It happens year in-year out when an English club draws Roma, be it in the champion's league or be it in the uefa cup.

i know... still i think that it should eventually have consequences

If it was in Germany, something would be done about it

If it was in France, ditto

Same as if it was in England and Spain

But as it happens in Italy, Uefa hands out pointless fines and punishments which are rejected by appeal.

Champion's League Knock-out Round Draw:

Celtic v Barcelona

Lyon v Manchester United

Schalke v Porto

Liverpool v Inter Milan

Roma v Real Madrid

Arsenal v AC Milan

Olympiakos v Chelsea

Fenerbahce v Sevilla

UEFA Cup:

 

Draw for the last 32:

 

Aberdeen v Bayern Munich

AEK Athens v Getafe

Bolton v Atletico Madrid

Zenit St Petersburg v Villarreal

Galatasaray v Bayer Leverkusen

Anderlecht v Bordeaux

SK Brannv Everton

FC Zurich v Hamburg

Rangers v Panathinaikos

PSV Eindhoven v Helsingborg

Slavia Prague v Tottenham

Rosenborg v Fiorentina

Sporting Lisbon v Basle

Werder Bremen v Braga

Benfica v Nuremburg

Marseille v Spartak Moscow

 

(Ties to be played on 13/14 February and 21 February)

 

Draw for the last 16:

 

Anderlecht/Bordeaux v Aberdeen/Bayern Munich

Rangers/Panathinaikos v Werder Bremen/Braga

Bolton/Atletico Madrid v Sporting Lisbon/Basle

Galatasaray/Leverkusen v FC Zurich/Hamburg

AEK Athens/Getafe v Benfica/Nuremburg

Rosenborg/Fiorentina v SK Brann/Everton

Slavia Prague/Tottenham v PSV Eindhoven/Helsingborg

Marseille/Spartak Moscow v Zenit St Petersburg/Villarreal

 

(Ties to be played on 6 March and 12/13 March)

 

Poor old Munich, coming up against the almighty Aberdeen :o

Champions League 08

 

Here`s a thread for footballfans who follow CL.

Personally I`m a big Liverpool-fan...

 

You`ll never walk alone!

Bumpy Bump

Here`s a thread for footballfans who follow CL.

Personally I`m a big Liverpool-fan...

 

You`ll never walk alone!

 

So next season you might be following the Uefa cup instead of the champions league, assuming Liverpool finish in the top 6 (assuming the fa cup final is man utd/chelsea) :laugh3:

I can see another semi with three English clubs again.

I can see another semi with three English clubs again.

 

Man Utd, Chelsea & Arsenal?

I reckon Liverpool again, they're always jammy when it comes to the latter stages. Although I think Utd have a much better squad than recent years, their dependency on Ronaldo, Rooney and Tevez for goals might become their own undoing. Saha isn't good enough.

 

I'll go for Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool and maybe Barca.

Just depends on the round for the quarter-finals.

Bumpy Bump

oh...didn`t know it was a thread like this already:\ anyway.....Dont`t think Liverpool will be playing in the UEFA cup next season. Like the norwegian commentators say: "Liverpool is a team for the big opportunities".

Champions League half times:

 

HT AC Milan 0-0 Arsenal (agg 0-0)

HT Barcelona 1-0 Celtic (agg 4-2)

HT Man Utd 1-0 Lyon (agg 2-1)

HT Sevilla 3-1 Fenerbahce (agg 5-4)

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/live_scores/default.stm

FT AC Milan 0-2 Arsenal (agg 0-2)

FT Barcelona 1-0 Celtic (agg 4-2)

FT Man Utd 1-0 Lyon (agg 2-1)

FT Sevilla 3-2 Fenerbahce (agg 5-5)

Man Utd 1-0 Lyon (agg 2-1)

 

Wayne Rooney congratulates Ronaldo after his goal

 

Cristiano Ronaldo's 30th goal of the season gave Manchester United a 2-1 aggregate win over Lyon and a place in the Champions League quarter-finals.

 

Lyon's tactic of defending in numbers frustrated the home side early on.

 

But Ronaldo broke the deadlock when he pounced on a loose ball in the box and squeezed the ball past Gregory Coupet.

 

Lyon came forward more after the break and almost levelled when Kader Keita's shot thumped against the base of the post but United held on to progress.

 

It was by no means United's most stylish victory in Europe but their manager Sir Alex Ferguson will not mind one bit after seeing his side equal Juventus' Champions League record of 10 straight home wins.

 

The pace of Ronaldo and Nani on either wing always looked their most likely route of finding a way through the visitors' well-organised defence and brought them the best early openings.

 

First Ronaldo broke down the right and left Fabio Grosso sliding in his wake but he failed to pull the ball back in time and was crowded out inside the area.

 

Darren Fletcher saw a swerving 25-yard shot fly just wide before Anderson linked up well with Nani but failed to make his final ball count.

 

United were not having things all their own way, however, and Lyon responded with a spell of pressure of their own that saw Kim Kallstrom test Edwin van der Sar with a rasping drive.

 

It looked like the stalemate would extend until half-time but Ronaldo had other ideas.

 

Nani fed Wes Brown down the right and although Anderson's shot from his cross was blocked, Ronaldo was first to the loose ball and expertly slotted the ball between the onrushing keeper Coupet and the post.

 

That goal put United firmly in the driving seat but Lyon, to their credit, came back strongly after the interval.

 

Initially, Alain Perrin's side failed to test Van der Sar further with Juninho's shot drifting well wide and Hatem Ben Arfa drilling another effort over.

 

But the visitors went close to making it 2-2 on aggregate when Keita found the space to smash his low shot against the woodwork with the keeper beaten.

 

United survived that scare and should have extended their margin of victory before the end.

 

Rooney latched on to a poor Ben Arfa back-pass but was denied by Coupet's block - then wasted another golden chance when substitute Carlos Tevez put him clear.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/7272570.stm

Barcelona 1-0 Celtic (agg: 4-2)

 

Hernandez Xavi gave Barcelona a perfect start at the Nou Camp

 

Celtic's Champions League ambitions were extinguished by Barcelona who produced a slick show in the Nou Camp.

 

The Spanish side got off to a perfect opening when Hernandez Xavi flicked the ball over Artur Boruc and into the net after only two minutes.

 

The Scots struggled to impose themselves but gradually improved without imposing any major pressure.

 

Boruc thwarted Ronaldinho and Deco while Celtic's best effort by Shunsuke Nakamura was saved By Victor Valdes.

 

Barcelona made no mistake in accounting for the other half of Glasgow's Old Firm, with a Nou Camp win already over Rangers earlier in the same competition.

 

The last match between the teams at the famous venue was a 1-1 Champions League draw in November 2004.

 

Celtic, on this occasion, were requiring their first away victory in the competition in order to progress, but faced the sternest of tasks to pull back a 3-2 deficit from the first leg in Glasgow.

 

Scott McDonald, the Hoops' top scorer, was manager Gordon Strachan's surprise omission as he opted for a conservative formation, with Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink in a lone striker's role while Paul Hartley appeared in a five-man midfield.

 

Mark Wilson, recently recovered from a knee operation, replaced cup-tied right-back Andreas Hinkel for his first start since last September.

 

Lionel Messi returned to the Barca line-up after starting on the bench for the 4-2 La Liga defeat by Atletico Madrid at the weekend.

 

However, all of Strachan's good pre-match intentions were ripped up, when Barca, full of verve, caught Celtic cold to open the scoring.

 

With Frank Rijkaard's side intent on putting the tie beyond doubt, his players delivered without hesitation - and at the worst possible moment for the visitors.

 

Lionel Messi, driving forward, found Xavi who played in Ronaldinho, who, in turn, cleverly brought in Silvinho on the overlap.

 

The Brazilian defender clipped in an inviting cross, and with the Celtic defence hesitating, Xavi flicked out a boot to guide the ball over Boruc and into the net.

 

With the Scots falling victim to a quickfire blow, similar to rivals Rangers visit to the Nou Camp in November, it was a portent of things to come, with Barcelona displaying their customary class and one-touch football.

 

Despite Barcelona enjoying the bulk of the initial play, Celtic managed to recover from Xavi's early strike.

 

Boruc did rescue his team-mates from conceding a second in the 27th minute, though, with an alert tip over the crossbar from a lob by the unlikely figure of Carles Puyol.

 

Messi - the Champions League top scorer with six goals - had to leave the field with a hamstring injury shortly afterwards, to be replaced by Thierry Henry who was surprisingly left on the bench by Rijkaard.

 

Barcelona demonstrated their quality in possession but, as the first half came to it's conclusion, they did not carve out the expected host of opportunities, much to the relief of their opponents.

 

Massimo Donati was replaced by Evander Sno at half-time as Celtic slowly began to improve.

 

Vennegoor of Hesselink should have done better with a glancing header from Aiden McGeady's inviting cross, before Giorgios Samaras came on for the Dutchman.

 

Barcelona eased into their stride again, forcing Boruc to make two excellent saves in succession, the Pole firstly stopping Ronaldinho's thuderous shot from 18 yards before scooping away a raking Deco effort.

 

Samuel Eto'o then found himself unmarked in the six-yard area but the striker showed uncharacteristic hestitancy and his chance was gone.

 

It was proving, unsurprisingly, to be a long night in the Nou Camp for the Scottish champions, although they tried to take the game whenever possible to the hosts.

 

Eto'o was in threatening mood in the closing stages, but Celtic, to their credit, were defending well.

 

Valdes was tested by substitute McDonald in the final minutes but it was, in truth, a rare moment of concern for the Barcelona goalkeeper.

 

Boruc stood firm to deny Eidur Gudjohnsen, before Nakamura's long range strike brought out a good late stop from Valdes.

 

And denied an equaliser on the night, Celtic exited Europe's premier competition at the same stage for the second successive season.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/7272569.stm

AC Milan 0-2 Arsenal (agg 0-2)

 

Veteran Maldini congratulates goalscorer Fabregas

 

Arsenal struck twice late on to become the first English team to beat AC Milan in the San Siro and deservedly reach the last eight of the Champions League.

 

Arsene Wenger's side produced a virtuoso display but had to wait until the 84th minute before Cesc Fabregas fired in a low 30-yard finish.

 

Emmanuel Adebayor then turned in Theo Walcott's cross in injury time to send the holders crashing out.

 

Fabregas hit the bar in the first-half as Arsenal dominated almost throughout.

 

It was another famous Champions League win for Arsenal in Milan, following on from their famous 5-1 win against Inter in November 2005.

 

Milan opened brightly, with Fabregas clearing off the line from Paolo Maldini's header at the near post, but once Arsenal found their stride they controlled the first 45 minutes in composed fashion.

 

Fabregas dictated affairs in midfield to even outshine Kaka, but the Brazilian escaped to set up Alexandre Pato after 18 minutes, only for the youngster to finish tamely.

 

Arsenal were understandably furious after 32 minutes when Alexander Hleb was shown the yellow card for diving by Austrian official Konrad Plautz, even though he had been blatantly upended on the edge of the area by Alessandro Nesta.

 

And they were frustrated seconds later when Fabregas saw a rising drive from 20 yards rebound off the crossbar with Zeljko Kalac well beaten.

 

Arsenal could have taken the lead seconds after the break when Fabregas's corner landed at the feet of Philippe Senderos, but he could only send an instinctive finish straight at Kalac.

 

Emmanuel Eboue then wasted another glorious chance as Andrea Pirlo sent an awful pass straight to Adebayor. He found Eboue in space only 10 yards out, but he shot wastefully wide.

 

Milan had faded as an attacking force, but Pirlo kept Manuel Almunia on his toes with a dipping free-kick that was turned around the post by Arsenal's keeper.

 

Wenger made a bold substitution with 20 minutes left, sending on Walcott for Eboue.

 

And within four minutes he almost set up a goal, only for keeper Kalac to stretch out a leg and block his cross with a collection of Arsenal players waiting to pounce.

 

Arsenal almost paid the price for their profligacy in front of goal with 12 minutes left when Pato was only inches off target with an angled shot that took a deflection off Senderos.

 

Arsenal finally got the goal they so richly deserved with six minutes left when Fabregas advanced and sent a low shot into the corner past the despairing dive of Kalac.

 

And a stunning performance got the final flourish it deserved when Walcott crossed perfectly for Adebayor to turn in at the far post.

 

BBC Sport Player Rater man of the match: Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas 8.88 (on 90 minutes).

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/7272514.stm

The Champion out:bigcry:

 

Any team can win now;)

rather Milan won than the gooners, but at least Utd can draw them in the next round, 4-0 again :smug:

Real Madrid 1-2 Roma (agg 2-4)

 

Taddei's goal put Roma ahead in the Santiago Bernabeu

 

Nine-time winners Real Madrid were knocked out of the Champions League after losing 2-1 at home to Roma.

 

Real, who ended the game with 10 men after Pepe was sent off for two yellow cards, went out in the last 16, 4-2 on aggregate to their Italian opponents.

 

Alberto Aquilani hit the bar for Roma as did Julio Baptista for Real, before Pepe harshly saw red for the hosts.

 

Taddei headed Roma in front on the night before Raul slotted in for Real, but Mirko Vucinic's header sealed it.

 

Real Madrid: Casillas, Salgado (Miguel Torres 65), Pepe, Cannavaro, Heinze, Diarra (Drenthe 61), Gago, Guti, Julio Baptista (Soldado 85), Raul, Robinho.

Subs Not Used: Dudek, Marcelo, Higuain, Balboa.

 

Sent Off: Pepe (71).

 

Booked: Heinze, Pepe, Robinho, Guti.

 

Goals: Raul 75.

 

Roma: Doni, Cicinho (Panucci 87), Juan, Mexes, Tonetto, Aquilani, De Rossi, Taddei, Perrotta (Pizarro 77), Mancini (Vucinic 65), Totti.

Subs Not Used: Bertagnoli, Giuly, Ferrari, Brighi.

 

Booked: Taddei, De Rossi, Perrotta, Cicinho, Aquilani, Tonetto.

 

Goals: Taddei 73, Vucinic 90.

 

Att: 80,000.

 

Ref: Kyros Vassaras (Greece).

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/7280498.stm

Chelsea 3-0 Olympiakos (agg 3-0)

 

Chelsea's Frank Lampard celebrates his goal with Didier Drogba

 

Chelsea strolled into the Champions League quarter-finals with an easy victory against Olympiakos.

 

Michael Ballack headed home Frank Lampard's cross to set Chelsea on their way after six minutes.

 

Lampard doubled the lead from close range in the 25th minute after keeper Antonis Nikopolidis blocked Ballack's powerful shot.

 

Chelsea added a third three minutes after half-time when Salomon Kalou turned in Lampard's corner.

 

Chelsea were dealt a blow before kick-off when keeper Petr Cech was ruled out with an ankle injury - but replacement Carlo Cudicini was virtually redundant as Avram Grant's side took complete control.

 

Joe Cole hit a post inside two minutes, only to be ruled offside - but it was a brief reprieve for Olympiakos as Chelsea went ahead shortly afterwards.

 

Lampard was the provider with a left-wing cross that was glanced home in trademark fashion by Ballack at the near post.

 

The German repaid the compliment midway through the first half when his shot was pushed out by Olympiakos keeper Antonis Nikopolidis, leaving Lampard with the simplest of tasks to double Chelsea's advantage.

 

And any lingering hopes Olympiakos had of salvaging something from a dreadful night disappeared three minutes after the break when Lampard's corner evaded Ricardo Carvalho in the six-yard area but fell invitingly for Kalou to steer home from close range.

 

Lampard should have added his second and Chelsea's fourth after 52 minutes following good work by Kalou, but his finish was uncharacteristically poor as he shot wide.

 

Chelsea had barely needed to break sweat to outclass the Greeks, and twice in the space of seconds they could have extended their lead as Nikopolidis saved well from Joe Cole and then dived to clutch a low drive from Claude Makelele.

 

Olympiakos broke the shackles with eight minutes left as Fernando Belluschi struck the bar from 25 yards with Cudicini motionless.

 

And in a rare flurry of attacking action, Chelsea's Italian keeper blocked a free-kick from Belluschi then recovered to save Paraskevas Antzas's header.

 

But Chelsea were never in any serious danger and moved into the last eight of the Champions League in emphatic fashion.

 

Chelsea: Cudicini, Ferreira, Carvalho, Terry, Ashley Cole, Ballack, Makelele, Lampard (Essien 76), Kalou (Malouda 70), Drogba, Joe Cole (Wright-Phillips 79).

 

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Subs Not Used: Hilario, Alex, Belletti, Anelka.

Booked: Lampard, Ferreira, Terry.

 

Goals: Ballack 6, Lampard 25, Kalou 48.

 

Olympiakos: Nikopolidis, Zewlakow, Julio Cesar, Antzas, Pantos, Ledesma (Belluschi 53), Patsatzoglou, Torosidis (Sisic 75), Djordjevic (Leonardo 57), Stoltidis, Kovacevic.

Subs Not Used: Sifakis, Nunez, Mendrinos, Konstantinou.

 

Booked: Pantos.

 

Att: 37,721

 

Ref: Manuel Enrique Mejuto Gonzalez (Spain).

 

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/7272571.stm

Well done Arsenal :D

Inter Milan 0-1 Liverpool (0-3)

 

Liverpool's Fernando Torres celebrates his goal against Inter Milan

 

Liverpool became the fourth English side to reach the Champions League quarter-finals with victory against Inter Milan at the San Siro.

 

Fernando Torres scored brilliantly on the turn after 64 minutes to give Liverpool a comfortable aggregate win.

 

Inter, who had Nicolas Burdisso sent off for a foul on Lucas Leiva after 50 minutes, wasted several chances.

 

Liverpool keeper Pepe Reina twice saved from Julio Cruz, who also shot wide when clean through in the first half.

 

The win gives English clubs a powerful presence in the closing stages of the competition, with Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal joining Liverpool in the last eight - the first time any country has dominated the Champions League in such a fashion.

 

And, despite a shaky start to their campaign in the group phase, Liverpool remain on course for a third final in four seasons.

 

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez paired Martin Skrtel with Sami Hyypia in central defence, pushing Jamie Carragher out to right back - and they were tested in a closely-fought first 45 minutes.

 

Keeper Reina was outstanding as Liverpool defended their two-goal advantage from the first leg, and he was in action after eight minutes as he dived low to his right to save from Cruz.

 

Liverpool threatened to open up the Inter rearguard for a crucial away goal after 24 minutes when Fabio Aurelio's long ball almost released Ryan Babel, but keeper Julio Cesar was swiftly off his line.

 

The visitors were by no means sitting on their lead, and a slip by Esteban Cambiasso let in Torres and Cesar needed to be alert at his near post to block the Spanish striker.

 

Inter's best chance came after 29 minutes when Zlatan Ibrahimovic played in Cruz, but he pulled his finish across the face of goal.

 

Reina did well again on the stroke of half-time when Cruz met Maicon's cross with a neat flick, but Liverpool's keeper was again quick to react and keep his side level.

 

Inter's hopes of mounting a fightback were dealt a cruel blow after 49 minutes when Burdisso - who had already been booked - collided with Lucas.

 

The challenge looked innocuous and Inter were understandably enraged when Norwegian referee Tom Henning Ovrebo produced a red card that was harsh in the extreme.

 

It was a stroke of luck for Liverpool and ill-fortune for Inter, who saw Marco Materazzi sent off in debatable fashion in the first leg at Anfield.

 

Ibrahimovic had once again flattered to deceive and he was guilty of an awful miss after 56 minutes when he was gifted the ball by a dreadful pass from Skrtel and was wastefully off target.

 

And Torres made Inter pay for all those missed opportunities as he fired the goal that effectively sent Liverpool into the last eight after 64 minutes.

 

Aurelio's pass found Torres in the area and he turned before sending a low, unerring right-foot finish low to the right of Inter keeper Cesar.

 

Liverpool were now cruising, although there was another opportunity for Ibrahimovic to incur the wrath of the home crowd with another bad miss after 78 minutes, shooting horribly off target again when clean through.

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Inter Milan: Julio Cesar, Maicon, Burdisso, Rivas, Chivu, Zanetti, Cambiasso, Stankovic (Jimenez 84), Vieira (Pele 76), Ibrahimovic (Suazo 80), Cruz.

Subs Not Used: Toldo, Figo, Crespo, Maniche.

 

Sent Off: Burdisso (50).

 

Booked: Burdisso, Rivas, Stankovic, Chivu.

 

Liverpool: Reina, Carragher, Skrtel, Hyypia, Aurelio, Babel (Benayoun 61), Mascherano (Pennant 87), Gerrard, Lucas, Kuyt (Riise 81), Torres.

Subs Not Used: Itandje, Voronin, Crouch, Arbeloa.

 

Booked: Babel, Gerrard, Aurelio, Benayoun.

 

Goals: Torres 64.

 

Att: 80,000

 

Ref: Tom Ovrebo (Norway).

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/7285152.stm

Bang goes another Italian Giant

 

*holds hopes for an all english Semi-final line-up*