Daily Archives: April 25, 2011

Rangers 0-0 Celtic: It’s in Celtic’s hands now despite stalemate


“The Seventh and final Glasgow Derby of the season ended in a stalemate. Chances were few and far between, but Celtic had a glorious opportunity to secure all three points late on as they awarded a penalty. However Greek International Georgios Samaras was denied by a great save from Rangers keeper Allan McGregor. Despite the game ending all square, the league title is Celtic’s to lose. Rangers may be a point ahead, but Celtic have a game in hand against Terry Butcher’s Inverness Caley and even if they take a draw from that game, the Parkhead side would go top on goal difference. If a win was secured then Celtic would lead by two points with four games left remaining of the season.” Scotzine

Advertisement

Brazilian teams thrive amid World Cup concerns

“On the pitch, last week was a splendid one for Brazilian football. Fluminense’s dramatic qualification for the knockout stages of the Copa Libertadores meant that Brazil did not have a single team eliminated in the group phase – while Argentina lost three. The Brazilian sides also managed to avoid each other in the second round, creating the possibility of the competition’s last eight featuring five teams from the same country.” BBC – Tim Vickery

Premier League Survival: The 6 Teams Battling To Avoid Relegation

“The relegation from and promotion to the Premier League is starting to shape up. Still room for decisions and intrigue but nowhere near as unclear as it was a few weeks ago. First, Premier League relegation. In my opinion the bottom six teams are still in the fight. Those above that could, technically, face trouble based on their points total but it’s tough to imagine all six teams below them doing enough to overtake them. So that leaves us with this setup…” EPL Talk

Henry Winter: Jose Mourinho’s rivalry with Pep Guardiola is the stuff of soap opera


“When they first ran into each other, Mourinho was assisting Bobby Robson while Guardiola was Barcelona captain and darling. Staff versus family, outsider versus insider: as Mourinho’s world collides with Guardiola’s again, a past dynamic underpins the present drama. As Mourinho prepares a Champions League ambush for Guardiola’s side in the Bernabéu this Wednesday, some of the energy fuelling his astonishing career surely stems from a desire to prove himself to Barcelona, whose faithful still deride him as ‘The Translator’.” Telegraph – Henry Winter

Man United haunted by German ghosts of Champions League past

“‘Typical Germans,’ Sir Alex Ferguson sneered after Manchester United’s away-goals quarterfinal exit against Bayern Munich (4-4 on aggregate) in the Champions League 12 months ago. The Scot was referring to the perceived gamesmanship of Ivica Olic, Franck Ribéry, Mark van Bommel and Bastian Schweinsteiger, who all made sure referee Nicola Rizzoli was well aware that United defender Rafael had already been on a yellow card before his dismissal.” SI

Football Weekly: Taxi for Wenger?

“Our topics for rumination and mastication include showing a bit of love to Arsène Wenger after yet another late collapse by the Gunners; celebrating the end of Fernando Torres’s goal drought; and wondering whether Liverpool can pip Tottenham into fifth place and squeak into Europe. Plus, we look ahead to the Champions League semi-finals and catch up with the goings on in Serie A, the Bundseliga and La Liga (where Lionel Messi has scored his 50th goal of the season, and Real Madrid’s reserve side tonked third-place Valencia 6-3).” Guardian – James Richardson