Champions League '05/'06

[Henkie]

The Champions League is about to begin, as the draw for the groupstage was made this afternoon. What do you think of the group your team is in? Who's going to win the title eventually? Discuss...

To start off, my team, PSV, got f#cked, they're in the same pool as Schalke 04, AC Milan and Fenerbahce, while they were in the second draw. Where as Ajax (in the same draw) got in the pool with Arsenal, Sparta Prague and FC Thun. I think PSV got the hardest poule there is (except maybe for poule G, which has Chelsea, Liverpool, Anderlecht and Betis).

[samurai kebab]

wtf how can we get Chelsea,Anderlecht and Betis


I just no Chelsea will try there hardest against us and once there safe they'll let the other 2 hve easy matches

[Henkie]

Anderlecht isn't that strong a team, if I'm not mistaken, they didn't get a single point in the CL last season and Betis is, imho, the weakest of the four spanish teams. Liverpool should be able to get at least that second place to get to the next round, which is all that matters, really.

[Canty]

I hope Chelsea fucking demolish Liverpool.

[samurai kebab]

arnt you a wolves fan and who the hell wants to see chelsea do well it just proves money can make you the best team and youths or whatever dont matter

[el hooligan]

i hope arsenal can make a decent run for the cl this year although they r crap in europe and have never made it to a semi finals etc. they should get through the group stage 1st place no problem but its the 1st and 2nd knockout stages that always seem to kill them. with any luck tho they definitley have a shot cuz porto n liverpool did it so it is possible. My prediction for this years cl? my heart says arsenal my head says chelsea.

[Canty]

arnt you a wolves fan and who the hell wants to see chelsea do well it just proves money can make you the best team and youths or whatever dont matter

Yeah I support Wolves but from last season Liverpool have pissed me off continuously and although I don't support Chelsea I've always liked to see them do well. John Spencer was my favourite player of theirs. God knows why.

[Flankered]

well newcastle arent anywhere near europe :( .....but they will still win the premiership :rolleyes: :shuffle:

[nederlandSETX]

I hope Chelsea fucking demolish Liverpool.

If they cant play any better against Chelsea than they did against CSKA Mother Fucking MOSCOW in the Super Cup match, then your wish may very well come true. Their form is complete shite right now... AND I DONT CARE WHO IS INJURED. Im sure thats the excuse coming from the fans of the LFC.

[James Bond 007]

Im not gonna make any excuses for Liverpool's poor form at the minute, we are just lacking some spark, I have been very dissappointed with Morientes so far, I expected more from him but at the end of the day we may be playing pretty shit right now but we arent loosing which is the main thing.

Back to the draw... I think as Henkie said Liverpool will qualify from the group, I imagine Chelsea will win the group but then again we always play well against Chelsea so we definatley can win the group.

PSV definatley got the group of death, it will be very difficult for all the teams in that group, Im looking forward to seeing Milan and PSV battle it out again though now Park has gone to Man U I dont think PSV will be quite as successful against Milan as they were last season when they battered them but I still expect PSV along with Milan to come out of that group though never underestimate the Germans, Shalke are a very well organised team who can play.

Man U got the easiest group, I fuckin hate those Manc twats!

I think the team who will be celebrating in May in Paris next year is either Chelsea or Milan, I was looking at the odds at the bookies to see what looked a good bet and found in one bookies that Juventus are 14-1.... Might be worth a £20 bet.
The way the champions league has gone the last couple of seasons you just dont know, the team celebrating in Paris next year could well be Villareal!

[Pfeife]

these are the groups, I marked the teams which I think will pass the group stage:

GROUP A
Bayern Munich
Juventus
Brugge
Rapid Wien

GROUP B
Arsenal
Ajax
Sparta Prague
Thun

GROUP C
Barcelona
Panathinaikos
Werder
Udinese

GROUP D
Man Utd
Villareal
Lille
Benfica

GROUP E
Milan
Eindhoven
Schalke
Fenerbache

GROUP F
Real Madrid
Lyon
Olympiacos
Rosenborg

GROUP G
Livepool
Chelsea
Anderlecht
Real Betis

GROUP H
Inter
Porto
Rangers
Ardmedia




my biggest favourites for the title:

1. Chelsea: very strong team in every aspect, no real weakpoint. Especially Robben impressed me the last time I watched them, but Crespo and Essien look extremly dangerous too. I just hope the other English teams in the EPL will be able to create at least A BIT pressure onto them, because it will be an uneven contest when they can concentrate onto the CL solely because they are already Champion in the EPL 10 games before it ends.

2. Bayern: same as with Chelsea, at the moment they are tearing their opponents in the Bundesliga apart (leading with 9 points after 3 games, 11:2 goals). Their only deficit is that they have only one true world class striker with Makaay.

3. Barcelona: They have already won the Spanish Championship, and can concentrate onto the CL now. Their offense is deadly, but they could improve the defense.


The other English teams have only small chances imho, Arsenal and Liverpool don´t have the quality, Manchester will see the EPL as their priority. Real Madrid has alot of new players and will need 1-2 years to become a real team, also their defense is weak.
Milan have probably the most dangerous striker duo in Europe (Gilardino + Shevchenko), but their defense has already been old last year, and I have my doubts that Maldini anc Co. will be able to compete with the new generation of players in terms of speed etc.
Juventus would be my number 4 favourite for the title, but lets see.

[Henkie]

Just one remark, the team you call Eindhoven is actually called PSV (it's like calling Chelsea 'FC London') And to be honest, I'm giving Porto, PSV and Sparta Prague a better chance of qualifying in stead of Schalke, Ajax and the Rangers.

[Pfeife]

Just one remark, the team you call Eindhoven is actually called PSV (it's like calling Chelsea 'FC London') And to be honest, I'm giving Porto, PSV and Sparta Prague a better chance of qualifying in stead of Schalke, Ajax and the Rangers.


I have to say that I'm not that well informed about the Rangers and Ajax, but I still rate them higher than Porto and Sparta Prague. (the group with Arsenal, Ajax, Sparta and Thun is by the way the weakest one imho).

About the PSV: as far as I am concerned, they lost most of their keyplayers over the past years, while Schalke bought several new ones.

[Henkie]

We do have the best coach alive, and we've bought some interesting players, like Simons and Vayrünen. But indeed, it's going to be mighty tough against Schalke and Ac Milan. And I don't know if you've heard it, but the Rangers have allready suffered their first homedefeat where as the Portuguese press were pretty happy with Porto's start of the season (2 wins). And I'm not sure about Sparta Prague either, but the team Ajax has now just isn't that strong, they've lost their Amsterdam Tournament for the first time in four or five years, they had some mayor trouble with Brondby and they've lost at home to Feyenoord last weekend.

[James Bond 007]

I would love for Rangers to qualify from their group but I dont think they will and I must admit I dont know about Eredivise but Im pretty sure both PSV and Ajax will qualify from their groups though I do think PSV will find it more difficult bcoz they will be battling for second place with a good German side.

[Flankered]

rangers wont qualify from their group because they just got humped 3 - 0 by hibs, a sub getting a hat trick in the last 15 minutes.
also inter milan will rip them apart, my guess porto will as well and as for armedia they just beat celtic 5 - 0 home but they got beat 4-0 away

[cr0p]

Anderlecht isn't that strong a team, if I'm not mistaken, they didn't get a single point in the CL last season and Betis is, imho, the weakest of the four spanish teams. Liverpool should be able to get at least that second place to get to the next round, which is all that matters, really.
You cant compare them now with what they did a year ago. It was terrible yes, but all key players stayed and the bought some good guys too. Also, last year there was a goalkeeper problem, which is no away. I give them little chance of qualifying, but Uefa is doable.

[Canty]

I can't see Rangers getting past the group stages. They're good for a Scottish team but not that good compared to the teams in the English, German, Italian, Spanish, Portugese, French and Dutch leagues.

[Henkie]

Yeah Baby, PSV beat Schalke, 1-0, not a really great score, but they proved we've still got it!

Anyway, no really spectacular results, except maybe for Real Madrid losing to Lyon and Rangers beating Porto, but that's it.

[ConanTL]

Tonight FC Barcelona will play Werder Bremen. I saw Bremen play this Saturday against my home team (FC Kaiserslautern), Bremen won 5:1. Even though our team played like shit, Bremen showed how powerful they can be. They were in control of the game >90% of the game. Although Miroslav Klose (one of their biggest scorers) won't be playing, I think they stand a chance against Barcelona, although it certainly won't be easy.

[James Bond 007]

Personal I think Barca will mop the floor with Bremen.

Anyway the mighty Liverpool start this campaign off with a 2-1 in Seville against Betis, fuckin av it! Chelscum next, bring em on, you dont scare us you blue shite.

Also congrats to Rangers on beating Porto in a 5 goal thriller in Glasgow, lets just hope you do as well against Internazionale in 2 weeks, I for one will have my fingers crossed for you.... You will probably need all the prayers you can get.

Lyon mopping the floor with Madrid a big surprise??? I dont think so.
Its like the England national team, full of great individual players on paper that look like they will own anyone they play but they are a shit TEAM.
I was not at all surprised Lyon beat Madrid, ok I never expected them to hammer Madrid but I was sure they would win.... The "Galacticos" work about aswell together as hurricanes and small cities.

[el hooligan]

Arsenal 2-1 FC Thun
Arsenal barely come up with a win against cl minnows fc thun. what a joke. arsenal are playing like crap at the moment and i dont think they impressed neone today winning 2-1 against a team that they are capable of beating 5-nil. i know 3 points is 3 points but they have definitey got to get their shit together.

Elswhere i watched the man u and villareal game on espn 2 today. Manure could not find the back of the net as they had to settle for a nil nil draw. Wayne (Mr. Potatohead) Rooney sent off again. Great talent but is it really worth puting a guy in that has a 50% chance of being sent off every game?

[James Bond 007]

Yeah El Hoolie, Arsenal are the biggest load of shit ever... They have about as much chance of winning the European cup as Armedia Bratislava, it makes me laugh when all the Arsenal fans start hyping themselves up as though they are one of the best sides in Europe when in reality they are shit... Viera gone and Henry out for upto 6 weeks, Arsenal's season is over, the only hope for silverware they have this season is the FA Cup or the League Cup.
Without Henry who is gonna score their goals especialy away from home in Europe bcoz Bergkamp doesnt fly so when they fly off to Holland in 12 days to play Ajax they will have no Henry and no Bergkamp.
I can see the replies to this post now..... "What about Van Persie and Reyes!?"..... What about them? They are shit, Reyes couldnt hit a barn door and though Van Persie has potential he is noway good enough to be expected to score the goals whilst Henry is out.

Mr potatoe head LO-Fuckin-L!!! He does have a head like a spud.
Im well chuffed he got sent off as any disadvantage United have for their next games makes me smile.

[James Bond 007]

Well Liverpool got a 0-0 draw at home lastnight against Chelsea, the game was quite uneventful but Liverpool were the better side and Im today thinking how we had 16 shots and only 4 on target... Just goes to show we do need a proven top class striker. Michael Owen would have definatley got us atleast 1 goal lastnight.
Lets just hope we play like that on Sunday against the blue bastards, Im sure everyone who isnt a Chelscum fan will be hoping Liverpool do them.

Also unlucky Rangers, so near but yet so far, had chances to score against Inter Milan but were beaten by a deflected free kick.

Match Day 2:

A Bayern 1-0 Club Brugge
A Juventus 3-0 Rapid
B Ajax 1-2 Arsenal
B Thun 1-0 Sparta
C Panathinaikos 2-1 Bremen
C Barcelona 4-1 Udinese
D Man. United 2-1 Benfica
D Lille 0-0 Villarreal
E Schalke 2-2 Milan
E Fenerbahçe 3-0 PSV
F Rosenborg 0-1 Lyon
F Real Madrid 2-1 Olympiacos
G Liverpool 0-0 Chelsea
G Anderlecht 0-1 Betis
H Internazionale 1-0 Rangers
H Porto 2-3 Artmedia

[Flankered]

Yeh id probably want liverpool to beat them but i cant see it happening....all the big games recently have been boring 0 - 0's or 1 - 0's...so i never watched liverpool v chelsea CL cause i knew it be close or someone nicking it.

Oh yeh and is it just me, when chelsea play there are lots of empty seats

[Blue Lightening]

aye. Liverpiss have two decent strikers in Cisse and morientes but niether of them are netting...I like the look of luis garcia this season, a must have if you play fantasy footy. Gerrards been immense but its clear as day they have noone upfront who could hit a cow's arse with a banjo they dont look like scoring.

Im glad i missed the chelsea game cause it was obviously going to be a shite draw. I hope when they meet in the 2nd leg they both have nothing to play for so we might actualy have some entertainment.

Rooney needs to be put on a leash...when the ref gave that fist yellow card he looked like a bulldog licking piss off a nettle. Someone needs to show him how to behave properly cause otherwise he is a real liability.

No real surprises so far...my pic for the title is Barc followed by chelsea and then 007's favourite Man U( :p ). as for qualification i agree with whats been said already.

[Edit] I love your avatar ^^^

[Beechy]

If you want good odds for the title, get on Lyon. they are looking solid in France and the CL. they are no Chelsea or Barca or Milan but history shows you dont have to be to win it. They have many worldclass players in Wiltord and Junhinho to suggest they will do alright - theyve been close the last two years.

Im an Arsenal fan but i cant see them winning it - the curse of Europe, but they will make the last 16 at worst.

Dark Horse for the title would be Fernebache. even though they are in the group of death, Alex and Anelka are carrying them to victories - so they will qualify ahead of PSV (who lost far too many players at the beginning of the season). plus theyre liek 50 to 1 with bookies.

Winner - Barca, Lyon or Milan

Smokie - Fernebache

[Pfeife]

If you want good odds for the title, get on Lyon. they are looking solid in France and the CL. they are no Chelsea or Barca or Milan but history shows you dont have to be to win it. They have many worldclass players in Wiltord and Junhinho to suggest they will do alright - theyve been close the last two years.

Im an Arsenal fan but i cant see them winning it - the curse of Europe, but they will make the last 16 at worst.

Dark Horse for the title would be Fernebache. even though they are in the group of death, Alex and Anelka are carrying them to victories - so they will qualify ahead of PSV (who lost far too many players at the beginning of the season). plus theyre liek 50 to 1 with bookies.

Winner - Barca, Lyon or Milan

Smokie - Fernebache

Fenerbache has the most difficult group of all- they have to beat PSV AND Schalke to qualify, and Schalke played 2-2 against Milan, and they were dominating that game.

[ConanTL]

Fenerbache has the most difficult group of all- they have to beat PSV AND Schalke to qualify, and Schalke played 2-2 against Milan, and they were dominating that game.

I don't think that will keep up for long. I was suprised to see how well Schalke played. They were very motivited (which also has to do with Kurayni recently becoming a father, you could notice he wanted to shoot a goal ... I think this motivation spread to the rest of the team). But I still think Schalke will be able to beat Fenerbace. (But they'll be crushed in Eindhoven :D )

[James Bond 007]

Match day 3:

A Bayern 2-1 Juventus
A Rapid 0-1 Club Brugge
B Ajax 2-0 Thun
B Sparta 0-2 Arsenal
C Panathinaikos 0-0 Barcelona
C Udinese 1-1 Bremen
D Man. United 0-0 Lille
D Villarreal 1-1 Benfica
E Fenerbahçe 3-3 Schalke
E Milan 0-0 PSV
F Lyon 2-1 Olympiacos
F Real Madrid 4-1 Rosenborg
G Anderlecht 0-1 Liverpool
G Chelsea 4-0 Betis
H Porto 2-0 Internazionale
H Rangers 0-0 Artmedia

Well the mighty Liverpool got another well deserved win though Anderlecht played very well in the second half. We could have won the game by 4 goals.

Fantastic seeing that red shite Manure scraping a 0-0 draw at home from one of the poorest teams in the competition Lille... Manure were handed arguably the easiest group and they are struggling, two 0-0 draws against piss-poor sides and a very very lucky win against Benfica who were the better side for most of the game. Manure can think themselves fortunate they are in a group with such toss teams bcoz despit their crappy form they are top of the group with 5 points.
Nice to see Scholes getting sent off and Ryan Giggs getting his cheek bone fractured... Good times.

Henry showed his class for Arsenal by coming off the bench to score two goals to over-take Ian Wright as Arsenal's all time top goal scorer, his first goal was mint.

Chelscum mopped the floor with Real Betis 4-0 at Stamford bridge, they are frighteningly good. I honestly dont think there is any team in Europe that can stop them winning the Champions league this time round after two consecutive semi finals.
They are clear favorites for the European Cup and rightly so bcoz unless a team gets help from a referee or god you mayaswell give them the trophy now.

Rangers were shit lastnight and were booed off the pitch by their own fans, they had plenty of chances but couldnt put any away, Bratislava will be back home in Slovakia now thinking they have won the tournament.

[Pfeife]

Match day 3:

Chelscum mopped the floor with Real Betis 4-0 at Stamford bridge, they are frighteningly good. I honestly dont think there is any team in Europe that can stop them winning the Champions league this time round after two consecutive semi finals.
They are clear favorites for the European Cup and rightly so bcoz unless a team gets help from a referee or god you mayaswell give them the trophy now.



Bayern can beat them, they already beat them last season, unfortunately the aggregated score wasn't good enough. This year they are even stronger and eliminated the weak points of the last years squad (mainly Kovac).

[ConanTL]

Bayern can beat them, they already beat them last season, unfortunately the aggregated score wasn't good enough. This year they are even stronger and eliminated the weak points of the last years squad (mainly Kovac).

I'd say Bayern stands a good chance too. Once Makaay regains his full potential, they'll be tough to beat.

[James Bond 007]

Bayern have an excellent team now, before the Juventus game I said they would win.
I dont know if they can go all the way but they definatley have a very good chance.

I think IF and I do mean if, Chelsea dont win it, it will be between Milan, Juventus, Lyon and Bayern Munich.

I havent ruled out the other big teams like Internazionale, Barcelona, Madrid, Manure or even Liverpool, but I think the winner will be one of the 5.

[ciaran]

Arsenal have never had a better chance of winning it. For the first time since Wenger took over, it's pretty safe to say we won't be winning the title. We can invest a lot of time into the champions league this year. Plus, we've finally cracked how to play away in Europe too.

Don't rule out Arsenal. Last year they were one of the favourites, this year I think they have a better chance. No pressure.

Now lets heal some of those injuries.

[James Bond 007]

Now lets heal some of those injuries.
Liverpool's injury list last season was on a biblical scale, all of our players were sidelined at some point during the season alot were out for months (Gerrard broken foot, Alonso broken ankle, Cisse broken leg, Josemi severe concussion, Kewell knee and ankle injuries) we actualy had to borrow a goalkeeper from Southampton bcoz our keepers were both injured.
Our injury situation last season was almost comical, everytime we played someone would be stretchered off. The injuries we had to contend with were worse than Man U and Arsenals and we were in the league cup final and we won the European Cup so dont use injuries as an excuse.

[Henkie]

Not as bad as PSV though, for our match against Ac Milan we couldn't even get a full bench, only 6 (instead of the usual 7) and that even included a boy who just turned 17 and had his debut for PSV!

[ciaran]

...so dont use injuries as an excuse.
Yea, well I am. Valid excuse too.

Liverpool got lucky. No matter what you say, I'll stand by that.

[James Bond 007]

^^^^ Thats such a typical bullshit thing to say bacoz you are just jealous of the fact that Liverpool are the most successful team in Britain.

How many european cups have Arsenal won???

How the fuck did we get lucky last season???
Our injuries list was un-fuckin-believable.

Lets look at the facts....

Liverpool qualified from the group (which most thought we werent strong enough to do) beating the previous years finalists Monaco and quater final regulars Deportivo.
Then we had what most thought would be a tricky tie against Bayer Leverkusen but we hammered them 3-1 home and away.
Then Juventus who are the best team in Italy, nobody gave us a chance but we dominated the game at Anfield and earned a deserved draw at the Del Alpi.
Next Chelscum who are easily the best team in England and possibly even the world, again we were massive underdogs to the point where thousands of Chelscum fans booked hotels and flights to Istanbul but we weathered the storm at Stamford Bridge and got a deserved win at Anfield admittedly with the help of a linesman but if it wasnt a goal the ref would have had to send Cech off and award a penalty so we would have probably won by a bigger margin than 1-0 anyway.
Then to the final, AC Milan, again massive underdogs, we started the game shit and were 3-0 down at halftime but came back and won.... Id like to see that shower of shit from London come back from 3-0 down against Milan.

You need abit of luck to win a cup competition but we totaly deserved that, we were brilliant in europe last season and Benitez's tactics got us through some scarey moments.

We beat arguably the 3 best teams in the world last season (Juve', Chelscum and Milan) to win that trophy so dont even try making out we were lucky or didnt deserve it.

[Henkie]

You became fifth in the English competition, how do you figure you were the best team in Europe last season? Anyway, did you see the league-cup match yesterday? Don't you think it's kind of a disgrace to European football to see our champion go down like that?

[James Bond 007]

I never said we are the best team in europe.... I know we are only the 4th best team in the Premiership (even thats debatable now)
Liverpool fans arent dilusional, we know we are far from the best team in europe, theres probably 10-20 teams better than us, Im only saying that Ciaran saying we were lucky is not giving us the credit we deserve... if Arsenal had won it last season by beating the teams we did in the way we beat them nobody would be saying they were lucky bcoz at the start of the Champions League last season Arsenal were considered one of the top 5 club teams in the world, its just bcoz Liverpool domesticaly are shite that everyone says we were lucky, they sometimes forget that we played some very good teams to win that trophy last season which to me just reeks of jealousy.

[ciaran]

Liverpool got lucky. No matter what you say, I'll stand by that.
Lucky lucky.

[Henkie]

If your not one of the best teams in a competition, but you win it anyway, I call that lucky.

[James Bond 007]

So by that anyone who wins the champions league this year who isnt Chelsea is lucky even if they play the best teams in the world and deservedly beat them like Liverpool did last season?

There you have it folks, if your team wins the champions league this year whether they deserved to or not, some of the shine will be taken off it bcoz it will be luck unless your a Chelsea fan.

Moron! :banghead:

[cr0p]

He didnt say anything about Chelsea (at least not in his last post where you replied on)..

Liverpool didnt focus on the title anymore, where a lot of their oponent stil did (Chelsea, AC, ...). The CL was the ONLY trophee they could win in the year, so it's normal to give full attention to it.

But you have to be honest Bond: They had a little luck in the final and in the two confrontations against Chelsea (or was it so. else?), Chelsea was better. They were just a little more effective (2-2, but out-goal(?) advantage).

And that means?
Luck was on their side ;)

[James Bond 007]

Like I said Cr0p, you need some luck to win any tournament but Im just pissed off that people arent giving Liverpool the credit they deserve. The fist leg of the semi-final at Stamford Bridge we were 2nd best but our defending was top class but how Lampard missed from 3 yards is anyones guess but we totaly deserved the win at Anfield so therefore deserved to be in the final.

How can you say we were lucky in the final??? I was there in Istanbul mate and believe me the stadium was rocking, we were loosing 3-0 at half time to one of the best teams in the world but we were still singing and chanting and trying to lift the players who would have been sat there at half time feeling they had lost the game, it was deafening in the Ataturk Stadium.
They came out for the second half and got stuck into them and were awesome the second half and got back in the game.
The way we fiought back where most other teams in the world would have gone on and lost 6 or 7-0 we totaly deserved that win.

I only mentioned Chelscum bcoz Henkie said Liverpool were lucky bcoz they werent the best team but still won it so my point is Chelscum are the best team in the world at the moment so does that mean if Madrid, Barca, Milan, Juventus or anyone else who wins it will have fluked it bcoz they arent the best team Chelscum are.

[Kame]

How can you say we were lucky in the final??? I was there in Istanbul mate and believe me the stadium was rocking, we were loosing 3-0 at half time to one of the best teams in the world but we were still singing and chanting and trying to lift the players who would have been sat there at half time feeling they had lost the game, it was deafening in the Ataturk Stadium.
They came out for the second half and got stuck into them and were awesome the second half and got back in the game.
The way we fiought back where most other teams in the world would have gone on and lost 6 or 7-0 we totaly deserved that win.


I agree to that, Liverpool fought a good 2nd half and deserverd to win (but if Milan won they would have deserverd it either) - you had the bit of luck nessecary to win the CL. You also deserved to win the semi-final against chelsea, but with no doubt you had the easier way to get there.

I'm afraid tough, that Liverpool is not nearly where I see the favourites for this years CL - you'll probably be able to survive the group phase but I think then its over.

In my opinion the top favourites for this year are Barcelona, Milan, Juve and Chelsea (in no particular order - so basically last years favourites) and also Bayern, prob. Lyon and Arsenal have chances.
Oh yeah, and of course Rapid Wien - we may have lost every match so far, but you'll see :ahhh:

I'm very curious to see tomorrows and wednesdays games; there are some good games on...


What do you think of Beckenbauers propsition to eliminate the UEFA Cup, and stock up the CL to 64 teams?

cya,

[Henkie]

So by that anyone who wins the champions league this year who isnt Chelsea is lucky even if they play the best teams in the world and deservedly beat them like Liverpool did last season?

There you have it folks, if your team wins the champions league this year whether they deserved to or not, some of the shine will be taken off it bcoz it will be luck unless your a Chelsea fan.

Moron! :banghead:
Try reading, I quite clearly said "one of the best", because I don't think you can easily say one team is definately the best, but there is a group of teams that are clearly better than the rest, and last year Liverpool wasn't one of those better teams, imo.

Anyway, the difference is what we consider lucky, if Chelsea has a great season, playing magnificently, except for the two matches in the CL against Liverpool, you'ld say Liverpool deserved the win because they played better, I say they got darned lucky that Chelsea couldn't cope with the pressure.

[Henkie]

This week showed us some weird results. PSV managed to beat Ac Milan (Milan really had a bad day, I guess, but PSV was playing awesome as well). Chelsea's poor form continues as they lost to Real Betis Balompie and in the downfall of United rock bottom can't be far away anymore, as they got ravaged by Lille.

[jcthompson76]

Strange results, I agree. I watched from start to finish the Chelsea-Betis match; it was a scrappy and unfortunate affair for both sides-Chelsea's loss and the Betis injuries (4 months out for Oliveira for a mislanding, very unfortunate and a total of 10 yellow cards shown, yyeeeessshhh). But there was a first for me at least. Never have I ever seen a shot deflect off of both posts in one action and not find the net. Poor Essien must think the Gods are out to deny him making the score sheet for Chelsea, and Drogba's what-the-f#ck reaction said it all.

Liverpool looked good (Luis Garcia's goal was a gem) as did Madrid considering their injury riddled team sheet (but it was Luxemborg). However, they better be sharp in the next two matches with Betis surely brimming with confidence after their win over the Chelsea titans who are sure to go for 'Pool's jugular come December. Betis' win really shook up that group.

Manchester United look finished. This weekend's match could be an outright slaughter with Chelsea reeling from the CL result and no doubt Mourinho laying into the squad.

[James Bond 007]

These results were brilliant....

Liverpool again showing just how dominant they are in europe with a comfortable 3-0 win over Anderlechte.
Its so frustrating being a Liverpool fan, we are awesome in europe and fear absolutley nobody, Im confident of victory no matter who we play in europe. We have proved we can beat the best but come the weekend we will probably get bummed off Aston Villa. I dont understand it, we can beat the best in europe but give us a home game against West Brom in the Premiership and we will probably scrape a draw.
I think we will win the group now, Chelsea in december will be difficult but I honestly think we will get a result (probably a draw).

Scumchester United fall on their arses again.... Does anyone else get as much satisfaction as me when you see those arrogant twats getting done?
I fucking despise manure and when they were given the easiest group in the competition I thought to myself those bastards always seem to get easy fixtures but OMG! How fuckin funny will it be if they go out at the group stage when they have probably the easiest group.
I wonder what excuse that red nosed jock bastard will give if they do go out early... Theres alway an excuse from that nob.
The way they are playing at the minute I can see an absolute massacre on Sunday when they play Chelscum.

Anyway heres the results in full:

Matchday 4 - 02 November 2005

A Club Brugge 3-2 Rapid
A Juventus 2-1 Bayern
B Arsenal 3-0 Sparta
B Thun 2-4 Ajax
C Bremen 4-3 Udinese
C Barcelona 5-0 Panathinaikos
D Benfica 0-1 Villarreal
D Lille 1-0 Man. United

Matchday 4 - 01 November 2005

E PSV 1-0 Milan
E Schalke 2-0 Fenerbahçe
F Olympiacos 1-4 Lyon
F Rosenborg 0-2 Real Madrid
G Betis 1-0 Chelsea
G Liverpool 3-0 Anderlecht
H Artmedia 2-2 Rangers
H Internazionale 2-1 Porto

[JerkyMyTurky]

Liverpool is first place, but I wouldn't be so comfortable with the status quo. They will have to win/draw against Betis next matchday. I would not want to be Liverpool in a must win situation against Chelsea the last matchday with Betis against Anderlecht, who have not scored a goal yet and are currently on a 10 or 11 game losing streak in CL play. Chelsea would not want anything more than to knock out Liverpool out of the competition, after how they were knocked out last year. This is why I think the game against Betis will be a big game for Liverpool. They have done mighty well so far, but I would not fall into comfort just yet.

Manchester U. are in a very tight group. All those games are going to be tight games. That group is up for grabs by anybody. Big win for Juventus over Bayern, that was a must win for them. That win coming off the big loss to Milan. Ironically, Milan end up losing their game against PSV. Milan are also in a very tight group, which has a chance of ending with all the teams having equal points at the end. That would be a first in CL history.

I think all the big teams will advance rather easily, while it seems Manchester U. and Milan will have to rise up to the occasion to get through.

[cr0p]

JB007, you sound more and more like an anti-supporter.. And it's really the supporters of that kind football can miss. What you say about Scumchester, Chelscum and (I dont know this for sure you said thìs) Van Horsemouth just proves it all.
Also the way you think that Liverpool will beat everyone is just laughable. OK, they have a chance of winning, but they are simply not the favourite if the play against Milan or Barça (especially how Barça played yesterday :ahhh: ).
They deserved to win against Anderlecht (damn still 0 :(), but I know already that K M Nielsen doesn't like Belgian teams..

[James Bond 007]

What the fruit and nut are you talking about Cr0p, what is an "Anti-supporter"???
Im not a hooligan if thats what you mean but I would sleep like a fucking baby tonight if it was on the news Old Trafford had burnt down.

Yes I hate Man U and everything associated with them but only the same way ALL Liverpool fans hate Man U and the way ALL Man U fans hate Liverpool and their fans.... Its called rivalry you rasklatt!

The rivalry between Liverpool and Man U is every bit as strong as Celtic/ Rangers and Southampton/ Portsmouth.

Also I know Liverpool are underdogs when we play Juve, Milan, Madrid, Barca, Chelscum and Arsenal but we are more than capable of beating any of them and in european competition we have proved we can and do beat them.

[cr0p]

You've got rivalry and rivalry.
The kind of rivalry with the healthy emotions that come out when playing a derby (everyone has them).
The kind of rivalry that is so intense you want to kill the supporters and players in the other rival team, and thinking your team is the only team in the world. And you really sound like one of these (being happy if OT burnt down? I dont even want stuff like that to happen to GB (Belgian team)).

Also, watch the language..
You sound like someone who thinks he's allways right when he isn't.

[Pfeife]

Hm well, that win of PSV against Milan was pretty bad for Schalke. It looks like they have to beat Milan in their own stadium if they want to advance in that group :uhoh:

Bayern played very well against Juve in the defense and midfield, but their attack was pretty disappointing. Makaay is out of form and hasn't scored for like 1200 minutes now. There are many rumours in Germany that bayern will try to get Podolski in the winter break, if that is true it would give a new dimension to their offense.

[James Bond 007]

Cr0p have you been smoking your mum's smack again???
"Watch the language" LOL

Its more than just local rivalry between Liverpool and Manure, its an absolute hatred and 99% of Manure fans would piss themselves laughing if Anfield burnt down tonight so dont give me that crap.
There are only a few rivalries in Britain that are based on absolute bitter hate like I said, Liverpool/ Manure, Southampton/ Portsmouth and Rangers/ Celtic.
You obviously have no idea what you are talking about if you think that our rivaly is just a healthy local rivalry, Im not in the minority hating Manure, every Liverpool fan loathes Manure and visea-versa.

[MrDeliquent85]

Build a bonfire
build a bonfire
put the scousers on the top
put city in the middle
and burn the fucking lot.

[James Bond 007]

See Cr0p ^^^^^

It makes me laugh that United fans spend so much time thinking of songs about Liverpool or their fans.... United have loads of anti-scouse songs but Liverpool only have one about Manure and it isnt just about Manure.....

We hate Nottingham Fo-rrest
We hate Ever-ton too (THEY'RE SHIT!)
We hate Man Uni-ted but Liverpool we love you!

Mr Deliquent the Park Ji Sung song is pretty funny, I laughed when I first heard it.

There are some pretty funny songs/ chants going about, I nearly pissed myself when I heard the Sunderland fans chanting to Hasselbaink "Your just a fat Eddie Murphy"

[MrDeliquent85]

See Cr0p ^^^^^


Mr Deliquent the Park Ji Sung song is pretty funny, I laughed when I first heard it.

There are some pretty funny songs/ chants going about, I nearly pissed myself when I heard the Sunderland fans chanting to Hasselbaink "Your just a fat Eddie Murphy"

Yes Cr0p, when it comes to football, hate isnt even a strong word, doesnt mean I want to stab every scouser but I would laugh if anfield burnt down or Alonso broke his leg.

[fiveonionbagels]

Chelsea are going to demolish everyone.

[Canty]

As long as Liverpool don't win I couldn't give a fuck.

[cr0p]

Gotta learn to live with it I guess.
As long that you don't play hooligan or kill rival supporters I don't give a fuck ;)

[Blue Lightening]

Chelsea are going to demolish everyone.

HAHA!!!! LICK MY RIPPLES YOU RUSSIAN WANKER!!!!

1-0 TO THE MANCHESTER...GET THE FUCK IN THE ONION BAG AND STAY THERE!!!!!!

[James Bond 007]

Well Liverpool are in the last 16 and United are struggling to qualify from the easiest group, things couldnt be better. :)
Well dont to Rangers too for getting a point away against Porto, might help keep McLeish in a job.... for a few more weeks anyway.

Matchday 5.

A Bayern 4-0 Rapid
A Juventus 1-0 Club Brugge
B Ajax 2-1 Sparta
B Thun 0-1 Arsenal
C Panathinaikos 1-2 Udinese
C Barcelona 3-1 Bremen
D Man. United 0-0 Villarreal
D Lille 0-0 Benfica
E Fenerbahçe 0-4 Milan
E Schalke 3-0 PSV
F Rosenborg 1-1 Olympiacos
F Real Madrid 1-1 Lyon
G Liverpool 0-0 Betis
G Anderlecht 0-2 Chelsea
H Internazionale 4-0 Artmedia
H Porto 1-1 Rangers

[Henkie]

No really shocking results, only Schalke-PSV came like a shock to me, but to be honoust, the result was really flattered, as the teams were basically equal...

[Pfeife]

I just hope Eindhoven doesn't win against Fenerbache at home (allthough I'm pretty sure they will), I'd like to see Schalke as one of the final 16 teams.

[JerkyMyTurky]

Anderlect is having one of the worst performances in Champions League history, they have lost all games and haven't scored a goal yet, with just one game remaining. They also have the record for most consecutive losses in Champions League history.

Fenerbahce got destroyed by Milan, with Schevchenko scoring all 4 goals. The group is still up for grabs though, as Milan and Schalke will have to worry about PSV leap frogging them. Milan can settle for a tie and not worry about advancing, Schalke will lose the tie breaker if they do not win against Milan. Fenerbahce did beat PSV and will be motivated to get the UEFA slot if they beat PSV, so it wont be easy for PSV either.

Group D is the most exciting group, as all 4 teams have a chance to advance. Ironically the winner of either game will advance automatically without worry and no team can be satisfied with a draw either, as all the teams can leap frog the other with just a victory. This group is also the most low scoring group, with 10 games being played and only 16 goals being scored. Half the games have ended 0 - 0, which is amazing considering the caliber of players all the teams have. It just shows how evenly matched this group is.

[Blue Lightening]

damn you villareal...fucking losers just playing for a draw, it was one of the most embarassing matches in football history as villa were time-wasting even in the first 10 minuits of the match. What a discrace they are to football...still, united of all teams should be used to this sort of spoiling play and they had only a few shots on goal.

very poor performance by man U + dirty spoiling tactics by villareal (and a good performance by one of thier centerbacks) = an exciting finnish in to htis group.

oh and, 007, i would have agreed with you at the start of the season when you siad it was the easiest group but now i would like to see just how liverpool would cope against these (dirty spoiler) teams...very nervous times for United indeed.

[James Bond 007]

oh and, 007, i would have agreed with you at the start of the season when you siad it was the easiest group but now i would like to see just how liverpool would cope against these (dirty spoiler) teams...very nervous times for United indeed.
Liverpool would have qualified from that group after 3 games, unlike United our players and tactics work in European competition, the trouble with United is their midfield, I know you think Im jumping on the "Slate Man U's midfield" band wagon but its true, that midfield is piss poor and ok maybe Benfica and Villareal try cheating and conning the ref but United are the 2nd best team in England (probably) so should be more than capable of seeing off these average teams you have in your group.
I cant see it but if United dont win their last game and go out I will be opening a bottle of something expensive (probably Baileys lol) and celebrating.

[Blue Lightening]

Liverpool would have qualified from that group after 3 games, unlike United our players and tactics work in European competition, the trouble with United is their midfield, I know you think Im jumping on the "Slate Man U's midfield" band wagon but its true, that midfield is piss poor and ok maybe Benfica and Villareal try cheating and conning the ref but United are the 2nd best team in England (probably) so should be more than capable of seeing off these average teams you have in your group.
I cant see it but if United dont win their last game and go out I will be opening a bottle of something expensive (probably Baileys lol) and celebrating.

i hear some of your lot jeering and chanting during the minute silence they had for george best...discraceful stuff...

nothing to do with champ league, but it was a clear example of how things have not changed with the morons who call themselvs football fans but wont even recognise the briliance of someone like best.

[MrDeliquent85]

Whats all this bullshit about the 'easy group', most groups are evenly balanced. Two decent sides and two shit sides, thats how its always been. Except maybe group E (Milan's group), which group hasnt got two shit teams in ?

Lets be honest 007, Betis are fucking terrible and thats why they're at the foot of their domestic table trailing 10 points behind 5th place Villarreal, who havent lost in their last 11 matches. Villerreal are a half decent side, they're the spainish version of you lot. That leaves group G with Chelsea and Liverpool, two decent sides and Betis and Anderlect, two shit sides. This easy group talk is bollocks.

Blue lightning, spoiling tactics are what we thrive on, its no excuse, we love it when teams sit back and try to waste the game away, we love to take advantage of spoilers. It gives us the chance to get the ball about and play our plays. We lacked that sharp pin point passing edge we once ruled games with and we were frankly quite boring. The real fault lies with the selections. Ville played a strong defensive central team and we failed to capitalise with wingers and instead try to break them down the middle. Yet again Ronaldo was all over the place and Fletcher was ... erm ... nowhere to be seen. We saw glimpses of Ronaldo running the wings and crossing and they were the only times we looked dangerous. We then brung on park who is showing great potential but like Ronaldo cant stay in position. Why didnt he give Richardson a run out? Feed a good ball to Van and he WILL score, people call it greedy or goal hogging but thats why hes a good player, 'cause he can turn a run of the mill attack into a goal, in a flash. Wide players often win games when you have Ruud like fowards, thats why we were the best team in England with Beckham and Giggs.

Something has to give and if we cant afford or find decent wingers then I fear that Ruuds time is up.

[Henkie]

About Park, he is really talented, but part of his talent is his huge stamina and the fact he can basically play at two positions at the same time, because he just won't stop running, so trying to keep him at one position is basically a waste of his talent.

[James Bond 007]

nothing to do with champ league, but it was a clear example of how things have not changed with the morons who call themselvs football fans but wont even recognise the briliance of someone like best.
You are right, it was disgraceful and they were morons, I must point out though that it was a small, very small minority of wankers that spoilt the minutes silence and as a Liverpool fan I felt disgusted and embarrassed as 99.9% of all Liverpool fans would have when they heard the inbred mother fuckers.

[Henkie]

Fuck Yeah! We did it! PSV beat Fenerbahce 2-0, so now we're through to the next round again.

[James Bond 007]

Congrats Henkie.... Might end up playing Liverpool in the knockout stages though :bigwink:

[Henkie]

I wouldn't get too presumptious, we can take them. I'm happy we're avoiding Real Madrid and Chelsea, though.

[James Bond 007]

I wouldn't get too presumptious, we can take them. I'm happy we're avoiding Real Madrid and Chelsea, though.
Real Madrid??? They arent exactly at their best are they.
I hope when the draw is made next week we get Madrid, the whole point of the Champions League is to play the biggest and best clubs in Europe, I dont want a shit team in the next round.
I know there is a long way til February (Knockout stages) and Madrid might have improved their form by then but if we (Liverpool) were to play Madrid over 2 legs at this moment in time there is no doubt in my mind we would win comfortably.

[Henkie]

They have a lot of individual quality, they're getting a new coach and a lot of time to get themselves reorganized. Right now both Liverpool and PSV could take them, but you're never sure what'll happen during the winter. Anyway, you've won the poule and you're hoping for Real Madrid? I'ld be hoping for Ajax or the Rangers, cause they really suck.

[James Bond 007]

Well the group stages are over and it has gone better than anyone could have imagined.....

Congrats to Henkie's PSV.

Congrats to Rangers for being the first Scottish team to get to the knockout stages of the Champions League despite having their worst league run in their history.

Liverpool top the group with Chelsea second.

Arsenal through comfortably.

And ofcourse Manchester United out!!!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAH AHAHAHAHHAAHHAAHHAAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAAAAAAAA!!!!
Awesome, those arrogant fuckwits bottom of what looked to be the easiest group when the draw was made, I havent read a paper today but Im looking forward to the excuses the mongy Manure fans will be slavering on about.
What makes me laugh about United is they will still be convinced they are the biggest and one of the best teams in the world.

Match day 6:

E PSV 2-0 Fenerbahçe
E Milan 3-2 Schalke
F Olympiacos 2-1 Real Madrid
F Lyon 2-1 Rosenborg
G Betis 0-1 Anderlecht
G Chelsea 0-0 Liverpool
H Artmedia 0-0 Porto
H Rangers 1-1 Internazionale
A Club Brugge 1-1 Bayern
A Rapid 1-3 Juventus
B Arsenal 0-0 Ajax
B Sparta 0-0 Thun
C Bremen 5-1 Panathinaikos
C Udinese 0-2 Barcelona
D Benfica 2-1 Man. United
D Villarreal 1-0 Lille

Final Standings:

1 Juventus
2 Bayern Munich
3 Club Brugge
4 Rapid Vienna


1 Arsenal
2 Ajax Amsterdam
3 FC Thun
4 Sparta Prague


1 Barcelona
2 Werder Bremen
3 Udinese
4 Panathinaikos


1 Villarreal
2 Benfica
3 Lille
4 Man Utd ...... :lmao: :lmao: :lmao:


1 AC Milan
2 PSV Eindhoven
3 Schalke 04
4 Fenerbahce


1 Lyon
2 Real Madrid
3 Rosenborg
4 Olympiakos


1 Liverpool
2 Chelsea
3 Real Betis
4 Anderlecht


1 Inter Milan
2 Rangers
3 Artmedia Bratislava
4 FC Porto

[Henkie]

Just one detail about the Dutch clubs, their names are Ajax and PSV as opposed to Ajax Amsterdam and PSV Eindhoven. It's like saying Arsenal London or Everton Liverpool. You just don't...

Anyway, now's a good moment for Ferguson to retire. That way the new coach gets some time to shape the team and decide what he's going to change during the summer. He won't be able to seriously fuck things up, as they've already fucked up in the CL and the nobody's expecting them to win the Premiership. And well, all you people who think he should stay on, you're kidding, right?

Besides Man Utd there are no real suprises so far, maybe the Rangers beating Porto, but this Porto isn't the same team it was two years ago.

[James Bond 007]

Just one detail about the Dutch clubs, their names are Ajax and PSV as opposed to Ajax Amsterdam and PSV Eindhoven. It's like saying Arsenal London or Everton Liverpool. You just don't...

Yeah sorry mate, I didnt write the team names down though, I just used the copy/ paste thingy on a Champions League website.
It must be so people who are a bit slow can say "PSV???? Wonder where they are from..... Oh Eindhoven." :bigwink:

[Blue Lightening]

united are out...[/thread]

[Pfeife]

Schalke out, that sucks.
I think it's pretty sad that PSV qualified with 4:6 goals for the next round while Schalke with 12:9 didn't. Also, they were the better team in the direct comparison (3:1 aggregated goals).

[MrDeliquent85]

4 Man Utd ...... :lmao: :lmao: :lmao:


I'm an honest critic of my team when the need comes and they didnt deserve it. Ferguson made some bad decisions in games and alot of the players showed no commitment or passion.

There was a slight change in passion after Keanes outburst but now he's gone it seems like that small bit of passion has gone too. Bad results dont disappoint me , lack of effort disappoints me.

[James Bond 007]

^^^ All the difference Keane could have and probably would have made :)

I bet Keane (despite being a red through and through) felt slightly smug about United's unbelievable european performances, bet Fergie is wishing he just left Keane to it now.
Keane might be outspoken but he was the captain, its his job to do that and too fuckin right having a pop at the players in his team, it must be so frustrating carrying a team and then being disceplined when you give your opinion on the effort some people are putting in.

Anyway I slept like a fooookin baby when Manure were knocked out of europe. :D

[Quiet_Riot]

Barcelona v Chelsea

Arsenal v Real Madrid

wow..those will be good matches, although i still see both English teams losing.

[jcthompson76]

First Knockout Round is in!
First Knockout Round
First leg Feb. 21-22

Second leg March 7-8

Chelsea vs. Barcelona

Real Madrid vs. Arsenal

Werder Bremen vs. Juventus

Bayern Munich vs. AC Milan

PSV Eindhoven vs. Lyon

Ajax vs. Internazionale

Benfica vs. Liverpool

Rangers vs. Villarreal

I CANNOT BELIEVE Chelsea and Barcelona are having a rematch of last year's Round of 16 draw. And just in time for Michael Essien's ban to start. The way Chelsea have been playing in the CL this season compared to Barcelona, I think Barca may proceed, but narrowly. But you never know what Mourinho may have up his sleeve. Maybe this draw will spur on Chelsea's CL form, just have to see. Should be a scorcher.

Real Madrid vs Arsenal should be entertaining.
Lyon will revenge their being ousted by PSV last year.
And now, Liverpool look favorites to proceed compared to their standing in the CL last year. How a year can change things.

[James Bond 007]

I think the Chelsea vs Barca game will be mint, Im not sure who will qualify as both are great teams.... One thing is for sure Barcelona would have wanted to avoid Chelsea as much as Chelsea wanted to avoid Barca'.

Arsenal and Madrid will be a good match up too as both teams are very attack minded, I see Arsenal qualifying though.

Liverpool have done alright out of the draw by getting Benfica but I genuinley wanted a bigger team (Madrid) bcoz we play better against better opposition, Im quite sure we will beat them over two legs and so do the bookies..... Liverpool's odds of winning the champions league have been slashed from 16-1 to 9-1.

Bayern Munich against AC Milan will be a great contest too, my outside bet for the champions league this year was either Bayern Munich or Lyon so it will be interesting to see how Munich get on against Milan.

PSV vs Lyon I only see going one way (Sorry Henkie), I honestly cant see Lyon having much trouble against PSV... Im gonna stick my neck on the block with this one and say the first leg in Holland will be a 1-1 draw and the second leg in France will be 3-0 to Lyon.

Werder Bremen vs Juventus again I can only see this game going one way though I think Bremen could surprise a few people with a good result at home but I feel at the Del Alpi Juve' will be too strong and dump the Krauts out.

Ajax vs Internazionale, Im gonna go for Inter' in this one with wins home and away.

Rangers vs Villareal, I hope the Gers can do it and progress to the quater finals and though they have been drawn against the second worst team IMO (after themselves) I cant see it, I think they will draw in Scotland but loose in Spain.

[Quiet_Riot]

Liverpool have done alright out of the draw by getting Benfica but I genuinley wanted a bigger team (Madrid) bcoz we play better against better opposition, Im quite sure we will beat them over two legs and so do the bookies..... Liverpool's odds of winning the champions league have been slashed from 16-1 to 9-1.



I think the pool will beat Benfica, it'll give us all something extra to rub in Man U's face, seeing how they couldnt beat them!

[Henkie]

There were no really easy opponents for PSV availlable, except for Liverpool :) , so it's no surprise we got a though one. But I do think PSV stands a chance. PSV is a team that is very organized, and can hold out for a 0-0 draw, if it needs to, even though they don't like it. So it's pretty lucky we start with a homematch, if we can win that, the awaymatch is do-able, and lucky us, at home we are undefeated this season.