Man United's Champions League Nightmare

Wolfsburg 3 Manchester United 2

Disaster in Germany as Manchester United crashed out of the Champions League as they were beaten by a vibrant Wolfsburg and will now enter the Europa League as the third placed team in their group.

Going to Germany with the majority of the first team under doctor's orders meant that van Gaal had to call on all his vast experience in European competitions to guide the Red Devils through the group stage. In the end ıt turned out to be not enough and wıth another poor showing from United they were resigned to the fact that they are just not good enough to feast at the table of the European elite.

The nineteen man squad had an unfamiliar ring to it with many players venturing into Europe for the first time in their fledgling United careers. Included in the mix was Nick Powell, who must have enjoyed being back in the fold for the first time in sixteen months.

The starting XI that van Gaal chose as the players to get the job done was as follows: De Gea, Darmian, Smalling, Blind, Varela, Schweinsteiger, Fellaini, Mata, Lingard, Memphis and Martial.

Varela was handed his first start for United at right back following his league debut as a substitute against West Ham at the weekend. Fellaini retained his place in the side despite a rather mixed performance on Saturday, but there was a return to the starting lineup for Memphis to once again try and warrant his place in the team.

United got the match underway inside a very noisy Volkswagen Arena.

The home side had a great chance as early as the third minute when former Chelsea player Schurrle found himself open inside the area, but he inexplicably fired his shot way over the bar. An early let-off for United and a sign that they were not going to get an easy ride.

United's first effort on goal came from a Mata shot which Fellaini got in the way of but luckily for him he was adjudged offside to spare his blushes.

The opening goal came on ten minutes when Mata was involved again as his defence-splitting pass fed Martial who confidently ran into the area and planted a shot past the keeper to give United the all important lead.

However, it was a lead that only lasted three minutes as the home side immediately attacked and were rewarded when Naldo got in front of the defenders to volley home the equaliser. A soft goal and a rare lack of concentration by the usually tight United defence.

Continue reading full article...

Manchester United Views is a Manchester United blog written by Miles Dunton, with lost of blog posts all about Manchester United. Check out his full blog at http://milesduntonmufc.blogspot.co.uk/.

Don't forget you can promote your own blog by submitting articles to the Football Blog Directory.

Arsene Wenger Demands UEFA Rule Change Over Drug Cheats

Arsenal FC manager Arsene Wenger recently went to the press calling UEFA to change their doping rules. Wenger claims that the regulations in place are not strong enough to deter players from cheating.

The outstanding coach has come out to speak against doping and had problems with UEFA’s ruling. UEFA claims that it cannot disqualify a team from participating in continental competitions not until when three or more players fail a drug test.

Wenger’s frustrations have come to the light the other day after Arijan Ademi, who plays for Croatian team Dinamo Zagreb was slapped with a four-year ban. The midfielder was part of the team that defeated the Gunners in the September Champions League match.

The Away Match Defeat

Dinamo Zagreb Fc managed by Zoran Mamic beat Arsenal FC 2-1 on their home turf Zagreb. 24th November things were different. However, Arsenal turned the tables on Dinamo Zagreb and bagged in 3-0, securing their way out of the group stage.

But before the match on Tuesday, Arsene Wenger held a talk with reporters on Monday morning. He confessed that he found the regulations to be very strange.

The new rules on the drug ban can be related to the changes in the betting world. In the past, profitable betting was a direct result from well calibrated successful betting strategies.

Arsene said that the rule was surprising. UEFA applied a rule that he didn't agree with whatsoever. Arsene Wenger is frustrated that UEFA is accepting doping, and since it's now a rule, all teams have to accept and abide by the law.

Acceptance and Moving On

The Frenchman (Wenger) ended his rant by saying that with the new rule, the Gunners have to evaluate its gameplay and deal with their performance. Re-evaluate they did and Tuesday night they overcame their away defeat and delivered a stunning 3-0 at Emirates Stadium.

In a nutshell, Arsene Wenger holds the belief that rules ought to be altered; he, however, admitted to not knowing the kind of backing he will receive after UEFA’s doping team graced Arsenal’s training. The anti-doping team visited the Gunners soon after Arsene Wenger criticised the new rule.

Arsene Wenger decreed that he didn’t have a clue whether he would gain support from anyone. Wenger however, said that right after expressing himself the doping control unit from UEFA visited them during the training session last Friday.

The Ten Man Squadron

The UEFA doping control unit that landed on Arsenal’s training ground was a ten-man strong squad. Arsene Wenger had a reason to be angry with the rule because its effect cost Arsenal to lose to the Croatian team in September.

He admits that Arsenal’s performance was not the best during the match and also the fact that the player was on drugs could have contributed to their defeat. Wenger cries that in the past, techniques such as random testing and banning of players found to have doped a better method.

Just like old doping methods, successful betting strategies are carefully chosen and executed, after considering various options to ensure profitable betting becomes a reality.

Despite Arsenal’s win on Tuesday night, their best betting strategies to win the Champions League are still sidetracked by the loss to injury of French midfielder Coquelin who is out of play for two months after suffering a knee injury.

Arsene Wenger is trying to keep everything in control despite the midfielder’s absence; he is sure that he has to fill in a player to hold off for the two months until Coquelin makes a full recovery and come back!

Writer: Tony Samboras is a huge football fan and sports journalist. He uses his knowledge to find out the best online free bets and capitalize from his analysis. Tony has had many articles published and lots of people follow him for free bets tips.

Dare To Zlatan? Part I

Dare To Zlatan? Part I

He started his career in Sweden at Malmo FF in the late 1990’s before being signed by Ajax where he made a name for himself under the current manager of Southampton Ronald Koeman. He later signed with Juventus for a fee of 16 million, and gained fame in Serie A by benefiting from his strike partnership with David Trezequet. In 2006, Ibrahimovic signed for rivals Internazionale, where he won individual awards including Oscar del Calcio and the Swedish Guldbollen, and was named in the 2007 and 2009 UEFA Team of the Year, in addition to finishing as the league’s highest goal scorer in 2008-09 while winning three straight Scudetti. In the summer of 2009, he transferred to Barcelona however his time at Camp Nou was short-lived. He decided to move back to the Serie A with A.C. Milan the following season, in a deal which made him one of the highest paid footballers in the world and cost the Italian club 24 million. He signed with Paris Saint-Germain in the July of 2012. His style of play has been compared to the Dutch legend Marco Van Basten, Ibrahimovic is one of the best finishers in the game and is regarded to be one of the best footballers of his generation. His spectacular bicycle kick for Sweden against England won the 2013 FIFA Puskas Award for the goal of the year. In December 2013, Ibrahimovic was ranked by the The Guardian as the third-best player in the world. In December 2014, Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter named Ibrahimovic the second-greatest Swedish sports-person of all time.

Zlatan's Facts

Fact No. 1: At the age of 15, Ibrahimović was close to quitting his football career, in favour of working at the docks in Malmö, but his manager convinced him to continue playing.^[17] His idol was Brazilian star Ronaldo when he was growing up. Fact No. 2: Met Friend and Team-Mate Maxwell on First Day in Amsterdam, Ibrahimovic had already agreed to move to Ajax from Malmo, but it was on his very first day in Amsterdam that he would meet 19-year-old Maxwell, and the two have been friends ever since. Both players were born in 1981, both now are in their 30s, they have played together at Ajax, Inter Milan, Barcelona and now at Paris Saint-Germain.

[Tweet "Do Think There Will Be Anyone Like Zlatan? Ever?"]

 Fact No. 3: The story behind the perfect goal. Just after the players celebrate, the camera cuts to Ajax midfielder, Rafael van der Vaart, sitting in the crowd, and he doesn’t look entirely pleased to see the Swede score the magnificent goal. Four days earlier, the Netherlands took on Sweden and moments before Ibrahimovic assisted a team-mate score for his country, he planted his foot on van der Vaart’s ankle, injuring the Dutchman, and started a feud that has lasted ever since. That is why the former Spurs midfielder doesn’t look entirely pleased when Ibrahimovic scores.

 


 Fact No. 4: After joining Ajax from Malmo, Ibrahimovic didn’t enjoy the best of times in his first season. The then-Ajax coach, Co Adriaanse, didn’t play Ibra very often and the Swede struggled to find his feet in Amsterdam. In a 2013 interview with the BBC, the striker revealed that Southampton tried to take him on loan, and it was something that Ajax were interested in allowing. Fact No. 5: Zlatan Takes Embarrasment on the Chin. Looking a frustrated and isolated figure upfront, Ibrahimovic tried to chase down the Lille defence, looking to force a mistake and create something for his team. Then it happened, the forward came rushing in and Chedjou, with the slightest of touches, nudged the ball in between Zlatan’s legs. What is even more brilliant about that moment is Zlatan’s reaction. A beaming wide smile appears on his face, he knows he has been done, but there is complete respect for what Chedjou has accomplished. He dared to Zlatan, and he won, well sort of.

 

 Fact No. 6: Ibrahimović was born in Sweden to a Bosnian Muslim father and a Croatian Catholic mother, who both immigrated to Sweden. Fact No. 7: Ibrahimović is fluent in Swedish, Bosnian, English, Spanish and Italian. Fact No. 8: Ibrahimović is the only player to have scored for six different clubs in the Champions League. Fact No. 9: Ibrahimović received an honorary black belt in taekwondo; he attended classes at the Malmö Taekwondo club Enighet as a child. Fact No. 10: He won a La Liga championship with F.C. Barcelona in 2009–10 and a Serie A championship with A.C. Milan in 2010–11. Special Fact: He loves kicking his team-mates!

 

Lastly make sure you check out Betfect.com, Betting Revolutionised!

  Image from: lepiquedudimanche.fr

Premier League Permutations

Has there ever been another season like this one? I stand to be corrected, but I cannot remember another season where the Premier League headed into the final round of fixtures with the title, two Champions League spots, 2 Europa League spots and one relegation place all still being fought over.

Some of the permutations are fairly simple. Others seem to conjure up so many different possibilities that it is hard to fathom, and thinking about it makes your head hurt and ears bleed.

The following is my attempt to make sense of all the different possibilities that we still find ourselves facing with only one set of fixtures to go.

Champions League: Good Times, Bad Times

Good Times
Chelsea: A convincing 3-0 win at home against non other than Valencia to send Abramovich's team through as group winners. The pressure was on Andre Villas-Boas and he delivered in style, and you can't ask for much more than that.

Basel: Not many teams will take Manchester United for 4 points from 2 games this season, and a record like that means they deserve their place in the illustrious knockout stages. Any team with ambitions of winning 'old big ears' should swot the Swiss team aside but with Shaqiri a constant livewire Basel could cause a few problems for someone.

Barcelona Reserves: They may 'only' have been playing lowly BATE but for a team with, at a rough count, 8 reserve/youth team players Barcelona were absolutely amazing to watch. They really did look like the full team which is a testament to the club's La Masia youth academy, oh and keep an eye out for Cuenca and Montoya among others.

Continued at http://www.resultsbasedbusiness.co.uk/