European Football team competitions 2016/17

[stattointhailand]

The manager shouldn't have to Pep them up for it

If they don't progress I suppose it will be because they put in a Hartless performance :-"

I khun see citeh running out easy winners

Stones cold certainty really

[mathusalah80]

The manager shouldn't have to Pep them up for it

If they don't progress I suppose it will be because they put in a Hartless performance :-"

I khun see citeh running out easy winners

Stones cold certainty really

Your humour is deteriorating markedly!

[Zidane]

Steau Bucharest 0 Manchester City 5
Aguero scores a hat trick and misses two penalties !
Why did we ever worry ?

[BobHelm]

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Tricky game away?? Pah, what do I know...
Aguero scored a hat trick, but failed to convert from either of 2 penalties.. Hardly worth turning up for the second leg..
The rest of the legs all nicely balanced..

Good luck to Celtic & hope that Dundalk can set up a base for the away leg..

[stattointhailand]

"I khun see citeh running out easy winners " :-"

with a lead like that they could even risk playing Joe Hart in the second leg

[BobHelm]

The hoops established a three nil lead by halftime. Then looked like having their usual dismal run by conceding 2 goals in 2 minutes just before the hour mark.
However they kept their nerve & scored a couple more themselves as the game wore on.
This should be enogh to see them through to the group stages, but they are going to be a welcomed opponent, rather than a feared one, there.
the Dundalk adventure into Champions' League looks like it is finished - with a penalty & a way into injury time second.

Hammers away tonight - good luck!!

[BobHelm]

An OK result for the Hammers.
Astra Giurgiu will need to come & score in order to stay in the competition - which is usually good for the home side..

[BobHelm]

First lot of the second legs tonight.
Celtic should progress - although their away form in Europe for the last few years makes nothing certain.
Dundalk probably have a mountain too high to climb..

[BobHelm]

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Well, after scoring 5 goals at home, Celtic just about get through!! I think most of the contenders will be happy to see The Hoops drawn in their group..
Dundalk put up a spirited show but the poor home game had let them down..
Elsewhere both Roma & Villarreal go out..

A stroll in the park for Citi tonight?? You would think so if Pep puts anything like a full strength team out.

[stattointhailand]

Citeh's u18 would have been able to get the job done ...... they probably cost more than Steaua's first XI anyway

A great effort by little Dundalk. who lets not forget nearly went out of existence a couple of years ago with crowds of about 200 =D> To get a draw in Warsaw after beating Bate in the last round was far better than what was expected of them.

[BobHelm]

& at least Dundalk can now, possibly, cross swords with ManU in a favourable Europa Cup draw on Friday..

[stattointhailand]

Perhaps both Roma & Villarreal fancied their chances against Jose's boys

[BobHelm]

I have read a report of the Roma game.
They were 1 all after the away leg, but Porto were up in the game after 8 minutes.
Roma then had a man sent off either side of half time. Both were straight reds, although I have no idea what the offenses were.
Porto then scored a couple in 2 minutes against the 9 men towards the end to finish it off comfortably.

Roma are the third Serie A team in successive years to lose in the play-off round, leaving Juventus and Napoli to represent Italy in Thursday's group-stage draw.

Just following tradition it seems...

[BobHelm]

Job already done in the away leg by Citi so they just relaxed into the Group stages rather easily.
Anything but a comfortable night for Ajax though. Russian side Rostov gave them a real footballing lesson. All square after the first leg the Russian side blitzed into a 4 nil lead in just over an hour. Ajax only managed a goal, late on, from a penalty when the hosts had a man sent off.

Good luck to The Hammers tonight in what could be a tricky tie...

[BobHelm]

No joy for the Hammers as Astra Giurgiu knock them out of the Europa for the second successive season. I guess Bilic won't be too gutted if they go on to play in the league as they did last season. The rather lacklustre approach they should to the game will undoubtedly disappoint him though..

[BobHelm]

Meanwhile the draw to the main competition has taken place.

Group A: Paris St-Germain (France), Arsenal (England), Basel (Switzerland), Ludogorets (Bulgaria).

Group B: Benfica (Portugal), Napoli (Italy), Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine), Besiktas (Turkey).

Group C: Barcelona (Spain), Manchester City (England), Borussia Monchengladbach (Germany), Celtic (Scotland).

Group D: Bayern Munich (Germany), Atletico Madrid (Spain), PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Rostov (Russia).

Group E: CSKA Moscow (Russia), Bayer Leverkusen (Germany), Tottenham (England), Monaco (France).

Group F: Real Madrid (Spain), Borussia Dortmund (Germany), Sporting Lisbon (Portugal), Legia Warsaw (Poland).

Group G: Leicester City (England), Porto (Portugal), Club Brugge (Belgium), FC Copenhagen (Denmark).

Group H: Juventus (Italy), Sevilla (Spain), Lyon (France), Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia).

Really interesting group as Citi have to take on Barca, Borussia & Celtic. I know that I am usually pretty scathing about Celtic's European adventures, but this is about as terrible a draw for them as it is possible to imagine.
The Gunners have a tough task against PSG but should be fairly confident of sneaking through.
Spurs are in a Group where it is a bit difficult to see how it will go. If they play to the top of their last years' game then qualification should be theirs. However, every game also looks potentially tricky.
Leicester should be happy with the outcome of the draw. Whether they progress depends how well their rather small squad can manage Europe & the EPL at the same time..

[Zidane]

Certainly a good draw for Leicester and I would expect Citeh,Arsenal and The Spuds to progress from their groups.
Six good games for the Celtic fans to enjoy but that's about it !

[BobHelm]

Full draw:

Group A: Man Utd, Fenerbahce, Feyenoord, Zorya Luhansk

Group B: Olympiacos, Apoel Nicosia, Young Boys, Astana

Group C: Anderlecht, St Etienne, Mainz, Qabala

Group D: Zenit St Petersburg, AZ Alkmaar, Maccabi Tel-Aviv, Dundalk

Group E: Plzen, Roma, Austria Vienna, FC Astra Giurgiu

Group F: Athletic Bilbao, Genk, Rapid Vienna, Sassuolo

Group G: Ajax, Standard Liege, Celta Vigo, Panathinaikos

Group H: Shakhtar Donetsk, Braga, Gent, Konyaspor

Group I: Schalke 04, FC Red Bull Salzburg, Krasnodar, Nice

Group J: Fiorentina, PAOK Salonika, Liberec, Qarabag

Group K: Inter Milan, Sparta Prague, Southampton, Hapoel Beer Sheva

Group L: Villarreal, Steaua Bucharest, FC Zurich, Osmanlispor

[BobHelm]

Interesting move from Uefa.

Champions League: Europe's top four leagues to each get four group-stage spots

http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/37194666

Europe's top four domestic leagues are to be guaranteed four places each in the group stages of the Champions League from the 2018-19 season.

The current top four according to European governing body Uefa's rankings are Spain, Germany, England and Italy.

[BobHelm]