Arsenal pulled off one of the most decisive Champions League wins in history against Porto on Tuesday. Bendnter bagged his first hat trick, Eboue scored off of a beautiful Arshavin assist, and Nasri scored THE goal of his career.
Will the Gunner’s be able to out-finess more physical teams like Chelsea and Inter?
Arsenal v FC Porto
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Stevan Jovetic – photo credit: Getty Images
Despite being knocked out by Bayern Munich on goal aggregate, you have to appreciate Fiorentina’s performance today. Anyone who saw the game couldn’t help noticing the talents of 20 year old Stevan Jovetic. He had 2 goals on the day and immediately became a summer-transfer target for larger clubs.
Jovetic started his career at Partizan when he was 16 and was named the squad’s captain just two years later. After scoring 12 goals in 51 appearances for the club, Jovetic received interest from high-profile teams such as Manchester United and Real Madrid, but instead made the move to Serie A squad Fiorentina. He netted two goals to beat Liverpool in last season’s group stage of the UEFA Champions League. After today’s performance, the young stunner has surely earned a place in Viola history.
By Jake Glavies
In a country with a population smaller than that of Los Angeles or New York, a former football power is plotting its return to glory.
Situated in the Portuguese capital of Lisbon, Benfica – one of the most decorated teams of the 1960s – has claimed a league-leading 31 Portuguese Liga titles, but has recently fallen on tough times. But in its heyday, it was known as a giant slayer. During an era when Real Madrid had won five-straight European Champions’ Cups, now known as the Champions League, spanning from 1955-60, Benfica was the first to knock the Spanish giant from its lofty perch. In 1961, tiny Benfica claimed the first of two-straight European Champions’ Cups, beating Barcelona to claim the title of best in Europe. The following year the Eagles managed to top Madrid in the finals to win their last European title.
Throughout the rest of the decade, Benfica continued its push for greatness. Making it to the European Cup finals in 1963, ’65 and ’68, the Lisbon squad was one of the top clubs of its day. And it was reflected in the company it kept. After downing Barcelona and Real Madrid in its two cup victories, Benfica clashed with such giants as Milan (1963), Inter (1965) and Manchester United (1968) before the golden age in Lisbon came to a close. By the time the decade was over, the squad had added eight Portuguese Liga titles and three Portuguese Cups to its haul.
The Eagles soared to the top of the soccer ranks on the back of the legendary Eusebio. As the only Benfica player to ever win the Ballon d’Or (1965) and European Golden Boot Awards (1968, 1973), it was Eusebio that carried the club to greatness. Often overlooked in the annals of soccer history, he managed to score an astonishing 727 goals in 715 career matches. He helped Benfica to four more Liga titles and two Portuguese Cups before leaving the club in 1975.
Benfica managed to reach the European Cup final twice in the late 1980s, but after Eusebio left the squad became a shell of its former self. Not only did it drop out of the European scene, but it was struggling to be the best in its own country. Winning just 10 league titles since 1975, with the most recent coming in 2004, the Eagles have given way to rival club Porto. Benfica may have been the class of the Liga in the past, but it’s Porto leading the way now – winning six of the last seven league titles and 24 overall.
The squad has reason to be hopeful of a turnaround, though. Through 20 matches this season, new manager Jorge Jesus has the Eagles back on top of the Liga table. Led by talented players such as Oscar Cardozo, 16 goals, and goalkeeper Quim – who’s allowed just 10 scores this season with 11 clean sheets – the future is looking very bright for Benfica.
By Jake Glavies
David Beckham’s first match against former club Manchester United was a bit anticlimactic thanks in large part to the stellar play of striker Wayne Rooney.
Playing at the San Siro in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 Tuesday, Rooney was nothing short of magnificent while netting two late goals in just eight minutes to give United a 3-2 victory over Beckham and AC Milan. The first goal came in the 66th minute when Rooney headed home a cross from substitute Antonio Valencia; he used his head again for his second score, knocking in a pass from Darren Fletcher. The scores were Rooney’s first European goals of a year, which give him a total of 25 for the season.
Milan got on the board first when Ronaldinho scored in the third minute off a Beckham free kick. Paul Scholes made it a 1-1 match with a goal in the 36th minute. After the break it was all Rooney until Milan’s Clarence Seedorf drew the Rossoneri to within one, hitting the back of the net at the 85-minute mark.
AC Milan v Manchester United
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In other Champions League action, Lyon stunned red-hot Real Madrid 1-0 in the first leg of their showdown. Jean Makoun netted the match’s lone goal when he scored on a rocket shot from 25-yards out. Madrid dominated every facet of the match except the scoreboard. The squad had six shots on goal compared to four for Lyon; it also attempted three more corners and held the ball for 66 percent of the match.
The closest Madrid got to lighting up the scoreboard came in the first half when Gonzalo Higuaín received a quality pass from Cristiano Ronaldo but couldn’t manage to get past defender Jean-Alain Boumsong. In the second half, Ronaldo tried his best from 25-yards away but was rejected by goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.
Olympique Lyon v Real Madrid
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Heading into the match, the return of former Lyon star Karim Benzema dominated headlines. Benzema entered the match in the 64th minute as a substitute for Higuaín and had little to show leading up to the final whistle.
Despite allowing an away goal, Madrid’s statistical dominance Tuesday will give it an advantage when Lyon travels to the Bernabeu March 10. United will take its distinct goal advantage home to Old Trafford when it faces Milan again the same day.
BBC recently named Ryan Giggs their sports personality of the year. He is the first footballer to win since David Beckham in 2001. Giggs, who recently signed on for another season at United, has appeared in more games (all at united) than any other player in the history of the premier league.
He was compared to a young George Best when he turned pro 20 years ago. Today, he is just plain Giggsy. No one like him.
In case you needed a reminder…
The competition is only 6 years old, but its roots go back for decades. The tournament is, in theory, a year-end celebration of the world’s best football clubs. Champions from each continent are competing in the United Arab Emirates from December 9th – 19th. Competitors include:
FC Barcelona: Champions League Winners
Club Estudiantes de la Plata: Libertadores Cup winners
Aukland City FC: OFC Club Championship winners
Pohang Steelers: Asian Champions League winners
TP Mazembe: CAF Champions League winners
Atlante Futbol Club: CONCACAF Champions Cup winners
And representing the host nation will be Al Ahli FC.
MLS teams need to figure out how to be more competitive in CONCACAF cup competition. If America’s best club can make it into a tournament with the UEFA Champions League winners, club soccer in this country will flourish. In order to make this happen, American clubs need to rally together and figure out how to play more games in multiple tournaments. While base salary for MLS players is staggeringly low, the organizations must understand that more games will lead to more competition, which will (we have to believe it) bring more money and fan support to clubs.
The top two teams in each category will advance to the round of 16.
Juventus, Liverpool, and Atletico Madrid are officially bound for the Europa League.
Real Madrid put on an inspired performance against OM today to finish at the top of their group. Cristiano Ronaldo was brilliant, adding another 2 notches to his UCL belt.
Bayern Munich is back. Today’s 3-1 victory can be attributed to tough defense and chance-creation from midfield. Juventus started strong with a goal from Trezeguet, but ultimately fell to an overpowering Munich offense. The German club made it into the round of 16 without having to rely on an injured Franck Ribery.
Some people criticize Bayern for having lost their “guiding philosophy,” but I say it was alive and well today.
Here are the UCL fixtures for this week:
