Champions League Matchday 5: Predictions Part II

I Can't Believe It Either...

The beautiful game did not disappoint tonight, and the match results will give this prognosticator some food for thought going into the final matchday come early December. Despite making a number of seemingly routine ‘guestimations’ regarding the ties of the day, I was once again foiled by the anything-can-happen spirit of the competition. Most notable of the suprises of the day was the early exit of Liverpool FC, a team that has struggled both at home and throughout Europe this football season. Rumour has it they will be looking for some help in the form of a new blood during the transfer window in January (more on that to come).

Before getting into the results of this past half of the matchday, let’s get down to business on predicting the forecast for tomorrow’s clashes… some of which will undoubtedly end up being a footy fan’s dream.

We begin with Group A, where top teams Bordeaux and Juventus will look to do battle in the hopes of officially securing a trip to the next round of play. Bayern Munich will need every ounce of their hunger in order to beat Maccabi Haifa who can do no better than spoiler at this point the competition. Bayern must win to have any hope of continuing into the knockout round. Look for Bordeaux and Juventus to dance to a stalemate with Bayern to win.

FIFA World Cup Qualifiers: ‘Fair Play’ and Predictions

The Draw

FIFA should be ashamed. Period. For the first time in the history of World Cup Qualification, teams relegated to a playoff situation to ensure qualification have been seeded in order to avoid traditionally ‘top’ squads from eliminating each other, prospectively avoiding revenue losses in the tens of millions of Euros. FIFA’s reasoning?  Well, to be honest, we haven’t been given any official reasoning regarding this decision, other than it was deemed to be for the good of the sport and that it was agreed to (hastily) nearly unanimously by the football’s governing body. So much for FIFA’s FAIR PLAY programme I suppose.

Ireland’s response was perhaps the most irate with Manager Giovanni Trapattoni claiming that a decision such as this strikes at the pureness that lies at the heart of the beautiful game. Keeper Shay Given offered a more succinct, yet equally eloquent description of his feelings regarding the seeding system: “Disgusting”. It begs the question that had teams like Portugal, France and even Russia been more successful in their qualification attempt, and smaller nations such as Serbia, Denmark or Switzerland been swapped into their position, would FIFA have adopted a similar stance?

The Calm Before the Storm

Cheers to chaos, confusion and mayhem. Here’s to all the people that bring it to our doorstep. They are among the best at what they do and make it look effortless. Their moments of brilliance don’t always last very long, yet they can claim to have brought millions to their feet.  Below they stand, frozen, with everyone watching, in anticipation for a moment that is worth nothing less than the storm that follows.

Tiger Woods

Cristiano Ronaldo