Champions League: Quarter Final, 2nd Leg - Apr 8 / 9
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Champions League: Quarter Final, Leg 2
Tuesday, 08 April 2008
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Liverpool v Arsenal - (agg 1-1)
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Chelsea v Fenerbahce - (agg 1-2)
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Wednesday, 09 April 2008
- Man Utd v Roma - (agg 2-0)
- Barcelona v Schalke 04 - (agg 1-0)
Match on Tv:
Tuesday, 08 April 2008
Channel 23 - ESPN.
Liverpool v Arsenal - 02:45 AM - (Live) - (Wed Morning)
Channel 24 - Star Sports.
Chelsea v Fenerbahce - 02:45 AM - (Live) - (Wed Morning)
Wednesday 09 April 2008
Channel 23 - ESPN.
Man Utd v Roma - 2:45 AM - (Live) - (Thur Morning)
Channel 24 - Star Sports.
Barcelona v Schalke 04 - 2:45 AM - (Live) - (Thur Morning)
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DIRK KUYT has warned Arsenal to prepare for Champions League misery at fortress Anfield.
The Dutchman's crucial away goal secured Liverpool a 1-1 draw in last night's Champions League quarter-final first leg at the Emirates.
The Gunners now face a daunting trip to Merseyside, where the Reds have been so dominant in Europe in recent years. And Kuyt said: "Everyone knows what European nights are like at Anfield. "Everyone knows what we've done there over the last few years. Hopefully the same will happen next week and we'll get into the semi-finals.
"It was a really important goal we got because Arsenal played really well. We did everything we could. We wanted to score and we did. "We got straight back into the game after they scored and had a few other chances from corner kicks. "They have a great side but we're playing at Anfield and we've shown we can do special things there."
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Arsenal ready for Anfield
ARSENAL remain confident that they can stun Anfield to reach the Champions League semi-finals. The Gunners were held to a 1-1 draw at the Emirates last night after Dirk Kuyt grabbed a crucial away goal.
Liverpool are renowned for their European triumphs at home but Arsenal believe they can rip up the formbook. Skipper William Gallas said: "We know that it will be difficult. "We know that they will be strong and we know the supporters will be behind them, so that will be the opportunity to show everybody how good we can be."
Cesc Fabregas added: "There are still 90 minutes to play. "We know what we can do and we know what it is to play at Anfield. "It will be tough, it will be difficult but the pressure is still there for both of us."
And Theo Walcott is relishing Arsenal's role as the underdogs. He said: "People can say that Liverpool are favourites. "That is a good thing really. We can just concentrate on ourselves and they can have all the pressure.
"We will take the positives out of this game, look at Liverpool’s negatives and see where it takes us. I think we will go there, play our football and get a goal."
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We won at Milan, so let's do the same at Anfield, says Gallas
Silencing the San Siro is no mean feat, but skipper William Gallas admits Arsenal may have to outdo their stunning performance against AC Milan if they are to reach the Champions League semi-finals.
European nights at Anfield are, of course, the stuff of legend and no place for the faint-hearted. And with Liverpool holding the slender advantage of an away goal after Wednesday's 1-1 first-leg draw, Gallas is under no illusions about the difficulty of the task in hand.
How will it compare to last month's game at the San Siro, where Arsenal triumphed 2-0 after being held to a goalless draw at home? 'We have to do that again, maybe more,' said Gallas. 'It will be different because AC Milan don't play the same style of football as Liverpool.
'We played at a very high tempo against Milan but against Liverpool it will be difficult because they play a game like this every weekend. They will be ready.
'We have been good all season and if we win at Anfield it will be excellent because getting to the Champions League semi-finals would be better than last season.'
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WILLIAM GALLAS admits Arsenal must scale new heights if they are to keep their Champions League dream alive. The Gunners skipper claims nothing but the best performance of the season at Liverpool next week will be do. Even boss Arsene Wenger believes his nervy kids lost their bottle when the going got tough on Wednesday and as a result they are heading out of Europe unless they rediscover an iron-will.
Gallas has been accused of lacking the mental toughness to lead, but insists he is ready for the second-leg on Tuesday and reckons it will be a true test of his mettle. Liverpool shade it on points at present with a precious away goal after the 1-1 draw at the Emirates.
But next Tuesday’s must-win match at Anfield must be the San Siro and the Reebok rolled into one.
Wenger: We're clapped out
Gallas said: “We do not want to give up until the end. We have a chance to score there and we have to be strong. “We can do it, but we know it will be difficult. They will have their supporters behind them. At Anfield, it is difficult to play there. “We have to enjoy it and play our football. All the boys are ready for the big fight.”
Wenger admits his players were ’clapped out’ by the blow of Liverpool’s equaliser. He said: “It was like a thunderstorm going through my team and we lost our nerve and composure.” Wenger was unusually scathing about his team, revealing his youngsters are prone to the jitters.
Yet he insists his team is still favourite to go through to the last four. The players who tore Bolton to shreds and won there for the first time in six seasons last weekend faded when it mattered in the one competition in which the Gunners have a real chance of glory.
Arsenal have a chance to strike back with a morale-boosting win over Liverpool back at home tomorrow. Gallas, who has already lost twice at Anfield as Arsenal skipper, said: “We know it may be more difficult in the Premier League. We have to win every game and that’s not easy.”
Wenger also has fresh injury concerns over striker Robin van Persie at a time when his defence has already been reshuffled because of problems with right-back Bakary Sagna. Van Persie came off on Wednesday with a muscular problem and faces a battle to be fit for tomorrow’s game.
Striker Emmanuel Adebayor said: “Why can’t we do it? People said we could never win in Milan, but we did it. “We will just keep on doing what we do, keep our focus and we are sure we can do something there. “We have drawn and we know it is going to be very tough up at Anfield. “They defend very well and have a good squad. But we have to keep our confidence high and do what we have to do.
“We know we have quality and the mental strength to come back and win at Anfield. “We did well against Milan, now it is another challenge at Liverpool. “We just have to believe in ourselves and play our football. “At the beginning of the season, a lot of people had written us off. “This season with what we have shown, it would be very good if we could win something, and a shame if we could not win anything this year.
“There is still one month to go, we have a quality squad and we are going to put our hearts into the game. “I went a month without scoring, but as a striker the most important thing is to keep on going. Adebayor admits he feels the strain of leading the line without Van Persie and Eduardo.
He said: “Whenever the boss has asked me to do something, I have done it. I am here to play football. “For me the most important thing is to keep on going, but as a human being if you need a break you have to take it.”
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WENGER WANTS QUICK RECOVERY
Arsene Wenger accepts his Arsenal squad must now dig deep to "recover physically and mentally" for the Champions League trip to Anfield, where their European dreams will be on the line.
The Gunners saw their Barclays Premier League title hopes suffer a setback on Saturday following a 1-1 draw with the Reds.
While there are still key battles between the top three sides still to come, Wenger's men now trail leaders Manchester United by six points - and travel to Old Trafford for their next domestic fixture.
By then, of course, Arsenal will know their fate in Europe and whether or not they remain on course for the Champions League final in Moscow.
With the tie delicately poised at 1-1 following the first leg at the Emirates Stadium last Wednesday night, it is all set up to be a fascinating encounter on Merseyside.
Wenger insists his team will "go for it" in what will be a third meeting with Rafael Benitez's men in the space of a week, which will take another Herculean effort from a squad already stretched to the limit.
"Now we need to recover - recover physically and mentally because the players gave everything against Liverpool on Saturday," the Arsenal manager said.
"However, we have enough resources to qualify on Tuesday night."
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FENERBAHCE star Deivid has taunted Chelsea by telling them: Money can’t buy you the Champions League.
The Brazil midfielder scored a stunning winner against the Blues in the first leg of their quarter-final tie in Istanbul last week. And Deivid warned that there will be even more Turkish delight at Stamford Bridge tomorrow when the two sides meet again.
Roman Abramovich has spent more than £350million on players since taking over the club but Deivid claimed that it will count for nothing. He said: “In football, names and money don’t win games. You have to go out there and play, 11 against 11. Money buys players, but doesn’t build teams. We will play until the death and the better side on that specific night will be in the semi-finals.”
It was his 85th-minute wonder goal which turned the tie on its head after he had put into his own net to give Chelsea the lead in Istanbul. And the Brazil ace rubbed salt into the Blues’ wounds when he revealed that former Chelsea striker Mateja Kezman had told the Fenerbahce players that Carlo Cudicini is dodgy at certain shots.
Deivid said: “Before the game I spoke to Kezman and he told me their keeper would have problems if we shot and the ball curled away from his position. “He told me he used to stay stepping over the goalline, so he had difficulties to react when the ball went too far from him. “That is what I tried but I never imagined the ball would go where it went — though I think Cech wouldn’t have been able to save it either!”
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Moment of truth for Benítez and Wenger
'I spent 20 years at Real Madrid and second is no good'
Rafael Benítez
Delirium or despair awaits Anfield tonight but Rafael Benítez has insisted that his Liverpool reign cannot be judged on the Champions League quarter-final with Arsenal. In an appeal for reason from the club's owners yesterday, the manager claimed that his long-term plan would reap further reward regardless of the outcome against Arsène Wenger's team.
Liverpool may hold a slender advantage in the second leg, courtesy of Dirk Kuyt's away goal at the Emirates Stadium last Wednesday, but it is Wenger who retains the unswerving faith of his boardroom despite the prospect of a third trophyless season. By contrast Benítez is planning for next season against a backdrop of uncertainty, with Tom Hicks, George Gillett and Dubai International Capital all vying for control of Liverpool and with only Hicks a confirmed supporter of the Spaniard.
Having been roundly criticised for another disappointing league campaign, Benítez wants another Champions League success to help him develop a winning mentality at Anfield, but he does not regard victory tonight as essential to the overall success of his reign.
"It is not easy when you talk about the Champions League and the money involved to be calm and to see the bigger picture, but as a professional you need to know it is not just one game that determines the idea and the future," the Liverpool manager said. "You need to have a long-term idea. That is quite important. To be here [in the quarter-finals] means we are doing something well and it shows we are going in the right direction.
"We need to be more consistent in the Premier League but now the team is ready to play for another big trophy, and I am not the kind of manager who will change his opinion on the basis of one game. As a manager you must be consistent in your plan. If you look at the young players coming through and our record over the last four years in the Champions League you must see we are going in the right direction, and one game will not change my idea on that. If we beat Arsenal it will be easier, because everyone will agree you are going the right way, but if we lose they will say it's not the right way. What is important as a manager is that you keep to your plan for the future."
Benítez accepts that both he and Wenger are under pressure tonight but has emphasised his appetite for victory, whetted by 20 years in the employ of Real Madrid. "I am under pressure because I want to win a trophy, not to prove to people we are doing the right thing," he stated. "It is normal, after a lot of years competing for trophies. I was 10 years as a player and 10 years as a coach in the Real Madrid system and to finish second is not enough. So I have this mentality, it's my background. It is why I like to play these kind of games. Ask my wife what kind of loser I am. She always says that I never let the children [daughters Claudia and Agatha] win at anything. Sometimes I might let the little one win, but not the older one."
The Liverpool manager dismissed the idea that Arsenal's relative youth was a disadvantage. "I don't agree with this," he said. "Manuel Almunia is not young, Kolo Touré is not young, Emmanuel Adebayor is not young, Alexander Hleb is not young. You can talk about Theo Walcott but Cesc Fábregas has played four years at the maximum level. Two or three years ago I could agree with that but not now. They were in the Champions League final two years ago and they have experience of playing in massive competitions."
Benítez is also wary of the favourites' mantle Liverpool acquired with their first-leg draw in north London and Kuyt's away goal. "We are in a good moment but I have told the players to be careful. Arsenal usually score goals away. We need to win. I'm not thinking that 0-0 would be fantastic. At the end I might say "fantastic" but we need to score and win."
'If I didn't believe we could win I wouldn't be here'
Arsène Wenger
Arsène Wenger defiantly insisted last night that Arsenal's season is building to a glorious finale rather than unravelling. The Frenchman is confident that his side will not only secure the club's first European Cup but will recover in the Premier League to claim the title.
Arsenal may have won only two of their past 11 games in all competitions, a five-point lead in the league transformed into a six-point deficit in the process, but Wenger cited Manchester United's inability to win at Middlesbrough on Sunday as grounds for optimism. His conviction that his team can prevail at Liverpool tonight and move into the semi-finals of the Champions League remains unswerving, with dreams of a double retained.
"I still believe we will finish as champions in this league," said Wenger. "The result at Middlesbrough helped a lot. If United had won, I'd have thought we couldn't [win the league] but, now, I still believe we'll do it. And if I didn't believe we could win the Champions League I wouldn't be sitting here.
"We feel as well that we dropped a few points but we've been consistent since the beginning of the season in the league, so it's possible we can win the last five games. I said we needed five wins and one draw before the Liverpool game on Saturday so, now, it is compulsory that we win at Old Trafford [on Sunday].
"And, as for the Champions League, we have belief we can win everywhere in the world. Statistically, it will not always go as well for Liverpool in this competition. It will not always work for them just like it has before."
Wenger, who may have lost Tomas Rosicky to a hamstring complaint until next season, was pointedly bullish last night, his desire to claim a first trophy since 2005 undiminished. "In many ways I'm becoming physically agitated [on the touchline] more because I want to score the goals rather than because I'm really nervous," he added. "I've had periods this season when I've been nervous or angry, but now I want to help the team.
"We fight very hard, battle very hard to get back into games, but we miss just a fraction in the final third. We'll need a similar spirit to the game against Milan [won 2-0 at San Siro] and we'll have to go into the game with the same positive attitude. Liverpool will do that as well. Both these teams are under pressure, but that's normal. This will be exciting."
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chelsea will win 2-0
pool will win 1-1
United will win 3-1 or 1-0
schalke will be the underdogs, 2-0 to them
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Liverpool 4 - 2 Arsenal (agg 5-3)
Fabregas can't reach Hyypia's powerful header.
Liverpool set up another Champions League semi-final with Chelsea after a stunning late win over Arsenal.
Abou Diaby put Arsenal into an early lead but Sami Hyypia lost Phillipe Senderos to head an equaliser.
Fernando Torres looked to have settled it when he scored in the top corner, but a superb Theo Walcott run allowed Emmanuel Adebayor to tap in for Arsenal
But Kolo Toure fouled Ryan Babel and Gerrard held his nerve from the spot, before Babel broke to add a fourth.
A packed Anfield almost witnesses another goal but Emmanuel Adebayor steers the ball wide with just Pepe Reina to beat.
He makes amends in the 84th minute though, sidefooting home after a brilliant run and cross from substitute Theo Walcott.
Thoughts of an away goals victory are snuffed out almost immediately as Kolo Toure concedes a penalty and Gerrard converts.
With time almost up, Ryan Babel holds off Cesc Fabregas before scoring another as Liverpool win a thrilling tie 5-3 on aggregate.
It was a cruel exit for Arsenal but there was no denying it was Liverpool's night.
They will face Chelsea in the final four for the third time in four years when the two sides meet on the week beginning 21 April and 28 April.
Pool to play the first leg at home follow by the second leg at Stamford Bridge.
Liverpool: Reina, Carragher, Skrtel, Hyypia, Aurelio, Gerrard, Alonso, Mascherano, Kuyt (Arbeloa 90), Torres (Riise 87), Crouch (Babel 78).
Subs Not Used: Itandje, Voronin, Benayoun, Lucas.Goals: Hyypia 30, Torres 69, Gerrard 86 pen, Babel 90.
Arsenal: Almunia, Toure, Gallas, Senderos, Clichy, Eboue (Walcott 72), Flamini (Silva 42), Fabregas, Diaby (Van Persie 72), Hleb, Adebayor.
Subs Not Used: Lehmann, Song Billong, Bendtner, Justin Hoyte.Booked: Senderos, Toure.
Goals: Diaby 13, Adebayor 84.
Att: 41,985
Ref: Peter Frojdfeldt (Sweden).
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Barca 1-0 Schalke
Man Utd 1-0 Roma