The 20th edition of the UEFA Champions League promises to be extremely exhilarating as the top 32 teams in Europe prepare themselves for the battle of strength, resilience, courage and grit. Who will emerge at Allianz Arena, come May 2012, your guess is as good as ours. TheHardTackle presents to you the match previews of Day 1.
Group A – Bayern Munich (Germany), Napoli (Italy), Manchester City (England), Villareal (Spain)
Manchester City vs Napoli – City of Manchester Stadium, 14th September, 2011
In this game between the debutants, Manchester start as favorites to draw first blood, solely based on their present form. They are off to a flying start in the domestic league, winning four games on the trot, having scored 17 goals in the period. The Citizens are yet to concede a goal at home and that gives a psychological edge to the side.
The team has an envious bench strength and will probably be called onto for the game against Napoli as both Barry and De Jong are unlikely to feature in the game. Dzeko, who had been rested in their last league game, is likely to start in a three-pronged attack as Mancini would like to attack right from the word go.
Their opponents, Napoli, had a dream season in Serie A 2010-2011 where they challenged for the top honors till the end. The good thing is that the team has kept its core intact and was also able to bring in Gokhan Inler and Goran Pandev to give the squad more depth. A comprehensive victory over Cesena over the weekend earmarked a good start to this campaign as well, proving that the pre-season thrashing to Barcelona in the Gamper Trophy was a mere blip. Ace playmaker Hamsik was in his menacing best in a cameo role and is expected to start in this very important tie.
THT Prediction: Manchester City 2-1 Napoli
THT Players To Watch Out For: Sergio Aguero (Man City), Marek Hamsik (Napoli)
Villareal vs Bayern Munich – Estadio El Madrigal, 14th September, 2011
The Yellow Submarines are not really going through a good phase of late. They have managed to win only a single game in the last five outings, which includes a 0-5 drubbing in the hands of Barcelona. Diego Lopez, who was sent off in the weekend fixture against Sevilla, is expected to come back into the side and so would Nilmar.
They can, however, take heart from the fact that Villareal have never lost against a German outfit in Europe, winning twice and sharing the honors once. They can also take inspirations from the fighting spirit they showed in the 2-2 draw against Sevilla where they had to play close to an hour with ten men.
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The favorites of the group, Bayern Munich, are going through a purple patch, winning all the last six games without conceding any, following an early hiccup against Borussia Mönchengladbach in the opening game of Bundesliga. Mario Gomez has again hit a rich vein of form, by bagging two hattricks in his kitty and even Ribery seems to have got his touch back.
Robben is expected to miss out this tie. Rafinha would make way for Van Buyten in defense, with Boateng moving to right and the Belgian taking Boateng’s place in the centre. Bayern does not have a good record against Spanish teams, away from home, losing nine out of 17 times. But the form they are in, they definitely start as favorites to seize the initiative.
THT Prediction: Villareal 1-2 Bayern Munich
THT Players To Watch Out For: Nilmar (Villareal), Mario Gomez (Bayern)
Group B – Inter (Italy), Lille (France), CSKA Moscow (Russia), Trabzonspor (Turkey)
Lille vs CSKA Moscow – Lille Métropole, 14th September, 2011
Defending Ligue 1 champions are presently standing at third spot in the domestic league. The Mastiffs are fresh from a resounding victory over St. Etienne, away from home. New signing Joe Cole hasn’t yet set the French football on fire, but the Lille wonder boy Eden Hazard has been unplayable over the last few games. Having scored a couple of beauties over the weekend, Hazard assures the club faithful of more to come. Lille have lost only once in the last five games and have won three out of the last three games, making them favorites against their Russian counterparts.
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CSKA are placed second in Russian Premier League, tied in points with toppers Zenit. The team is, though, going through a troubled time with only a solitary win in five games. To make matters worse, the Army Men were battered 0-4 at home by third placed Dinamo Moscow. They will be deprived off the services first team regulars Igor Akinfeev, Keisuke Honda and Tomáš Necid. New signing, Vladimir Gabulov is, however, ready to take field for the first time in his second spell at the club.
THT Prediction: Lille 1-0 CSKA
THT Players To Watch Out For: Eden Hazard (Lille), Vasili Berezutski (CSKA)
Internazionale vs Trabzonspor – Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, 14th September, 2011
In a bid to rescue some pride, Inter will probably go all out against little known Turkish outfit Trabzonspor, after an uninspiring loss at Palermo in the Serie A opener. Inter have won only once in their last five Champions League openers and have lost thrice in their last five competitive games.
Moreover, Chivu,Maicon, Motta and Viviano have been ruled out of the game. To add to that, new signing Diego Forlan will remain ineligible to play in the group stages with Inter. It is expected that Sneijder, who came from the bench in the 4-3 defeat against Palermo, will start with Milito up front.
Champions League debutant Trabzonspor have been held by Manisaspor in the Super Lig opener. The Black Sea Storm, who were the runners-up in the last year’s league, have not tasted defeat in their last five competitive games. The Claret-Blues will miss the services of attacking duo Burak Yilmaz and Adrian Mierzejewski through suspension.
However, the presence of Brazilian forward Paul Henrique, Halil Altintop, Marek Sapara, Róbert Vittek and Marek Čech and the way-ward form of Inter makes this contest an interesting one.
THT Prediction: Inter 3-0 Trabzonspor
THT Players To Watch Out For: Wesley Sneijder (Inter), Diego Milito (Inter)
Group C – Manchester United (England), Benfica (Portugal), FC Basel (Switzerland), Oţelul Galaţi (Romania)
Basel vs Oţelul Galaţi – St. Jakob-Park, 14th September, 2011
The Swiss team has just served fellow Swiss outfit Servette to a 4-0 defeat away from home in the Swiss Super League over the weekend. The team is not playing particularly well at this time, winning only twice in the last five games. Star playmaker Xherdan Shaqiri will miss the clash while serving a two-match ban.
Scott Chipperfield, Giles Yapi and Genseric Kusunga are all likely to miss out through injury. The RotBlau are set to make Champions League appearance for the fourth time in its history, a record for a Swiss club. They have met a Romanian outfit only twice in their Champions League history, against Cluj where the home teams made merry on each occasion.
Another Champions League debutant, defending Romanian champions are all set to make their appearance memorable. Last year, The Ironworkers went on to win their first ever domestic league title. The main problem the team has is the lack of experience. Sorin Frunza is the only player to have Champions League experience when he represented Unirea Urziceni a couple of season’s back.
With a powerhouse like Manchester United and Benfica to tackle with, it is highly unlikely that this team will qualify for the next round. Head coach Dorinel Munteanu is positive, though, and quite rightly so, “We go to Basel looking to get a point or points. It is difficult but not impossible. We hope to be a pleasant surprise in this group.”
THT Prediction: Basel 2-0 Oţelul
THT Players To Watch Out For: Granit Xhaka (Basel), Marius Pena (Oţelul)
Benfica vs Manchester United – Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica, 14th September, 2011
Benfica look all set to change the course of tide against Manchester United. The Portuguese side has lost six out of the last seven games against the English champions. The last time the two sides played, resulted in a 3-1 defeat of Benfica at Old Trafford. This time the Encarnados are in good form, having won four of their last five competitive games. A reassuring 2-1 victory over Vitoria Guimaraes, thanks to an Oscar Cardozo brace, has given the fans a reason to believe in their team’s capability.
Good news for them is Argentinian midfielder Enzo Pérez has started training with the sqaud and is in all likelihood expected to feature in the match. Saviola might just get the nod ahead of veteran star Aimar. Capdevilla has not even been included in the Champions League squad. Nolito, following his transfer from Barceolona, has scored five goals in his first five games, a feat shared only by Benfica legend Eusebio.
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The Red Devils started the season with a bang, having won each and every match they played in this season. They are off to a flying start in the English Premier League as well, winning all the four games played in the league. They have already scored 21 goals in the last five games. New comers Ashley Young and Phil Jones have had immense influence on the team’s performance, so had of the likes of Welbeck, Smalling and Cleverley.
Cleverley, though, has been sidelined with injury. And of course, fans’ favorite Wazza is enjoying the form of his life. In the pre-match briefing Sir Alex Ferguson has hinted of playing in a 4-3-3 formation and both Ryan Giggs and Dimitar Berbatov might start in this game. In all probability, Manchester United might just prove to be too strong for the Portuguese outfit.
THT Prediction: Benfica 0-1 Manchester United
THT Players To Watch Out For: Nolito (Benfica), Wayne Rooney (Man United)
Group D – Real Madrid (Spain), Ajax (The Netherlands), Lyon (France), Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia)
Dinamo Zagreb vs Real Madrid – Stadion Maksimir, 14th September, 2011
This is the centenary year of Dinamo Zagreb, having been founded in 26th April, 1911. The team is determined to make this a year to remember. The Blues have, though, lost three out of their last five competitive games. Dinamo does not have a great record against Spanish outfits, having won only once in ten meetings, with the only victory coming against Villareal in last season’s Europa League game.
Dinamo will be missing quite a few influential players in this game through injury which includes first team members Mehmed Alispahic, Arijan Adem and captain Igor Biscan. Ace defender Simunic and talented youngster Sime Vrsaljko are also set to miss the match as they serve suspension.
Their opponents, nine times champions Real Madrid, have got off to a flying start in the La Liga, having already scored ten goals in two games. Real Madrid have never bowed out of this tournament in the group stage. The two facts that make this game interesting is that one – Krunoslav Jurcic’s men have not yet lost at home this season, and two – in their only Croatian visit Real Madrid lost 3-1 to HNK Rijeka in 1984/1985 season.
Madrid are fresh from a stunning 4-2 victory over Getafe over the weekend are looking to start their quest for the trophy with a bang. Apart from newbies Altintop and Sahin, Kaka is set to miss the clash through injury. Khedira travelled with the team to Croatia but is unlikely to feature in this game. And even the manager, Jose Mourinho will be missed at the dug out as he serves a touchline ban.
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- Cristiano Ronaldo is in red hot form
THT Prediction: Dinamo 1-4 Real Madrid
THT Players To Watch Out For: Mesut Özil (Madrid), Cristiano Ronaldo (Madrid)
Ajax vs Lyon – Amsterdam Arena, 14th September, 2011
Under the guidance of Frank De Boer, Ajax, the four time European Champions, have been in sublime form so far in this season. The defending champions have not lost in this season. They have won four out of their last five games, including a comprehensive away victory over Heracles. Bruno Silva and Eyong Enoh are likely to miss this tie out injured. Sigthorsson could make his Champions League debut in this game as well. Both the sides know that this game will decide the second spot to qualify for the 2nd round.
Lyon, on the other hand, have gone past the group stage on every occasion since 2002-03. The team is placed 2nd in the French league, having remained unbeaten in five games, winning thrice. The team is fresh from an away victory over Dijon. The worry for Remi Garde’s team is that they will be missing several members of the side through injury. Lisandro Lopez, Gourcuff, Cris, Ederson, Tafer are all set to miss this all important clash. In a way, missing so many players might just cost Lyon this match as the Amsterdammers will also have the home advantage.
THT Prediction: Ajax 2-1 Lyon
THT Players To Watch Out For: Christian Eriksen (Ajax), Michel Bastos (Lyon)