It’s time for Rafa to dig himself out of yet another hole
Yesterday The Spoiler picked out a four-team accumulator and were just one goal away from celebrating a tidy £104.70 profit. With Liverpool a tasty 21/10 on 888sport to win away to Lyon tonight, we’re relying on Rafa’s knack of delivering results when they matter most to make us some money. Here’s why we’re trusting the Reds:
» No team has ever done the double over Liverpool in the Champions League group stage since Rafael Benitez arrived in 2004 and only one side - Benfica in 2006 - have beaten the Reds twice in the same season in the competition.
» Liverpool have won their last four Champions League games in France, beating Bordeaux, Toulouse and Marseille (twice).
» Lyon have triumphed in just four of their last 12 home matches in the competition and were beaten 2-0 by regular strugglers Sochaux the last time they stepped foot in the Stade Gerland.
Eight games across Europe on the gogglebox this evening, but surely none as critical as Liverpool’s home match with Lyon. Having finished third in le Championnat last season, OL are certainly are not the force they once were back in the days of Juninho, Florent Malouda and Michael Essien. Nevertheless they should have more than enough to trouble Liverpool’s back-line, with Lisandro Lopez (pictured) a particular threat. In the other Group E match, Fiorentina should just about see off Debrecen.
Home wins at the ready for Barcelona (Rubin Kazan) and Inter Milan (Dinamo Kiev) in Group F tonight, whilst Rangers must beat Unirea Urziceni to sustain their interest, at least for a few more weeks. Stuttgart vs Sevilla in that same group, should be a comfortable away win, leaving the Reds coach Markus Babbel in even more toil and trouble.
If you like to watch your contests unbalanced, whilst all the time being patronisingly told what great football you’re watching, AZ Alkmaar vs Arsenal is on Sky Sports Xtra. Olympiacos vs Standard Liege, the very definition of making up the numbers, is the final match of the night.
The latest transfer gossip, rumours and damned lies
Karim Benzema to Real Madrid
This whole Benzema thing is getting messy. His Lyon team-mate Miralem Pjanic claims he will join Manchester Utd, and Arsene Wenger is said to have expressed an interest, but according to this morning’s Marca, the young Frenchman will be anounced as a Real Madrid player in a matter of hours.
The Spoiler truth-o-meter: Madrid’s chief director Jorge Valdano has just ramped up the speculation by saying:
“We do not discard the possibility that in the next few hours, something could happen.”
If Lyon accept Los Blancos’ €35m-ish bid, this one is on.
Alexandre Pato to Chelsea
The Milan party line is that The Duck ain’t going nowhere, but according to La Gazzetta dello Sport, one of Roman Abramovich’s henchmen was spotted at Milan HQ yesterday. An improved bid of €60m could be on the cards.
The Spoiler truth-o-meter: It’s quite possible that the
Even more transfer gossip, rumours and damned lies
Karim Benzema to Manchester United
The French striker’s agent Karim Djaziri revealed that Sir Alex Ferguson wants to sign his client this summer. Just last week, Djaziri was quoted as saying that Benzema was happy to stay with the Ligue 1 club for another year.
The Spoiler Truth-o-meter: Djaziri doesn’t expect Lyon to demand more than 40 million euros but the French side are in a great bargaining position as they know that the Red Devils have plenty to spend and need a striker.
Michael Owen to Hull
Phil Brown has confirmed that he was deadly serious about trying to sign Owen after his Newcastle contract expires next week. He said: “Hopefully Michael
The latest transfer gossip, rumours and damned lies…
Karim Benzema to Manchester United
Lyon chairman Jean-Michel Aulas has conceded that while they don’t plan to sell Benzema this summer, they may receive an offer that is too good to turn down. Aulas explained his predicament with this rather wonderful analogy: “There is a tsunami called Real Madrid which provokes reactions at Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United.”
The Spoiler truth-o-meter: Sir Alex Ferguson has spoken of his admiration for the French striker before - comparing him to Zinedine Zidane - but he may delay a move until Carlos Tevez makes a decision on his future.
Jose Bosingwa to Bayern Munich
It looks like Chelsea are getting rid of one right-back who is good going forward but occasionally vulnerable defensively for another. Portsmouth have
Manchester Utd 2/ Inter Milan 0 (2-0 agg)
Thanks to an early effort from Nemanja Vidic and Ronaldo’s 49th minute header, we were spared the possibility of seeing a well-dressed Portuguese man sliding down the touchline in the dying minutes. Manchester Utd looked a tad shaky at times, but still completely unstoppable.
Roma 1/ Arsenal 0 (agg 1-1, Arsenal win 7-6 on pens)
Plenty of drama in the inhospitable surroundings of the Stadio Olympico last night, but a mixture of confidence and incredible luck has ensured the Gunners a place in the final eight.
Spoiler bonus: Highlights of Barcelona’s emphatic victory and Porto’s much less emphatic draw after the jump…
FIFA’s President is worried once more about English dominance
It’s rare for a Champions League round to go by without someone in a position of power complaining about how good the English teams are and Sepp Blatter decided it was his turn again last night.
He told the BBC: “It is taking over in such a manner that the other leagues have difficulties to match it.”
The Spoiler can’t remember such a big fuss being made when three Italian sides made the 2002-03 semi-finals and Juventus and AC Milan played out an unwatchable final. The statement also ignores the fact that as many Spanish teams have reached the final as English ones in the last nine years and as many Italian clubs have won it as Premier League sides over the last six.
Blatter also criticised the lack of competition in the Premier League
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