Barça to visit two of seven infernos

In less than 24 hours the UEFA committee will hold the final draw of the champions league determining who plays against whom and where the second game of each round is going to be played. It is believed that whoever plays the second game at home has an advantage but each team knows that to be in the final they need to do well in both game. Tomorrow at this time the speculation will be at its best as everybody will try to predict the outcome, pick the bests for their fantasy leagues and so on.

There Are No Easy Team. From this moment on, there are absolutely no small team. One of the magical aspects of this tournament is that a single play can be a make or break for any team. Many fans of teams such as Manchester, Barça, or Bayern Munich want to face Villareal or Oporto but the fact of the matter is that it doesn’t really make a difference. To win against any team there need to be three main factors present 1) good team 2) you need to have a good day and 3) perhaps the most important yet overlooked fact you need to have luck. Just remember how Monaco faced Oporto in the final just five years ago while big names such as Manchester, Liverpool, or Real Madrid had to just watch it from home.

Barcelona will have to play in 2 of the seven “infernos” if they want to make it to Roma this year and try to add their third cup here is a look at the possible contenders:

Manchester United: perfectly balanced team; with a perfect preparation. This team is a very serious contender to go back to back in this tournament. Their home pitch, Old Trafford, doesn’t bring many good memories to the Barcelona fans as we still have the image of that amazing goal from Paul Scholes last year in the semi-finals. The best quality about this team is the organization with which they play; they practice a solid defence that doesn’t let you move comfortably and just when you lose the ball they can create an attacking play in seconds with which they destroy you.

Liverpool: motivated as hell after two consecutives win scoring four goals against non other than Real Madrid and Manchester United (the last one in Old Trafford). This team is made for the champions’ league. Benitez knows how to prepare these games better than anybody. Their strongest point is the fact that their two pillars so-to-speak respond at big games; Torres and Gerrard almost never disappoint whenever they play a big game. Even in their worst day they’d make you suffer a lot. Anfield is a strong factor as they have by far the best crowd in the world.

Bayern Munich: this is a favourite of mine. The Germans play really solid and have a combination in their front line which is devastating. Tony is a striker that, while not being praised by many, scores a lot and goes very well in the air. Klose feats the same description but has better footwork than his Italian team member and last but not least Ribery; this guy can make it happen…just like that. The only “doubt” that I can find in this team is the fact that they have yet to prove themselves against a big club. I just hope they go against one of the four members of the “British Empire”

Villareal: one Cinderella team some may say; villareal has shown that they are ready to face the challenge. When they play good they are extremely hard to beat. Men like Senna, Cazorla or the veteran Pirlo can come back at any time and make the team win. Their problem is that at the moment they are not doing as well as they wish in Spain. After they lost to Madrid and Barça in December they have been very “hit-&-miss”

Chelsea: second place is not enough for this team and they want to achieve what they failed last year. Anelka and Drogba bring so much experience to their offensive line that it is hard to not consider them for the semi-finals. However, they will need more than Anelka and Drogba to advance and if men like Lampard or Essien do not appear during the game and be decisive they won’t have too much of a chance. Also, with Deco out due to a knee injury it remains to be seen how they manage their midfield. Stanford Bridge is a solid stadium where is really hard to win but since Barça cracked them three years ago it hasn’t been the same. I believe this tournament will make this team stronger or will completely accelerate the renovation in the locker room.

Oporto: the second least attractive team in the tournament along with Villareal; however a team that doesn’t need to do much to make an impact. Whenever Lissandro scores this team create a lot of troubles to their rivals and if they are lucky, and they are very lucky, they can make an upset and advance. Their weakest point is the goalie that can miss a lot of obvious plays.

Arsenal: this team can be very solid but can also be really bad. They are, at least on paper, the weakest member of the so-called “British Empire”. However they faced big teams in the past under similar circumstances and advanced to the next round. Men like Cesc or Van Persie are always the one that you need to be very careful; but also there are men like Adebayor who can miss tons of goals which in these tournament means good bye.

Champions League Hangover (Part II)

The round of 16 is over with very little surprise. Most of the outcomes were very visible after the first games so let’s look at them one by one:

Barcelona VS Lyon: for the first time in Barça’s history they eliminate a French team in a K.O round of a European tournament. Barcelona was very loyal to their principles and their game playing with the lines very close to one another and pressuring the rival and playing very fast. The first 45 minutes were the complete opposite from the first 45 minutes at Lyon. Pure perfection by the Catalans that scored 4 goals; however, it is quite intriguing how this team can be so good and so mediocre in just one game. The first 25 minutes of the second half were quite bad and if Benzema had scored at least one goal then I’m not so sure what would have happened. In the end, Barça was clearly superior but there is still tons of work to do.

Manchester VS Inter: I predicted that Inter was going to eliminate the current and very possible next champions but only with a tie and with horrible game. I wasn’t that far off as Inter sent to balls to the post. In the end the best team advanced and there is no surprise whatsoever. Manchester may be in its way to become the first team to win back to back.

Roma VS Arsenal: Roma is a rollercoaster; some days it can be the best team playing at home and other the worst. Today, they battled until the very last second but in the penalty kicks it is always a lottery. With this win the premier showed once again to be the best league in Europe…unfortunately.

Oporto VS Atletico: if today Oporto didn’t win is not because they didn’t have the chance but because the gods from above were rutting for Atletico; they had so many chances that for whatever reason didn’t become goals. The biggest mistake by Abel was leaving Forlan in the bench. Honestly, in a KO round you have to go for the game from the very first moment. Shameful.

Chelsea VS Juve: Juventus is a team that is very hard to beat at home and Chelsea can give testimony of that. Unfortunately they also need new players, a fresh air so to speak. Juventus is at the moment a team that needs a re-building summer. I don’t expect to see Chelsea going to semi-finals if they have to face a big team.

Panathinaikos VS Villareal: The only surprise of the round was to see the yellow submarine advance to the next round. Definitely the Cinderella team of the tournament; it is nice to see them among the 8 best of Europe.

Liverpool VS Madrid: yes, the first goal was a foul on pepe, the second one wasn’t a penalty but you just cannot justify a 4-0. Benitez gave a lesson of how to win a game from minute one. Real Madrid was never a threat in this game and only Casillas is saved of the media backlash.

Bayern VS Sporting: not much to say here expect that Bayern showed no mercy and gained a lot of respect for the next round.

Championship Contenders:
- Liverpool: strong contender after their dominance display against Madrid. Definitely a semi-finalist

- Bayern: This team needs to face a big team to prove how good there are; in my mind a final contender.

- Manchester: one of my best friend described them the best; he said “they are team with most discipline in the world” I couldn’t agree more. Serious contender for the first ever back to back.

- Barça: when they are good they are the best. But the have gaps that in this tournament can represent the end.

Matches that I want to see:

Manchester VS Bayern
Barça VS Arsenal
Oporto VS Villareal
Liverpool VS Chelsea