Football Champions

In the end it's just that simple. Chelsea FC, the team that for two thirds of the 2011-2012 season could do little right, did just enough to defeat Bayern Munich yesterday and claim their first-ever Champions League (or equivalent) trophy.

In so doing, Blues take the throne of club soccer and the unofficial title of best team in the world. It is a dubious distinction for a side that (according the the Premiership table at least) is just the third-best in London and lost two of its last five matches this season--to go along with various transgressions earlier in the campaign (in a 17-game stretch dating to December 17, Chelsea managed just six victories. The wins came against Wolves, QPR, Sunderland, Portsmouth, Bolton and Birmingham City). Still, Chelsea deserve both honors: the Champions League trophy and "best team in the world" moniker. For the following reasons:

1. While Chelsea were certainly not the best club throughout 2011-2012, it's where you finish that counts. After all, we are calling them "the best team in the world RIGHT NOW." It's hard to argue, after defeating Barcelona over 180 minutes and Bayern Munich over 120 (plus penalties), that Blues could not defeat any team in the world at present. Yes, even Premier League champions Manchester City who beat them on the field of play as recently as March 21.

2. Results matter. Clearly Chelsea's style leaves a lot to be desired. At its worst it is a throwback to the 1990s Italian defensive bulwark stuff, which makes sense since that's when Roberto di Matteo plied his trade as a player. That's a shame, but winning ugly is still winning. And how exactly would you expect somebody to play on opponents' grounds in the latter stages of a winner-take-all tournament? Also, Chelsea have this attacker, Didier Drogba, who would be completely alien to Italian national teams of any era, and this not just for superficial reasons. In fact, the entire soccer world has never quite seen anything like Drogba. Most strikers are short, spry fellows. Few have the prowess for finishing and nose for the goal like DD does. Which brings us to the next point...

3. Didier Drogba. This is ultimately what sets Chelsea apart. The 34-year old Ivory Coast international combines an innate scoring ability and imposing physical presence with nerves of steel and a clamoring for the biggest moments of the biggest games. Soccer is a team game and you need 11 guys to do the job and do it well. In that sense, Drogba is merely a role player. It just so happens that his role is to score goals and as a pure goalscorer it could be argued that Drogba is among the very best to ever play the game. Or at least among recent generations: More clutch than Romario and Ronaldo, more prolific than Maradona (as a goal scorer), more imposing than Lineker. We all rave about Messi's brilliance and rightfully so, but on the field of play, over 180 minutes, Drogba's Chelsea got the better of Messi's Barca (see item 2 above: "results matter").

4. Who's their competition for best club in the world? Start with the league champions first: Man City are branded by having exited the Champions League in the group stage. Juventus? Didn't play in Europe this season so we can't take them seriously. Real Madrid? Lost to Bayern in the Champions League semis. Montpellier? No way. Porto? Looked horrible against Man City in Europa League action.

Does this mean the Champions League winner automatically gets the "best club in the world" title? Not always, though in recent years it's hard to argue against the winners. You'd have to go back to 2005 and the legendary "miracle of Istanbul" to find a club (Liverpool) that was not the best in the world at that time. But that's another argument for another day.

Chelsea fans don't want to hear this, but today their club faces a monumental task that will in all likelihood fall short. The reference here is of course to the return leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinal with Barcelona that takes place at Camp Nou stadium.

Blues shocked just about everybody with their 1-nil victory in last week's first leg. It was a gutsy performance from Roberto DiMatteo's men and one that supplied (temporary) payback for the bitter defeat at the same stage of the same tournament three years ago.

Alas, unlike in 2009 Chelsea were not the better team on the day. Barca dominated possession and in the first 45 minutes saw one shot carom off the crossbar and another headed off the line. In first half stoppage time, almost as an afterthought, Didier Drogba put the home side up. Only through a tremendous defensive effort, fantastic goalkeeping and some good luck (missed chances by Adriano and Sanchez, a stoppage time ball off the post) were Chelsea able to hang on for the win.

Over 180 minutes one side's run of luck usually cancels out and Chelsea are simply not good enough to make up the difference. Pep Guardiola will take advantage of the additional space supplied by the Camp Nou pitch to stretch a tired Blues defense that, let's not forget, is anchored by a pair of 32-year olds. While it is true that Barca have not played up to their usual high standards lately, the Catalan side's poor run of form gives them something to prove. After Sunday's bitter home loss to Real Madrid, Barca are all but assured of losing the Liga crown to their archrivals. With only the cup final on May 25 on the agenda, resources have been freed up to defend the Champions League title with renewed vigor. So expect the blaugrana to come out fighting. And expect Chelsea to eventually -- probably in the first 45 minutes -- to yield a goal. The second half should then see the floodgates open.

A bit of a grandiose prediction, it is true. But Chelsea have struggled for much of the season. While that may not have been a reflection of their true quality, they are surely playing over their heads a bit now. Over two legs a team like that will succumb to a superior opponent. Barca, even after Sunday's humiliation, are that opponent.

It's an off year for English football. Despite all the money and hype, amid all the allegations of racist abuse and "handshakegate"s and other drama, English teams have consistently come up short in international competitions.

Take Arsenal. Here is a team that sit fourth in the English Premier League, which is good enough to make the UEFA Champions League next year. Other than one embarrassing display at Old Trafford in late August, Gunners have looked fully capable of hanging with the best teams in England.

Today, against AC Milan in the first elimination round of this year's UCL tourney, Gunners looked more like a youth side taking on the senior club -- or if you prefer a U.S.-centric comparison, the JVs facing the varsity. Either way, it wasn't pretty. Arsene Wenger's men were outplayed, outhustled and overwhelmed by the rossoneri, going down 4-0 in a game that frankly didn't look that close. The teams really didn't look like they belonged on the same pitch at the same time. Milan's pace was far faster, their passing crisper, their marking tighter. They made better runs in attack. Their goalkeeping was better. This was Arsenal's worst-ever defeat in European competition and one that, barring a miracle in the return leg, will leave them with nothing but the FA Cup and fourth place in the Prem to play for.

And it's not just Arse, either. Neither Manchester club (currently 1-2 in the Premiership) made it out of the group stage of this year's Champions League. That's just embarrassing considering the payroll disparities between the Mancunians and their group stage opponents, particularly in Man U's case (Otelul Gulati and FC Basel? Really?).

Or take the Europa League. Tottenham Hotspur were drawn into a group with teams from Ireland, Russia and Greece (Greece!) and couldn't even finish second. This is a club, Spurs, that are supposed to have a realistic shot at winning the league in the first time in (what might as well be) centuries. Birmingham City and Fulham didn't make it out of their groups either. I know there's a big gap between those clubs and the ones at the top of the Premiership table, but come on. Interestingly enough, the team with the toughest Europa League draw, Stoke City, actually qualified for the elimination round.

All of which begs the question: is this just a one year anomaly we are looking at? Or is the sun finally setting on the Premiership empire? Time will tell, but the signs are ominous. Last year's Champions League finale showed us just how far the gap has widened between the best team from Spain and its English counterpart. This year's Champions League and Europa League group stages demonstrated that English clubs at the very least play down to the level of inferior opponents, if they can indeed be called that. Today we saw that the fourth-placed Premiership side were little more than target practice for the top team in Italy.

What is the cause of this? That is another topic for another day but suffice it to say that it can't be economic, given all the petro and oligarch cash that has flooded the Premiership in recent years. That would mean that the players are certainly still world class. What about the coaching? We can sing the praises of Sir Alex and Arsene Wenger and Harry Redknapp and others, and deservedly so, but maybe, just maybe their counterparts on the continent have overtaken them. Arsenal especially just seem to lack something this season that could suggest Wenger has lost his magic touch. Do English teams maybe have a handicap when it comes to fitness levels? Have they gotten sloppy with their defending? These things deserve a look. Stay tuned.

Yesterday's 2-1 loss at Napoli has left Manchester City in a very precarious position in their Champions League group. Citizens now have to defeat Bayern Munich in the final matchday and hope Napoli somehow draw or lose at Villareal. The same Villareal that have a whopping zero (0) points from five Champions League games this season and sit 12th in the Spanish liga.

So things certainly don't look good for Robert Mancini's men. And the stakes are very large indeed. How large are we talking? Put it this way: Failure to advance to the Champions League quarterfinals would render City's season a disappointment. So much so that not even a first-ever Premiership title would lessen the pain much.

The financial implications alone are massive. With UEFA Fair Play rules set to go into effect, lack of television income from the knockout stages would take a major toll on City's ability to maintain their fabulous payroll. And if Man City exit the Champions League at this early stage, we will never know how good this team might be in the grand scheme of things.

That would be a real shame because judging by some of their better performances this season, Man City look like they could have the potential to go down as one of the great teams of the century. But for that to happen they need to prove themselves in Europe. And we aren't talking the Europa League either. It's Champions League or bust for these guys.

Defeating Bayern Munich may in fact be the easiest part of this. The Germans have first place in the group locked up so theres nothing to play for. The match at Eastlands comes in the middle of a four game stretch in 13 days for Jupp Heynckes's side. Expect Bayern to commit the wholly un-German act of falling on their sword.

Unfortunately, City can hardly expect much help from Villareal. The Spanish side have no dog in this fight either. They are sure to finish dead last in the group. The Napoli match is their second of four in a 10 day stretch. Like Bayern, they can be expected to rest starters.

City's exit from the Champions League may then be a foregone conclusion. A shame, but maybe this fate tells us everything we need to know about their standing in the whole scheme of things. Drawn into a group with only one elite team, Mancini's men were simply not up to the task. So what does that say about the rest of the Premiership, a league City seemed to dominate at will? Maybe, just maybe, English teams have been passed by the competition from the continent. Man United could struggle to qualify out of one of the weakest groups in this year's draw (though unlike their crosstown rivals, Sir Alex's men still control their destiny in that manner). Chelsea are in bad shape too after today's loss. It's entirely conceivable tht Arsenal become the only English club to advance to the knockout stage of the tournament. Who could have imagined that a month or two ago?

Photo taken from London Evening Standard without permission.

Bayern Munich showed remarkable resilience today coming back from a 3-0 deficit at Old Trafford to advance to the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League. In fact, one could almost say Bayern today slayed the ghosts of the 1999 final at Camp Nou. Well, maybe not. But you've got to give the German club credit for pulling it off.

As a Yank, I generally don't like standing up for anything English. Or anything German. Or anything, well un-American. As we know they're all communists and commies simply can't be trusted. But U.S. hegemony does have its limits in a few areas and association football, a.k.a. soccer, is one (another might be door handles. What's with these stupid round things we have here? I mean seriously. Wouldn't it just be easier to make them a lever the way they do elsewhere in the world? It's such a pain in the arse when you're carrying something and have to reach down and twist this stupid thing instead of just being able to lean on it and presto!)

Anyway, the English Premier League is still the best league in the world even though none of its teams are in the Champions League's final four. Here's why:

1. Had Wayne Rooney been healthy there's no way Man United lose this game and

2. The elimination round draws did English clubs no favors whatsoever.

Arsenal, arguably the worst of three English teams in the elimination round, were drawn with the best club in the entire world in the quarterfinals. Chelsea were drawn with a top five side in the round of 16. Man United got AC Milan in the round of 16, who may not be Barcelona but they sure aren't VfB Stuttgart either (whom Barcelona drew). In fact, the draws were a bit of a joke in retrospect. CSKA Moscow vs. Sevilla? Bayern and Fiorentina? Olympiakos vs. Bordeaux? There can really be no argument that English clubs got the short end of the stick here.

Of course, that's life. A random draw is a random draw (unless it's conducted by FIFA, that is). Sometimes the chips fall in your favor, sometimes they do not. But when they don't and you're tasked with playing grueling two-leg matchups against top clubs along with a domestic campaign in the world's toughest league it wears on you. Injuries happen (see Rooney, Wayne). You let your guard down. Especially when, for example, you have a 3-0 lead minutes before halftime.

Again that's not to make excuses for tonight's events at Old Trafford. Bayern were the better team over two legs and deserved to advance. As a matter of fact, if you look at the two teams' top 25 rankings going into this match-up, you'll see that they were not really far apart at all. Bayern was 7, Man U at 2 (the previous week they were even closer together at 5 and 3, respectively). So it really isn't that big of an upset. Especially not once the higher-rated team's best player is removed from the equation.

So as far as I'm concerned the Premiership still reigns. It will take a lot more for me to change my mind on this.

Just like that, Real Madrid's $400 million gamble goes up in smoke. Oh sure, los blancos could still win the Spanish league. In fact, at this point they'd have to be favorites given that they sit first (on goal difference at least) and happen to host the season's last game with Barcelona. But that will be of little condolence. This year's Real Madrid squad was assembled at great expense with the clear intent of capturing the Champions League and proclaiming itself kings of European (and thus by definition) world football.

Not gonna happen now. Not after bowing out in the first elimination round to Olympique Lyon, a team that are not even first in their own mediocre domestic league. Not after being thoroughly embarrassed by a French club whose best days were said to be behind it. With one fell swoop, over the course of a single afternoon (evening in Europe), Real Madrid become poster boys for the truism that money can't buy championships.

The result simply boggles the mind. Lyon were hot coming into the matchup but this was Real Madrid we were talking about. The Galacticos! Sure, they choked away the first leg 1-0 but that left plenty of margin for error in the home round. All they had to do is win by two goals. Against a team that sit fourth in the French league, behind stalwarts Montpellier and Auxerre. I mean seriously, how difficult could it be? Especially after Real had shown their merit in a 3-2 come-from-behind win over Sevilla on the weekend?

Very difficult, it turned out. Real huffed and puffed but could not blow Lyon's house down. This despite getting off to a dream start; in the sixth minute Cristiano Ronaldo had already put the hosts up 1-0. But they were unable to capitalize and when Miralem Pjanic scored for Lyon it meant Real had 15 minutes to score two goals.

They didn't even get one. And now they have to live with the indignity of being the most expensive failure since the last time the New York Yankees didn't win the World Series.

There are sure to be numerous explanations for why Real befell this fate. Someday, somebody might pen a Spanish version of the book The worst team money could buy. For my, um, money it all comes down to the fact that Real were not challenged sufficiently with quality competition before their fatal meeting with Lyon. Look at their latest entry in the top 25: other than a tryst with AC Milan and games with Barca, Sevilla and Valencia, the merengues faced mostly cannon fodder. And if you look at their results against said quality competition (losses to Barca and Sevilla, a draw and home loss to AC Milan) the writing was very much on the wall. This was a team that had not really been tested and was prone to fall apart when challenged by a quality foreign club it knew little about. (Why we had them this high in our Top 25 is another question entirely but we don't need to go there). After all, until a team bests one of the leaders in its field it cannot really be considered much other than a collection of individuals. In this case, filthy rich and highly-talented individuals.

Where Real goes from here is anybody's guess. Figure Manuel Pellegrini's days to be numbered. Whether he shoulders any actual blame can be debated. So can the matter of who else might do a better job (I can think of a certain German individual who once played for Tottenham Hotspur and is said to be living on a beach in California somewhere).

Photo taken from Goal.com without permission.

This post grew out of an ongoing discussion on the BigSoccer sewing circle. The idea is to gauge exactly how accurate (or not) our Top 25 rankings are as an indicator of future results. We got into this a little bit with our initial prediction of the Champions League round of 16, but those rankings were stale by the time the actual games kicked off last week.

But now, with these matchups either halfway done (in the case of the Champions League) or decided (Europa League) we figured the time would be right to revisit the issue. That, and there is nothing to do at the dayjob today due to all the snow we're having in New York. Anyway, here goes:

Barcelona (No. 1 at last ranking) vs. Stuttgart (unranked)
The top team in our rankings had to struggle to get a 1-1 away draw against a team that has not even been on our radar as far as top clubs are concerned. While this is potentially troubling, can there really be any doubt Barca will trounce the German side at Camp Nou in the return leg? No, there cannot really. Besides, everybody in the world predicted Barca to advance so if we get this wrong we're hardly in the minority.

Inter Milan (2) vs. Chelsea (3)
Our rankings predicted a very tight matchup between two top teams and that is what it got. Inter took the first leg 2-1 at home. The advantage is to Chelsea in the return leg by virtue of the away goal, but this can still go either way--just like we had predicted.

Real Madrid (4) vs. Olympique Lyon (20)
According to our rankings, Real is clearly the superior club. Yet they lost the first leg at Lyon 1-0 and have their work cut out for them in the return leg. This would be a major upset in our book. But maybe our ranking of Real is inflated? After all this is a club whose biggest achievement was a 3-2 win at Valencia in December. We shall see.

Manchester United (5) vs. AC Milan (13)
We have Man U as the superior club so we aren't at all surprised by their 3-2 away win in the first leg. Sure, Milan could still come back but they will have to score at least twice at Old Trafford to do so.

Girondins Bordeaux (6) vs. Olympiakos (17)
The French club demonstrated their supriority in a 1-0 away win in the first leg. They're in the driver's seat to prove us right. Allez les Girondins!

Bayern Munich (7) vs. Fiorentina (unranked)
Bayern struggled to win 2-1 in the home leg, looking nothing like a team that is supposed to be the seventh-best in the world. Fiorentina, to our credit, are not complete strangers to the Top 25, having figured prominently earlier this season. But their run of recent form led us to drop them. If they can win the return leg and advance we'll obviously have to revisit that--not to mention Bayern's perch at 7.

Arsenal (8) vs. Porto (12)
The Soccer Source rankings give Arsenal the edge, though not by much. So we aren't at all surprised by Porto's 2-1 win in the first leg. Even if they are bounced at Emirates on March 9 we can still pat ourselves on the back for this. Unless of course it's a blowout...

AS Roma (9) vs. Panathinaikos
Um, okay we can pretend this didn't happen, right? Roma lost the return leg 3-2 at home, their first defeat in 20 games (we didn't count their first leg loss by the same score since it's part of the same matchup). Oops.

Sevilla (10) vs CSKA Moscow (unranked)
The Spanish side struggled to get a 1-1 away draw in the first leg of their Champions League matchup. That result is somewhat surprising considering Moscow hadn't played a competitive game in months. Less so considering it was played in an arctic climate that is to southern Spain what Vermont is to Miami.

Benfica Lisbon (11) vs. Hertha Berlin
No surprise here. Benfica blew out the German club 4-0 in the first leg and sauntered to a 1-1 draw in the second. They're through to the next round.

PSV Eindhoven (14) vs. Hamburg SV (unranked)
We had been singing PSV's praises all season, while Hamburg has been in and out of the Top 25 (mostly out). Yet the German club proved superiod in a narrow matchup, winning the return leg at home 1-0 after losing the first 3-2. At least PSV kept it close for us.

Rubin Kazan (18) vs. Hapoel Tel Aviv (unranked)
As expected, the Russian side advanced easily 3-0 on aggregate.

Fenerbahce Istanbul (21) vs. OSC Lille (unranked)
Lille have made a few appearances in the top 25 but by the time this Europa League matchup was played Fener had the advantage. Or so we thought. The French club won by scoring a late equalizer in the return leg.

RSC Anderlecht (22) vs. Athletic Bilbao
We were widely ridiculed for putting Anderlecht in our rankings. But who's ridiculous now? The Belgian side trounced the Basques 4-0 in the first leg of their Europa League matchup and coasted to a 1-1 away draw in the second. Most of the soccer world will call this an upset. Not us.

Olympique Marseille (23) vs. FC Copenhagen (unranked)
L'OM advanced easily as our rankings predicted, 6-2 on aggregate.

Shakhtar Donetsk (24) vs. Fulham (unranked)
Ooops. Roy Hodgson's side defeated the defending champs in their Europa League matchup. Oh well.

Liverpool (25) vs. Unirea Urziceni (unranked)
Reds advanced past the Romanian side without too much difficulty. Point for us.

Teams ranked 15 (Bayer Leverkusen), 16 (Valencia) and 19 (Dynamo Kiev) are not actively engaged in European competition.

Tally:
4 wrong
5 accurate
4 pending with our prediction likely correct (visiting team won or drew)
1 pending with our prediction unlikely (home team lost or drew)
3 pending and too close to call

A look at the next round of the Europa League:
Note that victories in the first elimination round have not yet been factored into the ranking. That will take place in the next edition of the Top 25, Monday, March 1:

Benfica (11) vs. Olympique Marseille (23)
Rubin Kazan (18) vs. VfL Wolfsburg (unranked)
Anderlecht (22) vs. HSV (unranked)
Liverpool (25) vs. Lille (unranked)

Photo taken from AccuWeather.com without permission.

As you may have heard by now, Manchester United defeated AC Milan today 3-2 at the San Siro, while Olympique Lyon dropped Real Madrid 1-0 at the Stade Gerland in the first leg of their Champions League Round of 16 match-ups. What do these results mean in the broader realm of European soccer?

First things first. From an Anglo-American viewpoint, the Man United result is of course far more interesting, so we'll star there. Here we saw how despite Wayne Rooney's prowess (he scored twice), Red Devils were not the vastly superior team today. In fact, you could even make the case that the home side were better. Alas, what counts are goals and Milan simply did not convert their chances. Man U, on the other hand, did. Call it a classic case of the better team finding a way to win? Maybe so. And we really don't think the Italian club have much of a chance of overcoming the deficit at Old Trafford on March 10. Three away goals are simply too much to reverse at this point. Even if Milan were to win 1-0 or 2-1 in the return leg, United would advance due to the quirky nature of the away goals rule (despite its quirks, we think the rule has its place). Still, color us unconvinced of Man U's superiority at this point. We knew this year's team was unlikely to match its predecessors from the last three seasons and Sir Alex deserves credit for even getting them this close to the silverware. But in the end, I'm sorry to say that outside of the League Cup I do not see Man U winning any silverware at this point--in Europe or England.

Now as for Real Madrid vs. Lyon, here we have a game that was not as close as the result would indicate. Lyon should have scored more but, like Milan, were unable to convert their chances. Not sure what Real's problem is exactly, but you can't blame injuries or other absences at this point. Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka were both front and center, though for whatever reason Manuel Pellegrini saw the need to make a few changes to the team that defeated Xerez 3-0 on the weekend. (Actually two changes: Albiol and Mahamadou Diarra for Garay and Lassana Diarra) It obviously didn't work because Lyon were the superior side today. And this (Real) is supposed to be the fourth-best team in the world? Lyon, on the other hand, fell off our radar completely for several months, just this week returning to the Top 25 after a long absence. No matter what happens in the return leg (which isn't for three more weeks anyway) they clearly deserve it. In fact, don't count Lyon out of the French title race yet either. At the time of this writing, they sit fourth, eight points behind defending champs Bordeaux with 14 games (including one with les Girondins) left on the Ligue Un calendar.

Photo taken from Independent.co.uk story without permission.

Hopefully that title got your attention. The match-ups have been drawn and the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 is set. Using our Top 25 ranking as a guide, we will tell you in no uncertain terms exactly who will advance to the quarterfinals. This process has worked out brilliantly for us in the past, so why not go to the well once more?



The draw itself was, well, interesting. If UEFA was anywhere near as corrupt as FIFA we'd all be screaming about the process being rigged, the way it so obviously was in the recently-conducted World Cup draw. However, UEFA is slightly less corrupt than FIFA (think a municipality in Moldova versus Kabul's central government), so slightly fewer of us are complaining. For my part, I will say that it's uncanny how both organizations (FIFA and UEFA) just so happened to get exactly the draw that stands to benefit their TV ratings the most. But enough about that.

Admittedly this might have waited until the latest version of the Top 25 is released Monday morning. But the draw was today so it's only fair that we use the data available to us at this time. Here goes:

Barcelona (top 25 at time of this ranking: 1) vs. Stuttgart (unranked)
Here you have a team that has lost but once all season and won a tough group against a club that barely qualified out of the worst group of them all. An absolute no-brainer: Barca's the pick. Stuttgart will likely wish they had been relegated to the Europa League after seeing this draw.

Girondins Bordeaux (2) vs. Olympiakos (13)
This one, too, is an easy choice. Bordeaux hit a brief rough patch a few weeks ago but emerged unscathed: first place in their Champions League group, first place in Ligue Un. The match-up with Olympiakos, while not as easy as, say, Barcelona's, should not pose a serious challenge to a team of Bordeaux' caliber. Which is too bad, really, because we think the Greek side have potential. Granted their Champions League group was not very difficult but they've done well domestically (first place in the Greek Super League). They've met their match here though. Bordeaux should take this one with relative ease.

Chelsea (3) vs. Inter Milan (6)
Now things get interesting. On one hand you have Chelsea, a team that we considered the best in the world as recently as a fortnight ago. Opposing them are Inter Milan, who peaked at number 2 but have since fallen back to earth. Who will win? Chelsea have too much fire power. Inter are a bit fickle. Blues will win, but it could be close.

Manchester United (4) vs. AC Milan (9)
Who could have imagined that David Beckham will face his old club in the UEFA Champions League? It's almost as outlandish as, say, England being drawn into a World Cup group with the U.S.! Sadly for Becks, his team will lose both encounters: against Man United here and against the Yanks June 12. Yes we went there. What'cha gonna do about it?

Real Madrid (5) vs. Olympique Lyonnais (unranked)
If this match-up had taken place a month or two ago it would have been a real cracker. Now however, there is a clear favorite: the club from Spain's capital city. L'OL started very strongly to the season but have had a horrible time of it recently. They even dropped out of the Top 25 altogether, something that has not happened in the two plus years I've been keeping the rankings. In France's Ligue Un they are now a mid-table side, if you can believe that. This match-up will just pile on their misery. Real to advance.

Sevilla (7) vs. CSKA Moscow (unranked)
We were looking forward to seeing Sevilla tested by a top club outside of Spain. We'll have to wait a bit longer. CSKA Moscow, for all their charms, are not even the best team in Russia (that honor goes to Rubin Kazan, who made a lot of noise in Europe the past couple of months and will surely be a force to be reckoned with in the Europa League). Sevilla are tough; they defeated Real Madrid and, uh, that's about it. Both teams emerged from weak groups (very weak in Sevilla's case). The team from Andalucia will prevail but what happens after that is anybody's guess.

Arsenal (8) vs. Porto (11)
Last year Porto had a great run that very nearly took them to the semifinals. Unfortunately for them, Cristiano Ronaldo scored one of the nicest goals you'll see and Man U advanced in their place. This year, will a different English team bring about Porto's ouster? Yes, Arsenal will. But it will be close again. Ultimately, the skill, speed and talent of Arsene Wenger's side will spell doom for the Portuguese club--just like Man United did for them last year. But if you were going to bet on an upset, this might just be the one to pick.

Bayern Munich (10) vs. Fiorentina (unranked)
After a slow start to the season Bayern Munich have been on a tear and find themselves at a season-high 10th spot in our top 25 ranking. Fiorentina had a few moments and were most recently sighted in the Top 25 on Nov. 9, when they were 17th. Unfortunately, the Florentine side have few quality victories to their name and were undoubtedly the beneficiaries of Liverpool's disintegration. So this one should not be close. However Bayern are a fickle bunch and who knows what will happen to them between now and Feb. 17. By that point they could be out of the Top 25 again. Or maybe not: the team has confidence now and after the victory at Turin know they are capable of great things. Regardless of what happens in the next two months, they should be able to summon the Entschlossenheit to get past Fiorentina. I love these German words for which there is no real English equivalent, don't you?

Bayern Munich ralled for four straight goals at the Stadio Olimpico to upset Juventus Turin 4-1 and book an improbable advancement to the UEFA Champions League elimination round. The win completes a stunning turnaround for the Bavarian club, who appeared dead in the water in Group A just two matchdays ago. After losing 2-0 to Girondins Bordeaux at home on Nov. 3, Bayern sat third in the group a distant four points behind Juventus. But Juve's loss at Bordeaux Nov. 25, coupled with Bayern's slim victory over Maccabi Haifa, set the stage for today's turn of events.

David Trezeguet put the hosts up on 19 minutes before Bayern keeper Hans Joerg Butt converted a penalty to level matters. Amazingly considering he is a) a goalkeeper and b) has never played in Italy, it was the third time Butt scored against Juventus in his career. The prior two goals came in Champions League matches for Bayer Leverkusen and Hamburg SV. At 1-1 Juventus still would have advanced, however. But the Germans came out firing in the second half and Ivica Olic but the guests up on 52 minutes. After Trezeguet missed from point blank range 15 minutes later, Mario Lopez Gomez doubled Bayern's lead on 83 minutes and effectively put the game to bed.

The victory is the fourth in succession for Louis van Gaal's side, who have now not lost in six matches dating to the Bordeaux game Nov. 3. Their domestic run is even more impressive, dating to a Sept. 26 home loss to Hamburg SV. Still, Bayern is just fourth in the Bundesliga, though only four points behind the leaders Leverkusen.

There will obviously be consequences in Soccer Source's Top 25 rankings, where Juve has held a top 10 spot most of the season while Bayern has taken up the rear (when they made the list at all).

Photo taken from torwart.de without permission.

Liverpool got the job done in Budapest, defeating Debreceni 1-0 on an early goal by David Ngog, but were eliminated from the UEFA Champions League nonetheless as a result of the other game in their group. That game saw Fiorentina defeat Olympique Lyon by an identical 1-0 score, which means Reds have no way of surpassing the second-placed French side. Liverpool trail Lyon by three points in the standings with one matchday remaining but Lyon hold the key tie-breaker, head-to-head competition, having beaten and drawn Liverpool in their two meetings.

The exit should surprise noone at this point as Reds' chances were very slim to begin with. And does anybody here think Rafa Benitez' club are in a position to beat Fiorentina when they meet at Anfield in a fortnight's time? For that matter does anybody think it will still be Benitez' club at that point? Yeah yeah, we know. It may not all be Rafa's fault. And Liverpool did hold up their end of the bargain by at least defeating the Hungarians today (by 1-0. And we're talking about a Debreceni team that has zero points from five Champions League encounters here. But hey, they did win). Problem is, the team was in too big of a hole to begin with. Going into the Nov. 4 game with Lyon Benitez himself said Liverpool needed to win its final three games to have any hope of advancing. Well, they drew that one 1-1 and that was pretty much all she wrote.

There will be no Christmas miracle for Reds this season. Nor will there be an Easter one next spring, with the way things are going. A top four place in the Premiership is still a distinct possibility, but things are going to need to change real soon. Maybe that change will need to start at the top. But enough about Liverpool because this is depressing me.

Order may have been restored in Group F, where Barcelona defeated Inter Milan 2-0 at Camp Nou (seventh-biggest 'soccer mecca' in the world, says us). Not only do Barca take over first place in the group, but the scoreless draw between Rubin Kazan and Dynamo Kiev means Inter stay second. The two juggernauts can finally end all hope for the minnows on the final matchday Dec. 9; Barca will need just a draw at Kiev to win the group and Inter "control their own destiny" at home vs. Kazan. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

Nobody outside of Scotland will mistake Glasgow Rangers for a good team anytime soon, but Walter Smith's side actually had an honest-to-goodness chance at advancing to the elimination round coming into today. All they had to do was beat VfB Stuttgart at home and...well, they didn't manage that, in fact they lost two-nil. (The lone bright spot from a U.S.-centric viewpoint is that DaMarcus Beasley was substituted into the match five minutes from time). Rangers' loss, combined with Unirea Urziceni's unlikely win over Sevilla (though they were already through but whatever) means Rangers do not even have a chance to play in the Europa League next spring. Sucks for them. Stuttgart and Urziceni will meet in Germany on the final matchday to determine who joins Sevilla in the elimination round. The Romanian side has a two point edge over the Swabian one (look up Swabia if you can't figure out I was referring to Stuttgart) so a draw will see them through.

Finally, a lone bright spot from an Anglo viewpoint...never mind, Arsenal aren't an English team anymore. But they beat Standard Liege 2-0 today in a game they didn't even need to win. The race for second place will be interesting after Olympiakos played a scoreless draw at AZ Alkmaar. Unless I'm mistaken, Liege hold the tie-breaker over Olympiakos, whom they trail by three points. The Greek side host Arsenal on the final matchday while Liege host Dutch champs Alkmaar. So the Belgian side could still advance to the elimination round, right?

Photo taken from clickliverpool.com without permission.

Liverpool's chances of advancing to the UEFA Champions League knockout stage are on life support after the team's 1-1 draw at Olympique Lyon earlier today. With the point from the draw, Lyon become the first team in the group to advance. Likely to join them are Fiorentina, who sit second on nine points. Liverpool are third with four points. Debreceni take up the rear with zero points, which means Reds will in all likelihood have a chance to salvage their season in the Europa League.

Rafa Benitez' men visit the Hungarian side on the next matchday, which is Nov. 24. They'll need to win the game and hope Fiorentina are defeated at home by Lyon. The first should be simple enough. Debreceni are horrible, having posted a goal difference of 5 for, 14 against in their four Champions League games. They're not even good in Hungary, where they sit sixth (albeit with two games in hand on most teams). This is not a team that should be in anything called a "Champions" league.

Then again, neither should Liverpool. Their record this year is an even .500 (it's an American term. Don't worry if you don't understand it) in all competition. When they met Debreceni at Anfield in September, a first half stoppage time goal by Dirk Kuijt was all that separated the two sides. So who knows they'll even be able to win the game? It's Debreceni's last chance to get into the Europa League and Liverpool are wounded, perhaps mortally. Maybe the Hungarians will pull it together and hand Reds another loss?
Assuming Rafa Benitez' side win at Budapest Nov. 24 (and assuming they're still Rafa Benitez' side) and assuming Fiorentina lose at home to Lyon, Liverpool will then need to defeat the Florentine club at Anfield on Dec. 9, the final Champions League matchday. If they get there, we like their chances. But Lyon has not been on form lately and will probably not be favored to win in Florence.

But all this Liverpool talk is depressing. Let's focus on the most exciting Champions League group, the one with four (count 'em!) Top 25 clubs: Inter Milan (ranked second), FC Barcelona (third), Rubin Kazan (11th) and Dynamo Kiev (13th). No pundit had anybody but Inter and Barca advancing out of that group but now there is a (at least somewhat) realistic chance neither will make it. Today Milan finally got their first win of the group stage, coming back from a 1-0 halftime deficit to win at Dynamo Kiev and take first place in the group. Rubin Kazan and Barca, who played a scoreless draw in Russia today, are tied for second with five points each, one fewer than Inter. Dynamo sit fourth, on four points. So absolutely anything is possible. Inter play at Camp Nou next and then finish up the group stage with Kazan at the San Siro. Having lost to Rubin Kazan previously, Barca needs to post a better result than the Russian champions the rest of the way (by virtue of the first tie-breaker, which is head-to-head competition). The Spanish champs finish up group play at Dynamo. Chances are good that all four teams will still be alive after the next matchday. In fact, the only club that can be eliminated is Dynamo, and for that to happen they need to lose at Rubin Kazan and Inter will need to win at Barcelona. Then again, if that happens, Barca will be eliminated as well. Madness!

Photo taken from TheSun.co.uk.

In one of the most shocking UEFA Champions League matchdays in recent memory, no fewer than four of Soccer Source's Top 25 clubs were upset or had to settle for draws. The biggest, undoubtedly, was No. 1 Barcelona's fall from grace in a stunning 2-1 home loss to No. 23 Rubin Kazan. Few soccer fans had even heard of the Russian upstarts before the group stage draw, and the club appeared destined to fade from memory just as quickly when it lost at Dynamo Kiev on the first matchday. A 1-1 draw at home with Inter Milan a fortnight ago made some of us--the Soccer Source ranking committee included--take note, but it is safe to say nobody expected this in a million years.

Kazan's victory was punctuated by a superb goal in the opening minutes of the match. The goal, a rocket from about 30 yards by Alexandr Ryazantsev, was so unexpected it even caught the video cameras off guard (scroll to 2:35 of this video. I haven't seen any better angles yet). Barca leveled the game in the second half before the guests got the winner in the 73rd minute. Ryazantsev, whose first name is sometimes spelled Alexander in Western press, is a 23-year old Russian midfielder who appears to have come out of FK Moscow's youth system.

Yet Kazan's victory was by no means the only shocking result on the day. Indeed, it wasn't even the only one in its group! In the other Group F match, No. 13 Dynamo Kiev twice led No. 4 Inter Milan at the San Siro before settling for a 2-2 draw. Amazingly, Barca still lead the group (on goal difference, but still) as one of three teams on four points. Inter are last, on three points. The two megalith clubs may end up advancing to the knockout stage, but the Eastern Europeans have already made the group far more interesting than anybody could have anticipated.

If there was one big loser on the day it was Liverpool, who lost not only their home match to Olympique Lyon, but also Steven Gerrard to injury. The midfielder is expected to miss this weekend's match against Manchester United, an encounter that may very well be Rafa Benitez' last chance to save his job. Liverpool are already in dire straights in Group E, trailing second-placed Fiorentina by three full points after La Viola won their game at Debreceni. No wonder Benitez is already saying Reds must win their last three group stage games to qualify for the knockout round. Liverpool have been in holes before since the Spaniard took charge, but probably none this deep.

It was not a good day for British clubs. Arsenal managed just a draw at AZ Alkmaar and Glasgow Rangers were overrun by Unirea Urziceni (talk about clubs nobody has ever heard of!) 4-1 at Ibrox. Rangers are dead last in Group G, with one solitary point from three matches. Walter Smith's side have even less of a chance as reaching the knockout stage than Liverpool. The Daily Mail is calling it one of the lowest points of Smith's career. Not knowing much about Smith or Rangers, I can't really comment about that. But Rangers are definitely a major disappointment in probably the weakest CL group.

With one (Red) exception, all major favorites won their games in the Champions League's second round of group play. Then there was AC Milan, who have already struggled so much this season they barely deserve to be favorites of anything. Case in point: FC Zurich came away 1-0 winners from their visit to the San Siro today. Leonardo's club has one solitary point from its last three games, a stretch where they scored zero (0) goals. They've actually scored just five times in eight games all season. This from a club whose roster includes Pato and Fippo Inzaghi, among others? Pathetic. Still, the rossoneri could very well go through from this group. Zurich have been losing games to clubs named Young Boys (said to be Michael Jackson's favorite Swiss team) and Xanax Xamax. Olympique Marseille managed a scoreless draw with French champions Bordeaux back on Aug. 30 and have not been heard from since. They were trounced 3-0 by Real Madrid at the Bernabeu today. Expect them to fight out the third spot with Zurich while the Milanese get their junk in order. It may take firing their Brazilian coach, who despite all his charms as a player, does not appear cut out for the job of managing.

Once again, the biggest game of the round ended in a scoreless draw. Last week it was Barcelona and Inter Milan, this week Juventus and Bayern Munich. But there were plenty of goals elsewhere. Olympique Lyon and Sevilla rang up four each on hopelessly overmatched opponents in Hungary and Scotland, respectively. And to think we had Rangers as a top 25 club last week? Shame on us! Though with Unirea Urziceni and VfB Stuttgart, the group is even worse than Milan's (by far, actually), Rangers may just manage to advance to the quarterfinals. All they really need to do is play Stuttgart to a scoreless draw when the teams meet at Ibrox, while hoping they match the German side's record in other matches. Though we really can't see Stuttgart losing 4-1 at home to Sevilla. So 'Gers may need to win against the Swabian side when they meet in Glasgow on Nov. 24.

Other favorites had a harder time of it, but came out winners nonetheless. At Old Trafford, Manchester United went down a goal to German champions Wolfsburg, but managed to turn the game around with a pair of late strikes from Ryan Giggs and Michael Carrick, respectively. (Yes, Ryan Giggs is not only still playing, but also still scoring goals and still turning around Champions League matches). Maccabi Haifa managed to hold onto a scoreless draw for 82 minutes at the Parc de Lescure before French champions Bordeaux got the winner from Michael Ciani. Group A could be a real dogfight, with Bordeaux, Juventus and Bayern slugging it out for the two spots. Impossible to handicap their chances at this point, but the next matchday could be telling: Bordeaux host Bayern and Juve host Haifa. If there is a winner in the Bordeaux match, they will be in the driver's seat with seven points from three games, followed by Juventus with five points (assuming the Italian side beat Haifa, which is certainly expected).

Then there was Liverpool, who were defeated 2-0 by Fiorentina in a game that was nowhere near as close as the score might indicate. This is typical stuff from Reds at this stage of the season (and unlike Milan, Fiorentina aren't terrible, though they aren't great either). Despite the loss, we still see Liverpool advancing to the Round of 16. It will be close, and will likely require them to defeat Lyon at Anfield in three weeks' time, but Rafa Benitez' club are used to these type of situations. A team that could be in trouble, however is Inter Milan. Tuesday's draw at Ruben Kazan leaves them third in the group with just two points from their first two games. But they get a chance to pass Dynamo Kiev, whom they face at San Siro on the next match day, on Oct. 20. It all depends on what the Ukrainian side are capable of. Judging by their performance at Camp Nou, not much. Though that too, could of course change. They play these games for a reason, after all.

Photo taken from footballitaliano.org.

Down two goals after just four minutes, Arsenal mounted a furious comeback at Standard Liege to capture an improbable 3-2 victory on the second day of Champions League group stage openers Wednesday. Eduardo cost Gunners the first goal with a miserable clearance off a corner, but made good for his mistake by scoring the winner nine minutes from time. The Belgian side doubled their lead off a penalty just four minutes in. Nicklas Bendtner got Arsenal on the scoreboard shortly before halftime and Thomas Vermaelen (ironically a Belgian) equalized on 78 minutes. Standard complained (not without merit) of offside on the equalizer but this being soccer and not tennis or (American) football they did not have any means with which to challenge the call.

The win is significant for Arsene Wenger's club, which had previously suffered consecutive defeats in the Premiership and dropped to 14th in our Top 25 rankings (after starting the season fourth, a decision we'd admittedly like back). But Gunners obviously have a long way to go. Standard Liege are not a top tier club by any means. If Arsenal are going to have any pretensions at any silverware this season (to say nothing of a top 10 spot in our rankings) they'll need to start putting away clubs like that by wider margins.

The marquee match of the round, between Inter Milan and FC Barcelona, ended scoreless. This lends a little credence to our decision to keep the Spanish champs second in our Top 25 (but not much. The game was played in Milan, after all).

In the second-most intriguing match of the day, Olympique Lyon got a late goal from Miralem Pjanic to defeat Fiorentina at the Stade Gerland. Both clubs had been hot coming into the game (and both in our Top 20; Lyon 15th and Fiorentina 18th). Lyon appear on a mission to recapture some of the glory they lost last season, but with Girondins Bordeaux they'll have some stellar competition for the Ligue Un crown.

We said Glasgow Rangers (23rd in our rankings) faced a good test at Stuttgart. Consider having passed the test. Rangers played well in the second half to secure a 1-1 draw. The group is by far the weakest of the eight, with just Sevilla presenting a challenge. We'll find out just how much of a challenge next week when they visit Ibrox Park.

The only upset of the day (if it can even be called that) took place in Greece where Olympiakos defeated Dutch champions AZ Alkmaar. We had the Dutch side ranked 17th. Expect that to change.

Elsewhere, No. 7 Liverpool beat Debreceni by the narrowest of margins, No. 11 Sevilla had no problems with Romanian side Unirea Urziceni (who were 21st but will now in all likelihood drop out of the top 25) and No. 20 Dynamo Kiev rallied from a 1-0 halftime deficit to put away No. 22 Ruben Kazan by 3-1.

Photo supplied by Wikipedia.

Filippo Inzaghi scored goals on either side of halftime to secure a vital away win for AC Milan on the first day of Champions League group play. With the 2-1 win at Olympique Marseille, the rossoneri keep pace with Real Madrid, who easily won their game at FC Zurich by 5-2. Milan were outplayed for large portions of the game, according to at least one report, but with the way things have been going, they'll take it. After winning their first game of the season at Siena, Leonardo's side were shellacked 4-0 by crosstown rivals Inter Milan and last weekend played a disappointing scoreless draw at Livorno. The latter result dropped Milan from the most recent iteration of our Top 25.

Was that decision premature? Or entirely unwarranted? Time will tell. The rossoneri will need to get past winless Bologna this weekend for us to even begin having any discussions. As for l'OM, our 16th-ranked team coming into today, their fate for the short term rests on a match-up with surprising Montpellier at the Velodrome this weekend. The newly-promoted Montpellier Hérault Sport Club (its official name) sit third in France's Ligue Un, with three wins and two draws from its first five games.

While we're on the subject of French sides, how about Girondins Bordeaux? In the top match of the day (according to our rankings, at least, pitting No. 9 Bordeaux at No. 5 Juventus), the French champs pulled off a surprising 1-1 result. Czech international Jaroslav Plasil equalized for les Girondins 15 minutes from time. Thanks for vindicating our faith in you, mecs!

Elsewhere, Bayern Munich continue to be red-hot, vanquishing Maccabi Haifa by 3-0. England's representatives both got wins, Man United at Besiktas Istanbul and Chelsea over Porto. No surprises there, though we're glad the Portuguese side (10th in our rankings) at least managed to keep pace with Blues.

Finally, VfL Wolfsburg might not be as terrible as their Bundesliga form (three losses in a row) has let on. Granted, CSKA Moscow might not scare many clubs but a Champions League victory is a Champions League victory--even if it came at home against a Russian team.

In many ways today was just a warmup, however. Tomorrow, Inter Milan host FC Barcelona in a clash of the titans. We'll be back to report on that one.

Photo taken from bestfootballers.net without permission.

Which teams will survive the first round of the Champions League?

The long summer of guessing and online gaming is now over, with the groups for the Champion League playoffs finally ready. Let's take a quick look at which teams will make it through to the second round, with our predictions below for the group plays.

Group A

FC Bayern München, Juventus, FC Girondins de Bordeaux, Maccabi Haifa FC

Prediction: Chances are that Bayern and Juve will qualify from this group without breaking a sweat.

Group B

Man. United FC, PFC CSKA Moskva, Beşiktaş JK, VfL Wolfsburg

Prediction: Last year’s finalist Man. U. got a tough draw, but they'll still win this group. We're also picking Wolfsburg to join Man. U in the next round

Group C

AC Milan, Real Madrid CF, Olympique de Marseille, FC Zürich

Prediction: Real has an awesome squad this year and our prediction is they'll easily win their group, followed by Milan.

Group D

Chelsea FC, FC Porto, Club Atlético de Madrid, APOEL FC

Prediction: Porto beat Atlético last year on away goals. We're betting on Porto again this year, with Chelsea to win the group.

Group E

Liverpool FC, Olympique Lyonnais, ACF Fiorentina, Debrecen VSC

Prediction: Liverpool has stunk it up so far in the Premier League and they'll need to get back in their game if they want to be considered a top team in European soccer. We're wagering they will, winning the group. followed by Fiorentina.

Group F

FC Barcelona, FC Internazionale Milano, FC Dynamo Kyiv, FC Rubin Kazan

Prediction: There are only two real teams in this group: Barca and Inter. Soccer fans will have two amazing games to look forward to, and those matches will also decide who will win the group. Our money is on Barca.

Group G

Sevilla FC, Rangers FC, VfB Stuttgart, AFC Unirea Urziceni

Prediction: Maybe one of the easiest groups this year. Sevilla will win and Stuttgart will take second place.

Group H

Arsenal FC, AZ Alkmaar, Olympiacos FC, R. Standard de Liège

Prediction: Arsenal has shown a lot of potential in early matches of the Premier League. The loss of top scorer Emmanuel Adebayor hasn't really affected the London team. If you want to bet some money on any of the top British teams to qualify from their group, the safest bet would be Arsenal. Olympiacos will end up as number two in this group

There was much debate, going into yesterday's Champions League final, about which team was the best in the world. The consensus choice, it seemed, was to favor Manchester United--despite the fact that Barcelona led the Soccer Source Top 25 for most of the season (we know that many soccer fans, for reasons yet obscure, do not accept Soccer Source as the final authority on all matters great and small. Their loss).

Okay, so most of the "consensus" was supplied by UK media and their parrots in North America. But whatever its origin, it was wrong. Very wrong. Just how wrong was demonstrated yesterday in Rome, where the newly-crowned Spanish champions dominated all but the opening 10 minutes of the Champions League finale.

It was a clinic. Cristiano Ronaldo was almost completely neutralized. Wayne Rooney? Invisible. Ryan Giggs suddenly looked every one of his 35 years. Michael Carrick ineffectual (to put it politely). The United defense (including its goalkeeper) were left looking like slow, old men on the first goal by Samuel Eto'o. Carlos Tevez, in all likelihood playing his last game in a Man United kit, brought little when subbed in after halftime. Dimitar Berbatov even less.

On the other side, Barcelona's Andres Iniesta and Xavi established their dominance in midfield. Lionel Messi threw the odd hissy fit but was otherwise unperturbed by the big, bad United defenders. His goal midway through the second half settled matters, though Red Devils appeared to have given up the fight long before that. They showed no real sense of desperation or resolve. A team that had met its match and knew it.

Sure there were some tactical decisions by Sir Alex Ferguson that can (and should) be second-guessed (the 4-2-3-1 formation, for starters). Yes, Darren Fletcher and Owen Hargreaves were sorely missed. But Barca's dominance was so thorough, you have to wonder if any of this would have made a difference. It takes a lot to beat the best team in the world. And Man United didn't have it.

Photo taken from uefa.com without permission.

A stoppage time equalizer by Barcelona's Andres Iniesta sealed the deal at Stamford Bridge, giving us a Man United - Barca Champions League finale in three weeks' time. Chelsea led most of the match and even had a man advantage after a somewhat harsh red card to Eric Abidal. Blues had plenty of chances to put the game to bed as well. Their failure to do so (especially with a man advantage) leaves us without much sympathy for Guus Hiddinck's men.

To be sure, Chelsea were robbed when a late handball by Gerard Pique was not called. But the way Chelsea's attackers were missing the net, we're not sure they would have converted the penalty anyway. Didier Drogba, how do you not put that one (early in the second half) past the goalkeeper? There's simply no excuse for that at this level of the competition. It should have been game, set and match at that point.

Chelsea will have a handful of claims for other penalties. Only one is even close to legitimate (Yaya Toure's first half foul on Drogba). Michael Ballack's antics after the non-call in the closing seconds were embarrassing and frankly worthy of fine or suspension or both. No way that should have been a penalty, so the referee's decision was the right one. If you factor in a few calls that favored Blues (the aforementioned red card and the first half free kick outside the area on what was a blatant dive come to mind) then there really is no great sense of injustice here. Instead of claiming one, Chelsea should look in the mirror and ask themselves why they were unable to put this game away.

Lastly, a word on the equalizer. Having watched the replay several times, we think Petr Cech should have done better to get a hand on it. He didn't move quickly enough across his goal line in anticipation of the shot and was not in a good position to save it as a result. He basically gave Iniesta the short corner instead of making the Spaniard shoot across his body (and through a sea of defenders) into the far corner of the goal. Was it a great shot? Yes. Was there a blown defensive assignment in there? Absolutely. But Cech needed to do better with it. A truly worldclass goalkeeper would have made the save.

Some superb saves from Chelsea's Czech backstop Petr Cech kept Barcelona off the score sheet at Camp Nou last night. Blues didn't score any either (done in by some key saves by Cech's counterpart Victor Valdes) putting Guus Hiddinck's team in a good position to advance to the UEFA Cup Champions League final when the two sides meet again at Stamford Bridge next week. We at Soccer Source treat these two-legged affairs as 180 minute games and while we like what we saw from Chelsea in the first half, we still view Barca as favorites to advance (and not just because of their higher rank in the Top 25, though that clearly does factor in).

Which does not mean it will be easy. Barca will be without defensive anchor Rafa Marquez, who left the game with an injury. Carlos Puyol, who replaced Marquez in the 52nd minute, picked up a yellow card and also will miss the return leg as a result. So Pep Guardiola's men could be severely short-staffed defensively, which also plays into Chelsea's hands. We view the narrower confines of Stamford Bridge as a further handicap to Guardiola's free-flowing brand of soccer.

But let's not forget the pressure is now on Chelsea to score, which could put Blues exactly where Barca wants them--vulnerable to counter-attack. It will all depend on how the blaugrana deal with Chelsea's pressure. Scoring goals has been a bit of an issue for Blues lately (just one in their last three games). So don't book that trip to Rome yet, Chelsea fans!