Capital One Cup Round-Up

The Capital One Cup may be ridiculed by football fans but anybody who sat down to watch Sky Sports will not have been left disappointed. On Tuesday night we had an incredible 21 goals in just five games, an average of just over four goals per game. On Wednesday night we had another 16 goals, this time in just three games, an average of over five goals per game. No matter what importance managers put on the competition, there can be no doubt that the entertainment value was as high as it would be on any Saturday afternoon. So let's have a look at some of the games that took place. 

          On Tuesday night, Reading and a youthful Arsenal side played out one of the most incredible games I've ever seen. After 37 minutes it looked as though Reading were about to cause a shock as they went 4-0 up with goals from Jason Roberts, Laurent Koscielny (og), Mikele Leigertwood and Noel Hunt. Just before half time Theo Walcott pulled one back and just minutes after being introduced, Olivier Giroud, brought it back to 4-2. In the dying moments it seemed as though Reading would be able to hold on but goals from Koscielny and a second from Walcott in the 95th minute brought the game into extra time. Arsenal seemed to be in complete control when Marouane Chamakh put them 5-4 up but the drama wasn't to end there. Pavel Pogrebnyak came off the bench to bring Reading level at 5-5 but Arsenal weren't to be denied. In injury time of extra time, Walcott got his third and Chamakh lobbed the keeper for his second and give Arsenal a sensational 7-5 win and a place in the quarter final.

            In Tuesday's other games, League 1 Swindon were denied an upset as they entertained Aston Villa at the County Ground. Villa took the lead through Christian Benteke after 30 minutes and Gabby Agbonlahor doubled the lead ten minutes later. Swindon were the better side after the break and were deservedly level when Miles Storey scored twice in the space of three minutes. They were on the verge of extra time before Benteke scored an injury time winner to send Villa through. Premier League side Southampton were knocked out of the cup by Championships side Leeds United. Leeds were the better side from start to finish and were fully deserving of their 3-0 win. Goals from Michael Tonge, El Hadji Diouf and Luciano Becchio were enough to send Leeds into the quarter finals.

          Bradford City caused the biggest upset of the night when they knocked out Premier League side Wigan Athletic. It was a drab affair as neither side showed any quality in the final third and it took penalties to separate the sides as they finished 0-0 after 120 minutes and when Jordi Gomez had his penalty saved by keeper Matt Duke, Bradford had caused a major upset winning 4-2 on penalties. Middlesbrough also booked their spot in the last eight with a 1-0 win over Sunderland. Scott MacDonald scored the goal to send the Championship team through at the expense of Martin O'Neill's Premier League outfit.

          Stamford Bridge was the venue for yet another crazy game on Wednesday night as Chelsea and Manchester United played their second game at the Bridge in four days. After Sundays drama, both sides could have been forgiven for not producing excitement tonight but both sides went all out for victory and it made for a thrilling night of football. United three times went in front three times through Ryan Giggs, Javier Hernandez and Nani but Chelsea three times found equalisers with goals from Gary Cahill, David Luiz (pen) and a 92nd minute penalty from Eden Hazard. In extra time Daniel Sturridge and Ramires scored to put Chelsea 5-3 ahead before Ryan Giggs scored a 120th minute penalty to add drama to the tie but Chelsea hung on for the win. It was a strong performance from an young, inexperienced United side but the class of Chelsea's stars proved decisive as Hazard, Mata and Oscar took control in extra time.

          Norwich caused an upset at Carrow Road as they came from behind to beat Tottenham by two goals to one. Gareth Bale had put Spurs ahead after 66 minutes but an own goal from substitute Jan Vertonghen had Norwich level after 84 minutes before Simeon Jackson scored the decisive goal just three minutes from time to send the Canaries into the quarter final. It was an unhappy reunion with Swansea for Brendan Rodgers as his Liverpool side were beaten at home. Swansea were ahead after 34 minutes when Chico headed home from close range and they doubled their lead on 72 minutes when Nathan Dyer slotted home. Luis Suarez pulled one back for the reds but it was Swansea who pushed on and they grabbed the insurance goal in injury time through Jonathan de Guzman. Swansea were deserving of their 3-1 win as Liverpool failed to impress.  

Champions League Round Up

The second night of Champions League action was far less entertaining than the first but the common denominator was yet another night of poor displays from the British sides. Chelsea and Celtic were outclassed last night and tonight Arsenal and Man City were both beaten comprehensively. It was a disappointing night for European giants AC Milan and Real Madrid also as all four groups now have at least three teams still in with a chance of qualification.
          In Group A and Paris Saint Germain inflicted a third consecutive defeat on Dinamo Zagreb when they won by two goals to nil. It was a comfortable night for the French side as they led by two goals at the break after Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Jeremy Menez got on the scoresheet. The result leaves PSG on six points and in second place in the group. In the other game from the group, Porto all but guaranteed their progress to the knockout stage with a third successive win. They had to fight off a strong showing from Ukrainian side Dynamo Kiev having twice been pegged back to all square before Jackson Martinez' winner in the 78th minute. Ideye Brown and Oleh Gusev had twice brought Kiev level but on the balance of play they can't complain about the result. Silvestre Varela and Martinez got the other Porto goals. That leaves Porto on nine points and Kiev in third on three.
          In Group B Arsenal suffered a second loss in five days when they were beaten 2-0 by Schalke at the Emirates. The German side were the better team throughout and were fully deserving of their win. They were made to wait until the 76th minute to break the deadlock though and the goal came courtesy of a clinical finish from Klaas Jan Huntelaar. Just ten minutes later the result was wrapped up when Ibrahim Afellay scored from close range. A last minute goal gave Olympiacos a fifth win in six games as they beat French champions Montpellier by two goals to one. They fell behind in the first half of this one though when Gaetan Charbonnier put the French side in front but they couldn't hold on Vasilis Torosidis levelled the game before an injury time winner from substitute Kostas Mitroglou. Those results leave Schalke on top with seven points followed by Arsenal on six. Olympiacos finally converted league form to European and are now on three points with Montpellier on just one point.
           Malaga may have been in serious financial trouble during the Summer and lost some top players but three games into the campaign their sitting atop Group C with maximum points. Tonight they beat Italian giants AC Milan with a strike from Joaquin enough to earn them full points. Milan have now lost their last three games and are really missing the players they sold during the Summer, Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva. A penalty from Aleksandr Kerzhakov gave Zenit St. Petersburg their first win in Europe this season as they beat Anderlecht at home. That leaves the Belgian side without a win and on just one point, trailing Zenit who are on two and Milan on five. All three trail Malaga who sit on nine points.
           In Group D Man City are on the verge of elimination after losing to Ajax in Holland tonight. City took the lead against the run of play through Samir Nasri but Ajax were level after a fine finish from Siem De Jong just before half time. The Dutch side were in front when Niklas Moisander headed home unmarked before Christian Erikson capped off a fine performance when he scored a third. It was deserved win for Ajax who consistently exposed City, who were far too passive and sat back too much. City fans won't enjoy reading the other result from the group either as Borussia Dortmund moved top of the table courtesy of a 2-1 win against Real Madrid. Robert Lewandowski opened the scoring before Cristiano Ronaldo levelled with a fine finish. Dortmund weren't to be denied however, as Marcel Schmelzer scored from the edge of the box to send the home fans wild. Those results leave Dortmund on seven points followed closely by Madrid on six. Ajax have a slim chance of progression on three points but City are all but outwith just one point.

Champions League Round Up

Were now half way through the third game week of the Champions League and what a dramatic night we had tonight. In 90 minutes of action we had some great goals, red cards, comebacks and last minute winners. All in all it was a disappointing night for the British sides in action with only one side managing to win a match as both Chelsea and Celtic suffered defeat. Manchester United virtually booked their place in the knockout stages with a come from behind win over Braga. So let's have a look at the results and how the tables shape up halfway through the group stages.
          Starting with Group E and a disappointing night for Chelsea. The holders were defeated 2-1 by Shakhtar Donetsk after a poor performance which will have manager Roberto Di Matteo worried ahead of the clash with Manchester United on Sunday. Shakhtar went two goals ahead with strikes from Teixeira and Fernandinho. Oscar's late goal gave hope in the final few minutes but Chelsea can have few complaints with the result which leaves them in second place in the group, three points behind Shakhtar who lead on seven points. In the groups other game Juventus failed to take advantage of Chelsea's defeat when they struggled to a 1-1 draw with Nordsjaelland in Denmark. The Italian giants fell behind in the 50th minute to a goal from Mikkel Beckmann as Juve failed to make their pressure pay. Substitute Mirko Vucinic rescued a point in the 81st minute for the Italians as they remain third in the group although they will regret not taking another of their 23 shots on goal.
          On to Group F and Valencia scored three second half goals to overcome Bate Borisov in Belarus. Roberto Soldado was the star of the show with three goals including one from the penalty spot as the Spaniards moved top of the group. Bate and Valencia are now both on six points with just goal difference between them. Bate shocked Bayern Munich in their last game but never looked like repeating it against a far superior Valencia. Last years beaten finalists Munich got back on track with a 1-0 win over Lille. A Thomas Muller penalty was enough for the Germans to join Bate and Valencia on six points as this group remains wide open. Lille are now on the brink of elimination after a disappointing three defeats from three games.
           Group G two close games as both Barcelona and Spartak Moscow won by two goals to one but in much different circumstances. Moscow finally got their first points of the campaign with a victory over Benfica in Russia. Goals from Rafael Carioca (3) and an own goal from Jardel (44) were enough to earn the win for the Russian outfit. Midfielder Lima had brought Benfica level after 33 minutes but it was Moscow who would grab the winner. Meanwhile Celtic were on the verge of a huge point at the Nou Camp until Jordi Alba scored in the 94th minute to give Barcelona a deserved three points. Scottish champions Celtic took a surprise lead through Giorgos Samaras but in truth it was completely against the run of play. Barcelona had 82% possession and a stunning goal from Iniesta brought them level before a late winner from Alba.
          And finally to Group H and Manchester United once again fell behind before coming good to take all three points and maintain their 100% record this season. This time they fell two goals down against Braga with two goals from Alan setting the Portuguese side up for a shock win. Two goals from Javier Hernandez and one in between for Jonny Evans saw United make yet another comeback. It was another example of how much they are missing injured defenders Chris Smalling, Phil Jones and Nemanja Vidic as Michael Carrick was forced to deputise in central defence. Galatasaray got their first point of the group when they drew 1-1 against CFR Cluj in Turkey but they will be disappointed they didn't make their dominance count. They had 72% possession but after a Nounkeu own goal put Cluj ahead the Turkish side were forced to wait until the 77th minute for an equaliser which came from substitute Burak Yilmaz. Cluj defender Matias Aguirregaray was sent off in the first half which in the end cost the Romanian side all three points but they do remain in second place, five points behind Man United.