Tight starts for the favourites

From : FIFA.COM

The second half of the first UEFA Champions League matchday on Wednesday saw a host of tight matches with only 16 goals scored and the various ties in the balance until the dying minutes.

European champions Barcelona were held to a 0-0 draw at Inter Milan while the two English teams in action tonight, Liverpool and Arsenal, both struggled but managed to bag the three points against Debrecen (1-0) and Standard Liege (3-2) respectively.

Match of the day
Inter Milan 0-0 Barcelona

This exciting encounter between two of the big names in European football had everything but goals. The first half could have gone either way with chances for both teams, but Josep Guardiola's men took the bull by the horns after the interval. Barcelona ended up with 63 per cent of possession but even though Messi and Ibrahimovic tried every trick in the book there was no breaking down the solid Italian back line.

The groups
In Group E, a lacklustre Liverpool side dominated proceedings against their Hungarian opponents without regularly threatening a well-organised Debrecen defence. It took a shot from Fernando Torres just before the break which the goalkeeper could only parry into the path of the opportunist Dirk Kuyt for the Reds to score what turned out to be the only goal of the match.

The other tie in the group saw a re-match from last season between Lyon and Fiorentina, and no quarter was given, with six yellow cards and a sending off in the referee's notebook by full time. Lyon managed to bag all three points thanks to a goal from Miralem Pjanic, who pounced on a poor clearance up the middle from goalkeeper Sebastien Frey.

In the second match in Group F, Dynamo Kiev had Gerson Magrao to thank for turning things around in the second half. The Brazilian set up his team's first goal for Aylia Yussuf before notching the second. Russian opponents Rubin Kazan had been in the lead for much of the match thanks to an excellent free-kick from Alejandro Dominguez. Vladimir Gusev put the result beyond doubt in the dying minutes to make it 3-1 to the Ukrainians.

Stuttgart dominated their match with Rangers but ended up squandering two valuable points. Pavel Pogrebnyak opened the scoring for the German side who were then content to sit back and defend their lead, which was the signal for Jerome Rothen and his Rangers team-mates to battle their way back into contention. Defender Madjid Bougherra popped up with a well deserved equaliser for the Glasgow side. Seville are currently top of Group G after Brazilian duo Luis Fabiano and Renato each found their way onto the scoresheet against Romanian opponents Unirea Urziceni, who were experiencing their first taste of the UEFA Champions League.

In Group H, Olympiacos squeezed home against AZ Alkmaar thanks to a superb header from Vassilis Torosidis in what was a rare attempt on goal in a very tight encounter. Standard Liege meanwhile looked like they were going to create the shock result of the opening matchday when they took a 2-0 lead over Arsenal after only five minutes. Eliaquin Mangala and a penalty from Milan Jovanovic gave the hosts the advantage, but Nicklas Bendtner halved the deficit just before half time before goals from Thomas Vermaelen and Eduardo da Silva in the final quarter of an hour gave the London side a flattering victory over their Belgian opponents.

The stat

300 - the number of matches for which Spain's Rafael Benitez has been at the helm of Liverpool since joining the club on 16 June 2004. 55 per cent of those games have ended in victory for the Reds.

Goal of the night
Seville 1-0 Unirea (Luis Fabiano 45)

Left back Javi Navarro overlapped on the left wing and pulled the ball back for Luis Fabiano at the edge of the area, who then proceeded to slot the ball past goalkeeper Giedrius Arlauskis and into the bottom left-hand corner of the net.

What they said
"It feels like we've been playing together for years. I really enjoy playing with him." - Barcelona striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic talking about Lionel Messi

Have your say
After the first round of matches, do you think that any of the eight clubs making their UEFA Champions League debut will manage to qualify for the Round of 16?

Capello cagey over Cup ambitions

FIFA.COM

Fabio Capello knows from bitter personal experience nothing should be taken for granted as England begin their preparations for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™.
The euphoria that accompanied qualification and the manner of Wednesday's staggering 5-1 triumph over Croatia has brought a wave of optimism so familiar to previous FIFA World Cup campaigns. Since 1966, though, all England has been left with is a feeling of disappointment Capello knows only too well.
As a player, he was around the Italy scene in 1974 and 1978. On both occasions, his own contribution ended in misery. In 1974, Italy went to Germany as one of the favourites - having put together a lengthy, unbeaten run and qualified in comfort just as England have done this time. They went home after three games.
Four years later, Capello was part of the provisional squad for Argentina - only to be axed by coach Enzo Bearzot when the time came to announce his official party. "I played the qualification for the Argentina World Cup but I didn't go to Argentina," he recalled.
"I wasn't injured. I just wasn't good enough and I heard on TV that I was not in the squad. In 1974 we arrived as one of the favourites. Out of the previous 12 games, we won eight and drew four against some of the best teams in the world. But at the World Cup we played Poland, Argentina and Haiti - and then went home.

It is possible all the players I selected for the last squad will be with us in South Africa. But the door is open for everyone,
England manager Fabio Capello.
"It just shows we have to wait. It is possible all the players I selected for the last squad will be with us in South Africa. But the door is open for everyone, and I have to decide at the time which players are in the best form."
Capello's soothing words should at least offer the likes of Michael Owen, Joe Cole and Owen Hargreaves some hope they will make the final cut - even if they would all miss out if the decision had to be made now. Hargreaves' long-standing knee problems mean he has never actually played a game under Capello.
Yet his presence as a holding midfield player could prove vital, although Gareth Barry has done a fine job as his understudy over the past 18 months. Hargreaves would certainly seem to have more chance of making the trip than Ledley King - whose name is repeatedly mentioned when England squads are named but whose last chance almost certainly disappeared when he was called up then, within 24 hours, was released by Capello for last season's match against Ukraine.
"I spoke with the Manchester United doctor about Hargreaves - and he will be back in two months, although then he has to play," said Capello. "The problem with King is the knee. He has to spend four days with physio after training. We have to choose the best players. But they also need to be fit, really fit."
Schedule planningThe memory of Wednesday night's thrashing of Croatia will sustain England over the next eight months, as Capello slowly puts plans in place. Changes can be anticipated for the remaining two matches in Group 6, away to the Ukraine and against Belarus at Wembley next month - with four further friendlies to follow, plus a training camp in Austria.
The first of that quartet of matches will be against Brazil in Qatar on 14 November. While the finer points of a meeting with the four-time world champions have not yet been agreed, Capello is certain enough of it taking place to highlight why it is so crucial.
"It is important to play Brazil because we need to understand what we have to do if we play against a team like them at the World Cup," he said. "We have already played against the best teams in the world, only missing Italy. I understood a lot from those matches. It lets me understand the level we have reached."
It also allows Capello to check on one of the sides he feels will be challenging for that little gold trophy at Ellis Park on 11 July next year. The usual suspects are all listed - including, somewhat grudgingly, Italy. But from a continent yet to win the most prized trophy in the game and which will host the tournament for the first time, there is one other.
"The dangerous teams are always the same - Brazil, Argentina, Spain and Germany are always among the first group," said Capello. "Sure, we are looking at Italy as well - but also there will be one African team. The Ivory Coast's team is very good - and the tournament is in Africa, where the spirit is different."