European Football Thread

[IAceI]

So instead of having a moderately busy La Liga thread and then having everything else shoved in the general thread, let's have a thread for all of Europes finest leagues. As we have fans of Spanish, Italian, German football and members of the Netherlands, Portugal and elsewhere - it makes sense. So for the 2012-13 seasons, here we go:

Spain
Real Madrid

It was Real Madrid, and Jose Mourinho's, time at last as they finally broke through the Barcelona dominance and won La Liga. With Mourinho choosing to stay on at the helm and Pep Guardiola walking away from Barcelona are we maybe looking into a new ranking whereby Real Madrid are the big boys and Barcelona the lesser of the two? Barcelona have moved quick to sign Jordi Alba as Eric Abidal's replacement but Real Madrid will undoubtedly bring in new players over the coming month. Atletico Madrid won the Europa League, beating countrymen Athletic Bilbao in a year to remember for the Spanish.


Italy
Juventus

An unbeaten season for the Old Lady of Turin as they saw off all comers, particularly AC Milan, to win the Scudetto. An invincible league season means they are worthy winners, they bid farewell to Alessandro Del Piero as Antonio Conte looks to bring in the new faces of the team. Inter Milan ended the season with their third manager as Gaspierini was first sacked and the Tinkerman Claudio Ranieri couldn't last the haul. Andrea Stramaccioni saw the team to 6th but it was his 4-2 derby win over Milan which probably landed him the job for at least another season.


Germany
Borussia Dortmund

In a league lauded for its diverse range of successful teams it was Dortmund who managed to retain their league title ahead of Bayern Munich, they also beat their rivals in the DFB Pokal to do a memorable double. Dortmund say goodbye to Shinji Kagawa as he heads to Manchester United having initially signed for Dortmund for £350,000. His replacement is the rapidly improving Marco Reus from surprise package Borussia Monchengladbach. Last season Monchengladbach narrowly avoided relegation thanks to Lucien Favre, who then lead the team to fourth place and a Champions League qualification berth. It could well be Dortmund v Bayern again in another exciting battle for the Bundesliga.


France
Montpellier

Montpellier stuck their fingers up at convention as they secured Ligue 1 last season with thanks to Oliver Giroud and Younes Belhanda. With Giroud moving to Arsenal, and Belhanda unlikely to stick around much longer either it seems Montpellier's eccentric owner Louis Nicollin is set to cash in on his stars. PSG will likely look to right a wrong and canter to Ligue 1 this year as they look to strengthen their team. For the likes of Lille, Rennes and Bordeaux it will be all about trying to replace their departing superstars without rocking the boat while Lyon and Marseille just try to remember where it all went wrong.


Portugal
Porto

Despite losing their manager Andres Villas Boas for a brief fling with Chelsea, Porto managed to win yet another league title seeing off Benfica by a six point margin. Braga had been the early pace setters for the league but fell off after the mid point while Sporting never really got going at all and miss out on the Champions League altogether. Much like France, the best players in Portugal will likely move on to bigger and better things as the teams replace them with cheaper players often from South America. It may be Hulk who takes the major headlines in England as he and Chelsea make kissy faces at each other, but should anyone manage to snag team mate James Rodriguez of Colombia then they may well be getting one of the deals of the season.


Holland
Ajax

It was number 31 for Ajax as they came good at the end of the season to emerge six points clear of the rest. Only a short while before the end of the season the top six or so were virtually inseperable but the country's most successful team showed enough about them to pull away from the pack and win yet another title. The Dutch league has provided some of the most exciting games over the past few years with unpredictable results, and emerging stars making a name for themselves: most recently Luuk de Jong who looks set to move to the Bundesliga with Gladbach.


Russia
Zenit St Petersburg

As Russia switch to a winter calendar to fall in line with the rest of Europe we come to an end of an extravagantly long season whereby Zenit St Petersburg managed to win after the switch into the Championship Stage. Dynamo Moscow, with an inspired Andriy Voronin, were the surprise leaders but eventually overtaken by Zenit, Spartak and CSKA Moscow - the latter helped along by the 28 goals of Seydou Doumbia. It was only good enough for third and with Slaven Bilic moving to Lokomotiv Moscow and Unai Emery to Spartak, it may yet proved third wasn't good enough to save Leonid Slutskiy from the chop at CSKA.


Belgium
Anderlecht

Like Ajax of the Netherlands the 2011-12 season brought about a record number 31 for Anderlecht. It was all quite easy for Anderlecht who showed no ill effects of losing Romelu Lukaku to Chelsea the season before. They will likely be the strongest team again, with Ariel Jacobs leaving the managerial post, they have also brought in Cyriac Gohi Bi from rivals Standard. Club Brugge will contest the Champions League qualification with them, Genk make the Europa League but there will be no European adventure for Standard Liege next season as they finished 5th in the Championship Group after a troubled season.

---

I'll leave it there, there were exciting seasons in Poland and Turkey as well but I'm out of time to write much more. Nearly all these leagues are readily available on ESPN or often streamed through a betting website - as long as you have an account - with English commentary too. So, European football aficiandos... are we all looking forward to the 2012-13 season?

Edited May 25, 2015 by Jamеs

[Johnny Drama]

Yes my brother lives in Dortmund so I am keen to get out there for a game, Reus looks a great buy for them.

[Guest mr. potato head]

Think I'm gonna try to get into Ligue 1 this year (if the network that shows it up here survives). The only other non-Prem option I can get on TV without shelling out more money is Serie A which has never interested me all that much.

[Summers]

I have teams I follow/want to win in some European leagues. Valencia in Spain is my main one. I'd class them as my second side. In France it's Lyon, soft spot for FC Lorient because of their kit (we use it in Fifa).

Italy it's kinda Roma, but I like Juve too. I reckon I need teams in Holland and Germany next.

[IAceI]

Reus looks a great signing for Dortmund, he's had a fantastic season for Gladbach and I'll be disappointed to see him leave after a good season. The heart of that team has essentially been ripped out. I want to get to some German matches one day, the Hertha Berlin v Union Berlin derby looks ridiculously good but also impossible to get to. For example fans will buy season tickets for the other team just to get a ticket to the match in the other teams end, it's that hard to get tickets!

I don't really have any second teams as such, Athletic Club in Spain are probably be second favoured club but otherwise I find myself liking most of teams - particularly rival teams, for example I like both Anderlecht and Standard Liege which is odd - but I guess I just enjoy the football and players moreso than any one club. You find that you gravitate to one team naturally and prefer them generally for reasons you don't know.

Also MPH join the Ligue Un love in. It's a great league and the teams change so much - Rennes seem set to lose M'Vila, Kembo-Ekoko, manager Antonetti (who may be off to Marseille should Deschamps leave, that would be... fun) and plenty of others will be oging too so it'll be a tough job for them next season but so many teams are used to rebuilding a club year after year. It's a shame you won't get to experience Ligue Un with Hazard for Lille, it'll be interesting to see how they cope this year having lost him - he was such a talismanic player for them last year.

[Johnny Drama]

As a kid I loved AC Milan. Haven't really followed Italian football much the past few years but I have a soft spot for Napoli.

I'm moving back to Peru in September so then it will probably just be able to see EPL and La Liga mainly.

[Colly]

Flags!

Edited July 1, 2012 by Colly

[Asuka's Gonna Kill You]

Del Piero's letter to Juventus fans.

"It ends here, my contract with Juventus expires today," the 37-year-old states in his letter, published in Corriere dello Sport.

“It’s not news, but knowing it is ‘official’ still has an effect on me. It is not a sad moment for me, there are no regrets or nostalgia. Not anymore.

"That’s because I’ve had time to think back over everything that happened in my last Bianconeri season, going further back and reliving the greatest dream I could’ve dreamed.

"All the memories, the joys, the triumphs and – to be honest – a few recent moments of bitterness... Today all these images flash in front of my eyes and at a certain point blur into one marvellous embrace of my final game in Turin.

“That is the photograph that encapsulates everything, the instant I want to bring with me always, the one that since May 13 has been printed on my heart. It cannot be cancelled.

“A while ago, before going on vacation, I emptied out my locker at Vinovo and walking out of the training ground I stopped where for many months you waited for me hoping for a photo, an autograph or just a hello... under the snow, the ice, the rain, the burning sun. But this time I am the one saluting and thanking you, just as you did with me.

“The players pass by, but Juventus remains. My team-mates remain, who I wish the best and will always cheer them on.

“Above all what remains is the fans, you who are Juventus. That jersey that I loved and will always love, that I desired and respected, without breaks or discounts.

"I am happy that others after me can wear the shirt and above all the ‘10’ that has always had my name on it since they started printing names on the Bianconeri jerseys.

“I am happy for whoever will wear it next year and happy that somewhere – in Italy and all over the world – someone is dreaming of wearing it.

“I would be proud of someone wanting to follow my path, just as I dreamed of doing so with other champions, other examples, other legends.

“From tomorrow I will no longer be a Juventus player, but I will always be one of you. Now a new adventure begins and I am as fired up as I was 19 summers ago.

“Arrivederci. Thanks for everything.

"Alessandro."

One of the greatest I've ever had the pleasure of watching, a legend of the game.

[IAceI]

I created this thread as a sanctuary to be away from you and your kind Colly! In other news I was in Newcastle last night and didn't feel physically ill, what a miracle.

+1 for that letter and Alessandro, not you JP - don't get above your station! ¬_¬ Bloody beautiful. Can you imagine Wayne Rooney saying something like that one day? What a ridiculously great player ADP has been for Juventus.

Edited July 1, 2012 by IAceI

[Dynamite]

I love Del Piero. I finally got to see him play live at Neville's testimonial last year and it was just great to see him get a standing ovation then. I remember back in the late 90's where we seemingly used to play Juventus every year in the Champions League and Del Piero quickly became my favourite Italian player. Hell, I'd probably still take him at Old Trafford now as an experienced fourth striker option.

[Johnny Drama]

Del Piero is one of the great and that letter sums it up, what a man.

[Colly]

Really looking forward to seeing where he ends up, someone has to pick him up.

[Lineker]

The 2014 European Super Cup final will be held at Cardiff City Stadium, Uefa has announced.

Champions League holders Chelsea face Europa League winners Atletico Madrid in the 2012 final in Monaco on Friday 31 August.

Lionel Messi and Cesc Fabregas scored Barcelona's goals as they beat Porto 2-0 in the 2011 final.

Monaco's Stade Louis II Stadium has been the Super Cup final venue since 1998.

Prague's Eden Stadium will host the 2013 Super Cup final with Tbilis's Mikheil Meskhi Stadium the venue for the 2015 final.

"The Football Association of Wales is delighted that Cardiff will host this prestigious match," said FAW chief executive Jonathan Ford.

"It is a great opportunity for football supporters in Wales to watch two of the best teams in Europe in a one off game."

Cardiff City Stadium, which has an all-seated capacity of just under 27,000, has been the home of Cardiff City since 2009.

The stadium has staged six Wales international matches and has been confirmed as the venue for the World Cup qualifiers against Belgium and Scotland in the autumn .

Until recently the stadium was also home to regional rugby side Cardiff Blues, who opted to move back to the Arms Park .

In 2011 the stadium hosted rugby's Amlin Challenge Cup final, in which Harlequins defeated Stade Francais 19-18.

[Cymbols]

The 2014 European Super Cup final will be held at Cardiff City Stadium, Uefa has announced.

Champions League holders Chelsea face Europa League winners Atletico Madrid in the 2012 final in Monaco on Friday 31 August.

Lionel Messi and Cesc Fabregas scored Barcelona's goals as they beat Porto 2-0 in the 2011 final.

Monaco's Stade Louis II Stadium has been the Super Cup final venue since 1998.

Prague's Eden Stadium will host the 2013 Super Cup final with Tbilis's Mikheil Meskhi Stadium the venue for the 2015 final.

"The Football Association of Wales is delighted that Cardiff will host this prestigious match," said FAW chief executive Jonathan Ford.

"It is a great opportunity for football supporters in Wales to watch two of the best teams in Europe in a one off game."

Cardiff City Stadium, which has an all-seated capacity of just under 27,000, has been the home of Cardiff City since 2009.

The stadium has staged six Wales international matches and has been confirmed as the venue for the World Cup qualifiers against Belgium and Scotland in the autumn .

Until recently the stadium was also home to regional rugby side Cardiff Blues, who opted to move back to the Arms Park .

In 2011 the stadium hosted rugby's Amlin Challenge Cup final, in which Harlequins defeated Stade Francais 19-18.

Nice. It's going to be almost impossible to get tickets mind.

[Twist]

What an absolute class act Del Piero is. And he has a way with words too!

[Lineker]

Fenerbahce sentencing:

The president of one of Turkey's leading football clubs, Fenerbahce, has been sentenced to more than six years in prison for match-fixing.

Aziz Yildirim was convicted of fixing six matches and offering payments to players or club officials.

He and his 92 co-defendants - including club officials, coaches and players - all denied the charges.

European football body Uefa has spent millions to monitor betting and investigate match-fixing allegations.

In the past year, match-fixing scandals have tarnished football leagues in Italy, Ireland and Finland.

The court ordered Mr Yildirim's immediate release as he had already spent a year in jail.

He was also fined 1.3 million lira ($720,000; £460,000) and banned from club management and watching matches.

Several other officials were also found guilty.

The ruling came a year after police rounded up dozens of suspects implicated in the scandal.

Mr Yildirim and the others convicted are expected to appeal against the verdicts.

Uefa barred Fenerbahce from last season's Champions' League as a result of the investigation.

However, it said last week that Fenerbahce would be eligible to participate in next season's competition, pending a final decision by the Uefa disciplinary board.

In May, the Turkish football federation cleared Fenerbahce and 15 other Turkish teams of involvement in match-fixing but banned two players.

[IAceI]

I missed the first three words of that statement and thought the actual club had been sentenced to a prison spell for a moment there.

It's a shame, Turkish football is great fun to watch and the atmosphere at matches is fantastic but match fixing just marrs any enjoyment as it bugs you as you watch and you wonder. That said I refuse to believe it just happens in countries like Italy, Finland and Turkey and figure it happens much closer to home than we'd like to think too.

Oh and technically, with Champions League and Europa League qualifiers, the new season begins today! Hooray for football, I was beginning to get withdrawal symptoms after the final - although of course other continents have been playing as normal throughout the past months.

[Johnny Drama]

Yeah I have been watching Argentine football to get me through!

Excited for the new season

[Thrilla]

For a stag do, we're thinking of going to Munich and catching a game at the Allianz Arena (Vs. Werder Bremen on the weekend of 22nd/24th is looking most likely). Anyone have any experience in buying tickets for games in Germany? Is there a specific site for tourists or anything?

[Matticus]

Ive got a couple of teams Im fond from each country, wouldn't say I support them mind. Always had a soft spot for PSG in France, Lazio in Italy and for some reason Shelbourne in Ireland, probably due to a few attempts and getting them into the Champions Leauge on Football Manager.