Inter Milan got their new Champions League campaign off on the wrong foot on match day one with a loss to Trabzonspor at the San Siro. That was one of the big factors that got Gasperini canned. Inter needed a result in Moscow to keep the quarterfinals in sight.
One of the biggest problems they had against the Turkish side was that they failed to come out and take control of the match. That was not the case in Moscow. Inter jumped on the Russians right away. Lucio took advantage of horrible gaff at the back for CSKA to notch the first Inter goal on 6 minutes. The Milanese continued their all out attack through the opening 25 minutes. Joel Obi had a great header that was well saved in the 11th, and Diego Milito sent a screamer in on 14 minutes that was barely held on to. Finally Inter capitalized again in the 23rd minute when Pazzini volleyed home a cross from Nagatomo to make it 0-2.
Then for some reason, Inter took their foot off the gas. They went into a defensive shell, which doesn't always work when there's still 2/3 of the match left to play. CSKA got one back at the stroke of half time off of a free kick by Dzagoev to make it 1-2 at the interval.
The goal did not really wake Inter up much either, and CSKA continued to claw their way back in the second half. Finally in the 78th minute, Wagner Love took a ball in from Aldonin and slotted it home to equalize the match at 2-2.
That woke the Italian giants up, finally. Just less then 2 minutes later, Zarate slammed in a goal for Inter from outside the 18 to make it 2-3. Inter killed the match off after that and held on for all 3 points. 3 crucial points for advancing in the Champions League.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Thursday, September 29, 2011
UCL: BATE Borisov vs. Barcelona
Unlike Ajax and Real Madrid, there was no match history between BATE and Barca. I decided I really wanted to take in this match because one of two things was going to happen. Either BATE was going to pull one of the shocks of the soccer season, or Barca was going to put on a hell of a show.
Even if you didn't watch the match, I'm sure you can guess what happened.
BATE tried an interesting defensive tactic to start the match. Banking on the fact that because Barca lacks size, they wouldn't be able to beat them from wide, they clogged the midfield with as many as 9 players at a time, making Barca try to solve them from the wings.
It took about 20 minutes, but Barca did solve them. In the 19th minute Alves sent a cross toward the far post where Lionel Messi waiting. He banged a shot toward goal that was deflected in by a BATE defender to make it 0-1 Barca. It was officially ruled an Own Goal.
Then just 3 minutes later Pedro got in on the action, heading in a cross to make it 0-2. Barca would add one more before half time. In the 38th minute the BATE 'keeper spilled the ball off of a cross, and Messi was right there to hammer the ball into the net and make it 0-3 Barca at the break.
Barcelona wasn't going to sit on the lead either. They like to score, and they like to get as close to perfect as they can. They opened the second half with a barrage on the BATE goal, with Messi and David Villa leading the way. In the 56th minute Messi completed his brace, smacking home a top shelf goal after another cross from Alves. David Villa added the finishing tough in the 89th minute, taking advantage of a BATE giveaway in their own end and slotting past the keeper to make the full time score 0-5.
In the end, it was simply a dominant performance by Barca. BATE played hard, and played well at times, especially on defense, but they just lacked the quality to keep up with the European Champs for any more than that first 20 minutes.
Even if you didn't watch the match, I'm sure you can guess what happened.
BATE tried an interesting defensive tactic to start the match. Banking on the fact that because Barca lacks size, they wouldn't be able to beat them from wide, they clogged the midfield with as many as 9 players at a time, making Barca try to solve them from the wings.
It took about 20 minutes, but Barca did solve them. In the 19th minute Alves sent a cross toward the far post where Lionel Messi waiting. He banged a shot toward goal that was deflected in by a BATE defender to make it 0-1 Barca. It was officially ruled an Own Goal.
Then just 3 minutes later Pedro got in on the action, heading in a cross to make it 0-2. Barca would add one more before half time. In the 38th minute the BATE 'keeper spilled the ball off of a cross, and Messi was right there to hammer the ball into the net and make it 0-3 Barca at the break.
Barcelona wasn't going to sit on the lead either. They like to score, and they like to get as close to perfect as they can. They opened the second half with a barrage on the BATE goal, with Messi and David Villa leading the way. In the 56th minute Messi completed his brace, smacking home a top shelf goal after another cross from Alves. David Villa added the finishing tough in the 89th minute, taking advantage of a BATE giveaway in their own end and slotting past the keeper to make the full time score 0-5.
In the end, it was simply a dominant performance by Barca. BATE played hard, and played well at times, especially on defense, but they just lacked the quality to keep up with the European Champs for any more than that first 20 minutes.
UCL: Real Madrid vs. Ajax
Last year these same two clubs met in the Champions League group stages. Madrid dominated both of those contests. The Dutch champions were hoping to do a little better as they made the trip to Spain to take on the 9 time European champs.
It looked like they might have a chance in the early going. Trying to emulate AC Milan's 1st minute success vs Barca, Boerrigter got off a shot almost right from the kickoff, only to see Iker Casillas save it. For much of the first 20 minutes Real's defense resembled the Keystone Cops, but Ajax wasn't really able to create much up front.
Madrid's offense was a little slow to respond at first as well, but eventually the chances started coming. Benzema had a couple of great looks, one particular chance fell for him in the 17th minute. However, facing a wide open goal, he smacked his shot wide of the post.
Madrid wasn't stagnant all night though. Cristiano Ronaldo saw to that. Los Galacticos finally struck in the 25th minute. They blistered Ajax on a counter, getting, if I remember right, 6 different men involved. The play culminated in a brilliant finish from CR7 to put Real up 1-0. Then in the 41st minute Kaka slotted home a second to give Real Madrid the 2-0 lead at the half.
The second half was mostly Real Madrid on cruise control. While Ajax had done some good things with the ball, they obviously lacked the finishing quality up front, especially against a team like Madrid. Benzema put the last nail in the coffin just 4 minutes after half time to make it 3-0, and Real Madrid coasted home rest of the way to all three points.
It looked like they might have a chance in the early going. Trying to emulate AC Milan's 1st minute success vs Barca, Boerrigter got off a shot almost right from the kickoff, only to see Iker Casillas save it. For much of the first 20 minutes Real's defense resembled the Keystone Cops, but Ajax wasn't really able to create much up front.
Madrid's offense was a little slow to respond at first as well, but eventually the chances started coming. Benzema had a couple of great looks, one particular chance fell for him in the 17th minute. However, facing a wide open goal, he smacked his shot wide of the post.
Madrid wasn't stagnant all night though. Cristiano Ronaldo saw to that. Los Galacticos finally struck in the 25th minute. They blistered Ajax on a counter, getting, if I remember right, 6 different men involved. The play culminated in a brilliant finish from CR7 to put Real up 1-0. Then in the 41st minute Kaka slotted home a second to give Real Madrid the 2-0 lead at the half.
The second half was mostly Real Madrid on cruise control. While Ajax had done some good things with the ball, they obviously lacked the finishing quality up front, especially against a team like Madrid. Benzema put the last nail in the coffin just 4 minutes after half time to make it 3-0, and Real Madrid coasted home rest of the way to all three points.
Match Thoughts: Real Salt Lake vs. Chicago Fire
I hate having to write these entries on a tough night like tonight. Bleh. However, with the good comes the bad. Tonight at the RioT was an example of the bad.
It didn't have to start that way though. Sabo had a great look in the opening minutes, but his shot sailed just wide of the far post. After that the match changed for the worse for RSL.
In the 9th minute Pappa scored the first of his three for Fire, left totally alone in the box. Then less than a minute later Kyle Beckerman received a red card for a nasty head butt that will probably cost him some games.
RSL just never really got it going after that. As coach Kries said, totally undisciplined. Pappa dropped two more on us to make the final score 0-3. The only positive tonight was the return of Javi Morales after his broken ankle. That was really nice to see.
It didn't have to start that way though. Sabo had a great look in the opening minutes, but his shot sailed just wide of the far post. After that the match changed for the worse for RSL.
In the 9th minute Pappa scored the first of his three for Fire, left totally alone in the box. Then less than a minute later Kyle Beckerman received a red card for a nasty head butt that will probably cost him some games.
RSL just never really got it going after that. As coach Kries said, totally undisciplined. Pappa dropped two more on us to make the final score 0-3. The only positive tonight was the return of Javi Morales after his broken ankle. That was really nice to see.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
CONCACAF Champions League: Comunicaciones vs. Seattle Sounders
First off, congrats to Seattle. Their draw tonight makes them the first team to punch their ticket through to the knockout stage of CONCACAF Champions League. They've represented the league well.
This was a tough match for them tonight in conditions that were far from ideal in Guatemala City. They faced a crappy plastic pitch and an absolute downpour through most of the match. Comunicaciones got on the board first in the 7th minute off of a counter attack. Transito Montepeque slipped behind the Seattle defense and chipped the ball into goal over Keller to give Las Cremas the 1-0 lead.
Seattle responded well though. They didn't panic. Their patience finally paid off in the 44th minute. After a set piece, the ball went loose and Osvaldo Alonso pounded it past the Cremas keeper to tie the match at 1-1 going into half time.
I know Seattle wanted to take all three points. Their starting lineup reflected that. However, it looked through much of the second half like they were willing to settle for the draw and the ticket to the next round. This came back to haunt them in the 64th minute when Keller failed to punch a ball away from goal and Rafael Morales punched in the rebound to give Las Cremas the 2-1 lead.
After that it looked like the group was going to be thrown into disarray, but Alonso came to the rescue of the Sounders once again. This time he blasted home the equalizer in the 89th minute to stun the crowd in Guatemala, particularly since the home side had gone to such great lengths to run time off the clock. The match finished at 2-2.
The draw moves Seattle to 10 points and a slot in the next round. They enjoy the tie breaker over Comunicaciones by virtue of a win and a draw. In two weeks they will meet Monterrey in Seattle to decide who wins the group. Comunicaciones will need a Seattle win to have any hope of advancing.
This was a tough match for them tonight in conditions that were far from ideal in Guatemala City. They faced a crappy plastic pitch and an absolute downpour through most of the match. Comunicaciones got on the board first in the 7th minute off of a counter attack. Transito Montepeque slipped behind the Seattle defense and chipped the ball into goal over Keller to give Las Cremas the 1-0 lead.
Seattle responded well though. They didn't panic. Their patience finally paid off in the 44th minute. After a set piece, the ball went loose and Osvaldo Alonso pounded it past the Cremas keeper to tie the match at 1-1 going into half time.
I know Seattle wanted to take all three points. Their starting lineup reflected that. However, it looked through much of the second half like they were willing to settle for the draw and the ticket to the next round. This came back to haunt them in the 64th minute when Keller failed to punch a ball away from goal and Rafael Morales punched in the rebound to give Las Cremas the 2-1 lead.
After that it looked like the group was going to be thrown into disarray, but Alonso came to the rescue of the Sounders once again. This time he blasted home the equalizer in the 89th minute to stun the crowd in Guatemala, particularly since the home side had gone to such great lengths to run time off the clock. The match finished at 2-2.
The draw moves Seattle to 10 points and a slot in the next round. They enjoy the tie breaker over Comunicaciones by virtue of a win and a draw. In two weeks they will meet Monterrey in Seattle to decide who wins the group. Comunicaciones will need a Seattle win to have any hope of advancing.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Italian Match Thoughts: Parma vs. AS Roma
The first half of this match was a total snoozer. Literally. I had a hard time staying awake. The only two decent chances of the half came in the first 11 minutes. Roma had some nice development play early, and it culminated in a shooting chance for Angel in the 2nd minute. However, he hit it over the bar. Parma had their best chance in the 11th minute when Lucarelli got his head on the ball, but saw his shot also float harmlessly overt the bar.
The half time result was 0-0.
Finally in the 50th minute Roma got on the board. Osvaldo took a nice cross and headed it down, back across the goal into the bottom far post corner to make it 0-1 to Roma. This had the effect of finally opening the match up a little since Parma was now forced to chase the equalizer on their own home pitch.
They should have gotten it too. In the 72nd minute Biabiany came sprinting up the Roma left and had a great look at goal, pretty much a sure thing. He blased the shot wide though, much to the dismay of his two teammates that had made runs into the 18 and could have easily tapped it home had he passed.
After that Jadid tricked a shot just wide off of a Parma corner, but that was all she wrote. Roma took the 0-1 win, and it becomes the first victory for new manager Luis Enrique
The half time result was 0-0.
Finally in the 50th minute Roma got on the board. Osvaldo took a nice cross and headed it down, back across the goal into the bottom far post corner to make it 0-1 to Roma. This had the effect of finally opening the match up a little since Parma was now forced to chase the equalizer on their own home pitch.
They should have gotten it too. In the 72nd minute Biabiany came sprinting up the Roma left and had a great look at goal, pretty much a sure thing. He blased the shot wide though, much to the dismay of his two teammates that had made runs into the 18 and could have easily tapped it home had he passed.
After that Jadid tricked a shot just wide off of a Parma corner, but that was all she wrote. Roma took the 0-1 win, and it becomes the first victory for new manager Luis Enrique
EPL: Liverpool vs. Wolves
Both Liverpool and Wolves came into yesterday's match at Anfield on a down run of form following bright starts to the new Premier League season. For Liverpool, this was about trying to keep pace with the 2 Manchester clubs and Chelsea, for Wolves, 3 points was needed in order to avoid a continued tumble down the table.
Wolves got things off to a great start in the first 5 minutes. They had a lot of possession and seemed to put Liverpool on their heels a bit. Their nice play culminated in a good free kick chance just outside the 18. However, O'Hara blasted it into the wall and then picked up a yellow for pulling a Liverpool player down on the ensuing counter attempt.
The bad news for Wolves was the first half got progressively worse after that. In the 11th minute Captain Roger Johnson was trying to defend a ball in when he got bulldozed by Andy Carroll. The ball fluttered over to Charlie Adam, who smacked it toward goal. Johnson tried to get up and defend it, but he ended up deflecting it into his own goal to hand Liverpool the 1-0 lead. He tried to argue that he should have had a free kick against Carroll, but the ref wasn't buying. Then in the 38th minute Luis Suarez appeared to put the icing on the cake by slicing a brilliant goal in from an angle to give Liverpool a 2-0 lead at the half.
However if Liverpool thought Wolves were going to come out and roll over, they were wrong. Fletcher entered at half time and scored a goal for Wolves in the 49th minute to make it 2-1. Wolves were hunting a point.
The rest of the game turned into a pretty entertaining, wide open affair, but most of the quality chances went to Liverpool. Hennessey just managed to deny Suarez a brace in the 50th, then in the 52nd Carroll had a header clang off the post. Just one minute later, Downing nearly struck off of a counter, but again Hennessey made a great save to keep Wolves in it. Unfortunately for them, they could never quite threaten the equalizer, and Liverpool took the win 2-1.
On a side note, Steven Gerrard played the last 10 minutes or so for Liverpool and looked pretty sharp. This was on the heels of his Carling Cup run out earlier in the week.
Wolves got things off to a great start in the first 5 minutes. They had a lot of possession and seemed to put Liverpool on their heels a bit. Their nice play culminated in a good free kick chance just outside the 18. However, O'Hara blasted it into the wall and then picked up a yellow for pulling a Liverpool player down on the ensuing counter attempt.
The bad news for Wolves was the first half got progressively worse after that. In the 11th minute Captain Roger Johnson was trying to defend a ball in when he got bulldozed by Andy Carroll. The ball fluttered over to Charlie Adam, who smacked it toward goal. Johnson tried to get up and defend it, but he ended up deflecting it into his own goal to hand Liverpool the 1-0 lead. He tried to argue that he should have had a free kick against Carroll, but the ref wasn't buying. Then in the 38th minute Luis Suarez appeared to put the icing on the cake by slicing a brilliant goal in from an angle to give Liverpool a 2-0 lead at the half.
However if Liverpool thought Wolves were going to come out and roll over, they were wrong. Fletcher entered at half time and scored a goal for Wolves in the 49th minute to make it 2-1. Wolves were hunting a point.
The rest of the game turned into a pretty entertaining, wide open affair, but most of the quality chances went to Liverpool. Hennessey just managed to deny Suarez a brace in the 50th, then in the 52nd Carroll had a header clang off the post. Just one minute later, Downing nearly struck off of a counter, but again Hennessey made a great save to keep Wolves in it. Unfortunately for them, they could never quite threaten the equalizer, and Liverpool took the win 2-1.
On a side note, Steven Gerrard played the last 10 minutes or so for Liverpool and looked pretty sharp. This was on the heels of his Carling Cup run out earlier in the week.
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