Israel v England Preview - Euro 2008
England need nothing short of a victory against Israel on Saturday night and much maligned Steve McClaren will be hoping that his team can produce the goods that will propel them one step closer to the European Championship.Team News
England will stick to their tried and tested 4-4-2 formation with Aaron Lennon appearing on the left of midfield and Steven Gerrard being utilised on the right, where his club boss Rafa Benitez has tended to implement him this season. Owen Hargreaves returns to the pack after a lengthy absence due to a broken leg and will accompany Frank Lampard in the centre. Steve McClaren's problems come in the full back positions as first-choice picks Ashley Cole and Gary Neville are sidelined due to suspension and injury, so this means that Liverpool's Jamie Carragher and Everton's Phil Neville will slot in.
Israel have even more team selection problems as both first-choice strikers Colautti and Yaniv Katan are unavailable. Bolton's Idan Tal is also suspended which means that Israel will have to draft in some inexperience upfront in the shape of Ben Shushan and Tamuz.
England Over Jew a Win
McClaren has decided to add an injection of pace to England team having decided to use Johnson and Lennon in attack and, alongside Rooney, should cause the relatively poor Israeli defence undue problems. Israel have conceded six goals in their four qualifications games, albeit four were against Croatia, and they have shown signs that they are vulnerable to pacey players. Gerrard, Lampard and Hargreaves will try and dominate the midfield and will dictate England's flow of play. Gerrard is certainly the key man for England today. Israel will come out and may try to play an offside trap against England's strikers, which means that Gerrard could be the main outlet of play, with the Liverpool man looking to use his excellent through ball passing ability to open up the Israeli defence and send the quick footed Rooney and Johnson through on goal. Israel, meanwhile, will try and pack out the midfield to stifle any English creativity and attempt to use the counter-attack, with West Ham's Yossi Benayoun dictating the fast breakaways.
Fantasy Insider's Star Man - Steven Gerrard
England boss Steve McClaren looks like he will try to free up Steven Gerrard in order for the Liverpool man to use his passing range to deliver timely balls to Rooney and Johnson. Gerrard has had a relatively quiet domestic season, by his standards, but the midfielder is one true tactician that McClaren call upon to control the ebb and flow of the game.
The Other Side of the Fantasy Pond
So, we get a break from fantasy football for a few weeks thanks to England's participation in the Euro 2008 qualifiers. By the way things have gone so far under Steve (I only finished 7th in the Premiership) McClaren I may have preferred to have watched Malta's Eurovision qualifiers come the 90th minute on Saturday. But, while everyone in the UK moans and groans about the death of football/cricket/cricket coaches, wait let's just say sport in general, I have decided to look across the pond to the good ol' US of A to see how fantasy sports is coming along stateside.Zodiac Stat Attack
Have you ever thought that fantasy sports could be attributed to a higher force? Well, they have in America. A radio station called Karma Air - Karma Ball recently launched a weekly radio show where it's resident spiritual, Reverend Halofan, will use zodiac charts and astrology to predict the injuries and form of baseball players selected in your fantasy team. Perhaps we could all give it a try; wait i'm picking something up yes, I feel it, Louis Saha will be injured for most of next year...
FHM Style Fantasy
Every smart business person knows that sex sells and some bright spark in America put the idea of sad, lonely, sex maniac fantasy players, like myself, together with semi-clad naked chicks - primo! Mensfantasysports.com has come with an FHM style site where the," ...objective is to deliver the best in fantasy sports insight, while at the same time providing the intimate feel of a private club". Sticky keyboards are never a good idea when picking a fantasy team is what I think. Imagine, you might be so distracting by boobs that you convince yourself that Man City's Georgios Samaras will finally score a goal. Tissue please, obviously to wipe away the tears of Samaras' lame efforts.
A Nation of Fantasy Gamblers
With legislation coming down hard on internet gambling in America, fantasy sports have found a loophole which allows them make revenue from, what is in every respect, gambling. Many different operators from Fanball.com to Rotohog.com are battling it out to get your fantasy buck with the offer of grand prizes of up to $100,000. Fantasy Sports in America has morphed into a monetarily driven skill gaming industry to fill the void left by the crippling anti-internet gambling laws. The UK fantasy market has not had the same scope to grow in the way that its American counterpart has because UK laws on gambling are still relatively relaxed. The UK fantasy scene should continue to grow but operators must look towards more dynamic ways of grabbing fantasy players attention. I think two separate forms of fantasy games should grow: a gambling orientated fantasy game, which doesn't hide its intentions, and the more recreational version. At the moment there are a few too many games on the market that merge the two elements together and it is diluting the effectiveness of fantasy sports products on its customers.
Well, that's enough of America for this week and now back to dreaming of England winning the World Cup at Wembley in 2018. The FA should have stopped paying Sven's wages by then...
EPL Preview - Week 31
Click here for all major live football scores!
Arsenal (away vs.
Starting XI: (
Subs: Almunia, Denilson,Traore. Senderos, Flamini, Hleb, Diaby
Injured: Henry, Walcott, Van Persie.
Suspended: Adebayor (4 of 4), Eboue (3 of 3)
Team News: Arsenal only have the Champions League spot to play for after a couple of bad weeks. To add to that both Henry and Walcott are out for the remainder of the season. Henry has a groin problem, while Wenger has decided to let Walcott have his long awaited operation on his shoulder. Adebayor and Eboue are both still suspended but Toure is back in the side which means that Gilberto will resume in his normal midfield spot today.
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Aston Villa (home vs.
Starting XI: (
Subs:
Injured: Delaney, Laursen, Sutton.
Suspended: None
Team News: Laursen will miss out the
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Starting XI: (
Subs: Enkelmann, Nonda, Gallagher, Jeffers, Peter, Berner, Henchoz, Nelson.
Injured: Savage, Ooijer, Reid, Todd,
Suspended: Mokoena (1 of 1)
Team News: Centre-back Nelson is a major doubt for
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Bolton (away vs Man Utd)
Starting XI: (4-3-3) Jaaskelainen - Faye, Ben Haim, Meite, Gardner– Campo, Nolan, Speed, Stelios - Diouf, Anelka
Subs: Walker, Tal, Fojut, Teymourian, Thompson, Davies, Pederson, Hunt.
Injured: Q. Fortune, O’Brien.
Suspended: None.
Team News: Davies has returned from a six-week absence after recovering from a chipped bone in his foot, but this game may come too soon for the striker. Meite seems to have overcome a toe problem and will start for
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Charlton (home vs Newcastle)
Starting XI: (4-5-1) Carson – Sankofa, El Kakouri, Hreidarsson, Young - Holland, Ambrose, Song, Thomas, Zheng-Zhi - M. Bent
Subs: Myhre, Randolph, Diawara, Fortune, Kishishev, Faye, Lisbie, D. Bent
Injured: Gibbs, Young, Reid, Bougherra, Hasselbaink, Thatcher
Suspended: None
Team News: Charlton manager Pardew ruled out Thatcher from the Newcastle game on Friday. The left-back was expected to return but he has still not recovered from his hamstring problem. Striker Darren Bent is also expected to be rested after Pardew hinted that the
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Starting XI: (4-1-3-2) Cech - Diarra, Carvalho, Terry, A. Cole – Makelele – Lampard, Robben, Ballack - Shevchenko, Drogba.
Subs: Cudicini, Ferreira, Wright-Phillips, Kalou, Sahar, Boulahrouz, Geremi
Injured: J. Cole, Bridge, Essien.
Suspended: Mikel (4 of 4)
Team News: Mourinho will be without Essien for the
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Everton (home vs.
Starting XI: (
Subs: Wright, Hibbert, Stubbs, Anichebe, Pistone, De Silva, Vaughan.
Injured: McFadden, Cahill, Valente, Van der Meyde.
Suspended: None
Team News: Everton will be without Australian Cahill with the midfielder now sidelined until August with a broken metatarsal. Osman should come into the side to replace him.
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Fulham (away vs.
Starting XI: (
Subs: Lastuvka, Knight, Pearce, Routledge, Dempsey,Helguson, John, Volz.
Injured: Bullard, Elliott.
Suspended: Montella (3 of 3)
Team News: To follow…
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Starting XI: (
Subs: Dudek, Hyypia, Aurelio, Fowler, Zenden, Pennant, Mascherano, Gonzalez.
Injured: Kewell, Crouch, Garcia.
Suspended: None
Team News:
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Starting XI: (
Subs: Weaver,
Injured: Onouha, Sinclair, D. Mills.
Suspended: None
Team News: To follow…
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Man Utd (home vs.
Starting XI: (4-4-1-1) Kuszczak - R. Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, G. Neville - Giggs, Carrick, Park, O’Shea - Ronaldo - Rooney.
Subs: Heaton, W. Brown, Heinze,
Injured: Van der Sar, Silvestre, Fletcher, Solskjaer, Saha.
Suspended: Scholes (2 of 3)
Team News: To follow…
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Starting XI: (
Subs: Jones, Davies, Christie, Johnson, J. Euell, Rochemback, Viduka.
Injured: Bates, Riggott, Parlour, McMahon, Huth,
Suspended: None
Team News: To follow…
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Starting XI: (4-4-1-1) Given –Taylor, Onyewu, Bramble, Solano – Duff, Parker, Emre, Milner – Dyer - Martins
Subs: Srnicek, Carroll, Huntington, Edgar, N’Zogbia, Pattison, O’Brien, Luque, Sibierski.
Injured: Owen, Krul, Moore, Ameobi, Harper, Carr, Bernard, Babayaro, Ramage.
Suspended: Butt (1 of 1)
Team News: To follow…
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Porstmouth (away vs.
Starting XI: (
Subs: Ashdown,
Injured: Mendes, Lauren, Pamarot.
Suspended:
Team News: To follow…
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Reading (home vs.
Starting XI: (
Subs: Federici, Convey, De la Cruz, Gunnarsson, Duberry, Sodje, Oster, Halford, Long, Pearce, Kitson.
Injured: Mate, Halls, Sonko.
Suspended: None
Team News: To follow…
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Starting XI: (
Subs: Bennett, Bromby, Sommeil, Law, Kozluk, A. Quinn, Seck, Fathi, Morgan, Webber, Nade, Stead.
Injured: Li Tie, Kilgallon, Leigertwood,
Suspended: None
Team News: To follow…
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Tottenham (home vs.
Starting XI: (
Subs: Cerny, Alnwick, Keane, Taarbat, Lennon, Zokora, Stalteri.
Injured: King, Tainio, Murphy,
Suspended: None
Team News: To follow…
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Starting XI: (
Subs: Lee, McNamee, Doyley,
Injured: King, Stewart
Suspended: None
Team News: To follow…
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West Ham (away vs.Blackburn)
Starting XI: (
Subs: Carroll, Pantsil, Mullins, Bowyer, Kepa, Konchesky, Sheringham,
Injured: Ashton, Gabbidon, Upson
Suspended: None
Team News: To follow…
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Starting XI: (
Subs: Nash, Unsworth, Cotterill, Johansson, Granqvisst,
Injured:
Suspended: Hall (3 of 3), McCulloch (1 of 1), Baines (1 of 1)
Team News: To follow…
Note: Those denoted in red indicates doubts
EPL Preview - Week 30
Click here for all major live football scores!Man City v Chelsea
Man. City are languishing near the foot of the table and they are making a speedy nose-dive towards the Championship. Their form has been abysmal for most of the season, having scored only 10 goals at home in the Premiership this year. They met Chelsea in the first game of the season and were duly rolled over 3-0 at Stamford Bridge, I can see the same scoreline at Eastlands on Wednesday night.
City have been beset by off the pitch problems during this campaign with pressure mounting on Pearce after a bad run of performances, division in the dressing room and Joey Barton's alleged assault of a taxi driver this weekend. Pearce can afford a City loss but not a bad performance to go with it. It would make no sense to sack Pearce at this stage of the season as there is no one to come and change things around without the possibility of a mid-season break or a transfer window. The intriguing thing is that Pearce has been criticised for bringing in under par players to the club but people are missing one very important factor, it wasn't what Pearce brought in that was the major problem, it's what he let go: David James, Andrew Cole, Kiki Musampa, Ben Thatcher and Antoine Sibierski. All players with experience that added much needed depth to the City team. Cole's goals have been missed badly and he had a blossoming partnership with Vassell. James too is back to the peak of his best form and should not have been allowed to leave, he wanted more money so City should have obliged. Instead, they let him go and spent the money on an outstanding Swedish International goalkeeper that sits on the bench week-in week-out.
From a team news perspective Pearce doesn't have too many options at hand. Hamann, who had an ineffective game against Blackburn in the Cup, could be dropped in favour of Dabo, who has returned to the squad from injury. There is speculation that Barton may not figure against Chelsea after his altercation with the police earlier this week but Joey is used to situations like this. Last season he played the game against Charlton which was immediately after his brothers murder trial and it was his best performance of the season. The midfielder thrives under pressure like this and wouldn't miss the Chelsea game for anything. Also, Pearce cannot afford to sideline his best player.
Chelsea themselves are in the papers for the wrong reason this week, but whenever are they not? Mourinho spoke of his admiration for Real Madrid, yada, yada. Abramovich is upset, oy vay! I heard this week that the Russian billionaire talks with a childish voice, almost as if his balls haven't dropped. No wonder Mourinho finds it hard to grab him by his short and curlies... Saying this though Chelsea are a professional side and when push comes to shove, as shown against Spurs in the FA Cup, they carry out their work with stealthy precision. Captain John Terry returns to a Chelsea defence that looks lost without him and Makelele has been included in the side although Essien will probably start ahead of him. Shevchenko is Mourinho's main worry after the Ukrainian hurt his ankle during training. He is now a doubt ahead of the City clash while Mikel is certainly out as he is suspended.
Fantasy Insiders view: City are stuck in the mud; 3-0 Chelsea
Probable Formations
Man City (4-5-1) Weaver - Distin, Dunne, Richards, Ball - Sun Jihai, Barton, Ireland, Dabo, Vassell - Corradi
Chelsea (4-4-2) Cech - A. Cole, Diarra, Terry, Carvalho - Essien, Robben, Lampard, Ballack - Shevchenko, Drogba.
*Players denoted in red are doubtful.
FA Cup Fantasy - A Bad Idea...?
There are certain things that should remain sacred in football and one of them is the FA Cup. The FA Cup is something to be marveled at, enjoyed and watched on a Sunday afternoon with your mates. The minnows battle it out with the Elite and upsets, twists and adventures can be had by all. There remains something old school about the FA Cup that The Premiership has lost. Something less capitalist, harping back to the old days of pies, peas and Bovril. Maybe it is because the FA Cup is still on the BBC that it keeps its treasured spot in the national hearts of the English football fan? One thing is for sure though, I would never dream about making a fantasy football game out of our national heritage because it would be so Americanised to do so. The big fantasy companies have stayed well clear of the FA Cup, until now that is...CYKI (can you kick it), run by ISM Games, launched its Fantasy FA Cup game earlier in the season and from what I can see is doing reasonably well. My objection to the game is that the makers of the FA Cup game have taken fantasy football to a new low. The guys over at the Bristol HQ must have been wracking their brains coming up with new ways of making money and bingo, FA Cup fantasy came to light. What they didn't consider is that in most people's hearts the FA Cup is not about commercialisation but about the essence of what the game means to be a supporter English football. It is still the purists competition that hasn't been tarnished by Rupert Murdoch's grubby hands, it is a national institution. Something that fantasy football companies should know not to take advantage of.
I look across the pond to America and they will make fantasy games of anything ranging from the Oscars to probably how many fat kids can you squeeze into a school bus and with this FA Cup game now on the market we are unfortunately heading in that direction. What is next for the fantasy player? Can we play Fantasy Football Conference North Division football?? Don't get me wrong, innovation is a good thing but this FA Cup game smacks of a fantasy company just wanting to make a fast buck from a revered and much loved cup competition. It is cynical. Fantasy players should get a break when the FA Cup comes around; watch a game without worrying about assists, points etc. Enjoy the FA Cup don't abuse it.
UEFA Cup Preview
The secondary European club competition swings back into the limelight on Thursday night with Tottenham and Newcastle both in action. Tottenham travel to Braga, Portugal and will be hoping to continue their excellent cup run this season, while Newcastle face AZ Alkmaar at St. James' Park.
Spurs are on the upturn domestically at the moment with a good 4-3 victory over West Ham at the weekend under their belt. Braga aren't what you would class as one of the big Portuguese sides but they are tough and determined at home and will give Spurs little time on the ball. Aaron Lennon - Berbatov - Keane triangle could be the key for Tottenham, as all three players have been linking up tremendously well over the past few weeks to deliver some memorable Spurs performances. Centre-back King is still sidelined so Gardner will continue, while Jenas has been left at home. For Braga, Brazilian Wender should prove to be their main threat. The fast paced winger will be asked to take the attack to the London side. Wender (Wenderson Arruda Said) is Braga's top scorer in the UEFA cup with two goals and five domestically.
Player to Watch: Berbatov
Dimitar Berbatov can become the first Tottenham player to score in five successive European games having scored five in his last four UEFA Cup appearances.
PROBABLE STARTING LINE-UPS
Braga (4-3-3): Santos; Filipe, Jorge, Rodriguez, Fernandes; Chaves, Andrade, Castanheira; Joao Pinto, Ze Carlos, Wender.
Tottenham (4-4-2): Robinson; Chimbonda, Dawson, Gardner, Lee; Ghaly, Huddlestone, Tainio, Lennon; Berbatov, Keane.
Dutch CourageCup Winners (Intertoto) Newcastle will entertain Dutch side AZ Alkmaar at St James' Park on Thursday night. The Magpies have saved their best displays for the UEFA Cup this year and the show down against the tricky Eredivisie side will test their abilities to the max. Manger Glen Roeder has recalled Turkish playmaker Emre into the squad after the diminutive midfielder overcame a calf problem. Stephen Carr and Damien Duff are also in contention for recalls.
AZ Alkmaar are one of Europe's most experienced UEFA Cup teams around, having previously made it to the last four recently. They are also in outstanding domestic form, currently lying second in the Dutch league after a 4-0 smashing of Utrecht this weekend. AZ topped the Group C UEFA Cup qualification group beating favourites Sevilla away in the process and are currently unbeaten in Europe this season. The Dutch side surely go into this game as strong favourites.
Player to Watch: Shota Arveladze
The former Rangers man has bags of experience and his two goal match-winning display against Sevilla earlier in the season shows that he can still rise to a challenge.
PROBABLE STARTING LINE-UPS
Newcastle (4-4-1-1): Given, Solano, Carr, Bramble, Taylor, Milner, Parker, Emre, Butt, Dyer, Martins.
AZ (4-4-2): Waterman, Luirink, Donk, Opdam, de Cler, Jenner, de Zeeuw, Martens, Koevermans, Boukhari, Arveladze
A Tale of Two Alex's - Champions League Review
So attacking, flare football took another blow on Wednesday night as last year's beaten finalist went out at the first major obstacle. PSV, a very underestimated team in European football, humbled a depleted Arsenal side with an Alex (currently owned by Chelsea) headed goal. The quarter-finals are now riddled with teams that play tight, orthodox defences such as Milan, PSV and Chelsea. Roma remain, in my opinion, the only adventurous and overly positive team in the competition.Fantasy wise, the most interesting aspect of the night was seeing the apparent last game for Swede Henrik Larsson in the United kit. The enigmatic striker has been a favourite with fantasy managers since his loan move from Helsingborg in January but with his departure imminent there is now a gap for a new strike partner for Rooney. Saha, the obvious candidate for the slot is out for up to 3-4 weeks, whilst Solskjaer is also sidelined. Alan Smith has returned from a long absence with a broken leg but surely cannot be considered to be an instant filler for the departing Larsson. Instead, it seems that Giggs may be used in the advanced role alongside Rooney. Another alternative could be for United to adopt a Barcelona style with Rooney, Giggs and Ronaldo all playing forward, a la Ronaldinho/Eto'o/Messi. Eitherway, Giggs looks like he will be playing a more attacking role in weeks to come with Ronaldo, and Ferguson will be looking to his two wingers to carry on with goalscoring duties. With Giggs moved forward Ji-Sung Park will surely get an extended run in the first team. Finally, with Silvestre looking to be out for a long time and Evra still sidelined there remains a chance that outcast Heinze may finally get a chance in the left-back berth - watch this space.
Arsenal 1 - 1 PSV Eindohoven (PSV win 2-1)
Bayern Munchen 2 - 1 Real Madrid (Bayern win on away goals 4-4)
Man Utd 1 - 0 Lille (Man Utd win 2-0)
Fight, Fight, Fight! Champions League Review
Well, the Champions League turned into a ding-dong of epic proportions last night as Valencia and Inter decided to turn Europe's elite footballing competition into a playground scrap. The game ended in a 0-0 draw but this wasn't enough for the players as they engaged in a full pitch brawl that was reminiscent of the Switzerland v Turkey World Cup play off at the start of last year. Both teams will face sanctions after the scrap with Javi Navarro, the main culprit, probably getting the book thrown at him. Expect Valencia to possible have to play their next Champions League game behind closed doors at home with stiff fines. Saying that though, I think their should be a mass brawl at the end of every drab 0-0 game.See the mass brawl here
Roma were definitely the bet of the night with odds of 4/1 to beat Lyon - when will the bookies every learn? Totti, who should most certainly be in contention for the European and World Player of the Year after his performances this season, was at the heart of much of the Giallorosso's play. After watching the Roma game I must say that Mancini has the quickest feet on Earth. He tap-danced his way around the, admittedly shabby, Lyon defence to score Roma's second.
Chelsea march on and are still favourites, cue snooze mode.
Fantasy wise from last nights Champions League fixtures I noticed one or two things, most notably a certain Mr Alvaro Arbeloa starting for Liverpool in his second consecutive Champions League game. The bright, young Spanish full-back that was signed from Deportivo La Coruna in the January transfer window seems to have made the transition in to the first team and could figure for the rest of the season. Arbeloa hasn't started a Premiership game yet, with a substitution appearance against Newcastle being his only appearance so far, but on the back of his performances against Barcelona he will surely get to start more regularly in the Premiership. Throw in a reasonable fantasy price and he could be a cheap buy for the end of season run in.
Full Results
Chelsea 2 - 1 FC Porto
Robben 48' , assist : Diarra Ballack 79' , assist : Shevchenko
Quaresma 15' , assist : González
Liverpool 0 - 1 Barcelona
Gudjohnsen 75' , assist : Xavi
Lyon 0 - 2 AS Roma
Totti 22' , assist : Tonetto Mancini 44' , assist : Totti
Valencia 0 - 0 Internazionale
Champions League Fantasy Preview
Liverpool (2) v (1) BarcelonaThe Champions League is back with some interesting games set up in the second leg of the last sixteen. The fixture of the round is Liverpool v Barcelona with last years champions unexpectedly looking to come back two goals at Anfield. Barcelona are expecting to come to England all guns blazing with Messi, Eto'o and Ronaldinho expected to play. Belleti should be dropped at right-back for the more defensively minded Oleguer. It is a tough call for the Catalans to come back against Liverpool but if anyone can do it they surely can. Liverpool's Finnan will have the toughest test having to keep World Player of the Year Ronaldinho under wraps.
Probable Starting XI:
LIVERPOOL (4-4-2): Reina – Finnan, Carragher, Agger, Arbeloa – Gerrard, Xabi Alonso, Sissoko, Riise – Bellamy, Kuyt.
Probable Starting XI:
BARCELONA (4-3-3): Valdes – Oleguer, Thuram, Puyol, Zambrotta – Xavi, Deco, Iniesta – Messi, Eto’o, Ronaldinho.
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Lyon (0) v (0)AS Roma
Probable Starting XI:
OLYMPIQUE LYON (4-4-2): 1-Gregory Coupet; 2-Francois Clerc, 3-Cris, 29-Sebastien Squillaci, 20-Eric Abidal; 15-Alou Diarra, 21-Tiago, 8-Juninho, 10-Florent Malouda; 11-Fred, 14-Sydney Govou
Probable Starting XI:
AS ROMA (4-2-3-1): 32-Doni; 2-Christian Panucci, 5-Philippe Mexes, 13-Cristian Chivu, 22-Max Tonetto; 16-Daniele De Rossi, 17-David Pizarro; 11-Rodrigo Taddei, 20-Simone Perrotta, 30-Mancini; 10-Francesco Totti
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Valencia (2) v (2) Internazionale
Probable Starting XI:
VALENCIA (4-4-2) : Canizares; Miguel, Ayala, Albiol, Moretti; Angulo, Marchena, Hugo Viana, Silva; Villa, Morientes.
Probable Starting XI:
INTERNAZIONALE (4-3-1-2) : Julio Cesar; Maicon, Cordoba, Materazzi, Maxwell; J. Zanetti, Dacourt, Stankovic; Figo; Ibrahimovic, Crespo.
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Chelsea (1) v (0) FC Porto
Probable Starting XI:
CHELSEA (4-4-2): Petr Cech; Lassana Diarra, Michael Essien, Ricardo Carvalho, Ashley Cole; Claude Makelele, Frank Lampard, Michael Ballack, Arjen Robben; Didier Drogba, Andriy Shevchenko.
Probable Starting XI:
Porto (4-3-3): Helton; Lucas Buccolini, Pepe, Bruno Alves, Fucile; Paulo Assuncao, Raul Meireles, Lucho Gonzalez; Ricardo Quaresma, Lisandro Lppez, Helder Postiga.