Category Archives: Champions League

Werder Bremen’s rebound will mean little if it can’t reach Champions League

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“Poor Werder Bremen. When struggling, its woes went unheard, so loud were the laughs at Borussia Dortmund’s expense. But when soaring, in comes Wolfsburg, knocking in five goals two weeks ago to crunch Werder’s near-success into a throw-away sentence at the end of a paragraph. All this team wants is someone to notice it, damn it, but in this league of showoffs and scrappy strugglers and this weekend’s hedgemonic opposition, Bayern Munich, people are constantly swiping left when encountering the insipid green diamond that is Werder Bremen.” Soccer Gods

Blaming Bale or Missing Modric: Why Has 2015 Been So Awful for Real Madrid?

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“Two months ago, Real Madrid had won 22 games in a row, they’d recently been crowned Club World Champions, and it seemed like they’d finally solved the inconsistency that plagued last year’s domestic campaign. In short, the defending Champions League winners were the best team in the world. Or, as Sergio Ramos put it: ‘Real Madrid is God’s team and the world’s. We are living a splendid and unique moment.’” Grantland

Tactical Analysis : Dortmund 3-0 Schalke | Schalke compact but Dortmund control proceedings

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“Dortmund’s chaotic season has taken us all by surprise and Jurgen Klopp’s men are in a situation where they are having to balance their Champions League aspirations along with a bid to move away from the lower half of the Bundesliga. Schalke on the other hand are in the middle of a push for a spot of next season’s Champions League and would have backed themselves to get a result despite the home side’s recent resurgence.” Outside of the Boot

Tactical Analysis: PSV 1-3 Ajax | Ajax win despite PSV dominance

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“Usually when the last ‘De Topper’ of the season is played, it’s often a title decider, but not this year. PSV came into the game with 14-point lead, and most pundits had already sent the title to Eindhoven before the game. Ajax knew if there should be even a little glimmer of hope, then they needed to claim all 3 points at the Phillips Stadium this Sunday. In a game dominated by PSV, Ajax managed to grab a 3-1 victory, and maybe put a little bit of doubt into the heads of the Eindhoven players.” Outside of the Boot

FC Barcelona’s Race is On for the Treble

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“… A 3-1 scoreline has given FC Barcelona a bit of breathing room heading into the second leg of the Copa del Rey but it would be foolish to underestimate the quality Villarreal possess. Marcelino’s men are perfectly capable of surprising the upper echelon of Europe with the likes of Vietto, Uche and Cherychev among others at his disposal. Estadio El Madrigal is regarded as one of the toughest away grounds in Spanish football however the Catalans should expect a result sufficient enough to book their seat in the final where they would face the winner between Athletic Bilbao and Espanyol.” Barca Blaugranes

BVB Bulletin: a Dead Leg, some Dead Play, yet a Win in Dresden

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“Post-derby matches, especially post-Revierderby matches, are letdowns. Make no mistake about it. Dortmund’s somewhat undeserved 2-0 road win the Pokal round of 16 on Tuesday evening was a letdown match. Sometimes we forget that athletes are humans, and, like humans, are psychological beings, despite the apparatuses of mechanization and technique that supposedly beats the human out of them. As psychological beings, Dortmund’s Startelf against Dynamo Dresden were emotionally (and physically?) depleted after Saturday’s cathartic Revierderby win. The match’s biggest news, however, was Marco Reus’ injury. Inside 20′, He was hacked by a vicious challenge from Dynamo centerback Dennis Erdmann. The former Schalke man tracked up Reus in an off-the-ball play.” Bundesliga Fanatic

Tactical Analysis : Juventus 2-1 Borussia Dortmund | Juventus counter quickly and Dortmund fail to use space out wide

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“The round of 16 never fails to throw up a few interesting fixtures every year. Chelsea-PSG, and Manchester City-Barcelona are both fixtures that took place last season, and were both quite enjoyable, but the real thought provoker from this season has been Borussia Dortmund vs Juventus. In terms of their performance domestically, the two teams are on different ends of the spectrum. Juventus enjoy sole domination of Italy, but Dortmund are having to wage war to avoid the ignominy of relegation. Despite such stark differences in their league performances, even the many observers that bettingwebsites.org have monitored cannot brand this as anything other than a close tie, featuring two pretty evenly matched sides. The element of the unknown that comes into play with 2 vastly different teams like these simply adds to the intrigue.” Outside of the Boot

Press, Press, Boom: How a Bit of Brilliance Decided a Suffocating Tactical Battle Between Leverkusen and Atlético

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“While Arsenal was off doing typically tragic Arsenal things at home to Dimitar Berbatov and an opportunistic Monaco side, a fascinating tactical battle was taking place in Germany at the BayArena. Two über-aggressive pressing sides rammed heads and locked horns for 90 minutes — only for the game to be decided by a subtle moment of brilliance and a sudden thunderbolt. Both Diego Simeone of Atlético and Roger Schmidt of Leverkusen run highly disciplined pressing sides filled with heaps of exciting talent and Fernando Torres. What makes their matchup so interesting, though, is how differently they use similar tactical concepts.” Grantland

Juventus must find a way to cope with Dortmund’s pressure

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“The greatest aspect of top-level European competition is the opportunity to witness contrasting footballing styles face one another; pleasingly, despite the globalisation of football and the increased movement of players and coaches across borders, obvious differences remain between Europe’s best leagues. The obvious example from this week’s set of Champions League fixtures is the clash between Borussia Dortmund and Juventus in Turin on Tuesday night. Whereas some of the second round ties are frustratingly familiar — Manchester City vs. Barcelona, PSG vs. Chelsea, Schalke vs. Real Madrid — these two sides haven’t met since the European Cup final of 1997. The clash of styles should be fascinating.” ESPN – Michael Cox

Dimitar Berbatov eyeing one last hurrah as Monaco tackle Arsenal

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“Perhaps no player has ever looked quite so much as though he ought to be playing for Monaco as Dimitar Berbatov. Forget the reality of an under-supported club sustained by Russian money and tax breaks, playing on top of a car-park; if Monaco really were a club representing the playboys of the Côte d’Azur, all yachts and deck-shoes and meaningful glances over the champagne cocktails, Berbatov would fit right in. Throughout his career, his demeanour has been of a mysterious loner in a white dinner jacket leaving a casino in the early hours, his bow-tie long since undone.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson

Human rights official identified as one of fans involved in Chelsea race storm

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“A human rights official has apologized for his part in an alleged racism incident involving Chelsea supporters on the Paris Metro, but has insisted he is not a racist. Richard Barklie was one of three men identified by the UK’s Metropolitan Police in a video showing what appears to be a group of Chelsea fans preventing a black man from entering a train, following the English club’s UEFA Champions League game against Paris Saint Germain last Tuesday. The group of supporters can be heard chanting on the train: ‘We’re racist, we’re racist and that’s the way we like it.’ A director of the World Human Rights Forum, Barklie has issued a statement through his lawyers admitting his involvement ‘in an incident when a person now known to him as Souleymane S. was unable to enter a part of the train.'” CNN (Video)

Extreme behavior is still tolerated in the name of supporters culture
“‘So-called fans’ is a phrase that springs into action when clubs want to separate a tiny minority of badly behaved supporters from the rest. It suggests that miscreants who heap shame on themselves, and by association their club and their sport, are divorced from the game: not really part of it; an extremist fringe of interlopers. The phrase has been aired frequently in the wake of the racist incident involving Chelsea fans on the Paris metro. The usage is understandable, but it’s naive at best, disingenuous at worse. Because in my experience of attending maybe 700 matches in England, it’s precisely their status as fans that encourages a small percentage of people to believe they have the right to behave badly.” Soccer Gods

Luis Suarez shines as Barcelona provider for Lionel Messi & Neymar

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“With just seven goals in his first 22 games for Barcelona, at first glance it appears former Liverpool striker Luis Suarez is struggling to adapt to life with his new club as he prepares for Tuesday’s Champions League last-16 first leg at Manchester City. Indeed, with just four goals from 15 La Liga appearances, in terms of scoring this has been the least productive domestic campaign of Suarez’s career.” BBC

Deco’s Instrumental Display in Porto’s 2003/2004 Champions League Final Win

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“‘He’s taught me many, many things. When he came to Porto he brought a new mentality. Many players didn’t believe it was possible to win the Champions League. I’ll never forget that. We had a good team but his narrow-mindedness showed us how to do well and win the big games.’ These were the words muttered by Deco as he mused upon the incredible belief that Jose Mourinho instilled into the Porto squad that won the 2003/2004 Champions League. And what a triumph it was. Along the way they knocked out the likes Manchester United, Lyon and Deportivo la Coruna before defeating Monaco in the final. The remarkable 3-0 win over Didier Deschamps’ men in the final showed just how far Mourinho had brought this side.” Licence to Roam

The continued doldrums of Lille LOSC

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“It has been a disaster of a season for Lille LOSC. Through 24 weeks last season, Lille held down the third and final Champions League spot in Ligue 1 and had allowed the least amount of goals at that point. They were three points up on Saint-Etienne for third and eventually held off ASSE the rest of the way. Compare that to this season and the season has been a train wreck. Lille are 11th in Ligue 1 and are 17 points off both Olympique Marseille and Paris Saint-Germain for the second and third. It was fair to say that Lille would suffer some sort of drop off from form, seeing as they sold their best attacking player, Salomon Kalou in the summer transfer to Hertha BSC. Lille even with Kalou’s 16 goals last season only finished in a tie for ninth for goals scored.” backpagefootball

What has happened to the Marseille attack?

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“In the grand scheme of things, it’s very much been a successful season for Olympique Marseille. Short of a massive collapse in form, Marseille have a real solid opportunity to finish in the top three in Ligue 1 (either the two automatic Champions League spots or the third place Champions League playoff spot). Marseille have at times been the most intoxicating offense to watch in Ligue 1, led by Marcelo Bielsa. The manager has infused an eccentricity into Marseille whether it’s through the fluidity of his tactics (the free flowing nature of how the team play three at the back within their 4-2-3-1) or the type of cooler that Bielsa will sit on during the match. But lately the spark has simmered. Marseille for a chunk of the season were on top of the table in Ligue 1 but their flamboyant offense has fizzled out.” backpagefootball

Atletico Madrid: Simeone’s Tactical Development

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“Diego Simeone is not out to eat humble pie. The 44-year-old Argentinian is hell bent on retaining the league title and going one step better than last season in the Champions League. Without having Real Madrid’s and Barcelona’s payrolls, Atlético have gained success with a combination of sly tactics, strong leadership from a go-getting persona like Simeone, and a matchless spirit. And the Rojiblancos, long known as the “other team” in the Spanish capital, are a title contender in La Liga again.” Outside of the Boot

Barça Bluster: How Can a Team With Neymar, Messi, and Suárez Consider Itself in Crisis?

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“What do you call a team that’s one point out of first with 20 games to play? A side that’s conceded six fewer goals than the second-stingiest defense in the country? A club that’s breezed through the early stages of both its domestic cup and Champions League campaigns? A squad that just soundly defeated its second-biggest rival and the defending league champs? Read enough English-language coverage of Spanish soccer, and you’ll be able to convince yourself that the proper answer to all of those questions is a firm ‘in crisis.’ So let’s just get this out of the way right off the bat: Unless your definition of crisis is ‘title-contending team that isn’t quite as good as when it was maybe the best team in the history of the sport,’ Barcelona is not in crisis. Things in the north of Spain certainly are a-changing, though, so let’s take a deeper look at what all the fuss is about.” Grantland

Champions League: Holders Real Madrid draw Schalke 04 in last 16 stage

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Champions League draw
“Champions League holders and arguably Europe’s most in-form team Real Madrid were drawn against German side Schalke 04 in the last 16 of Europe’s most prestigious competition. Real, which defeated city rival Atletico Madrid 4-1 in Lisbon last year to win ‘La Decima’ — it’s 10th title — is attempting to become the first team to successfully defend the Champions League. Two of England’s three clubs face tough ties, with Chelsea drawn against Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City paired with Spanish giants Barcelona.” CNN

Rematches, Wenger reunion headline Champions League knockout draw
“After a group stage in which the main lesson was that Real Madrid and Bayern Munich are still the teams to beat in this competition, the draw for the round of 16 took place Monday. The odds on the two favorites will have shortened considerably after decent draws, and two big guns will fall by the wayside after Paris Saint-Germain was drawn against Chelsea and Manchester City against Barcelona in a pair of repeat matchups from last season. There was also a moment of sentimentality in the draw, as Arsenal was drawn against AS Monaco, where coach Gunners coach Arsene Wenger was manager from 1987-1994. Here’s a breakdown of Monday’s draw…” SI

Manchester City finds way through, Barca tops PSG in Champions League

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“The final day of the Champions League group stage saw Manchester City produce probably the best Champions league performance in its history to book its place in the last 16 for only the second time. Barcelona outlasted PSG for first in their group behind goals from Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez, and Schalke 04 also secured its place in the knockout phase on a night when John Obi Mikel broke a long-standing personal drought.” SI – Jonathan Wilson

History has become a burden for Germany’s struggling powers

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“It’s no secret that the 2014-15 Bundesliga season has been a rough one for Borussia Dortmund. After a few seasons of success, the tradition-rich club has spent much of the fall slumming it in the table’s depths, at one stage bottoming out in dead last. It’s been a shock for everybody, especially considering the team’s good form in the Champions League, but a closer look at the standings reveals a wider truth: Many of German’s traditional powers are in terrible shape.” Soccer Gods

Bielsa’s tactics have Marseille competing for French glory again

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“The revolutionary Marcelo Bielsa has Olympique de Marseille at the top of the Ligue 1 table just over half a calendar year after finishing sixth. Hired in May, he was tasked with restoring OM to the glory it hasn’t seen since winning the league in 2009-10. Bielsa, 59, brought with him his uncompromising style and unique philosophy that has influenced some of the world’s top tacticians, including Pep Guardiola, who called him “the best coach on the planet” in 2012. When Bielsa and Guardiola coached against each other in La Liga, Guardiola spoke of his intrigue at Athletic Bilbao’s almost militaristic sense of work rate.” SI

Why Are You So Bad, Tottenham?

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“Tottenham just seem like they should be a better team. The club has a ton of players who were very good before they came to North London, in addition to a manager who’s a proven commodity in England. Spurs aren’t Liverpool, who’ve lost their two best players since last season, or Arsenal, who are struggling with depth, injuries, and a gaping hole at the defensive midfield spot. Tottenham aren’t even Everton, a team fighting to match the overachieving levels it hit last year when everything possible went right.” Grantland

Novelty Mayhem: Why This Week’s Champions League Matches Are Unusually Important

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“The boring truth about the Champions League group stages is that the big teams pretty much always move through. It’s briefly exciting when Champions League play starts up every September, but games don’t really get that tense until the knockout stages. Cinderellas from smaller leagues get a nice fat check, six group-stage games against Europe’s elite, and a patronizing pat on the head as they head back to Switzerland, Greece, or Slovenia. Well, usually, anyway. This year, the final day of the group stages offers something different: the chance for a whole bunch of minnows to overcome big-four giants and give the knockout rounds some geographic diversity that’s been missing the last few seasons.” Grantland

The Rise and Fall of Southampton

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“Just a week ago, Southampton sat in second place, comfy on 26 points, six goals conceded, and a seven-point cushion from the non–Champions League wasteland of fifth place. Then they played Manchester City and Arsenal, and now they still have 26 points, sit in third place, and are a too-thin-to-sleep-on two points from dropping out of the Champions League. So …” Grantland

Three things we learned this week in Ligue 1

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“Sunday’s Rhône derby produced one of the most high-profile shocks of the Ligue 1 season so far, as Christophe Galtier’s Saint-Étienne cruised to a 3-0 victory against their bitter rivals Lyon, with a result which saw the home side end their twenty-year wait for a derby victory at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard. The fixture, which sees the traditionally industrial city of Saint-Étienne clash against its historically bourgeoisie neighbour Lyon, is usually always a closely fought contest, so the scoreline’s large margin will come as an even greater surprise.” backpagefootball

Florian Thauvin’s pursuit of excellence
“There hasn’t been too many complaints for Marseille fans this season. Sitting alone in first place through 40% of the season doesn’t lend too much to criticism, especially when one takes into account how disappointing last season was both domestically and in the Champions League. This iteration of Marseille has been one of the more eye pleasing to date. Marcelo Bielsa has brought an intoxicating style to the Veledrome through a combination of a high pressing tempo and reinvigorating the likes of Andre Pierre Gignac and Dimitri Payet to levels we haven’t seen in years.” backpagefootball

Portugese Column: Why do Benfica underperform in Europe?

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“The midweek European matches saw current Portuguese champions Benfica get knocked out of international competitions for the season. Since Jorge Jesus took over in 2009, Benfica have won the title twice and played in the Champions League group phase five times, yet only once have they qualified for the latter stages. And whilst on all other occasions they managed to hold on to the third spot and subsequent qualification for the Europa League, this time not even the last group game against Bayer Leverkusen will help them go above fourth place.” Outside of the Boot

Oh, Hello, Manchester United. Look at You in Fourth Place

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“Look at you, Manchester United, just casually sitting there in fourth place, as if that horrendous start to your season weren’t even a thing. After dismembering Hull City, 3-0, this weekend, United are now the proud owners of a three-game winning streak for the first time in 11 months. The easy victory comes after one-goal victories at Arsenal and at home against Crystal Palace. So, is United nearing the end of an 18-month-long post–Alex Ferguson tunnel, or is that light just another misleading string of results, like last December, when a David Moyes–led squad beat West Ham, Norwich City, and Hull City in the space of a week?” Grantland

Paul Pogba is showcasing Ballon d’Or potential at Juventus

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“Miroslav Klose was taken aback. Lazio’s World Cup-winning striker left the pitch at the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday night awestruck. He had been greatly impressed by one of his club’s opponents, the Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba. Pogba is the only representative from Serie A to find his name on the shortlist for the Ballon d’Or, and Klose appreciated why the France international figured on the ballot papers. After playing with seven of the other 23 contenders either for Germany and/or Bayern Munich, he is well-placed to know what it takes to be considered.” ESPN

Ramblings of a Madman on 2014/15

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“The idea of this piece (written before the Palace match) is really to get things straight in my own head. After the magnificence of 13/14 and coming so close to winning the league, we have stumbled into something that resembles mediocrity. No, not resembles, is mediocrity. Slap bang in the middle of the league with 14 points from 11 games (1.27 PPG) and four points away from Champions League places, but just five points from relegation.” Tomkins Times

The Premier League is missing Alex Ferguson to set the standard at the top

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“It’s fair to say that as of right now, nearing the end of November with the Champions League round of 16 yet to be finalized, England’s traditional capital ‘B’ Big Clubs aren’t having the greatest go of it so far, be it at home or in Europe. A glance at the Premier League’s top seven teams after match day 12, for example, finds a top three consisting of Chelsea, Southampton and Manchester City, with 32, 26 and 24 points, respectively. Manchester United and Newcastle United follow, tied with 19 points – a total that would have put them both south of ninth place this time last season. Arsenal is currently in eight with 17 points, Liverpool in 12th with 14.” Soccer Gods

Patience, Panic, or Liverpool: Sorting Through the Premier League’s Tortoise Race for Fourth Place

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“How to fix a broken team? With the Premier League keeping things weird for another weekend, that’s the question lingering above many clubs. As it stands, Manchester United and Newcastle are tied for fourth place on 19 points, narrow leaders in a seven-team pack all within a measly two points of the ultra-valuable final Champions League spot. And that doesn’t even include Liverpool, who sit in 12th, just barely eclipsing a one-point-per-game pace.” Grantland

Barcelona policy switch means they risk becoming just another superclub

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“Barcelona’s peak under Pep Guardiola probably came at Wembley in the 2011 Champions League final. It was not only the performance, hugely impressive though it was, but the sense this was a dynasty that could last for an awfully long time. Barça beat Manchester United 3-1 to win the competition for the second time in three years – having missed out in the middle season because of a combination of extraordinary resilience from José Mourinho’s Internazionale, an Icelandic volcano and ill fortune. With a long-established philosophy and much-admired academy, they seemed to have the ideal platform for success.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson

Golden goal: Juninho Pernambucano for Lyon v Bayern Munich (2003)

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“There was a jarring fragment of radio commentary during the Burnley v Everton game the other day. ‘Antolín Alacaraz does a Cruyff turn,’ said the man on TalkSport. It sounded wrong. But of course it was right, or at least correct. That is the gift that Cruyff gave us, a trick that nearly anyone can do but only a genius can patent. The best Panenka penalty will always be the one produced, to universal astonishment, by the Czechoslovakia captain in the 1976 European Championship final. Cruyff and Panenka are psychedelic footballers; they altered our perception of the game by expanding our imagination, leaving a permanent distortion. Juninho Pernambucano belongs in that company, except that his free-kicks remain head-wreckingly difficult to copy despite years of studious gerrymandering by boffins intent on making it easier.” Guardian

Are West Ham for Real?

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“What’s more strange: that the lead photo for this piece is of a “semi-robotic” mascot named Hammerhead basking in bubbles at West Ham’s Upton Park? Or that if the season ended today, West Ham would be in the Champions League? Usually the top of the Premier League table is pretty predictable. You have the usual mega-club suspects (you know who), a couple of perennial almost-theres (Spurs, Everton), and a surprise who starts strong and fades away down the stretch. That hasn’t been the case this season.” Grantland

The big clubs get bigger leaving the rest to collect the stickers

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“I received an interesting present as I made my way to Rio’s legendary Maracana stadium on Wednesday evening. Flamengo, the club with the biggest support base in the land, was playing Internacional, a big club in its own right with ambitions of winning this year’s title – ambitions which took a blow with its 2-0 defeat. The slightly disappointing crowd of just under 19,000 went home happy – the win would seem to remove the slightest risk of Flamengo being relegated. Many of them travelled back clutching the same thing I had been handed as I made my way out of the local underground station and down the ramp towards the stadium – a sticker album of the UEFA Champions League, with a few stickers to start off the collection.” The World Game – Tim Vicery

Mid-Group Stage Champions League Update

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“We’re halfway through the 2014-15 Champions League group stage. The UCL is one of the greatest tournaments in all of sports because we get a chance to catch our breath for a couple weeks after every matchday. So let’s do so. Some groups are mostly decided, others hang in the balance. Who will go through in each four-team sector? To the groups!” Center Circle

Slovan Bratislava 0-3 Sparta Prague: Old rivalries return

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“The last time Slovan Bratislava and Sparta Prague met in a competitive environment Czechoslovakia was at the end of the mutual and peaceful divorce known as ‘The Velvet Revolution’. Then it was a cold February day in 1993 when the Czech Republic and Slovakia had just formally broken ties, this time it was a slightly chilly October evening in 2014. During the days of the CSSR both Czech and Slovak clubs competed against each other on a weekly basis. Despite Sparta Prague having their Czech rivals and Slovan Bratislava their Slovak adversaries, there was always a special place reserved for meetings between the two clubs. Their contests would be known as the ‘Federal Derby’; a game which pitted the biggest clubs of Prague and Bratislava against each other and a fixture which took on some nationalist significance. Despite the peaceful divorce between the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and the dissolution of the First Czechoslovak League into the Gambrinus and Corgon Ligas, the events at the Stadion Pasienky tonight were anything but friendly.” CZEFootball

Manchester United v Chelsea: Jonathan Wilson’s Tactical Preview

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“Both sides have injury issues. Jose Mourinho has continued to maintain that Diego Costa will miss out with his mysterious hamstrings/groins and a bug, while Loic Remy is a major doubt after limping out of Tuesday’s 6-0 Champions League win over Maribor clutching his groin. That could mean Didier Drogba starting as the one forward – a concern, given how off the pace he looked against Schalke 04 in the Champions League, the only other game he has started this season – or Chelsea could perhaps go with a false nine. They did that last season in the stultifying 0-0 at Old Trafford last season, but Andre Schurrle, who occupied the role then, is a doubt with illness. Chelsea are also without Ramires and Mikel John Obi.” Bet – Jonathan Wilson

Champions League: Bayern Munich thrashes Roma amid goal bonanza

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“Tuesday’s Champions League action brought thumping wins for Chelsea, Shakhtar Donetsk and, perhaps most impressively, Bayern Munich, who hammered Roma 7-1 at Stadio Olimpico. Manchester City’s misery went on as it threw away a lead to draw in Moscow, while there was another defeat for Athletic Bilbao away to Porto. Here is what caught our eye from the day’s games, when a Champions-League-record 40 goals were scored…” SI – Jonathan Wilson

Robben impressed by rampant Bayern
“Arjen Robben, Bayern forward. Afterwards it’s always easy to talk. I’m still convinced Roma have a very good team – they’ve shown that this season – but we should pay a big compliment to us, to all the players, but also to the coaching staff who prepared this game in the way we played, the way we created chances and scored goals. There were some great goals tonight. We played a little different tonight. Everybody has seen it, but it’s not good to talk about our tactics and how we want to play. Everybody can see it and watch the match to analyse us. But a big compliment to the team and the tactics.” UEFA

Real Madrid has never beaten Liverpool, but that’s a stupid stat because they’ve only met three times

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“Some stats should come with small print, like financial ads: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Like the fact that Real Madrid has never beaten Liverpool, and has never even scored against the club – quirks that are going to be consigned to history at Anfield on Wednesday in the Champions League, if current form is any guide. If the two teams had met 20 times, it would be notable. But surprisingly, considering the clubs’ pedigrees, the sides faced each other competitively only twice: a 1-0 Liverpool win in the 1981 European Cup final, and Liverpool’s 5-0, two-legged Champions League victory in 2008-09’s Round of 16, a high point of the Rafael Benítez era.” Soccer God (Video)

Roma Holiday: How the Italian Club Became a Champions League Contender

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“Roma are a really good soccer team. This shouldn’t be surprising. They are, after all, the biggest team in the biggest city in Italy. It’s easy to shrug and say, ‘Of course Roma are the second-best team in Serie A. They are Roma.’ Except that, with the exception of two stretches — one in which they were managed by Fabio Capello and another under Luciano Spalletti — Roma have frequently been an average side. They have never been considered a perennial Champions League side. Yet here they are. On a superficial level, Roma’s approach isn’t all that special. They do all the things well that you’d expect good teams to do. They shoot more than their opponents, give up fewer shots, and, in general, create better chances.” Grantland (Video)

How have Southampton defied critics and survived the exodus?

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“If you were to sit down with anyone after Southampton’s own version of The Exodus, you would have been hard pressed to find many that would have argued the club would be where they are currently. Though the season is still in it’s early days, the early signs are promising that Soton are going to be just fine. After seven matches, the Saints have logged four wins, a draw and a pair of defeats – said losses came by way of two away trips to Liverpool and Tottenham, both of which are expected to finish above them in the table in the first place.” Outside of the Boot

Gareth Bale’s sore butt could cost him games against Liverpool and Barcelona

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“Real Madrid released a statement on Monday saying that Gareth Bale has an injury in the right pyramidalis muscle. After consulting Internet, M.D., we think this means he has, in technical terms, a sore butt. He’s now set to sit out a couple of games, presumably on padded furniture. Bale didn’t play in the 5-0 win over Levante on Saturday , and he’s reportedly going to miss the opportunity to twist Martin Skrtel’s blood at Anfield on Wednesday when Real face Liverpool in the Champions League.” Soccer Gods (Video)

Roberto Di Matteo – A Good Manager, a Great Man

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“Roberto Di Matteo is very much one of football’s managerial curiosities. The Swiss-born former Italian international went from managing English League One side MK Dons to a Champions League winner with Chelsea in under four years. And yet no sooner had he won the trophy Roman Abramovich had been craving for nearly a decade, he was replaced. Two years on, and having been handsomely paid in compensation by Chelsea throughout that period, Di Matteo has returned to football management. His appointment by Schalke to replace Jens Keller is sure to provoke a very mixed response. Some will be hopeful that a Champions League winner will bring stability and consistency to the club, while others will fear that the Champions League trophy aside, this is not a manager with a fantastic CV.” Bundesliga Fanatic

In Victory, Arsène Wenger Shows Off Old and New

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“Sports, like many other things in life, often comes down to one generation putting faith in the next. We witnessed the manifestation of that during Arsenal’s 4-1 victory over Galatasaray here in north London on Wednesday. It was the night of Arsène Wenger’s 18th anniversary as Arsenal manager and the night that Danny Welbeck scored a hat trick of goals for the first time in professional soccer. Welbeck was five years old when Wenger, now 64, arrived in England. The Frenchman has coached Arsenal through 1,022 games and has managed some exquisite players through his seemingly eternal quest to win the Champions League.” NY Times

Tactical Analysis | Atletico 1-0 Juventus : Atletico up the tempo to grab an important winner

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“The second gameweek of the UEFA Champions League had some tasty encounters in store for all viewers, with a number of top teams clashing. In terms of results and entertainment too, it didn’t disappoint, with lots of goals, and a lot of good, competitive football. One of the tastiest fixtures was Atletico hosting Juventus. It was a clash of Champions from Spain and Italy. Coming into the game, Juventus had a 100% record, with no goals conceded. Atletico have made a good start, but find themselves in third after a few indifferent results. This was a different situation, as Atletico had lost their opening fixture in Greece, and a positive result against Juventus was absolutely vital. The Italians were up against it, as a daunting home support, combined with Atleti’s usual aggressive approach had meant that they had 17 wins in their last 19 European fixtures.” Outside of the Boot

Fast starts don’t always pan out, but Chelsea has look of winner

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“Since he joined Porto in 2002, Jose Mourinho has won the league title in his second season at every club he’s managed. That, it seems, is the optimal time, when he has had a chance to embed his method in his players and before the abrasiveness of his personality has had time to sour the mood. This is his second season back at Chelsea, and, sure enough, the Blues go into Sunday’s game against Arsenal already five points clear of its closest realistic challenger.” SI – Jonathan Wilson

Tactical analysis – Roma’s performance against Manchester City

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“Tuesday evening saw Roma drew 1-1 with Manchester City away from home and now sit in second place in Group C. The match – which saw Francesco Totti become the competition’s oldest goal scorer – illustrated a Roma side unfazed after conceding an early penalty and go on to play fluid football. The reigning English champions looked sluggish throughout and Roma were able to dictate long stretches of play. Let’s take a look how they did it.” backpagefootball

Tactical Analysis | Manchester City 1-1 Roma : Away side contain the 4-4-2

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“The world’s toughest club competition is only in its second match day, but things are already getting very tight. The Group of Death, containing CSKA, Bayern, Manchester City, and Roma, was, always going to be a very close one, but few expected there to be such high stakes, this early on. Going into the game, the English champions, City, needed to pick up 4 points over their 2 clashes with Rudi Garcia’s Roma in order to stake a strong claim for a spot in the next round of the competition. This was no easy task, as Roma came into the game in terrific form, with their last European outing being their thrashing of CSKA. Realistically, both sides were looking at second spot in the group behind the dominant Bayern Munich, and so the game was worth a lot.” Outside of the Boot

5 Tactical Conclusions From September

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“Southampton have recovered excellently. No Rickie Lambert, no Adam Lallana, no Luke Shaw, no Dejan Lovren, no Calum Chambers…and no problem. Many predicted Southampton would struggle having sold so many star performers, but some intelligent recruitment and clever coaching from Ronald Koeman means Southampton are riding high, in second position in the Premier League table.” Betting Expert – Michael Cox

The Question: is the counter-counter more crucial than the counterattack?

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“Pause the video of Roma’s goal against Manchester City just as the ball reached Radja Nainggolan and City’s problem is clear. There’s the back four in classic saucer shape, the full-backs slightly advanced of the centre-backs and there, where one of the central defenders should be, is a huge hole into which Francesco Totti is beginning to run. Vincent Kompany is perhaps 10 yards advanced of Martín Demichelis, looking to close Nainggolan down and never getting close enough to him.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson

Barça face cross-border issues, Athletic hit rock bottom

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“‘Ha! Zat eez wot ‘appens when ze Barca do not have ze Granada every week! Ha!’ snarked a much-loved French friend of LLL after PSG’s 3-2 victory in the Champions League on Tuesday night. Actually, that’s a bit of a porky-pie lie. The voice creeped out the imaginary mouth of an imaginary French friend living in the blog’s largely empty head. It is very unloved. Although it’s a little knee-jerk, which is what LLL is all about deep down, this is one possible reaction to Barcelona’s first loss this season – and the first goals conceded for that matter.” FourFourTwo

Analytics In Context: Assessing Leicester’s Chances of Staying Up

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“Leicester’s chances of surviving in their return to the EPL for the first time since 2004 was boosted by their high profile come from behind victory against van Gaal’s work in progress on Sunday. However, they have remained firmly favoured to remain in the top flight by the published odds (currently 1.12 with Coral to stay up) even during a difficult start which saw them out shot against superior teams, where points were difficult to come by. This initial confidence in the Foxes was partly down to their impressive record in the Championship, where they gained over 100 points.” Betting Expert

Diagnosing Liverpool’s Early-Season Slump

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“After last season’s unlikely, high-flying, high-scoring, high-octane season, things are looking a lot more mundane for Liverpool at the moment. Their last two Premier League results have been pedestrian losses to West Ham and Aston Villa. Those defeats are bookended by a ludicrous last-second victory over Champions League minnow Ludogorets Razgrad and a League Cup match in which they needed 14 penalty shots to beat Championship side Middlesbrough.” Grantland

What’s the reason behind PSG’s current struggles?

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“Usually clubs with wealthy benefactors aren’t simply attempting to buy success. They’re also attempting to buy style — and it’s extremely difficult to achieve both. … Paris Saint-Germain is a peculiar case, because there doesn’t seem to be any emphasis upon playing beautiful football. Since QSI bought the club in 2011, the results have been excellent — PSG have won the title for the past two seasons and have performed reasonably well in Europe, too.” ESPN – Michael Cox

In Champions League, Bulgarian Club Is All Fight

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“There must be an absolute fortune to be made for the psychologist who could affect what goes on inside the heads of players on a big night of Champions League action. Who can explain why Arsenal, whose team has played in this tournament for 17 consecutive seasons, should appear so stricken by fear or inertia that it failed to compete on every level in Dortmund on Tuesday night? Sure, Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion is a mighty cauldron, a sea of yellow and black raucously supporting their team, Borussia. But so rampant were the bees of Dortmund and so submissive was Arsenal that the 2-0 victory by the home team could, without exaggeration, easily have ended 7-0 or 8-0. On the same evening, in another of Europe’s most imposing stadiums, Liverpool needed a questionable penalty three minutes into injury time to see off Ludogorets Razgrad, 2-1.” NY Times

Growing Pains: Real Madrid

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“It is always a tough ask to think of how to improve upon a Champions League winning campaign. However, when you couple the capture of the CL crown with a third place league finish (in a league with only three actual competitors), there is definitely room for improvement. So, how do Los Blancos gear up for a year of possible improvement? By selling two of the most important players in their side…and by avoiding their biggest weaknesses in the transfer window. Still, if any team can still succeed, it has to be Madrid…right?” SoccerPro

Roger Schmidt is slick and a former auto engineer and just might turn Bayer Leverkusen into a contender

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“Seven years ago, Roger Schmidt worked in a machine shop. He was an automotive engineer. In his spare time, he managed Delbrücker SC, a semi-pro team in the Fußball-Oberliga Westfalen, then one of Germany’s regional fourth divisions. This past Tuesday, he stood on the sidelines as his team, Bayer Leverkusen, took on Monaco in the Champions League. Not a bad career move, right? From the machine shop to the Champions League in under a decade.” Fusion

To Escape Fighting in Ukraine, Shakhtar Donetsk Takes an Indefinite Road Trip

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“Plumes of thick black smoke and a rapid-fire echo of explosions rose into the afternoon sky. Several hundred people from eastern Ukraine, almost all of them men in black T-shirts and balaclavas, were singing nationalistic songs as they threw smoke bombs onto the soccer field in front of them. They were members of the Shakhtar Ultras, a group of hard-core soccer fans who support Ukraine’s champions, Shakhtar Donetsk, anywhere they play. On this sunny August day, they were watching the Donetsk derby between Shakhtar and Olimpik. But the match, like all of Shakhtar’s matches these days, was not taking place in Donetsk, which has been battered by months of shelling. Instead the fans traveled hundreds of miles west to the capital, Kiev.” NY Times