Champions League Season 2007/2008

[brenchill]

Everytime I see Ibrahimovic play he's utter shite.

[therockbox]

Sky going on about Torres being rotated again, I'd like to think that these presenters don't have some sort of agenda but it's difficult to see how they don't. Torres has missed one game through 'rotation', the rest he was injured for. He was even rushed back against Arsenal, something Rafa hasn't done with anyone else.

And it's only Liverpool that they'd do this with. We've beaten Inter Milan and yet it's being turned into a session on criticising Rafa. Not really surprised, but it's just a shame so many idiots swallow this.

Edited March 11, 2008 by therockbox

[Lord Nibbler]

Sky going on about Torres being rotated again, I'd like to think that these presenters don't have some sort of agenda but it's difficult to see how they don't. Torres has missed one game through 'rotation', the rest he was injured for.

[mikevandam]

good job. Now only Chelsea are left on my hate list.

[Baddar]

Everytime I see Ibrahimovic play he's utter shite.

Did you think he played shit last night?

I was going to comment on how he'd improved by about 200% on his first leg appearance.

Yeah, he didn't really do much in the final third, but his general play was much better in my opinion. Still, he didn't have to do much to play better in the 2nd leg.

[Hobo]

Sky going on about Torres being rotated again, I'd like to think that these presenters don't have some sort of agenda but it's difficult to see how they don't. Torres has missed one game through 'rotation', the rest he was injured for. He was even rushed back against Arsenal, something Rafa hasn't done with anyone else.

And it's only Liverpool that they'd do this with. We've beaten Inter Milan and yet it's being turned into a session on criticising Rafa. Not really surprised, but it's just a shame so many idiots swallow this.

RTE's coverage was just as crappy really. The gist of it being "Italian football is so bad that the team running away with Serie A lost to Liverpool who are so far behind Man U, Chelsea and Arsenal", never mind the fact that league form counts for nothing in Europe and Liverpool are constantly an example of that.

[Asuka's Gonna Kill You]

It's nice to see Inter get pretty much smashed really, because they're probably the most overrated team in football right now. They're not half the team so many people make them out to be and it'll be a matter of time before they go back to being the third best team in the Italian League. And Ibrahimovic has great potential, just he's one of those moaning players who either have a brilliant game or a complete shit one, which is what stops him being a top class striker IMO.

Looking forward to the draw and I still see Arsenal drawing either Barcelona or United. I'd put money on it Arsenal meet Barcelona this year, just because of the Henry stuff, plus it'd be a fantastic game to watch and I'd rather see it now rather than it being the final. Hoping to get rid of Chelsea or Liverpool in the next round, so hopefully they draw each other again.

[therockbox]

Sky going on about Torres being rotated again, I'd like to think that these presenters don't have some sort of agenda but it's difficult to see how they don't. Torres has missed one game through 'rotation', the rest he was injured for.

Well that's not true. He wasn't injured for the Portsmouth, Birmingham and Fulham games early in the season. He came on a substitute in all of them, having started the previous game. You can argue that Rafa gets unfairly singled out when he drops players, but you can't deny that earlier in the season, Rafa did drop Torres when he shouldn't have.

[brenchill]

Everytime I see Ibrahimovic play he's utter shite.

Did you think he played shit last night?

I was going to comment on how he'd improved by about 200% on his first leg appearance.

Yeah, he didn't really do much in the final third, but his general play was much better in my opinion. Still, he didn't have to do much to play better in the 2nd leg.

Edited March 12, 2008 by BC

[Baddar]

Everytime I see Ibrahimovic play he's utter shite.

Did you think he played shit last night?

I was going to comment on how he'd improved by about 200% on his first leg appearance.

Yeah, he didn't really do much in the final third, but his general play was much better in my opinion. Still, he didn't have to do much to play better in the 2nd leg.

I suppose I think he's just shit compared to what I expect from him. He had a decent chance in the second leg and ended up ballooning it over the bar. He's always highlighted as the danger man before games and everytime I see him he just goes missing. He seems like a poormans Berbatov.

I don't watch Italian football that often, so I only ever really see Ibra in the CL.

I've always gone in with the mentality that he's going to play quite poorly after hearing Martin O'Neill's comments during the WC in 2006 when he called him "the worst forward I've ever seen" or words to that effect on BBC.

[Sam]

Champions League quarter-final draw:

1 Arsenal v Liverpool

2 AS Roma v Man Utd

3 Schalke 04 v FC Barcelona

4 Fenerbahce v Chelsea

Champions League semi-final draw:

1 Arsenal/Liverpool v Fenerbahce/Chelsea

2 Schalke/Barcelona v AS Roma/Man Utd

Credit BBC.

Thoughts on the draw?

Arsenal and Liverpool will be peeved as it looks like they'll have to eliminate one and then face Chelsea which will be just as hard of a match. The idea of a United-Barcelona Semi Final is immense. Shame it won't be a final really.

[Baddar]

Probably the best draw United could've hoped for...

Avoided an English team until the Final - Playing the 2nd legs of both the quarters and semi's at home - AND, classed as the "home team" in the final. Not that the last one counts for much, but it'll be nice to see United wear their home shirt when they pick up the trophy.

[Scott McFly]

Roma certainly won't be pushovers for United, wouldn't surprise me to see Roma v Barcelona as the semi-final. But not a good draw for Arsenal or Liverpool, but the odds were that 2 English teams would have to face each other and it happened to be them.

[Lord Nibbler]

Not a bad draw, but I'm a little tentative about Roma. Third game between the two teams this season, as well as the 7-1 thrashing last year, so they might be due a win. Plus, there's bound to be crowd trouble after last year.

[supergrass]

Not too disappointed as a Gooner. Yes, Liverpool are good at the European style games - which would include their victories in this competition over Chelsea - but Arsenal don't play that way. The style is going to be more that of a normal Premier League game, I'd only have taken Shalke or Fenerbache over Liverpool.

Still a very difficult game without a doubt, however one that I'm confident we can and will win (again, I'm sure Liverpool feel the same).

EDIT: and it's Arsenal - Liverpool in the league in between the two European ties as well. I think we'll win two - the home CL and League game - and either draw/lose at Anfield but still progressing.

Edited March 14, 2008 by supergrass

[Lord Nibbler]

Anybody else seen this? The draw was apparently "leaked" 2 hours before it took place.

Rumour going around draw has been leaked..... this is no doubt rubbish but if Rumour is true it's LFC - arsenal and Chelsea - fenerbache and manure v roma

No bookies will take bets on the draw either.......

Let the draw commence. Comeeee on!

[stokeriño]

It's not as though you needed to be a psychic to guess a) a potential Liverpool - Chelsea semi, or b) Man Utd taking yet another trip to Rome.

[mikevandam]

f*** chelsea. They got the (on paper) easiest looking draw

[stokeriño]

f*** chelsea. They got the (on paper) easiest looking draw

Because a trip to Turkey is a picnic for all concerned, right?

Schalke would have been a better draw, in my opinion.

[Pesci]

Ugh, not at all happy with the draw. Would have liked to have Roma if I could choose, really. Not a team that we probably would've walked all over (Schalke, Fenerbache), and not one of the teams (Arsenal, Man United) I would have wanted us to play. Plus we haven't played them in a while, at least not that I can remember, and I don't want yet another Chelsea-Liverpool tie. Anyway, the point of taking on a team like Roma is that they're good enough to keep you on your toes and you'll have to play well to beat them, whereas Schalke might make the team a bit complacent before the semis. Wouldn't have minded Barca at all, really.

Thinking about it, this is a worse draw than Man United, just because Man United would beat us with a goal from a corner after defending for 90 minutes like they always do. Arsenal will probably play us off the park and I'm not looking forward to that.