International week this week and only a handful of our teams are looking good for a spell in South Africa next summer. The Dutch, who have completed their campaign, and the Spanish are already there and Italy can start booking hotels with confidence. Germany, France and Portugal's hopes are in the balance while Poland are going nowhere.
Saturday:
Russia v Germany
Armenia v Spain
Czech Republic v Poland
France v Faroe Islands
Republic of Ireland v Italy
Portugal v Hungary
Wednesday:
Germany v Finland
Bosnia v Spain
France v Austria
Italy v Cyprus
Poland v Slovakia
Portugal v Malta
France are in the merde. An automatic place looks beyond them - they're four points adrift of Serbia - and they're without several key players for this week's games. Yoann Gourcuff, Samir Nasri and Franck Ribéry are all injured which robs them of pretty much all creativity. Raymond Domenech was, rightly, criticised for playing two holding midfielders in games Les Bleus simply had to win. In the build-up to these latest matches, he's been more often quoted about his ambitions in the world of poker than he has about football. He comes across as a man who knows he'll have plenty of spare time on his hands in a few weeks time. France ought to beat Austria and the Faroes this week, but a play-off place is all that's at stake. Win or lose that, they still need a change of direction at the top. Domenech must go and even two eye-catching performances this week will not change that, regardless of the fact that his teams simply don't do eye-catching. The one hope is that Serbia are under threat of points deductions if there's any more bother at their games. It would sum up a terrible campaign if France were to go through by default.
Spain round off a successful campaign with a tour round Eastern Europe. They could be without Fernando Torres as well as David Villa - Torres limped out of training - but still have way too much firepower to end the campaign with anything other than a big, fat duck egg in the L column on the table.
Poland are out, as is Leo Beenhakker already, and finish with two really tough fixtures. The Czechs haven't impressed, but are still a far better side than Poland while Slovakia are hot favourites to win the group and the game against Poland on Wednesday could easily be their coronation. A miserable end to a miserable campaign fought with all the style and panache of Rudy Giuliani's US presidential attempt. That is to say, none at all.
Saturday's game in Moscow will all but determine the outcome of Group 4 where Russia are a point behind the visitors, Germany. The loser will go to the play-offs with both sides having relatively straightforward fixtures on Wednesday, moreso Russia. On the artificial surface in the Luzhniki, a stumbling German side - two practice games against Mainz reserves failed to muster a goal - look vulnerable. Mario Gomez, Lukas Podolski and Miro Klose are - how to put this gently - not troubling the scorers a great deal this season. Just what is it about Bayern that turns competent forwards into shambling relics of their former selves? The game is live in the UK on ESPN and it promises plenty of tension if nothing else.
Portugal are hoping for a minor miracle. Malta are easy-beats - they've not scored in the entire campaign as yet - but Hungary are anything but, despite fading from the dizzy heights after the last round of matches. Even with six points, Denmark only need a point to seal qualification. If Denmark get that point against Sweden, then the Swedes only have to beat Albania at home to secure second place and that play-off spot. So Portugal are relying on Denmark to do them a big, big favour. As if the Denmark v Sweden game needed anything else placing on it.
Marcello Lippi is under pressure, so he's done what he did in club football for so long - pick a Juventus side. Ignoring pressure to pick the in-form Antonio Cassano, he's stuck with what he knows and it'll be Alberto Gilardino and Vincenzo Iaquinta up top, though both have patchy recent records in the Azzurri shirt. Seven Juve players are in line for a start at Croke Park where a draw will see Italy to qualification. They then finish at home to Cyprus, but the Italian media are looking for a sign that they're still a force. They will qualify top of the group, but how they do it is almost as important. They're without Fabio Cannavaro for the Ireland game due to suspension, but will he be around for the finals? More on that later.
Elsewhere on Saturday, there's that Denmark v Sweden crunch clash with more than just local bragging rights at stake and it's Slovakia v Slovenia in a mighty tussle in Group 3.
The home of football sarcasm
Friday, 9 October 2009
Tuesday, 6 October 2009
Serie A Round 7: Inter go top
Atalanta 1 AC Milan 1
Bologna 1 Genoa 3
Cagliari 1 Chievo 2
Fiorentina 0 Lazio 0
Palermo 2 Juventus 0
Roma 2 Napoli 1
Sampdoria 1 Parma 1
Siena 0 Livorno 0
Bari 0 Catania 0
Inter Milan 2 Udinese 1
Wesley Sneijder could yet prove to be Jose Mourinho's canniest acquisition as manager. The Dutchman, surplus to requirements at Real Madrid, popped up to find the winner at home to Udinese, and in doing so put his team top of Serie A on goal difference after Sampdoria were held at home by Parma. Samp have impressed in the early stages but are likely to run out of puff, particularly if something untoward should happen to either Antonio Cassano or Giampaolo Pazzini. Still, it gives a healthy complexion to the title race in these early stages, particularly as AC Milan continue to misfire. This week, beleagured Leonardo could only watch on as Ronaldinho scrambled home an equaliser at second-bottom Atalanta, who had earlier gone ahead through Simone Tribocchi. It is a case of the chickens coming home to roost for Adriano Galliani & co; no replacement for Kaka, Ronaldinho a shadow of his former self and the likes of Klaas-Jan Huntelaar still to find their feet. Plus the rest of the team are old. Really Old.
Juventus lost for a second week in a row - not something that happens very often - losing away at a very well-drilled and talented Palermo team, who scored through the reliable South American duo of Edison Cavani and Fabio Simplicio. Fiorentina missed out on the chance to build on their midweek Champions League success and leapfrog the Gobbini after being held at home by Lazio. My parents were in Florence last week, and said it was lovely. I just thought I'd mention that.
Genoa's 3-1 win at Bologna, courtesy of goals from Kharja, Sculli and Alberto Zapater (a very shrewd signing) keeps them fifth, with Chievo in sixth after veteran midfielder Michele Marcolini scored twice to down Cagliari. Roma's gradual recovery under Euroballs favourite Claudio Rainieri continues, as Francesco Totti scored twice, nullifying Ezequiel Lavezzi's opener, at home to Napoli. In doing so he heaped pressure on Roberto Donadoni, who, following some odd comments from club president Aurelio Di Laurentis, must surely have his suitcases and cardboard boxes at the ready for the receipt of his P45. Livorno and Catania remain in the bottom three after two pairs of 0-0 draws.
Bologna 1 Genoa 3
Cagliari 1 Chievo 2
Fiorentina 0 Lazio 0
Palermo 2 Juventus 0
Roma 2 Napoli 1
Sampdoria 1 Parma 1
Siena 0 Livorno 0
Bari 0 Catania 0
Inter Milan 2 Udinese 1
Wesley Sneijder could yet prove to be Jose Mourinho's canniest acquisition as manager. The Dutchman, surplus to requirements at Real Madrid, popped up to find the winner at home to Udinese, and in doing so put his team top of Serie A on goal difference after Sampdoria were held at home by Parma. Samp have impressed in the early stages but are likely to run out of puff, particularly if something untoward should happen to either Antonio Cassano or Giampaolo Pazzini. Still, it gives a healthy complexion to the title race in these early stages, particularly as AC Milan continue to misfire. This week, beleagured Leonardo could only watch on as Ronaldinho scrambled home an equaliser at second-bottom Atalanta, who had earlier gone ahead through Simone Tribocchi. It is a case of the chickens coming home to roost for Adriano Galliani & co; no replacement for Kaka, Ronaldinho a shadow of his former self and the likes of Klaas-Jan Huntelaar still to find their feet. Plus the rest of the team are old. Really Old.
Juventus lost for a second week in a row - not something that happens very often - losing away at a very well-drilled and talented Palermo team, who scored through the reliable South American duo of Edison Cavani and Fabio Simplicio. Fiorentina missed out on the chance to build on their midweek Champions League success and leapfrog the Gobbini after being held at home by Lazio. My parents were in Florence last week, and said it was lovely. I just thought I'd mention that.
Genoa's 3-1 win at Bologna, courtesy of goals from Kharja, Sculli and Alberto Zapater (a very shrewd signing) keeps them fifth, with Chievo in sixth after veteran midfielder Michele Marcolini scored twice to down Cagliari. Roma's gradual recovery under Euroballs favourite Claudio Rainieri continues, as Francesco Totti scored twice, nullifying Ezequiel Lavezzi's opener, at home to Napoli. In doing so he heaped pressure on Roberto Donadoni, who, following some odd comments from club president Aurelio Di Laurentis, must surely have his suitcases and cardboard boxes at the ready for the receipt of his P45. Livorno and Catania remain in the bottom three after two pairs of 0-0 draws.
La Liga Round 6 Review: Sevilla overcome El Real
Getafe 2 Osasuna 1
Racing Santander 0 Valencia 1
Sevilla 2 Real Madrid 1
Sporting Gijon 4 Mallorca 1
Valladolid 2 Athletic Bilbao 2
Villarreal 0 Espanyol 0
Xerez 1 Malaga 1
Atletico Madrid 2 Real Zaragoza 1
Barcelona 1 Almeria 0
Tenerife 0 Deportivo La Coruna 1
So, this was the weekend the juggernaut was halted - for now. Manuel Pellegrini looked on perplexed as, without both Lassana Diarra and Cristiano Ronaldo, his stratospherically expensive side fell to a 2-1 defeat at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan. This was despite the best efforts of Iker Casillas, who pulled off several great saves, including one where, after a Navas square pass was hit across the six yard box, he moved from one post to the other to block Diego Capel's tap-in. Outstanding. Nevertheless, he could do little about the two goals, from Renato and Jesus Navas. Pepe got a goal in between, but Sevilla dominated and move level on points with the Galacticos. Its something of a triumph for Manolo Jiminez, whose abilities continue to be questioned. In partnership with the (usually) reliable Monchi, he has quietly assembled quite a side, but whether they have the depth to keep up with the Big Two is open to question.
Barcelona were far from convincing at home to Almeria, and have Pedro to thank for his lovely solo goal to get past Hugo Sanchez's stubborn outfit. Almeria have scored just 5 from 6 matches, showing just how much the departure of Alvaro Negredo has hurt them. Deportivo move into fourth after a narrow victory over Tenerife, thanks to a solitary Colotto strike; Valencia leapfrog Mallorca after a win at Racing. Racing look dirt poor this season, particularly up front, and it was somewhat fitting that big Nikola Zigic, who scored so many goals in 1 1/2 seasons in Cantabria, should be the one to bring about their downfall here. Mallorca were hammered at Sporting Gijon, who looked a far more solid act on last season.
It was all about one (very young) man at Valladolid, where Iker Muniain, Athletic Bilbao's 16-year-old sensation, grabbed a 77th minute equaliser - and in the process becoming the youngest ever scorer in a top flight Spanish match. He looks, putting it mildly, a fair player. Getafe made heavy weather of defeating a below-par Osasuna, former Valladolid winger Pedro Leon eventually getting the winner. Things just get worse and worse for Ernesto Valverde at Villarreal - he was unable to break down his former charges Espanyol at the Madrigal on saturday evening, meaning his new club are 6 matches without a win and only kept off the bottom by lonely Xerex, who finally got their first goal of the season during a 1-1 draw with Malaga. Elsewhere Zaragoza were obviously in a charitable mood, giving Atletico Madrid their first league win of the season at the Calderon, which allows Abel Resino a stay of execution for, ooh, I'd say about a week.
David Villa, with 6 goals, remains the top scorer at this early stage.
Racing Santander 0 Valencia 1
Sevilla 2 Real Madrid 1
Sporting Gijon 4 Mallorca 1
Valladolid 2 Athletic Bilbao 2
Villarreal 0 Espanyol 0
Xerez 1 Malaga 1
Atletico Madrid 2 Real Zaragoza 1
Barcelona 1 Almeria 0
Tenerife 0 Deportivo La Coruna 1
So, this was the weekend the juggernaut was halted - for now. Manuel Pellegrini looked on perplexed as, without both Lassana Diarra and Cristiano Ronaldo, his stratospherically expensive side fell to a 2-1 defeat at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan. This was despite the best efforts of Iker Casillas, who pulled off several great saves, including one where, after a Navas square pass was hit across the six yard box, he moved from one post to the other to block Diego Capel's tap-in. Outstanding. Nevertheless, he could do little about the two goals, from Renato and Jesus Navas. Pepe got a goal in between, but Sevilla dominated and move level on points with the Galacticos. Its something of a triumph for Manolo Jiminez, whose abilities continue to be questioned. In partnership with the (usually) reliable Monchi, he has quietly assembled quite a side, but whether they have the depth to keep up with the Big Two is open to question.
Barcelona were far from convincing at home to Almeria, and have Pedro to thank for his lovely solo goal to get past Hugo Sanchez's stubborn outfit. Almeria have scored just 5 from 6 matches, showing just how much the departure of Alvaro Negredo has hurt them. Deportivo move into fourth after a narrow victory over Tenerife, thanks to a solitary Colotto strike; Valencia leapfrog Mallorca after a win at Racing. Racing look dirt poor this season, particularly up front, and it was somewhat fitting that big Nikola Zigic, who scored so many goals in 1 1/2 seasons in Cantabria, should be the one to bring about their downfall here. Mallorca were hammered at Sporting Gijon, who looked a far more solid act on last season.
It was all about one (very young) man at Valladolid, where Iker Muniain, Athletic Bilbao's 16-year-old sensation, grabbed a 77th minute equaliser - and in the process becoming the youngest ever scorer in a top flight Spanish match. He looks, putting it mildly, a fair player. Getafe made heavy weather of defeating a below-par Osasuna, former Valladolid winger Pedro Leon eventually getting the winner. Things just get worse and worse for Ernesto Valverde at Villarreal - he was unable to break down his former charges Espanyol at the Madrigal on saturday evening, meaning his new club are 6 matches without a win and only kept off the bottom by lonely Xerex, who finally got their first goal of the season during a 1-1 draw with Malaga. Elsewhere Zaragoza were obviously in a charitable mood, giving Atletico Madrid their first league win of the season at the Calderon, which allows Abel Resino a stay of execution for, ooh, I'd say about a week.
David Villa, with 6 goals, remains the top scorer at this early stage.
Apologies for the intermission
Our regular reader(s) may well have noticed an absence of news from the Italian, Spanish and Portuguese leagues for the last four weeks or so. This is down to me moving house to That London and temporarily living in an archaic Life On Mars-style flat which only had internet Monday-Friday 8-6 - i.e. when I'm at work. Baffling.
Happily I have now moved again, back into the 21st century, so will now endeavour to bring you updates from now on.
Happily I have now moved again, back into the 21st century, so will now endeavour to bring you updates from now on.
Monday, 5 October 2009
St Etienne spring major shock: Ligue 1 reviews
Sochaux 1-0 Le Mans
PSG 1-1 Nancy
Nice 3-2 Valenciennes
Rennes 0-1 Auxerre
Grenoble 2-3 Montpellier
St Etienne 3-1 Bordeaux
Lens 0-2 Lyon
Toulouse 0-1 Lorient
Boulogne 2-3 Lille
Marseille 1-2 Monaco
The term 'one-man team' is a harsh one to throw about, but when Yoann Gourcuff is absent for Bordeaux and they lose to strugglers St Etienne it's an accusation that gains validity. Les Verts went ahead early through Augusto Fernandez and Aruajo Ilan made it two before the break. Jussie hit back with a penalty, but Dimitri Payet added a third for Alain Perrin's side in stoppage time to seal a great win against a lacklustre Bordeaux, the first defeat of the season for Les Girondins. That leaves Lyon top of the tree after they beat Lens. Sidney Govou is enjoying something of an Indian summer at this late stage of his career and put his side ahead early on. They rode their luck at times and were indebted to Yohan Demont who failed from 12 yards to level matters and Kim Kallstrom sealed it in the second half. Marseille lost ground too, surprisingly beaten at home by Monaco. Didier Deschamps was left to bemoan a lack of confidence after Nene and Park Chu-Young gave the Monagasques a two goal lead with just a late Mamadou Niang consolation coming back. The season's surprise package Montpellier move up into third place after another win, seeing off a greatly improved performance from bottom club Grenoble. Victor Montano put the south coast side ahead and Nenad Dzodic made it two after less than quarter of an hour. Danijel Ljuboja pulled one back just after the break, but Dzodic hit straight back with his second. Nicolas Dieuze got another one back for Grenoble, but too late to affect the outcome.
Grenoble therefore remain on no points at the bottom of the table, fully seven points adrift of Le Mans who lost at Sochaux. They had Guillaume Loriot sent off and, though Vaclav Sverkos missed the resulting penalty, Marvin Martin won it for Sochaux twelve minutes from time. Nice, Lens, Boulogne and Toulouse all lit just one point further up and, of those, only Nice managed a win coming from two down to beat Valenciennes. Mamadou Siassa's penalty and Carlos Sanchez gave VA the lead before Chaouki Ben Saada pulled one back. VA's Renaud Cohade was sent off and, within five minutes, Nice were in front through Olivier Echouafni and Didier Ducourtioux's own goal. Lille came from behind twice to beat Boulogne whose good start to the season has tailed off dramatically. Bira Dembele put Boulogne ahead only for Gervinho to reply. Jeremy Blayac restored the lead, but a quick double from Pierre-Alain Frau sent Lille on the long trip home with all three points. Toulouse are having a miserable season and Olivier Monterubbio's last minute penalty snatched a precious point from their grasp.
Two early goals saw PSG and Nancy share the points at Parc des Princes. Youssuf Hadji handed the visitors the lead on 14 minutes, but just four minutes later, Stéphane Sessegnon equalised and so it remained. Carlos Bocanegra was sent off for Rennes quarter of an hour into their game against Auxerre and Benoit Pedretti fired in the free-kick for the goal which won it.
PSG 1-1 Nancy
Nice 3-2 Valenciennes
Rennes 0-1 Auxerre
Grenoble 2-3 Montpellier
St Etienne 3-1 Bordeaux
Lens 0-2 Lyon
Toulouse 0-1 Lorient
Boulogne 2-3 Lille
Marseille 1-2 Monaco
The term 'one-man team' is a harsh one to throw about, but when Yoann Gourcuff is absent for Bordeaux and they lose to strugglers St Etienne it's an accusation that gains validity. Les Verts went ahead early through Augusto Fernandez and Aruajo Ilan made it two before the break. Jussie hit back with a penalty, but Dimitri Payet added a third for Alain Perrin's side in stoppage time to seal a great win against a lacklustre Bordeaux, the first defeat of the season for Les Girondins. That leaves Lyon top of the tree after they beat Lens. Sidney Govou is enjoying something of an Indian summer at this late stage of his career and put his side ahead early on. They rode their luck at times and were indebted to Yohan Demont who failed from 12 yards to level matters and Kim Kallstrom sealed it in the second half. Marseille lost ground too, surprisingly beaten at home by Monaco. Didier Deschamps was left to bemoan a lack of confidence after Nene and Park Chu-Young gave the Monagasques a two goal lead with just a late Mamadou Niang consolation coming back. The season's surprise package Montpellier move up into third place after another win, seeing off a greatly improved performance from bottom club Grenoble. Victor Montano put the south coast side ahead and Nenad Dzodic made it two after less than quarter of an hour. Danijel Ljuboja pulled one back just after the break, but Dzodic hit straight back with his second. Nicolas Dieuze got another one back for Grenoble, but too late to affect the outcome.
Grenoble therefore remain on no points at the bottom of the table, fully seven points adrift of Le Mans who lost at Sochaux. They had Guillaume Loriot sent off and, though Vaclav Sverkos missed the resulting penalty, Marvin Martin won it for Sochaux twelve minutes from time. Nice, Lens, Boulogne and Toulouse all lit just one point further up and, of those, only Nice managed a win coming from two down to beat Valenciennes. Mamadou Siassa's penalty and Carlos Sanchez gave VA the lead before Chaouki Ben Saada pulled one back. VA's Renaud Cohade was sent off and, within five minutes, Nice were in front through Olivier Echouafni and Didier Ducourtioux's own goal. Lille came from behind twice to beat Boulogne whose good start to the season has tailed off dramatically. Bira Dembele put Boulogne ahead only for Gervinho to reply. Jeremy Blayac restored the lead, but a quick double from Pierre-Alain Frau sent Lille on the long trip home with all three points. Toulouse are having a miserable season and Olivier Monterubbio's last minute penalty snatched a precious point from their grasp.
Two early goals saw PSG and Nancy share the points at Parc des Princes. Youssuf Hadji handed the visitors the lead on 14 minutes, but just four minutes later, Stéphane Sessegnon equalised and so it remained. Carlos Bocanegra was sent off for Rennes quarter of an hour into their game against Auxerre and Benoit Pedretti fired in the free-kick for the goal which won it.
Hertha their own worst enemies: Bundesliga reviews
Schalke 2-0 Eintracht
Hannover 5-2 Freiburg
Bayern 0-0 Cologne
Leverkusen 4-0 Nurnberg
Bochum 1-1 Wolfsburg
Mainz 2-1 Hoffenheim
Monchengladbach 0-1 Dortmund
Stuttgart 0-2 Bremen
Hertha 1-3 Hamburg
The last thing you need when you find yourself rock bottom is a suicidal goalkeeper. No, scratch that. The second last thing you need is a suicidal goalkeeper. The last thing you need is two of them. Friedhelm Funkel (great name) took over from the sacked Lucien Favre just 24 hours before the game against Hamburg kicked off and it was all going swimmingly when Arne Friedrich got on the end of Raffael's neat flick in the ninth minute, but then the calamity started. Firstly, Kaka headed past starting keeper Timo Ochs before he was replaced by Sascha Burchert due to injury. The 18-year old handed Hamburg their other two goals with some spectacular brain fartery. Twice, he came out to clear with diving headers. Twice, the ball found itself at the feet of a Hamburg player. Twice, that Hamburg player put it away as Burchert was twice slow to his feet and left completely stranded. David Jarolim was the recipient of the first gift and the always outstanding Ze Roberto the second. Hertha are a mess while Hamburg continue to lead.
Leverkusen remain on Hamburg's heels after another sizeable win, 4-0 over Nurnberg. Toni Kroos got them going just two minutes in and it was three by half time through Simon Rolfes' penalty and Eren Derdiyok. Stefan Kiessling wrapped it up after the break. Bayern, Wolfsburg and Hoffenheim all lost ground on the leaders. Bayern were held to a goalless draw by Cologne while cracks are beginning to appear in Wolfsburg's make-up, Grafite publicly criticising his boss Armin Veh after he was taken off early in the second half. They were a goal down to Bochum - Vahid Hashemian with the goal - midway through the second half when Shinji Ono was sent off, leaving Bochum to hang on with ten men. Edin Dzeko grabbed an equaliser for the champions. Hoffenheim went down to Mainz, early goals from Andreas Ivanschitz and Aristide Bancé giving the promoted side the advantage and the Villagers couldn't muster a response until Andreas Ibertsberger struck three minutes from time. Schalke continue to grind out unimpressive victories and did so again over Eintracht. Gerald Asamoah came off the bench to give them a lead before Pirmin Schwegler was sent off for the Frankfurters. A late penalty from Jefferson Farfan made it safe.
Hannover were impressive in sticking five past Freiburg who had been going well. Sofian Chahed and Arnold Bruggink gave Hannover an early two-goal lead, but Ivica Banovic pulled one back before the break. Karim Haggui restored the advantage before Julian Schuster pulled one back late on, setting up a grandstand finish. However, Hannover responded brilliantly with Didier Ya Konan and Sergio Pinto adding some polish to the scoreline with ever later strikes. Lucas Barrios got the only goal of the game as Dortmund came away from Gladbach with the points and Bremen added to Stuttgart's misery with a two-goal win, Claudio Pizarro and Aaron Hunt the scorers.
Hannover 5-2 Freiburg
Bayern 0-0 Cologne
Leverkusen 4-0 Nurnberg
Bochum 1-1 Wolfsburg
Mainz 2-1 Hoffenheim
Monchengladbach 0-1 Dortmund
Stuttgart 0-2 Bremen
Hertha 1-3 Hamburg
The last thing you need when you find yourself rock bottom is a suicidal goalkeeper. No, scratch that. The second last thing you need is a suicidal goalkeeper. The last thing you need is two of them. Friedhelm Funkel (great name) took over from the sacked Lucien Favre just 24 hours before the game against Hamburg kicked off and it was all going swimmingly when Arne Friedrich got on the end of Raffael's neat flick in the ninth minute, but then the calamity started. Firstly, Kaka headed past starting keeper Timo Ochs before he was replaced by Sascha Burchert due to injury. The 18-year old handed Hamburg their other two goals with some spectacular brain fartery. Twice, he came out to clear with diving headers. Twice, the ball found itself at the feet of a Hamburg player. Twice, that Hamburg player put it away as Burchert was twice slow to his feet and left completely stranded. David Jarolim was the recipient of the first gift and the always outstanding Ze Roberto the second. Hertha are a mess while Hamburg continue to lead.
Leverkusen remain on Hamburg's heels after another sizeable win, 4-0 over Nurnberg. Toni Kroos got them going just two minutes in and it was three by half time through Simon Rolfes' penalty and Eren Derdiyok. Stefan Kiessling wrapped it up after the break. Bayern, Wolfsburg and Hoffenheim all lost ground on the leaders. Bayern were held to a goalless draw by Cologne while cracks are beginning to appear in Wolfsburg's make-up, Grafite publicly criticising his boss Armin Veh after he was taken off early in the second half. They were a goal down to Bochum - Vahid Hashemian with the goal - midway through the second half when Shinji Ono was sent off, leaving Bochum to hang on with ten men. Edin Dzeko grabbed an equaliser for the champions. Hoffenheim went down to Mainz, early goals from Andreas Ivanschitz and Aristide Bancé giving the promoted side the advantage and the Villagers couldn't muster a response until Andreas Ibertsberger struck three minutes from time. Schalke continue to grind out unimpressive victories and did so again over Eintracht. Gerald Asamoah came off the bench to give them a lead before Pirmin Schwegler was sent off for the Frankfurters. A late penalty from Jefferson Farfan made it safe.
Hannover were impressive in sticking five past Freiburg who had been going well. Sofian Chahed and Arnold Bruggink gave Hannover an early two-goal lead, but Ivica Banovic pulled one back before the break. Karim Haggui restored the advantage before Julian Schuster pulled one back late on, setting up a grandstand finish. However, Hannover responded brilliantly with Didier Ya Konan and Sergio Pinto adding some polish to the scoreline with ever later strikes. Lucas Barrios got the only goal of the game as Dortmund came away from Gladbach with the points and Bremen added to Stuttgart's misery with a two-goal win, Claudio Pizarro and Aaron Hunt the scorers.
League beginning to split: Eredivisie reviews
Vitesse 2-0 Sparta
Den Haag 1-1 Groningen
Willem II 1-1 NEC
AZ 1-0 NAC
Feyenoord 3-0 Waalwijk
Roda 2-2 Ajax
Heracles 1-3 Twente
Utrecht 0-0 PSV
Heerenveen 1-1 VVV Venlo
Draws for Ajax and PSV gave Twente the chance to forge ahead on their own with a win over local rivals Heracles. The Almelo side gave Steve McClaren's men a mighty scare when Everton put Heracles ahead after just nine minutes. Bryan Ruiz levelled after half an hour and the second half belonged to Twente and two goals in two minutes - from Blaise N'Kufo and Kenneth Perez - sealed the win that sent Twente clear. PSV were disappointing against Utrecht and a fairly miserable 0-0 was only marked by the late dismissal of Balazs Dzsudzsak. Ajax also finished with ten men, Urby Emanuelson sent off late on as they came from behind to draw with Roda. Luis Suarez's penalty put Ajax in front, but Arnaud Djum levelled within a minute and Boldiszar Bodor gave the Limburgers the lead ten minutes into the second half. Suarez squared it off again before Emanuelson's indiscretion. Feyenoord were winners again, easily seeing off bottom club Waalwijk. Andwele Slory gave the Rotterdammers a half time lead and an own goal from Tony Varela made it two before Gerogino Wijnaldum wrapped it up late on. AZ got back to winning ways with an inconvincing display at home to NAC. Jeremain Lens got the winner for Ronald Koeman's side - a side low on confidence at the moment.
That leaves the top six with a bit of a buffer back to the next nine clubs, with only Waalwijk adrift and draws were the order of the day. Den Haag needed an own goal from Groningen's Gibril Sankoh to snatch a point after Niclas Pedersen had put the visitors ahead and NEC wasted a lead in Tilburg, Erton Fejzullahu giving the Nijmegen side the lead before Said Boutahar's equaliser. Sandro Calabro gave VVV an 88th minute lead away to Heerenveen, but Michal Papadopoulos equalised in stoppage time to share the spoils. Vitesse managed a win which sent them soaring up the table, Lasse Nilsson and a late one from Wijlan Pluim enough to see off Sparta and lift Vitesse into seventh.
Den Haag 1-1 Groningen
Willem II 1-1 NEC
AZ 1-0 NAC
Feyenoord 3-0 Waalwijk
Roda 2-2 Ajax
Heracles 1-3 Twente
Utrecht 0-0 PSV
Heerenveen 1-1 VVV Venlo
Draws for Ajax and PSV gave Twente the chance to forge ahead on their own with a win over local rivals Heracles. The Almelo side gave Steve McClaren's men a mighty scare when Everton put Heracles ahead after just nine minutes. Bryan Ruiz levelled after half an hour and the second half belonged to Twente and two goals in two minutes - from Blaise N'Kufo and Kenneth Perez - sealed the win that sent Twente clear. PSV were disappointing against Utrecht and a fairly miserable 0-0 was only marked by the late dismissal of Balazs Dzsudzsak. Ajax also finished with ten men, Urby Emanuelson sent off late on as they came from behind to draw with Roda. Luis Suarez's penalty put Ajax in front, but Arnaud Djum levelled within a minute and Boldiszar Bodor gave the Limburgers the lead ten minutes into the second half. Suarez squared it off again before Emanuelson's indiscretion. Feyenoord were winners again, easily seeing off bottom club Waalwijk. Andwele Slory gave the Rotterdammers a half time lead and an own goal from Tony Varela made it two before Gerogino Wijnaldum wrapped it up late on. AZ got back to winning ways with an inconvincing display at home to NAC. Jeremain Lens got the winner for Ronald Koeman's side - a side low on confidence at the moment.
That leaves the top six with a bit of a buffer back to the next nine clubs, with only Waalwijk adrift and draws were the order of the day. Den Haag needed an own goal from Groningen's Gibril Sankoh to snatch a point after Niclas Pedersen had put the visitors ahead and NEC wasted a lead in Tilburg, Erton Fejzullahu giving the Nijmegen side the lead before Said Boutahar's equaliser. Sandro Calabro gave VVV an 88th minute lead away to Heerenveen, but Michal Papadopoulos equalised in stoppage time to share the spoils. Vitesse managed a win which sent them soaring up the table, Lasse Nilsson and a late one from Wijlan Pluim enough to see off Sparta and lift Vitesse into seventh.
Friday, 2 October 2009
Ligue 1 round 8
Nice v Valenciennes
Rennes v Auxerre
Grenoble v Montpellier
St Etienne v Bordeaux
Sochaux v Le Mans
Lens v Lyon
Toulouse v Lorient
Boulogne v Lille
Marseille v Monaco
Bordeaux go to St Etienne this week without Yoann Gourcuff who limped out of the 1-0 win over Maccabi Haifa in the Champions League in midweek. This is a major blow to their hopes as everything goes through him and the Brazilian Fernando will replace him. Better news comes as Fernando Cavenaghi is almost back to full fitness and the Argentine's goals will aid their championship push. Even with no Gourcuff, St Etienne are second favourites on their own turf. Lyon go to Lens as league leaders and on the back of a 4-0 win in Europe and in great domestic form, but Lens are always tough opponents. Even so, Lyon are hot favourites. Marseille were walloped in Madrid in midweek and get back to it at home to inconsistent Monaco. It's just impossible to tell which Monaco will show up.
Mismatch of the week sees fourth-placed Montpellier go to rock bottom Grenoble who are still seeking their first point of the season. Even goals would be nice - they've scored just two so far. It's been a dream start for the south coast side and it should continue here. Boulogne also started well following promotion, but they've slipped down and face Lille who are going in the opposite direction and won 5-1 in Prague in the week, three of those coming in the last five minutes. That could be just the spark they were seeking as they emerge from a miserable start to the season. Toulouse were also in European action - a 2-2 draw with Club Brugge - in the week and they remain entrenched in mid-table. Lorient are just on the fringes of the leading pack and they're the visitors to Les Violets this weekend. PSG and Rennes are both in there as well and both are at home, to Nancy and Auxerre respectively. Without their talisman Ireneusz Jelen, sent off last week and therefore suspended, Auxerre will struggle while the Parisians should be too strong for the repidly fading Nancy.
Sochaux and Nice remain down among the dead men - by dead men, I mean Grenoble - and they both have home matches as they seek to pull away from danger. Nice take on Valenciennes which is never an easy task while Sochaux face fellow strugglers Le Mans and that is a huge game, even at this stage of the season.
Rennes v Auxerre
Grenoble v Montpellier
St Etienne v Bordeaux
Sochaux v Le Mans
Lens v Lyon
Toulouse v Lorient
Boulogne v Lille
Marseille v Monaco
Bordeaux go to St Etienne this week without Yoann Gourcuff who limped out of the 1-0 win over Maccabi Haifa in the Champions League in midweek. This is a major blow to their hopes as everything goes through him and the Brazilian Fernando will replace him. Better news comes as Fernando Cavenaghi is almost back to full fitness and the Argentine's goals will aid their championship push. Even with no Gourcuff, St Etienne are second favourites on their own turf. Lyon go to Lens as league leaders and on the back of a 4-0 win in Europe and in great domestic form, but Lens are always tough opponents. Even so, Lyon are hot favourites. Marseille were walloped in Madrid in midweek and get back to it at home to inconsistent Monaco. It's just impossible to tell which Monaco will show up.
Mismatch of the week sees fourth-placed Montpellier go to rock bottom Grenoble who are still seeking their first point of the season. Even goals would be nice - they've scored just two so far. It's been a dream start for the south coast side and it should continue here. Boulogne also started well following promotion, but they've slipped down and face Lille who are going in the opposite direction and won 5-1 in Prague in the week, three of those coming in the last five minutes. That could be just the spark they were seeking as they emerge from a miserable start to the season. Toulouse were also in European action - a 2-2 draw with Club Brugge - in the week and they remain entrenched in mid-table. Lorient are just on the fringes of the leading pack and they're the visitors to Les Violets this weekend. PSG and Rennes are both in there as well and both are at home, to Nancy and Auxerre respectively. Without their talisman Ireneusz Jelen, sent off last week and therefore suspended, Auxerre will struggle while the Parisians should be too strong for the repidly fading Nancy.
Sochaux and Nice remain down among the dead men - by dead men, I mean Grenoble - and they both have home matches as they seek to pull away from danger. Nice take on Valenciennes which is never an easy task while Sochaux face fellow strugglers Le Mans and that is a huge game, even at this stage of the season.
Thursday, 1 October 2009
Bundesliga round 8
Schalke v Eintracht
Leverkusen v Nurnberg
Bochum v Wolfsburg
Mainz v Hoffenheim
Hannover v Freiburg
Bayern v Cologne
Monchengladbach v Dortmund
Stuttgart v Bremen
Hertha v Hamburg
It's tough to pick a game of the week here, but there are two complete and utter mismatches of the week. Cologne going to Munich to take on Bayern will not be pretty for Billy Goats fans, although the infighting has begun among Louis van Gaal's troops. Mario Gomez is unhappy about not getting a game in the first team and Luca Toni has said he won't play in the reserves for much longer despite being on the outer. They should still batter a poor Cologne side. The other one sees the top club go to the bottom club. Hertha, unsurprisingly, dispensed of the services of Lucien Favre on Monday following their sixth straight defeat. There's no new man in charge as yet, though Lothar Matthaus has emerged as an early favourite. It's a caretaker instead, Karsten Heine, who prepares the team for Hamburg's visit. Good luck. He'll need it.
Stuttgart were poor in Europe in midweek, drawing with Unirea in Romania. They face Bremen who were impressive in the Europa League against Athletic but remain inconsistent. Wolfsburg were very good in defeat against Manchester United and face a leisurely trip to Bochum. Schalke are still up there, defying if not the critics then certainly the accountants, and face Eintracht at the VeltinsArena in a game they ought to be winning. Schalke's big rivals Dortmund are in the Borussia derby as they go to face Gladbach this week. Leverkusen should maintain their lofty position as they are at home to Nurnberg.
A sleeper for game of the week sees Hoffenheim travel to Mainz. The Villagers are going goal crazy all of a sudden and have leapt up the league while Mainz are hanging on in there after a run of impressive results. Hannover against Freiburg also promises goals with the latter in decent form and Hannover always capable.
Leverkusen v Nurnberg
Bochum v Wolfsburg
Mainz v Hoffenheim
Hannover v Freiburg
Bayern v Cologne
Monchengladbach v Dortmund
Stuttgart v Bremen
Hertha v Hamburg
It's tough to pick a game of the week here, but there are two complete and utter mismatches of the week. Cologne going to Munich to take on Bayern will not be pretty for Billy Goats fans, although the infighting has begun among Louis van Gaal's troops. Mario Gomez is unhappy about not getting a game in the first team and Luca Toni has said he won't play in the reserves for much longer despite being on the outer. They should still batter a poor Cologne side. The other one sees the top club go to the bottom club. Hertha, unsurprisingly, dispensed of the services of Lucien Favre on Monday following their sixth straight defeat. There's no new man in charge as yet, though Lothar Matthaus has emerged as an early favourite. It's a caretaker instead, Karsten Heine, who prepares the team for Hamburg's visit. Good luck. He'll need it.
Stuttgart were poor in Europe in midweek, drawing with Unirea in Romania. They face Bremen who were impressive in the Europa League against Athletic but remain inconsistent. Wolfsburg were very good in defeat against Manchester United and face a leisurely trip to Bochum. Schalke are still up there, defying if not the critics then certainly the accountants, and face Eintracht at the VeltinsArena in a game they ought to be winning. Schalke's big rivals Dortmund are in the Borussia derby as they go to face Gladbach this week. Leverkusen should maintain their lofty position as they are at home to Nurnberg.
A sleeper for game of the week sees Hoffenheim travel to Mainz. The Villagers are going goal crazy all of a sudden and have leapt up the league while Mainz are hanging on in there after a run of impressive results. Hannover against Freiburg also promises goals with the latter in decent form and Hannover always capable.
Eredivisie round 9
Wednesday:
NEC 1-1 Utrecht
Friday:
Vitesse v Sparta
Saturday:
Den Haag v Groningen
Willem v NEC
AZ v NAC
Feyenoord v Waalwijk
Sunday:
Roda v Ajax
Heracles v Twente
Utrecht v PSV
Heerenveen v VVV Venlo
It's derby time on the German border when Twente make the short trip from Enschede to Almelo to take on Heracles. Twente are playing by far the better football and will be confident of taking the points and they need them to maintain their position at the sharp end. They're currently level at the top with PSV who go to Utrecht who blew the chance to go within two points of the Eindhoveners on Wednesday when they blew a lead in Nijmegen to end level. Ajax will no doubt add another tranche of goals in the 'for' column in Kerkrade while Waalwijk's joy at getting off the mark looks like ending quickly when they go to De Kuip.
AZ have slipped right off the pace and a disappointing home draw with Standard Liége in midweek won't have helped the mood in Alkmaar. NAC aren't a great side, but the way AZ are going, they'll fancy an upset. Elsewhere, things look bleak. VVV can get back to winning ways at Heerenveen, but the games between Vitesse and Sparta, Den Haag and Groningen and Willem II against NEC will only interest their respective fans. Nothing for the neutral there.
NEC 1-1 Utrecht
Friday:
Vitesse v Sparta
Saturday:
Den Haag v Groningen
Willem v NEC
AZ v NAC
Feyenoord v Waalwijk
Sunday:
Roda v Ajax
Heracles v Twente
Utrecht v PSV
Heerenveen v VVV Venlo
It's derby time on the German border when Twente make the short trip from Enschede to Almelo to take on Heracles. Twente are playing by far the better football and will be confident of taking the points and they need them to maintain their position at the sharp end. They're currently level at the top with PSV who go to Utrecht who blew the chance to go within two points of the Eindhoveners on Wednesday when they blew a lead in Nijmegen to end level. Ajax will no doubt add another tranche of goals in the 'for' column in Kerkrade while Waalwijk's joy at getting off the mark looks like ending quickly when they go to De Kuip.
AZ have slipped right off the pace and a disappointing home draw with Standard Liége in midweek won't have helped the mood in Alkmaar. NAC aren't a great side, but the way AZ are going, they'll fancy an upset. Elsewhere, things look bleak. VVV can get back to winning ways at Heerenveen, but the games between Vitesse and Sparta, Den Haag and Groningen and Willem II against NEC will only interest their respective fans. Nothing for the neutral there.
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