BobBev Posted January 9, 2004 Author Share Posted January 9, 2004 ESW Online has been updated. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted January 16, 2004 Author Share Posted January 16, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 24 - Friday January 16th, 2004 News Dinamo Kiev coach Oleg Kuznetsov had been publicly talking up top Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko (27, S C). His manager at Milan, Carlo Ancelotti, echoed Kuznetsov’s sentiments. So far this season Shevchenko has found the net 20 times in 26 starts and will be a strong contender for one of the major awards at the end of the season. This is the striker’s fifth season at Milan and he has scored 114 goals in 172 appearances. It hasn’t take sacked Valencia manager Mario Reis too long to find gainful employment as it was announced on Tuesday that he has been appointed to the vacant position at Sporting in Portugal. Talk about landing on your feet - he joins a club flying high at the top of the Portuguese Premier Division. Franky Van der Elst is still under pressure at Club Brugge in Belgium, despite a mini-revival that has seen them take 14 points in their last 7 games to rise to 6th in the table. In Scotland, the knives are out for Motherwell boss Terry Butcher as his team continue to prop up the Premier League table. Without a win in their last 8 games it will take something of a miracle to retain their top-flight status. League Roundup Belgium The league programme is just getting restarted after the Christmas break and there were just a couple of games played today. Anderlecht defeated AA Gent 4-1 and La Louviere had a useful 2-1 win over Mons in the bottom of the table clash. This result didn’t affect the league positions as the winners remain bottom. England A 2-0 victory at Southampton keeps Manchester United well clear of Arsenal who stay second with a 1-0 win in the London derby with Millwall. Liverpool, West Ham and Blackburn are locked together on 38 points but Liverpool’s 3-0 win at struggling West Brom takes them 3rd after West Ham were held 1-1 by Middlesbrough at Upton Park. Blackburn stay 5th with a 1-0 win at Charlton. Sunderland did themselves a big favour by winning the bottom of the table encounter with Brighton 2-0 and the two teams are now tied on 15 points with the Wearsiders still bottom on goal difference. France There was very little action in Le Championat but Toulouse kept moving in the right direction with a 3-1 defeat of struggling Guingamp. Marseille’s scoreless draw with 3rd place Rennes moves them up a place to 6th. Italy A comprehensive 4-0 defeat of Perugia stretches Milan’s lead in Serie A to 7 points. Parma played twice, each game bringing a 2-1 victory, firstly over Empoli and then Atalanta. Sampdoria were less successful defeating Ascoli 2-0 but then slipping up with a 1-0 defeat at Udinese. These results combine to take Parma second and drop Sampdoria to 3rd. 4th place Inter also played twice, suffering a surprise 1-0 defeat at Bologna and then having a scoreless draw at Empoli. Roma had but a single game, a 2-1 defeat of Palermo at the Olimpico. Torino kept up their recent good form by winning 1-0 at Chievo and holding Perugia to a 1-1 draw and they now move up to 14th. Northern Ireland Portadown’s 1-0 defeat of third placed Linfield was a significant step towards regaining their league crown as second placed Distillery slipped up with a 2-0 defeat at Coleraine. Bottom club Institute were walloped 6-0 by visiting Bohemians and frankly they might as well just give and go back to the First Division now. Portugal There was just the one league game in Portugal with table-topping Sporting held to a nil-nil draw at Salguieros. Spain The top two had comfortable wins, Barcelona triumphing 3-0 over Valladolid and Sevilla defeating Elche 2-0. Athletic Bilbao had a fine 2-0 victory over visiting Deportivo as 3rd played 4th, although there is no change in the league standings. A 3-0 win for Real Madrid over Tenerife moves them back to 5th. Turkey In the one game played Adanaspor climbed to 4th after their 3-0 win over Antalyaspor. Wales Barry Town stay top with a comfortable 3-0 defeat of Oswestry Town and Bangor City’s impressive climb up the table continues as a 2-0 win over Haverfordwest moves them up to 2nd. TN Solutions drop to 3rd after their 3-1 defeat by 4th placed Aberystwyth Town. Welshpool stay 5th having defeated Carmarthen Town 3-1. Flexsys Cefn Druids move off the bottom of the table thanks to their exciting 3-2 win at Rhyl as they climb above Afan Lido on goal difference. Cup Roundup Greece The Quarter Final lineup in the Greek Cup was decided during the week and just one Division B club has made it through. Kalamata had a good 2-1 home win over Division A Aigaleo and will face the mighty AEK in the two-legged tie. Italy The Quarter-Final second legs were completed this week. A 1-0 win for Milan gives them a 2-1 aggregate over Roma, Atalanta won 1-0 at Bologna for a 2-0 total, Parma had an excellent 2-0 win at home to Inter to go through 3-2 and Torino repeated the same result over Sampdoria. Ireland The Second Round of the Senior Challenge Cup threw up a few surprises. Non-league Ballina fought back from 2-1 down to defeat Division One Athlone Town 3-2. First Division Bray Wanderers had a good 2-0 win over Monaghan United whilst Division One Drogheda United beat Finn Harps 4-1. Spain The Second Leg in the Third Round took place during the week and Division Two side Alaves finished the job they started last week by beating Athletic Bilbao 1-0 for a 6-2 aggregate score. Spotlight on ..... Europe’s Golden Boys "Money makes the world go round" as the saying has it, and that’s as true regarding football as it is any other area of endeavour. In this week’s spotlight we will take a financial perspective on some of the top players in European football by having a look at some of the continent’s most valuable players. Of course it is very difficult to judge the value of a footballer as it is essentially subjective in nature. Much like house prices, these values are determined by supply and demand and to some extent by fashion. A player employed by a smaller, less fashionable club, will rarely have such a high price tag attached as one of their peers at a top team, irrespective of their level of skill and ability. But we are going to have ago at listing who we believe to be the highest-valued players in Europe today. Of course the actual price that a club may have to pay for any individual player probably won’t match their nominal value. A player in demand may trigger a bidding war that pushes the price upwards. Conversely, an unsettled and unhappy player may be allowed to leave for less that his "true" value for the sake of team unity. Anyway, we’ll make a stab at it. Luca Toni (26, S C), Roma, £24.5M The hottest property in Italian football right now, Luca has come to superstardom relatively late in his career. Roma paid Serie B club Brescia just £3M this summer for the man that just can’t stop scoring goals - 21 in 28 games so far this season. Joaquin (22, D/AM R), Milan, £23.5M The young Spaniard joined Milan on a Bosman in the summer from Real Betis and has quickly established his position on the right side of the defence. Adriano (21, F C), Parma, £22.5M This young Brazilian forward is in his third season with Parma and he has established an excellent striking partnership with Romanian Adrian Mutu (25, F RLC). Dede (25, D/DM L), Dortmund, £22M Now in his sixth season at the Westfalenstadion, this Brazilian defender is a key component of the meanest defence in German football. Tomas Rosicky (23 AM/F RC), Dortmund, £22M This exciting Czech attacker plays in the hole behind Dortmund’s twin strikers and does so very effectively. Francesco Totti (27, F C), Roma, £20.5M The Roma captain has found himself somewhat overshadowed by the arrival of Luca Toni and is not having his most productive season. This isn’t helped by manager Fabio Capello seeming to be uncertain whether to play Totti as a striker alongside Toni or as part of the midfield. Andriy Shevchenko (27, S C), Milan, £20M With 20 goals so far this season the Ukrainian goal machine is on course for his best ever season in Italy. Javier Saviola (22, F C), Barcelona, £19.5M Now in his third season at the Nou Camp the young Argentinean has formed a deadly partnership with fellow striker Patrick Kluivert (27, S C). Walter Samuel (25, SW/D C), Roma, £19.5M Dubbed "the complete defender", the Argentinean centre back is at the heart of the Roma defence alongside compatriot Roberto Ayala (30, SW/D C). David Trezeguet (26, S C), Juventus, £19.5M With 36 goals in 59 appearances for his country, the French striker is one of the most feared goalscorers in international football. Fernando Morientes (27, S C), Real Madrid, £19.25M Injuries kept Morientes sidelined for much of the early part of the season but he is starting to get more playing time and looks to be back to full fitness. Patrick Kluivert (27, S C), Barcelona, £19.25M The other half of the strike force that have banged in 37 goals between them so far this season. David Beckham (28, M RC), Manchester United, £18.75M The original "Golden Balls" continues to be a potent weapon both for club and country. Juan Sebastian Veron (28, AM C), Manchester United, £18.5M Seba continues to be very highly rated although in our opinion his performances at Old Trafford do not really justify the price tag. Ruud van Nistelrooy (27, S C), Manchester United, £18.25M Ruud’s strike rate stands comparison to any other striker in world football. He scored 42 goals in 51 games last season and this year so far he has found the net 25 times in 36 appearances. Game of the Week Saturday January 10th, 2004 Welsh Premier League Rhyl 2 Flexsys Cefn Druids 3 There were a few things worthy of note as the two teams lines up in a sparsely populated Belle Vue stadium. One was the presence in the centre of the Rhyl defence of loan signing Paul Morris as he was facing his own club. The second was the rather exotic flavour given to the proceedings by the presence of Tahitians in the home team colours. It does seem a rather unusual location to find South Sea Islanders playing football and with the temperature just above freezing they were well muffled against the cold. The Druids came into this game bottom of the table, but having won two of their last three matches. Both sides line up in a 4-4-2 formation and it was the visitors that were first to show when top scorer Kevin Scott sent a shot narrowly over the bar. However the home side were soon pressing forward and Druids captain David Blower made a fine save from Ian Fitzpatrick. It was a high tempo opening and the Druids had the next opportunity but Rhyl player/manager Roger Freestone dealt well with Kristian Kopke’s goalbound effort. Rhyl immediately hit back but Matthew Trevett couldn’t keep his shot on target, well struck as it was. The same player came close with a header moments later but once again failed to trouble Blower. The breakthrough came as a result of a corner conceded by Freestone when he tipped a Scott volley round the post. Gareth Rickard sent in the cross and Stephen O’Hare claimed his first goal for the Druids since arriving on loan from Haverfordwest. Just on the half hour mark Trevett pounced on a through ball and tucked it away only to see the flag raised for an offside decision. But a couple of minutes later is was all square. Craig Evans found Carl Robinson in the area with a lofted pass, and although Blower parried the first header, Robinson was able to stretch to the rebound to prod it home. Then just a few minutes before half time Kopke scored the goal of the game to put the Druids back in front. Picking up the ball just inside his own half he made a determined run deep into opposition territory before unleashing a powerful shot past a static Freestone. Rhyl started the second half positively, clearly keen to even things up again. Nathan Cadette was set up well by Robinson but the midfielder’s shot was just wide. The impressive Craig Evans then freed Trevett only to see Blower make a fingertip save. Evans it was again who made the next opportunity, giving Robinson the chance to send in a powerful right-footed shot that Blower somehow kept out. The Druids captain was doing his utmost to keep his team in front and this was typified by a superb double save. Carl Robinson sent in a teasing low cross and the Tahitian Vatea Laisan met it first time. Blower did really well to keep it out but did even better to block Trevett’s shot from the rebound. The Rhly pressure finally told when Cadette got to the by-line, played in a great low ball behind the defence and the inrushing Trevett fired home. But to the delight of the visitors the lead was short lived indeed. The Druids attacked straight from the restart and a neat four man passing move was finished off with a powerful header from Gareth Phillips to restore the Druids advantage. The home side strove manfully to repair the damage in the time remaining but once again were denied by Blower. First a free kick from Cadette was well saved and then a Trevett shot was kept out once more by the visiting captain. Teams Rhyl: Roger Freestone, Ian Fitzpatrick, Nathan Owen, Paul Morris, Tim Edwards (Captain), Craig Evans, Vatea Laisan, Nathan Cadette, Carl Robinson, Matthew Trevett, Gareth Wilson Subs not used: David John, Jason Garner, Michel Hmae, James Brewerton, Calixte Tetuanui Flexsys Cefn Druids: David Blower (Captain), Kevin Jones, Kevin Brown, Stephen O’Hare, Gary Jefferies (Paul Rees 67), Lee Matthews, Terry Green, Gareth Rickard, Gareth Phillips, Kevin Scott, Kristian Kopke Subs not used: David Evans, Marc Robinson, Mark Allen, Shay Dunphy Scorers Rhyl: Robinson 32, Trevett 75 Flexsys Cefn Druids: O’Hare 19, Kipke 41, Phillips 76 Man of the Match: Craig Evans Attendance: 823 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted January 18, 2004 Author Share Posted January 18, 2004 ESW Online has been updated. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 18, 2004 Share Posted January 18, 2004 Wow, this is pretty intresting stuff, nice work. I'll be sure to visit ur site for the next issue. Looks like u've put alot of time and effort into this. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HD Posted January 18, 2004 Share Posted January 18, 2004 as simple and superb as ever Bob, a testament to your hard work Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gino Posted January 18, 2004 Share Posted January 18, 2004 Can't believe how poorly Burnley are doing, slumping towards the foot of the Second Division! Loving it, Bob! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
spurzgrrl Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 COME ONE YOU SPURS! COME ONE YOU SPURS! Thanks, ESW; your predicted 2-1 win for mighty Spurs at Liverpool was much appreciated here in Bizarro World, where these kinds of predictions come true (so watch out, Gino!). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted January 23, 2004 Author Share Posted January 23, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 25 - Friday January 23rd, 2004 News The Italian press have been giving Roberto Ayala (30, SW/D C) a hard time recently, suggesting that the Argentinean’s performances have not been of the standard that the Roma supporters expect. His manager Fabio Capello immediately leapt to the player’s defence stating that he was very happy with the defender’s contribution this season. Newcastle boss Martin O’Neill is rumoured to be in deep trouble as his team continue to struggle. Having taken just 4 points from their last 7 games they have slipped to 12th in the Premiership and have been eliminated from the League Cup and the UEFA Cup. Henri Michel continues to feel the heat at PSG despite just 1 defeat in their last 6 games. In Italy, Perugia have now parted company with boss Serse Cosmi after 6 defeats in their last 7 games has taken them to the brink of the relegation places in Serie A. In Portugal, Vitoria Setubal boss Jose Vieira de Carvalho is hanging on by his fingernails as his team hover just above the relegation places on goal difference. Welsh legend Dean Saunders has paid a heavy price for Cwmbran Town’s poor season as he was dismissed by the board. This comes less than a year after he led them to the Premier League title. There were a couple of notable transfers this week. Irish international Stephen McPhail (24, M LC) made a £3.2M move from Leeds to local rivals Sheffield Wednesday and the experienced Colombian Harold Lozano (31, DM RC) was sold by Mallorca to Valencia for a £5.5M fee. League Roundup Belgium The league programme is now back in full swing and a 1-0 victory for Sint-Truiden over Mouscron keeps them top of the table. Charleroi are now two points adrift following their nil-nil draw with Lierse, Anderlecht are a further 2 points back in third and Club Brugge go above Racing Genk on goal difference after their fine 4-0 win over Standard Liege. England Premiership leaders Manchester United were held to a scoreless draw by Aston Villa at Old Trafford so Arsenal’s 3-0 win in the London derby at Chelsea sees them now 8 points behind. A narrow 1-0 win for Liverpool over Sunderland keeps them 3rd and a good 4-1 win for West Ham at Brighton maintains the Hammers 4th place. A 2-0 win over Millwall takes Blackburn to 5th and Middlesbrough go 6th after a 2-0 defeat of Southampton. Brighton slip to the bottom of the table on goal difference behind Sunderland and a point for West Brom in a goalless draw at Tottenham moves them to within 2 points of Charlton. France A 1-0 win at Bordeaux keeps Nantes top with a game in hand over Sedan who are now 4 points off the pace after a 0-0 draw at PSG. Rennes stay 3rd, and 4th place Lyon and 5th place Auxerre shared the points in a 2-2 draw. Lorient move off the bottom after a 1-0 win at Caen and they are now equal on points with Guingamp. Troyes picked up a point after a 1-1 draw with Monaco and Bastia drop to last place following their 3-1 defeat at Lens. Italy Serie A leaders Milan defeated Lecce 1-0 and second place Parma beat Perugia 3-1. Inter move up to 3rd after a 3-1 win at Chievo and Sampdoria drop to 4th with a 0-0 draw with Empoli. Roma stay 5th with a 1-1 draw at Atalanta but Juventus move up a place to 6th after a 3-0 defeat of Palermo and Lazio drop to 7th following their 1-1 draw with Torino. Strugglers Ancona gained a point in a scoreless draw in the relegation tussle with Ascoli and are replaced at the bottom of the table by Chievo. Northern Ireland There wasn’t much league action this week but Distillery maintain second place with a narrow 1-0 win over Bangor and Glentoran’s 2-1 win at Linfield sees the two swap places in 3rd and 4th respectively. Portugal Benfica rise to second in the table after their 3-2 defeat of Maritimo, Gil Vicente slip to 3rd after a 1-1 draw with Beira-Mar and Porto go 4th with a 1-0 win over Vit. Guimaraes. The bottom half of the table is very congested. Braga are rock bottom and 6 points adrift despite picking up a point in a 2-2 draw at U. Madeira but just 4 points separates 8th from 17th. Republic of Ireland Leaders Dundalk were held to a 2-2 draw by 3rd place Bohemians. Boh’s had a midweek game as well and beat Shelbourne 2-1. Derry City’s mini-revival was dealt a blow with a 1-0 defeat at St. Pat’s Athletic who also beat Waterford United 3-0 in midweek. Bottom club Finn Harps had a rare win with a 2-1 victory over Shelbourne and now there is just 2 points between the bottom three. Scotland The SPL is back in full swing and Rangers maintain their slender 1-point advantage at the top with a 2-0 win at bottom club Motherwell. Celtic beat Aberdeen 2-1, Livingston recorded the same score at Hearts and Raith Rovers beat Dundee United 2-0. Spain It was a busy week in the Primera Liga with many clubs playing twice. Barcelona picked up maximum points with a 3-0 defeat of Tenerife and a 2-0 win at Espanyol and now have a 7 point lead with games in hand. Sevilla had a mixed week beating Malaga 3-1 but losing 2-0 at Deportivo but they remain 2nd. Depo’s second game was a 0-0 draw at Real Madrid and they remain 3rd. Athletic Bilbao stay 4th with a scoreless draw with Elche and a good 4-1 win at Tenerife. At the foot of the table Betis have crept out of the bottom three thanks to a 2-2 draw at Levante and a nil-nil stalemate with Racing Santander. Turkey The Christmas break is now complete and we had a full league programme this week. Leaders Besiktas defeated Göztepe 2-1 and 2nd place Fenerbahçe won 1-0 at Sekerspor but Galatasaray suffered a surprise 2-1 defeat by visiting Trabzonspor although they do remain 3rd. Wales The top three in the Premiership are now tied on 40 points following this weeks games. Bangor City are top on goal difference after a thrilling 3-3 draw at Welshpool, Aberystwyth Town are 2nd having won 3-1 at Oswestry Town and Barry Town’s 2-0 defeat at Port Talbot Town sees them down in 3rd. Afan Lido are now 16th after a 1-0 win at Cwmbran Town, Flexsys Cefn Druids move up to 17th after a last minute equaliser gave them a 3-3 draw with Newtown and Oswestry Town have now dropped to the foot of the table. Cup Roundup Belgium The Belgian Cup Quarter Finals were played out this week. Second Division Heusden reached the end of the road when visitord Standard Liege left with a 2-0 win. Beveren beat league leaders Sint-Truiden 2-1, Club Brugge triumphed 1-0 at Charleroi and Racing Genk disposed of Antwerp 2-0. The recent good form of Club Brugge, which has seen them rise to 4th in the table as well as reaching the Cup Semi Final, has taken much of the pressure off manager Franky Van der Elst. Germany In was Quarter Final time in the German cup as well. 1860 München defeated Hannover 96 1-0 and Schalke 04 went out on penalties to HSV after a scoreless encounter. Leverkusen had a 2-0 win at Hertha BSC but the shock of the round was the 2-0 elimination of FC Bayern at M'gladbach and Leverkusen are now firm favourites to win the trophy. Italy The Italian Cup Semi Final first leg games were played this week and favourites Parma and Milan are in pole position to meet in the final after they both recorded identical 2-1 victories at Atalanta and Torino respectively. Northern Ireland The 5th round of the Northern Irish Cup took place last Saturday. The tie of the round featured Portadown entertaining Premier Division rivals Glenavon and the game finished as a 1-1 draw with the visitors scoring late on to force a replay. They met again on Wednesday at Glenavon and the home team triumphed 3-1. First Division Ballyclare had a good 4-2 win over Newry of the Premier Division. Non-league Coagh United held visiting Dungannon of the First Division 2-2 but succumbed 4-1 in the replay. Crewe United went one better against Ards after another 2-2 home draw as they managed to win the replay on penalties after a 0-0 stalemate. Non-league Donegal Celtic didn’t need a replay against First Division Carrick as they beat the visitors 2-0 at the first time of asking. But possibly the best result of the round was non-league Loughgall’s 3-0 demolition of struggling Premier team Institute. Republic of Ireland The first leg of the League Cup Final took place midweek and Premier Division Shamrock Rovers will take a narrow 2-1 lead into the second leg at First Division Dublin City. Spotlight on ..... The 2002 World Cup With the draw for the Euro 2004 finals due to take place in a couple of weeks we thought that this might be an interesting time to take a look back at the 2002 World Cup played in South Korea and Japan. The group stages went pretty much as expected, with one or two exceptions. France and Uruguay qualified from Group A with France winning all three of their games. In Group B, Spain finished top with a 100% record and Paraguay, Slovenia and South Africa all finished with two points each but Slovenia squeezed through on goal difference. Group C was interesting and Brazil finished on top after recovering from an opening 3-2 defeat by Turkey to win their other two matches. China were very unfortunate not to progress as they had a narrow 2-1 defeat to Brazil and held Turkey to a scoreless draw. They ended level on points with the Turks but were just pushed into third place on goal difference. In Group D, Portugal had a 100% record to finish top and the USA, South Korea and Poland all finished with three points each with the joint hosts just getting through on goal difference. Germany topped Group E with 2 wins and Ireland and Saudi Arabia were tied on 4 points each, with the Irish progressing on goal difference. In Group F, Argentina won all three of their matches to qualify as group winners and England were runners-up with 6 points. England disappointed in their 2-0 loss to Argentina but made up for it with a dominant 3-0 defeat of Nigeria to make sure of qualification. Italy qualified from Group G with three wins out of three and Croatia were runners-up. In the final group, Russia had a 100% record and Belgium finished in second place but sadly joint hosts Japan failed to gain a point. In the second round France had a comfortable 2-0 win over minnows Slovenia with captain Bixente Lizarazu excelling and Turkey had a narrow 1-0 win over Portugal. In one of the most exciting matches of the round England beat arch-rivals Germany 3-2. The Germans fought back from 2-0 down to tie the score but the match turned when Thomas Linke was dismissed two minutes from time and Paul Scholes calmly converted the resulting penalty. Russia had a swashbuckling 3-1 win over Croatia and Brazil squeezed past South Korea 1-0. In an enthralling encounter Spain fought back from a 2-0 deficit to edge Uruguay 3-2. Argentina overcame brave Irish resistance to record a narrow 1-0 win and Italy were never threatened in their 2-0 defeat of Belgium. The Quarter Final matches featured some terrific football. England were reduced to 10 men against Russia when Paul Scholes went from hero to villain by being sent off just 14 minutes into the game. The game ended 1-1 after extra time but Ashley Cole and Nick Barmby missed England’s first two spot kicks in the shootout and Russia went through. Zinedine Zidane put France ahead early on against Turkey but two goals and an inspired performance from Umit Karan saw the Turks end up 3-1 victors. Argentina were 2-0 ahead against Italy and seemingly cruising to a comfortable win when defender Walter Samuel was dismissed just before half time. Three goals from Italy in the second period saw them triumph 3-2 with the outstanding Gianluca Zambrotta finding the net twice. Finally Spain at last gave their long-suffering supporters something to cheer as they upset Brazil 2-0 with an inspirational Gaizka Mendieta the architect of the victory. The Semi Finals were both tight affairs. Russia edged past Turkey 1-0 thanks to a evergreen display by the veteran Alexander Mostovoi. Gianluca Zambrotta was the hero for Italy again as they beat Spain 2-1. It looked like Gaizka Mendieta may have triggered a fightback when he reduced the deficit with 10 minutes remaining but he was unfortunately dismissed just minutes later. Spain went some way towards erasing their disappointment by winning the Third Place Playoff over Turkey 1-0. A somewhat disappointing final between Italy and Russia was won 2-1 by the Italians. The game was not as close as the scoreline suggests as the Russian goal was a very late consolation. Game of the Week Monday January 19th, 2004 English Premier League Brighton 1 West Ham 4 A Jermain Defoe hat trick was more than enough for high-flying West Ham to dispose of a struggling Brighton at the Withdean Stadium. The home side are staring relegation in the face as they prop up the rest of the division and Steve McMahon’s West Ham are chasing European qualification. There was no doubting the gulf between the teams as Brighton barely managed a shot on target all evening. Defoe was in action virtually straight from the kick off, forcing Scott Cook into two early saves before he headed home a Lee Bowyer corner after quarter of an hour played. Within 10 minutes of the opening goal Northern Ireland international Stuart Elliot added a second when he out-jumped Adam Virgo to get his head to a Paul Merson free kick. Merson may now be in his 36th year but his right foot is still as sweet as ever. Brighton had barely time to draw breath before Defoe’s second goal of the night put the game firmly out of their reach. The England U21 international started and ended the move. It was his pass that sought out Elliot who made good ground before finding Mauro Navas. The Argentinean fullback found Merson in the area who played a cushioned knockdown for the inrushing Defoe to finish neatly. To their credit, Brighton kept working hard to find a way back into the game and just before the hour mark substitute Matthew Turner gave them some hope when he rounded off Brighton’s best move of the match with his first touch of the ball. But it proved to be a short-lived revival as West Ham pressed forward. Hammers substitute Paolo Di Canio almost scored with his first touch but Cook denied him with an excellent save. With 20 minutes remaining Defoe completed his hat trick and extinguished any faint hope that the home side may have had. Lee Bowyer was the architect as he penetrated the Brighton defence with a powerful and incisive run before squaring for Defoe to cap off a brilliant move with a neat half-volley. Referee Frank Paulus was somewhat over-enthusiastic in his officiating, booking no less than 5 Hammers players and showing two yellow cards to Brighton’s Ryan Robinson, the second of which saw the defender leave the pitch in the 90th minute. Teams Brighton: Scott Cook, Fabian Wilnis, Ryan Robinson, Mike Duff, Adam Virgo (Matthew Turner 54), Shaun Wilkinson (David McGhee 54), David Lee, Rory Delap (Captain), Bobby Zamora, Sergio Floro (Paul Kitson 54), Graham Pearce Subs not used: Kiriakos Stamatopoulos, Alan Crouch West Ham: Ruslan Nigmatullin (Captain), Jamie McCunnie, Mauro Navas (Paolo Di Canio 61), Christian Dailly, Tomas Repka, Clarke Carlisle, Lee Bowyer, Paul Merson, Stuart Elliot, Jermain Defoe, Quinton Fortune Subs not used: David James, Tony Hibbert, Trent McClenahan, Frederic Kanoute Scorers Brighton: Turner 57 West Ham: Defoe 16, 28, 70, Elliot 25 Man of the Match: Jermain Defoe Yellow Cards Brighton: Robinson West Ham: Navas, Dailly, Repka, Bowyer, Elliot Red Cards Brighton: Robinson Attendance: 9,957 Reader’s Letters This week ESW was gratified to hear from several readers. New subscriber Fantaboy was fulsome in his praise and we thank him for his kind words. We also heard from regular correspondents HD, Gino and spurzgrrl and it’s nice to know that they still find our modest publication of interest. Gino - look for an update on your Burnley section in the hear future and HD and spurzgrrl, we have plans for Ayr United and Tottenham sections just for you so stay tuned. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terk Posted January 23, 2004 Share Posted January 23, 2004 good to see liverpool keeping around the top end of the table but hearts seem to be in a whole world of trouble excellent work bobbev Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted January 24, 2004 Author Share Posted January 24, 2004 ESW Online has ben updated. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeytonOrient212 Posted January 24, 2004 Share Posted January 24, 2004 just a quick question, how's Gary Alexander's career going? KUTGW, it's brilliant Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 24, 2004 Share Posted January 24, 2004 Arsenal 8 points behind man utd. Hope they can pull it back somehow. But at least Defoe is living up to expectations with that hat-trick. Keep up the good work BobBev. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted January 30, 2004 Author Share Posted January 30, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 26 - Friday January 30th, 2004 News The English papers are getting all misty-eyed about Man Utd goal-meister Ruud van Nistelrooy. The Dutch international has been finding the back of the net with monotonous regularity this season and has the Old Trafford faithful purring with delight. As Newcastle suffer their third consecutive 3-2 defeat in the Premier League, the pressure mounts on Martin O’Neill. Having left a position at Celtic where he could do no wrong, his first season saw his team gain a respectable 4th place finish. But now lying in 13th place the highly-strung Irishman finds himself under intense criticism for the first time in his managerial career. Lens boss Joel Muller is now under some pressure to turn things around as last season’s champions languish in 10th place in the French First Division. In Italy, Perugia have tempted former Sampdoria boss Walter Alfredo Novellino to leave Serie C1A side Fiorentina after less than 12 months at the helm. Cwmbran Town have poached ex-Wales international Peter Nicholas from non-league Newport County to replace recently-fired Dean Saunders. League Roundup Belgium With the top three all drawing their games this week 4th place Club Brugge closed the gap slightly thanks to their 1-0 win at AA Gent. Leaders Sint-Truiden had a 1-1 draw at Standard Liege, Charleroi stay 2nd after a thrilling 3-3 draw with Lokeren and Anderlecht were held 1-1 at Beveren. La Louviere are stuck at the foot of the table as they lost 2-1 at Lommel but Mons move out of the bottom two after a 6-0 trashing of hapless Antwerp who slip into the second relegation place. England With Man Utd not in action this week, Arsenal were able to close the gap at the top to 5 points following their 2-0 win at Blackburn. Liverpool’s 4-1 defeat of Fulham keeps them 3rd and Middlesbrough climb above inactive West Ham to 4th having beaten local rivals Sunderland 2-0 at the Riverside. A 2-1 win for West Brom in the big relegation match at Brighton takes them out of the bottom three - they are replaced by Charlton as they lost 1-0 in the London derby at Tottenham. France Nantes stretch their lead to 6 points with a game in had after their comfortable 4-1 win at bottom club Troyes as Sedan played out a 2-2 draw at Auxerre. St.Etienne climb to 5th with their fourth win in five, a 2-1 defeat of 3rd place Rennes. Marseille’s narrow 1-0 over struggling Lorient keeps them in 4th place. Germany The Bundesliga is now back in action and Nürnberg stay top with a 2-0 defeat of 1.FC Köln and Dortmund won 2-0 at Wolfsburg to stay 2nd. Schalke 04 maintain 3rd place having beaten M'gladbach by the odd goal in 7. A comfortable 4-0 win over cellar-dwellers Cottbus takes Leverkusen 4th as FC Bayern slip down a place after a 1-1 draw with Hannover 96. Greece The Greek First Division is also back into the swing of things and Panathinaikos and Olympiakos stay first and second after they both won. Italy Milan hold on to first place despite being held 1-1 at relegation-threatened Palermo. Parma played twice in the week and a 2-2 draw at Lecce followed by a 3-1 win at Ascoli keeps them in second position. Inter had mixed fortunes but a 1-0 home defeat by Lazio followed by a 3-0 win over rock-bottom Ancona still sees them third. Sampdoria stay 4th despite dropping points in a 1-1 draw at Perugia and a narrow 1-0 win for Roma against Juventus keeps them 5th. A 1-0 win for Ascoli over Bologna takes them out of the bottom four with Perugia replacing them in spite of picking up a point. Northern Ireland Leaders Portadown suffered two shock home defeats this week. They lost 4-1 to Bangor at the weekend and again in midweek 4-2 to Coleraine. A 2-1 win for Distillery at Linfield reduces the gap to 5 points and the title race is on again. Bottom club Institute managed a point in a 2-2 draw with Newry but remain some 24 points from safety and relegation is a foregone conclusion. Portugal Benfica have now taken over at the top of the table as they beat Vit. Setúbal 2-0 last weekend and won 1-0 at Braga earlier today. Sporting were kept scoreless at P. Ferreira and slip to second place but they have a game in hand. Gil Vicente stay third having beaten Salgueiros 2-0 and Porto’s 2-0 win over Beira-Mar keeps them fourth. Braga lost twice and stay bottom still 6 points from safety. Republic of Ireland Leaders Dundalk kept up the pace with a 3-1 win at Kildare County. Shamrock Rovers played twice but failed to take full advantage of their game in hand. A 2-1 win over Waterford Utd at the weekend was followed by a 2-1 defeat at Derry City on Wednesday. Bohemians maintain third place with a 3-2 win at Waterford Utd despite being 2-1 behind and a man short. Scotland Wins for Rangers and Celtic ensure that the SPL remains a two horse race. Rangers beat St. Johnstone 3-0 and Celtic won 3-1 at Dundee Utd. A 3-1 win for Livingston over Hibs and a 1-0 win for Raith Rovers at Hearts keep them neck and neck in 3rd and 4th. Motherwell’s 1-0 defeat at Aberdeen keeps them locked at the foot of the table 6 points off the pace. Spain Leaders Barcelona lost 1-0 in a tight game at Deportivo who move up to third and second place Sevilla were beaten 1-0 at Valencia. A 5-1 win for Athletic Bilbao at struggling Malaga keeps them 4th and Real Madrid remain 5th after a narrow 1-0 win at bottom club Elche. Turkey Top club Besiktas had an excellent 4-1 win at home to Galatasaray increasing the pressure on manager Yilmaz Vural as his team slide to 4th. Another win for Besiktas earlier today has increased their lead to 3 points over Fenerbahçe who beat Kocaelispor 2-1 at the weekend. Wales A 4-1 win for in-form Bangor City keeps them top and Aberystwyth Town stay second after a tight 1-0 win over Port Talbot Town. A 1-1 draw with Welshpool sees T.N. Solutions in third place and Barry Town slip to 4th having lost 3-0 at home to Caersws. Cup Roundup England The League Cup Semi Final first leg matches were played this week. First Division Portsmouth were defeated 2-0 by Man Utd at Fratton Park and Second Division Hull lost 2-1 to Leeds after a battling performance at the Kingston Stadium. Portugal Results went as expected in the Sixth round of the Portuguese Cup apart from a good win for Second Division Farense who beat Premier League U. Madeira 2-1. Spain In the Spanish Cup Quarter final first leg ties Barcelona brushed aside Elche 5-0, Real Madrid narrowly defeated Oviedo 1-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu and Betis drew 1-1 at Valencia. But the result of the round was Second Division Mallorca’s 2-1 defeat of visiting Alaves. Turkey The Turkish Cup Quarter Finals threw up a couple of surprises. 2CA club A. Demirspor had a fine 2-1 win over G. Birligi after extra time and Siirt JETPAspor, also a 2CA club, had a superb 3-1 win over Kocaelispor. In the other games Fenerbahçe beat Istanbulspor 3-0 and Göztepe upset Galatasaray 2-1. Spotlight on ..... Where Are They Now? In this weeks Spotlight we’ll take some well-known names from the past and have a look at what they are up to now. Vinny Jones (39) The ex-Wimbledon hardman who won 9 caps in his short international career with Wales is now scouting for Middlesbrough. John Collins (36) After a distinguished playing career that encompassed spells at Celtic, Monaco, Everton and Fulham and saw the classy midfielder gain 58 caps for his country, Collins has now returned north and is Player/Manager of First Division Falkirk. Appointed in April last year, he is still playing regularly and his team is pushing for promotion to the SPL. Roger Milla (51) The unlikely hero for Cameroon in the 1990 World Cup he is now on the scouting staff of Montpellier who are flying high in the French Second Division. Russell Osman (44) The ex-Ipswich defender, capped 6 times for England, is still at Portman Road as part of the scouting setup. Ian Rush (42) The Liverpool and Wales goalscoring legend is Director of Football at T.N. Solutions in the Welsh Premier League. Lee Dixon (39) The ex-Arsenal and England fullback is part of the backroom staff at Arbroath in the Scottish First Division where he has teamed up with former Tottenham defender Gary Mabbutt (42). Kerry Dixon (42) Former Chelsea striker who also won 8 England caps, Dixon is now managing non-league Letchworth Town. Tony Adams (37) Ex-Arsenal and England captain Tony Adams is now employed by Manchester City as a coach. Viv Anderson (47) The former Notts Forest defender was the first black player ever to represent England and he went on to win 30 caps for his country. He is on the coaching staff at Motherwell helping out old mate Terry Butcher (45). Mo Johnston (40) The flamboyant former Celtic player made history when he became the first big name Catholic star to play for Rangers and the first catholic signing for the club since World War II. He is now coaching in the USA at the Kansas City Wizards. Ian Wright (40) The former Arsenal favourite, Ian Wright Wright Wright is now part of the coaching staff at Crystal Place. Bryan Gunn (40) The former Norwich keeper is managing Scottish non-league club Pencaitland & Ormiston. Tony Daley (36) The former Aston Villa winger is a coach at English non-league side Chelmsford City. Terry Fenwick (44) The classy ex-Tottenham defender is now manager of Second Division Northampton where he has seen his team relegated to Division Three only to guide them to an immediate promotion last season. Steve Bruce (43) The ex-Man Utd player was sacked by Birmingham in May of last year but has recently been appointed as boss of First Division Bristol City. Carlton Palmer (38) The ugliest man in football is now terrifying the children of Ayrshire as having been sacked by Stockport and Ipswich he is now running the show at Ayr United. Stuart Pearce (41) Having at last hung up his boots, Psycho is now on the coaching staff at Man City. Niall Quinn (37) The ex-Ireland international is now working in Sweden and is part of the scouting staff for Second Division Västra Frölunda. Chris Woods (44) The former Notts Forest and England keeper is now scouting for QPR in the English First Division. Jean-Marc Bosman (39) The man that started all the "Bosman" business is now a scout in his native Belgium at Division Two club Mechelen. Didier Deschamps (35) With 101 caps for his country the captain of the French World Cup wining side in 1998 is now managing French National League club Valenciennes having been sacked by Monaco at the end of 2002. Gerd Muller (58) "Goal-a-game Gerdie" as he was known in his prime scored 68 goals in his 62 appearances for Germany, a strike rate that is never likely to be repeated. He is now on the coaching staff at FC Bayern. Lothar Matthaus (42) Germany’s most capped player with 150 appearances for his country is now managing Partizan Belgrade in Yugoslavia. Peter Shilton (54) With 125 caps, Shilts is England’s most capped player and he is now doing a spot of coaching at English Division Three strugglers Colchester. Pat Jennings (58) The legendary keeper amassed 119 caps for Northern Ireland and is now on the coaching staff at Tottenham. Andoni Zubizarreta (42) Spain’s most capped player with 129 appearances, the ex-keeper is now General Manager at Athletic Bilbao. Kenny Dalglish (52) King Kenny made 102 appearances for Scotland and after a long spell out of the game is now Assistant Manager back in Scotland at Second Division Cowdenbeath. Thomas Ravelli (44) Sweden’s most capped player with 143 appearances the ex-keeper is now scouting for Swedish Premier Division team IFK Göteborg. Neville Southall (45) The Welsh goalkeeping legend is now working on the coaching staff at English Second Division club Barnsley. Game of the Week Saturday January 24th, 2004 Spanish First Division Espanyol 4 Racing Santander 2 Santander came to the Lluis Companys Stadium in Barcelona confident of overcoming an Espanyol team that had failed to gain a league victory since November. This slump in form has seen Barca’s less-illustrious neighbours slip to their customary position in the lower reaches of the Primera Liga. Indeed the visitors established a comfortable 2-goal cushion 10 minutes into the second half only to see the dismissal of their captain and goalkeeper precipitate a dramatic collapse. The opening period gave no indication of the drama to follow and it wasn’t until the 14th minute that we saw the first attempt at goal when Santander keeper José MarÃa Ceballos did well to turn away a nicely struck free kick from Manel. However, the visitors opened the scoring with their first meaningful attack of the game with a nicely worked passing move. Young Brazilian Thiago Motta started the move when he swung the ball left to Pablo Sierra. The midfielder laid it off to Domingo Nagore who found Motta continuing his run. The Brazilian picked out Mario Ignacio Regueiro in the area and Uruguayan international slotted the ball home for his 11th goal of the season. Santander created a couple more chances before half time but Rodolfo Bodipo and Regueiro both failed to hit the target. The home side finished the half with a spell of possession but found the visiting defence difficult to penetrate. Just after the restart Bodipo came close with a header that former Arsenal keeper Alex Manninger managed to beat away and as the Santander striker sought to pounce on the rebound Roger made a superb block to deny the goal. Espanyol manager Julian Rubio then made a couple of changes to try to tighten his defence. Right back Xavi Roca was replaced by Alberto Lopo and the experienced Brazilian international Júnior Baiano came into defence in place of Cyril Domoraud. At the same time Manuel Preciado withdrew the ineffective Yossi Benayoun and introduced Manuel Antonio Longo into the fray. The Santander substitution proved to be the most effective as, within minutes of his arrival on the pitch, Longo went off on an exquisite run that ended with a near post cross for Bodipo to head home. Clearly feeling that two goals were enough to ensure victory, the visitors started to defend deep and allowed Espanyol to see more of the ball. The turning point came when Parrado was brought down in the area by Ceballos and the Santander captain received his marching orders. The dangerous Regueiro was withdrawn to allow substitute keeper Borja to come on and his first task was to pick the ball out of the net as Raúl Tamudo made no mistake from the spot. Five minutes later Santander left back Vicente halted the determined run of MartÃn Posse with a dangerous two-footed challenge and Espanyol were awarded their second penalty of the game. The young defender was fortunate indeed to escape with just a booking and once again Tamudo left Borja helpless as he stroked the ball home. The home side really had their tails up now and set about their visitors with a vengeance. The excellent Roger gave Espanyol the lead when he unerringly found the top corner with a beautifully flighted free kick and Tamudo killed off the game when he rounded off a lovely passing move to complete his hat trick. Teams Espanyol: Alex Manninger, Xavi Roca (Alberto Lopo 51), Roger, Pablo Rotchen (Captain), Cyril Domoraud (Júnior Baiano 51), Federico Basavilbaso, Parrado, Frédson, MartÃn Posse, Manel, Raúl Tamudo Subs not used: Sergio Sánchez, Toni Velamazán, Roberto Sosa, Fran, Savo Milosevic Racing Santander: José MarÃa Ceballos (Captain), Pablo Coira, Vicente, Iván Hurtado, Iván Javier Cuadrado, Thiago Motta, Yossi Benayoun (Manuel Antonio Longo 51), Domingo Nagore (Jesuli 64), Mario Ignacio Regueiro (Borja 64), Rodolfo Bodipo, Pablo Sierra Subs not used: Lluis Carreras, Leonardo, Gonzalo Colsa, Javi Guerrero Scorers Espanyol: Tamudo (pen) 64, (pen) 69, 83, Roger 78 Racing Santander: Regueiro 22, Bodipo 54 Man of the Match: Raúl Tamudo Yellow Cards Racing Santander: Vicente, Cuadrado Red Cards Racing Santander: Ceballos Attendance: 23,740 Readers Letters It was good to hear from several readers this week so thanks for you commenst Terk and Fantaboy. Our apologies to LeytonOrient212 for not publishing an answer to his question in this issue but our research department has been otherwise engaged. We'll get our act together for next week Leyton. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted January 31, 2004 Author Share Posted January 31, 2004 ESW Online has been updated. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntPaulseno Posted February 4, 2004 Share Posted February 4, 2004 Hey BobBev, I want to know how Swansea City are doing @ the moment... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 4, 2004 Share Posted February 4, 2004 Dear ESW, I just noticed your publication this week and I have to say that it is something special. I devoured the February issue and as I was left in hunger of more ESW I paid a visit to an specialised bookstore where I bought all the previous issues. My congratulations on the good work your magazine is doing and also an special query for your reporters... May I know the whereabouts of U.E.Lleida? I was studying for 5 years at the city and I grew a soft spot for the team. Being abroad for the moment, I do have no access to any information on the team, so I would be greatly in debt with your magazine if a report was done on the team. I would also like to know about Navarro (their legendary captain and defender) and also about Txema (a defensive midfielder who was at the team during the First Division spell during the 90's and later was transferred to Racing de Santander). Thanks in advance and keep up the good work, Jordi. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
spurzgrrl Posted February 4, 2004 Share Posted February 4, 2004 Dear ESW, I've often wondered what happened to some of my favourite Spurs stars from the past. Thanks for letting us know about Terry Fenwick; any chance of hearing about Ossie Ardiles and Gary Lineker, or my favourite for England for a long time, John Barnes? Katie, age 11, no really, I saw all these films of these guys, I really am 11... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 5, 2004 Share Posted February 5, 2004 Vinny Jones a scout LOL. Oh, and come on u Gunners. Hope they can beat utd to the championship. Keep up the good work BobBev. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted February 6, 2004 Author Share Posted February 6, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 27 - Friday February 6th, 2004 News The knives have been out in France this week as Lens manager Joel Muller and PSG boss Henri Michelle are both sacked. Having won the league championship last season Lens Chairman Gervais Martel has just run out of patience as his club sits in 11th place in the table. PSG have now disposed of their third manager in just under two years as they desperately seek to restore their former glories. There have also been two managerial casualties in Scotland as Motherwell, currently propping up the SPL, parted company with Terry Butcher and Dundee sacked Jim Duffy. Having finished 3rd and 4th in the last two seasons, Dundee’s struggles during this campaign have prompted drastic action even though Duffy has lifted them to within touching distance of a top-six place in recent weeks. In Wales Connah’s Quay have been bumping along near the bottom of the table all season and manager Nev Powell has paid the price. League Champions two seasons ago they finished in mid-table last season and Chairman Ron Morris is desperate to turn around their slump. League Roundup Belgium Sint-Truiden and Charleroi show no signs of cracking under the pressure as they maintain their fine form. Sint-Truiden defeated AA Gent 1-0 whilst Charleroi won 2-1 at Virton. Anderlecht played twice in the week and blew a glorious chance to put pressure on the top two. They were kept scoreless by GBA on Saturday and lost 2-0 at Lierse earlier today. Having won 3-2 at Westerlo on Saturday, Lierse have now climbed to 4th in the table. La Louviere are starting to lose touch at the bottom of the table as Antwerp picked up points in a 2-0 defeat of Lommel and Mons drew 3-3 at Lokeren. The visitors came within 3 minutes of taking all the points but the home side managed a very late equaliser. England Man Utd are now 8 points clear of Arsenal with a game in hand following last week’s results. United had a comfortable 4-1 win over Everton and the Gunners suffered a 4-2 reverse at Newcastle. Liverpool were in action twice and a 3-0 victory over Southampton coupled with a scoreless draw at Aston Villa has taken them level on points with Arsenal having played a game more. Blackburn also profited from two games, beating Chelsea 3-0 and then winning 1-0 at West Brom to go 4th. Six points for Tottenham takes then to 5th as they triumphed 2-0 over West Ham and then won 1-0 at Southampton. The Hammers did manage a 2-0 win over Charlton in their other game but they have slipped down to 6th. Two more defeats for Brighton brings them even closer to the First Division and a 1-1 draw between Sunderland and Charlton was of no great help to either side. A 2-1 win for West Brom at Fulham has taken the Baggies out of the bottom three as Charlton drop below them. France Sedan have closed to within a point of leaders Nantes as they played twice this week and recorded victories over Bastia and Nice. Nantes were held to a 1-1 draw by Auxerre but they have a two-game cushion over their nearest rivals. Rennes were defeated 2-0 by visiting Lille but remain 3rd. 4th place Bordeaux closed the gap however drawing 1-1 at Auxerre and wining 2-0 at Guingamp. A 1-0 defeat at PSG keeps Troyes bottom and Lorient and Guingamp also lost. Germany The big guns are starting to take over at the top of the Bundesliga as Dortmund go to the top of the table after the beat Werder Bremen 3-1 and Nürnberg were held 2-2 at bottom of the table Cottbus. A 4-2 win at Greuther Fürth takes Leverkusen 3rd and FC Bayern regain 4th position with a 1-0 win at 1.FC Köln. A 2-0 defeat at Kaiserslautern drops Schalke 04 down to 5th. Greece There was a top of the table showdown this week as Olympiakos visited Panathinaikos with the home side triumphing 3-2 thanks to an 88th minute goal. A 2-0 win over Panachaiki for AEK has moved them into 2nd place on goal difference above Olympiakos. Bottom club Giannena had a rare win, just their second of the season, as they upset 4th placed Aris by recording a 2-0 victory in Salonika. Holland The league programme is just restarting and one game was played earlier today as PSV beat Heerenveen 2-0 to cement second place in the table. Italy Leaders Milan had a fine 2-1 win over Roma to maintain top spot and 2nd place Parma kept up their good form with a 4-0 defeat of struggling Palermo. Sampdoria go 3rd with a 3-1 win over Lecce as Inter drop to 4th after a surprise 1-0 defeat at Torino who have now climbed to 11th place after 8 league matches without a defeat. Chievo gave their relegation fight a boost by beating Ascoli 2-1 although they still have a long way to go. Northern Ireland The top four all won this week - Portadown beat Glenavon 4-0, Distillery won 1-0 at Ballymena Utd, Coleraine came back from Newry with a 3-2 win and Glentoran’s 1-0 win at Institute has condemned the bottom club to a relegation playoff place at best. Portugal Sporting have now re-taken first place following their 3-0 defeat of Academica as Benfica were not in action. Gil Vicente stay 3rd despite dropping points in a scoreless draw with P. Ferreira and 4th place Porto also drew 2-2 at Salgueiros. There is a gulf between the top six teams and the rest and there is a mere 5 points between 7th and 17th so if any of these teams can put together a few wins they can go shooting up the table. Republic of Ireland Dundalk stay top having beaten Monaghan Utd 1-0 and 2nd place Shamrock Rovers won 4-1 at bottom club Finn Harps. 3rd place Bohemians won 3-2 at Waterford Utd despite having to fight back from 2-1 down with 10 men. Scotland The Old Firm both dropped points this week with scoreless draws. Celtic were held by Hearts and Dundee held Rangers. Raith Rovers take over 3rd place after a remarkable 6-2 win over Livingston. Spain A narrow 1-0 win for leaders Barcelona over bottom club Elche stretched their lead to 9 points as 2nd place Sevilla dropped points in a 2-2 draw at Badajoz. A good 2-0 win over Valencia has taken Athletic Bilbao to within a point of Sevilla. 4th place Deportivo lost 2-1 at Oviedo and Real Madrid remain 5th with a 2-0 win over Malaga. Turkey Despite not being in action this week Besiktas are still top as Fenerbahçe spurned the opportunity to go top as they were held 1-1 at D. Bakirspor. Adanaspor stay 3rd having defeated Samsunspor 2-0 and Galatasaray suffered another defeat as they lost 3-1 at home to G. Antepspor. Bottom club Sekerspor gained their second win of the season but still remain 10 points from safety. Wales Bangor City’s first defeat in 10 games dropped them to second as Carmarthen Town won 2-1 and Aberystwyth Town go top after their 3-1 win at Flexsys Cefn Druids. A 2-1 win for Welshpool at Afan Lido takes them 3rd and a 1-1 draw for T.N. Solutions at Caersws drops them to 4th. Cup Roundup France Last weekend saw the League Cup 3rd Round completed and a couple of First Division clubs came unstuck against Second Division opposition. Le Mans came back from Nice with a win in the penalty shootout after their game finished 2-2 at full time and extra time failed to produce a result. The Le Mans captain Stefan Preda (33, GK) was the hero as the Romanian saved a penalty in normal time and two more in the shootout. Troubled PSG were humbled 1-0 by Chateauroux at the Parc des Princes as their season goes from bad to worse and the next day manager Henri Michel was fired. Germany Leverkusen confirmed their status as Cup favourites when they destroyed M’gladbach 6-1 in the first Semi Final at the BayArena. In the other game at the Olympiastadion in Munich, 1860 Munchen triumphed 3-2 over HSV after extra time. The visitors came back from two goals down to force extra time but 1860 scored the decisive goal 5 minutes into the extra period. Holland Three First Division clubs have made it into the Quarter Finals of the Dutch Cup. Excelsior had a fine 2-0 win at Groningen, Emmen won 1-0 at Volendam and Fortuna came back from a goal down to beat visitors Heerenveen 2-1. The Semi Finals are guaranteed a First Division presence also as Excelsior face Emmen in one of the Quarter Finals. Italy The Italian Cup Semi Final second leg matches both produced upsets. Milan were defeated 2-0 by visiting Torino as home keeper Christian Abbiati (26, GK) was red-carded but the league leaders still progress 3-2 on aggregate. Atalanta produced a major upset in Parma, winning 3-0 to win 4-2 overall. Parma’s highly rated French keeper and club captain Sebastien Frey (23, GK) was criticised after the match for his poor performance. Portugal Seven of the eight Quarter Finalists in the Portuguese Cup are from the Premier Division, the exception being Second Division Farense who pulled off a very good 2-1 win over U. Madeira in the 6th Round on Wednesday. Scotland The Scottish Cup 3rd Round threw up a few surprises. First Division Arbroath had a fine 3-2 win at home to Hearts with captain Craig Feroz (26, F RC) scoring the winner in stoppage time. Non-league Cove Rangers held Division Two Alloa to a goalless draw despite playing with 10 men for the last half hour. They went one better in the replay, coming back from Alloa with a 2-1 win. Falkirk, flying high in the First Division, had a 1-1 draw with Motherwell at Brockville but were thumped 4-0 in the replay. Spain The Spanish Cup Semi Final lineup is now decided following Wednesday’s Quarter Final second legs. A 1-0 win at Alaves completed a 3-1 aggregate victory for Mallorca. Elche held Barcelona scoreless at the Nou Camp but still lost out 5-0 overall. Valencia had a good 2-1 win at Betis thanks to a late winning goal to go through 3-2. But most impressive of all, Oviedo turned around a 1-goal deficit against visiting Real Madrid into a 3-1 aggregate win. Real had Robert Pires (31, AM RLC) sent off after just 4 minutes and lost captain Fernando Hierro (35, D/DM C) and Ivan Helguera (28, D/DM C) to injury in the first half. When Helguera left the pitch Real had already used all of their substitutes and they had to play the second half with only 9 men. Oviedo tied the scores on 55 minutes and then unlucky Real conceded two further goals in stoppage time to tumble out of the competition. Spotlight on .....The Champions League With Champions League action just about to re-commence this week’s Spotlight homes in on the state of play in the second phase groups. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Group A Phase 2 Group A Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Arsenal ENG 2 1 0 0 3 0 1 0 0 1 0 6 2nd Roma ITA 2 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 3 3 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Real Madrid ESP 2 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 2 3 4th FC Bayern GER 2 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 2 0</pre> In our opinion, whoever gets through out of this four will be amongst the strong favourites to go all the way. Arsenal have made a dream start, beating FC Bayern 1-0 in Munich and recording a superb 3-0 win at home to Roma. Thierry Henry (26, S C) relishes the big stage and with 6 goals in his 8 CL games, his form in Europe is excellent. He scored a hat trick in the Gunners opening Phase 1 game at home to Parma to overturn a 2-1 deficit and take 3 valuable points. Arsenal are unbeaten in the CL so far with 7 wins and a draw in 8 games and look like a good bet to progress. Roma beat Real Madrid 2-0 in their Phase 2 opener, despite having Walter Samuel (25, SW/D C) red-carded. Captain Francesco Totti (27, F C) and Luca Toni (26, S C) were outstanding in that game and Toni has found the net 10 times in 8 games in Europe. Real got their campaign back on track with a 2-0 defeat of FC Bayern in game two and having spent £42M in the summer they expect to see a return on their investment. The German Champions lost two games in Phase 1 and have yet to score a goal in Phase 2. Ottmar Hitzfeld has his work cut out if he is to turn them around as many commentators feel that some of his ageing first team players are past their best. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Phase 2 Group B Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Lyon FRA 2 1 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 3 1 6 2nd Barcelona ESP 2 1 0 0 3 0 0 0 1 0 2 3 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd AEK GRE 2 0 0 1 1 3 0 1 0 1 1 1 4th PSV HOL 2 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 3 1</pre> Lyon barely scraped through their Phase 1 group so their position at the top of Group B comes as some surprise. But you can’t argue with their results - a 2-0 home win over Barcelona and a 3-1 win over AEK in the intimidating atmosphere of the Nikos Goumas Stadium in Athens. In both of those games their captain, the veteran Brazilian striker Sonny Anderson (33, S C) was a key figure. Barcelona got back on track with a 3-0 defeat of PSV at the Nou Camp with Javier Saviola (22, F C) finding the net twice. AEK and PSV played out a 1-1 draw in their opening game in Eindhoven and if the Dutch champions don’t get a result in their next game at Lyon they will struggle to qualify. They need big performances from their big names and will expect the likes of Mark van Bommel (26, DM C), Mateja Kezman (24, S C), and highly rated youngster Arjen Robben (20, AM/F LC) to live up to their reputations. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Phase 2 Group C Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Milan ITA 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 1 4 2nd Athletic Bilbao ESP 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 2 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Olympiakos GRE 2 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 4th Liverpool ENG 2 0 0 1 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 1</pre> Even though they finished top of their Phase 1 group, Liverpool didn’t look too impressive, losing at both AEK and Nantes. They started Phase 2 with a scoreless draw in Bilbao but were perhaps unfortunate to lose 2-1 to Milan at Anfield thanks to a late goal from Andriy Shevchenko (27, S C). With 6 goals from 8 CL games, the Ukrainian hitman is in good form and Liverpool need Michael Owen (24, S C) to find a similar vein of form. As it stands his solitary goal in 5 European outings is not an adequate return for a player of his abilities. Milan breezed through Phase 1 unbeaten but also drew their opener when Olympiakos held them to a nil-nil draw in Italy. There is still all to play for in a tight group and the next couple of games will be critical for all concerned. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Phase 2 Group D Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Man Utd ENG 2 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 2 0 6 2nd Betis ESP 2 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Parma ITA 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 4th Dortmund GER 2 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 0 1 1 1</pre> Manchester United continue their imperious progress in the Champions League. Qualification from Phase 1 was secured with 5 wins and a draw with just one goal conceded. They are in pole position in Group D with a 100% record and two clean sheets into the bargain. A David Beckham (28, M RC) goal saw off Parma in their opener at Old Trafford and this was followed by a fine 2-0 win at Dortmund. Having finished 3rd in the EPL last season, United had to play a qualifying match to get to the group stages but they brushed aside Levski Sofia 6-1 on aggregate. In Ruud van Nistelrooy (27, S C) United have one of the best strikers in world football and he has scored 10 times in 10 European games. Real Betis finished as runner-up in the Primera Liga last season but are having a torrid time domestically and are just two places above the relegation slots but perhaps the Champions League provides a welcome respite from their struggles in the league. Game of the Week Wednesday February 4th, 2004 Scottish Premier League Raith Rovers 6 Livingston 2 Raith Rovers welcomed the visit of Livingston to Stark’s Park hoping for a win that would take them back up to 3rd place in the SPL, a position that they had held prior to the visitors usurping them. The visitors themselves were bottom of the table back in October but a terrific run of form has seen them climbing the table. Under the guidance of the canny Jocky Scott, Raith have won consecutive league titles and have risen from the Second Division to the upper reaches of the Premier League and challenging for a place in Europe. On a vile evening in Kirkaldy the home side set about the visitors with relish and soon had a goal for their endeavours. Shaun Dennis played the ball out from the back, finding Dariusz Adamczuk who showed excellent skill to beat David Bingham. Alert to movement ahead of him the veteran Pole, signed from Rangers last season, picked out Graham Barrett in the area and the on-loan forward finished neatly. Livingston responded positively and first Bingham came close with a shot from the edge of the area and then Barry Wilson smacked the crossbar with a left foot volley. But Raith were soon on the attack again as Adamczuk and Barrett combined neatly to find Martin Prest. The Argentinean striker played the ball into the area looking for the head of Marvyn Wilson but Matt Heywood got there first. However, his clearing header fell nicely for Stuart Lovell and the midfielder controlled the ball with one touch before firing home against his former club. The Australian international joined Raith on a Bosman at the start of this season and is one of a number of very effective signings that the Raith manager has made. With Livingston caught firmly on the back foot, Barrett scored his second a few minutes later. Adamczuk was again the instigator as his clever pass found Marvyn Wilson who sent in a teasing cross that the onrushing Barrett despatched with aplomb. It was all Raith now as the visitors were clearly rattled. Another Marvyn Wilson cross caused chaos at the back and Stewart Greacen was forced to head behind for the corner. Adamczuk swung the corner in and amidst the penalty area jostling that seems the norm these days, referee Bobby Orr spotted an infringement. It isn’t clear quite how he picked out Greacen as the culprit, but after some consultation with one of his assistants, the penalty was awarded. Marvyn Wilson coolly put the kick away to make it 4-0 with less than 20 minutes on the clock and the game was effectively over. Raith, perhaps understandably, dropped the pace a little, but still managed to score a 5th just before half time. Lovell it was that swung in a dangerous cross to the near post for Prest to head home. Livingston did manage to get on the scoresheet just after the restart. The goal was made by some excellent play by Barry Wilson who made good progress on the right flank before delivering the cross. Rolando Zárate climbed above Brian McAllister to plant a firm header into the net. The scoreline became slightly more respectable some 10 minutes later as another piece of good play by Barry Wilson created an opening for Kåre Becker to fire home. Barry Wilson continued his one-man show, volleying narrowly over the bar after being set up by Zárate and then striking the bar for the second time from a Stephen Whalen knockdown. But Raith’s top scorer Martin Prest rounded the game off with his 15th goal of the season following good work from Barrett. Jocky Scott was understandably delighted with his team’s performance and with the result as Raith’s fairy tale progress continues. The 50-year-old manager has a growing reputation for picking up players on the cheap and extracting the maximum benefit from them. His team is not the youngest in the division by a long shot - in fact no less that six of today’s starters are on the wrong side of 30 - but there are a few promising youngsters on the books too. Teams Raith Rovers: Jason Brown, Paquito (Brian O’Neill 73), Marc McCulloch, Brian McAllister, Shaun Dennis, Jarmo Saastamoinen, Dariusz Adamczuk, Marvyn Wilson (Captain), Martin Prest, Graham Barrett, Stuart Lovell Subs not used: Matt Dickins, Dene Shields, Jamie Cureton, Andrew Clark Livingston: Francisco Sánchez Broto, Stewart Greacen (Will Snowdon 73), Alan Wright, Rubio (Captain), Matt Heywood, Quino, Barry Wilson, Stephen Whalen, Kåre Becker, Rolando Zárate, David Bingham (David Bryant 50) Subs not used: Ben Roberts, Adam Moffat, Vincent Sullivan Scorers Raith Rovers: Barrett 3, 16, Lovell 12, Wilson (pen) 19, Prest 45, 76 Livingston: Zárate 47, Becker 55 Man of the Match: Graham Barrett Attendance: 7,986 Readers Letters Well we had another full postbag this week - thanks to all of our correspondents and keep ‘em coming. We’ll start with the delayed response to LeytonOrient212 regarding Gary Alexander. The only Gary Alexander that we can find is a 24-year-old striker currently playing for Hull City in the English Second Division. A former West Ham youth player, Gary was released by the Hammers and picked up by Swindon and then moved on to Hull in the 2001/2002 season. Gary played very well last season, finding the net 18 times in 48 starts but he is not in quite such good form in this campaign. In total he has made 199 starts in his senior career and has scored 67 goals. Reader AntPaulseno was in contact asking how Swansea are doing. Well Ant, the Swans are currently riding high in the English Second Division having achieved promotion from Division Three last season. Manager Alan Curtis has turned the club around since his appointment back in May 2002. The team finished 16th that season but with the new man at the helm they took the runners-up spot to gain promotion. Currently second in Division Two they are on target for back-to-back promotions. Curtis has made sweeping changes to the squad with 25 players coming in and a mere 11 departing. His biggest signing was the very recent acquisition of the experienced Gerry Taggart (33, D LC) from Leicester for £650K and the Northern Ireland International has been made club captain and is already a key figure in defence. The biggest sale took place at the start of this year when David Theobald (25, D C) made a £1M move to promotion rivals Boston United. The big defender was a top performer for the last couple of seasons and his departure has raised a few eyebrows amongst the supporters. Some of the club’s best performers are local lads - James Thomas (25, S C) is scoring goals for fun right now and Kristian O’Leary (26, D/DM RC) is in great form. Division Two is very competitive but the Swans have been there or thereabouts for most of the season and have a good chance of automatic promotion but Port Vale, Hull and Luton are all pushing hard. We received a very nice letter from Jordi, one of our new overseas subscribers. Jordi wanted to know about Spanish team Lleida and we’re glad to be able to help. U.E. Lleida currently sit in 13th place in the Spanish Second Division. They gained promotion from the B Division in season 2001/2002 but have struggled to adapt to the higher level, finishing in 16th place last season. However, they have kept faith with manager Paco Martinez, recent results have started to improve and a mid-table finish is on the cards. The manager has been very active in the transfer market having spent £1.6M on 29 new players with just 5 players being sold for a total of £975K. The biggest sale took place at the start of this year when Juanma (28, D C) joined Division Two strugglers Langreo for £450K - not bad for a player who cost only £30K in June of 2002. The biggest fee paid was £475K to Melilla for Jose Carlos (31, F RC), also in June 2002. The team’s top performers are team captain Loreto (32, AM/F C) and Javi (34, F LC). Loreto was purchased for £190K from Murcia last season and has made a big impact since his arrival with 34 goals in 66 games. However, he will be leaving to join Tenerife in the summer at the end of his contract. Javi also joined last season and cost a modest £20K from Girona. His play on the left wing is a major source of goals for the Lleida attack. Navarro (31, D C) is still with the club but hasn’t played as much as he might expect thanks to a series of injuries in the early part of the season. Txema (32, SW/D/DM C) spent 6 seasons at Racing Santander before joining Getafe but you may be pleased to know that just 2 weeks ago he rejoined Lleida in a £375K move! One of our younger readers, 11-year-old Katie, asked about some former Tottenham heroes. Osvaldo Ardiles is now back home in Argentina managing Racing Club. Details of his track record are a little sketchy here in Europe but we believe that he is very happy there although he still follows the fortunes of "Tott-ing-ham". Gary Lineker is no longer directly involved in the game but he earns a very lucrative living as a TV presenter and professional "nice guy". John Barnes has not had any gainful football-related employment for some time although we understand that he would be keen to get back into the game if the right offer came along. Finally we would like to thank Fantaboy for his continuing good wishes, although his yearning for Arsenal to overtake Manchester United in the EPL seems unlikely to be fulfilled! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntPaulseno Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 The Swans rule in Division 2!!!! Wish that would happen IRL Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HD Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 A belated PALMER OUT!!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted February 6, 2004 Author Share Posted February 6, 2004 ESW Online has been updated. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 7, 2004 Share Posted February 7, 2004 I couldn't help but laugh when I read the Txema bit... and they talk about good timing. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted February 12, 2004 Author Share Posted February 12, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 28 - Friday February 13th, 2004 News French club Lens have appointed Luis Fernandez as their new manager leaving Alaves to find a new coach. The Spanish team are riding high in the Second Division and the former Marseille manager was at the helm for just over 12 months before finding the lure of returning to France irresistible. It has taken Joel Muller, the man just fired by Lens, less than 10 days to fins a new employer and PSG have decided that he is the man to resurrect their fortunes. Jan Ceulemans tenure at Anderlecht looks likely to be coming to an end as his team continue to put in one inconsistent performance after another. Despite their 3rd place in the table it seems that the fans have had enough and it remains to be seen just how long the board will continue to back him. In Scotland the Motherwell position remains vacant but Dundee have persuaded veteran Dutch coach Wim Jansen to come out of semi-retirement and join as their new boss. Connah's Quay also have a new man in charge as Sean Parrish has now been appointed. The 31-year-old Welshman has no previous management experience so it will be interesting to see how he adjusts to the position. League Roundup Belgium Sint-Truiden and Charleroi both dropped points this week with draws against Bevern and Mons respectively. Anderlecht were not in action so could not take advantage of the slip-ups. Bottom club La Louviere gained a rare win defeating AA Gent but they are still 5 points from safety. England The top three all had wins this week. Manchester United won 2-1 at Leeds, Arsenal beat Wolves 2-1 and Liverpool had a narrow 1-0 win at West Ham. At the bottom, Brighton lost again returning from Southampton with a 3-1 defeat and are now losing touch and look like prime relegation candidates. Sunderland were in action twice and somewhat surprisingly picked up maximum points, beating Tottenham 3-0 and Fulham 1-0. Perhaps the "Southern Softies" couldn't handle their trips to the frozen north! Charlton lost 1-0 at West Brom and are now level on points with the Black Cats and both teams are 5 points behind Everton and safety. France Sedan are now back on top of the pile as they won 3-2 at Caen and Nantes were defeated 1-0 at Nice. A 1-1 draw for Rennes at Guingamp keeps them 3rd and a 1-0 victory over bottom of the table Troyes keeps Bordeaux 4th. Joel Muller made a good start at PSG as his team won 2-1 at Auxerre and Luis Fernandez saw his new club gain a point as Lens were held 1-1 by Monaco. A 2-0 win for Toulouse over Strasbourg keeps them moving the right direction and it looks like the relegation fight will be between the bottom 4. Only one can escape and on current form it's hard to tell who that might be. Bastia, Guingamp, Lorient and Troyes are all a point behind one another and none of them are showing any signs of getting a few wins under their belts. Germany Dortmund remain top of the table despite being held to a 2-2 draw at Hertha BSC. FC Bayern move up to 3rd after they fashioned a fine 2-0 win over Nürnberg who stay 2nd in spite of the defeat. Schalke 04 are 4th after their 2-1 win over Hannover 96 and Leverkusen drop to 5th after a scoreless draw with 1860 München. The bottom two met on Sunday and a 1-1 draw doesn't help Greuther Fürth or Cottbus all that much. Werder Bremen had an excellent 4-1 win over VfB Stuttgart and would have moved out of the bottom three but for Wolfsburg's 1-1 draw against M'gladbach. Greece A 1-1 draw with PAOK in Salonika keeps Panathinaikos top of the table, AEK move up to 2nd with a 1-0 win over Kalamaria and Olympiakos slip to 3rd after their 1-1 draw at Panachaiki. Bottom club Giannena picked up a welcome point in a 1-1 draw at home to Kavala but they remain 6 points from safety. Holland Ajax have been in action twice this week. They suffered a surprise 1-0 defeat at home to NAC on Sunday but won 3-1 at Zwolle earlier today and remain in 3rd place. Leaders Feyenoord also defeated Zwolle at the weekend and the 3-2 win preserves their healthy 8-point lead over PSV. Bottom club MVV lost a crucial relegation battle at home to Willem II with the visitors scoring twice in the last 6 minutes to gain a 3-2 win. Italy Leaders Milan are now 7 points clear with a game in hand as an early goal from Andriy Shevchenko (27, S C) gave them a 1-0 win in an ill-tempered encounter at Juventus. Both sides had a man dismissed as emotions ran high between the rivals. Parma fell 2-0 at Roma but are still 2nd although Sampdoria have closed the gap with a 1-0 win at relegation-threatened Palermo. Inter were held 1-1 by Atalanta and Lazio had a fine 5-1 win at struggling Ascoli. At the foot of the table Ancona and Chievo both managed wins, 1-0 at Lecce and 3-0 at Empoli respectively. Perugia, who sit just above the relegation places, beat Bologna 2-1 to maintain their 5-point gap over the bottom four. Northern Ireland Top club Portadown were held 2-2 at Glentoran but 2nd place Distillery failed to take advantage as they recorded an identical result at Newry. Bottom of the table Institute still have a mathematical chance of avoiding automatic relegation following another 2-2 draw at Coleraine but a 24-point gap may be just a bit too much to retrieve! Portugal Leaders Sporting suffered a 4-2 defeat at rivals Porto on Saturday giving Benfica a chance to go top the next day. However a 2-2 draw with Beira-Mar wasn't good enough and they stay 2nd. Gil Vicente in 3rd were trounced 4-1 at 5th placed Belenenses. Bottom club Braga recorded a rare win at Academica with a 2-0 scoreline but they are still 6 points off the pace. Republic of Ireland The top two weren't in league action this week but bottom of the table Finn Harps had a battling 2-2 draw at 3rd placed Bohemians with a last minute goal giving the visitors a very useful point. Shelbourne did themselves a favour by beating Waterford Utd 3-1 at home to switch places with their opponents and move out of the relegation playoff place. Scotland The big match in Scotland this week was the Old Firm match at Ibrox and Rangers gave their championship hopes a huge boost by winning 2-0 to open up a 4-point gap over Celtic. 3rd place Raith Rovers slipped to a 2-1 defeat at Aberdeen and Livingston go level on points with them following their 3-1 win over Dundee. The good form of St. Johnstone continued with a 1-0 win at Hibs that sees the Perth Club move up to 5th. Having been bottom of the table earlier in the season Jim Jeffries team have now left their relegation worries behind them as they focus on a top-six finish. Dunfermline had a big 3-0 win over Motherwell to move up to 10th. However, managerless Motherwell played again on Wednesday night and treated their home supporters to a rousing 4-3 win over Dundee Utd, coming back from 3-2 down to get the win. Spain A 2-1 win for Barcelona at Malaga and an excellent 3-0 home win for Sevilla over Athletic Bilbao maintained the 9-point gap between 1st and 2nd. A 2-1 win over Villarreal moves Deportivo back to 3rd and Real Madrid remain 5th following their 1-0 win at Valencia. Turkey Besiktas are still top of the table but only on goal difference over Fenerbahçe. The leaders needed a last minute equaliser to deny struggling Yozgatspor a win in a thrilling 3-3 draw whilst their rivals disposed of Denizlispor 2-0. 3rd place Adanaspor lost 2-0 at Malatyaspor but Galatasaray failed to close the gap as they as they suffered their fourth consecutive league defeat, 1-0 at Antalyaspor. Cup Roundup Portugal Two of the Portuguese Cup Quarter Finals will require replays to decide the result. Sporting and Benfica fought out a thrilling 3-3 draw in Lisbon and Second Division Farense held visiting Braga to a scoreless draw. In the other games Vit. Guimaraes, struggling badly in the league, pulled off a shock 4-0 defeat of Porto and E. Amadora won 1-0 at Belenenses. Turkey The Turkish Cup Semi Finals have produced a pair of surprise finalists. Goztepe have their keeper to thank for keeping Fenerbahçe at bay as they scored an extra time winner to shock the favourites. The Semi Final draw had ensured that there would be a Second Division club contesting the final and Siirt JETPAspor made sure it would be them by beating A. Demirspor 1-0. Wales There was no league action in Wales this week but there was plenty of cup action with both the Welsh Cup and the Premier Cup to keep the teams busy. In the Welsh Cup on Saturday the only non-league club to progress to the Fifth Round were Conway Utd who defeated fellow non-leaguers AFC Rhonnda 1-0. However, the Premier Cup Quarter Finals provided several talking points. This competition is open to Welsh teams who play in England and in the last three seasons it has been won by Swansea, Cardiff and Wrexham, somewhat to the resentment of the League Of Wales Teams. All three featured once again in Tuesday's games and their LOW opponents came close to vanquishing them all. Haverfordwest set the ball rolling with a fine 4-1 win at home to Wrexham. Aberystwyth Town went 1-0 down to Cardiff with 5 minutes remaining but scored a stoppage time goal to force extra time. However Cardiff scored again in the extra period to win 2-1. Connah's Quay played against 10 men for the majority of their match against Swansea but couldn't take advantage of the extra man and the game finished scoreless after extra time. The Swans held on to win the shootout by 4 to 2. But perhaps the result of the night was the 1-0 win for non-league Merthyr Tydfil at Caersws. Champions League Roundup The Champions League second group phase got back into action this week. In Group A, Arsenal had a superb 3-1 win over Real Madrid at Highbury with Thierry Henry (26, S C) scoring twice. FC Bayern suffered their 3rd successive defeat losing 1-0 to Roma in Germany. Arsenal head the group on 9 points with Roma second on 6. Surprise package Lyon still top Group B despite being held to a scoreless draw at home to PSV. A 4-1 win for Barcelona over AEK keeps them in 2nd place. Liverpool got their campaign back on track in Group C with a 2-1 win over Olympiakos thanks to a stoppage time winner from Michael Owen (24, S C). Milan still top the group after their 2-0 defeat of Athletic Bilbao in Spain. Betis provided little resistance to Man Utd as they swept to a 3-0 win in Spain to take their 3rd straight win. Diego Forlan (24, F LC) was on target twice for the Reds in a comfortable win. An excellent 4-2 home win for Dortmund over Parma takes the Germans up to 2nd and leaves the Italians bottom with just one point from three games. Spotlight on …..Euro 2004 The final groups for Euro 2004 were drawn at the weekend and they have thrown up some interesting pairings. Group 1 Hosts Portugal and neighbours Spain are drawn together alongside Sweden and Turkey. As host nation, Portugal have suffered a dearth of competitive matches in the last couple of years. They reached the knockout stages of the World Cup Finals in 2002 but were eliminated by group opponents Turkey. Since then they have not impressed in their programme of friendlies. They had comfortable wins over the likes of Liechtenstein, Andorra and Cyprus but lost to England, group opponents Spain and Croatia. They have matches scheduled in March and April against Holland and, rather strangely given the draw, Spain. The Spaniards won their qualifying group and, ranked at number 6 in the FIFA Rankings, will be confident of progressing to the knockout phase. Sweden qualified as one of the best of the second placed teams as did Turkey. Group 2 This group comprises the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany and Greece. Based on the FIFA Rankings this could be a very tough group. The Czechs are ranked 8th and finished top of a relatively easy qualifying group. Denmark have 13th spot in the rankings and they won their group as did 11th ranked Germany. Greece scraped a playoff place on goal difference but went on to beat the Ukraine 5-2 on aggregate. Group 3 Belarus, England, France and Yugoslavia will be battling it out in this group. With three of the contenders in the FIFA top ten this will be a very tough group to qualify from. A distant second to Holland in their qualifying group, Belarus came through a playoff against Israel with a 4-1 aggregate win. England had an unbeaten qualification campaign conceding only 3 goals in 10 games. Their excellent form sees them 5th in the FIFA Rankings. France also cruised through qualification unbeaten and even had time to win the Confederations Cup into the bargain. 2nd in the FIFA Rankings they are favourites to go all the way in this competition. Yugoslavia easily topped their qualifying group and FIFA has them ranked as 10th best in the world. Group 4 With Holland, Ireland, Italy and Norway thrown together, this group also offers some enthralling contests to come. On paper this is possibly the toughest group of them all with three of the FIFA top nine. Holland strolled through their qualifying group without a loss and are ranked 3rd in the world. Ireland finished runners-up to France and came through a tough playoff against Russia 5-3 overall thanks to a thrilling 4-1 win in Moscow. Italy had just one blemish in qualification, a surprise 3-0 defeat in Bulgaria. Runners-up to the French in the Confederations Cup, they currently occupy the number one spot in the FIFA Rankings. Finally the Norwegians qualified as one of the best runners-up, finishing just behind England. Their only defeat in qualification was a surprise 3-1 loss in Switzerland in their final game, otherwise they could have taken top spot from England. Game of the Week Wednesday February 11th, 2004 Champions League Phase 2 Arsenal 3 Real Madrid 1 Real Madrid lined up at Highbury with a very defensive formation and their early play suggested that their priority was to avoid a defeat. With a win and a loss in their previous two games, a draw would be a decent enough result for the Spaniards. Ex-Gunner Robert Pires was given a warm reception by the Arsenal fans. The Frenchman has had a productive season so far since his £15M move last summer. Arsenal forced a couple of free kicks in reasonable positions early on but neither Dennis Bergkamp nor Thierry Henry could profit from them. The midpoint of the first half passed without Real being unduly threatened but the Arsenal opener came from a classic set piece situation. Ashley Cole sent in a hanging corner and Nils-Eric Johansson rose above the diminutive Roberto Carlos to head home. The Brazilian has many qualities but strength in the air is certainly not one of them. As the half drew to a close Real were once again caught out by a simple set piece. Bergkamp with the corner this time and Henry with the near post header. Madrid keeper Iker Casillas faced some harsh words from his colleagues, having once again failed to collect a ball that he should have. Freddie Ljunberg failed to re-appear after the break and his place was taken by 18-year-old Irish midfielder Kevin O'Rourke, a recent graduate from the Arsenal Youth Academy. Ljunberg was later diagnosed with a nasty ankle injury and could be sidelined for a month. The Gunners will miss his dynamic midfield play in the coming weeks. Within a few minutes of the restart Madrid pulled a goal back when Ronaldo, who had replaced Claude Makelele late in the first half, was sent tumbling in the area by Rami Shaaban. The Brazilian picked himself up, dusted himself down and calmly stroked the spot kick home. The Arsenal keeper was fortunate to get away with a stern lecture from the referee rather than a card of either colour. The consistency of the refereeing was called into question when, less than 15 minutes later, Casillas caught Henry as the lightning-quick striker headed for goal. The Madrid goalie received a straight red, much to the dismay of his teammates. Fernando Morientes was withdrawn from the fray to allow substitute keeper Cesar to take to the pitch. Arsenal captain Sol Campbell was the surprise choice to take the kick and it was not too much of a shock to see Cesar turn the ball round the post. But this proved to be a short respite for the team in white as the Gunners scored their third of the evening from the resulting corner. Cole the provider, Henry the scorer. The win keeps Arsenal top of the group with a 100% record and looking at almost certain qualification to the knockout stages. Madrid are far from out of it but they will need a couple of good wins to get their campaign back on track. Teams Arsenal: Rami Shaaban, Paolo Montero, Ashley Cole, Nils-Eric Johansson, Sol Campbell (Captain), Giovanni Van Bronckhorst, Jermaine Penant (Moritz Voltz 69), Ray Parlour, Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry, Freddie Ljunberg (Kevin O'Rourke 46) Subs not used: Stuart Taylor, David Bentley, Sebastian Larsson, David Noble, Jermaine Brown Real Madrid: Iker Casillas, Michel Salgado, Santiago Solari, Ivan Campo, Roberto Carlos, Julio Cesar, Clarence Seedorf, Claude Makelele (Ronaldo 44), Raul (Captain), Fernando Morientes (Cesar 61), Robert Pires (Julius Agahowa 75) Subs not used: Steve McManaman, Pedro Munitis, Albert Celades, Raul Bravo Scorers Arsenal: Johansson 25, Henry 45, 62 Real Madrid: Ronaldo (pen) 49 Man of the Match: Thierry Henry (Arsenal) Yellow Cards Arsenal: Paolo Montero, Giovanni Van Bronckhorst, Ray Parlour Real Madrid: Ronaldo Red Cards Real Madrid: Iker Casillas Attendance: 38,404 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 England and France, just like real life. Looks like Arsenal r on track for at least some success this season, here's hoping for champions of the champions league. And Real Madrid seem to be having a nightmare season lol, 5th! Haven't seen it but i'm not sure, has Real Madrid sacked a manager recently? If not, they should seriously consider it, having those players and no champions league could see a few stars leaving. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted February 15, 2004 Author Share Posted February 15, 2004 ESW Online has been updated. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted February 20, 2004 Author Share Posted February 20, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 29 - Friday February 20th, 2004 News The Spanish press have been in raptures over the form of Barcelona's Gaizka Mendieta (29, AM RC). The Spanish international is having an exceptional season at Barca, both scoring and creating goals aplenty. However his manager, Louis van Gaal, has tried to downplay the praise clearly hoping to avoid any possible complacency creeping into the midfielder's game. Galatasaray manager Yilmaz Vural has been dismissed because of overwhelming supporter pressure, leaving the Turkish giants in search of a new head coach. Bologna boss Francesco Guidolin is under pressure to reverse his clubs slide down Serie A and needs to put a run of form together if he is to avoid the sack. Motherwell have tempted John Hollins to leave Second Division Barnsley and take charge at Fir Park. His new team sit at the foot of the SPL and are currently 5 points from safety. League Roundup Belgium Sint-Truiden and Charleroi both made ground at the top this week with wins over GBA and Westerlo respectively. Their nearest pursuers, Anderlecht and Club Brugge both dropped points in draws with Virton and Lierse. At the bottom end Antwerp managed a 1-1 draw with Standard Liege and Mons beat Lommel to move up 3 places. La Louviere still look like the prime relegation candidates though and are now 6 points from safety. England There was no action in the Premier League this week because of FA Cup fixtures. France Nantes are back on top of the table with two 1-0 wins this week away to Bastia and at home to Caen. Sedan played once beating Lens 1-0. Rennes stay 3rd after their 1-1 draw with 4th place Bordeaux. Auxerre played 3 games in 4 days - two in the league and one in the cup. They beat Toulouse 1-0 and had a scoreless draw with struggling Troyes and have moved up to 5th. Guingamp picked up a point in a 1-1 draw at fellow strugglers Bastia, a result that helps neither team significantly. Germany The top five in Germany have opened up a 14-point gap over the rest and only 5th place Leverkusen failed to win this week. Dortmund beat HSV 3-0, Nürnberg won 1-0 at Hannover 96, FC Bayern had the same score at Kaiserslautern as did Schalke 04 at VfB Stuttgart. Leverkusen were held to a 1-1 draw by visiting Hertha BSC. Werder Bremen have moved out of the bottom three with a 2-1 win at last place Greuther Fürth who drop to the bottom after Cottbus pulled off a rare win beating 1.FC Köln 2-1 at home. Greece Panathinaikos keep their 3-point lead with a 2-0 win over bottom club Giannena and AEK stay 2nd having won 2-0 at Iraklis. Olympiakos got back to winning ways with an entertaining 3-2 home win over PAOK. Kavala secured their 3rd successive draw holding OFI scoreless at home and are now 4 points clear of the drop zone. Holland Feyenoord were the only one of the top three in action this week and they played out an eventful 3-3 draw at Groningen. They are 9 points clear of PSV and 10 clear of Ajax. Bottom club MVV continue to rack up the defeats, their latest being a 4-1 reverse at AZ. Haarlem had a mixed week, losing an important relegation tussle 3-1 at home to Willem II but then gaining a shock 3-0 win at home to AZ. NAC held Roda 1-1 at home and are now level on points with Willem II and Cambuur. Italy Milan maintain their 7-point lead with a 1-0 win at Atalanta and Parma had a good 2-0 win at home to Juventus. Sampdoria lost 3-2 to visitors Roma and a 2-1 win for Lazio at home to Empoli sees them up to 4th. Inter slipped to a 2-1 defeat at home to Udinese. The top 6 are 7 points clear of the rest. Ancona's second win in a row, a 1-0 victory in the critical relegation battle at Palermo, moves them up a place and Chievo get their third straight win, 2-0 at home to Perugia, the team just above them. Northern Ireland The top two both dropped points this week with identical 2-2 away draws, Portadown at Glentoran and Distillery at Newry. Coleraine repeated this popular scoreline at home to Institute who are not yet formally relegated but it can't be far off now. Portugal Sporting and Benfica continue to slug in out in Portugal and both recorded wins this week. Porto move to 3rd after winning 3-2 at Braga as Gil Vicente slumped to a 2-1 defeat at U. Madeira. The bottom three all lost again so no change there. Republic of Ireland The top two played out a mightily entertaining 3-3 draw when Dundalk visited Shamrock Rovers. The home side took an early lead but the visitors struck back to take a 2-1 lead as Rovers had a man dismissed. Dundalk then went ahead again but Rovers found a final equaliser to tie the scores. Scotland There was no action in the SPL this week. Spain Barcelona are now 12 points clear in La Liga and definitely have the look of champions. This week they beat Valencia 2-0 despite having keeper Roberto Bonano (34, GK) dismissed. Deportivo are up to 2nd on goal difference as they beat Racing Santander 4-1 and Sevilla lost 1-0 at Real Madrid who stay 5th. Athletic Bilbao won 2-0 at struggling Badajoz and stay 4th. The top five are now 9 points clear of the chasing pack. Bottom club Elche managed a second straight point as they returned from Villarreal with a scoreless draw but they will need more than that to avoid the drop. Malaga and Badajoz both lost again and these three are the likely candidates for relegation. Turkey Besiktas opened up a 3-point gap as they beat Kocaelispor 1-0 and Fenerbahçe suffered a 3-2 defeat at relegation threatened Yozgatspor. Galatasaray managed their first win in 5 league matches with a 3-0 win at home to Malatyaspor but they remain 4th on goal difference behind Adanaspor. Bottom club Sekerspor struggled to another defeat and have the look of a doomed club. Fellow strugglers G. Birligi were cursing their luck as they conceded two goals in the last two minutes at Denizlispor to turn a 4-2 lead into a 4-4 draw. Wales There was both weekend and midweek action in Wales in a packed league programme. Leaders Aberystwyth Town took full advantage with a 3-2 defeat of Newtown and a 2-1 win at Haverfordwest. Bangor City stay three points back having beaten Rhyl 1-0 and won 3-1 at Afan Lido. At the foot of the table, Flexsys Cefn Druids lost 4-2 at Cwmbran Town but picked up a point in a 2-2 draw at home to Caernarfon Town. Afan Lido had a 3-1 win at home to Caersws to match their 3-1 defeat. Oswestry Town had their third successive 2-2 draw against Welshpool at the weekend and then pulled off a surprise 1-0 win at home to T.N. Solutions in midweek. Cup Roundup England The FA Cup 5th Round was played on St. Valentine's Day with perhaps the most notable result being the 1-1 draw between First Division Bristol City and Charlton. City will attempt to join fellow Div 1 team Bolton in the Quarter Finals in a replay on Wednesday. France The French Cup is notable for it's sheer magnitude and the 10th Round took place at the weekend with a number of First Division Clubs being eliminated. Perhaps the most notable was the demise of Auxerre at the hands of non-league Ecommoy on penalties after a 1-1 draw. Second Division Le Harve beat Rennes 2-0, Le Mans of D2 beat St-Etienne 1-0 and D2 Valence disposed of Marseille 4-1. Non-league Oissel beat Division Two Montpellier 3-1 and struggling PSG lost 3-1 at Toulouse. Greece Kalamata are the only team outside the top division to reach the Quarter Finals having beaten Division A opponents Aigaleo 2-1. Holland The Dutch Cup Semi Finals will feature First Division Excelsior as they overcame Emmen on penalties after a 1-1 draw as Fortuna were narrowly defeated 1-0 by Feyenoord. Excelsior will face PSV in the Semis and Feyenoord take on NEC. Northern Ireland Only 3 of the 8 Quarter Finalists are from the top division with Bangor, Glenavon and Distillery the only survivors. As it happens Glenavon are drawn against Distillery so we are guaranteed at least two Division One teams in the Semis. Portugal The Semi Final line up is now complete with Benfica defeating Sporting 1-0 and Braga beating Farense 3-1 in the midweek replays. Scotland The League Cup Semi Finals were completed on Wednesday and Celtic beat Dundee United 2-0 with Aberdeen winning 3-0 at Hibs. Champions League Roundup In Group A Real Madrid rekindled their hopes of qualification with a 2-1 win over Arsenal in Madrid. Thierry Henry gave Arsenal the lead at the start of the second half but ex-Gunner Robert Pires equalised and Clarence Seedorf got a late winner. Roma kept FC Bayern pointless with a 2-0 win in Italy. Barcelona stay top of group B after a 1-0 win at AEK in Athens and PSV revived their hopes by beating Lyon 2-0 at home. A 4-0 win for Milan at home to Athletic Bilbao guaranteed that they would progress from Group C and Liverpool took a step closer to the Quarter Finals with a 1-0 win at Olympiakos. Finally in Group D Manchester United are through despite being held to a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford by Betis and an excellent 1-0 win for Dortmund in Parma has the Germans on the brink of qualification. Spotlight on .....Europe's Whipping Boys This week we thought that we would take a look at some of the teams that aren't doing quite so well at the moment in the hope that giving them a mention might help motivate them to greater things. K Diegem Sport - Belgian Third Division Having achieved promotion to the Third Division last season, Diegem are struggling at this level. They are bottom of the table having failed to win any of their 21 league matches. NK Junak - Croatian Second Division North Newly promoted to the Second Division last season, Junak finished two places above the relegation places in 13th but are really struggling this season. With no wins in their 17 league games so far they don't look like surviving the drop this time. Døllefjelde-Musse IF - Danish Second Division Just promoted to this level last season, Døllefjelde-Musse IF are set for a quick return having won none of their 15 games so far. Cittadella Padova - Italian Serie C1/A Cittadella have been performing increasingly worse in C1/A and this season they are rock bottom of the table with just two points from 21 games. Institute - Northern Ireland Premier Division Institute escaped relegation last season following their promotion from the First Division but they won't do the same this time around. Bottom of the table with just 1 win in their 28 league games there is no escape now. Valonguense - Portuguese Second Division B North Valonguense are totally out of their depth at this level and look set to make an immediate return to the world of non-league football. They have a single win and 3 points in 20 games this season. Game of the Week Wednesday February 18th, 2004 Dutch Premier Division Groningen 3 Feyenoord 3 The home side are on course for another good season in the Eredivisie after their 4th place finish of last season. They welcomed league leaders Feyenoord to the Oosterpark for a midweek league match hoping to bounce back from recent defeats in the Dutch Cup and in the league. 20-year-old forward Jurgen Seedorf got them off to a wonderful start when he scored in the first minute of the game after Hugo played him in with a perfectly weighted through ball. The visitors responded immediately and Mariano Bombarda had a couple of presentable chances in the next few minutes. The first one was struck high and wide and the second was well saved by Egbert Darwinkel. On the 20 minute mark Johan Elmander missed a glorious opportunity for Feyenoord when he shot wide with only the keeper to beat after being set up by Sylvain Wiltord. Wiltord is having his best season in Holland since his move from Arsenal a couple of years ago and he provided the equaliser after half an hour. Melchior Schoenmakers was penalised for a push on Bombarda and earned a booking into the bargain. He was further punished when Song Jong-Kook whipped in the free kick and Wiltord got the better of Sander van Gessel in the air to head home. Groningen almost struck back minutes later but Seedorf was denied a second goal by the width of the goalpost. But Feyenoord had the better of the game at this point and Bombarda tested Darwinkel once more with a firm shot but the home captain was equal to the task and turned the ball away for a corner. The resulting set piece had the look of a pre-planned routine as Elmander found Civard Sprockel on the corner of the 18-yard box and the young defender showed great technique to volley home. But the home side refused to be daunted by this setback and Seedorf scored a deserved second goal when he controlled a van Gessel pass very neatly considering the slippery conditions underfoot and slammed a left foot shot past Edwin Zoetebier. The half finished with both sides nearly adding to the scoreline. Firstly, Darwinkel did well to save a goal bound shot from Patrick Paauwe to keep Feyenoord out and then at the other end Zoetebier did brilliantly to get a hand to an exquisite free kick from Chris Janssens. After the restart it was the visitors who retained much of the possession with Elmander again going close after a neat pass from Paul Bosvelt but his volley went just over. The disappointing Bombarda was replaced by Pierre van Hooijdonk and the 34-year-old striker made a telling contribution with virtually his first touch of the game. It was his pass that set Leonardo free in the area to shoot past Darwinkel and put Feyenoord back in front. This prompted a good spell of pressure from the home side and Zoetebier pulled off a superb double save to keep his team in front. First, substitute Rolf Landerl got his head to a cross from David Kase and Zoetebier made an instinctive parry. Then Landerl managed to get a foot to the loose ball only to see the keeper somehow get a hand to his effort to block it on the line before Song Jong-Kook completed the clearance. Within seconds of his appearance from the bench Shutlan Axwijk found himself in the referee's book as his protests when Mr. van der Roest refused a strong penalty appeal were just a bit too enthusiastic. With around 15 minutes remaining Feyenoord's South Korean defender Song Jong-Kook almost made the game safe but his shot clipped the post and went wide. But then the home side put together their best move of the match, a smooth 5-man passing move, and Landerl gleefully finished it off to tie the game up once more. Groningen enjoyed the better of the closing stages but despite some intense pressure in the last few minutes they were unable to find a winner and had to settle for a point. On balance a draw was just about the right result as both teams showed both skill and determination in an excellent encounter. Teams Groningen: Egbert Darwinkel (Captain), Sebastián Eduardo Pardo, Quincy van Ommeren (Shutlan Axwijk 61), Chris Janssens, Melchior Schoenmakers (Niels Kerkhof 61), Sander van Gessel, Mile Krstev, Hugo, David Kase, Jurgen Seedorf, Petri Oravainen (Rolf Landerl 53) Subs not used: Alexey Nikonov, Piet Tol, Arnold Kruiswijk, Kurt Elshot Feyenoord: Edwin Zoetebier, Song Jong-Kook, Ramon van Haaren, Civard Sprockel, Kees van Wonderen (Captain), Patrick Paauwe, Johan Elmander (Bonaventure Kalou 75), Paul Bosvelt, Mariano Bombarda (Pierre van Hooijdonk 53), Sylvain Wiltord, Leonardo Subs not used: Cor Varkevisser, Ebi Smolarek, Gérard de Nooijer, Brian Pinas, Steve Olfers Scorers Groningen: Seedorf 1, 40, Landerl 79 Feyenoord: Wiltord 30, Sprockel 34, Leonardo 60 Man of the Match: Jurgen Seedorf (Groningen) Yellow Cards Groningen: Pardo, Schoenmakers, Kerkhof, Axwijk Feyenoord: Song Jong-Kook, Paauwe Attendance: 12,973 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HD Posted February 20, 2004 Share Posted February 20, 2004 Greatest result in Groningen's history? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted February 27, 2004 Author Share Posted February 27, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 30 - Friday February 27th, 2004 CORRECTION In Issue 27 we incorrectly reported that Milan had beaten Torino 3-2 on aggregate in the Italian Cup Semi Final. It was in fact Torino that won the tie 3-2 overall and they will meet Atalanta in the Final next month. We apologise for this error and the reporter in question has been severely reprimanded. News Galatasaray have announced that their new manager will be Nevzat Sipal. The 50-year-old Turk has come to prominence in the last year or so that he has been in charge at Göztepe. Two years ago Sipal was boss as D2B club Sariyer and having taken then to the brink of promotion he was hired by Göztepe who at that point were in D2A. He secured their promotion to Premier Division and his team has surprised everyone by reaching the Cup Final having beaten both Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe on the way. Staying in Turkey, the boss of struggling Samsunspor, Turhan Sofuoglu, was dismissed this week. The club has been in decline for the last couple of seasons and the former Turkish international was hired less than 12 months ago to try to turn things around. His failure to do so means that the club are now looking for their third manager in just over two years. League Roundup Belgium The Belgian First Division has just entered a mini-break and action will resume in early March. Croatia The Croatian First Division got back into competitive action at the weekend and leaders Osijek started where they left off before the break with 2-0 win at Zagreb. Dinamo stay second despite losing 1-0 at Sibenik, who move up to 5th, and they are now 5 points adrift. Third place Hajduk made ground with a 4-1 win at Kamen Ingrad and Zadar stay 4th with a 2-0 home win over Slaven Belupo. England Manchester United continue to set the pace in England and racked up their 19th win of the season by beating Millwall 2-1 at Old Trafford. Liverpool move to 2nd with their 2-0 defeat of Leeds and Arsenal slip to 3rd following a scoreless draw at Middlesbrough. Tottenham's good season continues as a 2-1 win at home to Aston Villa takes them 4th. Sunderland did themselves a big favour by beating West Brom 2-0 at the Hawthorns to move above Charlton who themselves were denied three points when Southampton scored a last-minute equaliser at the Valley. Another defeat for Brighton, 2-0 at home to Everton, increases their likelihood of relegation. France Nantes took a big step towards securing the title when they returned from their trip to second place Sedan with a 1-0 win last weekend. However, in a full league programme earlier today they offered the others hope by losing 2-0 at Lens. But Sedan were unable to profit as they were also defeated, 1-0 at Marseille. The top two have opened up a bit of a gap although Rennes have made some headway after a 2-2 draw with PSG and a 4-0 demolition of struggling Bastia. Bastia did manage a win last weekend however, defeating Caen 2-0. In the bottom three Lorient lost their crucial relegation match at Guingamp 2-1. The luck is not with Lorient this season as they had to play the last 20 minutes with 10 men after substitute Robson (29, S C) was dismissed and the winner was an own goal by former Celtic player Momo Sylla (26, D/DM/F RC). Troyes recorded a totally unexpected 4-0 win at Nice when the home side had a man sent off after two minutes. This produced a defensive collapse aided by a nightmare performance by the Nice keeper Bruno Valencony (35, GK). Toulouse climbed up to 14th with an excellent 4-1 defeat of Monaco and look to have secured their place in the top flight. Germany A thrilling title race in Germany took another twist this week as Nürnberg go back to the top of the table. They beat Kaiserslautern 2-0 whilst Dortmund had a 2-1 reverse at Schalke 04. FC Bayern had a comfortable 4-0 win over M'gladbach and Leverkusen won 2-0 at Werder Bremen. The top five are still separated by five points with just two points between the top four. Greece Panathinaikos stretched their lead to 5 points with a 1-0 win at OFI as AEK were held to a 1-1 draw by visiting Aigaleo. Olympiakos are now level on points with AEK after they won 1-0 at Giannena. Kalamaria improved their hopes of escaping the drop with a fine 3-0 defeat of Iraklis and have closed to within two points of Kavala who themselves had a good 1-1 draw at Ethnikos Asteras. Holland Leaders Feyenoord were held to a 1-1 draw by visiting Heerenveen allowing PSV to close the gap. PSV themselves had a hectic week of league action, playing three times in all. They had a 2-0 win at ADO at the weekend, beat NEC 4-1 at home in midweek and were held 1-1 by visiting Vitesse earlier today. 3rd place Ajax beat Roda 1-0 in Amsterdam. Italy Leaders Milan played two massive home games over their nearest challengers this week and triumphed in both of them. First they defeated Parma 3-0 and then they disposed of Sampdoria 2-0. They have now opened up a 13-point gap and on their current form they look virtually unbeatable. The other form team in Italy at the moment is Torino. They are unbeaten in the league since the end of November last year and have climbed from second-bottom of the table up to 7th place. They have also claimed a place in the Italian Cup Final. Northern Ireland Leaders Portadown visited second place Distillery and came away with a somewhat fortunate 2-0 win. Coleraine now move above Distillery on goal difference thanks to a 3-0 win at Glenavon. Portadown now have a 8-point lead and the real battle is for second place with just one point separating three teams. Portugal The title race took an interesting turn this week as the top two met when Sporting travelled to Benfica on Monday. The visitors had their keeper sent off after 18 minutes and Benfica romped to a dramatic 4-0 win to go top. However, Sporting regained first place earlier today when they beat Boavista 2-1 at home. Porto stay third with a narrow 1-0 win at home to U. Madeira. Boavista's troubles continued as they lost 2-1 at home to bottom club Braga on Sunday and they are in real danger of relegation. Republic of Ireland Leaders Dundalk were in action twice this week beating Derry City 2-1 at home on Sunday and then drawing 1-1 at St. Pat's Athletic earlier today. They are now 8 points clear of Shamrock Rovers having played one game more. Bottom club Finn Harps closed to within two points of Kildare County when the two met at Finn Park and the home side ran out 3-0 winners. Scotland Leaders Rangers were held to a battling 1-1 draw at Raith Rovers allowing Celtic to cut their lead to two points courtesy of a 2-1 home win over Dunfermline. A 2-0 win for Livingston at Dundee Utd moves them into 3rd, two points clear of Raith. Spain Barcelona were forced to play Sevilla twice in four days but after two wins, 4-2 away and 2-0 at home, they will have no complaints as they have a healthy 14-point lead at the top of La Liga. Real Madrid faced a similar situation as they played Athletic Bilbao twice. Real also won both games, 2-1 away and 3-0 at home and move into second place. Deportivo defeated Celta 2-1 at home but drop to third spot with Sevilla 4th and Athletic Bilbao 5th. Bottom club Elche gained their first win of the season, a 1-0 victory at home to Racing Santander. Turkey Fenerbahçe are now back level on points with Besiktas in a nip and tuck title race in Turkey. Besiktas suffered a 1-0 defeat at Gaziantespor whose recent good form has taken them up to 4th place. Fenerbahçe had a solid 4-0 win at home to Trabzonspor and a 3-2 win for Galatasaray at Samsunspor keeps them 3rd. Last-placed Sekerspor had some good luck for a change in their trip to Kayserispor when the home keeper was dismissed. They took full advantage and recorded a 2-0 win. G. Birligi kept their relegation fight on course with a 3-2 win at home to D. Bakirspor and 7 points in their last 3 games sees them now just one point from safety. Wales A 2-1 home win over Newtown sees Bangor City move to within a point of Aberystwyth Town as the leaders were kept scoreless by visiting Llanelli. A 2-0 win for Barry Town over Flexsys Cefn Druids keeps them 3rd, 7 points behind Bangor. Cup Roundup England The second leg ties in the League Cup Semi Finals were decided this week and it will be an all-Premiership final between Leeds and Manchester United. Leeds beat Second Divison Hull 2-1 at home to complete a 4-2 aggregate win and United beat Portsmouth of Division One 2-0 at Old Trafford for a 4-0 overall win. The Vans Trophy has reached the regional Semi Final stage. In the Northern Section Notts County beat Boston United 2-0 and Oldham recorded the same scoreline against Wrexham. Down South Cheltenham beat Norwich 2-0 and Northampton had a narrow 1-0 win over Plymouth. Finally in the FA Cup 5th round replay Charlton overcame Bristol City 2-0 to book their place in the Quarter Finals. France The French League Cup Quarter Finals were completed during the week. Bordeaux defeated Lille 2-1 and Auxerre, Guingamp and Monaco all recorded identical 1-0 wins away from home at Chateauroux, Le Mans and St-Etienne respectively giving an all-Division One lineup in the Semis. Greece The first legs of the Quarter finals of the Greek Cup took place on Wednesday. Kalamata of Division B held out for almost 80 minutes before conceding the only goal of the game to AEK. Olympiakos beat Kavala 1-0, Panathinaikos defeated Iraklis 2-1 and PAOK were held to a scoreless draw by Panionios. Scotland The Scottish Cup is guaranteed a First Division Semi-Finalist as the two surviving Division One teams were drawn against one another in the Quarter Final lineup. In the 4th round Ayr produced an upset by beating visiting Dunfermline 1-0 thanks to a first half goal from James Grady (32, S C). Their Quarter Final opponents will be Stenhousemuir who disposed of another Ayrshire team when they eliminated Kilmarnock 2-1 at home. Non-league Cove Rangers went down fighting in a 1-0 defeat at Premier League St. Johnstone. The Old Firm both progressed with Celtic 3-0 winners at Arbroath but Rangers required a late goal from John Terry (23, D C) to see off the challenge of Raith Rovers with a 2-1 win. Spotlight on ….. The Goal Stoppers Having looked at some of Europe's most deadly goalscorers some weeks ago, we thought that it might be appropriate to cast an eye over the often unsung heroes on the pitch and give you a view of Europe's top goalkeepers. Gianluigi Buffon, 26, Juventus Currently the first choice keeper for the Italian national side, Buffon has 33 caps to his name. Francesco Toldo, 32, Inter With 43 caps, Toldo is fighting to regain his starting place for Italy and is in great form for Inter this season. Sebastien Frey, 23, Parma Having very recently broken into the French national team the young Parma keeper is currently his country's number one. Fabien Barthez, 32, Manchester United With 72 international caps, Barthez is hugely experienced but has recently been usurped as first choice for France by Frey although he remains as the Manchester United number 1. Jose Molina, 33, Deportivo Recognised as Spain's top keeper he has now gained 15 caps for his country. Oliver Kahn, 34, FC Bayern Rapidly approaching the veteran stage but still one of the best in the business. Still first pick for the national team, he has amassed 68 caps for Germany. Ruslan Nigmatullin, 29, West Ham Russia's number one had been plying his trade in England for over a year now and has been capped 34 times for his country. Chris Kirkland, 22, Liverpool This talented young keeper has usurped Jerzy Dudek as the Liverpool number one this season and he looks to have a bright future ahead of him. Rami Shaaban, 28, Arsenal Arsenal's first choice for the last three seasons since his move from DjurgÃ¥rden, Rami hasn't been able to dislodge Marcus Hedman of Celtic from the starting position in the Swedish national side. Mickael Landreau, 24, Nantes Marshalling the meanest defence in French football, this promising young keeper has conceded just 11 goals in 28 league matches so far this season. Jens Lehmann, 34, Dortmund Capped 14 times for Germany the gifted Lehmann would surely have had many more outings for his country if not for the presence of the outstanding Kahn. Ilias Atmatzidis, 34, AEK The first choice keeper for his country with 53 caps to his name, Ilias is an important part of the renowned AEK defence. Last season they concede just 10 league goals on their way to the runners-up position. Christian Abbiati, 26, Milan Milan have conceded just 8 league goals in 25 games this season and the form of Abbiati is one of the main reasons for that record. He has yet to make a breakthrough into the national team and he may have to wait awhile yet given the tremendous goalkeeping talent available in Italy. Game of the Week Sunday February 22nd, 2004 Italian Serie A Milan 3 Parma 0 The Guiseppe Meazza Stadium in Milan was a riot of noise and colour as nearly 73,000 fans looked forward to the eagerly awaited clash of the top two teams in Serie A. One of the most magnificent grounds in world football, the truly amazing fact is that a further 12,000 supporters could have been accommodated. As the teams lined up their formations were a mirror image of one another. Both employed three central defenders at the back with two wide midfielders deployed as wingbacks. Then two central midfielders and an attacking midfielder deployed just behind two forwards. But from the start it was clear that however close their formations the mentality of the teams was very different. Milan looked positive from the start whereas Parma looked reluctant to venture forward. The pattern of the game would remain the same for 90 minutes - Milan pressing forward and Parma trying to keep them at bay. The first chance fell to Filippo Inzaghi following neat interplay between Andriy Shevchenko and Zinedine Zidane but Inzaghi's header was turned away for a corner by Sebastien Frey. Then Zidane displayed his usual vision and creativeness by conjuring up an improvised pass that Rivaldo ran on to and slipped past the advancing Frey only to see the flag raised for an offside decision. JoaquÃn then picked out Zidane with a low near-post ball but the Frenchman's shot was brilliantly held by his compatriot in the Parma goal. It seemed only a matter of time before Milan would make the breakthrough and it came in the 28th minute. Kakhaber Kaladze pounced on a punched clearance from Frey and threaded a pass through to Inzaghi who finished superbly. Barely two minutes later Milan scored again as a fierce shot from Shevchenko was parried by Frey and Rivaldo was first to the lose ball to shoot home. Milan were really on a roll now and in the remainder of the first half Frey was in constant action, denying Zidane, Kaladze, Shevchenko and Rivaldo with a series of fine stops. The only relief for Parma came right at the end of the half when, in a rare foray upfield, Alex came close to scoring when he curled one from distance that clipped the top of the bar. The scoring was completed some 10 minutes after the restart when, after the ball had been pinging around the Parma area like a pinball, Rivaldo struck a first-time shot into the back of the net via the post. With such a comfortable lead, Milan did drop the pace a little for the remainder of the game but Frey still had to be alert to keep out efforts from Zidane, Inzaghi and Rivaldo. Teams Milan: Christian Abbiati, Catilina Aubameyang (Gennaro Ivan Gattuso 72), Paolo Maldini (Captain), Alessandro Nesta, Dario Simic, JoaquÃn, Kakhaber Kaladze, Zinedine Zidane, Rivaldo, Andriy Shevchenko, Filippo Inzaghi Subs not used: Cristian Brocchi, Urko, Davide Matteini, Marco Borriello, Jon Dahl Tomasson, Vitaly Kutuzov Parma: Sebastien Frey, Marco Marchionni, Alex (Hidetoshi Nakata 64), Aimo Diana, Stefano Torrisi, Paolo Cannavaro, Matteo Brighi, Adrian Mutu (Captain), Adriano, Alexander Farnerud (Edmundo 54), Júnior Subs not used: Alberto Gilardino, Claudio Sacco, Daniele Bonera, Massimo Donati, Antonio Benarrivo Scorers Milan: Inzaghi 28, Rivaldo 30, 53 Yellow Cards Parma : Farnerud Man of the Match: Rivaldo (Milan) Attendance: 72,686 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted March 5, 2004 Author Share Posted March 5, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 31 - Friday March 5th, 2004 News The form of Arsenal captain Patrick Vieira (27, DM C) has been widely discusses in the English press this week and the consensus is that the French international is at the top of his game. His manager Arsene Wenger was in full agreement stating that Vieira was a key player for his team. The managerial rumour mill has been cranking away this week as we approach a key time in the season for many of the European leagues. Anderlecht boss Jan Ceulemans continues to face criticism as his team are dogged by inconsistency. In England Newcastle boss Martin O'Neill is still up against it with his team sitting in mid table. Their forthcoming FA Cup Quarter Final at home to Blackburn could be a make or break fixture for the Irishman as this is the Geordie's only hope of a trophy this season. Philippe Bergeroo is still hanging on at Auxerre despite increasing pressure from the fans. His team are 5th in the table but their erratic performances are not helping their manager. Bologna's slide down Serie A means that their manager Francesco Guidolin is facing an uncertain future, although victories in their last two league matches have helped his cause somewhat. In Portugal, Boavista boss Jose Mourinho is still in charge but with his team having sunk to the bottom of the table his time is almost up and we expect his head to roll any time now. Vitoria Setubal manager Jose Vieira de Carvalho is also in deep trouble as his team cannot seem to extricate themselves from the bottom three. Dundee United boss Alex Smith could be the next high-profile managerial sacking in Scotland as their poor form in the league has seen them drop out of the all-important top six. League Roundup Belgium The Belgian First Division will be back in full action next week but earlier today the bottom club La Louviere gained three valuable points by winning 2-1 at Beveren. Croatia There were two rounds of league matches in Croatia last week. Leaders Osijek kept up their impressive form by gaining two home wins, 3-1 against Belisce and 1-0 against Zadar. Dinamo maintain second place with a 3-1 win at Kamen Ingrad and a home victory over Varteks by the same scoreline. Not to be outdone, 3rd place Hajduk also recorded two wins, 1-0 at Cibalia and 3-2 at home to Segesta. Denmark The Danish Premier Division is now back in action and a number of games have been played since last weekend. Leaders AaB had a 1-0 win at home to FC Midtjylland to stay top. Brøndby were in action twice and two 1-0 wins at Frem and AGF has moved then up to 2nd. FC København were held scoreless at home to AGF and slip to 3rd. In the critical relegation fixture on Monday Vejle came back from two goals down to finish all square with visiting Esbjerg fB, a result that leaves the visitors 5 points adrift at the bottom. England The only action in the EPL this week saw Manchester United extend their lead with a 3-1 win at home to West Ham. France It was a quiet week in France too with only three First Division matches. Bordeaux move up to 3rd after their 2-0 win over Strasbourg, Auxerre go 5th having beaten rock bottom Lorient 5-0 and Toulouse keep moving in the right direction with a scoreless draw against Caen. Germany There is a short break in the Bundesliga this week. Greece Our friends in Greece are also taking a brief rest this week. Holland The top three all recorded away victories this week. Feyenoord beat Twente 3-0, PSV beat Roda 1-0 and Ajax defeated Haarlem 3-1. AZ stay 4th despite a heavy 4-0 defeat at home to Zwolle and are level on points with Groningen after their 1-0 win at home to Willem II. Twente are just a point behind those two in 6th. Italy Leaders Milan were held to a scoreless draw at Sampdoria but maintain their commanding lead. Parma suffered their 3rd defeat in 4 league matches, losing 2-0 at Atalanta. Inter had a narrow 1-0 win over Empoli and Lazio beat Lecce 3-1 at home. Roma were surprisingly beaten 2-1 at Bologna and Torino continue their climb up the table with a 1-0 defeat of Perugia. The key relegation clash of the week was the visit of bottom club Palermo to Chievo. The visitors battled back from a two-goal deficit to score twice in the last 15 minutes only for Chievo to score a dramatic stoppage time winner. The 3-2 victory takes them out of the bottom four on goal difference over Perugia. Northern Ireland The Northern Ireland Premier League is also taking a short break this week. Poland The Polish First Division is now out of hibernation and back into action. The top two both recorded 2-1 home wins, Widzew against Groclin and Wisla against Pogon. However Legia went down 3-2 at Ruch Chorzow to drop to 4th and are overtaken by Odra Wodzislaw who beat visitors Szczakowianka 1-0. Portugal Sporting stay top of the table after a 2-0 win at Vitoria Guimarães and a surprise 2-1 defeat for Benfica at Salgueiros creates a 4-point gap between first and second. Porto remain third after their 3-2 win at Gil Vicente. Braga move off the bottom following their 3-1 defeat of MarÃtimo. Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers cemented second place with a 2-1 defeat of nearest rival Bohemians and are now 5 points behind leaders Dundalk. The bottom of the table is getting very tight with a mere 4 points between 6th and 10th so if any of the strugglers could put a few wins together they could make a decisive break for Premier League survival. Scotland There were only two games played in the SPL this week. Bottom club Motherwell recorded a 4-2 win against Hibs in an eventful encounter at Fir Park with both teams ending the game with ten men. The win takes them to within two points of Hearts who continue to struggle and lost 2-0 at home to Aberdeen. The Jam Tarts are without a win in their last 18 league games and have dropped from a high of 3rd to 11th during their disastrous slump. Spain Barcelona look to be home and dry in the Primera Liga having picked up another 6 points this week with home wins over Athletic Bolbao and Real Madrid. They are now 19 points clear of Real in second place. With 3rd place Deportivo drawing 1-1 at Levante and 4th place Sevilla losing 1-0 at Oviedo, no one seems to be capable of mounting any kind of challenge to Barca's superiority. Turkey There was only one league match in the Turkish Premier Division this week but it was a big one with Galatasaray defeating visiting Fenerbahçe 2-0. Both teams had players dismissed in a volatile encounter and the result keeps Fenerbahçe second behind Besiktas on goal difference with Galatasaray 5 points behind in third. Wales The Welsh Premier League is also taking a short break from competitive action. Cup Roundup England The first leg matches in the regional finals of the Vans Trophy took place in midweek with Oldham losing out 2-0 at home to Notts County and Cheltenham held 1-1 by visiting Northampton. Italy The Italian Cup Final is unusual in that it is played over two legs and Atalanta must feel that they have one hand on the trophy after their 3-1 win at home to Torino. Three second half goals from the home side overturned a 1-0 deficit to put them in pole position for the return leg, although they will have to wait until the end of April before that game is played. UEFA Cup Roundup The UEFA Cup got back into action with the first leg ties in the 4th Round taking place in midweek. Inter are in good shape after a 3-0 defeat of Besiktas in Milan and Sevilla had a comfortable 4-0 win over Wisla in Spain. Nantes overturned a one-goal deficit to take a 2-1 lead back to Juventus. Rangers suffered a narrow 1-0 loss at home to Lazio with captain Barry Ferguson credited with an own goal after an unlucky deflection. Celtic will be happy with the 1-all draw at Villarreal courtesy of an equaliser from Chris Sutton in the second half. Spotlight on ..... The African Nations Cup For the last few weeks the African Nations Cup has been taking place in the Sudan and the competition finished last weekend. Though not strictly within the remit of ESW the tournament featured a number of European-based players so we thought it appropriate to bring you a short review of the action. Nigeria and Tunisia dominated Group 1 with the Nigerians coming out on top with three wins out of three. Nigeria beat Sierra Leone 3-0, the Ivory Coast 2-0 and in the group decider they defeated Tunisia 2-0 for an impressive run through to the knockout phase. Tunisia finished as runners-up as they put 5 goals past Sierra Leone and beat the Ivory Coast 1-0. In Group 2 Morocco made a great start with wins over Angola and Liberia, 6-1 and 6-2 respectively. However, they had their comeuppance against South Africa with a 3-2 defeat and finished second in the group with the South Africans going through as winners. This was a high-scoring group and poor Liberia were the whipping boys, losing 4-1 to South Africa and 5-0 to Angola. Sadly, the host nation Sudan finished rock bottom in Group 3 without a point to their name as Egypt and Senegal qualified. The Republic of Congo raised a few eyebrows in their opening game by holding Egypt to a 1-1 draw. They entered their final game against Senegal needing just a point to go through but lost a tight game 1-0 with a goal 10 minutes from time. Algeria were the surprise winners of Group 4, winning all of their games with the favourites Cameroon runners-up in the Group. Ghana were disappointed to finish with just one win and Tanzania finished last with three defeats out of three. The Quarter Finals were all close run things with some exciting matches. Nigeria beat Morocco 2-1 after extra time in a pulsating encounter and Egypt triumphed over Cameroon 2-1 in a very even contest. South Africa edged out Tunisia 3-2 in a match that the Tunisians dominated but couldn't kill off. But the match of the round was the encounter between Senegal and Algeria. Senegal recovered from two down to take a 3-2 lead with 7 minutes remaining but Algeria struck back two minute from the end to force extra time. With no further scoring the game was decided on a penalty shootout with Senegal winning 4-3. In the first Semi Final Nigeria pummelled Egypt for most of the game but couldn't find a way through a solid defence, with the Egyptian captain and keeper Nader Ibrahim in outstanding form. Egypt scored a breakaway goal 10 minutes after the restart and were able to hold on for the win. In the second game South Africa and Senegal served up another thriller. This time Senegal established a two-goal lead only for South Africa to score twice in the last 10 minutes to force extra time. Once again the game went to penalties and Senegal again triumphed 3-1. In the Third Place Playoff South Africa edged out Nigeria 1-0 but both teams looked tired and listless, once again raising the question of the value of such matches. The Final was much more entertaining for the spectators with both sides showing enterprise in attack. It was some surprise that it took almost an hour for the first goal to be scored as Egypt took the lead through Mido, the young Ajax striker. Egypt scored twice more before the end with Mido getting a second, before Senegal got a very late consolation. Game of the Week Wednesday March 3rd, 2004 Spanish La Liga Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 0 Real Madrid came into this game as Barcelona's nearest challengers in the Primera Liga, a distant 16-point behind the champions-in-waiting. Their initial formation and demeanour did not have the look of a team fired up for the challenge as they played with a back line of 5 defenders guarded by 2 defensive midfielders. Barcelona in contrast came out in almost a 4-3-3 formation with half a dozen attack-minded players on the pitch. However, the first 15 minutes were pretty even with Robert Pires and Javier Saviola trading chances at either end, none of which were on target. Juan Román Riquelme had the first effort on target for Barca but Iker Casillas was equal to the challenge in the Real goal. Pires came close again for Real with a dipping shot that went narrowly over before Roberto Bonano was forced into a fine save to deal with a stinging volley from Fernando Morientes. Barcelona got the goal they were looking for a few minutes before half time. Patrick Kluivert climbed well to get his head to a cross from Phillip Cocu and Riquelme just reached the knockdown before the onrushing Casillas and as the two collided he prodded the ball home. Unfortunately the Argentinean midfielder was injured in the impact and had to be replaced by VÃctor. The second half started off in a very low-key manner as neither team seemed able to gain the initiative. Barcelona brought on Xavi for Luis Enrique and then some 5 minutes later were forced into another change when a very subdued Javier Saviola hobbled off to be replaced by Patrik Andersson. Within minutes of the second substitution Barca scored their second with perhaps the outstanding move of the night. It was initiated from the back by Lilian Thuram and some slick high-speed passing between Fernando, Frank De Boer and Xavi ended with Marc Overmars firing home with a great finish. That ended the scoring but VÃctor, Xavi and Kluivert all forced young Casillas into athletic saves in the last half hour. Teams Barcelona: Roberto Bonano, Carles Puyol, Fernando, Frank De Boer (Captain), Lilian Thuram, Marc Overmars, Luis Enrique (Xavi 51), Juan Román Riquelme (VÃctor 42), Patrick Kluivert, Javier Saviola (Patrik Andersson 57), Phillip Cocu Subs not used: Robert Enke, Gerard, Philippe Christanval, Gabri Real Madrid: Iker Casillas, Iván Helguera, Santiago Hernán Solari, Iván Campo, Roberto Carlos, Júlio César, Clarence Seedorf, Claude Makélélé (Hierro 51), Raúl (Captain), Fernando Morientes, Robert Pires (Michel Salgado 57 (Julius Agahowa 78)) Subs not used: César, Francisco Pavón, Ronaldo, Raúl Bravo Scorers Barcelona: Riquelme 41, Overmars 60 Yellow Cards Real Madrid: Pires Man of the Match: Carles Puyol (Barcelona) Attendance: 94,729 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trigz Posted March 13, 2004 Share Posted March 13, 2004 Hello, With the season in Norway now only a month and a bit away, what can you tell us about the comings and goings in Tippeligaen? Specifically, how have Lillestrøm SK fared in the transfer market? (Still a great story, I'm loving it!) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted March 13, 2004 Author Share Posted March 13, 2004 We apologise for the late publication of this week's issue - this was due to technical problems beyond our control European Soccer Weekly Issue 32 - Friday March 12th, 2004 News Belgian club AA Gent disposed with the services of manager Gerard Plessers last weekend. The club has now gone through 3 managers in the last 2 years but any form of success continues to elude them. In fact their current position of 12th would be an improvement on either of the last two seasons. Whoever is hired to replace Plessers will have a pretty thankless task on their hands. In Germany the knives are out for Hannover 96 boss Ralf Rangnick and his position is described as “very insecure†by club insiders. After last season’s 4th place finish their current place of 12th in the table is clearly unacceptable to the board. Holland has seen a couple of high-profile casualties this week. Utrecht boss Foeke Booy has become a victim of his own success as the club currently sit in 8th place after top-5 finishes in the previous two seasons. Frans Adelaar has become the third manager to be sacked by NAC in the past 18 months as the club has been in fairly steady decline and currently occupy one of the two relegation playoff places. League Roundup Belgium Leaders Sint-Truiden suffered a somewhat surprising 5-2 defeat at Lierse who have leapt above Club Brugge and Anderlecht into 3rd place on goal difference. Charleroi failed to take full advantage of the leader’s misfortune, despite playing twice this week. At the weekend they were held scoreless by visiting Lommel and earlier today they drew 1-1 at Anderlecht. They remain in second place but are now even on points with the leaders. Bottom club La Louviere beat GBA 3-1 and the relegation battle is now really heating up. Westerlo, Antwerp and Lommel are all on 25 points with La Louviere just a point behind. Croatia The top four all won this week and with 9 games remaining leaders Osijek show no signs of buckling under the pressure although they have away games to come at both of their main challengers. Dinamo and Hajduk remain 5 and 6 points behind respectively and will be looking to keep their challenge going over the next few weeks. It looks increasingly certain that the bottom two, Kamen Ingrad and Marsonia, will be relegated as they both lost once again this week. Denmark Surprise leaders AaB stay top after a 1-0 defeat of OB and the next three are all even on points. FC København beat Vejle 2-0, FC Midtjylland defeated Frem 3-1 and Brøndby were held scoreless at Herfølge. Bottom club Esbjerg fB look like prime relegation candidates with Vejle and AB contesting the other relegation place. England Manchester United suffered an unexpected reverse with a 2-1 defeat at Newcastle, a result that gives beleaguered Magpies boss Martin O’Neill a little breathing space. Liverpool stay 2nd after a 0-0 draw at Millwall but Spurs have leapt to 3rd place as they beat fierce rivals Arsenal 2-0 at Highbury, a result that drops the Gunners to 4th. The bottom three all suffered defeats away from home, Sunderland losing 2-0 at Southampton, Charlton going down 1-0 at Everton and poor old Brighton losing 2-0 at Chelsea. The Seagulls are now 14 points from safety and look like relegation certainties. The other two might yet escape but it is Sunderland that look the most likely as they have taken 10 points from their last 5 games whilst Charlton have just two points in the same period. France Nantes and Sedan have opened up quite a gap at the top of the table, and they both won again this week. Leaders Nantes beat Marseille 3-0 and Sedan defeated Toulouse by the same scoreline. 3rd place Rennes won 2-0 at Lorient but remain 13 points of the pace. Bordeaux stay 4th despite a 2-0 defeat at Bastia and a 3-0 win over Nice keeps Auxerre 5th. Bottom club Lorient have now lost their last 7 games and look like favourites for the drop. Troyes are showing signs of life with 5 points from their last 3 games but remain 5 points from safety. Germany Such is the competitive situation at the top of the table that Nürnberg have dropped from 1st to 4th after their 4-1 defeat by Dortmund who now take over at the top. Dortmund managed to get the win despite having keeper Jens Lehmann (34, GK) sent off after quarter of an hour. The fact that they were 2-0 ahead at the time certainly helped their cause though. A fine 2-1 win at Leverkusen takes Schalke 04 up to 2nd and FC Bayern stay 3rd following their 1-1 draw at neighbours 1860 München. Greuther Fürth kept up their efforts to escape relegation when they beat SC Freiburg 2-0 at home. This result, together with a 1-0 win for Wolfsburg at Werder Bremen, sends SC Freiburg down into the bottom three on goal difference. Greece Panathinaikos had a fine 3-0 win at home to Ethnikos Asteras and stay top whilst Olympiakos move up to 2nd after they beat OFI 1-0 and AEK were held scoreless at Aris. Bottom team Giannena suffered their 14th defeat of the season and languish 8 points from safety with just 7 games to be played. Holland Leaders Feyenoord were in action twice this week, beating Utrecht 1-0 on Sunday and winning 3-1 at NAC earlier today. PSV did not have a league game this week and they are now 11 points behind the leaders with a game in hand. Ajax were able to make up a little ground in 3rd with their 2-1 win over NEC and Groningen climb to 4th after their 2-0 win at bottom team MVV. Italy Milan took a step nearer the Serie A title with a 1-0 win over Ancona. Inter move 2nd after a 1-0 win at Perugia and Parma drop to 3rd after their third consecutive league defeat, a 1-0 loss to Sampdoria. Lazio’s 3-0 win at Palermo has taken them to 4th and Torino had their 8th consecutive win, a 3-2 victory at Lecce thanks to a stoppage time winner. Northern Ireland There’s no change in Northern Ireland with the top three all gaining victories. Portadown won 2-1 at Newry, Coleraine beat Ballymena Utd 5-2 and Distillery beat Glentoran 1-0. With Institute already relegated the battle at the bottom is to avoid the single relegation playoff place. Glenavon pulled 6 points clear of Newry with a 2-1 defeat of Bangor and with just 6 games to play this gap could turn out to be significant. Poland Wisla moved to the top of the table as they won 2-0 at Odra Wodszislaw and former leaders Widzew dropped to second with a 3-0 loss at Legia who remain 3rd. Groclin stay 4th with a 3-1 defeat of Pogon. With just 2 points separating the top four we are in for an exciting title race this season. Portugal A 4-2 win over Leiria keeps Sporting top with a 4-point lead over Benfica who also won, 2-0 over Pacos Ferreira, but Benfica have a game in hand. Porto stay 3rd after a thrilling 3-3 draw at 4th place Belenenses with the home side snatching a dramatic stoppage time goal to square the game. Having dragged themselves off the foot of the table last week Braga have dropped back to last place. They showed great spirit in the relegation battle at Vitoria Setubal, coming back from 4-1 down to grab a draw with a last-gasp equaliser. Unfortunately for them Boavista gained their first win in 5 games when they beat Gil Vicente 2-0. Republic of Ireland Leaders Dundalk were in action twice this week, winning 2-0 at Finn Harps and then drawing 1-1 at Bohemians. A 1-0 defeat at St. Pat’s Athletic sees Shamrock Rovers now 9 points adrift but they do have a game in hand. Scotland Rangers and Celtic are streets ahead in the SPL and the both had comfortable wins this week, Rangers beating struggling Hearts 3-0 and Celtic demolishing Hibs 6-0 at Easter Road with Chris Sutton (31, S C) scoring a hat trick. Raith Rovers have re-taken 3rd place as they won 2-1 at Dunfermline and Livingston had a highly entertaining 3-3 draw against St. Johnstone with Livvy scoring a stoppage time equaliser. Motherwell claimed their 7th point in their last 3 games with a 1-1 draw at Dundee and are now just 1 point behind Hearts and a further point behind Dunfermline. Spain Thanks to some creative fixture scheduling, Barcelona and Real Madrid met for the second time in 4 days with Real reversing their previous result in a 3-2 win at the Bernabeu. As good as the win was it barely dents Barca’s lead and Real are still 16 points behind with 11 games remaining. A 3-0 defeat of Betis keeps Deportivo 3rd, Sevilla stay 4th with a 3-0 win over Villarreal and Athletic Bilbao remain 5th after their 3-1 defeat of Oviedo. At the bottom of the table Elche lost yet again and their 2-1 defeat by Levante sees them 11 points from safety. Malaga had a battling 3-2 win over Celta to move 3 points clear of Elche and are 3 points behind Badajoz. Turkey Of the top three only Besiktas were in action and their 1-0 defeat of Istanbulspor gives them a 3-point lead at the top of the table. Bottom team Sekerspor gained another valuable point in a scoreless draw with Göztepe and are now just a point behind Yozgatspor. Wales Aberystwyth Town kept their narrow lead intact thanks to a last-minute goal that gave them a 3-2 win at Rhyl and Bangor City stay a point back after their 2-1 victory at Caersws. Those two have pulled away from the pack recently and 3rd place Newtown are now 8 points adrift so with 7 games remaining it looks like a two-horse race for the title. Afan Lido gained a welcome win at Port Talbot Town with a 2-1 scoreline and have opened up a 3 point gap over bottom of the table Flexsys Cefn Druids. Cup Roundup France The 11th Round of the French Cup took place this weekend and the Quarter Finalists are now decided. Five of the eight teams are from Division Two with only Guingamp, Monaco and Bordeaux remaining from Division One. The last non-league survivors fell by the wayside this week with Ecommoy losing 3-0 at home to Guingamp and Oissel falling 4-0 to visiting Valence. Sedan were beaten 1-0 by Laval and Toulouse lost out on penalties to Le Mans after a 2-2 draw. Greece Two of the Semi Finalists have been determined after the half of the Quarter Final second legs were completed with two more to be played in two weeks time. Iraklis overcame a 2-1 deficit from the first leg to beat Panathinaikos 3-2 on aggregate and PAOK were victorious over Panionios 2-0 overall. Champions League Roundup Arsenal have put themselves in pole position to qualify from Group A with a 3-2 defeat of FC Bayern at Highbury. The Gunners took a 2-0 lead early on thanks to a brace from Thierry Henry (26, S C) but Bayern fought back to even the scores in the second half. However Arsenal captain Sol Campbell (29, D C) scored the winner from the penalty spot to send the Londoners to the top of the group with 12 points. Real Madrid kept their hopes alive with a narrow 1-0 defeat of Roma at the Bernabeu and those two are tied at 9 points each. Arsenal’s final game is against Roma at the Olimpico and a point will guarantee their place in the Quarter Finals. In Group B a 2-2 draw at the Nou Camp against Lyon was enough to secure qualification for Barcelona and with PSV held scoreless at AEK, Lyon look like the team most likely to take the runners-up spot. An excellent 3-0 win for Liverpool over Athletic Bilbao at Anfield in Group C has secured their Quarter Final place. Milan have already qualified so their 2-1 defeat at Olympiakos made no difference in the group. Manchester United already had Group D sewn up so their 2-1 loss in Parma was irrelevant. A 1-0 home win for Dortmund over Betis has booked their place in the knockout stages with a game remaining. UEFA Cup Roundup The UEFA Cup Quarter Finalists are now decided following Thursday night’s games. The last eight features an all-Norwegian tussle as Stabæk, shock 3-2 winners over Leverkusen after turning round a 2-1 first leg deficit, play Rosenborg who disposed of Rapid Vienna 4-1 on aggregate. Inter have been drawn against Lazio in an all-Italian affair. Inter had a fairly comfortable 3-0 aggregate victory over Besiktas and Lazio came through an exciting contest with Rangers 3-2 overall. Juventus, the third Italian side in the last eight after they eliminated Nantes with a 3-0 win in Italy for a 4-2 total, will face FC København after the Danes beat Maribor 3-1. The final pairing sees an all-Spanish encounter as Sevilla play Villarreal. Sevilla were never troubled in their 5-0 defeat of Wisla but Villarreal had to rely on away goals to overcome Celtic with the aggregate score tied at 3-3. Spotlight on ….. The Russian Premier Division The 2004 season will shortly be underway in Russia so this is an excellent time to take a look back at last season and assess the 16 teams that will be contesting this season’s title. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">2003 Table Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C Krylja Sovetov 30 14 0 1 39 18 7 2 6 24 22 65 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Lokomotiv Moscow 30 12 2 1 37 21 7 3 5 31 25 62 3rd Spartak Moscow 30 9 4 2 33 21 8 3 4 32 22 58 4th CSKA 30 9 4 2 29 17 7 5 3 32 28 57 5th Zenith Peterburg 30 10 2 3 31 18 5 2 8 22 34 49 6th Torpedo Moscow 30 9 3 3 36 24 4 2 9 12 22 44 7th Dinamo Moscow 30 10 2 3 27 16 3 3 9 17 30 44 8th Saturn 30 10 2 3 22 10 3 2 10 13 21 43 9th Anzhi 30 8 4 3 28 15 2 3 10 15 27 37 10th Shinnik 30 6 5 4 17 15 3 5 7 19 27 37 11th Rotor 30 5 7 3 26 19 3 4 8 22 33 35 12th Alania 30 4 5 6 20 22 5 2 8 31 33 34 13th Rostselmash 30 6 4 5 21 22 1 7 7 9 17 32 14th Rubin 30 5 3 7 21 26 3 2 10 19 27 29 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 15th R Uralan 30 7 2 6 30 38 1 2 12 17 32 28 16th R Chernomorets 30 3 1 11 9 23 1 3 11 10 26 16</pre> Alania Vladikavkaz 2002 – 7th 2003 – 12th Manager Sergey Andreev has been busy in the transfer market trying to strengthen his squad and improve on their disappointing league finish last season. His biggest investment was the £725K deal to bring Ural Amirov (23, F C) from newly-promoted Baltika Kaliningrad. It will be interesting to see if the newcomer can forge an effective partnership with Tamerlan Sikoev (27, F C), the club’s top scorer for the last two seasons. Youth Academy graduate Sergey Pugachev (18, D RC) broke into the first team last year and performed impressively in his debut season. Anzhi Makhachkala 2002 – 2nd 2003 – 9th After such a promising 2002 it was a big disappointment to Gadji Gadjiev that his team slipped to mid-table last year. Over £750K has been invested in new playing staff over the winter though to strengthen the squad with 4 players coming in and a similar number of fringe performers leaving. Anzhi’s star player is the Ghanaian Emmanuel Osei Kuffour (27, AM/F C) and he has been their highest scorer and the fans’ player of the year for the past two seasons. Baltika Kaliningrad 2002 – Promoted to First Division 2003 – 2nd in First Division Benjaminas Zelkevicius has seen his team gain consecutive promotions to take them to the Premier Division but with one of last season’s star players Ural Amirov (23, F C) having been sold to Alania they may struggle for goals. However, the club’s top scorer Anton Khazov (24, F RC) remains but he is totally unproven at this level. CSKA Moscow 2002 – 5th 2003 – 4th Valery Gazzaev will be looking for his team to make a title challenge this season and will be looking to his star trio of Denis Popov (25, S C), Andrey Solomatin (28, D/DM R) and Vladimir Kulik (32, F LC) to be at their best. Popov has been the club’s top scorer for the last two seasons and fan’s favourite Kulik was the main provider. Dinamo Moscow 2002 – 12th 2003 – 7th The Dinamo fans will be hoping that the progress achieved under the guidance of Oleg Dolmatov will continue this season. Little has been to change the squad over the winter. A few fringe players have come and gone but there have no major signings. If Dinamo are to challenge for honours they need to improve their goal scoring record. Even though their favoured strike pair of Alexandr Panov (28, S C) and Dmitry Bulykin (24, S C) are highly rated they are far from prolific with just 22 goals between them last year. Krylja Sovetov 2002 – 6th 2003 – 1st There have been a few changes to the squad that worked so hard for manager Alexandr Tarkhanov last season. Influential midfielder Konstantin Zyryanov (26, AM C) moved to CSKA for £525K and experienced defender Vuk Rasovic was sold to Torpedo Moscow for £450K. Both of these players were key figures in last season’s championship. New additions include Valentin Okorochkov (32, AM L) from First Division SKA Khabarovsk for £500K and Arturas Stesko (27, M C) from last season’s Division One champions Zhemchuzhina for £170K. Top scorer Robertas Poskus (24, S C) will be a key figure and will be looking to beat his previous tally of 17 goals. Lokomotiv Moscow 2002 – 11th 2003 – 2nd Yury Semin came close to capturing the domestic double last season, winning the Russian Cup and finishing runners-up in the league and he will be hoping to go one better this season. He will have to do it without his exciting young midfielder Marat Izmailov (21, AM LC) who was sold to 1860 München for £2.4M near the end of last year. Last year’s star performer was Nemanja Vucicevic (24, F C) and the Yugoslav forward was the top scorer and the club’s player of the year. Rostselmash Rostov-na-Donu 2002 – 8th 2003 – 13th Alexandr Averjanov will do extremely well to avoid a relegation struggle this season. He has been unable to bring in any new blood on the playing front and key defender Milos Kruscic (27, D L) is moving to Germany in the summer. Out of favour striker Baba Adamu (24, S C) is rumoured to be looking for a move after a falling out with teammate Otari Khizaneishvili (22, D C) and their feud has cause rifts to appear in the squad. SC Rotor Volgograd 2002 – 4th 2003 – 11th Fan’s favourite and last season’s top scorer Valery Yesipov (32, AM/F R) has left the club for a lucrative contract in Japan and his absence will not make the task of manager Vyacheslav Grozny any easier as he tries to reverse last season’s poor performance. Striker Denis Zubko (29, S C) is highly regarded but far from prolific and the team will miss the creative flair of Yesipov. Rubin Kazan 2002 – 1st in First Division 2003 – 14th Rubin escaped relegation by a single point last season and Kurban Berdyev and his team will almost certainly be involved in the relegation dogfight once again this year. Last years top performer, Alexandr Zarutskiy (35, AM RLC), is not getting any younger and most of the team’s forwards are said to be anxious to move on. It’s hard to see the manager turning things around with the team spirits at such a low ebb. Saturn Ramenskoye 2002 – 10th 2003 – 8th Now established as a solid mid-table team under manager Vitaly Shevchenko, Saturn are unlikely to be challenging for honours this season but neither should they be embroiled in a relegation struggle. Although with top scorer Sergey Rogachev (26, F RC) having departed for Bastia in France at the end of his contract, a lack of goals may just cause the team some difficulties this season. Shinnik Yaroslavl 2002 – 13th 2003 – 10th Several of the team’s top performers from the last couple of seasons are reputed to be keen to move on so Shinnik boss Alexandr Pobegalov may find his side struggling a little this year. Top scorer for the last two seasons, Alexey Vereschak (28, F C) has been made available for transfer at his own request. Midfield provider Valery Kechinov (29, AM/F RC) is being watched by CSKA and key defender Rahmatullo Fuzailov (25, D R) is eager for a move. Spartak Moscow 2002 – 1st 2003 – 3rd Manager Oleg Romantsev has spent the best part of £2M on two major acquisitions in December of last year. Eugeny Bushmanov (32, SW/D/DM RLC) cost £650K from Dutch side NAC and his flexibility is seen as a major benefit to the club. Nikola Jolovic (24, SW/D RC) was purchased from local rivals Torpedo for a cool £1.2M, a huge fee by Russian standards. Key creative midfielder Yegor Titov (27, AM C) had a quiet season by his normal high standards and will be looking for an improved performance this campaign. But young forward Artem Kontsevoy (20, F RC) had a fine year and finished as top scorer, just beating out Artem Bezrodny (25, F LC) who was voted as the fan’s favourite player. Torpedo Moscow 2002 – 3rd 2003 – 6th With 10 players coming in over the winter break and half a dozen departing the Torpedo squad has a few new faces to be integrated into the team as Sergey Petrenko looks to return his team to title challengers. Much will be expected of last season’s top scorer Sukhrob Khamidov (28, AM/F LC) and midfield provider Ruslan Adjindjal (29, AM C) as well as new signings Belarus international Roman Vasilyuk (25 S C) and midfielder Lyubomir Kantonistov (25, M C). Zenith St. Petersburg 2002 – 9th 2003 – 5th Manager Anatoly Baidachny led his team to a good league finish last season and he will be hoping to keep up the momentum this year. The club’s player of the season in their last campaign was Predrag Randjelovic (27, F LC) and he will need to perform well again this year if the supporter’s expectations are to be met. Out of favour Czech youngster Radek Sirl (22, AM/F L) returned home in a £1.1M move back to former club Sparta Prague after a miserable two seasons in Russia. Zhemchuzhina Sochi 2002 – Promoted to First Division 2003 – 1st in First Division Two consecutive promotions have seen Nazim Suleimanov lead his team to the Premier Division and most observers believe that he will be extremely fortunate not to go straight back to Division One. It will be fascinating to see how teenage goal sensation Gennady Kondratjev (17, S C) fares playing at this level. He was the club’s top scorer last season with 21 goals and made his first team debut at 16. Game of the Week Saturday March 6th, 2004 Portuguese Premier Division Vitoria Setubal 4 Sporting Braga 4 This was a crucial match for both teams in their fight to escape the relegation zone. The home side lined up in a standard 4-4-2 formation but the visitors employed a midfield diamond with one player supporting the attack and a second guarding the back four. It was Braga that made the early running and BasÃlio Almeida soon tested Sergei Ovchinnikov with a good header from a ball in by Paulo Gomes but the Russian stopper was equal to the task. However Setubal were soon into their stride and Hugo Henrique and Jorginho both had shooting efforts though neither were on target. But with less than 15 minutes gone Tiago teed the ball up nicely for Bruno to shoot home. Braga looked to respond straight from the restart but Folha’s attempt went well over the bar. The home side went right back on the attack and Bruno rounded off a powerful run by skipping past the challenge of Paulo Gomes to score his second goal in two minutes. Braga had barely regrouped from that when they found themselves three down when Pedras headed home a pinpoint cross from Jorginho. Setubal continued to press, looking for more goals, and the ever-threatening Jorginho saw his shot just clear the crossbar. In a brief moment of respite for the visitors Zé Roberto forced Ovchinnikov into action with a powerful shot. But soon the action was back at the other end and Hugo Henrique was denied by the woodwork when he rose above Sérgio Nunes to get his head to a Jorginho cross. As the game moved towards half time the home side seemed to become more cautious and Braga were able to establish more of a rhythm in their play. First BasÃlio Almeida tried his luck from distance but his shot was wayward. Then Zé Roberto sent in a teasing cross that Filipe Azevedo got on the end of but Ovchinnikov made the save. Braga opened their account with a move started and ended by their captain Maniche. He sent the ball wide to BasÃlio Almeida and when the impressive forward made the cross Maniche was first to the ball to fire home. This spurred Setubal back into action once more and on the stroke of halftime a slick passing move between Pedras, Telmo and Bruno freed Jorginho on the touchline. The left winger sent in a delicious cross that Hugo Henrique headed home. Going into the break at 4-1 ahead the home side must have thought that they were home and dry with three valuable points in the bag. Braga, however, had other ideas and attacked straight from the restart. Filipe Azevedo came close with a header that was just too high and cleared the bar. Then BasÃlio Almeida pulled a goal back when a neat one-two with Zé Roberto gave him space in the area to fire past the advancing keeper. As the half progressed, Azevedo, Folha and Zé Roberto all had scoring attempts saved as the visitors probed for another goal. But with time running it looked like Setubal would hold on and then 5 minutes form time BasÃlio Almeida scored his second of the game when he pounced on a defensive error and slotted the ball home. The last few minutes were spent with Braga camped around the Setubal penalty area and with time almost up Maniche found space to send in a low near post cross. Substitute Pedro Nuno just beat Ovchinnikov to the ball and flicked into the net for a dramatic last-second equaliser. Teams Vitoria Setubal: Sergei Ovchinnikov, Fernando Nélson, Telmo, Hany Said, Carlos Marques (Captain), Bruno, Zezinho (Neca 78), Tiago, Pedras, Hugo Henrique, Jorginho Subs not used: Mariano, João Pedro, Jorge Celino, Rui Miguel, Dian Kirilov, Gouveia, António Sporting Braga: Rui Correia, Paulo Ferreira, José Manuel, Pêra (Fernando 57), Sérgio Nunes, Folha, Zé Roberto, Paulo Gomes, Maniche (Captain), Filipe Azevedo (Pedro Nuno 63), BasÃlio Almeida Subs not used: Luis Graça, Eduardo, Vitor Vieira, Rul Ramos, Nuno Ribeiro Scorers Vitoria Setubal: Bruno 14, 16, Pedras 19, Hugo Henrique 45 Sporting Braga: Maniche 39, BasÃlio Almeida 49, 85, Pedro Nuno 90 Yellow Cards Vitoria Setubal: Telmo, Tiago Man of the Match: Jorginho (Barcelona) Attendance: 11,469 Readers Letters Trigz writes Hello, With the season in Norway now only a month and a bit away, what can you tell us about the comings and goings in Tippeligaen? Specifically, how have Lillestrøm SK fared in the transfer market? Well Trigz, we will be publishing a review of the Tippeligaen very shortly so hopefully you will find all you need to know there. As far as Lillestrøm are concerned there isn’t much to report on the transfer front. Last summer they sold veteran striker Uwe Rosler (36, S C) to German lower-league side Babelsberg for £60K and at the end of the year they released another veteran, Gunnar Halle and the 38-year-old has since retired from the playing side and is now Assistant Manager at Ørn-Horten in the First Division. Their only recent acquisition has been the arrival of Trond Bjørnsen (28, M L) from newly promoted Bryne on a Bosman. [This message was edited by BobBev on 13 March 2004 at 22:34.] [This message was edited by BobBev on 13 March 2004 at 22:35.] Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoS Posted March 13, 2004 Share Posted March 13, 2004 most detailed story I've ever seen. Great effort. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted March 15, 2004 Author Share Posted March 15, 2004 ESW Online has been updated Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HD Posted March 15, 2004 Share Posted March 15, 2004 good work Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 I have read the whole of this sory and all I can say is wow! Great stuff! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted March 21, 2004 Author Share Posted March 21, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 33 - Friday March 19th, 2004 News AA Gent have hired former Antwerp boss Walter Meeuws as their new manager. He was sacked by struggling Antwerp last November and Chairman Ivan De Witt obviously feels that Walter can turn things around at Gent. Utrecht have chosen former Dutch international Wim Rijsbergen to be their new manager leaving First Division Emmen needing a new head coach. NAC have also gone to the First Division to attract the youthful Robert Maaskant from high-flying Fortuna Sittard. In Serie A, struggling Palermo have run out of patience with manager Ezio Glerean. Having survived their initial season in the top flight Palermo are hot favourites to go down this season and are bottom of the table with just 12 points to show for their efforts so far. League Roundup Belgium Sint-Truiden recovered from last week’s heavy defeat to record a 1-0 win at home to Virton to maintain a three-point lead over Charleroi. A 4-2 home win for Club Brugge over struggling Westerlo moves them up to 3rd as Lierse suffer a 1-0 reverse at Racing Genk. At the foot of the table Lommel did themselves a huge favour with a fine 3-0 win at home to Mouscron to jump out of the bottom two. However with just 4 points between 12th and 18th it is anybody’s guess how the relegation fight will end up. Croatia League leaders Osijek suffered their first defeat in 15 games with a 2-1 loss at home to Rijeka. However, neither of the main title challengers could take advantage as Dinamo lost 2-0 at Cibalia and Hajduk went down 3-0 at Zagreb. Marsonia and Kamen Ingrad lost yet again and neither look capable of escaping the drop. Denmark It’s very tight at the top in Denmark with only four points between the top five. Aab played out a scoreless draw with AGF and now lead by a point. FC Midtjylland won 1-0 at OB and head Brøndby, who beat Esbjerg fB 3-0, on goal difference. FC København are 4th after drawing 1-1 at AB and Viborg FF have moved to 5th after a 3-2 win at Frem. England There was no Premier League action this week because of the FA Cup Quarter Finals. France Leaders Nantes were held scoreless at Toulouse but Sedan failed to benefit as they lost 3-1 at St-Etienne. A 2-0 win for Bordeaux at home to Nice takes them 3rd with Rennes dropping to 4th following their 1-0 defeat by Strasbourg. PSG played three league games this week, winning them all, and have now climbed to 5th. The bottom three all lost again with perhaps the most significant result the 1-0 defeat for Lorient at Bastia. This keeps Lorient well adrift at the bottom and gives Bastia a 5-point cushion in 17th place. Germany Dortmund had one of their biggest results of the season, a 3-1 win at FC Bayern, to maintain their place at the top of the table. Schalke 04 beat Greuther Fürth 2-1 to stay second and Nürnberg missed the chance of moving above FC Bayern into 3rd when they lost 2-0 at home to VfB Stuttgart. A 2-1 defeat at HSV dented Leverkusen’s hopes of closing the gap at the top and they remain 5th. Bottom club Cottbus picked up a rare point with a 1-1 draw at fellow strugglers Werder Bremen and SC Freiburg recorded the same result at home to 1860 München. There is now just a point between M’gladbach in 13th and SC Freiburg in 16th (the first of the three relegation places). Greece There’s no change at the top of the table as the top three all recorded victories. Panathinaikos won 3-2 at Panionios, Olympiakos had the same scoreline at Ethnikos Asteras and AEK beat Kavala 2-0. Bottom club Giannena had a rare 2-0 win at Panachaiki but Kalamaria lost 1-0 at home to Aris. Holland Leaders Feyenoord didn’t play this week but 2nd place PSV demolished Cambuur 6-0 with the splendidly named Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink scoring 4 goals. The 25-year-old striker had broken into the first team this season and has found the net 14 times so far. Ajax lost 1-0 at AZ and stay 3rd but are now 5 points behind PSV. At the bottom MVV had yet another defeat, losing 3-1 at Heerenveen but Haarlem had a fine 2-1 win at Groningen to go level on points with NAC. Italy Milan set a Serie A record with their 7th consecutive clean sheet in the 1-0 win at Bologna and have conceded just 8 goals in 26 league games. With Inter being held 1-1 by Lecce and Parma having a goalless draw at Ancona, Sampdoria move to 2nd after winning 1-0 at Atalanta. Lazio and Roma fought out a 2-2 draw in the Rome derby with both of Roma’s goals coming from the penalty spot. Torino’s fine run continued with a 3-1 win at home to managerless, and seemingly doomed, Palermo. Northern Ireland Portadown still set the pace and a 2-1 win at Newry keeps them 8 points ahead of the field. Coleraine had an eventful 5-2 win over Ballymena Utd and Distillery won 1-0 at Glentoran and they remain tied on 52 points each. Glenavon’s 2-1 win at home to Bangor takes them 6 points clear of the relegation playoff place currently occupied by Newry. Poland There wasn’t much action in Poland this week but we do have a new leader as Groclin beat Odra Wodzislaw 3-0 to jump up three places. Portugal With Sporting not in action this week Benfica missed a golden opportunity to overtake them as they played two league games. They were beaten at the weekend 3-2 at Gil Vicente but won 2-1 at home to U. Madeira in midweek and remain one point adrift having played an extra game. Porto stay 3rd after a 1-0 win at Moreirense but are 6 points behind the leaders. Having taken 7 points from their last 3 games Braga were hoping to continue their revival but they lost out 2-1 at home to Vit. Guimarães. Boavista played out a thrilling 4-4 draw at U. Madeira with the home side snatching a dramatic equaliser two minutes from time. Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers made some ground on the leaders after they bear Derry City 3-0 and Dundalk were held 1-1 at Bohemians and the gap at the top is now 6 points. Scotland There was no action in the SPL this week because of the Scottish Cup Quarter Finals. Spain The bottom three all gained points this week. Elche gained their second win of the season with a good 1-0 win at Betis, Malaga drew 1-1 at Levante and Badajoz had a terrific 1-1 draw at home to Barcelona. Real Madrid failed to take advantage of Barca’s slight slip, losing 2-1 at Oviedo and the 17-point gap now looks insurmountable. Turkey Leaders Besiktas suffered an unexpected reverse, losing 3-1 at Antalyaspor but Fenerbahçe failed to take full advantage, being held 1-1 by visiting Gaziantepspor whose recent good form has now taken them to 3rd. They moved above Galatasaray on goal difference after last season’s runners-up lost 1-0 at relegation-threatened Gençlerbirligi. Bottom club Sekerspor picked up valuable points with a good 1-0 win at Kocaelispor and Yozgatspor moved up one place after picking up 4 points from the two games they played this week. Wales There was no league action this week as the Welsh Cup Quarter Finals took pace. Cup Roundup Croatia The first leg of the Cup Semi Finals took place on Wednesday. Hajduk had a narrow 1-0 win at Cibalia but had the home team displayed greater composure in front of goal it would have been a different story as they squandered a number of gilt-edged scoring opportunities. Second Division Nehaj lost narrowly 3-2 at Sibenik with the home side scoring the winner with just 4 minutes remaining. Denmark The first leg of the Semi Final between Viborg FF and AGF ended all square at 1-1 in Viborg and is finely poised for the return next week. England The FA Cup Quarter Finals produced some interesting matchups. In the tie of the round Manchester United came away from Highbury with a 1-0 win over Arsenal thanks to a Ruud van Nistelrooy goal in stoppage time. Charlton lost 2-1 at home to Liverpool in a rather mediocre encounter. First Division Bolton put in a determined defensive performance at White Hart Lane but eventually lost out to Tottenham 1-0 to a Robbie Keane goal. Finally Newcastle eased past Blackburn 2-1 thanks to a goal from talisman Alan Shearer 3 minutes from time in a result that probably keeps Martin O’Neill in a job for the time being. Northern Ireland It was Quarter Final time in the Northern Ireland Cup and when the dust settled there was only one Premier Division team left in the competition. Armagh had a fine 2-1 win at home to Bangor with their winner coming 10 minutes from time. Ballyclare beat visiting Omagh 1-0 with another late goal as we were just 5 minutes away from a replay in this game. Larne pulled off a good 3-1 win at Dungannon and the all-Premier clash between Distillery and Glenavon ended 2-2. Distillery edged the replay on Wednesday 3-2 with an 87th minute winner. Republic of Ireland The Leinster Senior Cup Final was played on Wednesday with Shamrock Rovers beating Drogheda United 2-1. On the same evening the Munster Senior Cup Semi Finals took place. Cobh Ramblers beat Limerick 2-1 and non-league Mayfield United took Waterford United to a penalty decider after the scores were tied at 1-1 with Waterford winning the shootout 4-2. Scotland It was Quarter Final day on Saturday in the Scottish Cup and the Old Firm both had comfortable wins with Rangers beating Hibs 4-0 at Ibrox and Celtic winning 3-0 at St. Johnstone. Dundee United had an exciting 3-2 win at home to Aberdeen and the Division One clash between Ayr and Stenhousemuir finished 2-2 with Ayr grabbing a late equaliser to go to a replay. The two met again on Wednesday with Stennie triumphing 2-0 at Ochilview Park. Wales The Welsh Cup Quarter Finals produced one major upset as non-league Conway United had a fine 2-0 win at home to Llanelli. Barry Town beat Flexsys Cefn Druids 1-0, Afan Lido pulled off a surprise 2-0 win over T.N. Solutions and Aberystwyth Town lost 5-4 on penalties to Welshpool after a scoreless game. Champions League Roundup Arsenal finish on top of Group A despite a 1-0 defeat by Roma at the Olimpico. FC Bayern ruined Real Madrid’s chances of qualification by gaining their only points in Phase 2 with a 3-0 win in Munich, allowing Roma to finish second. Lyon win Group B after beating AEK 2-1 in France and Barcelona also go through after a scoreless draw at PSV. Milan beat Liverpool 2-1 in Italy to win Group C and Liverpool qualify as runners-up. Manchester United and Dortmund played out an entertaining 2-2 drat at Old Trafford and United are group winners with the Germans going through in second place. UEFA Cup Roundup The Quarter Final first leg ties were completed on Thursday. Juventus are in a strong position after a 2-1 win at FC København, Inter and Lazio drew 1-1 in Milan, Villarreal had a good 1-0 win at Sevilla and Stabæk will take a narrow 1-0 lead to Rosenborg. Spotlight on ….. The Norwegian Tippeligaen The 2004 season kicks off in Norway at the start of April so we will take a look back at last season and assess the 14 teams that will be contesting this season’s title. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">2003 Table Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C Rosenborg 26 12 1 0 33 15 7 1 5 20 13 59 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Lyn 26 8 3 2 33 19 7 2 4 27 22 50 3rd Brann 26 11 1 1 31 12 5 1 7 24 29 50 4th Molde 26 10 2 1 27 9 5 2 6 24 21 49 5th Stabæk 26 9 2 2 29 17 4 5 4 20 17 46 6th VÃ¥lerenga 26 8 1 4 28 15 2 6 5 25 29 37 7th Viking 26 5 4 4 22 23 4 3 6 16 19 34 8th Moss 26 6 3 4 19 18 1 5 7 14 21 29 9th Odd Grenland 26 4 4 5 20 22 4 1 8 17 23 29 10th Lillestrøm 26 5 4 4 15 16 2 4 7 11 25 29 11th Start 26 5 3 5 25 21 3 0 10 10 25 27 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12th Sogndal 26 5 5 3 23 20 0 4 9 13 29 24 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 13th R Tromsø 26 3 3 7 15 23 3 2 8 17 28 23 14th R L/F Hønefoss 26 4 3 6 12 20 1 3 9 12 31 21</pre> SK Brann 2002 – 12th 2003 – 3rd In an extraordinary turnaround Age Hareide transformed his team from relegation contenders and steered them to a 3rd place finish in the league and the Norwegian Cup Final. He will be hoping to build on that momentum and will be relying on players such as fans favourite Tommy Knarvik (24, AM/F C), last season’s top scorer Petter Furuseth Olsen (25, S C) and exciting midfielder Alex Valencia (24, AM/F RLC) Bryne FK 2002 – 13th (relegated) 2003 – 2nd in First Division Having been relegated in the previous season, Reine Almqvist steered his team to an immediate return to the top flight. A number of players left the club in the off-season, including last year’s top scorer Rune Medalen (33, F RC) who went to Odd Grenland on a Bosman and defender Anders Friberg (28, SW/D RLC) who was sold to Stabæk for £180K. Much will depend on the form of players such as midfield provider Kenneth Giske (28, AM/F RC) and defensive stalwart Kai Ove Stokkeland (26, DM C). Hamarkameratene Toppfotball (Ham Kam) 2002 – 6th in First Division 2003 – 1st in First Division The fate of Svein Cato Bakkemo’s team will depend on the ability of his key players to step up and perform at a high level. Players such as Nigerian international Felix Ademola (29, AM/F L), the versatile Hakon Arnesen (30, SW/D/F RC), Welsh striker Chris Twiddy (28, AM/F RC) and defender Vidar Fagerheim (22, D/DM RC). Lillestrøm 2002 – 10th 2003 – 10th Hein Henriksen has been unable to strengthen his squad significantly this season and so we can expect his team to have another season of struggle and strife. The squad is lacking a consistent goalscorer and last season’s top marksman was Rikhardur Dadason (31, S C) and his tally of 8 in 33 starts was none too impressive. As always they will rely on the flair of Pal Strand (28, AM RL) in midfield and will be hoping that South African keeper Emille Baron (24, GK) will have another good season. Lyn 2002 – 6th 2003 – 2nd Teitur Thordarson led his team to a fine second place finish last season but one of the key contributors has since departed. Icelandic striker Helgi Sigurdsson moved to Rosenborg in a £1.7M deal a few weeks ago and as Lyn’s top performer and main goalscorer last season his presence will be sorely missed. Fellow Icelander Johann Gudmundsson (26. AM/F RL) will need to repeat his fine form of last season as will main provider Aleksander Midtsian (21, AM LC). Molde 2002 – 5th 2003 – 4th Molde are another team that rely significantly on an Icelandic striker and Andri Sigtorsson (26, S C) will be hoping to come close to the 28 goals that he scored last season. With a strike rate approaching a goal a game he was the highest scorer in Norwegian football last season. Gunder Bengtsson has developed a good team spirit in his squad and will be looking for another consistent season from his players. Moss 2002 – 3rd 2003 – 8th Erik Brakstad will be looking to reverse the slump in form that saw his team slip to a mid-table finish last season. Highly rated young defender Robert Evensen (21, D/M C) was sold to Rosenborg for £1.3M last month and promising midfielder Simen Brenne (23, M/S C) is actively looking for a move. The form of last season’s top performer Fredrik Henriksen (25, S C) will be crucial as more players look set to leave to ease the financial problems that beset the club. Odd Grenland 2002 – 4th 2003 – 9th After almost exactly 12 months in the job manager Arne Erlandsen was sacked in September of last year and replaced by Trond Sollied the former Club Brugge boss. Arne paid the price for his teams slide to a 9th place finish last season. For a team with half a dozen players valued at £1M or over this is just not good enough. The new coach will need to get more out of stars such as Alexander Aas (25, D/M R), Morten Fevang (28, AM RC), Christian Flindt Bjerg (30, AM RLC) and Ole Martin Arst (29, S C). Fans favourite Andreas Hermansson (31, S C) was one of the few top rated players to perform last year and his 14 goals made him the club’s top scorer for the season. Rosenborg 2002 – 1st 2003 – 1st Perennial champions Rosenborg won their 13th consecutive league title last season and added the Norwegian Cup to their trophy cabinet for good measure. With Nils Arne Eggen having spent just over £7M on new players over the winter there seems every prospect that they will extend their sequence this season. With their season already underway because of their UEFA Cup involvement it looks like players such as Fredrik Winsnes (28, DM LC), Christer George (24, F RLC) and Azar Karadas (22, D C) are in good form again. But their most impressive performer thus far has been the young Macedonian forward Goran Pandev (20, F RLC). Sogndal 2002 – 9th 2003 – 12th Torbjorn Glomnes will have another relegation struggle on his hands this season without doubt as nothing has been done to resolve his team’s biggest weakness – a chronic lack of goals from his forwards. Last season’s top scorer was midfielder Rune Bolseth (23, M C), who incidentally we hear is desperate to make a move to a bigger club. Out of his 8 recognised forwards two are listed for loan and 5 are rumoured to be actively seeking to move on. It seems that Torbjorn has a lot of work to do to improve the morale of his squad and to build a modicum of team spirit. Stabæk 2002 – 2nd 2003 – 5th Another team whose season has begun earlier than usual because of the UEFA Cup, Gaute Larsen’s team have surprised many by reaching the Quarter Finals of the competition. The club broke their transfer record at the turn of the year when they signed Bjarte Lunde Aarsheim (29, M C) from Viking for £725K. Amongst the mainstays of the squad are the always-reliable Peter Sand (31, DM C), club captain Inge Andre Olsen (26, D C) and forward Christian Wilhelmsson (24, F RC). Start 2002 – 11th 2003 – 11th Having just escaped a relegation playoff in each of the past two seasons, manager Ingmar Uglem must be expecting the same again this year. He has brought a few players in from the lower divisions on Bosmans to try to strengthen his squad but much will depend again on the form of his key players - main goalscorer Lithuanian international Ricardas Benicius (23, S C), midfielders Fredrik Srtomstad (22, M C) and Morten Knutsen (26, AM L) and anchor man Eirik Hanssen (29, DM C). VÃ¥lerenga 2002 – 7th 2003 – 6th Under Knut Thorbjorn Eggen, VÃ¥lerenga have developed into a solid mid-table team. Half a dozen players left over the winter on Bosmans with another three or four coming in on the same basis. Star player Tobias Grahn (24, AM/F RC) has been in sparkling form over the last couple of seasons but is rumoured to be stalling over contract discussions at present and last season’s top scorer Kristen Viikmae (25, AM/F C) has had a public falling out with the manager. Viking 2002 – 8th 2003 – 7th Benny Lennartsson will be looking for another solid season from his charges after seeing a slow but steady improvement. He raised a good amount of cash on the transfer market with the sale of Erik Fuglestad (29, D/DM LC) to Rosenborg for a cool £2.1M in mid January but none of that has yet been reinvested on the playing front. The undoubted star of the team last season was Erik Nevland (26, S C) and a repeat performance will be desired this year. Highly valued Havar Valved (22. AM/F L) is reported to be eager to leave so there may a further injection of funds coming into the club shortly. Game of the Week Saturday March 13th, 2004 German First Division FC Bayern 1 Dortmund 3 Nearly 80,000 spectators filled the Olympiastadion in Munich for this vital league match, the result of which could have a major say on the destination of the Budesliga title this season. The teams lined up in contrasting formations, the home side favouring an adventurous 4-4-2 formation with the wide midfielders Zé Roberto and Salihamidzic pushed high up the pitch to support the strikers. The visitors were slightly more conservative with their midfield 4 forming a diamond with Hamann supporting the defence and Rosicky playing behind the strikers. The opening passages of play were relatively uneventful with the first strike on goal not until the 19th minute when Hasan Salihamidzic tested Roman Weidenfeller with a powerful shot that the keeper did well to turn away for a corner. But Dortmund were the first to score courtesy of a penalty awarded when Robert Kovac upended the giant Jan Koller who seemed to go to ground rather easily for such a large man. Lars Ricken made no mistake with the spot kick, shooting hard and low into the bottom corner. Tomás Rosicky doubled Dortmund’s advantage later in the half with a breathtaking solo effort that took him past Bixente Lizarazu and Kovac as though they weren’t there before striking an unstoppable shot past Oliver Kahn. The impressive Zé Roberto brought Bayern right back into the game on the stroke of halftime when he rose above Dédé to head home a free kick from Owen Hargreaves. For the first 20 minutes of the second half Bayern exerted strong pressure on the Dortmund defence but created few clear openings. The best chances fell to Salihamidzic and Zé Roberto but Weidenfeller was equal to the challenge and saved well on both occasions. The visitors were defending well and looking to catch Bayern on the break and with 20 minutes remaining came very close to killing off the game. Éwerthon got his head to a cross from Rosicky and Kahn did really well to get a hand to the ball. But Ricken pounced on the rebound and looked certain to score until a superb last-ditch tackle from Samuel Kuffour denied the Dortmund captain. But with 10 minutes remaining Ricken condoned for that miss by firing the ball home after a goalmouth scramble in the Bayern area to seal an excellent win. Teams FC Bayern: Oliver Kahn (Captain), Samuel Kuffour, Bixente Lizarazu, Robert Kovac, Thomas Linke, Zé Roberto, Jens Jeremies (Mehmet Scholl 65), Claudio Pizarro (Erdal Kilicaslan 91), Jardel (Roque Santa Cruz 72), Hasan Salihamidzic, Owen Hargreaves Subs not used: MartÃn Demichelis, Stefan Wessels, Alexander Zickler Dortmund: Roman Weidenfeller, Markus Babbel, Dédé, Christoph Metzelder, Christian Wörns, Dietmar Hamann, Sebastian Kehl (Jörg Heinrich 65), Lars Ricken (Captain), Éwerthon, Jan Koller (Giovanni 60), Tomás Rosicky Subs not used: Michael Ratajczak, Juan Ramón Fernández, EvanÃlson, Amoroso Scorers FC Bayern: Zé Roberto 45 Dortmund: Ricken 27 (pen), 81, Rosicky 37 Yellow Cards FC Bayern: Kovac Dortmund: Kehl, Koller Man of the Match: Zé Roberto (FC Bayern) Attendance: 79,351 Readers Letters ESW Would like to thank readers SOS, HD and Afannon for their continuing support. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HD Posted March 21, 2004 Share Posted March 21, 2004 Bloody Stenny I blame Gordon Dalziel Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted March 28, 2004 Author Share Posted March 28, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 34 - Friday March 26th, 2004 News Philippe Bergeroo has finally found the strain too much at Auxerre and has resigned from his position as manager. Despite the team being in 3rd place in Le Championat he remained deeply unpopular with the supporters and has finally decided that enough is enough. Palermo have poached Ivano Bonetti from Serie B side Reggina to become their new boss. The 39-year-old has no previous experience managing at this level and given Palermo’s precarious league position his stay in Serie A is likely to be short-lived. The main transfer story this week is the move of England international Danny Mills (26, D/DM RC) from Leeds to Nottingham Forest for a £2.6M fee. League Roundup Belgium Leaders Sint-Truiden recorded a solid 2-0 win at struggling Westerlo and Charleroi had an equally comfortable 3-0 win at home to Mouscron and remain 3 points behind. With Club Brugge drawing 2-2 at rivals Anderlecht the top two now have a 6-point cushion over the chasing pack. Croatia Osijek may be showing signs of cracking with their second consecutive loss, a 3-2 defeat at Hajduk in an entertaining encounter. With Dinamo beating Marsonia 1-0 they are now just two points behind the leaders with Hajduk a further point adrift. Denmark Aab maintained their narrow one-point lead at the top of the table with a 1-0 win at Vejle. A 2-0 win for Brøndby at home to FC Midtjylland has taken them to second with the visitors dropping to fourth as a 2-1 win for FC København at Frem takes them third. Bottom club Esbjerg fB had only their 3rd win of the season, 2-1 at home to Herfølge, but remain 6 points from safety. England Table-topping Manchester United were in action twice this week. A comfortable 3-0 win at home to Wolves at the weekend was followed by a tight 1-0 win over Arsenal at Highbury. United now hold a 13-point lead in the Premiership and look like hot favourites to win their first title in 4 seasons. The midweek reverse rounded off a bad week for Arsenal as they also lost at the weekend with a 3-0 trouncing by Liverpool at Anfield. The excellent league form of Tottenham continued as they beat Everton 2-1 at home. Sunderland continued their relegation fight with a 1-0 win at home to West Ham but Charlton and Brighton both lost again and show no signs of recovery. France A 3-0 home win over St-Etienne for Nantes combined with a 0-0 draw for Sedan with visiting Lille stretches the gap at the top to 7 points with the leaders having a game in hand. Third place Auxerre were playing catch-up with no less than three games this week – a 2-0 win at home to Lens was followed by a 3-0 reverse to visiting St-Etienne and then earlier today they drew 1-1 at Marseille. Behind the leaders Lyon and Bordeaux are tied on 50 points with Rennes and PSG just behind on 49. Germany Dortmund had a comfortable 3-0 win at home to SC Freiburg and with Schalke 04 being trounced 4-1 at 1860 München, they now have opened up a 4-point gap. A 3-2 win at M’gladbach moves Nürnberg up to third with FC Bayern slipping to fourth after their 1-1 draw at VfB Stuttgart. Greece An unexpected 3-0 win at Panathinaikos for AEK keeps the title race well and truly alive. The home side collapsed after their keeper was dismissed 5 minutes before half time. Olympiakos had a 3-1 win at home to Panionios and are now two points behind Panathinaikos with AEK a further two points adrift. Holland Feyenoord took a huge step towards the league title with an excellent 3-0 win at home to second place PSV to open up a 9-point gap at the top. Ajax beat Vitesse 2-0 in Amsterdam to close within a couple of points of second place. The relegation battle looks almost over for MVV as they lost 3-2 at home to NAC who are now just a point away from escaping the relegation playoff places. Italy Milan suffered their first home defeat of the season, losing 1-0 at home to Chievo with the visitors scoring a 90th minute winner with their only effort at goal. Sampdoria beat Ancona 2-1 to close the gap slightly but a 15-point lead seems unlikely to be recoverable. Inter also slipped up, drawing 1-1 at bottom of the table Palermo but Parma failed to capitalise, also drawing 1-1 with Bologna. Perugia won their crucial relegation battle against visiting Ascoli 2-1 and are within a point of escaping the bottom four. Torino’s unbeaten run was ended in spectacular fashion as they slumped to a 4-0 defeat at Roma after their keeper was sent off. Northern Ireland The title fight took an interesting twist this week with long-time leaders Portadown losing 4-2 at Linfield with teenage keeper Darren Kennedy (19, GK) taking much of the blame with a very shaky performance. A 3-0 win for Coleraine at Distillery has narrowed the gap to 5 points with 5 games remaining in the league programme. Newry, who occupy 9th place and the relegation playoff spot, missed a big opportunity of closing the gap when they were held 1-1 at 8th place Glenavon who stay 6 points clear. Poland Groclin stay top of the table despite a 2-1 defeat at Szczakowianka as Wisla and Legia played out a thrilling 3-3 draw in their second versus third clash. With just two points separating the top five it’s a very competitive league indeed. Portugal Leaders Sporting take the gap back to 4 points over Benfica with a 3-1 win at MarÃtimo with Benfica not in action this week. Porto were held 2-2 by visiting P. Ferreira and they are now a further 4 points behind in third. Portugal seems to be the place to go for high-scoring games as for the third week in succession we witnessed a 4-4 draw. This time it was between Vit. Setúbal and visiting E. Amadora as the home side grabbed a dramatic equaliser in the 90th minute. A 3-2 loss at home to Salgueiros for Boavista combined with a 1-0 win for Braga at Leiria means that Boavista are now bottom of the table on goal difference. Only 1 point separates the bottom three with a 4 point gap to the teams above them. But with just 3 points between 9th and 15th place the relegation battle is far from over. Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers have now cut the deficit at the top to 4 points as they had a 2-1 win at Kildare County and now have a game in hand. Leaders Dundalk were in action twice, losing 2-1 at home to Shelbourne and then drawing 0-0 at Waterford Utd. Scotland The Old Firm continue to sweep all before them, both having comfortable wins again this week, Rangers winning 2-0 at Dundee United and Celtic beating Dundee 4-2 in Glasgow. Raith Rovers continue to hang on to third place and a 2-0 win at home to Hibs takes them 3 points clear of Livingston after they lost 3-0 at Aberdeen. A 2-0 home win over St. Johnstone has taken Motherwell off the bottom of the table as they leapfrog both Hearts and Dunfermline after those two played out a scoreless draw at Tynecastle that sees the Edinburgh side drop to last place. Spain The top five all had home wins this week with Barcelona beating Oviedo 4-0, Real Madrid winning 3-0 over Villarreal, Deportivo beat Atlético Madrid 3-1, Sevilla triumphed 4-1 over Celta and Athletic Bilbao had a 1-0 win over Racing Santander. Elche moved off the bottom of the table with an excellent 2-0 home win over Real Sociedad and Málaga drop to last place despite a 1-1 draw at home to Betis. Badajoz also picked up a point with a 2-2 draw at Valladolid but still lost ground as Tenerife beat Espanyol 3-2 at home. Turkey As in Spain, the top five teams in Turkey all had wins at home this week. Besiktas maintain their two point lead with a 2-1 win over Adanaspor and Fenerbahçe kept pace with a 1-0 win over Samsunspor. A 2-1 defeat of Gençlerbirligi keeps Gaziantepspor in third place on goal difference over Galatasaray who beat Istanbulspor 1-0 and Antalyaspor beat Malatyaspor 2-0. Wales There was no let up in the title race in Wales as Aberystwyth Town had a 1-0 win at Caernarfon Town and Bangor City overcame Barry Town 1-0 at home and the 1-point gap remains. Newtown stay 3rd with a 2-1 win at T.N. Solutions and Haverfordwest jump up to 4th with a fine 3-0 win at Welshpool who drop to 6th, with a 3-1 win at home to Llanelli moving Carmarthen Town up to 5th. The bottom of the table clash between Flexsys Cefn Druids at Afan Lido ended all square at 2-2 but that result lifts Lido up one place to 16th. Cup Roundup Denmark The first Semi Final between Viborg FF and AGF was decided in midweek with AGF winning their home leg with a comfortable 3-0 scoreline for a 4-1 aggregate. France The Quarter Finals of the French Cup took place last Sunday and the Semi Finals have three Second Division representatives. Monaco are the only Division One side left after they overcame Bordeaux on penalties after an exciting match had ended at 2-2 after extra time. Metz had the result of the round, returning from Guingamp with a very good 2-1 win. Le Mons won 1-0 in Valence and Angoulême defeated Laval on penalties after a scoreless game. Greece The Semi Finalists were finally decided in Greece after the last of the Quarter Final second legs were completed on Wednesday. AEK overcame Kalamata 3-0 on aggregate and Olympiakos beat Kavala 2-0 overall. The two favourites have been kept apart in the Semi Finals as AEK will face Iraklis and Olympiakos take on PAOK. Poland The first leg of the League Cup Semi Finals took place in midweek and Widzew had a 1-0 win at home to Miedz whilst Wisla were held 1-1 by visiting Radomsko. Republic Of Ireland The Leinster Senior Cup Final was played on Wednesday at Glenmalure Park in Dublin and Shamrock Rovers beat Drogheda United 2-1 in a hard-fought contest. Scotland Last Sunday saw the final of the League Cup take place at Hampden Park and Celtic came out on top with a 3-1 win over Aberdeen. UEFA Cup Roundup The Quarter Final second leg ties were completed on Thursday. Juventus completed a 4-1 aggregate victory over FC København and Lazio beat Inter 2-0 for a fine 3-1 overall result. Sevilla turned around a 1-0 deficit with a good 2-0 win at Villarreal to triumph 2-1 in total and in the game of the round Rosenborg beat Stabæk 4-2 for a 4-3 aggregate with 5 of the goals coming in the last 20 minutes. Spotlight on ..... The Swedish Allsvenskan With the start of the new season in Sweden just a week away this week’s spotlight gives us a brief look at the situation in the Allsvenskan. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">2003 Table Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C Halmstad 26 10 2 1 18 7 4 3 6 13 13 47 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd AIK 26 9 1 3 19 8 4 4 5 15 15 44 3rd Hammarby 26 9 2 2 26 14 4 2 7 16 23 43 4th Malmö FF 26 9 4 0 21 7 2 5 6 8 16 42 5th Elfsborg 26 7 3 3 14 8 5 3 5 11 15 42 6th IFK Göteborg 26 6 5 2 19 9 4 6 3 14 14 41 7th Helsingborg 26 6 4 3 25 16 4 5 4 17 14 39 8th ÖIS 26 4 6 3 9 7 5 2 6 11 15 35 9th Assyriska 26 4 6 3 14 12 3 3 7 10 16 30 10th Örebro 26 6 2 5 15 12 1 7 5 11 19 30 11th DjurgÃ¥rden 26 6 5 2 20 7 1 3 9 6 17 29 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12th Norrköping 26 7 5 1 17 9 0 2 11 5 24 28 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 13th R Landskrona 26 5 2 6 15 18 1 3 9 7 23 23 14th R Trelleborg 26 2 6 5 10 17 1 5 7 7 18 20</pre> AIK 2002 – 2nd 2003 – 2nd Soren Cratz has lead his team to the runner-up position in each of the last two seasons and this year he will be hoping to go one better. There have been no changes to a tightly-knit squad and top scorer and supporters favourite Andreas Andersson (29, F RC) will once again be leading the line. He will be ably assisted by Daniel Hoch (24, F C) with Tobias Hysen (22, D/AM RC) providing much of the ammunition and Karl Corneliusson (27, D RL) keeping it tight at the back. Assyriska FF 2002 – 2nd in First Division 2003 – 9th Lallo Fernandez did well to keep his small and unfashionable team in the top flight last season after their promotion from the First Division. Star striker Nebojsa Jovovic (29, S C) found goals hard to come by in the Premiership and having found the net 23 times in their promotion campaign he failed to make double figures last season. The versatile Svante Dahlqvist (24, SW/D/F RC) was used mostly in central defence last year and he excelled in that position. The squad has been strengthened with the arrival of 9 new players so far this year but with under £100K having been spent in total none of them are likely to be world-beaters. DjurgÃ¥rdens IF 2002 – 7th 2003 – 11th With his team just avoiding a relegation playoff by a single point Soren Akeby will be looking for a big improvement from his players this time around. After a wonderful 2002, highly rated young defender Mikael Dorsin (22, D/DM LC) had a poor season last year but that criticism can be levelled at several other players in the team including midfield provider Joel Riddez (23, AM LC). The same can’t be said of strikers Samuel Wowah (27, F LC) and Christer Mattiasson (32, S C) and defender Markus Karlsson (31, D/AM LC) and in Andreas Isaksson (22, GK) they have a very talented young shot stopper. Elfsborg 2002 – 1st 2003 – 5th Surprise champions two seasons ago, Anders Gronhagen and his team found it difficult to scale the same heights last year but in a very competitive league they weren’t that far adrift from the top. They will be expecting a bit more from the likes of Jonas Lunden (23, AM/F RC) and Lars Nilsson (22, S C) in this campaign. Record signing Daniel Majstorovic (26, SW/D C) cost £450K from Malmö last winter and the coach will be looking to his presence in central defence. At the turn of the year they picked up Finnish international Keijo Huusko (23, AM/F RC) from Häcken for a bargain £110K and he may be a very influential player for them. Häcken 2002 – 5th in First Division 2003 – 2nd in First Division Most observers feel that Nicklas Persson’s team will lack the strength to survive in the top flight and that they will make an immediate return to Division One. But they said that about Assyriska last season and they survived. Andreas Tell (29, F RC) has been top scorer for the last two seasons but there are doubts if he will be able to find the back of the net regularly at this level. Tuomas Uusimaki (26, D/DM C) performs an important holding role in midfield and his contribution will be important and new signing Peter Hallstrom (32, SW/D/DM C) is seen as a vital part of the defence but having spent most of his career in the lower leagues he will do well to manage in the Premiership. Halmstad 2002 – 12th 2003 – 1st Rarely can there have been such a turnaround as that achieved by Halmstad last season, going from having to survive a relegation playoff in 2002 to winning the championship in 2003. The surprise replacement of dynamic young manager Jonas Thern with 64-year-old veteran of the lower leagues Rolf Zetterlund in the summer of 2002 was not greeted with universal acclaim by the clubs supporters. But chairman Bengt Sjoholm had the last laugh as his team lifted their 5th Allsvenskan title. Much of the credit on the pitch went to Tommy Jonsson (28, D C) whose imperturbable presence in the centre of defence could not be underestimated. This season they will be hoping to add a goalscoring threat to their solid defensive backbone through new signing Daniel Alexandersson (25, S C). He has been scoring for fun for the last three seasons at Second Division Falkenberg and the £80K fee paid may look like the bargain of the year if he can reproduce that form this year. Hammarby 2002 – 4th 2003 – 3rd Anders Linderoth has overseen a slow but steady improvement in the last couple of season and this year he may well feel that his team can regain the title that they last won in 2001. Last December he paid a club record £500K to Örebro for unproven youngster John Alvbage (21, GK). The club now have 7 goalies on their books, the oldest of whom is 24. Defender turned striker Peter Markstedt (32, D/S C) has headed the clubs scoring chart for the last two seasons and will be hoping to repeat the trick again this year. Jonas Stark (31, D C) is a key figure in the centre of defence and striker Alexander Ostlund (25, S C) is highly rated. But the undoubted jewel in the crown as far as Hammarby are concerned is thrilling attacking midfielder Kennedy Bakircioglu (23, AM/F RLC). Helsingborg 2002 – 3rd 2003 – 7th Mats Jingblad was very disappointed with his team’s performance last season as he had been hoping to build on a good 3rd place finish in 2002 to mount a serious title challenge. With players of the quality of Mattias Lindstrom (23, AM/F C), Magnus Powell (29, S C), Patrik Anttonen (24, AM/F L) and Gustaf Andersson (29, S C) he is entitled to expect more from his team. Despite their poor season, Andersson was the top scorer in the league for the second season in succession. IFK Göteborg 2002 – 5th 2003 – 6th Having failed to win the league title since 1996 the fans and the board are desperate to taste success once again and following another mediocre season manager Bo Johansson was replaced with Stefan Lundin last summer. With the club struggling to score goals last season the new boss will need to coax more out of high-reputation players such as Patric Andersson (24, F RC), Tomas Rosenqvist (28, AM/F C) and Marino Rahmberg (29, F RC). Kalmar FF 2002 – 14th (relegated) 2003 – 1st in First Division Conny Karlsson saw his team bounce back from relegation as they proved far too strong for the First Division last season, winning the league fairly comfortably. Lucas Nilsson (30, F RC), Niklas Lofgren (25, S C) and Vesa Vasara (27, AM/F R) had a rare old time in Division One, ripping the opposition defences to shreds on a regular basis. Veteran club captain Dennis Nilsson (35, D/DM LC) also had an outstanding campaign but it remains to be seen if there is much left in the tank for this season. Malmö FF 2002 – 6th 2003 – 4th The team that once dominated domestic football in Sweden has not won a trophy in the last 15 years but manager Tom Prahl is hoping to change all that. Over £1.5M has been invested in players over the last 12 months as they build for the future. Strikers Peter Ijeh (27, S C) and Marcus Rosenberg (22, S C) played well last season and have formed a good understanding up front. Erik Johansson (27, AM RC), Kristian Bergstrom (30, AM/F L) and the exciting Louay Chanko (24, AM/F RL) offer lots of invention in midfield. Norrköping 2002 – 9th 2003 – 12th Hakan Ericsson saw his team hang on to their top-flight status by the narrowest of margins last season as they survived a relegation playoff with Gefle of Division One. With little done of note to strengthen his squad he will need to extract much better performances from his current playing staff. Ghanaian international Issa Mohammed (23, S C) has not yet lived up to his billing and, along with other under-performers such as Jonas Wallerstedt (26, AM/F C) and Oyvind Svenning (24, F LC), will need to play much more convincingly of their club is not to be enmeshed in another relegation struggle. Örgryte IS (ÖIS) 2002 – 10th 2003 – 8th Erik Hamren coaxed a marginal improvement in their league position from his team in 2003 and he will hope to maintain that momentum this year. Star striker Christian Hemberg (22, S C) has just broken into the Swedish national side and much will be expected of the highly rated youngster. Strike partner Patrik Fredholm (25, S C) and versatile midfield creator Christian Andersson (25, AM/F RLC) should provide valuable support and Brazilian Valter (25, D RC) will be looking to build on last season’s excellent form. Örebro 2002 – 8th 2003 – 10th Coach Jorgen Lennartsson would appear to place great value on maturity and experience and with four of his regular starters from last season having a combined age of 150 it’s just as well. Anders Karlsson (40, GK) is entering his 21st season with the club and in common with Lars Zetterlund (40, D/M C), he can boast 25 years as a professional player. Thomas Andersson (35, SW/D C) was one of the top performers in the team last season and was voted Supporter’s Player of the Year. The quarter is completed by Hakan Lindqvist (35, AM L), a relatively recent arrival from Kalmar FF. Game of the Week Sunday March 21st, 2004 Scottish League Cup Final Celtic 3 Aberdeen 1 Steve Patterson’s Aberdeen side have a good record in the domestic cup competitions over the last few years, reaching the Scottish Cup Final last season before losing out to today’s opponents. Celtic boss John Toshack was looking to make up for the disappointing of losing last year’s final to Dundee United. Both sides started out positively and Aberdeen created the first chance of the game early on but Calum Bett’s shot was well saved by Magnus Hedman. But it was Celtic who struck first when young midfielder Mark Fotheringham showed great skill to get past Ross O'Donoghue and Russell Anderson and finish with a powerful shot that left Arni Gautur Arason helpless. Celtic continued to have the better of the play and came close to adding a second from a diving header from Chris Sutton that flashed just past the post. Aberdeen looked to strike back and Anderson created a headed opportunity for Stefan Oakes but Hedman was equal to it. Celtic captain Stilian Petrov was next to try his luck when Julio Ricardo Cruz set him up on the edge of the area. He kept his shot low but Arason was able to get down quickly and make the save. Aberdeen kept plugging away and were rewarded for their persistence on the stroke of half time with a beautifully worked equaliser. Oakes, Robert Earnshaw and Bett were all involved in a flowing move that was neatly finished off by James Fowler. It was an excellent time to score a goal and they went into the break on a high. Unfortunately for them it took Celtic just two minutes of the second half to restore their lead. The ever-dangerous Petrov, playing behind the front two, converted a cross from Michael Lamey with an exquisitely executed volley. As well as having time to create goals, man-of-the-match Lamey was proving to be an immovable object in the Celtic defence as Aberdeen worked hard to find another equaliser. Time and again he was on hand to make a crucial tackle or block a dangerous cross. Hedman also showed his worth with a brave double save from Earnshaw, first parrying the Welshman’s header and then diving at his feet to smother the second attempt. At the other end Arason demonstrated his skills with an athletic stop to deny substitute Shaun Maloney a headed goal. But Maloney would not be denied for long and, with Lamey once again the provider, he scored a deserved goal with a well struck half volley to give Celtic a two-goal cushion. The Dons refused to give up the fight however and both Earnshaw and captain Darren Young were kept at bay by fine stops from Hedman. However, Aberdeen were unable to find a way back into the game and Celtic held on to lift their first trophy of the season. Teams Celtic: Magnus Hedman, Michael Lamey, Mark Fotheringham (David Fernandez 57), John Kennedy, Ulrik Laursen, David Vaughn, Tassos Venetis, Stilian Petrov (Captain), Chris Sutton, Julio Ricardo Cruz, Steve Guppy (Shaun Maloney 63) Subs not used: Michael Herbert, John Hartson, Paul Shields Aberdeen: Arni Gautur Arason, Russell Anderson, Kevin McNaughton, Frédéric Dindeleux, Marvin Andrews, Darren Young (Captain), Calum Bett, Ross O'Donoghue, Robert Earnshaw, James Fowler, Stefan Oakes Subs not used: Andrew Rollo, Myles Hogarth, Phil McGuire, Eddie Forest, Paul Sheerin Scorers Celtic: Fotheringham 13, Petrov 47, Maloney 74 Aberdeen: Fowler 45 Man of the Match: Michael Lamey (Celtic) Attendance: 49,964 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest GBK Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 With a few weeks to the Finnish season start, could you make a preview on the teams? Especially I'm interested how my team GBK is doing, didn't they remain in Veikkausliiga? P.S. Thanks for all this very interesting story. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted March 31, 2004 Author Share Posted March 31, 2004 Due to holiday commitments ESW will not be published this week but we'll be back next week with a bumper double issue. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted April 7, 2004 Author Share Posted April 7, 2004 Slight change of plan with regards to the double issue! European Soccer Weekly Issue 35 - Friday April 2nd, 2004 News In Croatia pressure is building on Slaven Belupo manager Rajko Magic as last seasons’s champions languish in the lower half of the table. Lorient boss Yvon Pouliquen has paid the price for his team’s slump down the table. Whoever takes over will have a job on their hands as the team props up La Championat 14 points from safety with a mere 8 games remaining. In Germany rumours abound concerning the future of a couple of managers. Bernd Krauss of Werder Bremen is at most risk as his team have been struggling all season and only goal difference is keeping them out of the relegation places. But Ralf Rangnick of Hannover 96 is also in trouble as he has failed to live up to expectations after last season’s 4th place finish. In Greece OFI boss Zdenek Scasny is in jeopardy after another season spent in the lower reaches of the table. Francesco Guidolin is still hanging on at Bologna. His side don’t look like getting relegated but after last season’s 4th place finish their current position of 13th is unacceptable to their supporters. Boavista boss Jose Mourinho still clings to his job despite the team’s precarious position. Now second-bottom of the table they are in real danger of relegation unless they can put a set of decent results together in the 7 games that remain. League Roundup A programme of International friendlies last weekend has meant that there has been very little action in the top leagues this week. Belgium The only league action in Belgium this week took place earlier today when a couple of games were played. La Louvière moved a little closer to safety with a 2-2 draw at home to Virton and Lommel picked up a useful point in a 1-1 draw with AA Gent. Croatia An excellent 4-0 win at home to Mosor keeps Osijek on top of the pile but Dinamo kept up the pressure with an equally impressive 5-0 win at Zagreb. Hajduk weren’t in action and they now have a game in hand over the other two. In the relegation places Kamen Ingrad picked up a point in a 1-1 draw at Zadar but remain some way from safety. Marsonia were a little unfortunate to lose an enthralling contest at home to Slaven Belupo by a 4-3 scoreline and they appear to be doomed. France Leaders Nantes were held 1-1 at Lille but Sedan failed to close the gap as they also had a draw in a 3-3 thriller at relegation threatened Guingamp. The home side showed great spirit to come back from 3 goals behind and snatched a valuable point with just 2 minutes left on the clock. Of the chasing bunch, Auxerre were not in action, Lyon were held 1-1 at Bastia and Bordeaux lost 1-0 at home to Caen. Italy Milan suffered their second consecutive league defeat in the midweek programme, losing 2-0 at Lazio. Sampdoria also slipped up with a 2-1 defeat at Bologna. With Inter, Parma and Roma not in action Lazio have moved up to 3rd place in the table. Bottom club Palermo were the only one of the relegation clubs to record a victory, winning 1-0 at Udinese to give new boss Ivano Bonetti a good start. Poland The top of the table clash saw Groclin and Legia play out a 1-1 draw, a result that helps neither side very much. Wisla did not play and are now 2 points off the pace with 2 games in hand. The bottom two also played out a 1-1 draw leaving Miedz and Amica locked together on 12 points. Portugal The midweek programme in Portugal maintained the recent trend of high-scoring games. Leaders Sporting beat Vit. Setúbal 4-2, a 3-3 draw at Moreirense keeps Benfica 2nd and Porto stay 3rd after a 1-1 draw at home to Académica. Gil Vicente move to 4th after their 3-2 defeat of MarÃtimo and P. Ferreira and Boavista shared the points in an extraordinary 5-5 draw. Boavista looked like they had secured all three points when they went 5-3 ahead in the 85th minute but the home side scored twice in the last 5 minutes to snatch a dramatic draw. Russia The season kicked off with a restricted match programme last weekend and Alania, Rubin and Saturn all recorded wins to set the early pace. Spain There were half a dozen matches played in midweek with leaders Barcelona winning comfortably at Villarreal with a 3-0 scoreline. Real Madrid had to work a little harder to return from Racing Santander with a 2-1 win despite playing against 10 men for the last hour. Deportivo didn’t play but Sevilla had a narrow 1-0 win at Levante. Badajoz edged a little closer to safety with a 2-1 defeat of Oviedo and are now 2 points away from safety as Tenerife lost 3-0 at Valladolid. Wales Bangor City have taken over at the top of the table after they drew 1-1 at Port Talbot Town and Aberystwyth Town lost 2-1 at home to Barry Town. Newtown spurned an opportunity to close the gap a little when they were held scoreless by visiting Cwmbran Town but Haverfordwest made some headway following their 2-0 win over T.N. Solutions. Afan Lido continued their progress up the table with a 1-0 win at fellow strugglers Connah’s Quay and Flexsys Cefn Druids had a good 2-1 win at home to Carmarthen Town but stay bottom, two points behind Oswestry Town. Cup Roundup Belgium The first leg ties in the Belgian Cup Semi Finals were played midweek and Club Brugge took a major step towards the final with a 3-0 win at hone to Standard Liège. The other game is more finely balanced as Racing Genk will be defending a 2-1 lead at Beveren. Croatia The Croatian Cup finalists are new decided following Wednesday’s second leg ties. A 1-0 win for Hajduk completed a 2-0 aggregate victory over Cibalia and a 1-1 draw at Nehaj was enough for Sibinek to complete a 4-3 aggregate. Denmark Brøndby snatched an excellent 2-0 win at FC København to put them in the driving seat in their Semi Final match and they will be strong favourites to finish off the job next week. Poland The Semi Finalists in the Polish Cup are now decided and Gornik Zabrze will face Orlen whilst Polonia will take on Wisla. These contests are decided over two legs and are scheduled to be played later this month. Game of the Week Wednesday March 31st, 2004 Portuguese Premier Division Paços de Ferreira 5 Boavista 5 Both teams came into this game desperate for points. The home side were just 4 points and two places above the relegation places and the visitors second from bottom and in the midst of a slump that looked likely to cost their manager his job. When the final whistle sounded there was no doubt that Jose Mota was the happiest of the two managers, having seen his team complete a most unlikely comeback to secure a useful point. Both teams started in positive mood but it was the visitors that drew first blood. Tiago Lemos conceded a free kick in a dangerous position and Kwame Ayew rose highest to head home the set piece played in by Rui Óscar. Tiago Lemos looked to make amends for his indiscretion by playing in a perfectly weighted cross but Clayton saw his header well saved by Ricardo. The same player came close shortly afterwards but his swerving shot was just wide of the mark. As play swung to the other end Martelinho tested Fernando Baptista with a stinging shot but the home keeper was equal to the task. Unfortunately for him, his quick throw out was latched onto by ElpÃdio Silva who played a neat ball into the area to allow Ayew to double his tally. After such a lively start the game settled into a spell of disjointed play with neither side able to establish an attacking rhythm. But on the half hour Boavista extended their lead further. A determined run from Ico was stopped short by an excellent tackle by Anders Andersson but the ball broke kindly for Cuco who was able to control it neatly before firing home past a flat-footed keeper. The home side looked to make an immediate response and a skilful run and cross from Tiago Lemos deserved better than Pepe Puntas lashing the ball high over the bar. The captain made a much better fist of his next chance just before the halftime interval but his tidy volley was too near the keeper and Ricardo made a comfortable save. Anders Andersson was in determined mood at the start of the second half and his powerful run and shot was gratefully turned away by Ricardo at the expense of a corner. Andersson took the set piece himself and his pinpoint cross was powered home by the head of Correia to reduce the deficit. He came close to creating a second some minutes later when Tiago Lemos ran on to his well weighted through ball. His shot was hard and low but Ricardo went down quickly to beat the ball away. Tiago Lemos had a second opportunity from the rebound but Ricardo recovered well to make a brave smother at the midfielder’s feet. Just before the hour mark the home side pulled another goal back. Captain Pepe Puntas fired in a howitzer of a shot that Ricardo did well to get a fist to. Ricardo Esteves was quickest to react as the ball spun loose and he fired it low into the bottom corner. Shortly afterwards Clayton came close to squaring the game when his curling free kick cleared the defensive wall but just wouldn’t drop far enough to find the net, skimming the crossbar on its way over. But then within 60 seconds of that chance Boavista re-established a two-goal margin when Cuco’s corner was headed home by Martelinho. That lead lasted a few more minutes before Paços narrowed the margin once more. Clayton finished off an excellent run with a near-post cross that was converted by the inrushing Correia for his second of the game. After that frantic 7-minute spell the game then entered another quiet period where neither team could establish a pattern of play. But with the clock ticking down all that was about to change in dramatic fashion. The home keeper had to be replaced in the 83rd minute after he pulled a muscle making a clearance. Just after his departure the visitors began to build a move in midfield with Ico and Martelinho exchanging passes and then finding Cuco who in turn picked out the run of Ayew. The Ghanaian international fired the ball in low and hard but the substitute keeper Pedro was down smartly to make the save and concede a corner. Cuco swung the ball in and Martelinho rose unchallenged to give Boavista a seemingly safe 2-goal lead with some 5 minutes left on the clock. But the home side responded vigorously with Clayton outpacing Rui Óscar on the left flank to deliver a driven near-post cross. Carlos Carneiro beat Jorge Silva to the ball to flick home a headed goal and give Paços a lifeline. As the game moved towards stoppage time Clayton, Andersson and Esteves combined in a neat interchange that culminated in captain Pepe Puntas slamming home a last-second equaliser to bring an epic encounter to a dramatic conclusion. Teams Paços de Ferreira: Fernando Baptista (Pedro 83), Nélson Veiga, Zé Nando, Cléber, Correia, Tiago Lemos, Ricardo Esteves, Anders Andersson, Carlos Carneiro, Pepe Puntas (Captain), Clayton Subs not used: Everaldo, Pedro Mendes, Jurandir, Ricardo Costa, Carlos, Kevin Amond Boavista: Ricardo, Rui Óscar, Tito, Cristiano, Jorge Silva (Captain), Luis Pedrosa, Martelinho, Cuco, Kwame Ayew, ElpÃdio Silva, Ico Subs not used: Márcio Santos, Morgado, Raúl Meireles, Carl Medjani, Kresimir Stanic, Duda, LicÃnio Scorers Paços de Ferreira: Correia 47, 65, Esteves 58, Carlos Carneiro 87, Pepe Puntas 90 Boavista: Ayew 7, 16, Cuco 30, Martelinho 61, 85 Yellow Cards Paços de Ferreira: Ricardo Esteves Man of the Match: Anders Andersson (Paços de Ferreira) Attendance: 11,401 There is no Spotlight feature in this week’s issue but with the season in Finland due to restart at the beginning of May we plan to do a review of the Veikkausliiga in our next issue. But in response to an enquiry from reader GBK we are pleased to let him know that his team did survive in the top flight last season, but only just. They finished in 10th place just one spot above the relegation playoff places. Having won the title in the previous season this performance was a big disappointment to their fans and players alike and they will be looking to improve things in the forthcoming season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted April 19, 2004 Author Share Posted April 19, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 36 - Friday April 9th, 2004 News Having jumped ship from Auxerre a couple of weeks ago it was some surprise to see Philippe Bergeroo installed as the new manager of Lorient. Having cited supporter pressure as the reason for his departure it seems that he is a glutton for punishment as he takes over at the club that is currently propping up the table in Le Championat. In the meantime Bergeroo’s ex-club have appointed former Standard Liege and PSG manager Henri Michel as their new boss. Anderlecht Chairman Roger Vanden Stock has finally lost patience with Jan Ceulemans and the former Belgian international has been relieved of his position. Manchester United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy has beaten out Mario Melchiot of Middlesbrough and teammate Ryan Giggs to win the English Players Player of the Year award. In Turkey Trabzonspor have parted company with Aykut Kocaman as he has singularly failed to improve the fortunes of the club. League Roundup Belgium Leaders Sint-Truiden show no signs of buckling and their 2-0 win at home to Anderlecht was the final nail in the coffin of manager Ceulemans. Cherleroi had a big 1-0 win at Club Brugge to stay on the tail of the leaders and Lierse profited from their 3-2 win at Antwerp by moving up to 3rd. Racing Genk jumped to 5th after beating Westerlo 2-1 as Standard Liege suffered a 4-1 humiliation at the hands of Mouscron. Croatia Osijek are still hanging on at the top of the table and the secured a 1-1 draw in a tough encounter at Dinamo. Hajduk jump to second place with a comfortable 3-0 win at home to Cakovec and are one point behind the leaders with Dinamo a further point behind in third. Denmark The top of the table clash at Brøndby saw the home side have a comfortable 4-1 win over Aab to take over in first place. However AaB were back in action earlier today and a 1-0 win at home to Frem has moved them back on top, one point ahead of Michael Laudrup’s team. FC København suffered an unexpected defeat at struggling Esbjerg fB, going down by a single goal. The win has lifted Esbjerg fB off the bottom of the table and they are now 4 points from safety with 8 games remaining. England League leaders Manchester United didn’t play this week but have a healthy 12-point lead over Liverpool and Tottenham with Arsenal a further 4 points behind. The ‘Pool were held to a 1-1 draw in a tough Merseyside derby at Goodison Park with Everton in front for most of the game before Bruno Cheyrou (25, AM LC) equalised 10 minutes from time. Tottenham kept up their excellent form with a 2-1 win at Leeds and Arsenal had a narrow 1-0 win at home to a battling Brighton. The Seagulls are now 16 points from safety and are certain of relegation. They look likely to be joined by Charlton whose wretched form continued with a 3-0 defeat at Aston Villa. It is now 11 games since Steve Coppell’s team last won and with games running out they are in dire straits indeed. Sunderland are still fighting hard and a spirited 2-2 draw at home to Blackburn takes them to within a point of West Brom who lost 2-1 at West Ham. France Nantes had an easy 3-0 win at home to PSG and with Sedan drawing 1-1 with Troyes they now head the table by nine points with a game in hand. Bottom club Lorient suffered yet another defeat, losing 2-1 at home to Lens and face certain relegation. They have 7 games to play and are currently 14 points from safety. Guingamp managed a 1-1 draw at home to St-Etienne and Troyes also picked up a point at Sedan. But with Bastia having lost only one of their last 8 games they are both struggling to make up any ground. Germany A narrow 1-0 win at 1.FC Köln is enough to keep Dortmund on top with second place Schalke 04 winning 3-0 at home to Hertha BSC. A 2-1 win at home to 1860 München keeps Nürnberg 3rd with FC Bayern having an easy 3-0 win over visiting Greuther Fürth. Cottbus suffered yet another defeat, losing 3-1 at Wolfsburg and now look doomed, 8 points adrift with 7 games remaining. Greuther Fürth also look like prime relegation fodder with the third candidate likely to be between SC Freiburg, Werder Bremen, M'gladbach and Wolfsburg. Greece Title contenders AEK and Olympiakos fought out a no scoring stalemate so the 2-0 win for Panathinaikos at Kalamaria stretches their lead to 4 points. Bottom club Giannena managed a rare victory, winning 2-0 at Eth. Asteras. They remain in last place but have crept a little nearer to safety and will continue the relegation fight along with Kavala and Kalamaria. Holland Feyenoord continue their pursuit of the title with a 3-0 win at home to Roda, their 19th consecutive league game without defeat. PSV made up some ground courtesy of playing an extra game, winning 4-1 at Willem II at the weekend and 4-2 at home to AZ earlier today. A comprehensive 4-0 win at home to ADO keeps Ajax 3rd. Last place MVV avoided a defeat this week by the cunning ploy of not playing a game but with some 14 points to make up in 6 games they are as good as in the First Division. The relegation playoff places look like being between Haarlem, ADO, Willem II and NAC. Italy Milan ended their run of two league defeats with a 2-0 defeat of Torino and remain 14 points clear of Sampdoria who had a narrow 2-1 win over Chievo. Lazio continue their climb up the table and are now 3rd after a fine 2-1 win at Parma. Inter recorded a good 2-0 win at Juventus to stay 4th. Palermo and Ancona look as good as relegated with Ascoli, Chievo and Perugia fighting out the other two places. Northern Ireland A dreadful 3-0 defeat at home to Bangor has probably cost Coleraine any chance of the title as Portadown made no mistake at home to Ballymena United, winning 3-1 to establish an 8-point lead. A 1-0 win for Newry at home to Linfield has re-kindled their hopes of escaping a relegation playoff and has Glenavon and Ballymena looking anxiously over their shoulders. Norway The season started with a weekend and midweek programme and two wins for Stabæk sees them setting the early pace with Molde and Lyn both on 4 points. Viking and VÃ¥lerenga both had two defeats and are the only teams without a point. Poland A 2-1 win at home to Widzew keeps Groclin top of the table a point clear of Legia who beat Ruch Chorzow 3-1. Wisla lost some ground with a surprise 3-1 loss at Pogon. The bottom three all picked up points this week. Miedz move off the bottom with a 2-0 win at home to Gornik Zabrze whilst Amica and Arka both had 1-1 draws. 13th place Orlen came close to getting a point themselves in a thrilling game at home to Radomsko. The visitors went 5-2 ahead with 5 minutes remaining but in a frantic finale the home side scored twice in stoppage time but still went down 5-4. Portugal With 6 games remaining Benfica are still in with a chance of the title as they reduced the gap at the top to 4 points after this week’s results. They had an excellent 2-0 win at home to Porto whilst Sporting were held 2-2 at E. Amadora. The home side took a 2-1 lead with 4 minutes remaining but Sporting grabbed a last-gasp equaliser for what could prove to be a very valuable point. Things are heating up in the relegation battle as both Boavista and Vit. Setúbal gained valuable home wins. Braga lost 2-0 at Beira-Mar and stay bottom but with 11th place MarÃtimo just 9 points clear of last place any three of the bottom 8 could still go down. The recent spate of high-scoring games continued as Leiria gained a very valuable 3 points in an extraordinary 6-2 win at home to 4th place Gil Vicente and Académica gaining a stoppage-time equaliser at Belenenses for a 4-4 draw. Republic of Ireland The title race was thrown wide open as Shamrock Rovers recorded a 1-0 win in a tense encounter at Dundalk to overtake the long-time leaders on goal difference. Derry City picked up valuable points with an impressive 4-0 win at home to Monaghan Utd but with Kildare County also winning, 2-1 at home to St. Pat’s Athletic, they are still three points away from escaping a relegation playoff. Russia Alania set the early pace in Russia having won both of their games so far but as fully half of the division have only played once this will undoubtedly change in the near future. Scotland Rangers had a comfortable 4-0 win at home to Aberdeen and with Celtic held 1-1 at St. Johnstone there is now a 4-point gap at the top. Raith Rovers played out a 3-3 thriller at Dundee and with Livingston never troubled in their 3-0 win at home to Motherwell there is now just a single point between 3rd and 4th. Hearts lost the Edinburgh derby 2-1 at Hibs and remain at the foot of the table one point behind Motherwell with Dunfermline a further point ahead in 10th. Spain A 2-0 win for Barcelona at home to Racing Santander, coupled with a disappointing 1-1 draw for Real Madrid against a 10-man Celta, means that Barca require one more win in their final 7 games to take the Primera Liga title. Elche look doomed after their 18th defeat of the season, a 3-2 loss at home to Espanyol. Malaga look likely to join them despite picking up a point in a 1-1 draw at home to Atletico Madrid. Badajoz remain two points behind Tenerife as the two played out a 0-0 draw in the Canaries. Sweden Helsingborg got off to a flying start with a 4-1 win at Örebro to head the table with Elfsborg second after their 3-1 win at Häcken. Turkey The big match this week saw the top two in action in the Istanbul derby as leaders Besiktas visited second place Fenerbahçe. The home side had defender Alpay (30, D C) dismissed just before half time but the visitors couldn’t capitalise and the game ended scoreless, a result that will suit the leaders as they stay two points clear. Galatasaray played twice this week but spurned a chance to move up to 3rd, drawing both games 1-1. The bottom three of Sekerspor , Denizlispor and Yozgatspor all drew and any one of them can still escape the drop. Wales It couldn’t be tighter at the top in Wales with the top two still separated by goal difference. The two met on Saturday and the result was a 1-1 draw. Bangor City took an early lead but visiting Aberystwyth Town equalised before half time. The home side had a man sent off 12 minutes from time but the visitors couldn’t take advantage. Cup Roundup Denmark Brøndby secured their place in the Danish Cup Final with a 1-1 draw at home to FC København to complete a 3-1 aggregate victory. They will face AGF in the Final in early June. Greece The first leg ties in the Semi Finals were contested this week and both of them were close affairs. Iraklis and AEK remained scoreless whilst PAOK established a narrow 2-1 lead over Olympiakos. Northern Ireland The first Irish Cup Semi Final was played earlier today and produced a comfortable 3-0 win for Larne over Ballyclare. Poland The League Cup Finalists are now decided as Widzew drew 1-1 at Miedz for a 2-1 aggregate and Wisla won 2-1 at Radomsko for a 3-2 overall victory. Republic Of Ireland In the Senior Challenge Cup Bray Wanderers of the First Division had an excellent 3-1 win over Shelbourne to book their place in the final. Their opponents will be Shamrock Rovers after they had their second 1-0 win over Dundalk this week. Sweden The 5th round of the Swedish Cup went with the form book with the exception of Second Division Väsby pulling off a shock win on penalties at home to DjurgÃ¥rden after their match finished 1-1 after extra time. Champions League Roundup The Quarter Final first legs were played on Wednesday and pick of the bunch was the eagerly awaited clash of Arsenal and Liverpool with Gerard Houllier’s team putting themselves in pole position with an excellent 2-0 win at Highbury. El-Hadji Diouf (23, F RC) gave the Reds the lead with 25 minutes remaining and Bobby Petta (29, AM L) scored an invaluable second in stoppage time. Manchester United suffered a 3-0 humiliation in Barcelona with Fabien Barthez (32, GK) putting in an eccentric performance that left Sir Alex Ferguson incandescent with rage. Lyon had a narrow 1-0 win at home to Dortmund and Roma won 1-0 at home against Milan in the Italian derby. UEFA Cup Roundup The Semi Final first leg ties both ended scoreless as Lazio held on at Juventus and Sevilla failed to find a way past Rosenborg. Spotlight on ….. The Finnish Veikkausliiga The season in Finland will be getting underway on May 1st so this week’s spotlight will take a look at the Veikkausliiga. 2003 Table <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st C HJK 33 14 0 2 41 20 10 4 3 40 23 76 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd MyPa 33 9 5 2 33 15 10 4 3 31 16 66 3rd Inter Turku 33 9 4 3 30 14 7 5 5 22 20 57 4th FC Haka 33 6 6 5 25 24 8 4 4 30 26 52 5th Tampere Utd 33 12 0 5 39 22 4 3 9 26 34 51 6th Jaro 33 8 3 5 26 23 5 5 7 22 26 47 7th SalPa 33 7 4 6 31 24 5 5 6 22 22 45 8th VPS 33 9 2 5 30 28 3 3 11 25 37 41 9th FC Jazz 33 5 8 3 22 23 4 2 11 28 45 37 10th GBK 33 4 3 10 24 36 4 2 10 18 30 29 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11th R AC Allianssi 33 6 2 9 24 31 2 3 11 18 36 29 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12th R KuPS 33 3 4 10 27 39 3 1 12 17 37 23</pre> FC Haka 2002 – 7th 2003 – 4th Olavi Huttunen led his team to a creditable 4th place in the league last season with free-scoring teenager Toni Lehtinen (19, S C) a major factor in the team’s success. Reported to be keen to move on to a bigger club however, the youngster might prove hard to hang on to. He formed a useful partnership with the veteran Russian Valeri Popovich (33, S C) with the two combining for 30 goals between them. FC Jazz 2002 – 5th 2003 – 9th It was a disappointing season for Jussi Ristimaki and his team as they finished well down the table compared to their position in 2002. Fans favourite Rodrigo (32, F LC) is as popular as ever and although the flamboyant Brazilian doesn’t score too many he is one of the team’s main providers. It’s a shame that the strikers lack the quality to take advantage and last season’s top scorer was midfielder Mika-Petteri Johansson (23, AM RC). FC Korsholm 2002 – 3rd in First Division 2003 – 1st in First Division After just missing out on a promotion playoff in 2002 Jouni Vakevainen was delighted to see his team gain automatic promotion last season. Twin strikers Tom Svarvar (25, S C) and Niklas Blomqvist (28, S C) found the net 40 times between them last year but will undoubtedly find goals harder to come by at this level and most observers expect Korsholm to struggle. GBK 2002 – 1st 2003 – 10th A quite disastrous 2003 saw the champions of two season ago avoid the indignity of a relegation playoff on goal difference although it took a momentous final day win over VPS in a 4-3 thriller to achieve that feat. That result almost certainly saved Grigory Yevtushenko’s job but the 62-year-old Russian veteran will be living on borrowed time if his team don’t perform well this season. Half a dozen Bosman signings have buoyed the playing staff although none of the players involved look like world-beaters. HJK 2002 – 2nd 2003 – 1st Englishman Keith Armstrong almost lead his team to the domestic double last season, winning the league title but losing out in the Cup Final when First Division underdogs FC Hämeenlinna won on penalties after a scoreless draw. The playing squad has not been added to for a couple of seasons so all eyes will be on veteran striker Niclas Gronholm (35, S C) to see if he can repeat his evergreen performance of last year when he finished the season with 25 goals to his name to end up as the top scorer in the league. Inter Turku 2002 – 8th 2003 – 3rd Pertti Jundell did very well to coax a 3rd place finish in the league out of his squad of players. The experienced Richard Teberio (32, F C) had another steady season up front and Mika Niskala (23, DM C) was a steadying influence in midfield. The capture of Mikael Muurimaki (24, AM/F R) on a free transfer after the midfielder was released from Jaro will strengthen the team’s attacking threat but they will do very well to repeat another top-three finish this year. Jaro 2002 – 10th 2003 – 6th Sixten Bostrom was very pleased with the steady improvement that his team showed last season and is hoping that they can keep their momentum going this year. Their star performers are undoubtedly homegrown local lad Fredrik Svanback (24, AM/F L) and former Peterborough player Chris Cleaver (25, F RC). My Pa 2002 – 1st 2003 – 2nd Juha Malinen and his team had a frustrating time last season as they were unable to keep pace with eventual champions HJK after their title-winning heroics the year before. Much of that frustration was taken out on Saku Puhakainen (29, F LC) as the forward struggled to regain the form he showed in 2002 when he racked up 25 goals. He has now gone on record criticising his manager for the way he was dealt with last year and may well be leaving the club in the near future. With influential defender Sampsa Timoska (25, D/DM LC) having been sold to Hearts for £300K at the start of the year the team may be a little weaker for this campaign. However, if Russian youngster Denis Volodin (21, F LC) can retain his fine form from last season they will still pack a punch up front. PP-70 2002 – 2nd in First Division 2003 – 2nd in First Division (Promoted) Having endured an unsuccessful promotion playoff in 2002 it was with great relief that Jukka Heinonen watched his team end up on the winning side last year, defeating AC Allianssi 4-3 on aggregate in the final. Tero Kempas (23, S C) was the hero in the playoffs, finding the net half a dozen times in their six playoff games. With experienced strike partner Kimmo Piirainen (32, S C), the two formed a very effective duo in the lower league. Near-neighbours of Tempere United, the local derbies between the two sides are eagerly awaited by both sets of players and supporters. SalPa 2002 – 1st in First Division 2003 – 7th Jyrki Pellikka and his team did very well to end the season just in the lower half of the table after their promotion in 2002. Half a dozen Bosman signings have bolstered the squad for the rigours ahead. As the smallest club in the top flight they are prepared for a tough fight and the tight-knit group of players are relishing another season in the senior division. Star player and supporter’s favourite Markus Dahlbom (23, S C) impressed last season when he scored 19 goals in all competitions. Tampere United 2002 – 3rd 2003 – 5th Last season was somewhat of an anti-climax for the Tampere fans after their team finished 3rd in the league and won the Finnish Cup in 2002 and Ari Hjelm is expected to lift his team to greater efforts this year. Nearly £250K has been spent on playing staff – a very large investment for a club of this size. The most expensive signing was Markus Paatelainen (21, F RC) who signed from AC Allianssi for £100K in January. New Zealand international Noah Hickey (25, F RLC) remains a favourite of the supporters after another fine season up front. VPS 2002 – 9th 2003 – 8th VPS fans expect another season of struggle and strife and a probable low to mid table finish under the direction of Keijo Paananen. Local youngster Tomi Sauso (22, S C) has been the team’s top scorer for the last two seasons and is a big favourite at the Hietalahti Stadium and there are a few more players of quality in the squad. It continues to frustrate the fans that the manager seems unable to obtain an appropriate level of performance from the players at his disposal. We apologise for the omission of Game of the Week in this issue and for the late publication. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted April 26, 2004 Author Share Posted April 26, 2004 European Soccer Weekly Issue 37 - Friday April 16th, 2004 News Anderlecht have appointed Marc Grosjean from Second Division KV Mechelen as their new manager to replace the sacked Jan Ceulemans. The 45-year-old took charge at Mechelen at the end of last season following their relegation from the First Division and has taken them to the top of the league and in a great position to make an immediate return to the top flight. League Roundup Belgium Sint-Truiden were held to a scoreless draw at Club Brugge but with second place Charleroi not in action this week they remain 4 points ahead but have played a game more. The bottom two met when La Louvière visited Westerlo but a 1-1 draw doesn’t help either side all that much. The two remain tied on 26 points, three behind both Lommel and Antwerp. La Louvière were in action again earlier today, losing 3-2 to visiting Anderlecht. Croatia Osijek suffered another minor setback with their second consecutive draw as visitors Slaven Belupo came away with a 2-2 draw. A 2-1 win for Dinamo at Belisce sees them even on points with the leaders and kept off the top spot on goal difference. Hajduk spurned a great opportunity to go top when they lost 3-1 at Rijeka. A 5-2 defeat at home to Varteks confirmed the relegation of Marsonia and Kamen Ingrad are just one defeat away from joining them. Denmark It was a busy week in Denmark with most teams in action twice. Leaders AaB picked up maximum points beating Esbjerg fB 2-1 and AB 2-0. Six points for AGF has taken them up to second place above FC København and Brøndby on goal difference with all three now six points off the pace. It looks like AB, Esbjerg fB and Vejle will be fighting out the two relegation places but AB moved 4 points clear of the drop with a 0-0 draw at home to Brøndby. England The top three all picked up maximum points this week with Manchester United winning 1-0 in a tight game at Blackburn, Liverpool beating Chelsea 2-0 and Tottenham edging the London derby 1-0 over Millwall. At the other end of the table Sunderland climbed out of the bottom three for the first time since the start of the season with a good 2-1 win at home to Aston Villa. Their win, and a 2-0 defeat for West Brom at home to Leeds, sees the Baggies drop back into the relegation places. Charlton re-kindled their hopes with a battling 3-2 win at home to fellow Londoners Arsenal but a 3-0 defeat at home to Wolves has all but sealed Brighton’s fate. France There was a limited league programme in France this week with the most significant result a 2-1 win for Bordeaux at Strasbourg that moves them up to third. Guingamp lost 3-1 at Monaco and remain one of the prime relegation candidates. Germany Dortmund continued their fine league form with a comprehensive 4-0 win at home to Hannover 96 and Schalke 04 kept up the pursuit by winning 3-2 at Werder Bremen. The home side fought back from three goals behind but in the end just couldn’t find an equaliser. Nürnberg stay 3rd despite suffering a shock 3-1 defeat at Greuther Fürth as FC Bayern were held to a scoreless draw at Leverkusen. Cottbus picked up a pint in a 2-2 draw at home to M'gladbach, succumbing to a late equaliser when they really needed a win to have any hope of escaping the drop. Greece There was no action in the National A Division this week. Holland Leaders Feyenoord struggled to a 1-0 win at Cambuur and with PSV not in action they are now 9 points clear. Ajax had a fine 4-0 win at Twente and have closed to within two points of second place. Bottom club MVV had a rare win with a 2-1 victory at ADO but remain 10 points from safety with games running out. Italy The big game in Italy this week was the Milan derby and Inter triumphed 2-0 over Milan in a game that they dominated from start to finish. Inter played again on Wednesday drawing 1-1 at home to Roma. This result, together with Sampdoria’s 1-1 draw at Lazio, means that despite losing, Milan cannot be overtaken and have won the Serie A title with 4 games to spare. A 2-0 defeat for Palermo at Empoli has confirmed their relegation with Ancona and Ascoli almost certain to follow. Chievo and Perugia will fight out the final place and they both won this week and remain within a point of one another. Northern Ireland Leaders Portadown were surprisingly held to a 0-0 draw at home to relegated Institute but with Coleraine losing 3-1 at Linfield they still moved a point nearer the title. A 0-0 draw at Bangor moves Newry to within three points of escaping the relegation playoff. Norway With another two games played in Norway this week Stabæk have continued their excellent start with 4 wins out of 4 and are two points clear of Molde. Poland Legia have taken over at the top of the table after a thrilling 4-3 win at Odra Wodzislaw. Groclin lost 1-0 at Wisla and drop to second place. Orlen and Arka both picked up points in drawn games but remain in the relegation playoff places. Portugal The top three all had wins this week with Sporting keeping their 4-point advantage after a 2-1 win over Belenenses thanks to a 90th minute goal. Benfica also beat Belenenses earlier today, racking up a fine 6-1 win away from home. Porto remain 3rd after a 2-1 win at home to Leiria. At the bottom, Braga and Vit. Setúbal both suffered defeats and Boavista were not in action this week. Republic of Ireland New leaders Shamrock Rovers were in action twice this week and a 3-1 win at home to Finn Harps was followed by a 2-1 win at Waterford United earlier today. Dundalk won 1-0 at Monaghan United and are now 3 points behind but have a game in hand. A 2-1 defeat for Derry City at Kildare County keeps them in the relegation playoff place and the defeat for Finn Harps leaves them in deep trouble. With two games remaining the best they can do is overtake Derry and face a playoff. Russia Alania stay top after a 1-1 draw at Zenith Peterburg. A fine 3-0 win at home to last season’s champions Krylja Sovetov takes newly promoted Zhemchuzhina up to second ahead of Saturn on goal difference. Dinamo Moscow have now lost two out of two after a 1-0 defeat at Rotor and are bottom of the table. Scotland Leaders Rangers suffered a rare reverse, losing their third game of the season in a 3-2 thriller at Livingstone. But Celtic couldn’t capitalise fully as they were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Motherwell and are three points adrift. Raith Rovers stay 3rd after a fine 3-1 defeat of St. Johnstone and enter the Championship phase with European qualification almost assured. A narrow 3-2 defeat at home to Dundee keeps Hearts rooted to the bottom two points behind Dunfermline and Motherwell. Spain A win for Barcelona at Celta would have wrapped up the Primera Liga title but a scoreless draw means that the champagne will have to be kept on ice for another week. Real Madrid had a good 3-0 win at Levante but Deportivo continue the chase for second place with a 2-0 win at Tenerife. Málaga’s fight for survival continued with a 2-1 win at Espanyol, ending a run of four successive 1-1 draws. They have now gone 6 games undefeated picking up 10 points in the process. Badajoz are also on a good run and their 2-2 draw at home to Villarreal was their 9th point in their own 7-game unbeaten run. Elche are having no such success and a 3-1 defeat at Valladolid leaves them staring into the abyss. Sweden Helsingborg, Elfsborg and ÖIS all maintained their 100% records two games into the season but Örebro and Häcken remain pointless at the foot of the table. Turkey The title race took a dramatic turn this weekend as Fenerbahçe suffered a 2-0 defeat at 3rd place Antalyaspor. A 3-1 win for Besiktas at home to bottom club Sekerspor has opened up a 5-point gap at the top. Yozgatspor have leapt out of the bottom three with two big wins this week. A 3-2 home win over Malatyaspor at the weekend was followed by a 2-1 victory at Kayserispor earlier today. Wales There was no league action in Wales this week. Cup Roundup Belgium The second leg ties in the Belgian Cup Semi Finals took place this week. Club Brugge played out a 1-1 draw at Standard Liege to complete a 4-1 aggregate win. In the other game Racing Genk raced into a three-goal lead at Beveren to go ahead 5-1 in aggregate but in an amazing final 25 minutes the home side came back to snatch a 3-3 draw on the night but still lost out 5-4 overall. England Last Sunday saw the FA Cup Semi Finals take place. Liverpool secured a narrow 1-0 win over Tottenham thanks to an early goal from Michael Owen (24, S C). The other Semi was a much more lively affair and Manchester United kept their hopes of a double on track with a 3-2 win over Newcastle. France It was Semi Final day in France too and the final will be an all Second Division affair. Angouleme won a penalty shootout over Le Mans following a 1-1 draw after extra time and Metz pulled off a stunning 2-0 defeat of Monaco. Holland The Dutch Cup finalists were also decided this week with PSV overcoming First Division Excelsior 1-0 and NEC pulling off a surprise 2-1 win over Feyenoord to deny the Rotterdam team the chance of the double. Northern Ireland The second Irish Cup Semi Final required a replay before Armagh of Division One booked their place in the final by beating Distillery. The first game on Saturday ended 1-1 with Armagh scoring a late equaliser. The re-match on Wednesday also ended 1-1 but Armagh triumphed in the penalty shootout. Poland The Polish Cup Semi Finals are played over two legs and the first games took place this week. Orlen were pleased with their 2-1 win at Gornik Zabrze and Wisla won 2-0 at Polonia. Portugal In the Portuguese Cup Semi Finals Benfica had an easy 6-2 win at home to Braga but Vit. Guimarães required extra time to dispose of E. Amadora. Russia The Russian Cup started last season and got back into action this week with the Quarter Final games. Anzhi beat Division One side Fakel 1-0 and Krylja Sovetov recorded the same scoreline at non-league Lada. Lokomotiv Moscow had a good 3-1 win over rivals CSKA and Zenith Peterburg beat Spartak Moscow 2-0. Scotland The predicted Old Firm Cup Final has failed to materialise in Scotland. Whilst Celtic had a comfortable 4-0 win over Stenhousemuir in their Semi Final, Rangers and Dundee United battled out a 2-2 draw in their game at the weekend. Wednesday’s replay saw United triumph 3-0 after Rangers striker Steven Thompson (25, S C) was dismissed just 7 minutes into the game. Spain More Cup action as the first legs of the Spanish Cup Semi Finals took place on Wednesday with the favourites both in pole position. Barcelona came back from First Division Mallorca with a 1-0 lead as did Valencia after their trip to Oviedo. Wales The first leg ties in the Premier Cup Semi Finals took place on Tuesday with the English-based Welsh sides winning as expected. Cardiff had a 2-0 win at Merthyr Tydfil and Swansea beat Haverfordwest 3-0. Saturday saw the Semi Finals of the Welsh Cup with Afan Lido beating non-league Conway Town 2-0 and Welshpool winning the penalty shootout over Barry Town after a 1-1 draw. Game of the Week Sunday April 11th, 2004 English FA Cup Semi Final Manchester United 3 Newcastle 2 Beleaguered Newcastle manager Martin O’Neil saw his last chance for a trophy this season disappear after this narrow defeat by Manchester United. Failure to gain European qualification may see O’Neil on his way in the summer as he has failed to meet the high expectations of the Magpies supporters. United boss Sir Alex Ferguson, on the other hand, seems as secure as ever and with the title seemingly in the bag his team are chasing the domestic double. Both sides started out with a positive approach but it was Newcastle captain Alan Shearer who had the first chance when he got his head to a cross from Kieron Dyer but he couldn’t keep his header down and failed to trouble Fabien Barthez. After that the game bogged down into a midfield stalemate for some time and it wasn’t until the half hour mark before the next scoring opportunity presented itself. Craig Bellamy was freed by a neat header from Nolberto Solano but the Welsh international sliced his shot wide of the post. At the other end Ruud van Nistelrooy came close to converting a cross from Seba Veron but his effort went just wide. United broke the deadlock 10 minutes before the break when Mickael Silvestre played in Diego Forlan and the Uruguayan finished neatly for his 24th goal of a very productive season. After the break Newcastle started brightly as they came forward in search of an equaliser. Carl Cort came very close when his header from Bellamy’s cross beat Barthez but was hacked off the line by a well-positioned Wes Brown. But it was the seemingly ageless Shearer that tied the scores with some 30 minutes remaining. Bellamy, Cort and Solano combined with some crisp passing to find Shearer in the box and, holding off the challenge of Brown, he controlled the ball and shot powerfully past Barthez. United looked to make an immediate response and van Nistelrooy forced Shay Given into action with a strong header that was turned away for a corner. With 25 minutes remaining Shearer came within a whisker of gaining a priceless lead when he found himself one on one with Barthez. The Newcastle man’s shot was well placed but Barthez did fantastically well to get a touch on the ball and Silvestre cleaned up the loose ball. This incident proved to be a turning point as, within 60 seconds, United found themselves in front. Substitute Bojan Djordjic latched on to a clearance from Given and picked out Veron. The Argentinean was alert to a run from van Nistelrooy and picked him out with a pinpoint pass. Ruud made no mistake with his opportunity, steering the ball beyond the onrushing Given. Two minutes later Djordjic made it 3-1 with as good an individual goal as you will see all season. Picking the ball up just inside his own half the 22-year-old Yugoslav twisted and turned his was through the heart of the Newcastle team before striking home an unstoppable shot from some 25 yards out. Two goals in two minutes had changed the complexion of the game entirely and Newcastle looked a beaten team. They did manage to pull one goal back when Bellamy finished off a cross from Solano shortly before the end but they never really threaten to force extra time. Teams Manchester United: Fabien Barthez, Gary Neville (Phil Neville 63), Mickael Silvestre, John O’Shea, Wes Brown, Paul Scholes (Bojan Djordjic 56), Luke Chadwick, Juan Sebastian Veron, Diego Forlan, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Ryan Giggs (Captain) Subs not used: Roy Carroll, Nicky Butt, Paul Tierney Newcastle: Shay Given, Nolberto Solano, Kieron Dyer, Andy O’Brien, Kristoffer Arvhage, Titus Bramble, Clarence Acuna, Craig Bellamy, Alan Shearer (Captain), Carl Cort, Olivier Bernard Subs not used: Christian Bassedas, Adam Collin, Marcello Delgado, Robbie Elliot, Jermaine Jenas Scorers Manchester United: Forlan 36, van Nistelrooy 76, Djordjic 79 Newcastle: Shearer 59, Bellamy 86 Yellow Cards Manchester United: Bojan Djodjic Man of the Match: Mickael Silvestre (Manchester United) Attendance: 40,286 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
spurzgrrl Posted April 26, 2004 Share Posted April 26, 2004 Still one of the best reads in the forum, BB. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobBev Posted April 27, 2004 Author Share Posted April 27, 2004 Thanks Cait - you've encouraged me to try to catch up! European Soccer Weekly Issue 38 - Friday April 23rd, 2004 News In Croatia struggling Varteks have disposed of manager Zlatko Kranjcar. Hired just over a year ago and tasked with the re-vitalisation of the team, the 47-year-old has not made the impact required and has paid the price. In Portugal, Vitoria Setubal boss Jose Vieira de Carvalho has left the club “by mutual consentâ€. He was hired almost exactly 12 months ago in an attempt top reverse the club’s decline, but with his team seriously threatened by relegation he has clearly failed to deliver. Betis manager Paco Fortes is under considerable pressure as his side has failed to lift itself up the Primera Liga table. Following their excellent second place finish last season, the club’s fans are in despair as they see their favourites becalmed in the bottom half of the table. Oswestry Town boss Dave Norman was dismissed last weekend as the perennial struggles spend another season in the lower reaches of the Welsh Premier Division. League Roundup Belgium Sint-Truiden took a big step towards their first ever Division One title when they won the top-of-the-table clash against visiting Charleroi by a narrow 1-0 margin. To make matters worse for the title challengers they also lost their game in hand, played on Wednesday, with a 2-1 defeat at Standard Liege. The leaders now have a 7-point gap with 5 games to play. Lierse stay 3rd with a 3-1 win at Mons and another win at the weekend for Liege, 1-0 over AA Gent, sees them jump to 4th. Croatia Long-time leaders Osijek have dropped down to 3rd after losing 2-1 at Sibenik. A 2-1 win at home to Cakovec has taken Dinamo top with Hajduk 2nd after their 2-0 defeat of Zadar. A 1-0 win for Kamen Ingrad over relegated Marsonia has delayed their own relegation for another week but with an 8-point margin to retrieve and only 3 games left to do it they require something of a miracle. Denmark Leaders AaB had two very significant wins this week – a fine 2-1 win at FC Midtjylland was followed by a 1-0 win at FC København on Wednesday. They now enjoy a 9-point lead over their nearest rivals with 5 games left to play. A disappointing 1-1 draw at home to struggling Frem has heaped the pressure on Brøndby boss Michael Luadrup as their hopes of retaining the title start to recede. Esbjerg fB gained some encouragement in their must-win game at home to fellow-strugglers Vejle with a 2-1 win. Going into the break a goal down, they recovered to score a late winner as the visitors shot themselves in the foot when one of their players was red-carded with 30 minutes remaining. England Manchester United took a big step towards regaining the Premier League title with a narrow 1-0 defeat of Liverpool at Old Trafford. Rio Ferdinand (25, D C) got the crucial goal in the second half, just minutes after Liverpool had Igor Biscan (25, D/DM RC) dismissed. Tottenham were in action twice with a scoreless draw at Newcastle at the weekend followed by a 3-1 defeat of Wolves in midweek. They now move above Liverpool into second place. The relegation of Brighton was confirmed as they lost 2-0 at Middlesbrough and with just 15 points to their name The Seagulls are in danger of recording one of the lowest ever points tallies in Premier League history. Charlton were in action twice and draws against Wolves and Chelsea keep their hopes alive. West Brom picked up a valuable 2-1 win at Millwall but with Sunderland drawing against Arsenal and Everton, The Baggies remain in the bottom three. With 4 weeks remaining before the end of the season, Charlton look likely to join Brighton in Division One with the other place being contested between West Brom, Sunderland, Chelsea and Aston Villa. France Nantes are celebrating their first triumph in La Championnat since 1995 after winning twice this week to take the title. Wins over Rennes and Guingamp, combined with a defeat for Sedan at Bastia, have seen them home and dry with 4 games still to play. Troyes have moved to within three points of Toulouse with a 3-1 win at Lille and have 6 games left to preserve their First Division status. Germany The title race looks like going all the way as the top two won yet again – Dortmund 3-1 at Kaiserslautern and Schalke 04 3-0 over Wolfsburg. Nürnberg lost 2-0 at home to Leverkusen meaning that the 4-0 win for FC Bayern over Hertha BSC has taken them to 3rd. In the relegation battle Werder Bremen had a vital 4-2 win at SC Freiburg to jump above their opponents and out of the bottom three. Greece There was a limited league programme in Greece this week with none of the top three in action. In the relegation struggle Giannena moved off the bottom with a 1-0 win over Panionios. With Kavala drawing 1-1 with Aigaleo the bottom three are all tied on 18 points with goal difference forcing Kalamaria to the foot of the table. Holland There’s no change at the top in Holland with the big three all winning. With 4 games remaining and Feyenoord holding a 9-point lead there seems little doubt that, after two second place finishes in the last two years, the title is heading to Rotterdam this season. Bottom club MVV gained their second consecutive win with a 2-1 defeat of Vitesse and with ADO and Haarlem both losing, their fans have not given up hope of a miraculous escape. Italy Champions Milan celebrated with a 3-1 defeat of Udinese but neighbours Inter dropped to 3rd after a scoreless draw at Parma. A 2-0 win for Sampdoria over Torino moves them up to 2nd and Lazio move to 4th with a 2-1 win at Ancona. That result also confirmed Ancona’s relegation to Serie B. Ascoli join them despite a battling 1-1 draw at Juventus leaving Chievo to try to escape the final relegation place. Northern Ireland After two consecutive defeats Coleraine re-kindled their faint hopes of the title by beating leaders Portadown 1-0. But with a 6-point gap and just two games to play it looks very unlikely that they can recover the situation. Newry spurned a glorious chance to gain ground when they lost 1-0 at home to relegated Institute and look doomed to a relegation playoff. Norway Despite losing their 100% record with a 3-1 defeat at Start, Stabæk still top the table with Lillestrøm moving to second after a 2-1 win at Bryne. Poland Legia remain top after a 3-1 defeat of Ruch Chorzow and Groclin stay 2nd after recording the same result over Pogon. Wisla lost some ground with a 1-1 draw at Szczakowianka but have two games in hand over the top two. Portugal Sporting remain on course for the title with a comfortable 2-0 win at relegation-threatened Braga with Benfica still 4 points behind after their 1-0 win at home to struggling Boavista. Managerless Vitoria Setubal gained a valuable three points with a 3-2 win at home to Gil Vicente and are now three points from safety with 4 games remaining. Republic of Ireland There was a limited league programme in the Republic this week but the fate of Finn Harps and Derry City was decided nonetheless. Harps are relegated despite a 0-0 draw at home to Monaghan United and Derry will face a relegation playoff after losing 4-1 to St. Pat’s Athletic. Russia Two wins for Spartak Moscow have shot them to the top of the table with neighbours Lokomotiv in second place. Scotland The title race is heating up as Rangers dropped points in a 2-2 draw at Livingston whilst Celtic had a comprehensive 5-0 win over Aberdeen. With 4 games to play the two teams are separated by just a single point and it looks increasingly likely that the Old Firm game at the start of May at Celtic Park will decide the eventual outcome. Hearts have moved off the bottom with a 2-1 win at home to Dundee United and are replaced by Motherwell as they lost 1-0 at home to St. Johnstone. Spain The win that Barcelona require to close out the championship remains elusive and on Sunday they played out a thrilling 3-3 draw at home to Levante. Real Madrid beat Betis 2-0 to delay the inevitable for another week. Málaga kept up their battle for survival with a fine 3-1 win at home to Valladolid and have moved to within 5 points of safety. Tenerife did themselves a power of good with a 2-1 win at doomed Elche otherwise they would be within a couple of points of the drop zone. Sweden Elfsborg made it three out of three with a 3-1 win at Hammarby to remain the only team in the top flight with a 100% record. Häcken suffered their third straight defeat and remain bottom of the table. Turkey Leaders Besiktas had a comfortable 3-0 win at Samsunspor and Fenerbahçe stay second after their 4-2 win at Malatyaspor. Third place Antalyaspor played twice this week. They required a stoppage time equaliser in the 3-3 thriller at G. Birligi at the weekend and then beat Göztepe 1-0 earlier today. Galatasaray slumped to a 5-0 defeat at Kocaelispor and have now dropped to 6th place. The bottom of the table clash between Denizlispor and Sekerspor finished tied one apiece, a result that doesn’t particularly help either team. Wales A 1-1 draw at T.N. Solutions was enough to send Aberystwyth Town back to the top of the table as Bangor City suffered an unexpected 2-1 defeat at home to Caernarfon Town. With two games remaining Aberystwyth have a one-point lead and the race for the title is still wide open. Cup Roundup Greece AEK progressed to the Greek Cup Final with a 1-0 aggregate win over Iraklis. They will face PAOK after their surprise 4-2 aggregate win over Olimpiakos. Poland Orlen progressed to the Polish Cup Final with a comprehensive 8-3 aggregate win over Gornik Zabrze and they will be playing Wisla who had a narrow 3-2 overall win against Polonia. Wales Swansea and Cardiff confirmed their progression to the final of the Premier Cup. The Swans completed a 5-0 aggregate win over Haverfordwest and Cardiff triumphed 3-1 over Merthyr Tydfil despite being held to a 1-1 draw in the home leg. Champions League Roundup Manchester United went into the second leg of their Quarter Final tie against Barcelona facing the seemingly impossible task of turning around their 3-0 defeat at the Nou Camp. A quite extraordinary game ensued at Old Trafford with Barca having keeper Roberto Bonano sent off after 23 minutes. United then scored three times to tie the scores and in a fairy tale finale, captain Roy Keane scored a stoppage-time winner to take them through 4-3 on aggregate. After their excellent 2-0 win at Highbury in the first leg, a 1-1 draw was enough for Liverpool to dispose of Arsenal. Milan were unable to break through a determined Roma defence at the San Siro and went out 2-0 on aggregate and Dortmund finally broke down a stubborn Lyon rearguard in extra time for a 2-1 aggregate win. UEFA Cup Roundup Lazio booked their place in the final with a narrow 1-0 win at home to Juventus after a scoreless first leg. They will take on underdogs Rosenborg who beat Sevilla 2-0 in Trondheim. The Norwegians also reached the final two year ago and suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat at the hands of Barcelona, falling to a penalty 3 minutes before the end of extra time. Game of the Week Wednesday April 11st, 2004 Champions League Semi Final 2nd Leg Manchester United 4 Barcelona 0 (Manchester United win 4-3 on aggregate) After their embarrassing 3-0 defeat at the Nou Camp two weeks ago it looked like Sir Alex Ferguson’s dream of repeating his epic 1999 treble were in tatters. However, the club had been talking up their chances of overturning the deficit in recent days and the atmosphere in the crowd was boisterous. Despite the initial optimism the first 20 minutes or so gave no hint of the drama to come with United’s only effort a half-chance for Diego Forlan that he headed wide. But then a rash challenge by Barca keeper Roberto Bonano sent Gary Neville tumbling in the area and the 34-year-old Argentinean was dismissed. Patrick Kluivert was withdrawn and substitute goalie Robert Enke was introduced. The 26-year-old German has made barely half a dozen appearances this season and he was comfortably beaten from the spot by Rio Ferdinand. Less than 5 minutes later Barcelona suffered another blow when the highly influential Marc Overmaars pulled up injured and was replaced by Luis Enrique. Within minutes United were on the attack and Ryan Giggs forced an excellent save from Enke with a powerful header from Forlan’s cross. Gary Neville set up the next opportunity with a neat through ball for Ruud van Nistelrooy to chase but Enke went down bravely to smother the ball. Neville’s powerful running was to be a major factor in the game as, with his defensive responsibilities minimised because of United’s numerical advantage, he had free rein to roam forward. But it was Ryan Giggs that created the Red's second goal with a delightful flick that freed Forlan for the Uruguayan to finish with an emphatic shot. Barca reached the break without any further damage but within 3 minutes of the restart the tie was level on aggregate. Giggs went past Luis Enrique with ease and his far post cross was nodded down by Neville for Luke Chadwick to plant a perfect volley into the back of the net. Barcelona were really on the back foot by this time, but to their credit they dug deep and managed to compose themselves. They formed a defensive barrier that United found hard to break down and worked very hard to deny the Manchester players any time on the ball. United were reduced to several long range efforts, the closest of which was a crashing drive from substitute Paul Scholes that fizzed narrowly over the bar. Then with extra time beckoning a typical Neville run was stopped illegally by Javier Saviola giving United a free kick in a dangerous position. With David Beckham out injured Giggs took responsibility and his curling effort was kept out by the flailing hand of Enke. Unfortunately for the keeper, Roy Keane was quickest to react as the ball spun loose and the United captain smashed the ball high into the back of the empty net for a dramatic late winner. There have been some wonderful European nights at Old Trafford over the years but this epic performance must rank with the best of them. A clearly delighted Sir Alex was as effusive in his praise for the players after this game as he was critical of them after their defeat a fortnight ago. Teams Manchester United: Fabien Barthez, Gary Neville, Mickael Silvestre, Rio Ferdinand, Wes Brown, Juan Sebastian Veron (Paul Scholes 59), Luke Chadwick, Roy Keane (Captain), Diego Forlan, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Ryan Giggs Subs not used: Phil Neville, Roy Carroll, Fabien Brandy, John O’Shea, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Jimmy Davis Barcelona: Roberto Bonano, Carles Puyol, Fernando, Partik Andersson, Lilian Thuram, Marc Overmars (Luis Enrique 28), Gaizka Mendieta (Captain), Juan Riquelme, Partick Kluivert (Robert Enke 23), Javier Saviola, Phillip Cocu Subs not used: Jose Maria Salvador, Roberto Trashorras, Victor, Gabri, Dani Scorers Manchester United: Ferdinand (pen) 24, Forlan 37, Chadwick 48, Keane 90 Yellow Cards Manchester United: Ferdinand, Keane, Giggs, Scholes Barcelona: Puyol, Saviola Red Cards Barcelona: Bonano Man of the Match: Gary Neville (Manchester United) Attendance: 67,648 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjorn Posted April 27, 2004 Share Posted April 27, 2004 I have only one word for this. Amazing I think this is one of the best stories on the board and I just want to congratulate you because you kept this up for so long, and hoepfuly still for a long while Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pred Posted April 27, 2004 Share Posted April 27, 2004 I just tripped onto this, and i'm still on page two, but I just had to say, this is great. KUTGW! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian of Nazareth Posted April 27, 2004 Share Posted April 27, 2004 Villa will not go down Still excellent, the ( evident ) hard work is well worth it. Seems as though Manchester United still know how to escape from adversity too. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
spurzgrrl Posted April 28, 2004 Share Posted April 28, 2004 Those jammy manky b*ggers...still, Spurs second and still running at them for the League. Come one you Spurs! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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