UEFA Champions League 2012/2013 preview

Nearly two weeks ago, this year’s UEFA Champions League groups have been drawn. After a surprising and very intense final between FC Bayern München and FC Chelsea, us football fans eagerly anticipate the return of Europe’s elite football tournament.
There are quite a few interesting groups again this season, most outstanding however is by far group D. D as in death you might even say, four national champions will fight for a spot to the next round in that group. Nevertheless, a few rather unknown teams have yet again made it to the group stage, including: BATE Baryssau, CRF Cluj, FC Nordsjaelland and the surprise champions of Ligue 1 – Montpellier HSC just to name a few…

Of course, chances are that one of Europe’s big names will win this year’s trophy. The last underdog to win the cup was José Mourinho with FC Porto back in the 2003/2004 season. But let’s take a closer look at the eight groups:

Group A:
FC Porto
Dynamo Kiev
Paris Saint-Germain
Dinamo Zagreb

-> Group A will be interesting, since PSG are considered one of the favorite new teams to climb the ladder of success in Europe, even though that is due to very large sums of transfer capital. FC Porto are also always a contender and favorite to reach the next round, therefore my guess is that these two clubs will progress to the round of sixteen.

Group B:
FC Arsenal
FC Schalke 04
Olympiacos Piraeus
Montpellier HSC

-> While group B definitely looks decided already, if it comes down to club names and reputation, we should not count French champions Montpellier HSC out just yet. It will be tough however for such an inexperienced team to contend with Europe’s top notch clubs…
My tip: FC Arsenal and FC Schalke 04 should make it to the round of 16.

Group C:
AC Milan
Zenit St. Petersburg
RSC Anderlecht
FC Málaga

-> First time group stage contenders FC Málaga are in a tough group with legendary AC Milan. It will be interesting to see how these “inferior” Spanish clubs will perform, in comparison to FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. We should also have a lookout for Zenit St. Petersburg, as Russian clubs have always proven rather difficult to play against, especially within the borders of Earth’s largest country.
Still, I see Zenit and AC Milan progressing, with FC Málaga in a good situation to reach the UEFA Europa League.

Group D:
Real Madrid CF
Manchester City
Ajax Amsterdam
Borussia Dortmund

-> THIS is the toughest group this season. With four national champions in one tiny pond, this year’s Champions League football should prove to be a real feast. It is very difficult to guess the outcome here, but since I am a Madridista, I tend to think Real Madrid and most probably Manchester City will progress to the next round, with German champions Dortmund reaching the UEFA Europa League…

Group E:
FC Chelsea
Shakhtar Donetsk
Juventus Turin
FC Nordsjaelland

-> This group only has one outcome in my eyes: FC Chelsea and Juventus Turin reaching the next round, I do not expect any surprises here. However, we will have to see how debut group stage contenders FC Nordsjaelland will perform.

Group F:
FC Bayern München
OSC Lille
FC Valencia
BATE Borisov

-> Group F also contains some very interestig names, including last season’s runners up Bayern, who are in as favorites in this group. But not to forget, FC Valencia used to be a tough contender in this competition and could prove to return to their former reputation, as I expect these two to make it to the next round.

Group G:
FC Barcelona
Benfica Lisbon
Spartak Moscow
Celtic Glasgow

-> While Celtic Glasgow will most probably dominate the Scottish Premier League more than usual with Rangers being relegated due to financial problems, it might not be as easy in this competition. As FC Barcelona is expected to win this group, Benfica and Spartak Moscow are two very tough nuts to crack…

Group H:
Manchester United
FC Braga
CFR Cluj
Galatasaray Istanbul

-> And last but not least, group H should see Manchester United win this group with ease. Galatasaray is back in business and will most probably join ManU in the last sixteen. Let’s wait and see if Braga und Cluj are in for a surprise this season.

While I could be very wrong on some of the outcomes, one thing se for sure: this season will not disappoint and football fans around the world will get to enjoy more of Europe’s elite football competition. Group stages start on September 18th.

To boldly kick it where no one has kicked it before

So before I get into a fight with my pillow, let’s talk. Football. Quite a lot of matches in quite a short period of time – most of them interesting. Now for the reflection on these games, I might warn you: subjective views and emotions may be found in the following short match reviews.

So let’s go to Spain first, since it is my favorite football nation. Real Madrid and FC Barcelona keep fighting for the title, however Barça managed to narrow the gap to six points. This is due to a few bad matches on Madrid’s account, like the draw against Malaga on March 18th, when the Madridistas gave away their 1:0 lead in added time, as Santi Cazorla curled in a gorgeous free kick and rescued a point for his team. By the way, since Malaga became a big budget side, they are performing quite well in Spain, currently being placed 4th in the league. I’d say well done.

Real continued their bad spell with the game in Villareal on the 29th match day, which also ended with a one all draw. Fortunately, Real Madrid began winning again on the following match day, defeating Real Sociedad by 5:1 at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.

Probably also worthy of mentioning is the fact that Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are now both on 35 goals in the league this season, CR7 having played a match more than his Argentinian counterpart. Nevertheless, these two are running a stalemate for the golden boot like nowhere else in Europe.

Oh and before I forget, the Bundesliga is still quite a bit suspenseful too. Defending champions Borussia Dortmund are still leading the table, but with six points only

Let’s get up to the British island. In the premier league, it’s still Manchester United leading the table with 3 points over rivals Manchester City. The team in third place are currently the Gunners, but they trail Man City with 12 points. Dear oh dear, it really looks like the trophy is going to stay in Manchester, we’ll just have to wait in order to find out in which part of town. It may all be decided on the 36th match day, when City host United at home. I am really looking forward to that game.

Interestingly, FC Chelsea seem to be in a bit of a crisis. After coach André Villas-Boas had been sacked, co-trainer Roberto Di Matteo was placed in charge of things at the Stamford Bridge. Still, Chelsea are currently placed fifth in the league and things are not looking to good, except for the away win in the UEFA Champions League quarter-final first leg at Benfica, which the Londoners won by one goal to nil. But in my opinion Villas-Boas was just too young to coach a side with players like John Terry and Frank Lampard, who supposedly did not have their manager’s back. If I try to put myself into the shoes of Terry or Lampard, who are roughly the same age as Villas-Boas, I might also have difficulties taking the coach seriously, as you will always keep in mind that he does not have more football experience than yourself. Nevertheless, it is the responsibility of a professional football player to keep it professional.

Now, let’s take a glance at the Serie A in Italy. AC Milan, who just managed to hold Barcelona to a 0:0 draw in the UEFA Champions League, are leading the table by 4 points over Juventus Turin. Juventus on the other hand are still undefeated this season in the league, with 15 wins and 14 draws. That is quite a performance. The last notable unbeaten season was completed by Wenger’s Arsenal a few years back, with the likes of Jens Lehmann, Sol Campbell, Thierry Henry etc.

Inter Milan on the other hand are having a horrible season. If you’re looking for them in the table, you’ll have to scroll down quite a bit until you spot them. Currently placed 8th, with 12 defeats already and a goal difference of 0, it’s no wonder Claudio Ranieri was sacked a couple of days ago.

Oh and before I forget, let’s have a look at the Bundesliga also. Borussia Dortmund played VfB Stuttgart yesterday in an incredible match. If you had the chance to see it, chances are you’ll agree with me on this one. In the end, a 4:4 draw did not help Dortmund much to keep their lead over Bayern München, as the gap has been narrowed to six points, and if Bayern win today, it will be down to three.

Now that the domestic leagues have been covered, let’s come to the interesting stuff. Europe. The UEFA Champions League quarter-finals were played this week, with Real Madrid having won in on the small island of Cyprus as they defeated APOEL Nikosia 3:0. However, APOEL did not make it easy for Real, as the Spaniards had to wait a resounding 75 minutes until Karim Benzema opened the scoring.

As mentioned before, Chelsea managed to win in Lisbon, as they defeated Benfica with 1:0. German giants Bayern München were hosted by Olympique Marseille, who are currently having a bad spell. Situated as 9th in the Ligue 1, they ended up losing 2:0 at their  Stade Vélodrome, which is partly under construction at this time for EURO 2016.

And of course, AC Milan held FC Barcelona to a 0:0 draw at the San Siro, or “Giuseppe-Meazza”, whatever you’d like to call it. Since all the odds-on favourites won, except for Milan and Barça, one could say their’s is the only second leg match worthy of watching. But then again, football is football and anything can happen in its universe…