UEFA Champions League Predctions

Real Madrid 2 - 0 Liverpool

The Santiago Bernabéu Stadium could prove to overwhelming for a Liverpool side minus Steven Gerrard. Fernando Torres will be given a torrid time in his Madrid return (sort of) and the capacity stadium could roar their side on to a comfortable victory.

Chelsea 1 - 1 Juventus

Juventus, with genius' of the caliber of Alessandro Del Piero, know every trick in the Champions League book. The greatest trick : score an away goal. Guus Hiddink will be desperate to avoid defeat in what could be Chelsea's last shot at silverware this season.

Sporting Lisbon 2 - 3 Bayern Munich

There's always one game that produces goals aplenty - and this is it for me. Bayern may be short of form in Germany but in the Champions League they are a much more formidable, free-playing side. Ribery, Klose and Toni all have the ability to put a lackluster Sporting defence to the sword. The home side will rely heavily on talismanic Moutinho and top dog Liedson. Derlei has also shown good form this campaign.

Villareal 1 - 0 Panathanaikos

These two sides have already exceeded the expectations of many a football pundit and now square off against each other to fill the underdog seat in the final 8. Good recent Panathanaikos form combined with Villareal injury worries all but cancels out the home advantage. This being said, I still think Villareal have the upper hand in terms of experience at this stage. Narrow home win.

UEFA Champions League Preview

Inter Milan vs Manchester United
Location : San Siro

As we all know, in recent times Manchester United have conquered all English opposition thrown their way without too much concern. A 7 point lead at the top of the Premier League is proof of United's dominance. Having mastered all comers English, it is only right that Sir Alex and his men challenge themselves with a new countries top dog. This being Italy and Inter Milan.
The Red Devils 7 point lead looks more or less insurmountable, and United untouchable - so imagine how the Italians feel about Serie A leader Inter Milan and their 9 point lead. Jose Mourinho's boys have recorded a recent victory over city rivals AC Milan, a game in which the Special One kept up his record of using all 3 allocated substitutes in every game of his Inter reign.
The Nerazzuri look set to start with the "brilliant" (his words not mine - I'd have said "masterful") Zlatan Ibrahimovic and L'Imperatore ("The Emperor") Adriano up front. Nicknames aside, Adriano has had a tough few years. He has been criticised for his weight by many a football critic, accused of having a poor work ethic by many a "team-mate" and chastised heavily for his rock-star lifestyle. A falling out with former coach Roberto Mancini saw the Brazilian dropped and sent to Sao Paolo on a loan deal where he eventually regained his form and confidence. Mancini was then replaced by Jose Mourinho who stated he had no qualms with playing Adriano - if he was one of the best two strikers in the squad. Adriano will have a rare opportunity to prove himself as one of the biggest names in world football once again in this game.
Inter will probably be without center-backs Walter Samuel and Marco Materazzi. The squad's impressive depth however means top talent Christian Chivu and pace merchant Ivan Cordoba will hold the back two positions. "The Icon" Maicon and impressive young talent Davide Santon will likely marshal the flanks in their full-back roles. The Italian champions have an impressive array of quality to choose from in their usual tough-to-break-down midfield. Zanetti, Cambiasso, Muntari and Stankovic are the obvious choices to form a rock solid diamond behind the powerful strike force. Inter Milan were wholly unimpressive in the group stages - their 8 points knocking Werder Bremen out of the cup by just one point.Away from home, Inter scored 6 and conceded 5 in three games. At home, they scored 2 and conceded 2. Hardly impressive figures and possibly an indication that Inter Milan will look for the 1-0 home win.
Manchester United have vowed to go for the win in this game - and why not. The champions (of England, Europe and indeed the World) have had a sensational run of late seeing them all but secure another Premier League title. This will now allow Sir Alex Ferguson to focus on a trophy he has been infatuated with since 26th May 1999 (think about it).
United's reported defensive crisis has recently worsened - Vidic, Neville, Evans, Brown and Rafael all out of this game. John O'Shea may have a key part to play at cenere-back - should the utility man be passed fit to play (currently doubtful). Evra will start at left-back with Fabio da Silva being pushed for a right-back start. Darren Fletcher is the only other full-back option with Owen Hargreaves still on the sidelines. The increasingly impressive midfield partnership of Carrick and Scholes should be given the nod with Ronaldo on the wing. I just wonder if Ji-Sung Park may be given the nod ahead of Nani or Giggs on account of the Korean's energetic nature and tracking back skills - helping out young Fabio on the right. This will restrict Cristiano Ronaldo to his (marginally) weaker left hand side - setting up an intriguing Ronaldo vs Maicon battle. I wouldn't be surprised to see the Portugese and the Korean switch flanks to cause havoc with 18 year old Davide Santon. Wayne Rooney should be started and I will be interested to see if Ferguson benches the often lax Berbatov in favour of Carlos Tevez (who is better equipped to deal with pacey center-back Ivan Cordoba).
Many people describe Jose Mourinho and Sir Alex Ferguson as the two best managers in the world. Every Manchester United fan remembers the anger they felt to the then obscure Portugese manager as he sprinted down the touchline after Costinha slotted home Tim Howard's sloppy parried save knocking United out of the Champions League almost exactly 5 years ago. There are more mini-battles to this game than meet the eye. Fergie vs Jose, Carrick vs Cambiasso and Rooney vs Ibrahimovic to name but a few. Both sides have sublime strengths and recently-enforced weaknesses, though at the same time, both sides have such contrasting styles of play.
The pundits will tell you sides must win their home tie in a knockout competition. I'm telling you Inter Milan just need to try not to lose it. If United get the balance right they will overwhelm Inter with their retention of the ball, their stretching of the play and their relentless bombardment of Julio Cesar's goal. My warning to Mourinho is Manchester United cannot get knocked out today but they can all but get through.
Inter will try not to get blown out of the water and will want to keep this game as low key as possible. The odd goal either way may settle it.

Prediction
Inter Milan 0 : 1 Manchester United

Manchester United vs Blackburn Highlights

Missed the game? Don't worry.

Manchester United vs Blackburn

The day's late kick-off sees League leaders Man Utd take on Blackburn. Sam Allardyce's mind games have started early, the big boss claiming the Champions are not unstoppable. Manchester United keeper Edwin van der Sar is now just 89 minuites away from setting the European record for consecutive clean sheets.
Manchester United are without John O'Shea for the clash, though Wayne Rooney and Rafael are in line for starts. Evergreen Ryan Giggs is back in contention for a start.
Blackburn miss Christopher Samba through suspension and Danny Simpson is ineligible against his parent club.
If Blackburn are to halt United's charge, they will have to be the first of 14 teams to breech their ever-changing defence. It may be said that United's only weaknesses lie in the occasional lack of pace in the midfield - though this is often taken care of by back-tracking Tevez/Rooney. The inexperience of Rafael may provide an avenue of attack for Rovers, although the young Brazilian has taken well to life at Old Trafford. I'd advise Sam Allardyce to set his side out to be difficult to break down and then look for a goal on the break. Cristiano Ronaldo has been unconvincing for me on the left - leaving his attacking threat slightly tamed. This has resulted in unconventional right-sided play from Ji-Sung Park, or whoever else is told to play there. The longer United's defensive run goes on for, the more pressure and importance their is on it's breaking. It is therefore important for United to score early to lessen the importance of any defensive breach.
Sir Alex Ferguson may opt to rest one or two regulars with an eye on an upcoming grudge-match with Jose Mourinho and Inter Milan. We may therefore see Vidic earn a well deserved break in exchange for Johnny Evans getting match practice (Evans will play against Inter Milan due to Vidic's European suspension).
A win would put United 8 points clear (Liverpool play Sunday vs Man City) and I feel the Red Devils are on too great a run to be halted at home to Blackburn. I do however think United's defensive record is in more danger than ever.

Prediction
Manchester United 3 : 1 Blackburn

Saturday 21st February : Previews

Aston Villa vs Chelsea

The day's early kick-off sees the Premier League's "best of the rest" fight it out for 3rd place. A win for Aston Villa would see them 3rd, tied with Liverpool - at least for a day (Liverpool meeting Man City on Sunday), or a 9 goal win would see Aston Villa climb to 2nd place (never know). Chelsea know that a loss could see them fall 13 points off the title race and, perhaps more importantly, could allow Arsenal to reduce their deficit from 4th place to just 2 points.
Aston Villa (who could go 5 points behind leaders Manchester United with a win) look to extend their unbeaten home record to 10 games - the type of feat Chelsea were once very familiar with. The Villains have taken 16 points from their last 6 League games - second to just Manchester United (18) in the form tables. During this time Villa have been slightly subdued in front of goal (scoring just 7), but magnificent at the back leaking only 2 goals. Milner and Heskey face fitness tests but life seems to be good at Villa Park. A record of no losses in 13 games is testament to that.
We're all familiar with the chaos at Stamford Bridge this season and are all quietly intrigued to see how on-field performances are effected. Guus Hiddink's boys have picked up 8 points in their last 6 Premier League games and (despite Guus' insistence) are more or less out of the title hunt. Champions League qualification must be the priority now with this 6 pointer being a huge part of securing that. Hiddink may just have an eye on this seasons Champions League - Juventus coming up. The Blues' side hasn't really clicked all too well of late and the addition of Ricardo Quaresma may further confuse matters. It is well known that Quaresma was unhappy at Inter and wanted out. The reason he chose Chelsea was simple - Luis Felipe Scolari. Guus Hiddink - a very methodical, selective manager - would have no qualms (normally) in leaving out a player he felt didn't fit the system he wanted to employ. Things may be very much different now that he is not once but twice directly under the payroll of Roman Abramovich who, in light of his recent reported $9bn losses, cannot miss out on another potential gold-mine player (Qauresma in the "Rnaldo market"). Hiddink therefore must pick his side according to (or at least in conjunction with) what the Russian billionaire would like to see on the turf at the Bridge - once again bringing up an interesting debate (for another day) about football as a business, not a sport. Just how "in charge" of Chelsea is Guus Hiddink. Is he just a show-manager until the season's end?
Chelsea have won their last 7 League games against Midland opposition (their last lost vs Villa in 2007) although records are clearly there to be broken. Whilst Chelsea's attack seemed impressive in the early running of this season, the Blues have scored just 6 in their last 6 Premier League games and conceded a shocking 8. Chelsea really are in a downwards spiral and this fixture may just come at the wrong time for them. The Londoners are without Ashley Cole, Alex and Ricardo Carvalho so will have an even shakier defence than usual. With Bosingwa bombing down the wing, Wayne Bridge bombing down the M6 and Branislav Ivanovic severely lacking match experience, it seems this match will contain goals.
It's not often that these two sides have met and Aston Villa have been favourites, but for me they are. The 9/4 price given by bookies is ridiculous, as is Chelsea's 5/4. Even if these prices were reversed, I'd say Villa were underestimated. This game is coming at the wrong time for Chelsea and the right time for Villa. In a game where a draw is no use to either side, Villa's confidence in their attacking prowess should shine through with their rock solid back line stubbing out the threat of Chelsea's off-form forwards.

Prediction
Aston Villa 2 : 1 Chelsea