A Football Report

Match Recap

“It is never perfect but it was a very good, very strong performance. Our first half was excellent and then after a bit of a struggle at the start of the second half, Samir Nasri’s brilliant goal settled us down and we were comfortable winners.” - Arsene Wenger

Arsenal have overcome the odds and have booked a place for themselves in the quarterfinals. Nicklas Bendtner will make all the headlines as the hat-trick hero, but in all honesty it was a superb performance from the eleven men wearing the red jerseys tonight. Going into the game a goal down on aggregate, Arsenal claimed a 5-0 victory and the match-up finished 6-2 on aggregate. Arsene Wenger can only be overjoyed as his side, playing without their captain Cesc Fabregas, truly put on a show in North London tonight.

Samir Nasri had an individual effort that even Maradona would be proud of, as the Frenchman made it 3-0 by slicing through four Porto defenders in the 62nd minute. Just two and a half minutes later, Emmanuel Eboue made it 4-0 and made the Emirates erupt by rounding Helton (who was actually top-class tonight) and placing the ball into the back of the net.

Full Time. Arsenal win 5-0 over Porto.

90+1º Goal! Arsenal 5-0 Porto. Nicklas Bendtner steps up to take. And he grabs his hat-trick by placing his penalty perfectly to the left of Helton, who guessed correctly.

90º Porto fans look incredibly frustrated, as they should be. Fucile gives Arsenal a penalty by rolling over Eboue. Bendtner to take.

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Well this game certainly lived up to all the hype around it. Milan started and ended the match playing like the best team in the world, but United have completed a job well done. Like true professionals, United played to their strengths and reaped the rewards. Ronaldinho’s deflected volley broke the deadlock early on in the 3rd minute, and from then we all knew this match was sure to be a cracker. Milan went on to dominate early on, but Paul Scholes equalized with the luckiest goal he will ever score in the 36th minute. Ronaldinho and Rooney stole the show, but Beckham also had a solid performance.

We went into halftime all square, but United took the initiative in the second half as Wayne Rooney put his side on top with two world-class headers. Clarence Seedorf pulled his side back with five minutes left to play in regulation with a spectacular backheel from close range, but United are a goal up on aggregate going into the return leg at Old Trafford.  I’m going to go out on a limb by saying that game one won’t finish nil-nil…

By the way, Real Madrid will be disappointed as they head back to Spain as Lyon did well to defeat Manuel Pellegrino’s squad 1-0 at Stade Gerland. Jean Makoun scored a world-class goal from 25 yards out that just curled past a diving Iker Casillas. Champions League, we’ve missed you.

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Full-Time

What a match! Jose Mourinho’s Nerazzuri now have one hand clenched on the Scudetto. Inter came out the stronger side, earning a early goal from the boot of Diego Milito. Minutes later, Wesley Sneijder was sent off for sarcastically aplauding the referee. With a man advantage, AC Milan were able to fashion a few chances. The game shifted again on sixty-five minutes when Goran Pandev curled in a free-kick putting Inter up two nil. Up two goals, Inter were able to focus on possesion and defending. AC Milan had a golden chance in added time when Lucio handled the ball in the box. Lucio was sent off with his second yellow card of the night. Ronadinho struck his penalty well but fellow Brazilian international, Julio Cesar, did brilliantly to reject a consolation goal. Inter move nine points clear with three more point tonight despite ending the match with nine men.

~As It Happened~

92º - Lucio is deemed to of handballed a quick shot from Huntelaar. Penalty AC Milan! Lucio recieves his second yellow, the Brazilian defender is sent off! Ronaldinho steps up and strikes it powerfully but Julio Cesar gets across to his right to reject his compatriot as he has so many times tonight!

91º - Seedorf chips the ball for Huntelaar who strikes the ball on the volley. Julio Cesar does brilliant once again tonight.

89º - Balotelli wins a free-kick near the corner. Inter take it short as they try to run out the clock. Balotelli tries some great skill on Abate, a few stepovers followed by a cheeky elastico.

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Full Time: Bolton 0 - 2 Arsenal

Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas: “It’s always a difficult place to go, we know what we’ll get at Bolton, but we coped with it well and we’re proud of that. When I was younger the chances were not going in, but now they are and I hope it continues until the end of the season. I feel stronger and that helps. It’s important to win on Wednesday for the title race.”

Today was a prime example of how one man can make or break a team. Man of the Match Cesc Fabregas was brilliant, and his 28th minute goal pushed Arsenal to victory. On the other hand, Bolton’s strikers Matthew Taylor and Ivan Klasnic might as well have not showed up, as they wasted chance after chance after chance that the Bolton midfield did well to create. Bolton should have gotten themselves on the scoreboard, but Arsenal’s defence did play well. Fran Merida wrapped up the three points for the Gunners with an excellent finish. Owen Coyle’s home debut was not very fruitful, but then again Arsenal is a tough task for any manager. Arsene Wenger will be delighted with his youngsters, as Eastmond, Merida, and Vela all played well with some very physical play. Unfortunately for Owen Coyle, he now has to bring his squad to the Emirates next week for a make-up game.

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Milan dominated throughout the match with Ronaldinho, Pirlo and Beckham igniting the Rossoneri attack. Juve failed to get into a passing rhythm although they stood strong in the midfield. Nesta’s twenty-ninth minute goal put Juventus on the back-foot as Milan searched for a second. Ronaldinho’s first goal looked to have settled the match as Juve supporters started to file out of the Stadio Olimpico in Turin. On eighty-seven minutes, Ronaldinho slotted home his second of the match, putting Milan up 3-0. The remaining Juve fans had seen enough and showed their fury by burning their match programs and flags in the upper-terraces. Milan relished the result after the final whistle parading around the smoke-filled stadium. Milan are in spell of great form as they near the Milan derby on the twenty-forth of January.

Full-Time, Juventus 0, AC Milan 3

92º- Del Piero with his best free-kick of the match, forcing Dida into a good save. Milan clear the subsequent corner.

90º - Three minutes of added time -

87º - Goal!!! Juventus 0 - 3 Milan, Beckham’s corner finds Ronaldinho with space at the back-post. The Brazilian slots the ball across goal into the bottom corner.

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Full-time: Barcelona 1 - 2 Sevilla

So Sevilla will leave Camp Nou and the first leg of the Copa Del Rey quarterfinal against Barcelona with the clear advantage. Sevilla were not the better side today, but they won’t care as they go back to Andalucia. Diego Capel took the lead for Sevilla in the 60th minute before Ibrahimovic equalized in the 74th. With quite the lucky break, Alvaro Negredo capitalized on a penalty for Sevilla that really should not have been. This is another example of a scoreline that does not reflect a game, as Barcelona had more chances and were disallowed perfectly good goals from Bojan Krkic and Dani Alves. The referee might be the centre of attention for all the wrong reasons at the end of tonight, as he was atrocious. Thankfully this quarterfinal has a second leg that will played at Estadio Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán, so hopefully that game will determine a deserved winner. Sevilla did put in an admirable effort, and they probably deserved something from this game, but certainly not a victory. But isn’t that football?

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Full-time.

Well with Barcelona’s six trophies of 2009 on show at Camp Nou tonight, everyone Barcelona except the Villarreal players will go home disappointed tonight. Barcelona played well, and probably should have notched a couple more goals if it wasn’t for some poor finishing by Ibrahimovic and Henry. Barcelona’s best player, Lionel Messi, was given a rest tonight, but he definitely could have made a difference. Pedro, Messi’s replacement, did play very well, giving Barcelona an early lead. David Fuster grabbed the equalizer for Villarreal, capitalizing on one of the Yellow Submarines’ few chances.

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Full-time: Portsmouth 1 - 4 Arsenal

Eduardo put them ahead with a fortunate free-kick, but then Arsenal’s class took over with great goals from Samir Nasri, Aaron Ramsey, and Alex Song. Nadir Belhadj pulled one back for Portsmouth in the 74th minute, but it wasn’t nearly enough to match Arsenal on the day. Arsene Wenger will be pleased to get another three points, especially without his captain Cesc Fabregas. No one will have missed the Spanish midfielder today, as Song, Diaby, and Ramsey all had nearly sublime performances. Woe for Pompey to close out 2009, but only even more hope for Arsenal as they will push on optimistically.

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Full-time: Aston Villa 0 - 1 Liverpool

The whistle goes and Liverpool finish 2009 with a result that will bring encouragement to Rafa Benitez’s side and the Liverpool faithful. Martin O’Neill looks on the brink of tears, as do the lot of Villa fans. Liverpool did not deserve three points tonight, but good sides manage to find a way to win when seemingly impossible. Aston Villa had the better chances, and they looked the favourite to snatch a late winner at the end. But that is the beauty of football. On a snowy pitch, the unpredictability of the beautiful game was exemplified. Players like Brad Friedel, Richard Dunne, Gabriel Agbonlahor, and Stuart Downing gave admirable efforts tonight for the Villains, but in the end it was the spectacular Spaniard Fernando Torres, who scored his 50th Premier League goal tonight. None of those other 49 goals may prove to be more important than his injury time strike tonight.

93º GOAL!!! Aston Villa 0 - 1 Liverpool!! Torres steals three points for Liverpool! A crunching Villa tackle deflects the ball straight into Torres’ path, and the Liverpool striker does well to place his shot past Friedel into the side netting of the far post.

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Full Time: Two wins out of two for Mancini. 5 goals, none conceded. Mancini must be thinking that this Premier League gig is an easy one. Truth be told, 3-0 is incredibly flattering for City, as Wolves were up for the challenge until they went 2-0 down. Mick McCarthy won’t be happy to leave his fans empty-handed, but Wolves did all they could on the night. Tevez had the brace, and his exuberant class was apparent as his constant pressure was able to match the Wolves’ intensity.

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