Champions League Final, Who Wins The Title

Since the day that Chelsea went to Newcastle and won, i feel a certain tightening in my stomach each time i see the premiership table. I really like it that the league is getting really tough, and clubs like Man Utd, Arsenal and Chelsea don't just run away with the premiership title. But this one is so close i feel like we will lose it.
One thing that gives me a lot of confidence is the fact that we play every match to win. I can't wait for the last day so that the whole premiership thing will be pushed aside for the prestigious European Champions League final in Moscow. This really gets me excited because we are playing our biggest threat in the premiership this season, Chelsea.
They beat us the league a week ago, and probably think that it will be a premiership match. This is going to be a Champions League match and of the 2 teams, we play the champions league a lot better than them and they know it.
I am looking forward to a really tight match. Chelsea wants to win it for the first time in their history. We have won it a lot of times and we know how it is to win it,but this one is going to be special.

English Premieship Title Race Down To The Wire

My heart is in my mouth guys, of course we all know the outcome of last weekend's games and their effect on the title race as well as relegation battles. But as this happened before in the entire history of the premiership? I can't remember at all. But the refreshing thing about this new development is that it makes the league a lot more open and challenging. Gone are the days that clubs like Manchester United,Arsenal and the likes monopolised the league, and run away with the title by mid season.
Things are so different now that as we have seen this season, the title is down to the last day of the season. It is so tight that when my club,Man Utd play, my heart is in my mouth despite our seeming superiority over a vast majority of other clubs.
Even as i want us to win the league, i also want to see a more exciting league with more clubs coming up to challenge the top 4, when this happens, and my team Man Utd win the league, it will further show our superiority in the English Premiership.
Oh! by the way, C. Ronaldo has 30 goals in the league now.He is the undisputed king, the world's best.

BARCELONA V MAN UTD CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SEMI-FINAL FIRST LEG

I don't think i have the stomach for what we are about to witness this evening at the Nou Camp. Barcelona lay siege and we should expect anything and everything from them. The likes of Lionel Messi, who for me is the single biggest threat in tonight's encounter, will make life very difficult for Ferdinand and Co. in the Man Utd defense.
Yesterday we saw Liverpool score 2 goals to literally give Chelsea the advantage going into the second leg of that tie. Or how would you describe a situation where Kuyt scored a goal, and Riise canceled it out for Chelsea. An own goal is always very painful, and i know how Riise must be feeling by this morning. I still feel that Liverpool can, and will still win through to the final.
Back to what we have at hand, Barcelona V Man Utd at the Camp Nou.
I hope Christiano Ronaldo can deliver, and that Rooney can keep his cool today and convert at least 1 of the chances that will beg at him. He missed so many scoring chances at Blacburn last weekend.
Guys, my heart is panting. But i know that if we keep our cool, we might even win this match today. Happy watching.

Middlesbrough v Man Utd, Time To Consolidate

I tell you why i love saturdays, we Man. Utd play mostly on saturdays and so i spend my time counting every tick of the clock in anticipation of our match. Needless to say, my saturdays are usually very cool because we win our matches straight out.
After taking out AS Roma in the champions league, we play Middlesbrough 'away', well it doesn't matter if we play away or not.
I think that at this time of the season, we are really poised to take every team in the premier league to the cleaner.
I didn't really feel like writing anything today, but hey, just a scribble. The red Devil triumph again.
Oh! guys did you know that Christiano will score today again? he sure will.

The Goal Machine Scores Yet Again

By now everybody should know that we Man Utd beat Roma 2-0 at the Olympic Stadium in Rome to take a commanding lead into the second leg of the tie, and thus a leg already into the semi-final.
The scoreline did not actually surprise me, Man Utd is in that kind of form right now, although Roma is also playing excellent football in the Italian league too.
What also did not surprise me is the fact that Christiano Ronaldo scored again. I think the opening goal he scored was his 36th goal of the season in all competitions this season. This guy is just incredible, and i won't bet against him scoring 40+ goals this season. Poor Roma, they get roasted yet again by Man Utd.
Just a word for the other game between Schalke and Barcelona, well Barca won by a lone goal scored by Borjan. This despite their poor LaLiga form this of late.
Tomorrow will be hectic, with Arsenal hosting Liverpool and Chelsea travelling to Fenebache, it promises to be explosive. Well, that's for them. We have done our bit and are virtually through, Bravo Red Devils

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE QUARTER-FINAL FIRST LEG ,Roma Again !!

So we play Roma again, this will make the fifth time the two sides have met in the last year and Ferguson is expecting his side to have the upper hand at the Stadio Olimpico.

United warmed up for Tuesday's big game in Rome with a superb 4-0 win over Aston Villa on Saturday to stretch their lead at the top of the Premiership to five points.

In a repeat of the 2007 quarter-finals, Manchester United were drawn with Roma having already met in this season's group stages, United winning 1-0 at home before a 1-1 draw in Rome.

Last season, Roma won the first leg quarter-final 2-1 before United administered a 7-1 thrashing at Old Trafford.

These sort of games make me wish we were drawn against an English team because Roma is such a tough team to beat, forget that we beat them silly last time out.

It won't be easy but, the form we are in now, we are looking forward to it. We are almost there with the league, and we will pick the champions league too. what do ya'll think?

End Of The Road For Arsenal ?

I told a friend before Arsenal's champions league first leg tie with AC Milan that they will not advance to the next round, he argued so passionately that we placed a bet which he lost. He is a die hard Gunner. He believes that Arsenal will win every match they play. I love their smart short passes, but good football without goals will definitely land any team in hot water.
This is what Arsenal faces each time they play. When they started scoring a lot of goals this season, i thought they have realized their mistakes, but after watching their last 2 matches, i know for sure that they still have that problem. What manner of strikers turn their backs to the goal when they should shoot for goal. So much for their nonsensical style of play.
Okay, so they travel to the San Siro tomorrow to play AC Milan, veteran campaigners in the champions league, and of course the defending champions. So many are talking about the return of Robin Van Persie. I like this a guy because he is the only Arsenal player that will shoot for goal when he has to do it. For me, he is the only striker Arsenal has right now. But even he will not stop AC Milan from picking this one. History favors the Italian giants anyway.
Let me just spice this up a bit with history and recent facts.

Head-to-heads
Prior to the 0-0 draw in the first leg of this fixture, the only European encounters between Arsenal and AC Milan came in the two legs of the Uefa Super Cup 13 years ago.
They drew 0-0 at Highbury on 1 February 1995 and Milan won the return leg 2-0 at the San Siro a week later.
European history
AC Milan have won the Champions Cup four times and the Champions League three times. They are currently the defending champions, and have successfully negotiated this stage of the competition in all four seasons since it was introduced in 2003.
Arsenal's best European performances are their Fairs Cup win in 1970 and Cup Winners' Cup win in 1994. Their best performance in the Champions League was finishing as runners-up to Barcelona in 2006. The Gunners have lost at this knockout stage on two of their four appearances; Bayern Munich eliminated them in 2004-05 and PSV did the same last season.
Current European form
AC Milan have won their last four home matches in the Champions League, and are unbeaten in six at home.
Both these clubs won four, drew one and lost one of their group phase matches, but while the Gunners finishing second in Group H behind Sevilla, AC Milan won Group D.
Player and disciplinary info
Emmanuel Adebayor and Denilson (Arsenal) and Gennaro Gattuso (AC Milan) will be suspended for a quarter-final match on receiving another yellow card, which ever team qualifies.
Kaka and Gattuso have played every minute in the Champions League so far. Andrea Pirlo, Clarence Seedorf and Daniele Bonera are the other Milan players to have appeared in every CL match this season.
Other miscellaneous facts
AC Milan drew 1-1 with Lazio on Saturday, and are unbeaten in nine Serie A matches, winning five of them. They have only conceded three goals in the nine games, and are fifth in the table.
An injury time equaliser from Nicklas Bendtner gave Arsenal a 1-1 home draw with Aston Villa on Saturday, and kept the Londoners one point ahead of Manchester United at the summit of the Premier League.

More Champions League Gist Here
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Nicklas Bendtner Saves Arsenal

I had thought that Aston Villa will be a very stern test for Arsenal, and so it turned out. I constantly tell Arsenal fans that fancy football with lots of ball possession do not win football matches. What is the use enjoying about 70% possession of the ball and failing to score.
Against Villa today, it was always going to be difficult. They fell behind to an own goal by Senderos from a cross by Agbonlahor just before 27 minutes. Villa looked good for a second goal and only wayward finishing by Agbonlahor prevented Villa from increasing their lead.
In a previous post, i did say that Man Utd will be on top at the end of the weekend,well as it stands,they are just a point behind the Gunners now. Meanwhile, Man Utd had a comfortable 3-0 win away to Fulham with goals from Hargreaves, Park, and an own goal by Simon Davies to complete a good win for the Red Devils.
So, after last week's blunder by Arsene Wenger's men at Birmingham, this is hardly a decent preparation for the Gunners as they travel to Milan for the second leg of their champions league tie with the Italian giants.
The heat is well and truly on for the Gunners. Can they keep their cool ?
Or, a word for Chelsea, they won 4-0 away to West Ham. By the way, Lampard was sent off for unsporting behavior. The fun is only beginning.

Can Chelsea Overtake Both Arsenal And Manchester United To Win The Premiership?

I am a Manchester United fan and i think we are going to win the premiership title ahead of Arsenal, but both us and the Gunners have a problem. A common enemy in Chelsea. Chelsea's league form has been really great of recent, and that has got everybody having second thoughts about the so much talked about 2 horse race between Arsenal and Man. Utd for the premiership title.
With both Arsenal and Man Utd dropping points to relatively easy opponents, Chelsea just powers through their matches and both the gunners and the red devils managers have said a few things about Chelsea.
Hear what Sir Alex Ferguson had to say;

"The number of points Chelsea are behind Arsenal is not insurmountable as points can be dropped," he said.

"The fact that they have got us and Arsenal at home, and their home record is so good, you would have to think they have still got a big chance in the Premier League."

Chelsea finished as runners-up to Ferguson's side in the top flight last season after winning the crown for two successive seasons.

But the United boss believes Chelsea would be happier winning the Champions League rather than adding to their Premier League title count.

"I think that is what they are really after, given owner Roman Abramovich's contribution to their rise in the last few years," added Ferguson.

Tomorrow Is A Super Saturday

I personally cannot wait for 1st March, 2008. I call it super saturday for the English Premiership.
It doesn't happen often that the top 3 in the league all play the same day, but tomorrow that will happen and all 3 top teams in the Premiership play very tricky matches. With Arsenal 3 points ahead of Manchester United, and with Chelsea not quite far behind, the matches of 1st March is keenly awaited.
I personally cannot wait to see Man Utd level up on points with Arsenal, and we know of course that Man Utd is ahead on goals, so i really cannot wait to see us get on top of the premiership at the end of the weekend.
I always fancy Christiano Ronaldo to score in every match, tomorrow will not an exception.You can hear me ask, where is Manu Adebayo?
I wander what my friend Emmanuel Ekanem at Naijafootballfans will have to say on this one, he is a Gunner