Another week, another win for Inter and Sampdoria. Juventus and Milan joined the parade by adding three points to their total as well. Here are the full results.
It was an interesting round of the Champions League this week as several results went against most experts' predictions. Several teams who were expected to be punching bags in their respective groups are surprisingly pulling great results out of thin air, making some groups' outcome difficult to judge even after three games.
- Group A -
After getting a draw against Juventus in Day 1, the French champions have taken complete control of the group with wins against Maccabi Haifa and Bayern Munich. The latter result came against a nine-man Munich who saw both Muller and Van Buyten sent off with red cards. Juventus took second place of the group after beating Maccabi Haifa to the score of 1-0.
Group B is one of the few groups where there is a clear-cut order. Manchester United stayed perfect, collecting all nine points after three games while Wolfsburg sits in second place after their draw against Besiktas.
CSKA Moscow Manchester United: 0-1
A depleted Manchester United found its way to victory in the final minutes of the game when Valencia beat Moscow goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev in the 86th minute. Without the likes of Evra, Rooney, Giggs, Fletcher and Park, United looked particularly flat on Wednesday but as they have shown time and time again, they got the result when it mattered.
For Wolfsburg, a disappointing draw against Besiktas was made even worse by the sending off of Grafite in the 74th minute. The goalscorer will miss the next meeting between the two teams on November 3rd.
For all the talk about the Galacticos, it was the Rossoneri who stole the show this week by stunning the Spanish giants at the Bernabeu and thus taking the group's top spot.
Real Madrid AC Milan: 2-3
After an early gaffe by Dida which led to Madrid's opening goal early in the game, Milan came through with steely determination, scoring three goals (two by Pato) in the second half to defeat Madrid 3-2. Facing his old teammates, Kaka was pretty much invisible for most of the game and you have to wonder if being on a team of superstars isn't weighing on him mentally especially when he has to deal with strong personalities such as Raul on the pitch.
Like Manchester United, Chelsea stayed perfect during the week, crushing Atletico Madrid to the score of 4-0. They top their group with nine points while Porto sits behind them with six points.
It's getting worse and worse for Liverpool who will be without Gerrard and Torres for awhile. Without those two anchors, the Reds suffered an embarrassing defeat against Lyon at Anfield. When N'Gog is your starting forward in a Champions League match, you have serious problems. Meanwhile in the other game, Fiorentina were almost upset by Debreceni but held on long enough to pull through with the win.
It's a three-way tie for first in Group F as Barcelona, Dynamo Kyiv, and Rubin Kazan are all sitting with four points while Inter Milan isn't far behind with three points. Rubin Kazan stunned defending champs Barcelona by winning 2-1 at the Nou Camp while Inter could only draw against Kyiv. It'll be interesting to see how the situation unfolds in this group.
Apart from Sevilla who seem destined to go through, group G is also wide open for second place after Unirea Urziceni gave a footballing lesson to the Rangers on Tuesday.
Rangers Unirea Urziceni: 1-4
VfB Stuttgart Sevilla: 1-3
- Group H -
Arsenal let three points slip by them when they allowed AZ Alkmaar to equalize in the dying minutes of the game but it'll be surprising to see another team dislodge them from the top spot.
Juventus are slowly losing gas as the season progresses. Their draw against Fiorentina on Saturday dropped them off four points behind Inter Milan who exploded offensively against Genoa. AC Milan are back in the Top 10 thanks to their third win of the season coming against a struggling AS Roma. The full results follow.
What was bound to happen finally happened. Since the beginning of the season, Juventus players looked out of shape, many of them not fully at 100% but they still managed to win games. This weekend, they suffered their first loss of the season against Udinese which slides them out in third place while Inter Milan take the number one spot in the standings. As Inter is looking to dominate the Serie A like last year, their city rivals, AC Milan, are in a downward spiral with no end in sight. With only two goals scored in their last five games, the Rossoneri have been relying on draws to keep their head above water. They'll have no choice but to explore the transfer market during the winter if they want to improve.
After two games played, we're getting a better picture of the standings in the Champions League group stage. While some powerhouses are making a good case for themselves (Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester United), others (Liverpool, Inter, Milan) are finding the task more difficult and should kick it up a notch in Matchday 3.
Sampdoria and Juventus still lead the parade so far in Serie A. Injuries are starting to take their toll on Ferrarra's side which is looking increasingly uneasy with several starters either on the bench or in the infirmary.
So, the Inter Milan-Barcelona game wasn't as exciting as I anticipated so I won't be posting an individual recap of that game but read on for my thoughts on Day 1. There are several games for which I didn't find any highlights. Video sites are quick to take off links these days, so there's not much I can do about that.
After three weeks of competitive play, AC Milan are already showing signs of slowing down with a disappointing 0-0 draw against Livorno. Juventus kept up its winning streak by defeating Lazio 2-0. However, Inter isn't too far behind them after winning their encounter against Parma. The big shock comes in when one looks at the table and sees Genoa (!) sitting atop of the Serie A thanks to their goal differential. The full results follow.
The Calcio's second week was not without any action as the first derby della Madonnina went in favor of Inter Milan who easily (almost too easily) discarded their city rivals to the score of 4-0 (3-0 at halftime). But it was Juventus who stole the show as Diego put on another fantastic display to help his new team defeat Roma 3-1. Full results follow.
The big surprise of Serie A's opening fixtures was Inter Milan's draw against promoted club Bari. Although Eto'o scored on his debut, the draw was a big blow considering Milan and Juventus' victories. As usual, here are the highlights from all the games (except the one that ended in a 0-0 draw).
After Real Madrid's successful bids to get superstars Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo last month, the Nou Camp stayed eerily quiet, proceeding to make only one depth-related move by bringing in Inter's Maxwell to replace Sylvinho. All that changed this past weekend when the blaugrana completed a blockbuster move of their own, swapping striker Samuel Eto'o along with midfielder Aleksandr Hleb for Inter's Zlatan Ibrahimovic and signing the latter to a 5-year, 46 million contract.
In the lead-up to the second match opposing Manchester United and Inter Milan, Jose Mourinho openly boasted the fact that in his five visits at Old Trafford, he had only lost once. After a 0-0 draw at the San Siro, a 1-1 score would have been enough for the Nerazurri to go through. Unfortunately for them, Van der Sar's posts answered the call while his forwards put two goals past Julio Cesar in crucial moments to put the game beyond doubt.
United didn't waste time getting on the scoresheet with Vidic's header ending in the back of the net after only three minutes of play. On the set-piece, Patrick Vieira's coverage of the defender was simply pitiful as he could stop and stare at Vidic rising up to meet the ball. The home side was much looser after that, leading to some sloppy plays quickly picked up by Inter's midfielders. At the 28th minute, Ibrahimovic's header hit the crossbar while Stankovic's shot at the 36th was tipped away by Van der Sar. Inch by inch, Milan slowly started to control the game, and their mobility made passing a lot more easier than at the beginning of the game. Ibrahimovic, who was well covered by Ferdinand and Vidic, decided to move a lot more, measuring himself to both O'Shea and Evra in order to gain some advantage
Out of all of this year's fixtures in the round of 16, Manchester United against Inter Milan is probably considered the biggest and most newsworthy of them all. Although the first leg ended in a 0-0 draw, then enthralling match that took place is only an appetizer for things to come in the second leg.
The game was a story of two halves one for each team on the pitch. The first 45 minutes were dominated by Manchester United who, if it wasn't for Julio Cesar, could have ended the half leading by at least two goals. The goalkeeper made his biggest save just five minutes into the game, stopping Ronaldo's powerful header after a corner-kick. United got several free-kicks around Milan's 18-yard box, but they were either inches wide or stopped by Cesar. At the other end, Edwin Van der Sar wasn't really worried. His defense made an excellent job of preventing Inter's strikers to make space and turn towards the net to take an effective shot. But most of United's excellent work came in midfield. The pressure sustained by Carrick, Fletcher, Giggs, and most importantly Energizer Bunny Park made the home team look like a bunch of amateurs. Inter's midfielders were unable to string more than two passes together without having a red shirt or two circling in. With an ineffective midfield, Inter spent most of their time kicking the ball over the top from defense to attack only to have United regain possession
The Champions League's first knock-out stage is upon us, and there are already several match-ups that can make any fan drool with anticipation. Here's how things look up this year.
First, the confrontation between Manchester United and Inter Milan reunites old nemeses Sir Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho. Both teams are currently sitting at the top of their respective leagues and have been making headlines recently for their impeccable defensive play. United's Edwin Van der Sar has broken the British record for consecutive clean sheets in a season while it takes a great deal of resiliency to break through Milan's disciplined back-four. Both teams are also solid in midfield with Esteban Cambiasso, and Dejan Stankovic orchestrating the play for Milan. United have the veteran Paul Scholes whose knack for jumping late on a play often disturbs the opposition defenders, and Michael Carrick a shutdown midfielder-type with a great vision of the field. Ryan Giggs can also come in and make an impact in center midfield for the Red Devils
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