that, it'd mean there will be nothing holding either side back so it may just be another goal fest. Look for a Europa League update in the next couple days!

Champions League Update for Today: 2/25/2014.

Some exciting matches today with Zenit St. Petersburg set to host Borussia Dortmund while Olympiacos welcome Manchester United to Greece. While the chances of a sweep of victories for visiting sides as happened in the first round of games of the Round of 16 seems unlikely, the idea is not too outlandish. Let's take a look at the games with Zenit coming off of an extended period of down-time. While many of their players will be fresh, the likes of Danny, Shirokov, and Ansaldi are out through injuries of one kind or another.  Respectively, that puts out of commission a quality forward, midfielder, and defender - not the kind of losses a team like Zenit want going into a match with fierce German opposition. If Hulk and Alexander Kerzhakov are in form though, the Russians may well make it through the round. As for Dortmund, they have been lacking Gundogan, Subotic, Blaszczykowski, and Sven Bender for such a long time that hopefully Klopp has reshuffled the team in a manner that allows them to remain competitive away from home. If Hummels and Reus can come back into the team, their chances look much better. Either way, it is almost always difficult to travel to Eastern Europe and Dortmund's loss over the weekend to Hamburger SV will not have helped matters.
Turning our attention to the match-up between Olympiacos and United now, the Greeks simply have to perform well at home. Roberto has been good enough in goal for them, however without the goalscoring talent of Javier Saviola I would be surprised if Olympiacos could muster the necessary firepower to get them past the English. Nevertheless, it Kostas Mitroglou has a great game - and if Alejandro Dominguez can increase his goal tally - the Greeks might just have enough to knock United out. At least, they should put on a good show at home. Speaking of Manchester United, the Red Devils cannot be said to be in the best of form. Their case is not improved by the absence of defenders such as Rafael, Phil Jones, and Jonny Evans. While De Gea has performed admirably for Manchester, he needs some help. Nani and Danny Welbeck are both out still, meaning the Greeks will largely concern themselves with shutting down the likes of Wayne Rooney and Antonio Valencia (and if Robin Van Persie plays, don't be surprised if he fails to make an impact). Hope you enjoy the games!

Champions League Latest: 2/19/2014

Brilliant games today with the away sides winning once more! A ten-man Arsenal were put to bed in the 2nd half of their match against Bayern Munich as Toni Kroos slotted home in the 54th minute for the Germans while Thomas Muller made it 0-2 in the 88th minute. The two missed penalties in the first half and the sending off of Wojciech Szczesny made for a very tense half-time with the home side dreading the next 45 minutes while the visitors felt reasonably confident of their chances. Bayern's domination of possession and opportunities is understandable in this light. As for the match-up in Italy, Milan were bested by a spirited Atletico Madrid who held on through Milan's slight majority of possession and goal-scoring opportunities. They were both fantastic matches - Diego Costa was the man who struck Atletico's winner in the 83rd minute - and I am sure you are looking forward to the second legs! I see no reason why Bayern and Madrid can't secure their progression to the next round while playing at home. Thibaut Courtois was the well-deserved man of the match after keeping out all of Milan's chances and I would anticipate a similarly crucial role in the return fixture. Keep your eyes open for more games in the next couple days!

Women's World Cup Qualifying! 2/13/2014

Alright then! The qualifying campaign for the showcase event in Canada 2015 has begun with the usual suspects making the rounds and looking like solid contenders for qualification. In Europe, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, Scotland, Norway, England, and France have put themselves at the top of their respective groups with some mouth-watering performances (Not one of the top sides has any less than 12 points to their name). The Germans are undefeated in 5 matches with a positive 40 goal difference while Switzerland have struck 17 without reply in 4 games. England are the other side to have notched plenty of goals while maintaining a clean-sheet with 20 to the good in 4 matches played. The second place teams of the respective groups are the Republic of Ireland with 7 points from 3 games; Italy are 2nd in Group 2 with two victories and a loss in 3 games. Israel meanwhile are 4 points off of the mark in Group 3 with the same performance as that of the Italians although Sweden in Group 4 are just 3 points away from Scotland with a game in hand. Arguably one of the tightest groups is that of Group 5 where both Belgium and the Netherlands have 10 points from 5 games - meaning Norway with 12 at the top actually have a game in hand - 4 more than Portugal in 4th position. Over in Group 6, Ukraine and Wales are the sides picking up the scraps left by England with 6 points each. Onwards to our last group for today: Group 7! Finland are the side directly in the shadow of France with a perfect record from 3 games. Hungary also have the opportunity to move up the ladder effectively as they are currently tied for 3rd with Austria though with a game in hand.

Wrapping up the Futsal European Championship: 2/8/2014.

Scenes of jubilation were common throughout a tense Final match of the Futsal European Championship. But let's take a step back to the Semi-Finals where Portugal faced Italy and Russia took on Spain. In the first of the two, the Portuguese put up a good fight against the Italians. While Gabriel Lima put the Italians in the lead before the end of the first minute, Ricardinho and Arnaldo Pereira struck once each for the Iberians to make it 2-1. Romano equalized in the 22nd minute for the Italians before Gabriel Lima struck his second and Fortino made it 2-4 by the 34th minute. Despite the Portuguese getting the last goal in the 34th minute, making it 3-4, Joel Queiros' goal made for an exhilarating final few minutes but it was to no avail as the Italians booked their Final ticket leaving Portugal to contest the third place spot with the loser of the Russia-Spain match. Over to the other Semi-Final now, the Spaniards got off to a fine start with the opening goal in the 16th minute through Pola. However, Russia reacted powerfully with Sergeev and Lyskov making it 2-1 in the 22nd and 26th minutes respectively. Rafael Usin brought the Iberians level in the 26th minute though Fukin kept the eastern Europeans in the lead before the 26th minute had run out. Nevertheless, Miguelin brought the sides level 3-3 in the 37th minute. Keeping the sides level for the last three minutes of regulation time, one five minute period of extra time went by without a breakthrough. Finally, in the second period of extra time, Robinho struck the Russians ahead in the 48th minute meaning they just had to hold the line for two minutes. Despite intense pressure, they were able to do just that, pitting them against Italy in the Final while Spain and Portugal faced off in the 3rd Place match. As for that match for third, Portugal and Spain treated the world to a feast of football: Fernandao, Jose Ruiz, and Lozano struck for Spain three times before the 7th minute, making it 0-3 for the Spaniards. Ricardinho and Pedro Cary gave the Portuguese a chance with two goals before the twelfth minute though two more goals - from Miguelin and Rafael Usin - secured Spain's victory. 2-5, Raul Campos struck in the 19th minute for Spain before Pedro Costa and Joel Queiros made it 4-6. To add insult to injury, the defending futsal world champions struck twice more, through Fernandao and Pola, making the third-place match the highest-scoring in the competition's history! As for the Final, Italy and Russia gave us a tremendous contest with Gabriel Lima putting the southern Europeans in the lead for a little over three minutes until Eder Lima equalized in the ninth minute. The match could well have gone either way, but it was the Italians who pushed on to victory, striking twice between the 13th and 18th minutes through Murilo and Giasson to take a firm lead before the halftime break. Despite 42 efforts, 9 more than the Italians, the Russians were unable to crack Italy's defenses and in fact lost Cirilo to a second yellow card in the 33rd minute making the last seven minutes of the game a rubber stamp as the southern Europeans won their first title since 2003. Hope you enjoyed the matches!

Futsal European Championship: 2/5/2014.

After a thrilling Quarter-Final round, we are off to the Semis with Portugal, Italy, Russia, and Spain making it through. Portugal's one-man show of Cardinal - technically a defender - struck early in each half to put the Iberians through to the next round despite Ukraine's best efforts. The Ukrainian's Yevgen Valenko was able to bring the eastern Europeans level in the 12th minute however Cardinal added to his 2nd minute goal with one in the 22nd minute that went unanswered. An exciting match, Italy's match against Croatia ended with a similar scoreline though the eventual winners appeared slightly more in control. Sergio Romano struck in the 46th second of play to get things rolling while Croatia equalized a little over six minutes later courtesy of Franko Jelovcic. However, in the 9th minute the Italians were able to secure their second - the final for both teams - goal of the match through Fortino in the 9th minute. The 2nd half may as well not have happened. Meanwhile, Romania were slaughtered by Russia 0-6 thanks to a barrage of scoring from the likes of Robinho, Vladislav Shayakhmetov, Eder Lima, and Sergei Sergeev. Spain were similarly successful over a surprising Slovenian side with a 4-0 scoreline. Fernandao scored in the 11th minute with Rafael Usin making it 2-0 in the 17th. The second twenty minutes opened with a flurry of yellow cards, however Aicardo struck not once but twice in the dying minutes of the 2nd half - the 36th and 39th minutes - to make it 4 for the winners and set up a play date with the Russians tomorrow. As for the Semi-Final fixtures, Italy will most likely have more consistency than the Portuguese while Russia's match with Spain could go either way. If Eder Lima continues in the vein that he has been in, the eastern European powerhouse may just win the tournament. If Aicardo can convert more often and Rafa stays sharp in goal for the Spaniards, they may yet defend their title. Enjoy the games!

European Futsal Championship Update: February 3, 2014

And we are on to the Quarter-Finals after Ukraine wrapped-up Group A with Romania also making it through at the expense of Belgium. The Ukrainians finished with 4 points from two matches while Romania got through on one victory. While hosts Belgium don't go on to the next round, they did manage to collect one point. Group B was evenly split between Russia and Portugal with 4 points each as the Netherlands were left to wonder what might have been. Group C on the other hand was evenly split three ways with each team tallying a victory though Italy and Slovenia go through on goal difference. Azerbaijan were unlucky enough to be eliminated after their defenders really let them down. Group D finished with Spain and Croatia going through with 4 and 2 points respectively as the Czech Republic bow out with one. As for the next round, Ukraine and Portugal face-off while Russia take on Romania and Italy battle the Croatians. Spain should manage Slovenia, though you never know for certain in football! Hope you all had a good weekend.