What Matches Do You Want To See In The Champions League Quarter-Finals?

8 Teams in the Champions League Quarter-Finals
Barcelona (Spain)
Real Madrid (Spain)
Manchester United (England)
Tottenham Hotspurs (England)
Chelsea (England)
Schalke 04 (Germany)
Inter Milan (Italy)
Shakhtar (Ukraine)


Our LIVE! coverage of the draw will begin at 11:30 CET, and we will have all the news, views and reactions you need. Our experts will breakdown each of the four quarter-final ties.

England fearing Barcelona but confident of dominating final four

Amar Singh, UK deputy editor, says: "This could be a vintage year for England, with three teams vying for Wembley. As long as the dreaded Barcelona or all-English tie are avoided, all three could make the semis.

"Manchester United are really starting to click up front with Rooney and Hernandez, Chelsea march onwards despite failing to dazzle but have the Carlo Ancelotti factor, and Tottenham's fearlessness and record in the previous rounds means they can't be underestimated."

pain wishing for Clasico final: 'We have the two best teams'

"A Clasico in the Champions League final - that's the dream of everyone in Spain, from fans to media, from players to managers," says Spanish chief editor Sergio Aguilera.

"Real Madrid overcame their Round of 16 curse in style by thrashing Lyon, and Barcelona's victory over Arsenal was nothing short of sensational. Clearly, both teams are real candidates to reach the final. I'd say that both squads must be treated as serious rivals, and between them they are the teams everyone will want to avoid when the big draw comes this Friday."

Italy surprised to remain, but maintaining champion spirit

Sergio Chesi, Italian editor at Goal.com, says: "It's a bit of a surprise for we Italians that we're even in the draw. After the first leg we were certain that all of our teams would go out, but Inter went on to show all of Europe exactly why they are reigning champions.

Germany desperate for easy Schalke draw after Bayern failure
"Of course, they want to avoid Barcelona. Despite having goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, otherwise Schalke are too weak defensively to deal with the favourites. Chelsea and United are also a danger, so fans generally want to see Shakhtar, the other 'underdog' remaining. Real Madrid and Inter would be difficult but special: Mesut Ozil would face the club that chased him away, while fans haven't forgotten the UEFA Cup showdown with the Nerazzurri in 1997... although a repeat of that would be too much to ask."



Ukraine warn big guns to watch out for rampant Shakhtar

"Shakhtar are on a mission: they look to be en route to beat hated rivals Dynamo Kiev domestically but they are yet to match their Champions League feats," notes Michael Yokhin, Goal.com's Eastern Europe expert.


source: Goal.com 

If Real Madrid Don't Win All Their Games, Will Jose Mourinho stay or go???

Even the great one Jose Mourinho isn't immune from the ruthless daggers that are constantly hovering around the Santiago Bernabeu dugout.

There's much uncertainty about Mourinho's future at Real Madrid. Is he really happy in the Spanish capital under the watchful eyes of Florentino Perez and Jorge Valdano? Will he be given the sack if he doesn't deliver trophies this season? Will he see out his four-year contract?

The 'Special One' has made it clear that he will stay on and respect his agreement with the club, provided his bosses do not give him the sack. But there are other factors to consider, such as his on-going relationship with the hierarchy.

The internal spat between Mourinho and club director-general Jorge Valdano has died down in recent months, but the volatile Portuguese tactician is someone who lives and die by the motto "my way or the highway".

If all goes swimmingly in the boardroom, Mourinho is likely to stay until he guides the club to success, or until he dethrones Barcelona... whichever comes first. Therein, however, lies the problem.

Things rarely go swimmingly at the 'Casa Blanca' when they are not winning. The smallest fall-outs after a catastrophic result tends to turn into full blown crises for months on end. And the next seven days could go a long way to determine Jose's fate at the club.

source: KS Leong, Goal.com 

Raúl González - the Alive Legend of Real Madrid

Name: Raúl González Blanco

Club: Schalke 04

Position: Striker

Nationality: Spain

Date of Birth: 27 June 1977

Height: 178 cm

Awards: a three-time UEFA Club Football Best Forward Award winner and a two-time Champions League Golden Boot winner

Strengths: Extremely clever, Raul's intelligence sees him get away from his marker and create space well. His finishing touch in the box is second to none.

Weaknesses: Lacks pace and strength, and age is catching up with him to make these issues even more apparent.

Club Career

Raúl is a product of Atletico Madrid’s youth system but was picked up by Real Madrid in 1992/93.  Jorge Valdano tabbed Raúl for first team duty when he was only 17, thus becoming the youngest player ever to wear a Real Madrid shirt.

1994-2010

The Real Madrid captain has scored over 190 goals in close to 500 games in 14 seasons in La Liga, numbers that don’t just highlight his tremendous talent, but also establish him as one of the best Spanish players ever to play the game. His acute goal-scoring instinct has earned him the Pichichi Trophy in 1999 (25 goals in 37 games) and 2001 (24 goals in 36 games).

Raúl was a key player in Real Madrid's last six big titles, three European Championships (1998, 2000 and 2002) and three National Championships (1999, 2001 and 2003). Raúl took over the captaincy of Real Madrid when Fernando Hierro was transferred in 2003, a responsibility he held until leaving the club in 2010. Unusually for such a successful and long-serving player, and despite appearing in two finals, 2002 (in which he scored) and 2004, Raúl never lifted the Copa del Rey (Spanish Cup).

Raúl and fellow long-serving teammate Iker Casillas were both awarded a 'contract for life' in 2008 – the terms of which stipulate that it will be renewed annually for as long as they play 30 games per season.[13] On 23 September 2009, Raúl equaled former veteran and legend Manolo Sanchís' league appearance record for Real Madrid, and is second in La Liga behind Andoni Zubizarreta who played 622 games.

Ever since, he has been under heavy criticism by the media and part of the supporters because of his poor performances .  Real Madrid struggled to win a title in Spain and in European Championships, with no success in either of them.

Having spent the rest of the 09/10 season recovering from that injury, At the age of 33, he chose to continue his career in. Although new coach Jose Mourinho wanted Raúl to continue, Raúl did not want to spend another season as third or fourth choice striker.

He left Real Madrid on 25 July 2010, having scored 323 goals in 741 appearances. He is a true Madrid legend.

2010-Present

Raúl signed a two-year contract with FC Schalke 04 on 28 July 2010.

After a quiet start he has rediscovered his goal scoring form in the Bundesliga with a brace against St. Pauli in November 2010 in a 3–0 win, and later he scored his first hat-trick for the club in a 4–0 win over Werder Bremen.

New Star as Goalkeeper

Now, Arsenal and Man Utd are looking for the new goalkeeper as their present ones, Van der Sar & Manuel Almunia, will be retired sooner.  And here I've the brand new goalkeeper from Soccer Club Riverball, Finnland to recommend. (When I saw the video and considered his soccer skill, I wondered myself whether his positioning is goalkeeper or midfield!)

Abramovich ready to turn to Hiddink

ESPNsoccernet understands Roman Abramovich is lining up Turkey coach Guus Hiddink to replace Carlo Ancelotti in the Chelsea hotseat, should the Italian fail to deliver the Champions League this season.

Ancelotti has endured a torrid few months at Stamford Bridge, overseeing the Blues' elimination from the Carling Cup, FA Cup and Premier League title race.

Pressure is mounting on the former AC Milan boss, despite the fact he delivered the club their first ever Double last season, and it is thought that winning the European Cup at Wembley in May is the only thing that will save him from the sack.

Should Ancelotti not guide the Blues to Champions League glory, Abramovich is ready to wield the axe and re-appoint Dutchman Hiddink, who won the FA Cup with Chelsea during a successful three-month spell with the club as caretaker manager in 2009.

An ESPNsoccernet source confirmed: "If Abramovich does decide to dispense with Ancelotti then the manager he will try for first will be Hiddink."

The Champions League has continued to prove elusive for Abramovich and it appears Ancelotti is faced with a simple ultimatum: deliver the Russian billionaire his holy grail or find a new job.

But if Chelsea continue to flounder in the league despite their owner investing a cool £75 million in Fernando Torres and David Luiz, the big question is whether he can gamble on winning the Champions League to qualify again for it next season.

He may be tempted to act now to stop the rot, as chances are running out for the under-fire Ancelotti, and it would be cost-effective to buy Hiddink out of the remainder of his contract with Turkey, which runs out next summer.

source: ESPN (soccernet.com)

Gangers: Messi vs. Zidane

Funny video with Messi vs Zidane gang!

Brazil Ronaldo Retires At The Age Of 34

Ronaldo has confirmed that he will announce his retirement on Monday, calling time on a rich and unforgettable career in football. 

The legendary striker, currently with Corinthians, has cited injury and fitness concerns as the reason for his bowing out months before his final contract was due to expire. 

"My body aches. In my head I want to continue, but this body can't take much more," Ronaldo told Fantastico online magazine. "In recent days I have cried like a baby."

The forward has spent the last two years at Corinthians after a glorious spell in Europe with PSV Eindhoven, Barcelona,Inter, Real Madrid and AC Milan.

His one season at Camp Nou is frequently cited as one of the greatest individual campaigns in footballing history, while his spells at San Siro and the Bernabeu were no less eventful.


Meanwhile Ronaldo is also widely regarded as one of Brazil's greatest ever players. He is the World Cup's all-time leading goalscorer, with 15 goals in four tournament appearances - two of which the Selecao would win.

Nonetheless, with Corinthians being eliminated from the Copa Libertadores early, and his physical condition preventing a consistent run in the Timao line-up, Ronaldo has now called it a day.

He will formally end his career at a press conference at Corinthians headquarters at 12:40pm local time.
source: Goal.com