Weekend in Review

United One Step Closer, Arsenal Done

With a knack for scoring crucial goals late in matches, it's no wonder that Manchester United are in the drivers seat for the trophy. They added to that reputation on Saturday, beating Everton 1-0 on an 83rd minute goal from Javier Hernandez.

Coming off a dull 0-0 draw with Newcastle at midweek, United knew that it was time to get back on track and take full points against the visiting Toffees. But David Moyes' side made it tough on the Red Devils, keeping them out of dangerous positions for much of the match.

As always, United pressed on, staying confident and composed. And their persistence paid off, as the chances began to come in the second half. Tim Howard saved Hernandez's header brilliantly to keep hopes alive for his side. But he was powerless to stop Hernandez's header from the door step with seven minutes to go, as a gorgeous arching cross from Antonio Valencia found Chicharito's head at the back post, and the Mexican nodded home.

While Chicharito's winner was the story, Valencia's teasing cross was the key pass for the winner, and his return to the lineup after suffering a nasty leg injury earlier in the season has paid huge dividends. Looking sharp from the moment he returned to the pitch, Valencia has provided the Yen to Nani's Yang, giving Man U a threat up the right wing to go along with Nani on the left. With Valencia back, the Red Devils have most of their first choice players in attack to choose from, so they will hope that they aren't biting their nails waiting for another late goal over the rest of the season.

While it was more of the same from Manchester United, it was also the same old story for Arsenal. Unfortunately for the Gunners, that "story" has been a miserable one, as they once again failed to capitalize on a myriad of opportunities and then dropped points late in Sunday's 2-1 loss at Bolton.

Arsenal's much-maligned back four hadn't been the the problem over the last few months, but it certainly was the main weakness over the last week, as they yeilded five goals over their last two matches, including two from corner kicks in Sunday's loss at Bolton. Center-half Johan Djourou was dreadful. He lost a ball to Johan Elmander late in the match that could have cost Arsenal but was bailed out by goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny. The Swiss didn't have the same luck in the 89th, when Tamir Cohen scored the winner from a corner, beating him to the ball and heading in the winner.

When looking at Arsenal's performance over recent weeks, it seemed only a matter of time until they fell out of the title picture. That assumption was a correct one, as the Gunners crashed out of the race with two more disappointing results against Tottenham (3-3) and Bolton last week.

In many ways, the title was there's for the taking this season. But the Gunners have lacked the consistency, luck, and mental fortitude to get the job done.

Chelsea Move to Second

Chelsea looked a beleaguered and disinterested bunch after falling to Manchester United in the Champions League days earlier, and you could't really blame them. But ten days later, the Blues can happily say that they are still thinking about winning a trophy after a fine win over strugglers West Ham on Saturday.

There were positives aplenty in Saturday's win. Carlo Ancellotti's boys looked like the Chelsea that were odds-on favorites to win the EPL in October, getting several goals of great quality from a trio stars who have only recently rediscovered their form. Tops on the list was a beautifully executed goal that brought out the best in Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard (something we've not seen nearly enough of this season).

Then, Fernando Torres finally got the monkey off of his back with his first goal for Chelsea, and then came a cracking strike from the back in-form Florent Malouda to put the icing on the cake.

The Blues surpassed Arsenal for second with the win, and now sit just six points adrift of Manchester United. It's not an unattainable gap either. Chelsea would surely have to win the rest of their matches, but they do face United next weekend, whilst United face a trip to The Emirates this upcoming Sunday. Someone will have to spur an upset for The Blues, but a late push for the title is within reach.

Well Done West Brom

I have to admit that West Brom's firing of Roberto Di Matteo caught me by surprise, as the Italian had done a decent enough job with the Baggies before being shown the door in February. After all, W.B.A. were out of the drop zone, had gotten some decent results (a draw with Man U and win over Arsenal amongst them), and were also playing relatively good football for a team expected to battle the drop. But a poor run of form saw the Baggies' owners scrambling to avoid the club's fourth relegation from the Premiership in the last eight years. And that spelled the end of the Di Matteo era at West Brom.

With Di Matteo out, the legendary Roy Hodgson was hired. And although Englishman's time at Anfield this season was a total disaster, his credentials as a manager say that he's one of the best around. The 63-year old's managerial skills are also best suited for a mid-table club, as he has never been the most adventurous manager when it comes to attacking, a concept that suits a club like W.B.A. far better than a Liverpool.

The Baggies have shown the commitment and attention to detail required from their manager, and they've also let their quality show in a fine run of form that should keep them in the top flight, and just might see them finish in the top half the table.

The Baggies have lost just one match under Hodgson (albeit at the expense of five draws), and have played some sparkling football in the process, including a well earned point at White Hart Lane on the weekend.

Whether West Brom can stay up next season is another story, as staying in the EPL for a second season is something so many other clubs have been unable to do. But the Baggies can take solace in the fact that they have a solid squad to draw from, including striker Peter Odemwingie (13 goals on the year), who has been one of the best buys in all of Europe this season. They also did well to pluck Jerome Thomas from Portsmouth, as the skillful winger has given them a sense of creativity and unpredictability in attack.

There's a nice midfield to draw from, too. Chris Brunt has made the jump to the EPL quite well, while the acquisition of Paul Scharner (previously with Wigan) has also paid dividends.

With the addition of players like Odemwingie, and the hiring of a top class manager in Hodgson, the Baggies surely have some hope to not just stay up this season, but become a fixture in the top flight. If they can make a few more clever moves a la Scharner and Thomas, they just might be looking at a long stay in the Premiership for the first time in the club's history.

Chelsea-Manchester United Match Report

Manchester United 2-1 Chelsea (Man U win 3-1 on aggregate)

HIGHLIGHTS

Manchester United emerged from their UEFA Champions League second leg on top in the match, and on aggregate, after a 2-1 victory over Chelsea. The Red Devils will meet Schalke in the semifinals after winning a relatively even match at Old Trafford.

Sir Alex Ferguson's side had the edge in the tie, as they came home to Manchester already holding a 1-0 advantage. Looking for more of the same, Ferguson started a similar side to the first leg, with Wayne Rooney sitting behind Javier Hernandez on the forward line, Ryan Giggs, Nani, Ji-Sung Park, and Michael Carrick in midfield, and John O'Shea (in place of the injured Rafael), Chris Smalling, Nemanja Vidic, and Patrice Evra across the back.

Carlo Ancelotti's confidence in the struggling Fernando Torres didn't waver. And he started the Spaniard up top alongside Nicolas Anelka. But like Ferguson, his lineup didn't spark many surprises, with Frank Lampard, Florent Malouda, Ramires, and Michael Essien across the midfield, while John Terry and Alex (in for the cup tied David Luiz) manned the middle with Ashley Cole and Branislav Ivanovic on either side.

After a quiet opening to the match, Chelsea began to assert themselves with a host of chances. With the Blues beginning to put the pressure on, the game opened up with opportunities aplenty.

In the 12th minute, Torres fielded a cross into the box and laid off for Anelka, whose vicious strike whizzed inches wide.

In minute 15, Florent Malouda made a weaving run into the box and dropped for Lampard, but his low strike lacked placement and Edwin van der Sar smothered.

A clumsy Fernando Torres failed to control in the area in the 21st, but he managed to touch back to Anelka whose swerving half-volley screamed just outside of the post.

United were on the back foot, but Sir Alex Ferguson's side are famous for scoring when being pushed back. And they thought they had accomplished just that when Rooney crossed to Hernandez for a well taken goal with his head, but the linesman called it back.

United were looking nervous in the 32nd, when a giveaway and subsequent long through ball saw Anelka behind the defense down the right side whilst van der Sar scurried off of his line. The Frenchman actually beat van der Sar to the ball outside of the box, but the veteran keeper did well to tackle the ball away and clear.

The first part of the second half featured vintage defending from United. The Red Devils dropped back and waited to counter with the skilled and creative Rooney and the speedy Hernandez looking for space on the front lines.

Didier Drogba entered the match at halftime. And he was Chelsea's best attacking player on the evening, accounting for most of Chelsea's offense in the second half. Just moments after coming on, the Ivorian created space with a nifty touch in the box, but his left footed strike scooped wide and van der Sar appeared to have it covered.

Already needing two goals to go through, Ramires' sendng off worsened matters for Chelsea in the 67th, as he stupidly kicked Nani from behind. Referee Olegario Bartolo Benquerenca didn't hesitate in showing the second yellow.

The Blues surprised after going down to ten men by rallying the troops and getting back into the match.

Another spark from Drogba netted the Blues' first goal of the tie. The prodigious striker did well to bring down a long ball from Essien on his chest, and then finished well to the far post.

United were only sweating for 45 seconds. Immediately after the kick off, substitute Antonio Valencia created space and found Ryan Giggs in the middle of the pitch, the Welshman played a picture perfect aerial pass to Park, who to took the ball on the bounce and lashed a beautiful volley to the far stick to ice the tie.

Other Results

Schalke 2-1 Inter (Schalke through 7-3 on aggregate)
Real Madrid 1-0 Tottenham (Real through 5-0 on aggregate)
Barcelona 1-0 Shakhtar Donetsk 0 (Barca through 6-1 on aggregate)

Champions League Review

Inter Milan 3-2 Bayern Munich (Inter win 3-3 on aggregate)

HIGHLIGHTS

3'- Eto'o
21'- Gomez
31'- Muller
63'- Sneijder
88'- Pandev

Bayern Munich were left to rue a host of miss chances, and ended up crashing out of the Champions League thanks to a pair of goals from Inter in the final 27 minutes.

Goran Pandev found Samuel Eto'o behind the defense just two minutes in, and the Cameroonian slotted home with his left foot to deadlock the tie.

Inter were off on the front foot, but the rest of the half would belong to the hosts. They equalized in the 10th when Julio Cesar made a massive mistake to yield a goal, fumbling in front of goal, and Mario Gomez did well to finish on the rebound.

Bayern kept up the pressure, and Thomas Muller appeared to have iced the tie when he pounced on a deflected pass and dinked over the charging Cesar.

Bayern had the upper hand. And the tie should have been done and dusted at halftime, but Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben both missed from close range.

The second half was more of the same with the Bundesliga side looking the more lively. But they lacked the quality in front of goal as Gomez had an effort saved, and a host of bad touches inside the 18 ruined a multitude of promising attacks.

Inter could count themselves lucky to still be in the tie midway through the second half. But they recognized that the opportunity to pull their way back was still there, and Wesley Sneijder got the hosts sweating when he blasted low and to the left corner from distance in the 63rd.

Interestingly, Bayern continued to attack. But again they lacked quality in front of goal. That was not the case for Inter, who stamped their ticket to the quarterfinals with a fine goal in the 88th. Eto'o outmuscled Breno to get the ball in the box, then held up possession brilliantly before playing into the path of the onrushing Pandev, who finished well into the upper corner.

Thoughts

It's been a tough season for Bayern. Their European Dreams were shattered on Tuesday, and they're already out of it domestically, where Borussia Dortmund are running away with the title.

However, they performed well in the group phase of the CL, and they certainly created more over the two legs than Inter. Yes, they were fortunate to score their first goal after the dreadful error from Cesar. But they dominated the match for long periods, and could have easily made it three or four before Inter's comeback.

In the end, Louis Van Gaal's side only have themselves to blame. Ribery's chance in the first half should be in the back of the net for a player of his quality; Ditto for Robben who missed from close range late in the opening 45 minutes.

The second half was also a source of frustration for Munich. The Inter defense looked helpless up against the midfield of Bastian Schweinsteiger, Muller, Ribery, and Robben, who were linking up magnificently and creating space for themselves and others. But time and time again, they weren't clinical in front of goal. They paid for that dearly.

Meanwhile, Inter helped avoid complete humiliation for Serie A, as Roma and AC Milan were both dominated by their opponents and knocked out in the Round of 16.

I know it's cliché to say this, but Inter did indeed show the heart of champions on Tuesday. Most sides would be demoralized after being dominated and down two goals with thirty minutes to go. But Inter kept the pressure on, knowing that they were still in with a shout as long as Bayern continued to botch their chances.

On a team lacking a ton of difference makers, Eto'o showed his brilliance for Leonardo's bunch. The first goal was a typical finish from him, as he cooly slotted between the keepers' legs. But it was his hard work that created the winner for Pandev, as he used his strength, skill, and composure to buy time in the box, and then showed great intelligence by playing Pandev rather than having a go himself. It was a goal worthy of winning the tie.

I still say Inter's days in this competition are numbered. They are a talented side, but they lack true creative attacking forces aside from Sneidjer and Eto'o (Diego Milito's injury doesn't help matters). For me, former gaffer Jose Mourinho's presence helped mask some of those weaknesses last season, as his teams are typically set up correctly to grind out an ugly result. Without him, that hasn't been the case, as the Nerazzuri have given up too many goals and only have a few guys that can create offense for themselves. Even in this matchup, it was the combination of Sneidjer and Eto'o creating most all of the offense, while Bayern's attack could play through a host of playmakers such as Ribery, Robben, Muller, Schweinsteiger or Gomes.

Despite their weaknesses, Inter received a much more favorable draw for the quarters, as they will face an enigmatic Schalke side that have played well in the Champions League, but have been awful in Die Bundesliga and recently fired manager Felix Magath.

Perhaps Inter Milan aren't the best side left in the competition, but it's hard to count them out after yesterday's comeback.

Real Madrid 3-0 Lyon (Real win 4-1 on aggregate

HIGHLIGHTS

37'- Marcelo
66'- Benzema
76'- Di Maria

It was a walk in the park of sorts for Los Galacticos, who exercised more than a few demons by beating a Lyon side that upset them in the Round of 16 last season.

Left back Marcelo turned in a man of the match performance, opening up the Lyon back line on multiple occasions. The first goal represented one of those times, as the Brazilian ran onto a beautiful ball from Ronaldo before sweeping past two defenders and beating Hugo Lloris.

Marcelo continued to be involved as Real took control of the match. He made a great run down the wing and found Karim Benzema all alone in the middle, but this time Lloris was up to the task with a fantastic save.

A headed goal from Benzema was correctly called back for offsides just before halftime. But the striker still managed to open his account in the 66th, sneaking in behind the Lyon defense and slotting between the legs of the charging Lloris.

The hosts clinched it just ten minutes later. With the Ligue 1 side throwing everything forward, Madrid began to unlock them on the counterattack. That would pay dividends in the 76th, as a fine flick from Benzema found Di Maria all alone, and he calmly scooped into the right corner to make it 4-1 on aggregate.

Thoughts

Jose Mourinho's side have received some criticism for their domestic performance. But one must remember that they still have 70 points from 28 matches and are chasing perhaps the best team on the planet for first place. They haven't been world-beaters this year (not yet, at least), but they have been a very good side.

I still say Mourinho's managing is at it's best in the knockout phase of the Champions League, where he has two matches to exert his tactical genius.

This tie was vintage Mourinho. Real were patient in France, making sure not to make any mistakes, and went home with a decent 1-1 result in a match that they dominated. Then, they came home looking to pounce, and they did so early and often. The talent gap between the two teams isn't too much wider than it was last season. But this year Real were more disciplined defensively, and more clinical going forward.

This was a tough draw for Lyon. But they dug their own grave by not winning a group in which they were favored.

Losing Michel Bastos for this leg didn't help, as they didn't have that extra burst of pace and creativity from the left wing. But based on their performance, it's hard to say he would have made a difference.

Les Gones were cool and collected in last season's shocker at the Bernabeu, but that was certainly not the case on Wednesday.

Also...

Tottenham 0-0 AC Milan (Tottenham through 1-0 on aggregate)
Chelsea 0-0 FC Copenhagen (Chelsea through 2-0 on aggregate)

A Black Eye for the Beautiful Game

Barcelona 3-1 Arsenal
HIGHLIGHTS

Let's just say that Tuesday's UEFA Champions League matchup between Arsenal and Barcelona had football fans licking their chops.

After a fantastic first leg saw the Catalan Giants dominate possession, the Gunners held tough and came back from a late deficit with two second half goals of great quality. That historic night at The Emirates figured to make for even more fireworks when both teams met up on Tuesday. After all, both sides are undoubtedly amongst Europe's best clubs (likely the best side on the planet in Barca's case). But more importantly, the two are stubbornly insistent on playing attractive football. And it had shown in the teams' previous three matches over the past year(Barca beat Arsenal 6-3 on aggregate in the quarterfinals last season), as there was pulsating football aplenty.

The favored Catalan side would take the second leg 3-1 to move on. But in the end, even those pulling for Barca must have been a little disappointed in what transpired. The 90 minutes should have been a celebration of the game of football. Swiss referee Massimo Busacca saw to that when he erroneously showed Robin Van Persie his second yellow card early in the second half for time wasting.

The Match

While the head referee decided to make himself the main storyline, there was still a game of football to be played on the pitch at the Camp Nou. And Barcelona knew that they would have to perform admirably in order to reverse a 2-1 deficit.

Pep Guardiola's side showed their obvious intentions from the opening whistle, as they patiently looked to breakdown the Arsenal defense with their incisive passing. Meanwhile, the Gunners were unable to find their rhythm as they spent the entirety of the first half on the back foot. That being said, they defended the barrage of Barca attacks fairly well, but they ended up shooting themselves in the foot thanks to an uncharacteristic error from captain Cesc Fabregas.

Barcelona's possession play was lovely. On countless occasions, an Arsenal winger and left/right back would double team a Barca player trying to force a turnover. But the combinations of Samir Nasri/Bacary Sagna and Tomas Rosicky/Gael Clichy simply couldn't get the ball from the likes of Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta, Lionel Messi etc. The result was close to 65% possession for the home side, and it was quite clear that Barca had the better first 45. But Djourou and Koscielny were defending heroically in the middle, and in the end Barcelona had just two shots on goal. There was a powerful, long effort from Dani Alves that was handled by Wojciech Szczesny. The shot itself was harmless, but it caused plenty of damage, as it dislocated one of the Pole's fingers, forcing him out of the match for much-maligned no. 2 Manuel Almunia.

And then there was the goal in first half stoppage time, which featured a picture perfect pass from Iniesta and a fantastically composed finish from Messi. But it's important to note that the go-ahead goal came from an inexcusable error from Fabregas, as he opted to back-heel to Jack Wilshere just outside his own box, and got burned when the ball ended up on Iniesta's foot.

Arsenal would have to come out of the break more attack minded after Messi's goal. And they did improve slightly before getting the equalizer, which would represent one of the few times of the match where they could count themselves lucky. Nasri's corner was not well placed, but Busquets failed to deal with it at the near post, shockingly heading back into his own goal.

Arsenal was holding the slimmest of leads, and both teams were looking lively and confident. Then came the moment of madness from Busacca, who embarrassingly sent off Van Persie.

The Call

Early in the second half, it appeared that we were headed for another classic between the two sides after the Gunners had netted that fortuitous own goal. Instead, Busacca effectively ruined the match three minutes later, handing Van Persie a second yellow for time wasting after he had a go at goal while the offsides flag was raised. That's right, the Swiss offical decided it necessary to administer a yellow card for delaying the match in the 56th minute, in a stadium with 95,000+ in attendance, and on a wayward shot that took place a mere one second after the flag had gone up.

I've seen some bad calls in my time. But this one takes the cake. Not only is the decision technically incorrect as RVP only takes one touch before shooting (not exactly a devious maneuver with 35 miuntes to play), but it also shows a complete lack of judgment and common sense.

The decision was a poor one. It also killed the match off, as Barcelona put their foot on the gas and ten-man Arsenal simply couldn't handle the pressure any longer. Granted, the overall result surely may have been the same, as relentless Barcelona were knocking on Arsenal's door even before the sending off. But an egotistical blunder of massive proportions from Busacca became the story. In the end, we'll never be able to say what would have really happened between these two, as he the proactively changed the course of the tie drastically.

The Rest

What happened after Arsenal went down to ten was predictable. With their class and quality, Barcelona simply couldn't be stopped. After mustering just the two shots on goal before Busacca got involved, they began to pepper the Gunners' goal with shots.

David Villa burst through moments after the controversy only for Almunia to make the first of several fantastic saves.

Without a striker, the Gunners could only defend and hope for the best. That typically doesn't work against the likes of Barcelona, and this match would be no different.

With Arsenal hanging by a thread, the hosts pounced. It was a vintage piece of Barca buildup play that finally some them breakthrough in the 69th, as some fantastic combination passing saw Iniesta find Xavi behind the defense, who did well to finish past Almunia.

Even at 2-1, it was Barcelona who were in total control. So it was no surprise to see them net an insurance goal just two minutes later, when Laurent Koscielny clumsily took out Pedro in the box. Messi was calm and collected on the penalty to finish off the scoring.

The Verdict

All in all, there is very good reason to believe that Barca would have gotten their result. Their midfield was absolutely dominant, and opposition rarely stand a chance when that is the case. While they will surely feel fortunate to have seen their opponents weakened early in the second half, I'd say that they'd have been favorites to win the match based on the course of the match's first 54 minutes.

That said, one will never be able to discuss this fixture without making mention of the abysmal refereeing error. The match completely changed as Arsenal's previously staunch defense was bending but not breaking before the incident, and then suddenly opened up at the seams after RVP's dismissal. If you really think that the match would have followed a similar course regardless of Busacca's decision, you might be a crazy person.

RVP's offense would have been a soft yellow on any pitch, little less in front of "95,000 screaming people" (Van Persie's words) making it excessively difficult to hear the whistle. But what troubles me is the nature of the decision. Busacca has made a conscious effort to take the match out of the players' hands, and he's done it under circumstances that in no way should elicit that type of response. His guffaw makes him look like a terrible referee, but it also a decision that shos him to be self-absorbed and irrational. If you are a fan of the game, there is simply no way you can believe otherwise.

Look, I'll admit once again I am an Arsenal guy and was massively upset with the call. But my complaints with Busacca are not just from a Gooner perspective, but also as a fan of football. I didn't want to be to discussing the officiating when reviewing a match between two squads that play football beautifully. Busacca made sure that wasn't the case, and in the process, we were all robbed of an opportunity to watch what may have been one of the season's most entertaining 90 minutes.

Are Liverpool Back?

The Turnaround

It's been a tale of two halves for Liverpool this season.

Just two months ago, the side was an embarrassment to the kit, looking uninspired and suffering through a slew of terrible and often humiliating results (being swept by Wolves for the first time in 50 years comes to mind).

The EPL title was out of reach by mid-October, a top four spot looked unlikely at the New Year, and it was clear that this was a team in need of a major shakeup. They would get that shakeup. And now things are finally looking up for the proud club thanks to the coming of age from several players, and the purchase of a potential star.

In the mean time, they appear ready to make a late push at the top four, and could enter next season with legitimate aspirations of a title run should they make the right moves this summer.

What Changed?

Many point to the hiring of former Liverpool Legend Kenny Dalglish as the turning point for the Reds. To his credit, the interim man did take over under rough times before the team had a revival of sorts under his control. But for me, the real cause of 'Pool's resurgence was the arrival of Luis Suarez. The 24-year old striker/winger/center forward looks as if he's about to take the world by storm.

I've been a fan of his for some time, and I'll let you read about my man love for him here in a blog from last month. If you want to be inundated with a compilation of all things Suarez (for my fellow soccer junkies who may not have been reading back then), read that story (it will save us both some time). Otherwise, check out this play (start video at 2:45) from Suarez against Manchester United yesterday. Also realize that he would have scored on his own had Kuyt not been present, as the ball is clearly curling into the far corner.

The turn in form has also been aided by the emergence of summer signing Raul Miereles. Miereles got off to a slow start as 'Pool languished through their early season malaise. But then the goals started coming for the crafty center midfielder, as he scored five goals over six matches while the Reds came into their current form.

The play of Suarez and Miereles has paid great dividends for other players as well.

Against United, Suarez sat just behind Dirk Kuyt in a center forward role. After 90 minutes, two of the Dutchman's scores had come off of great plays from the Uruguayan. Kuyt is a workhorse that you can count on for effort, but he's a guy that needs service to be at his most effective and now he's getting it.

Before the emergence of Miereles, and the addition of Suarez, Steven Gerrard had to do it all. Among the copious list of things he had to do were to provide goal scoring from midfield, give service to Fernando Torres (who wasn't doing him any favors), and provide his often unnoticed defensive duties. Now he has Suarez to feed the strikers further up the pitch, and Miereles pairing with him effectively in the middle, and he's looked much more comfortable on the pitch. I'd still like to see a few more goals from the English Captain, but you've got to assume they'll come at some point.

The Future

Liverpool fans are thinking Champions League. And if they play as they did on Sunday it's a possibility. But they're still nine points adrift of fourth. I'd say they've already dug themselves too deep a hole to get back into the top four.

Should 'Pool find themselves in the Europe League for the second straight year, all is not lost as they have a chance to get even better this summer.

Look, I still feel the Andy Carroll buy was a mistake, as it took away the funds from the Torres sale. But the owners say there is more money to spend, so that's got to be good news. This team still needs some help on the back four, and I think they could make a pretty penny by selling Glen Johnson, who continues to give them very little defense at right back.

There are other issues that must be addressed. Keeping Pepe Reina is an absolute must for me, as he provides a vital lifeline defensively. The Reds could also do with a true striker to put in front of or pair with Suarez, among other things. But the retention of Reina, and two or three worthwhile additions could see them close to the top of the league a year from now.

What do you think? Are Liverpool Back?

Weekend in Review

Liverpool 3-1 Manchester United

34'- Kuyt
39'- Kuyt
65'- Kuyt
90'- Hernandez

HIGHLIGHTS

It's been five days from hell in the red half of Manchester. In a week where they faced two difficult fixtures at Stamford Bridge and Anfield, the Red Devils were defeated twice and now look to be in a real battle for the title.

On Sunday, they ran into a Liverpool team that appear to be coming together and putting the dark days of the Roy Hodgson era behind them. The result was a thorough beating courtesy of Kenny Dalglish's resurgent Reds, who beat them 3-1 before a vociferous crowd of 44,753.

It should be noted that United were not at their best in the back. First choice center halves Rio Ferdinand (injury) and Nemanja Vidic (suspension) both missed out. Young Chris Smalling continued to deputize for Ferdinand, while Wes Brown got the start in place of the Serbian.

Liverpool new boy Luis Suarez faced his first real test in the EPL, and he would pass with flying colors. He had his first chance in the 2nd minute when Rau Miereles fired across the box to the off-balance Uruguayan, who one-touched right at Edwin van der Sar.

Dimitar Berbatov came close in the 16th when his lovely half-volley from distance curled around Pepe Reina but bounced off the far post and out.

Two minutes later, Suarez was again involved when he beat a defender down the left wing and found Miereles's head at the far post. He flicked back across goal and just past the outstretched Dirk Kuyt.

Suarez magnificently created the opening goal in the 34th, beating three United defenders in the box and then slotting between the legs of van der Sar to Kuyt, who only had to tap in for the lead.

The brilliance of Suarez set up Kuyt for his first goal. But it was a bizarre header from Nani five minutes later that lead to the second, as the winger flicked back into the box where the Dutchman awaited at the far post to pounce.

Things got ugly before the half. A terrible challenge from Jamie Carragher saw the veteran go studs up into Nani. The Portuguese at first got up to confront the guilty party, but then went down in pain and was later substituted as a mild fracas ensued. In the end, Carragher got off with just a yellow. Nani was substituted for Javier Hernandez after suffering a "deep gash" in his leg.

There was another altercation when a high boot from Maxi Rodriguez on Rafael angered the Brazilian, who then slid in late on Martin Skrtel, and the two went face-to-face near the center-circle as both sides exchanged pleasantries.

United came back into the match in the second half. Sir Alex Ferguson's side began to posses the ball in dangerous areas as the Reds started to scramble.

In the 48th, Berbatov crossed low and with pace for Javier Hernandez, but the normally reliable finisher scuffed his strike wide.

Rooney hit Giggs with a similar ball in the 55th, but the Welshman's left footed effort dipped moments late.

Four minutes later, Rooney's cross traveled across Reina and was headed back towards goal by Hernandez to the awaiting Berbatov. The Bulgarian's header had the goalkeeper beaten, but Miereles did fantastically well to chest off the line whilst avoiding a hand ball.

United were on the front foot. But it was the home side that would put the result on ice with the next goal. Suarez's well struck free kick was saved by van der Sar, but he had a tough time with the curling strike and fumbled it momentarily, and Kuyt was opportunistic once again to net his hat trick.

£35M man Andy Carroll made his debut for the Reds in the 74th. His first 25 minutes in the Liverpool kit were mainly uneventful, with his only contribution being a headed pass onto the foot of Kuyt, who sliced his effort over.

Kuyt may have bagged his first career hat trick, but it was Suarez who was really making his presence felt. He nearly scored a great goal in the 87th, as he nutmegged Patrice Evra at midfield, then poked the ball around Wes Brown and burst into the right half of the box before shanking his strike well wide.

Steven Gerrard was fairly quiet. But he had two long shots just miss, the second of curling inches wide from a short free kick.

Hernandez pulled back a late consolation, sneaking into the 6-yard box unmarked and nodding into the left corner.

A Tough Week for United

All in all, Manchester United have to consider themselves lucky to still be three points up on Arsenal (more on that later) after their worst week of the season.

They were unfortunate against Chelsea in many ways, but they looked rattled for much of the second half as the Blues stormed back to win.

While the performance at Stamford Bridge wasn't their worst, they came close to that level of ineptitude today. Of course we must credit Liverpool, who played United off the pitch in the first half and had enough left in the tank to get them to the finish.

The absence of Ferdinand and Vidic was certainly crucial. Suarez was giving the Man U back four complete fits. And to be quite honest, Brown and Smalling looked terrified whenever he put them under pressure. The Uruguayan also bested Evra on several occasions down the wing.

With Suarez and company having their way going forward, United's attacking quality was not good enough to keep 'Pool honest. After a decent start, Rooney completely disappeared from the match for nearly thirty minutes. That's inexcusable for a team trying to get a result in hostile territory. For a man that appears to be coming into form, Rooney must get the service necessary to operate.

There's a long way to go in the season. And United must turn their performances around as Arsenal is right on their heels, and Chelsea will be back in with a shout should they beat Blackpool on Monday.

Arsenal Frustrated

Manchester United's loss to Chelsea opened up the door for Arsene Wenger's Gunners, who would have moved to within one point of the leaders with a win against Sunderland on Saturday.

With a chance to put even more pressure on struggling United, Arsenal failed to get the job done, drawing 0-0 at The Emirates in a match where they were always on the front foot, and also massively unlucky to see a series of tough refereeing decisions go against them.

Injuries to midfielders Alex Song and Cesc Fabregas (both are expected back fit for Tuesday's Champions League matchup with Barcelona) forced the enigmatic and rusty Abou Diaby and rarely used Denilson into action. The lack of continuity between the two and Jack Wilshere showed in the first half, as the Gunners looked stretched and unable to possess.

Stephane Sessegnon managed to create a half-chance in the 18th for the visitors, doing well to create space and blasting towards goal where Wojciech Szczesny parried.

Despite the early flurry from the Black Cats, Arsenal defended well as Laurent Koscielny responded from his Carling Cup guffaw with a fine performance amongst the back four.

The Gunners did manage several chances. The two greatest fell to Nicklas Bendtner, who went close on a pair of occasions. First he burst through the defense to get to Wilshere's ball and rifled it upwards, only to see Simon Mignolet get a hand to the powerful strike and push it over. A corner saw him try a bicycle kick that he hit perfectly, but unfortunately for him the effort was right at the goalkeeper.

The second half saw the Gunners furiously pressing forward, creating countless chances.

Andrei Arshavin was at the center of attention for much of the half. Substitute Marouane Chamakh got out on the break and did well to find him alone in front of goal in the 63rd, but the little Russian rushed his shot and Mignolet made another stop.

The French goalkeeper did magnificently well in the 73rd, stopping a goal-bound free kick from Samir Nasri.

Chamakh hit the bar two minutes later as the onslaught continued. Wilshere crossed into the box and the Moroccan rose well, but his header was just inches too high.

A beautiful ball from Nasri within the Arsenal half saw Arshavin through in the 80th. The winger did well to settle himself, but a push from behind from Titus Bramble put him off and he missed the near post. Arsene Wenger and company protested to no avail.

With their opponents in disbelief, Sunderland thrust forward their only meaningful attack of the second 45. Man United loanee Danny Welbeck made his return from injury off the substitutes bench, and nearly made Steve Bruce look like a genius when he took the ball down out of the air in the box, then wheeled and fired to the far post to force a brilliant save from Szczesny.

Jordan Henderson had a chance from the ensuing corner. But his volley was placed right at the young Polish goalkeeper.

The Gunners were again furious with the officiating when Arshavin wrongly had a goal disalowed for offsides in the 86th.

Wenger was justifiably fuming post-match. He called the officiating performance "not acceptable" and it's hard to disagree. In this match, we've seen two decisions go against Arsenal, with one costing them a chance from the spot, while the other incorrectly prevented a go-ahead goal. The cross bar and some fine stops from Mignolet left the home side ruing yet another missed opportunity to make up substantial ground on United.

Despite the result, the Gunners can take solace in the rapidly decreasing form of Man U. In the end, it's another point picked up on the leaders, as Arsenal sit just three points from the summit with a match in hand.

They have one league match (at West Brom) left before the international break. After which, if nothing goes wrong, they should be at full strength for the stretch run with the return of Van Persie.

Still the Gunners have to be frustrated. They have dropped a ton of points in absolutely heartbreaking fashion, blowing leads for instance against the likes of Newcastle (4-0 to 4-4) and Tottenham (2-0 to 3-2). Had they shown a little more composure/poise and/or had a bit more luck they would likely be sitting pretty right now atop the table.

Fireworks at Molineux

I tried to convince my brother (a renowned soccer hater) to stick around and watch Tottenham-Wolves after he had reluctantly enjoyed the Man U-'Pool match. After all, this was a match where both teams would certainly go for the three points. He refused, and instead missed a great 90 minutes as both sides battled it out to a 3-3 draw that featured plenty of talking points to go with several goals of great quality.

Mired in the relegation battle, Wolves will attack whomever comes to Molineux, knowing that the vast majority of their wins down the stretch should come on their home pitch. Meanwhile, Tottenham also were looking to throw bodies forward, knowing that wins against lesser talented sides are an absolute must in their battle for a position in the top four.

Jermain Defoe somehow hadn't scored an EPL goal from the run of play in over a year. He re-opened his account with two absolutely breathtaking strikes that came just minutes apart.

As for Wolves, they showed their usual passion and commitment, fighting back from adversity (and an inexplicable officiating error that saw a late goal disallowed) to muster a draw.

Before I leave you to watch the highlights for yourself, I want to give a little love to George Elokobi. The left back won't get much fanfare, and may not have a major EPL career should he not help keep Wolves at the top level. However, with his tough demeanor, fearless defending, and his fine fitness and work ethic (I wouldn't want to run into that guy in a back alley), he's everything you want from a player when you're battling the drop. That's the kind of spirit that Wanderers need to duplicate if they want to avoid relegation this season.

Check out the highlights.

In Case you Missed It...

I sang the praises of Bundesliga leading Borussia Dortmund last week. But there's another young team taking their domestic league by storm in France. If you haven't been paying much attention to Lille, it might be time to take notice.

Like Dortmund, Les Dogues (The Mastiffs in our tongue) have defeated the notion that you can't win with youth. While their challengers have had their ups and downs in a Ligue 1 season lacking intrigue, Rudi Garcia's bunch have kept chugging along and getting results. They did so again on Sunday, notching a last second goal from substitute Pierre-Alain Frau (one of the few veterans of the squad) to beat preseason title favorites Marseille 2-1.

Lille began to assemble this young team in 2008-09 with current Lyon star Michel Bastos leading them, as they burst onto the scene to make a serious challenge for a Champions League spot and were outside title contenders all year. Les Dogues would lose the magical Brazilian left footer that summer, and it hurt them last season. But they still fought back to finish fourth place and garner a second straight Europa League bid. Meanwhile, without Bastos to bail them out, the likes of youngsters Eden Hazard (20 years old) and Gervinho (23) came of age.

Then Garcia made a brilliant move last summer when he signed little known 24-year old Moussa Sow after his contract expired with Rennes. He (18 goals) and Gervinho (11) lead the team with scoring, while Hazard has blossomed into one of the world's top prospects from the left wing.

In a season where Ligue 1 has been dull at best, the youthful upstarts from Lille have certainly provided a bright spot.

As for Dortmund, they now lead by 12 points in Die Bundesliga after a 1-0 win over Koln. But the story of the weekend in Germany was a major shake up in the race for the Champions League, as a pair of surprise teams upset two of the big boys to jockey for places in the top three.

Bayern Munich may be looking good in the Champions league, but life has been much rougher domestically. Bayern were all but eliminated from the title race in a 3-1 defeat to Dortmund last week, now they're all the way down to fifth in the table after a loss by the same score to high-flying Hannover. The win puts Steve Cherundolo's side (had to sneak that in there) into the third and final Champions League spot, five points ahead of Bayern.

Their closest challenger is Mainz. This is just their second season in the top flight, but they did well to finish in the top half of the table last season. Today they sit four points back of Hannover after beating favored Hamburg (now seventh place and ten points adrift of third) 4-2 on Sunday.

What are your thoughts from the weekend in footy? Feel free to leave comments below!

Chelsea 2-1 Manchester United

29'- Rooney
53'- Luiz
80'- Lampard

Chelsea think that they have reignited their title hopes with a fantastic 2-1 win over Manchester United at Stamford Bridge. The hosts came out on top only after a controversial penalty gave them the win in a match where both teams went all out for the three points. But the victors performance certainly earned them the spoils in a match that could have ko'd their title hopes in' the English Premier League.

The game got off to a flying start with Chelsea on the attack.

David Luiz won the ball in the back and hit Florent Malouda on the wing, who had his legs taken out from under him while Nicolas Anelka jumped on the loose ball, cut into the box and missed his low strike wide right.

The back-and-forth affair was a pleasure to watch for fans.

In the 7th, Patrice Evra did well to get down the left wing and play a teasing ball across the face of goal but no one was home.

Anelka had another chance moments later when Torres switched the field of play to find him on the counter. He did well to get into shooting position, but again missed a low shot wide of the far post.

United were right in the match throughout the first half. Wayne Rooney should have done better in the 21st when he clumsily missed a free header and the ball slammed off of his shoulder.

Rooney made due on his second chance in the 29th minute. He took a short ball from Nani outside the box, then took two precise touches before blasting to the near post and past the outstretched Peter Cech.

Chelsea somehow didn't equalize in the 38th from a Frank Lampard free kick, which bounced off of van der Sar, and then off of Branislav Ivanovic. The right back went for the deflection with the goal at his mercy, but van der Sar heroically got his hand up and swatted the ball away just before the Chelsea man could pounce.

Three points was the only option to keep Chelsea's miniscule title hopes alive. And they came out in the second half throwing everything forward.

The aggressive strategy paid dividends immediately. In the 53rd, Ashley Cole threw a cross into the box which Ivanovic flicked across goal, the ball bounced twice before falling to the waiting Luiz, who unleashed a perfect volley to the near post for the equalizer.

Chelsea were flying afterwards while the visitors began to look rattled.

Didier Drogba entered for Anelka in the 61st as the Blues continued to attack.

The match was wide open and Chelsea were enjoying over 60% of the possession in the second half. But United did manage a solid counter when Rooney and Nani did well to combine again and the Englishman got behind Michael Essien before firing his shot embarrassingly wide.

The Blues kept coming forward. But their lack of quality combined with some fine last ditch defending from their opponents kept them at bay. Torres provided a good example of that when he launched a bending strike at least ten rows deep in minute 68.

Rooney got a glimmer of space in the box in the 75th, but shot right at Cech while under pressure from Luiz.

There was controversy aplenty in the 77th. Luiz clearly took away the legs of Rooney off the ball, which should have seen him sent off for a second yellow card. But referee Martin Atkinson missed the incident and the center-half escaped.

Just one minute later, it was Chelsea who emerged with the goal they desperately needed. Chris Smalling was adjudged to have fouled (highlight starts at 3:05) substitute Yuri Zhirkov in the box. At the very least, the center half was unfortunate, as a lucky bounce off of his leg saw the Russian regain possession just in time to make contact with Smalling.

Lampard stepped up to take the penalty. And he boldly finished top shelf to give his side the lead with ten minutes to go.

Chelsea looked the more likely to score after the goal. Zhirkov was desperately unlucky not to score after his long strike was headed goalwards but came off the leg of Nemanja Vidic and deflected off the post and out.

Vidic's second yellow card added insult to injury, as he lost his cool and yanked Ramires down as Chelsea ran the clock down.

Opinion

The "Battle at the Bridge" didn't disappoint.

There were so many great performances to choose from in a match played at an absolutely breathtaking pace. I loved that both teams attacked from the outset. You could tell that Sir Alex Ferguson and company came to London determined to deliver the knockout blow to Chelsea's title hopes. Meanwhile, the Blues could settle for nothing less than three points without ending all hopes of an already unlikely title push.

Both teams were flying from the opening whistle. The first half was fairly even, with both sides playing attacking football.

Rooney's goal was an absolute peach of a strike. He turns, picks his head up, makes up his mind quickly, and has a go for goal. He might have done a little better with a couple more chances in the match, but he is once again looking dangerous. If there's any positive that United can take form the loss, it's the return to form of Rooney, who has now scored in three consecutive appearances.

Sir Alex Ferguson was fuming at the referee post-match. Luiz was great, but he absolutely should have received a second yellow for clattering into Rooney. And the penalty kick that came immediately afterwards was also a controversial decision (start video at 3:05).

While Atkinson missed the call on Luiz, I can see where he's coming from when pointing to the spot later on, as their is clear contact in the area. But you've got to say that Smalling was unlucky to give it up, as he doesn't have time to get out of the way, and Zhirkov has certainly gone down easily.

I was a little surprised to see United show so little fight after the penalty. They hardly had a sniff of the ball in the second half before or after the goal. Once again, they showed that Chelsea is the one team in England that can rattle them.

United didn't look at all nervous in the first half. They held the ball well in the midfield while Rooney and Javier Hernandez were giving the defense problems. Plus got the goal they needed from Rooney in a relatively even 45 minutes. But it all went sour for in the second half.

It didn't help that Nani was uninvolved, and you have to give Ivanovic a bunch of credit for keeping him quiet. Without the most creative of center midfielders, United rely on the winger to make runs into the middle and make defenses scramble. But he was unable to do so today, and Chelsea made the adjustments neccessary at half to key in on Rooney and Chicharito.

As for Chelsea, they have played some fine halves of football this season. After all, they have scored seven goals in a match four times this year. That being said, they've never played a better half than the second 45 minutes against Man U. The stakes are rarely higher. The crowd was tense throughout, uneasy about being forced to stomach the image of Ferguson's side ending their season on their own pitch.

All in all, Chelsea were up against pressure that they hadn't yet faced this season. And they rose to the challenge sporting the combination of toughness, quality, and swagger that brought them silverware last year.

The Luiz goal was simply fantastic. I've got to say, he looks to be worth all of that money they spent.

I didn't know a ton about Luiz at Benfica. Plus you never know how a newly signed center half will adjust to the rigors of the EPL (we've seen much more well heralded ones fail before). But this guy has what it takes. He's got to learn to be a bit more disciplined as he gave up a poor penalty last week against Fulham and should have been sent off against Man U. But he's a fine defender with great lateral quickness and ball control.

It was a pleasure to watch Luiz and Rooney go against each other. Rooney's goal was fantastic, but to me it was Luiz who continually showed his quality. Several times, he would anticipate a pass to Rooney and step in front to intercept. On other occasions, he would get right behind the in-form striker and force him to quickly release the ball or take him one-on-one. Luiz got the better of him in those situations, and helped keep the United tally to one goal.

Furthermore, he is a fine player on the ball. His touch is fine, and he plays a great ball out of the back. The goal he scored was a great one. But it was no mistake. If you're thinking that was a once in a lifetime strike from a center half, you're dead wrong. Luiz has great technique on the ball and passes extremely well. At just 23, we might be witnessing the coming out party for the next great Brazilian center half.

Vidic and Rio Ferndinand have been the top center back pairing in England for some time now. But I think Luiz and John Terry could give them a real run for their money.

Now that I've revealed my man crush for Luiz in full, let's get back to the match itself.

The Plot Thickens...

We're in for a race to the finish regarding the title.

Arsenal can move to within one point of Manchester United with a win at home against Sunderland on Saturday. United could increase the lead back to four on Sunday against Liverpool, but the Gunners would have a match in hand.

That trip to Anfield looks a difficult one. Man U will play Sunday without vaunted center backs Vidic (suspension) and Ferdinand (injury). Smalling will continue to deputize for Ferdinand. But with Johnny Evans unavailable, Ferguson will turn to Wes Brown in the back. Luis Suarez must be licking his chops, but that's a thought for another time.

In closing, all I can say is that we are in for one hell of a title race. Chelsea claim they still have a hand in it, but it's Arsenal who will really be nipping at Man U's heels if they can beat Sunderland (a terrible road outfit) on Saturday. Remember, the Gunners host Man U at the Emirates later this season and don't have to play Chelsea or Manchester City again. The race is on, my friends. And it's going to be damn fun to watch.

Weekend in Review

Arsenal Heartbreak... Again

Highlights

It's been nearly six years since Arsenal last won a trophy. And Sunday's heartbreaking 2-1 loss to Birmingham in the Carling Cup Final means they'll have to wait a little longer to grasp silverware.

The defeat left the Gunners in despair. But the way they lost will hurt even more, as a comedy of errors involving Laurent Koscielny and Wojciech Szczesny in the final minutes allowed for an extremely soft game-winning goal in the 88th.

The Gunners had the more chances overall of the two teams as well. But Ben Foster came up with a man of the match performance in goal, while the underdogs also must be credited for turning in one of their best shifts of the season.

In typical Cup Final fashion, the match was played at a high pace throughout. And Birmingham should have had a penalty just three minutes in when Szczesny took out the legs of Lee Bowyer in the box for what was clear cut penalty kick. But the midfielder had been incorrectly ruled offsides and Arsenal escaped.

Although Birmingham started off on the front foot, it was Arsenal who took control during an exciting opening 20 minutes.

Andrei Arshavin had the first opportunity for the favorites, spinning around a defender and firing a left-footed blast directly at Foster, who did well to save.

Johan Djourou should have done better with two headed chances from consecutive corners in the 10th minute. But he missed both attempts badly.

Samir Nasri did well to juke his defender and set up on his right foot in the box in the 14th. But he blasted his attempt over the near post from a difficult angle.

The Blues were right in the match, looking dangerous on the counterattack and set pieces. They took the lead via the latter in the 28th minute. A nice corner found the head of Roger Johnson at the top of the box, who flicked towards goal as the Arsenal defense scrambled to get into position. Nikola Zigic reacted quickest, sneaking in between a host of defenders, and heading past the onrushing Szczesny from close range.

Arsenal came back immediately afterward and nearly equalized on a header from Robin Van Persie.

Birmingham had Arsene Wenger's side on the ropes thereafter. The Gunners needed several last ditch clearances on dangerous crosses as the presence of 6-7 Zigic was clearly giving the back four issues. He nearly netted his second in the 34th, finding a quick opening in the box only to see his shot pushed away by Szczesny.

With their backs against the wall, Arsenal managed to get back into the match, and netted the equalizer through Van Persie in the 39th. It all started when Jack Wilshere's long range effort slammed off the crossbar and back into play. But the Gunners gave BFC no time to exhale, as Arshavin ended up with the ball and turned Liam Ridgewell before crossing brilliantly onto the right foot of the Dutchman, who buried his full volley attempt home.

The equalizer was not all good news for Arsenal. Van Persie's right knee slammed into Martin Jiranek during the goal. The injury would force him off the pitch in the 70th minute for Nicklas Bendtner.

The two teams went to the half having both showed their best football over the first 45. And there was plenty more great play to come.

Tomas Rosicky came close in the 47th on a low volley from a Sagna cross.

Birmingham came within a whisker of their second goal in the 58th when Keith Fahey fired past Szczesny and off the post.

Both sides slowed down over the next ten minutes. Birmingham occasionally looked dangerous on the counterattack but were typically stifled by some valiant Arsenal defending. Meanwhile, the Gunners were controlling the ball but not creating much of anything.

Arsenal started to come to life in the 74th and 75th minutes when Ben Foster thwarted efforts from Samir Nasri and Bendtner.

The Gunners continued to look the most likely to score. In the 78th, Bendtner created space in the box, but his right footed blast was partially blocked and saved by Foster.

One minute later, substitute Marouane Chamakh got free and played the ball across the face of goal just past the outstretched Rosicky and Bendtner.

Nasri was again involved in the Arsenal onslaught, but Foster did well to parry his curling his from 22-yards in the 80th.

And then, from out of nowhere, the Gunners found themselves behind with virtually no time left. A miscommunication between Laurent Koscielny and Szczesny saw the Pole spill the ball in the box. It fell to Obafemi Martins, who could hardly believe his luck as he passed the ball into the wide open goal for the winner.

What a Final!
First and foremost, you have to credit to Birmingham. Although much of the talk from the match has surrounded Arsenal's most recent implosion, one must realize that Alex McCleish's team were game from the opening whistle, creating chances and doing well to exploit their size advantage via Zigic. They put the Arsenal back line under pressure and made things increasingly difficult for them. In all honesty, they were unfortunate to be down at the half as Arsenal's equalizer had certainly come against the run of play.

Zigic appears to be coming into his own after a rocky start in England. He has the size to give defenders hell, as you can never forget where he is. Ideally, that would open up space for others as well, but his addition had yielded mixed results this year. That's all changed a bit recently, as the Serbian has scored four goals in five matches. Surely it's no coincidence that the results have taken a turn for the better during that time. The Blues have lost just once over the period, moved closer safety in the EPL, and now have some silverware to add to their trophy case.

You've also got to heap the praise upon goalkeeper Ben Foster. The Manchester United outcast was viewed as damaged goods by some. But McLeish was right to give the promising youngster a chance and it's paid massive dividends. If not for his heroics, the Martins goal doesn't even matter.

As for Arsenal, this defeat was of the devastating variety. Tears were streaming from the eyes of young Wilshere, whilst several players fell to ground in agony after the final whistle. The reaction was steep for a team still heavily involved in three other competitions. But finally winning a trophy would have been a huge boost to the Gunners' psyche, and would have signaled to everyone that all the promise of Wenger's side is finally starting to yield great results. Instead they have yet another dissapointing defeat to think about, and that will surely get everyone asking questions about their mental strength for the umpteenth time.

How the Gunners respond from this is absolutely crucial. There is still plenty of season left and there are some massive fixtures right around the corner. They face an FA Cup replay with Leyton Orient tomorrow, and then head back to the league on Saturday before the crucial second leg against Barcelona at the Camp Nou next week.

To Arsenal's credit, they have responded well from tough results this season, but surely this defeat was the toughest of the season to swallow, and we've seen them fall apart after similar misfortunes in years past.

United Roll

Wigan entered Saturday's matchup having lost 14 in a row to league leading Manchester United. It's 15 straight defeats now after a convincing 4-0 trouncing extended United's lead back to four points over Arsenal, who had previously closed the gap to a single point after a win in mid-week.

The match surely would have been different had the Latics finished their chances in the first half. Victor Moses broke through in the 13th down the left side, but saw his near-post effort saved by the shoulder of a charging Edwin van der Sar.

United showed the finishing touch that the hosts could not in the 17th. A nice one-two between Rooney and Nani saw the winger in down the left side, and he rolled a beautiful ball across the box for Javier Hernandez, who easily slotted home for the lead.

Wigan should have equalized just moments later. A nice flick from Hugo Rodollega left James McCarthy all alone at the far post, but again van der Sar came up big and saved the strike from short range.

Holding a 1-0 lead, the visitors began to take over. Nani nearly gave them a spectacular two goal lead when his lazer of a strike slammed off the crossbar and bounced out in the 29th minute.

The second half was a simply brilliant performance from Sir Alex Ferguson's side.

The visitors were fortunate not be two goals down early on after United missed a host of chances.

The first opportunity came through Nani, who cut back onto his left foot in the box, but should have done better and missed wide.

United kept pressing, and they nailed the clincher in the 74th. Rooney did well to play Hernandez through behind the leaky Wigan defense, and "Chicharito" did well to control and settle himself for the finish.

United poured it on afterwards. Darron Gibson's long ball hit Dimitar Berbatov with one defender to beat, and he passed across the box to Rooney for an easy tap-in to make it 3-0.

Fabio scored the fourth in the 87th, taking down a long ball from close range before driving home the score.

It was another impressive victory for the Red Devils, who appear to be heading into their best form of the season as we speak. Things may well have been different had McCarthy or Moses been more clinical in the first half, but United settled in nicely after the first goal and took complete control of the match.

The first half may have been a little dicey, but Man U got exactly what they wanted after the break. Ferfuson's side controlled possession and pressed on until the pressure was simply too much to handle for Wigan.

United fans also have to be thrilled to see Wayne Rooney coming on strong. The frontman was heavily involved in three of the four goals. You could see the Wigan defense was beginning to scramble when he had possession in the second half, unsure of whether he was going to run at the back four and take a defender on, or distribute to United's more dangerous offensive players (i.e. Nani, Berbatov, Hernandez). When Rooney is rolling like that, he's as good as anyone in the world, and United will hope the performance at the DW is one of many to come over the rest of the year.

Madman Mancini

The bizarre season at Eastlands continued on Sunday, as Man City turned in a lackluster 1-1 draw against Fulham.

Mario Balotelli opened up the scoring for City in the 26th, notching a fantastic long shot that came against the run of play.

The Whites came out of the break strong and quickly equalized through Damien Duff.

The home side looked poor as they tried to take the lead back, creating very little and playing at a slow and listless pace. The poor result saw City get booed off the pitch by the home fans. Considering the draw came at home against a team that has a dreadful away record, they probably deserved it.

City just a frustrating team to watch at this point. All of that quality is yet to translate into a truly great run of form.

I have to wonder whether the tactics of Roberto Mancini match the personnel within the squad. We're talking about a team that has spent big bucks on the likes of Carlos Tevez, David Silva, Balottelli, Edin Dzeko and James Milner, yet hired a manager that wants his teams to defend first and foremost.

If you ask me, Mancini is not a bad manager. In fact, I'd say he's a borderline excellent tactician and his success in Italy speaks volumes. But this club is not a good fit for him. Yesterday, he strangely substituted Patrick Viera for Dzeko 15 minutes into the half, shoring up the center of midfield and defense in a deadlocked match where his team needed the three points. Did Mancini really think a 1-1 draw against average Fulham was an acceptable result?

In the end, City will find themselves in yet another dogfight for a Champions League spot. In my opinion, Mancini should be shown the door even if they do qualify. Not so much because they have greatly underachived this season, but because they need an increasingly attacking minded manager who gives Sheik Mansour's lucrative signings more freedom on the pitch.

Germany and Spain Wrapped Up?

What do Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona have in common? Well, both look to have already wrapped up silverware in their domestic leagues after massive results over the weekend.

Young Dortmund has been a bit sloppy recently, as their double-digit point lead in the league may have left them overconfident. But they reminded everyone how they jumped out to that lead in the first place with a master class performance against defending champions Bayern Munich. The 3-1 victory upped the gap to 16 points over Bayern, and 12 over second place Bayer Leverkusen, who drew 2-2 on Sunday.

If you haven't watched Dortmund yet, you're missing out. They have a fantastic young lineup with rising stars such as Nuri Sahin, Kevin Grosskreutz and more Shinji Kagawa.

Sahin is my favorite of the bunch. He's a versatile center midfielder that does all the dirty work. But he's also a major threat going forward with a dynamite long range shot (just look at this cracker he scored against Bayern), coupled with a deft touch and great vision/clever distribution. Trust me, this guy is going to be doing big things in the years to come, and I wouldn't be surprised at all to see one of the big boys from England make a move for the young Turk.

In La Liga, Barcelona cruised to another "routine" 3-0 win in Spain. Meantime, Real Madrid were poor in a scoreless draw with Deportivo La CORUNA. They trail the Catalan Giants by seven points. In a league where dropped points are few and far between for the top two clubs, one must think that Barca are very close to wrapping up this race for good.

Tuesday Review

Chelsea 2-0 Copenhagen

Chelsea went to Denmark and left with a stranglehold on their tie, while Real Madrid got the away goal they needed and dominated in their matchup with Lyon.

The Blues' domestic struggles have not effected their European form. They stayed true to that concept yesterday with a relatively routine 2-0 win over FC Copenhagen.

Chelsea controlled the match throughout, getting the crucial first goal early in the match before a second half goal gave them a fantastic result.

One may have expected them to come out shakily against FC Copenhagen in a wild atmosphere. That wasn't the case.

Nicolas Anelka netted a brace on the day. He scored his first in the 17th when Jesper Gronkjaer gave the ball away just past midfield, and the Frenchman pounced on the ball and made a beeline for goal before finishing well to the far post.

The Danes tried to fight back into the match. But Chelsea were firmly in control and continued to look the more dangerous side, as Torres fell short on a nice chance soon after and a curling effort from Anelka sailed over the bar.

The Lions hoped to spur a second half comeback. And they did manage a half-chance just 20 seconds in when Martin Vingard's shot from 20-yards fell into the arms of Cech.

Anelka doubled the lead in the 54th. A fine ball from Lampard played Anelka in behind, and he rifled his right footed shot past Johan Willand.

The Blues continued their domination. Torres did well to create an opportunity in the 59th, putting a nice move on to create space before seeing his low shot saved brilliantly by Willand.

Copenhagen leading scorer Dame N'Doye was quiet on the evening. Only managing a long strike that swerved wide of the right post in the 76th.

Opinion

These sorts of matches are rarely easy for the away side. Yesterday, I discussed how pesky and committed sides have troubled the Blues this season. But that was not the case on yesterday. Chelsea were the far superior side not just from an ability standpoint (which we knew coming into the match), but also in terms of discipline and composure.

The first goal changed everything. It took the air out the crowd and their opponents, as the Lions had to know they were facing a major uphill battle after falling behind at home. They pressed Chelsea at times, and even had the bulk of the possession. There was some nice interchange and combination play in the midfield (particularly of the one touch variety) from the hosts, but they never looked truly dangerous as Chelsea gave them no breathing room in their final third.

The visitors simply dominated, looking comfortable on defense and dangerous on offense.

The only negative is the Fernando Torres situation, which continued to yield negative returns, as the Spaniard had an astounding seven shots but no goals.

Despite the struggles of their 50M man, the Blues kept rolling. Anelka's second goal came from a brilliant spinning through pass from Lampard. "Lamps" wo was pulling the strings all evening and may have even scored himself if not for a few poor efforts from distance.

All I can do is applaud Ancelotti's boys for a job well done. They were clinical (minus Torres), composed, and creative, and now head back to London with a ticket to the quarterfinals all but secured.

Lyon 1-1 Real Madrid

Los Galacticos survived a dicey first half, and then responded with a fine performance in the second 45 that probably left them dissappointed with just a draw.

The Ligue 1 side had the best of the play in the first half. But they failed to create many chances. Their best opportunity fell to Bafetimbi Gomis. The normally sure-handed Iker Casillas fumbled a nice cross from Michel Bastos, and it fell to Gomis close to the penalty spot. But his left footed strike lacked accuracy and sailed well over the bar.

Real came out a different side in the second half. This time looking the more dangerous going forward.

They hit the post twice in the 48th and 49th minutes. First Ronaldo's gorgeous curling free kick from the left side beat Lloris but bounced off the post. Then Sergio Ramos' looping header beat the keeper again but slammed off the cross bar.

Real kept pressing. And they probably should have had a penalty in the 62nd when Ronaldo's free kick slammed off the raised arm of a Lyon defender in the box.

It seemed only a matter of time until Real broke through. They did so in minute 65. A clever bit of skill from Ozil helped find Ronaldo at the top of the box, and he played a perfect one-touch to Benzema streaking into the area. The former Lyon man evaded two defenders, before slotting his side-footed strike between the legs of Lloris for the goal.

More desperate than before, Lyon pressed forward in search of the equalizer. Their efforts were rewarded when they netted the tying goal with seven minutes left.

Miralem Pjanic's free kick from 40-yards hit the one-man wall of Ronaldo, and took an unexpected deflection into the box. Cris picked up the altered aerial route of the ball quickly, and flicked on for Gomis, who volleyed into the left corner from close range.

Opinion

This tie is headed for a similar scenario as last season, with Real entering their home matchup after securing a decent enough result in France. But Les Gones shocked everyone last year, going through thanks to late goal from Pjanic in Madrid.

Lyon should be criticized for their lack of attacking impetus in the first half. They defended quite well, while Real looked more interested in holding them scoreless than netting one of their own. Bastos and Cissokho were dominating up the left side, and they were holding the ball in the Madrid half for long periods of time.

But despite having the visitors on the back foot, the French side took very few chances going forward. If you look at what happened in the second half, it's clear that Lyon missed a major opportunity to force Real's hand. Why were they not throwing more bodies forward to get the first goal? Surely they must wish they had done so now.

The second half belonged to the favorites.

Once again, Jose Mourinho showed his managerial prowess. His team endured the home side's best shot, then sought to pounce on them with their superior quality and skill in the second half.

Real were brilliant. Ronaldo was bringing defenders with him and then distributing to the likes of Ozil, Benzema, and Adebayor.

In the end, the result may very well leave Real with a sour taste in their mouths. Had they not been so unlucky (two off the post and a missed penalty call from the referee), they could be heading home with a similar lead as Chelsea.

You have to credit Lyon for fighting back. And it's certainly clear that they are confident against the star-studded lineup of Real after beating them last season.

We're set up for a very intriguing second leg between these two. I'd have to call Madrid the favorites, but that was the case last year, too. Just about anything could happen When these two meet in a fortnights time.

Gunners Glory

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Arsenal 2-1 Barcelona

26'- Villa
78'- Van Persie
83'- Arshavin

When Arsenal and Barcelona met last year at The Emirates, Arsenal came back from a late deficit to put the pressure on the favorites as they headed to the Camp Nou for the second leg. It was a similar situation Wednesday as Barca jumped out to an early lead, but couldn't extend the gap, and then could only watch as a strong Arsenal side came back to score not once, but twice in the final 12 minutes to take a crucial lead back to Spain.

The Gunners were shorthanded last season (missing the likes of Song, Vermaelen, Van Persie, Fabregas, and more over the two ties). That was not the case this time around as Samir Nasri made his return from a hamstring injury to replace Arshavin. Meantime, Arsene Wenger was able to field a nearly full strength lineup, only missing the suspended Bacary Sagna in the back four.

Barca were without Carles Puyol in the middle. Eric Abidal slid inside to replace him while Maxwell deputized out left. But otherwise Pep Guardiola's side were also at full strength.

Barca came out holding onto much of the possession. But it was the Gunners who fought their way back into the game to create the match's first chance early on. Theo Walcott did well to cut inside from his right wing position and play a nice square ball for Fabregas in the box. The former Barca youth player received the ball, took a touch, and promptly scooped it over the head of the defense for the in-form Van Persie, who ran onto it before seeing his shot saved well by Victor Valdes.

The Gunners continued to press, but lacked the quality in the final third to create another chance.

Then the visitors took over. Xavi Hernandez and Andrés Iniesta began to carve open the Gunners' defense with some fantastic passes.

Messi went close after Villa played him in behind down the left, but Wojciech Szczesny did well to close down the angle, and the Argentinean phenom's chip went just wide of the far post.

Barca kept pressing, and had Arsenal on their heels. They would take a lead that seemed inevitable in the 26th. Messi caught Gael Clichy defending too deep and found Villa onsides behind the defense. The Spaniard made no mistake, putting a low strike through the legs of Szczesny for the lead.

Pedro could have made it 2-0 just minutes later. But his shot from close range was stopped by Szczesny.

Van Persie squandered yet another opportunity in the 29th after Jack Wilshere's perfectly weighted diagonal ball saw him in down the left side. But he hesitated in the box before putting a sub-par effort well over.

Minutes later, Pedro got through on goal once again. But Szczesny was off his line quickly to make the save. Messi headed the rebound into the net, but he was offsides when Pedro shot and the goal would not stand.

The rest of the half saw an increasingly desperate looking Arsenal holding on for dear life. The visitors looked dangerous, but couldn't carve out another clear opportunity before the break.

Arsenal looked a bit more composed on the defensive side as the second half began. And they started to grasp control of the match.

Van Persie blasted a long shot over the bar in the 57th. Then he couldn't get on the end of a low cross from Nasri as Gerard Pique challenged him.

But Barca began to dominate soon after, as it appeared that Arsenal might be left to rue their missed chances. A failed clearance from Eboue helped Messi burst through on the left side of the box, he tried to beat Szczesny near post but found side-netting.

Then it was Arsenal's turn to step on the gas. And this time they were rewarded.

In the 78th, Gael Clichy lobbed behind the left side of defense, Robin Van Persie hooked onto that the close to the end-line, then caught Valdes leaning the wrong way and beat him to the near post for a stunning equalizer.

Five minutes later they had the lead. Fabregas found Nasri streaking down the wing with one defender to beat. The Frenchman cut inside and rolled the ball across the area to Arshavin, who finished beautifully with a curling effort to the far post.

Arshavin nearly went from hero to zero when his poor header back to Szczesny allowed Dani Alves to pounce on the ball in the right half of the area, but the Pole once again charged off his line to make the save.

Soon after, the referee whistled for full time, and the Gunners had beaten the Spanish giants for the first time in their history.

Opinion

Arshavin's goal capped a magnificent night for Arsenal, who fought tooth and nail throughout to stay in the match. And they probably deserved at least a goal after a host of near misses throughout the match.

The Gunners' actual goals ended up being created by their best attacking players. But if it wasn't for several other players stepping up, Barca could have been out of sight before RVP's equalizer.

Arsenal's stars did come through on the two goals thanks to RVP's finish (it must be said the goal was aided by a terrible goalkeeping error from Valdes, who didn't cover his near post), and the fantastic counterattack goal from Arshavin (set up well by passes from Fabregas and Nasri).

However, one would have to argue that Arsenal's most dangerous players did not perform well. Fabregas had one of his worst night's in European Football, as he gave the ball away a multitude of times and was not clinical in front of goal. Meanwhile, Van Persie missed a pair of great opportunities in the first half and didn't make Valdes work on two shots from distance in the second 45. Nasri, returning from injury, looked off the pace and was hardly involved before cleverly finding Arshavin for the final score. Walcott was also uninvolved, and was subsituted in the 76th minute for Nicklas Bendtner. Alex Song, who many consider the anchor of the Gunners' defense as he holds down the midfield when Wilshere/Fabregas venture forward, was off his game, as an early yellow card made the physical defensive midfielder a non-factor. He was substituted for Arshavin in the second half.

While Arsenal's big names weren't getting the job done, several Gunners made unexpected contributions.

Laurent Koscienly turned in a man of the match performance at center-half. He stifled attack after attack for Barca, was never out of position, and somehow went the entire match without losing a one-on-one battle with Messi, Villa, or Pedro. It was surely his best performance in an Arsenal kit.

Furthermore, it's important to note that Koscielny has withstood a lot of abuse from Arsenal fans and the media, much of it unfair. A closer look tells a different story. Yes, Koscielny has been guilty of a few egregious errors in the back that have resulted in goals this season. But his mistakes are not fundamental issues with his defending, they are more of the silly variety, which are easily fixable. His ability should not be questioned, as he is a creative player who can set up the attack with a nice pass, or break up an attack with a well timed challenge.

How a player could endure so much criticism for not being a flawless center half in the EPL from day one is beyond me. Not everyone can be Thomas Vermaelen, people. The Frenchman has been improving and adjusting to the game every week. And if you look at the job he has done on the whole, he's actually been quite good, and clearly has potential to turn into a fine defender.

I find myself lost for words when describing the maturity of 19-year old Jack Wilshere. Can someone check the kid's birth certificate? He continues to be completely unfazed in each and every situation he's placed in.

Yesterday, he was the Gunners' best attacking player. He rarely gave the ball away, and was still able to make several dangerous moves forward from his deeper role in midfield. Here we have a youngster playing on by far the biggest stage of his career, and somehow he looked the most composed and effective on a side featuring some of the world's most established players.

There was one more fine performance from one of Arsenal's less experienced players. It came from the goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny. The 20-year old was Arsenal's fourth-string goalkeeper in preseason, but was widely recognized as a top prospect, especially after his loan spell to Brentford last year had the Bees fans comparing him to past greats.

On Messi's first breakway, the 23-year old looked surprised after the young goalkeeper had stormed off his line without hesitating, and then managed to keep his arms up as he went to ground, making the chip from Messi a difficult one. He made a similar play on Pedro later in the first half to keep the Gunners close.

Then he came up huge in the final seconds, leaving his line to deny Alves after Arshavin's poor header saw the Brazilian in one-on-one with the Pole. He did well to close off the angle, and then showed great poise by not diving in, when doing so would have surely causing a penalty kick.

I'd say the trio of Wilshere, Szczesny, and Koscielny saved the day for Arsenal. And between the three of them, the Gunners have several fine players for many years to come.

Looking Ahead

With the second leg looming, you'd still have to consider the EPL side as underdogs. Barcelona scored the crucial away goal at The Emirates, and now know that any combination of goals and a clean sheet (which has been their specialty this season) will see them through.

Obviously, Wenger would prefer to see his team not concede at the Camp Nou. But let's be honest here, and realize that the Gunners' chance of shutting out Barca are unlikely at best. Especially when considering their typical insistence on playing attacking football.

One would have to think that they would enter the second leg with a bit more caution, but certainly with plenty of attacking intentions. Without question, Arsenal's best defense will be their offense, as matching Barcelona on away goals seems a much more likely scenario than holding them scoreless.

If you ask me, the second leg should be more of the same between these two. After all, both teams will enter the match at the Camp Nou knowing that the quality of their offensive performance will play perhaps the greatest role in the final result.

The Arsenal fan in me is nervous about that tie. But the football fan in me simply can't wait.

Spurs Shocker

Please, please, PLEASE, give me your thoughts on the match by leaving a comment! It's always fun to talk some footy with fellow fans!

Tottenham 1-0 AC Milan

80'- Crouch

It was a wild evening at the San Siro, as a match chalk-full of hard tackles, physical altercations, and a massive late goal for visiting Tottenham made for plenty of talking points.

In the end, it was a match that could have gone either way, and looked headed for a 0-0 draw late on. But a fine bit of counterattacking football helped the visitors to just the type of result they dreamed of before taking the pitch. Now they head back to White Hart Lane with a lead in the tie after a fine performance in Milan.

Spurs looked poised and confident throughout the match, and even had the hosts rattled and frustrated for much of the 90 minutes. Surprisingly, it was Tottenham that looked the more experienced of the two teams, as Milan lost their cool in the second half while Harry Redknapp's team defended well and pounced on their one opportunity for victory.

The match featured plenty of action, but there wasn't much to discuss until the second half.

It was Spurs that controlled the proceedings in a scrappy first 45. However, they failed to create any serious chances aside from a few long distance efforts courtesy of Rafael van der Vaart.

Meanwhile, Milan were dreadful in the first half. The service from the midfield was non-existent, as Ibrahimovic and Robinho had little to work with, while the ever-dangerous Pato started the match on the bench.

Massimiliano Allegri signaled his intent to attack by substituting Pato into the match for Clarence Seedorf to start the second half.

Van der Vaart nearly scored a spectacular goal early in the half when he chipped substitute keeper Marco Amelia from 20-yards. The chip had the Italian beaten, but landed just wide of the right post.

Soon after, Mario Yepes came desperately close to putting the Rossoneri in front. His header appeared headed for goal after a nice cross from Gennaro Gattuso. But Heurelho Gomes made a stunning save, as his lightning-quick reactions saw him push the ball over the bar.

With Milan pressing forward, the match began to open up. And a major altercation soon after only further stirred the pot.

It all started when Mathieu Flamini took out the legs of Vedran Corluka with a two-footed tackle at midfield. Although replays showed Corluka had managed to avoid the brunt of the challenge, the Frenchman's malicious tackle got enough of him to force a substitution. Flamini received a yellow for the challenge, and things got chippy when he and van der Vaart exchanged words at midfield as AC players accosted the referee and tried to pull the injured Corluka to his feet so play could continue.

Gattuso, no stranger to a game of physicality, simply snapped thereafter. First he shoved Peter Crouch after the two collided post-whistle, then he had a go at Tottenham assistant Joe Jordan during a stoppage. He would finally receive a yellow for a dangerous challenge in the 76th, ruling him out of the second leg in London.

Buoyed on by the home crowd, the home team pressed relentlessly, while Redknapp told his team to defend, playing everyone but Peter Crouch behind the ball.

But a little bit of space was all Aaron Lennon needed to help give Spurs a shock lead in the 80th. It all started after Milan gave the ball away in the Tottenham final third, and Modric poked the ball up to the speedy Englishman, who took off with acres of space in front of him. The winger scurried up the right side into the Milan half, then touched the ball around a slide tackling Yepes, before quickly finding Crouch in front of goal for an easy finish.

Milan almost grabbed the equalizer on two different occasions in stoppage time. First Robinho nearly beat Dawson and Gomes to a ball inside the 6 after the two miscommunicated and let the ball fall between them. Then Ibrahimovic appeared to have scored spectacularly after blasting a Rooney-esque bicycle kick into the corner. But referee Stephane Lannoy made a big decision by ruling that the Swede had pushed off on Dawson. Replays would show that the call was correct.

It looked like things might boil over during the match. But it turned out that wouldn't happen until after the final whistle. A frustrated Gattuso returned to Jordan after the match, and the two went eye-to-eye. In a moment of complete madness, the Italian head-butted the assistant and an altercation between the two teams ensued for a few moments before cooler heads prevailed. That wasn't the case for Gattuso, and several players had to hold him back minutes after the initial altercation.

Opinion

The win was of the historic variety for Spurs. And they deserve a massive amount of credit for it. Van der Vaart and William Gallas were the only starters with any experience in these sort of matches. But you wouldn't have known that from the performance. The Whites withstood the pressure of an incredibly intense match in front of 80,000 fans, and had to hold off a barrage of attacks from ACM before netting the crucial away goal.

Center half Dawson didn't look out of place in the biggest match of his career, while backup center mids Sandro and Palacios controlled the match.

Milan couldn't be happy that the winning goal came when they were looking their most dangerous. But the road side certainly deserved it on the whole, as the match went exactly according to plan.

The work rate in the first half was top notch, as Spurs hassled the slower duo of Gattuso and Seedorf in the middle, didn't let Robinho into any dangerous areas, and possessed the ball enough to make Milan's defense work, too.

They tried to attack in the second half. But ended up on the defensive, where they were able to effectively stifle the Milan offense.

We're talking about an inexperienced team facing a veteran-laden squad that's currently sitting atop Serie A. And guess what? Rednknapp's bunch looked not just to be the better of the two sides over the full 90 minutes, but the more composed one as well. There's something to be said for that.

Spurs now are the favorites to move on to the quarterfinals. And you can't count them out in terms of going deep into the competition. When they defend well, everything falls into place for a team that has attacking quality all throughout the squad.

There are still 90 minutes to be played. But after what we saw on Tuesday, you'd have to think this tie is Tottenham's for the taking.