Chelsea show draw 2-2 in Turin, enter the quarter-finals of Champions league on aggregate

Chelsea sealed the fate of Italian giants Juventus in the Champions Football League with a 2-2 draw in the second leg. Chelsea went ahead in the the quarterfinals on a 3-2 aggregate. The club’s new manager Guus Hiddink has definitely helped striker Drogba to regain his predatory skills, Drogba scored in the first leg at the Bridge which gave his team a crucial lead and much needed confidence going for an away match. Drogba’s confidence seems to have only improved and one major reason has been his selection in every match in the starting eleven, something that Hiddink’s predecessor Scolari hesitated to do.

Chelsea ploughed back two goals in the match which saw some telling competitive football from both sides. Claudio Ranieri’s side dominated the first half without an inch of a doubt, Chelsea stuttered in the defense and Vincenzo Iaquinta’s scored in the 19^th minute. Terry had to back up his lines with a lot of effort as Trezeguet and Del Piero looked ever so dangerous. Nobody would have thought Chelsea would turn their drab play into something more exciting. Anelka had a slight chance in the 41^st minute but wasted the chance, what happened three minutes later was sensational. Drogba’s free-kick clearly landed inside the goal as Gigi Buffon fumbled, but the referee did not relent to Chelsea’s appeal. Seconds later Chelsea’s Man Friday Lampard blasted one from 30 odd yards, it found the inside of the bar but comeback man Michael Essien lapped it up on the rebound and gave Chelsea the much needed away goal seconds before the first half whistle.

The second half saw Juventus piling pressure on the Blues to no avail. Trezeguet and Del Piero were constantly hovering around the Chelsea box, Trezeguet brought the best out of Cech in the 65^th minute. Juve were down to ten men with 20 minutes to go as Giorgio Chiellini was shown his second yellow card after fouling Drogba. Juventus were lucky enough to be awarded with a penalty in the 74^th minute for a handball offence by Belletti, who substituted Essien. But Juve’s joy was short lived as Drogba sealed the match with a goal from a low-cross from Belletti.

Previous Post : Liverpool slip to Third

Liverpool slip to Third

On a day when Liverpool could have managed to cut the lead on BPL leaders, Manchester United they fired blanks away at Middlesborough losing 2-0.

Xabi Alonso’s goal in the first half and Turskish Striker Tuncay’s goal clinched the tie in favor of Boro and got them out of the relegation goal.

The match was an important one for both the teams at the two ends of the table. For Liverpool it was a chance to close in on Machester United and cut the lead to 4 points and for Boro it was a chance to get out of the relegation zone. As it happened boro came out of the last three and Liverpool slipped down to third spot.

Tuncay goal was the first Premier Football League goal scored by a Boro player since January 10, more than a month back. After conceding a goal in the first half, Liverpool lost the grip on the game. Alonso headed a Stuart Downing Cross into his own net and gave Boro the lead. Downing’s corner from the right made its way into the six-yard box, where it hit the unwitting Alonso’s head and flew in past Reina into the back of the net. And as the game went on, Boro seemed to take confidence from that shock opener. Liverpool’s defense opened up and Tuncay scored the second. Liverpool were lucky not to concede another goal before full time.

However, Liverpool should have been back on level terms just minutes in to the second half after Gerrard made his way into the penalty area and put the back into open space.

Boro’s obstinate defence was proving more than sufficient to keep Liverpool away as Rafael Benitez’s men continued to keep a lot of possession, but they could not materialize the possession.

The final whistle was greeted by delighted cheers from the crowd of 33,724 present at the Riverside Stadium as they had seen their team win after a long time , especially against a top rung side.

Previous Post : United win Carling Cup on penalties

United win Carling Cup on penalties

After a goalless 90 minutes and 30 minutes of extra time, Manchester United defeated Tottenham Hotspur 4-1 in penalty shoot-outs to win the Carling Cup at the Wembley Stadium.

United’s goalkeeper Ben Foster saved Tottenham’s first penalty from Jamie O’Hara, David Bentley sent Tottenham’s spot-kick wide of the target, leaving United Brazilian midfielder Anderson to score the winning penalty.

The carling Cup is United’s Third Cup this year after the Charity Shield and the Club World Cup. Besides these they are on course to win another three titles- the English Premier League, the Champions League and he F A Cup.

It was United who dominated the game in the early stages with midfielder Nani forcing a save by Tottenham goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes in the 16th minute. With Gary Neville injured and Ryan Giggs on the bench, Rio Ferdinand was handed the captains arm band.

Ferdinand went close to scoring with a half-volley halfway through the first half, but his shot was wide of the crossbar. Tottenham started to get their flow and rhythm into the game and United’s ‘keeper Ben Foster was forced to make a save just before the 30 minutes mark, saving a shot from Darren Bent, who had been released by Luka Modric.

Foster denied the pocket-sized Tottenham winger Aaron Lennon in the 71^st minute to make a fine save and avoid the opening goal .

Cristiano Ronaldo looked off color as it ended up being an afternoon of frustration for the English champions. But the Portuguese winger almost scored deep into injury-time, only to see his powerful hit being saved by the post, Nani fired wide from the ricochet.

With both sides in the Champions Football League and the uefa Cup, they have had busy fixtures schedules and neither would have wanted to play the 30 minutes of extra-time.

United Boss, Sir Alex Ferguson’s side will now be looking to add the English Premier League, Champions League and F.A. Cup trophies to their trophy cabinet. Many think that might not be a problem for the Red Devils Considering the Team SAF has.

Previous Post : United Dominate Inter at San Siro

United Dominate Inter at San Siro

The World Champions, the champions of Europe and the champions of England- Manchester United traveled to Italy to play Inter Milan at San Siro for the first leg of the UEFA Champions League Knockout Stage.

Going into the match, Inter coach Jose Mourinho had created a lot of optimism about his side’s chances in the home leg against United. But as the match got under way, the Inter fan flummoxed by what was being thrown at their sides by the English side. United completely dominated the first half and seemed more at home than the Italians.

The going just improved a tad bit for the hosts after half time, in spite of the likely scolding that the grey-scarved Mourinho, who is a self proclaimed the ‘Special One’ might have administered to his men in the changing rooms.

Inter who are top of the table in the Italian Football League, saw their two forwards Adriano and Zlatan Ibrahimovic playing in the midfield defending the ruthless United attacks for more often than not. The goalless draw saw 81000 Inter fans go home disappointed at the Giuseppe Meazza.

Inter Goalkeeper Julio Cesar was undoubtedly the best player on the field for Inter, had it not been for him, inter might well have been going into the second leg with a big 2-0 deficit. Cesar with his great saves on more than a couple occasions off vicious efforts from the Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo saved the day for the Italians.

A former coach of the English Side Chelsea, Mourinho has had his share of public spats with United Boss Alex Ferguson, and presumably so Jose was not satisfied with the result of the match and a few things to say about the Scot. Mourinho was the coach of the Portuguese side Porto that knocked United out in the last-16 five years back.

Andrei Arshavin to make his debut on Saturday.

Russian forward and Arsenal’s latest acquisition Andrei Arshavin will make his Premier League debut against Sunderland at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday. The Russian striker was on the radar of almost all leading European clubs post Russia’s excellent show in Euro 2008.. Arshavin was also a key figure in his previous club Zenit St.Petersburg, winners of last year’s UEFA Cup. Arshavin was named Man of the final.

Arsene Wenger had hinted his inclusion in the last match against London rivals Tottenham Hotspurs but he was left on the bench throughout.

The 27 years old transfer had been a long drawn affair in the closing days of the transfer window. A lot of factors including poor weather in London delayed the inevitable. Bought for a handsome fee of £15million, Arshavin will be keen to prove his worth in Saturday’s match in front of home supporters. Incidentally, Arshavin is ‘cup-tied’ and cannot play for the Gunners in the Champions League since he has already played for Zenit in this year’s Champions league.

Arsene Wenger has wanted to him to warm the bench for some more time and put extra efforts in training since he will be a key in Arsenal’s top-four berth for the remainder of the season.

Arsenal has had a mixed bag this season with injuries plaguing the team on the negative side and youngsters stepping up as a positive. Arsene Wenger was disappointed when Eduardo was injured again after making a comeback against Cardiff City’s 4-0 demolition.

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