Marseille v Toulouse
Boulogne v Nancy
Bordeaux v Monaco
Auxerre v Montpellier
Lens v Lorient
Grenoble v Lille
St Etienne v Lyon
Nice v Le Mans
Rennes v Valenciennes
Sochaux v PSG
Derby time in the Rhône valley when Lyon take the short trip down the road to St Etienne. Bafetimbi Gomis left Les Verts for their big-boy neighbours in the summer and there's almost duty bound to be some sort of reaction from the St Etienne supporters toward him and, dare I suggest, it might not be entirely friendly. Lyon arrive in much the better form, despite the drubbing handed down to them last week by Nice. Les Verts have fluttered briefly, but the traditional roles of the clubs in this fixture have very much reversed over the last eight years. It was always St Etienne in charge, but Les Gones have utterly dominated the last decade. But forget form. Settle in to watch the mayhem. With games like these, it's amazing that no UK broadcaster picked up the rights.
Bordeaux host Monaco on Saturday in a first v second clash which, were it not for the derby, would easily be the game of the week. Nene has been brilliant for the Monagasques with nine goals from midfield. It's not all about him though, with able support from the likes of Park Chu-Young who is a doubt for this one as is Eidur Gudjohnsen. Bordeaux are at strength and are, therefore, favourites. A sleeper choice for game of the week comes at the Abbe-Deschamps where Montpellier travel to take on Auxerre. The home side are on the up while Montpellier's great start that took them as high as second at one point just slipped with a loss last week. Auxerre can be brilliant and rubbish in equal measures while Montpellier have been a model of consistency. Marseille welcome Toulouse to the Vélodrome who have André-Pierre Gignac back in top form. He's a threat to anyone and is one of the few to really flourish at national level under Raymond Domenech. PSG have their flu victims back in training and they resume their campaign at Sochaux, themselves in decent nick.
Grenoble's futile search for a first win resumes against Lille, but the northerners should be coming down the mountains three points richer. Grenoble are just gash. Lens are in freefall and have a visit from European hopefuls Lorient to deal with this week while there's a proverbial six-pointer between Le Mans and Nice. Boulogne are plummeting and are at home to Nancy this week while there's a mid-table kerfuffle between Rennes and Valenciennes.
The home of football sarcasm
Friday, 30 October 2009
Bundesliga round 11
Dortmund v Hertha
Stuttgart v Bayern
Hamburg v Monchengladbach
Nurnberg v Bremen
Cologne v Hannover
Wolfsburg v Mainz
Schalke v Leverkusen
Freiburg v Hoffenheim
Eintracht v Bochum
Top game this week sees first play fourth at the Veltins Arena with the home side a little more secure, financially speaking. Push was about to crash headlong into shove down Gelsenkirchen way with the threat of a points deduction should the club be unable to prove they had the finances to complete the season. Had they not been able to, the points would have been deducted as it would have been taken to mean that they had provided false information in order to secure a license for this season. A large cash injection has staved off that threat and meant that player sales in January won't be needed in order to secure the club's immediate future. After a way better start than any could have imagined, that latter fact is a massive boost to Felix Magath as he looks to repeat his efforts from last season with Schalke. The visit of Leverkusen is a big test of both club's title credentials with a draw probably favouring Bayer. Either way, it promises some good, open football.
Hamburg have a relatively straightforward job at home to Gladbach and can take advantage of any dropped points by Leverkusen in Gelsenkirchen and Hoffenheim should be too good for Freiburg. Bremen are on a terrific run and Nurnberg shouldn't pose them too many problems. Bayern take on Stuttgart in what, in any other season, would be a humdinger. As it is, Bayern start as heavy favourites with patience wearing thin with Markus Babbel in Stuttgart. Defeat in the cup in midweek saw the board give Babbel their support, but if results continue to go against them, then action will have to be taken before it gets too bad. Bayern are threatening to destroy themselves from within, again, as Martin Demichelis criticised Louis van Gaal in this week's papers saying how he felt he was the only injured first-teamer who had to force his way back in. Memo to Demichelis: Daniel van Buyten is much better than you and Holger Badstuder, despite being just 20, doesn't come up with half as many hilarious brain farts as you do.
Wolfsburg's game against Mainz is a big one for the champions. Lose here and they get sucked into the mid-table scramble and a little too distant from the top than would be comfortable. For their part, Mainz are going well and are more than capable of winning here. Hertha are still comically bad despite last week's goalless draw with the champions and they go to Dortmund in the Friday game where even a single point looks too much to ask. Finally, Eintracht host Bochum. Home win.
Stuttgart v Bayern
Hamburg v Monchengladbach
Nurnberg v Bremen
Cologne v Hannover
Wolfsburg v Mainz
Schalke v Leverkusen
Freiburg v Hoffenheim
Eintracht v Bochum
Top game this week sees first play fourth at the Veltins Arena with the home side a little more secure, financially speaking. Push was about to crash headlong into shove down Gelsenkirchen way with the threat of a points deduction should the club be unable to prove they had the finances to complete the season. Had they not been able to, the points would have been deducted as it would have been taken to mean that they had provided false information in order to secure a license for this season. A large cash injection has staved off that threat and meant that player sales in January won't be needed in order to secure the club's immediate future. After a way better start than any could have imagined, that latter fact is a massive boost to Felix Magath as he looks to repeat his efforts from last season with Schalke. The visit of Leverkusen is a big test of both club's title credentials with a draw probably favouring Bayer. Either way, it promises some good, open football.
Hamburg have a relatively straightforward job at home to Gladbach and can take advantage of any dropped points by Leverkusen in Gelsenkirchen and Hoffenheim should be too good for Freiburg. Bremen are on a terrific run and Nurnberg shouldn't pose them too many problems. Bayern take on Stuttgart in what, in any other season, would be a humdinger. As it is, Bayern start as heavy favourites with patience wearing thin with Markus Babbel in Stuttgart. Defeat in the cup in midweek saw the board give Babbel their support, but if results continue to go against them, then action will have to be taken before it gets too bad. Bayern are threatening to destroy themselves from within, again, as Martin Demichelis criticised Louis van Gaal in this week's papers saying how he felt he was the only injured first-teamer who had to force his way back in. Memo to Demichelis: Daniel van Buyten is much better than you and Holger Badstuder, despite being just 20, doesn't come up with half as many hilarious brain farts as you do.
Wolfsburg's game against Mainz is a big one for the champions. Lose here and they get sucked into the mid-table scramble and a little too distant from the top than would be comfortable. For their part, Mainz are going well and are more than capable of winning here. Hertha are still comically bad despite last week's goalless draw with the champions and they go to Dortmund in the Friday game where even a single point looks too much to ask. Finally, Eintracht host Bochum. Home win.
Eredivisie round 12
VVV Venlo v NAC
Heerenveen v Den Haag
PSV v Vitesse
Roda v Twente
Groningen v AZ
Ajax v Feyenoord
Waalwijk v Willem II
Heracles v Utrecht
Sparta v NEC
It's Classic time again when, on Sunday, Feyenoord go to the Amsterdam ArenA. We've already had some tasty tussles between the traditional big boys of Dutch football, most notably the five-goal thriller between Feyenoord and PSV, but there's always added spite when these two meet. Ajax are still going goal crazy with Luis Suarez already up to 15 for the season. Feyenoord haven't been as flashy, as last week's 1-0 win over ten-man VVV Venlo speaks volumes about, but are still just about in there at the pointy end. I expect Ajax to win this, but not until the two sides have knocked a dozen types of muesli out of each other.
Twente and PSV should both win over comparatively lowly opposition. AZ needed extra time to see off Spakenburg in the cup in midweek, so low is their confidence, but a game against Groningen gives them a great chance of getting back to winning ways. Whether they've already left themselves too much to do is the bigger question, and I reckon they have. Utrecht are still well and truly in the hunt while Heracles are a coming side, sixth place and looking pretty useful. They go head to head this weekend in what may well be a better game than the Classic.
Waalwijk's fruitless search for points sees them take on Willem II, gloriously inconsistent themselves. On their day, the Tilburgers can be great, but even if they're not, they should have too much for RKC. Sparta are on the up and take on NEC at Het Kasteel, VVV against NAC has draw written all over it and Heerenveen's miserable season continues against Den Haag who aren't a bad side and should win this one with something in reserve.
Heerenveen v Den Haag
PSV v Vitesse
Roda v Twente
Groningen v AZ
Ajax v Feyenoord
Waalwijk v Willem II
Heracles v Utrecht
Sparta v NEC
It's Classic time again when, on Sunday, Feyenoord go to the Amsterdam ArenA. We've already had some tasty tussles between the traditional big boys of Dutch football, most notably the five-goal thriller between Feyenoord and PSV, but there's always added spite when these two meet. Ajax are still going goal crazy with Luis Suarez already up to 15 for the season. Feyenoord haven't been as flashy, as last week's 1-0 win over ten-man VVV Venlo speaks volumes about, but are still just about in there at the pointy end. I expect Ajax to win this, but not until the two sides have knocked a dozen types of muesli out of each other.
Twente and PSV should both win over comparatively lowly opposition. AZ needed extra time to see off Spakenburg in the cup in midweek, so low is their confidence, but a game against Groningen gives them a great chance of getting back to winning ways. Whether they've already left themselves too much to do is the bigger question, and I reckon they have. Utrecht are still well and truly in the hunt while Heracles are a coming side, sixth place and looking pretty useful. They go head to head this weekend in what may well be a better game than the Classic.
Waalwijk's fruitless search for points sees them take on Willem II, gloriously inconsistent themselves. On their day, the Tilburgers can be great, but even if they're not, they should have too much for RKC. Sparta are on the up and take on NEC at Het Kasteel, VVV against NAC has draw written all over it and Heerenveen's miserable season continues against Den Haag who aren't a bad side and should win this one with something in reserve.
Monday, 26 October 2009
H1N1 strikes Paris: Ligue 1 reviews
Boulogne 1-3 Monaco
Bordeaux 3-0 Le Mans
Grenoble 1-2 Nancy
Nice 4-1 Lyon
Sochaux 1-0 Lorient
St Etienne 0-2 Valenciennes
Rennes 3-0 Montpellier
Lens 0-2 Toulouse
Auxerre 3-2 Lille
Marseille P-P PSG
Big news this week was of the game that didn't happen. Three players - Ludovic Giuly, Jeremy Clement and Mamadou Sakho - were all confirmed as having the virus and the entire squad and staff were quarantined as a precaution against further spread. The trouble was the timing of the postponement, way too late for the PSG fans to not travel. Trouble duly erupted between rival fans with nothing better to do than drag their clubs' name through the mud again.
On the field, Bordeaux regain top spot with a routine win over Le Mans. Didier Ovono put through his own net to put the champions in front, Marouane Chamakh and David Bellion with the others. That put them top as Lyon were stunned by lowly Nice. Mamadou Bagayoko's athletic header put Nice ahead. A howler from reserve keeper Remi Vercoutre allowed a ricochet off Aly Cissokho to squirm under his body for the second. David Hellebuyck made the defence look very slow as he charged right through them for number three and Loic Remy got the fourth, again thanks to some suspect goalkeeping. Dodgy keeping at the other end allowed Ederson a consolation, but the damage was done. Montpellier lost at Rennes and so failed to take advantage of OL's slip. Sylvain Marveaux put Rennes ahead in the first half and further strikes from Moussa Sow and Asamoah Gyan halted Montpellier's great run. Monaco it is that improve as they despatched ten-man Boulogne. Park Chu-Young put the Monagasques ahead with a good finish from the edge of the box shortly before Kevin Das Neves was sent off for a wild challenge. And yet it was Boulogne that got back into it with Jeremy Balyac given the freedom of the six-yard box from a corner. With time running out, that man Nene popped up with a double to win it and send his side second. Both were carbon-copy exquisite free-kicks. The keeper was rooted to the spot for both.
Grenoble lost again, and it's now getting silly. They took the lead against Nancy, completely against the run of play, through Danijel Ljuboja, and were hanging on in there as the game entered it's dying moments. But just as it looked like the duck may finally be broken, up stepped David Jemmali to rescue defeat from the jaws of victory as he headed comically over his own keeper and into the net for 1-1. A point would at least be a start, but Bostjan Cesar grabbed a handful of Issiar Dia's shirt in the 88th minute to give away a penalty which Youssuf Hadji slammed into the top corner. Sochaux's good run continues as the fans showed great support for the injured Curtis Davies. Eight minutes into the contest, Damien Perquis rose highest to head in from a free-kick and that was enough to beat Lorient. St Etienne reverted to type by slumping to another miserable defeat, at home to Valenciennes. Johan Audel embarrassed the defence for the first and David Ducourtioux added a second in the last minute, a quite excellent run and finish.
Toulouse are on the way back up the table and won well at Lens who are going the opposite direction. Moussa Sissoko and André-Pierre Gignac, back in form after a good spell with the national side, got the goals for Les Violets. Game of the week was at the Abbe-Deschamps where Auxerre twice came from behind to beat Lille whose revival is stopped in it's tracks. Gervinho put Lille in front with a lovely angled volley which Ireneusz Jelen equalised from close range. Pierre-Alain Frau restored the lead before the break, but Jelen again levelled it up before Daniel Niculae won it late on with a tidy near-post header.
Bordeaux 3-0 Le Mans
Grenoble 1-2 Nancy
Nice 4-1 Lyon
Sochaux 1-0 Lorient
St Etienne 0-2 Valenciennes
Rennes 3-0 Montpellier
Lens 0-2 Toulouse
Auxerre 3-2 Lille
Marseille P-P PSG
Big news this week was of the game that didn't happen. Three players - Ludovic Giuly, Jeremy Clement and Mamadou Sakho - were all confirmed as having the virus and the entire squad and staff were quarantined as a precaution against further spread. The trouble was the timing of the postponement, way too late for the PSG fans to not travel. Trouble duly erupted between rival fans with nothing better to do than drag their clubs' name through the mud again.
On the field, Bordeaux regain top spot with a routine win over Le Mans. Didier Ovono put through his own net to put the champions in front, Marouane Chamakh and David Bellion with the others. That put them top as Lyon were stunned by lowly Nice. Mamadou Bagayoko's athletic header put Nice ahead. A howler from reserve keeper Remi Vercoutre allowed a ricochet off Aly Cissokho to squirm under his body for the second. David Hellebuyck made the defence look very slow as he charged right through them for number three and Loic Remy got the fourth, again thanks to some suspect goalkeeping. Dodgy keeping at the other end allowed Ederson a consolation, but the damage was done. Montpellier lost at Rennes and so failed to take advantage of OL's slip. Sylvain Marveaux put Rennes ahead in the first half and further strikes from Moussa Sow and Asamoah Gyan halted Montpellier's great run. Monaco it is that improve as they despatched ten-man Boulogne. Park Chu-Young put the Monagasques ahead with a good finish from the edge of the box shortly before Kevin Das Neves was sent off for a wild challenge. And yet it was Boulogne that got back into it with Jeremy Balyac given the freedom of the six-yard box from a corner. With time running out, that man Nene popped up with a double to win it and send his side second. Both were carbon-copy exquisite free-kicks. The keeper was rooted to the spot for both.
Grenoble lost again, and it's now getting silly. They took the lead against Nancy, completely against the run of play, through Danijel Ljuboja, and were hanging on in there as the game entered it's dying moments. But just as it looked like the duck may finally be broken, up stepped David Jemmali to rescue defeat from the jaws of victory as he headed comically over his own keeper and into the net for 1-1. A point would at least be a start, but Bostjan Cesar grabbed a handful of Issiar Dia's shirt in the 88th minute to give away a penalty which Youssuf Hadji slammed into the top corner. Sochaux's good run continues as the fans showed great support for the injured Curtis Davies. Eight minutes into the contest, Damien Perquis rose highest to head in from a free-kick and that was enough to beat Lorient. St Etienne reverted to type by slumping to another miserable defeat, at home to Valenciennes. Johan Audel embarrassed the defence for the first and David Ducourtioux added a second in the last minute, a quite excellent run and finish.
Toulouse are on the way back up the table and won well at Lens who are going the opposite direction. Moussa Sissoko and André-Pierre Gignac, back in form after a good spell with the national side, got the goals for Les Violets. Game of the week was at the Abbe-Deschamps where Auxerre twice came from behind to beat Lille whose revival is stopped in it's tracks. Gervinho put Lille in front with a lovely angled volley which Ireneusz Jelen equalised from close range. Pierre-Alain Frau restored the lead before the break, but Jelen again levelled it up before Daniel Niculae won it late on with a tidy near-post header.
Too many draws: Bundesliga reviews
Leverkusen 1-1 Dortmund
Hannover 1-0 Stuttgart
Hoffenheim 3-0 Nurnberg
Bayern 2-1 Eintracht
Monchengladbach 0-0 Cologne
Mainz 3-0 Freiburg
Hertha 0-0 Wolfsburg
Bochum 1-4 Bremen
Schalke 3-3 Hamburg
Draws all round for the front runners gave Bremen the chance to close up which they did with a routine thumping of Bochum. Leverkusen and Dortmund battled to a goal apiece on Friday night, Lucas Barrios heading Dortmund ahead early on with Manuel Friedrich responding in kind halfway through the second period. Hamburg and Schalke shared six goals in a thriller, which defied the lack of resources Bruno Labbadia has up front. Eljero Elia and Markus Berg have really stepped up to the plate and the two combined for the latter to open the scoring. Piotr Trochowski made it two at the end of a first half the visitors utterly dominated with a wicked free kick, but Schalke came back into it after the break and Kevin Kuranyi headed in Rafinha's cross before David Rozehnal was sent off - last man back, no arguments. From the free-kick, Lukas Schmitz levelled it up. With Schalke pouring forward to try and win it, a quick break led by Ze Roberto gave Berg the chance to put his side back in front which he did. And they looked good for the win until the last minute when Kuranyi headed the sides back level. And Schalke might have won it had Gerald Asamoah not headed straight into the arms of Frank Rost with the last touch of the game.
Bremen came from behind to beat Bochum, Stanislav Sestak putting the Ruhr Valley side ahead in the first few seconds. It didn't last long. Eight minutes, in fact, before Aaron Hunt equalised by getting the final touch on Claudio Pizarro's goal-bound header and Bremen were in front before the break through Marko Marin as he and Hunt tore Bochum a new one. Tim Borowski beat the offside trap for the third and the rout was completed by Mesut Ozil from a narrow angle. There's a gap back to the next few, comprising Bayern, Hoffenheim and Wolfsburg. The champions were held to a goalless draw by Hertha who pick up their first point since opening day while Bayern were indebted to Daniel van Buyten again for a win over Eintracht. Alex Meier put the Frankfurters ahead on the hour, but Arjen Robben scrambled in an equaliser eight minutes later, one of the scrappiest goals the Dutchman will ever score. Two minutes remained when van Buyten headed in the winner at the back post. Hoffenheim saw off Nurnberg fairly comfortable with Christian Eichner blasting in the opener from about half a mile (well, 30 yards or so) out. Vedad Ibisevic is back and firing and he doubled the lead before the break as the Bosnian showed no ill-effects of the knee injury that curtailed his 2008/9 season as he skipped past the defence and finished in style. Franco Zuculini added a third in the second half, also from outside the box. Mainz are also right in the mix after their 3-0 win, started by Andreas Ivanschitz's acrobatic volley. Tim Hoogland added two more after the break.
Stuttgart are still in bother after yet another defeat, this time by Hannover. Didier Ya Konan hit the winner on the half hour, but the star was this ballboy. Gladbach and Cologne didn't do themselves any favours with a 0-0 draw.
Hannover 1-0 Stuttgart
Hoffenheim 3-0 Nurnberg
Bayern 2-1 Eintracht
Monchengladbach 0-0 Cologne
Mainz 3-0 Freiburg
Hertha 0-0 Wolfsburg
Bochum 1-4 Bremen
Schalke 3-3 Hamburg
Draws all round for the front runners gave Bremen the chance to close up which they did with a routine thumping of Bochum. Leverkusen and Dortmund battled to a goal apiece on Friday night, Lucas Barrios heading Dortmund ahead early on with Manuel Friedrich responding in kind halfway through the second period. Hamburg and Schalke shared six goals in a thriller, which defied the lack of resources Bruno Labbadia has up front. Eljero Elia and Markus Berg have really stepped up to the plate and the two combined for the latter to open the scoring. Piotr Trochowski made it two at the end of a first half the visitors utterly dominated with a wicked free kick, but Schalke came back into it after the break and Kevin Kuranyi headed in Rafinha's cross before David Rozehnal was sent off - last man back, no arguments. From the free-kick, Lukas Schmitz levelled it up. With Schalke pouring forward to try and win it, a quick break led by Ze Roberto gave Berg the chance to put his side back in front which he did. And they looked good for the win until the last minute when Kuranyi headed the sides back level. And Schalke might have won it had Gerald Asamoah not headed straight into the arms of Frank Rost with the last touch of the game.
Bremen came from behind to beat Bochum, Stanislav Sestak putting the Ruhr Valley side ahead in the first few seconds. It didn't last long. Eight minutes, in fact, before Aaron Hunt equalised by getting the final touch on Claudio Pizarro's goal-bound header and Bremen were in front before the break through Marko Marin as he and Hunt tore Bochum a new one. Tim Borowski beat the offside trap for the third and the rout was completed by Mesut Ozil from a narrow angle. There's a gap back to the next few, comprising Bayern, Hoffenheim and Wolfsburg. The champions were held to a goalless draw by Hertha who pick up their first point since opening day while Bayern were indebted to Daniel van Buyten again for a win over Eintracht. Alex Meier put the Frankfurters ahead on the hour, but Arjen Robben scrambled in an equaliser eight minutes later, one of the scrappiest goals the Dutchman will ever score. Two minutes remained when van Buyten headed in the winner at the back post. Hoffenheim saw off Nurnberg fairly comfortable with Christian Eichner blasting in the opener from about half a mile (well, 30 yards or so) out. Vedad Ibisevic is back and firing and he doubled the lead before the break as the Bosnian showed no ill-effects of the knee injury that curtailed his 2008/9 season as he skipped past the defence and finished in style. Franco Zuculini added a third in the second half, also from outside the box. Mainz are also right in the mix after their 3-0 win, started by Andreas Ivanschitz's acrobatic volley. Tim Hoogland added two more after the break.
Stuttgart are still in bother after yet another defeat, this time by Hannover. Didier Ya Konan hit the winner on the half hour, but the star was this ballboy. Gladbach and Cologne didn't do themselves any favours with a 0-0 draw.
Serie A Round 9: Nesta saves Leonardo's Bacon
Atalanta 3-1 Parma
Bari 2-0 Lazio
Cagliari 3-2 Genoa
Chievo 1-2 AC Milan
Fiorentina 0-1 Napoli
Palermo 1-0 Udinese
Roma 0-1 Livorno
Siena 0-1 Juventus
Inter Milan 2-1 Catania
Sampdoria 4-1 Bologna
Far be it from me to be anything but impartial but I may as well get this out of the way: Jammy Bastards. Alessandro Nesta's injury time header, following up his equaliser 10 minutes earlier, not only got AC Milan three points on sunday, they may just also have allowed Leonardo to remain in his job. The embattled Brazilian has not had an easy ride so far, but his side are now 6th and comfortably within reach of the top four. City rivals Inter had few problems brushing aside Catania, thanks to a Sulley Muntari strike and a lovely free kick from Wesley Sneijder - fast proving himself to be a vital cog in the Inter machine.
Elsewhere, it was a fun saturday for second-placed Sampdoria who brushed aside Bologna - Giampaolo Pazzini scored his 6th of the campaign and Daniele Mannini netted twice in a 4-1 stroll. Juventus were not quite so convincing at Siena, and relied on a solitary Amauri goal to claim all three points and condemn the Tuscans to bottom spot. It was also a welcome return to Serie A for one of Italian football's most colourful characters, the mad-as-a-box-of-frogs Serse Cosmi who watched his new club Livorno grab all three points away at Roma thanks to Francesco Tavano's goal.
Also on sunday, there was something of an upset as Atalanta triumphed at home to Parma, who have been going well lately and remain in eigth; an Andrea Lazzari winner for Cagliari resulted in a 3-2 win for the Sardinians and condemned Genoa to their third defeat in seven days; Lazio, who prevailed so late on during their Europa League match against Villarreal on thursday, showed it was just a flash in the pan by losing at Bari; and Palermo beat Udinese in a match in which, unusually, 9-goal leading man Antonio Di Natale did not find the net.
Bari 2-0 Lazio
Cagliari 3-2 Genoa
Chievo 1-2 AC Milan
Fiorentina 0-1 Napoli
Palermo 1-0 Udinese
Roma 0-1 Livorno
Siena 0-1 Juventus
Inter Milan 2-1 Catania
Sampdoria 4-1 Bologna
Far be it from me to be anything but impartial but I may as well get this out of the way: Jammy Bastards. Alessandro Nesta's injury time header, following up his equaliser 10 minutes earlier, not only got AC Milan three points on sunday, they may just also have allowed Leonardo to remain in his job. The embattled Brazilian has not had an easy ride so far, but his side are now 6th and comfortably within reach of the top four. City rivals Inter had few problems brushing aside Catania, thanks to a Sulley Muntari strike and a lovely free kick from Wesley Sneijder - fast proving himself to be a vital cog in the Inter machine.
Elsewhere, it was a fun saturday for second-placed Sampdoria who brushed aside Bologna - Giampaolo Pazzini scored his 6th of the campaign and Daniele Mannini netted twice in a 4-1 stroll. Juventus were not quite so convincing at Siena, and relied on a solitary Amauri goal to claim all three points and condemn the Tuscans to bottom spot. It was also a welcome return to Serie A for one of Italian football's most colourful characters, the mad-as-a-box-of-frogs Serse Cosmi who watched his new club Livorno grab all three points away at Roma thanks to Francesco Tavano's goal.
Also on sunday, there was something of an upset as Atalanta triumphed at home to Parma, who have been going well lately and remain in eigth; an Andrea Lazzari winner for Cagliari resulted in a 3-2 win for the Sardinians and condemned Genoa to their third defeat in seven days; Lazio, who prevailed so late on during their Europa League match against Villarreal on thursday, showed it was just a flash in the pan by losing at Bari; and Palermo beat Udinese in a match in which, unusually, 9-goal leading man Antonio Di Natale did not find the net.
La Liga Round 8: Relentless Barca open up lead
Almeria 0 -3 Valencia
Barcelona 6-1 Real Zaragoza
Getafe 2 -0 Athletic Bilbao
Racing Santander 1-1 Osasuna
Tenerife 1-0 Xerez
Valladolid 4-0 Deportivo La Coruna
Villarreal 2-1 Malaga
Atletico Madrid 1-1 Mallorca
Sevilla 0-0 Espanyol
Sporting Gijon 0-0 Real Madrid
Some things in La Liga never change - AS will print whatever Raul tells them; Atletico Madrid will hire (and subsequently fire) highly unsuitable coaches; Racing will bore everyone rigid with downright insulting quality of football and Barcelona will with worrying regularity deliver an absolute mullering to a side in the bottom half at the Camp Nou. This week it was Real Zaragoza, whose mildly encouraging start to the season was curtailed by a hat-trick from Malian midfielder Seydou Keita, who brings his goal tally for the season to 5. Keita is a player rarely singled out for praise but his part in the Pep Guardiola rennaisance should not be under-estimated; versatile, hard-working and incredibly athletic, he contributes plenty. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, somewhat less hard-working but still very effective, continues to impress and got two of his own.
That win meant Barcelona went 3 clear at the top after Real Madrid were held on Saturday at the ever-improving Sporting Gijon. Despite broadly possessing the same squad as last year, coach Manuel Preciado has guided his charges to 7th. Enduring a more traditional second season in the top flight are Malaga, whose Tapia-less campaign is proving disastrous - they provided Villarreal with their first win of the season thanks to goals from Nilmar and Marcos Senna, and are now bottom of the table. Atletico Madrid, who finally put Abel Resino out of his misery in midweek, were denied a second win of the season by Borja Valero's injury time strike.
Back up top, Sevilla drew a blank at home to an obdurate Espanyol side, although they remain impressive at the back with just 5 goals conceded so far. Valencia took advantage of Deportivo's sensational trashing at Valladolid to leapfrog La Coruna into fourth with a win at Almeria. David Villa was first on the scoresheet in a 3-0 victory, and he jointly leads the race for the Pichichi with Zlatan. Getafe made it won 4, lost 4, with a 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao and Tenerife captured what could prove to be a significant victory over fellow promoted side Xerex.
Barcelona 6-1 Real Zaragoza
Getafe 2 -0 Athletic Bilbao
Racing Santander 1-1 Osasuna
Tenerife 1-0 Xerez
Valladolid 4-0 Deportivo La Coruna
Villarreal 2-1 Malaga
Atletico Madrid 1-1 Mallorca
Sevilla 0-0 Espanyol
Sporting Gijon 0-0 Real Madrid
Some things in La Liga never change - AS will print whatever Raul tells them; Atletico Madrid will hire (and subsequently fire) highly unsuitable coaches; Racing will bore everyone rigid with downright insulting quality of football and Barcelona will with worrying regularity deliver an absolute mullering to a side in the bottom half at the Camp Nou. This week it was Real Zaragoza, whose mildly encouraging start to the season was curtailed by a hat-trick from Malian midfielder Seydou Keita, who brings his goal tally for the season to 5. Keita is a player rarely singled out for praise but his part in the Pep Guardiola rennaisance should not be under-estimated; versatile, hard-working and incredibly athletic, he contributes plenty. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, somewhat less hard-working but still very effective, continues to impress and got two of his own.
That win meant Barcelona went 3 clear at the top after Real Madrid were held on Saturday at the ever-improving Sporting Gijon. Despite broadly possessing the same squad as last year, coach Manuel Preciado has guided his charges to 7th. Enduring a more traditional second season in the top flight are Malaga, whose Tapia-less campaign is proving disastrous - they provided Villarreal with their first win of the season thanks to goals from Nilmar and Marcos Senna, and are now bottom of the table. Atletico Madrid, who finally put Abel Resino out of his misery in midweek, were denied a second win of the season by Borja Valero's injury time strike.
Back up top, Sevilla drew a blank at home to an obdurate Espanyol side, although they remain impressive at the back with just 5 goals conceded so far. Valencia took advantage of Deportivo's sensational trashing at Valladolid to leapfrog La Coruna into fourth with a win at Almeria. David Villa was first on the scoresheet in a 3-0 victory, and he jointly leads the race for the Pichichi with Zlatan. Getafe made it won 4, lost 4, with a 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao and Tenerife captured what could prove to be a significant victory over fellow promoted side Xerex.
Top five all win in goal frenzy: Eredivisie reviews
Utrecht 2-1 Roda
Den Haag 2-3 Sparta
Feyenoord 1-0 VVV Venlo
Vitesse 0-2 Heracles
NAC 1-0 Waalwijk
AZ 2-4 Ajax
Twente 4-0 Groningen
Willem II 4-1 Heerenveen
NEC 0-4 PSV
All of the top five won as 31 goals went in around the Netherlands over the weekend. In terms of goals, the clash between AZ and Ajax was top with six being shared unequally in favour of the Amsterdammers. That signals the end of AZ's title challenge, even at this still early stage. They're fourteen points off the top already and with the uncertainty over the ownership, January could see an exodus of players. And yet they did go in front half way through the first half, Brett Holman taking down a long ball and crossing for Mounir El Hamdaoui who swept it past Marten Stekelenberg. After the break, Ajax came out firing and a blistering spell saw them stick three away within twenty of the retstart. A quick free-kick caught out the champions for the first, Urby Emanuelson launching it past Sergio Romero from fully forty yards. A minute later, the irrepressible Luis Suarez got his customary goal, expertly taking down Dennis Rommedahl's cross and showing nifty footwork to score. Gregory van der Wiel got their third, exchanging passes with Demy de Zeeuw en route to goal, and Suarez got a second in the last minute, van der Wiel turning provider. Graziano Pelle's overhead kick in stoppage time couldn't hide the beating his side had taken.
Twente still lead from PSV by two and both were 4-0 winners. Twente were already two up on Groningen before keeper Brian van Loo was sent off, a slight deflection aiding Miroslav Stoch's 25-yarder in the fifth minute and Dwight Tiendalli smashing one in on the counter from over 30 yards. Van Loo was bang to rights on the hour, doing a Toni Schumacher on Blaise N'Kufo, but the big Swiss striker picked himself up and smacked the penalty past sub keeper Luciano - top corner, you don't save those. Ten minutes from time, the brilliant Bryan Ruiz, who had been superb all afternoon, added a fourth, swooping on Tiendalli's mis-kick and holding off four defenders to turn, shoot and score. The official time for PSV's opener was 18 seconds, Balazs Dzsudzsak sliding in at the back post, and it was downhill from there for NEC. Jonathan Reis got the second, quickest to latch on to Danko Lazovic's air shot, Otman Bakkal had a tap-in four minutes after the break as Gabor Babos failed to hold Orlando Engelaar's long-range shot and Lazovic made it four from the penalty spot after a clumsy foul. Feyenoord only needed one goal to see off VVV Venlo, Denny Landzaat tapping in after Kevin Begois spilled a cross at his feet, and Utrecht won by the odd goal in three on Friday night. Bram Castro was in brilliant form in Roda's goal and pulled off save after save through the first half. Eventually, pressure told when Jacob Mulenga finally beat the inspired keeper two minutes from half-time. Castro was out of position having made two stops, but his defence couldn't clear and the ball was played square across to Mulenga who finally beat the Belgian stopper. He was unlucky again when Utrecht doubled their lead. Ricky van Wolfswinkel beat Castro, but hit the post. The ball came back to the striker and, with Castro off balance, slammed it in the opposite corner. Willem Janssen got one back in stopage time, showing great strength down on the bye-line to shrug off the defence and slot the ball home.
Waalwijk lost again and finished with ten men. Their defence is really, really terrible and it was basic failings that allowed Anthony Lurling to score after half an hour and the only surprise was that NAC didn't add to the lead. Gijs Luirink was sent off late on to compound the misery. They look down already. Heerenveen remain deep in trouble after a hammering from Willem II. After a goalless first half, Willem II opened up after the break and were in front three minutes after the restart through Sergio Zijler who took on half the Heerenveen defence before smacking it across goal and inside the far post. The floodgates opened. Caught in possession in midfield, Heerenveen backed away and the shot wasn't held and fell to Said Boutahar who made no mistake. A towering header from Michal Papadopoulos pulled one back, but the lead was back to two five minutes later, another shot not held and fell to Frank Demouge who buried it from 20 yards. Demouge made it four in the last minute as Heerenveen were opened up like a particularly compliant walnut.
Heracles move up to sixth with a win while Vitesse are still very hit and miss. Willy Overtoom put the Almelo side in front on the stroke of half-time, sliding in to meet a cross from the right. Sebastien Scheur sealed the win twelve from time with an excellent angled header. Erik Falkenburg's hat-trick won it for upwardly mobile Sparta against Den Haag who pegged the Rotterdammers back twice. Falkenburg's first came on eight minutes with a 20-yard piledriver. Danny Buijs equalised, slotting home off a n eat lay-off, but Falkenburg put his side back in front with a half-volley from 12 yards. It would be level at the break when Charlton Vincento was first to a bouncing ball in the Sparta box, but Falkenburg popped up in the last minute to win it. The Den Haag keeper's poor clearance was almost put in from near half way, but the keeper palmed it straight to Falkenburg who tapped in at the back post.
Den Haag 2-3 Sparta
Feyenoord 1-0 VVV Venlo
Vitesse 0-2 Heracles
NAC 1-0 Waalwijk
AZ 2-4 Ajax
Twente 4-0 Groningen
Willem II 4-1 Heerenveen
NEC 0-4 PSV
All of the top five won as 31 goals went in around the Netherlands over the weekend. In terms of goals, the clash between AZ and Ajax was top with six being shared unequally in favour of the Amsterdammers. That signals the end of AZ's title challenge, even at this still early stage. They're fourteen points off the top already and with the uncertainty over the ownership, January could see an exodus of players. And yet they did go in front half way through the first half, Brett Holman taking down a long ball and crossing for Mounir El Hamdaoui who swept it past Marten Stekelenberg. After the break, Ajax came out firing and a blistering spell saw them stick three away within twenty of the retstart. A quick free-kick caught out the champions for the first, Urby Emanuelson launching it past Sergio Romero from fully forty yards. A minute later, the irrepressible Luis Suarez got his customary goal, expertly taking down Dennis Rommedahl's cross and showing nifty footwork to score. Gregory van der Wiel got their third, exchanging passes with Demy de Zeeuw en route to goal, and Suarez got a second in the last minute, van der Wiel turning provider. Graziano Pelle's overhead kick in stoppage time couldn't hide the beating his side had taken.
Twente still lead from PSV by two and both were 4-0 winners. Twente were already two up on Groningen before keeper Brian van Loo was sent off, a slight deflection aiding Miroslav Stoch's 25-yarder in the fifth minute and Dwight Tiendalli smashing one in on the counter from over 30 yards. Van Loo was bang to rights on the hour, doing a Toni Schumacher on Blaise N'Kufo, but the big Swiss striker picked himself up and smacked the penalty past sub keeper Luciano - top corner, you don't save those. Ten minutes from time, the brilliant Bryan Ruiz, who had been superb all afternoon, added a fourth, swooping on Tiendalli's mis-kick and holding off four defenders to turn, shoot and score. The official time for PSV's opener was 18 seconds, Balazs Dzsudzsak sliding in at the back post, and it was downhill from there for NEC. Jonathan Reis got the second, quickest to latch on to Danko Lazovic's air shot, Otman Bakkal had a tap-in four minutes after the break as Gabor Babos failed to hold Orlando Engelaar's long-range shot and Lazovic made it four from the penalty spot after a clumsy foul. Feyenoord only needed one goal to see off VVV Venlo, Denny Landzaat tapping in after Kevin Begois spilled a cross at his feet, and Utrecht won by the odd goal in three on Friday night. Bram Castro was in brilliant form in Roda's goal and pulled off save after save through the first half. Eventually, pressure told when Jacob Mulenga finally beat the inspired keeper two minutes from half-time. Castro was out of position having made two stops, but his defence couldn't clear and the ball was played square across to Mulenga who finally beat the Belgian stopper. He was unlucky again when Utrecht doubled their lead. Ricky van Wolfswinkel beat Castro, but hit the post. The ball came back to the striker and, with Castro off balance, slammed it in the opposite corner. Willem Janssen got one back in stopage time, showing great strength down on the bye-line to shrug off the defence and slot the ball home.
Waalwijk lost again and finished with ten men. Their defence is really, really terrible and it was basic failings that allowed Anthony Lurling to score after half an hour and the only surprise was that NAC didn't add to the lead. Gijs Luirink was sent off late on to compound the misery. They look down already. Heerenveen remain deep in trouble after a hammering from Willem II. After a goalless first half, Willem II opened up after the break and were in front three minutes after the restart through Sergio Zijler who took on half the Heerenveen defence before smacking it across goal and inside the far post. The floodgates opened. Caught in possession in midfield, Heerenveen backed away and the shot wasn't held and fell to Said Boutahar who made no mistake. A towering header from Michal Papadopoulos pulled one back, but the lead was back to two five minutes later, another shot not held and fell to Frank Demouge who buried it from 20 yards. Demouge made it four in the last minute as Heerenveen were opened up like a particularly compliant walnut.
Heracles move up to sixth with a win while Vitesse are still very hit and miss. Willy Overtoom put the Almelo side in front on the stroke of half-time, sliding in to meet a cross from the right. Sebastien Scheur sealed the win twelve from time with an excellent angled header. Erik Falkenburg's hat-trick won it for upwardly mobile Sparta against Den Haag who pegged the Rotterdammers back twice. Falkenburg's first came on eight minutes with a 20-yard piledriver. Danny Buijs equalised, slotting home off a n eat lay-off, but Falkenburg put his side back in front with a half-volley from 12 yards. It would be level at the break when Charlton Vincento was first to a bouncing ball in the Sparta box, but Falkenburg popped up in the last minute to win it. The Den Haag keeper's poor clearance was almost put in from near half way, but the keeper palmed it straight to Falkenburg who tapped in at the back post.
Friday, 23 October 2009
Ligue 1 round 10
Bordeaux v Le Mans
Grenoble v Nancy
Nice v Lyon
Sochaux v Lorient
St Etienne v Valenciennes
Boulogne v Monaco
Rennes v Montpellier
Lens v Toulouse
Auxerre v Lille
Marseille v PSG
Top game this week sees under-pressure Antoine Kombouare take his Parisians to arch-rivals Marseille. The club have brushed off suggestions that a win is a must for Kombouare to retain his job, but results have not been as good as those under Paul Le Guen. Marseille had a decent enough win in the Champions League in the week and they remain just three points off the lead. Lyon still lead and are at lowly Nice this weekend after a terrific win in Liverpool in midweek. Loic Remy apart, Nice are poor and Lyon should walk all over them. They're level on points with promoted Montpellier, the season's, the continent's surprise package. They face Rennes on Saturday and there's no reason why they can't go and register their seventh win. Bordeaux are still up there and, coming off a good win in Europe in a turbulent game (two red cards, two missed penalties, Michael Ciani scoring at both ends) and they're at home to Le Mans. Home win. Monaco too are going well and they face Boulogne, fading after an encouraging start.
Are Grenoble the worst team in Europe? If not, then they're one hell of a contender. Winless after nine, Nancy aim to make it a perfect ten. Lens are at home to Toulouse who look like they may have turned the corner with the win over PSG last week. Lille were superb in beating Genoa 3-0 in midweek and are also upwardly mobile, as are Auxerre and the two clash in what looks a tasty clash. St Etienne and Sochaux pulled away from immediate danger with wins last time out. Sochaux's new found ability will be tested by European hopefuls Lorient while Les Verts are at home to mid-table Valenciennes.
Grenoble v Nancy
Nice v Lyon
Sochaux v Lorient
St Etienne v Valenciennes
Boulogne v Monaco
Rennes v Montpellier
Lens v Toulouse
Auxerre v Lille
Marseille v PSG
Top game this week sees under-pressure Antoine Kombouare take his Parisians to arch-rivals Marseille. The club have brushed off suggestions that a win is a must for Kombouare to retain his job, but results have not been as good as those under Paul Le Guen. Marseille had a decent enough win in the Champions League in the week and they remain just three points off the lead. Lyon still lead and are at lowly Nice this weekend after a terrific win in Liverpool in midweek. Loic Remy apart, Nice are poor and Lyon should walk all over them. They're level on points with promoted Montpellier, the season's, the continent's surprise package. They face Rennes on Saturday and there's no reason why they can't go and register their seventh win. Bordeaux are still up there and, coming off a good win in Europe in a turbulent game (two red cards, two missed penalties, Michael Ciani scoring at both ends) and they're at home to Le Mans. Home win. Monaco too are going well and they face Boulogne, fading after an encouraging start.
Are Grenoble the worst team in Europe? If not, then they're one hell of a contender. Winless after nine, Nancy aim to make it a perfect ten. Lens are at home to Toulouse who look like they may have turned the corner with the win over PSG last week. Lille were superb in beating Genoa 3-0 in midweek and are also upwardly mobile, as are Auxerre and the two clash in what looks a tasty clash. St Etienne and Sochaux pulled away from immediate danger with wins last time out. Sochaux's new found ability will be tested by European hopefuls Lorient while Les Verts are at home to mid-table Valenciennes.
Bundesliga round 10
Leverkusen v Dortmund
Bayern v Eintracht
Monchengladbach v Cologne
Mainz v Freiburg
Hannover v Stuttgart
Hoffenheim v Nurnberg
Hertha v Wolfsburg
Bochum v Bremen
Schalke v Hamburg
Top game this week sees second-placed Hamburg travelling to take on third-paced Schalke. This is a crucial time for Hamburg without their leading strikers. Always difficult to break down, they look like relying on 1-0s until the likes of Mladen Petric return to the fold. A single Markus Berg goal saw off Celtic in Glasgow on Thursday night and Ze Roberto was, yet again, outstanding. That screen he provides in front of the back four is crucial when you lack firepower up top and he's the main man again here. Schalke are hanging on in there, the on-field performances masking huge problems off it. They just keep winning with Jefferson Farfan playing the best football he's played since joining the club.
Champions Wolfsburg go to rock bottom Hertha with Armin Veh telling Grafite - sent off in the midweek draw with Besiktas - to take a week off to refocus. Obafemi Martins will start alongside the ever-brilliant Edin Dzeko instead of the Brazilian. Hertha are still laughably bad and lost again in midweek to similarly bad Heerenveen. They cannot buy a break at the moment and will lose this one barring something spectacular. Bremen have snuck up on the rails and should be too good for Bochum this weekend. Leverkusen continue to lead the way and they begun the round on Friday against Dortmund who are capable of turning in either great or rubbish performances. They won last time out, so we're due a shocker. Bayern, meanwhile, host Eintracht who are talking up their chances ahead of the game. The Bavarians will be without Franck Ribery for a month, the Frenchman also likely to miss the World Cup qualifying play-offs, while Arjen Robben is still a doubt. Luca Toni will continue to lumber about like a poorly co-ordinated giraffe alongside Mario Gomez.
Hoffenheim keep getting up with the leaders only to fall back again. This week they're at home to Nurnberg where three points is the only really acceptable outcome. There's a big game at the bottom between Gladbach and Cologne while Markus Babbel's latest test comes as Stuttgart go to Hannover who are always tricky, if limited, opponents. Two promoted clubs face off as well, Freiburg going to Mainz. Both have started well, Mainz moreso, and both sides will fancy their chances of a win to consolidate that early achievement. Home advantage to swing it.
Bayern v Eintracht
Monchengladbach v Cologne
Mainz v Freiburg
Hannover v Stuttgart
Hoffenheim v Nurnberg
Hertha v Wolfsburg
Bochum v Bremen
Schalke v Hamburg
Top game this week sees second-placed Hamburg travelling to take on third-paced Schalke. This is a crucial time for Hamburg without their leading strikers. Always difficult to break down, they look like relying on 1-0s until the likes of Mladen Petric return to the fold. A single Markus Berg goal saw off Celtic in Glasgow on Thursday night and Ze Roberto was, yet again, outstanding. That screen he provides in front of the back four is crucial when you lack firepower up top and he's the main man again here. Schalke are hanging on in there, the on-field performances masking huge problems off it. They just keep winning with Jefferson Farfan playing the best football he's played since joining the club.
Champions Wolfsburg go to rock bottom Hertha with Armin Veh telling Grafite - sent off in the midweek draw with Besiktas - to take a week off to refocus. Obafemi Martins will start alongside the ever-brilliant Edin Dzeko instead of the Brazilian. Hertha are still laughably bad and lost again in midweek to similarly bad Heerenveen. They cannot buy a break at the moment and will lose this one barring something spectacular. Bremen have snuck up on the rails and should be too good for Bochum this weekend. Leverkusen continue to lead the way and they begun the round on Friday against Dortmund who are capable of turning in either great or rubbish performances. They won last time out, so we're due a shocker. Bayern, meanwhile, host Eintracht who are talking up their chances ahead of the game. The Bavarians will be without Franck Ribery for a month, the Frenchman also likely to miss the World Cup qualifying play-offs, while Arjen Robben is still a doubt. Luca Toni will continue to lumber about like a poorly co-ordinated giraffe alongside Mario Gomez.
Hoffenheim keep getting up with the leaders only to fall back again. This week they're at home to Nurnberg where three points is the only really acceptable outcome. There's a big game at the bottom between Gladbach and Cologne while Markus Babbel's latest test comes as Stuttgart go to Hannover who are always tricky, if limited, opponents. Two promoted clubs face off as well, Freiburg going to Mainz. Both have started well, Mainz moreso, and both sides will fancy their chances of a win to consolidate that early achievement. Home advantage to swing it.
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