Chapter 21 Grouping

Chapter 21 Grouping

The 2007/2008 UEFA Champions League group stage group stage was announced. Thirty-two teams had different fates.

If you count from 1955, when Real Madrid was crowned the first European Champions Cup, the UEFA Champions League has gone through 52 years of history.

Time flies, the competition system has changed several times, and the desire for the championship has become a kind of thought that has not changed for me for many years, but such a football feast has induced many entanglements and melancholy.

The UEFA Champions League for half a century has therefore exuded a constant jn color in a kind of lovesickness and a lot of melancholy. In the 2007/2008 season, the battle for the right to qualify for the UEFA Champions League group stage continued this history.

The end of the lottery draw for the Champions Cup group stage also marks the beginning of the most exciting battle in European football in 2007. Of course, this kind of lottery based on pure luck and godfather care will not get a satisfactory result for everyone, and such a random In the same way, it will also lead to many incidental stories.

From the perspective of the league, it should be said that the result of the Serie A draw was good. The Milan duo were divided into a group that was recognized as satisfactory, and Roma and Manchester United were divided into a group. Mo, in terms of strength, is the favorite of this group, but Roma also has a great chance of competing for another place in the group. If they can turn the humiliation of 1:7 last season into motivation, then they can score points against Manchester United It's not impossible. It can be said that Luo Mang has a great chance of qualifying. Relatively speaking, Lazio is the most unfavorable, and the group Real Madrid is the strongest, but Lazio and Bremen have a fight in the second place in the group, and there is Fiorentina. Because of Degan's relationship, the two clubs have also fallen into hostility. Among the emotions, Fiorentina's qualifying situation is not serious, and they even have the strength to compete for the top spot in the group.

Among the three teams in La Liga, Sevilla has the best signing. Although it is difficult to say who will win the first and who will be the second with Arsenal, in terms of overall strength, the difference between Celtic and Slavia Prague Too far, Valencia's draw is the worst, not only 1 is suppressed by Chelsea, but also has to face the pursuit of Schalke 04, the qualifying situation is not optimistic. However, Barcelona and Real Madrid must be careful to deal with powerful enemies. As long as they play their own level normally, there should be no problem in appearing.

There are many giants in the Champions League, but if you want to say the real king, it seems that the La Liga giants Real Madrid are none other than Real Madrid. The brilliance of winning the European championship nine times is unmatched by anyone, but what makes Real Madrid embarrassing is that Real Madrid has not been able to enter the quarter-finals of the Champions League for four years. As a wealthy team, Real Madrid certainly wants to do something big in Europe. Although it is the favorite in the group, it is not easy to beat the opponent. Any team may be upset, especially in the same group as the Bundesliga champion Bremen and Serie A giants Lazio. Real Madrid is even more worried and dare not be careless.

In order to continue to maintain a sufficient great image on the European football map, Real Madrid's transactions this summer are frequent, with transfers exceeding 100 million euros. How much return Calderon's investment can bring still needs to be tested in La Liga and the Champions League.

Although Bremen left Klose, his strength has not been affected much. The Serie A "Blue Eagle" Lazio advocates offensive football, and I believe no club wants to meet Lazio in the third gear.

It can be said that the group where Real Madrid is located, because of the arrival of Lazio, somewhat has the taste of the group of death. Without Lazio, Real Madrid and Werder Bremen seem to be able to cherish each other, but now, they have to face up to their opponents from Serie A in this group.

In fact, Greece's Olympiacos in the fourth tier is not weak. This season, despite the departure of Rivaldo, Real Madrid's old player Bravo, former Real Sociedad striker Kovacevic and Argentine Galetti are still in the team. Such an opponent who is familiar with Real Madrid is undoubtedly a great variable.

The luck of the Premier League teams is not so good, probably because they have to continue to pay for Heather. The luck of the Premier League teams to participate in the Champions League has not been very optimistic over the years.

Liverpool's luck is considered good. Except for Porto's strong opponents, the other two teams are not strong enough to pose a threat to Liverpool. Porto is no stranger to Premier League teams. In the 2003/04 season, the head coach of Porto at that time was the current Chelsea coach Mourinho. At that time, Porto also created miracles under the leadership of Mourinho. A team that almost no one was optimistic about before the UEFA Champions League finally won the championship!

Although this is related to the unexpected fall of the major giants in the knockout stage of the Champions League, Porto has also shown people their strong strength.

In the Champions League round of 16 that season, Porto eliminated the Premier League Manchester United team. They scored the winning goal in the last second at Old La Trafford with a low-level error by the Manchester United goalkeeper.

After that, in the 04/05 season, Porto and Chelsea were in the same group in the group stage. At that time, Chelsea and Porto won at their respective home courts.

In the 06/07 season, the two teams met again in the top 16 of the UEFA Champions League. Although Chelsea was the last to advance, the technically advanced Porto also caused a lot of trouble for Chelsea. In Chelsea's two rounds, they conceded first and then equalized or overtook.

Although the current Porto's meritorious coach of the Champions League has switched to Chelsea, and all the big-name stars such as Deco have left the team, their strength is still not to be underestimated. can see.

In this group, Porto is undoubtedly the biggest threat to Liverpool's top spot.

In addition, Marseille is also a team worth noting. Although the current Ligue 1 has no way out, and only Lyon is supporting them in the Champions League, last season's Lille team used their actual actions to tell people: Ligue 1 teams It's definitely not a fish-bodied army that can be manipulated by anyone.

Liverpool's encounter with Marseille in this group match should not be taken lightly. However, for Liverpool, one good thing is that in the qualifying round before entering the Champions League, Liverpool eliminated the Toulouse team in Ligue 1. The total score of 5:0 in the two rounds also reflects Liverpool Huge advantage over Ligue 1. In addition, there was also a Ligue 1 team Bordeaux in the same group as Liverpool in the Champions League group stage last season. As a result, Liverpool also double-killed this Ligue 1 team.

As for Besiktas, the fourth-tier team in this group, they should be the weakest of the four teams, and they are also a mysterious division. Little is known about them. But people must always remember this sentence: there are no underdogs in Europe.

This is true for both the national team and the club. In the 03/04 group stage, Chelsea was in the same group as Besiktas. As a result, Besiktas beat Chelsea 2-0 at Stamford Bridge!

Of course, the strength of Chelsea at that time cannot be compared with the current Chelsea. However, this game did not remind Liverpool, who is about to encounter the team, that although Besiktas is weaker, they must not be underestimated.

For Liverpool, the opponents in this group are weaker except Porto, and the probability of qualifying is very high. The only suspense will be whether Liverpool will qualify first or second in the group.

Arsenal's grouping situation is also relatively optimistic, and the prospect of winning the first place in the group is not optimistic. The opponents in this group are from the Czech Republic, the Czech Republic, and the La Liga upstart Sevilla. Scotland and other small leagues, their two teams are difficult to pose a threat to Arsenal and Sevilla.

Chelsea is still the strongest in their group, but this is a very labor-intensive group. Compared with Liverpool's upper lottery, Chelsea has undoubtedly drawn a dangerous lower lottery.

Chelsea's group is also generally considered by the major football media to be one of the three death groups drawn in the UEFA Champions League group stage this season.

Through the past four seasons, Chelsea has made three semi-finals in the Champions League, which has promoted itself from a team in the second tier to a team in the first tier, but this did not allow Chelsea to get a better signing transport.

This time, although Chelsea avoided a strong dialogue with Barcelona, ​​they encountered another strong enemy in La Liga, and they were also their old enemy Valencia in the Champions League quarter-finals last season.

In last season's Champions League knockout round, Chelsea also conceded first and then equalized or overtook in both rounds. Among them, at the Mestaia Stadium, Chelsea eliminated their opponents with Essien's lore goal at the last second. And Valencia did not lose the wind in the two games. La Liga teams like Valencia are also the team that Chelsea fears the most. , There is no doubt that Chelsea's biggest opponent in this group is Valencia.

The team in the third tier, Schalke 04, is also a team from the five major leagues. Although the Bundesliga teams have generally performed poorly in the Champions League in recent seasons, the teams in this league have played an important role in the Champions League group stage. The role of spoiler is more than enough.

Manchester United is in the same group as Roma, Sporting Lisbon, and Dynamo Kiev. Combined with Manchester United's current situation, it is not so safe to qualify.

The grouping of the Champions League group stage this time also continued the previous practice. In short, there were many accidents. Every time the lottery was drawn, many old problems would be brought up. When Maldini drew out Roma, and then drew out Group F, he laughed. Everyone in the venue also laughed. Roma and Manchester United, the enemies of last season, met again.

For Roma and Manchester United fans, unless football dies from this planet, such a story is destined to become their eternal heart knot, just as Shakespeare said, "There is only tragedy that lasts forever!"

The 7:1 at Old Trafford was a spectacle in the last Champions Cup. It was also this game that made the Roma club realize the importance of the depth of the bench and introduced many new aids this summer. Roma's strength has improved , experience has increased, and the mentality has become more mature. This time against Manchester United again, a real strong dialogue is expected.

After summer adjustments and transactions, Roma's current lineup and strength are not inferior to the two Milans. "If you come out to play, you always have to pay it back!" This time the Champions League faces each other, whether the Red Devils or Roma will win, I am afraid only God knows.

The Bundesliga lacks Bayern, lacks dominance, Stuttgart, Schalke 04 are in the third tier, and Werder Bremen is in the second tier, but the strength has dropped too much, and it is not impossible for the entire army to be wiped out.

Is such a draw really fair?

At least looking at the small notes that were taken out of the ball one by one, it seems really fair, and the situation in minutes is just a matter of luck, but the truth here is obviously not that simple.

In the final analysis, football is a competitive sport with spectators. What people want to watch is not just a bunch of muscular men blowing their beards and staring for a small ball on the field. What they want to watch is like a Korean kimchi drama. It needs a plot, and it is best to have ups and downs, including grievances and hatred.

In fact, Platini did very well in his first Champions League after coming to power, and the audience was very satisfied. At least they saw what they should see.

In particular, Milan and Florence were assigned to the same group, which could stimulate people's enthusiasm in an instant, making them reach unprecedented heights.

People still remember the last game of last season's Serie A. Although Milan had won the Champions League at that time, they still had to fight for a ticket to the Champions League.

According to the plot that people like to hear and see, Fiorentina should be a matter of course for Milan. Even in that game, the referee committed crimes against the wind and favored Milan in terms of penalty scales, but in the end he was not up to date, occupying the right time, location, harmony, and finally Still lost the game, how can anyone be blamed.

Now the two sides meet again, this time more directly, in the UEFA Champions League group stage, they fight in the same room. Of course, Milan hopes that the two sides can join hands to qualify in line with the principles of friendship and peace, but Galliani is very clear that Florence is no longer the same as before. Viola full of humanistic care, with Digan, this former Serie A powerhouse can definitely be called the Mad Dog Legion.

"I am very satisfied with the group situation, especially to meet Milan. I like the feeling of competing with Ricciardo on the pitch. It must be very good."

Seeing Degan's excited expression, he knew that this mad dog had sharpened his minions and was just waiting to hurt someone. On the court, this guy was definitely a master that no relatives would recognize. What kind of old club? What kind of brother, when it's time to hurt someone, this guy will never be soft.

In this regard, Kaka, who has just won three trophies, said: "That's right! I also like to compete with Rhodes. That feeling always makes people excited."

Before the Champions League starts, the two brothers are already ready to go. It can be foreseen that when the two teams meet, what kind of intense scenes will happen.