The cream has risen in Europe.
At the end of the group stages, demotions, pre-qualifying and ancillary qualifying, the knockout rounds have been set. 16 teams in the Champions' League and 32 in the UEFA cup will go head to head for the final chalice in their respective competitions. I for one, am glad the tedium is now finally over. While the knockout rounds are still over 2 months away and there is a transfer window in between, I'll try and sketch out my initial thoughts of the draw. This is always dodgy. I make no claims of being clairvoyant - not at this stage anyway.
At the end of Matchday 6 in the Champions' League, the only surprises for me was Inter failing to beat Bayern and Celtic losing to Kobenhavn. As a result both Inter and Celtic missed out on topping their groups. While Inter may well fancy their chances against Valencia, Celtic surely do not relish their tie against Milan.
The Rossoneri may have dropped their last game against Lille but it was a dead rubber. When it comes to navigating through knockout rounds, few do it better than Milan. Celtic have the speed to trouble Milan's aging backline but they have no hope of coping with the twin threats of Pirlo and Kaka, when on song. Form will have a large part to play in this game but Celtic may find that they are up against wily veterans who have campaigned for many springs in Europe. Milan are good for atleast another round in Europe this season - they've been lucky that their opponents are Celtic rather than someone more wily and experienced.
Inter are my dark horses and outside bets for the whole damn thing this year. They are balanced, poised and have lost their initial jitters. Valencia are excellent in Europe but seem to be slowly imploding with every passing week. However they have the personnel to be quietly confident going into this tie and if they can hold onto David Villa past January, they may well be fit to cause an upset. Their organization and experience are their chief threats but it will be Inter who will be looking forward to this tie more than Valencia. Expect a grinding contest decided by a Stankovic header or a Villa penalty.
Arsene Wenger's remarks at the end of the draw may have been taken out of context. When he said the draw was "not an easy one" he did not necessarily mean that they had drawn a tough opponent - step forward Liverpool, who have done just that - he meant that PSV cannot be considered easy pushovers and that there are no easy games at this stage at this level. This time round there were few bunnies, if any, sitting in the pot waiting to be drawn for the group winners - even LOSC Lille may well give United a run for their money - and as such, although PSV can be considered a non heavyweight; they are by no means an easy opponent. Still, Wenger can be safe in the knowledge that PSV are not as muscular in their approach as some of the other group runners-up could be and spend time playing the ball on the ground. I doubt he would have enjoyed going head to head with Inter or Porto, definitely not with Arsenal's unease at set pieces and aerial balls.
Liverpool, 2005 winners, drew the short straw and have the plum tie of Barcelona, themselves winners last year. No one would envy them the task of dethroning the current champions of Europe - however the two glimmers of hope that Kopites can cling to, is that Benitez is a shrewd operator in Europe (2 finals with Valencia, the title with them, a 4-1 upset win over Barcelona in the 1999-2000 season) and that even though Liverpool are inconsistent at times - so are Barca. But, If Iniesta and Deco can continue their heady form while sharing the workload with the ever brilliant Ronaldinho, Liverpool are in big trouble, Gerrard's long range missiles notwithstanding.
Chelsea will meet Porto, winners in 2004. Even though Mourinho coached Porto to the summit 2 years ago, he will have his work cut out as Porot have moved on from then. Tricky winger Quaresma will terrorise Chelsea down the flanks - especially if they insist on playing a solid but narrow defensive midfield. Lucho will tease from distance, Postiga may well turn in a few close range tallies. Having said that, however, I cannot see Porto upsetting Chelski over 2 legs. There may well be some nervous moments on set pieces but Chelsea have too many tricks up their sleeves. They are far too established and settled a machine to come unstuck against Porto. If in the mood Drogba can singlehandedly bludgeon in a few goals against the Portugese leaders.
Man U seem to be on some sort of trail of redemption this season. They have mounted a furious pacesetting challenge domestically, belying their usual slow starts, they've conquered their nemesis from last season in the group stage, Benfica. Now, in Lille, they find themselves up against another one of the teams that ended their European campaign at the group stage last year. Revenge must surely be on their minds. Yes, I'll be honest, Man U are the favorites, but don't count out the plucky French outfit, Odemwingie will be a handful for the United backline, Tavlardis more than a match for Saha, their midfield capable of controlling United's gaping absence in the middle of the park. I guess we'll have to wait and see. If Man U do win, keeping with my theme of redemption, they might well be drawn against Milan next.
Real renew rivalries with Bayern. From 1998 to 2002, 4 of the 5 European Cups were won by these two clubs. So, recent pedigree and history should not be lacking when it comes to motivation. Both have fallen off the summit in recent years. More attacking, fresher upstarts in the German Bundesliga seem to be giving Bayern a run for the title while the heavyweight duopoly in La Liga has shifted back to Barcelona. Real were dressed by Arsenal last year and have stuttered this year. Bayern started very well but have slowed up a little in recent weeks. So expect this to be a stop start game depending on form and finishing. Bastian Schweinsteiger can turn the tie for Bayern along with Roy Makaay. At the same time watch for Ruud or Raul to bundle home some loose balls in the 6 yard box.
The best tie though, of the whole competition and perhaps in all of Europe this season, has to be Roma versus Lyon. Whereas Inter versus Valencia will be more tactical and at times more brutal in the sheer physicality of the tie, the aesthetic brilliance of Lyon versus Roma is hard to match. This will be a game of 2 teams commited to attacking - two teams who believe the only way to win is to score more goals than your opponent. They will go forward at every stage and send balls crossfield searching for ever more attacking options. Lyon should shade this though, if only in that they are more assured, settled and consistent than Roma. The Italians, however are more mercurial and can upset the applecart if De Rossi and Totti are in the mood. Watch for plenty of goals and some audacious shots from distance.
So, off the top of my head at first glance, these are my initial picks:
Chelsea over Porto
Milan over Celtic
Arsenal over PSV
Man U over Lille
Lyon over Roma
Barcelona over Liverpool
Bayern over Real
Inter over Valencia
Cheers.
At the end of the group stages, demotions, pre-qualifying and ancillary qualifying, the knockout rounds have been set. 16 teams in the Champions' League and 32 in the UEFA cup will go head to head for the final chalice in their respective competitions. I for one, am glad the tedium is now finally over. While the knockout rounds are still over 2 months away and there is a transfer window in between, I'll try and sketch out my initial thoughts of the draw. This is always dodgy. I make no claims of being clairvoyant - not at this stage anyway.
At the end of Matchday 6 in the Champions' League, the only surprises for me was Inter failing to beat Bayern and Celtic losing to Kobenhavn. As a result both Inter and Celtic missed out on topping their groups. While Inter may well fancy their chances against Valencia, Celtic surely do not relish their tie against Milan.
The Rossoneri may have dropped their last game against Lille but it was a dead rubber. When it comes to navigating through knockout rounds, few do it better than Milan. Celtic have the speed to trouble Milan's aging backline but they have no hope of coping with the twin threats of Pirlo and Kaka, when on song. Form will have a large part to play in this game but Celtic may find that they are up against wily veterans who have campaigned for many springs in Europe. Milan are good for atleast another round in Europe this season - they've been lucky that their opponents are Celtic rather than someone more wily and experienced.
Inter are my dark horses and outside bets for the whole damn thing this year. They are balanced, poised and have lost their initial jitters. Valencia are excellent in Europe but seem to be slowly imploding with every passing week. However they have the personnel to be quietly confident going into this tie and if they can hold onto David Villa past January, they may well be fit to cause an upset. Their organization and experience are their chief threats but it will be Inter who will be looking forward to this tie more than Valencia. Expect a grinding contest decided by a Stankovic header or a Villa penalty.
Arsene Wenger's remarks at the end of the draw may have been taken out of context. When he said the draw was "not an easy one" he did not necessarily mean that they had drawn a tough opponent - step forward Liverpool, who have done just that - he meant that PSV cannot be considered easy pushovers and that there are no easy games at this stage at this level. This time round there were few bunnies, if any, sitting in the pot waiting to be drawn for the group winners - even LOSC Lille may well give United a run for their money - and as such, although PSV can be considered a non heavyweight; they are by no means an easy opponent. Still, Wenger can be safe in the knowledge that PSV are not as muscular in their approach as some of the other group runners-up could be and spend time playing the ball on the ground. I doubt he would have enjoyed going head to head with Inter or Porto, definitely not with Arsenal's unease at set pieces and aerial balls.
Liverpool, 2005 winners, drew the short straw and have the plum tie of Barcelona, themselves winners last year. No one would envy them the task of dethroning the current champions of Europe - however the two glimmers of hope that Kopites can cling to, is that Benitez is a shrewd operator in Europe (2 finals with Valencia, the title with them, a 4-1 upset win over Barcelona in the 1999-2000 season) and that even though Liverpool are inconsistent at times - so are Barca. But, If Iniesta and Deco can continue their heady form while sharing the workload with the ever brilliant Ronaldinho, Liverpool are in big trouble, Gerrard's long range missiles notwithstanding.
Chelsea will meet Porto, winners in 2004. Even though Mourinho coached Porto to the summit 2 years ago, he will have his work cut out as Porot have moved on from then. Tricky winger Quaresma will terrorise Chelsea down the flanks - especially if they insist on playing a solid but narrow defensive midfield. Lucho will tease from distance, Postiga may well turn in a few close range tallies. Having said that, however, I cannot see Porto upsetting Chelski over 2 legs. There may well be some nervous moments on set pieces but Chelsea have too many tricks up their sleeves. They are far too established and settled a machine to come unstuck against Porto. If in the mood Drogba can singlehandedly bludgeon in a few goals against the Portugese leaders.
Man U seem to be on some sort of trail of redemption this season. They have mounted a furious pacesetting challenge domestically, belying their usual slow starts, they've conquered their nemesis from last season in the group stage, Benfica. Now, in Lille, they find themselves up against another one of the teams that ended their European campaign at the group stage last year. Revenge must surely be on their minds. Yes, I'll be honest, Man U are the favorites, but don't count out the plucky French outfit, Odemwingie will be a handful for the United backline, Tavlardis more than a match for Saha, their midfield capable of controlling United's gaping absence in the middle of the park. I guess we'll have to wait and see. If Man U do win, keeping with my theme of redemption, they might well be drawn against Milan next.
Real renew rivalries with Bayern. From 1998 to 2002, 4 of the 5 European Cups were won by these two clubs. So, recent pedigree and history should not be lacking when it comes to motivation. Both have fallen off the summit in recent years. More attacking, fresher upstarts in the German Bundesliga seem to be giving Bayern a run for the title while the heavyweight duopoly in La Liga has shifted back to Barcelona. Real were dressed by Arsenal last year and have stuttered this year. Bayern started very well but have slowed up a little in recent weeks. So expect this to be a stop start game depending on form and finishing. Bastian Schweinsteiger can turn the tie for Bayern along with Roy Makaay. At the same time watch for Ruud or Raul to bundle home some loose balls in the 6 yard box.
The best tie though, of the whole competition and perhaps in all of Europe this season, has to be Roma versus Lyon. Whereas Inter versus Valencia will be more tactical and at times more brutal in the sheer physicality of the tie, the aesthetic brilliance of Lyon versus Roma is hard to match. This will be a game of 2 teams commited to attacking - two teams who believe the only way to win is to score more goals than your opponent. They will go forward at every stage and send balls crossfield searching for ever more attacking options. Lyon should shade this though, if only in that they are more assured, settled and consistent than Roma. The Italians, however are more mercurial and can upset the applecart if De Rossi and Totti are in the mood. Watch for plenty of goals and some audacious shots from distance.
So, off the top of my head at first glance, these are my initial picks:
Chelsea over Porto
Milan over Celtic
Arsenal over PSV
Man U over Lille
Lyon over Roma
Barcelona over Liverpool
Bayern over Real
Inter over Valencia
Cheers.
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