Brøndby in the CL 3rd qualifying round draw

It has been six years ago since I watched Brøndby play in their only Champions League ever in the 1998-99 season. How much I would like to see them there again!

After defeating Dynamo Tbilisi 0-2 in Georgia, Brøndby is only one step away from participating in the draw for the 3rd Qualifying round for the Champions League season 2005-06. However, it will not be easy. As an un-seeded team, the Danish Champions will be up against one of the following teams:

• Manchester United
• Panathinaikos
• Inter Milan
• Villarreal
• Rosenborg
• Sporting
• Monaco
• Glasgow Rangers
• Club Brugge
• Ajax Amsterdam
• Werder Bremen
• Celtic or FC Artmedia Bratislava
• Liverpool or FBK Kaunas
• Anderlecht or Netchi Baku
• Dynamo Kiev or FC Thun
• Lokomotiv Moscow or Rabotnicki

It certainly does not look easy at all, although I believe (as an optimistic fan...) that Brøndby could possibly defeat the following teams on a good day: Rosenborg, Glasgow Rangers, Anderlecht, Club Brugge. Also, although Artmedia Bratislava is unknown and has defeated Celtic 5-0, they would not seem as a scary opponent to the Danes.

However, most teams are very difficult indeed, and thus, for a team like Brøndby, a lucky draw can be a giant leap towards the Champions League.

Spanish pre-season

I must admit that I know next to nothing about Japanese football. But last night I got introduced to a team from the Japanese capital: Tokyo Verdy. They are apparently second last in the J-League, but that is not the reason they came to prominence. Last night they defeated Real Madrid 3-0. And not that Real Madrid was not in its strongest: Zidane, Beckham, Raul, Roberto Carlos, Michael Owen, Ronaldo... They were all made to look ridiculous, once again. Admittedly, the team came from many tiring hours of travelling, but that also shows the strange disposition of the Real Madrid leadership, putting marketing and promotion above the sporting qualities of their players. And that is certainly also part of having a good team.

In another context, FC Barcelona is looking much better. On their tour to Denmark, the Catalonians defeated Aarhus GF 4-0. While AGF were not looking that bad, Barcelona's striking force is looking at least as awesome as last year.

Michael Essien, Chelsea and Lyon

Michael Essien had a great season with Olympique Lyon. This put the young Ghanaian in the forefront of rumours for bigger clubs. Notably Chelsea has been connected to Mr. Essien. But so far, Olympique Lyon has rejected the offers for the young player. Apparently, the French side wants around 30 Million Euros, well above the offer of 17 Million coming from Chelsea. Is Mr. Essien worth such an amount? It is hard to say, but either Lyon wants to make a lot of money, or they have a great desire to keep Mr. Essien in the team for another successful season. And here, the role of Mr. Essien himself has been rather strange: He has clearly expressed his desire to leave Lyon for Chelsea, even stating that he hopes Chelsea will accept to pay the high amount asked by Lyon.
Is this wise? If he is not sold, his position in the Lyon team next season may be in jeopardy. He would not be motivated to play, while Lyon could surely not have a player not dedicated 100 pct. to the team. If he is sold to Chelsea for the said amount, he would be under enormous pressure to perform well in a club already swamped with super-stars.
While his desire for greater glory in bigger clubs is understandable, he should stay quiet and play his best wherever he is.

Champions League 05-06: First qualifying round

First round of the qualification for the Champions League 2005-2006 has just ended. I must admit, that most teams at this stage are barely known to me, and so much less the leagues they come from. But a couple of things are worth observing:
- The defending champions of Liverpool have started the campaign to defend their title, with an unsurprising but sure victory against Llansantffraid from Wales (what a name for a club! What do you call their followers?).
- Dudelange, from Luxembourg, made Luxembourg football history: defeating Zrinjski from Bosnia, they are the first team ever from Luxembourg to go to the next round of a European tournament.

There are two more qualifying rounds to go, and the tournament will start for real!

Ryan Giggs to Real Madrid?

Real Madrid is always good for a story on transfers. Now the newest one is that Manchester United's Ryan Giggs could be on his way to the Spanish team. With the recent arrival of Ji Sung Park to Manchester, Mr. Giggs' position could be in jeopardy. At the same time, Real Madrid is eagerly looking for a left-wing player. Another option being considered is Albert Luque from Deportivo. But apparently Mr. Giggs could arrive in a possible deal including Michael Owen...

These are all rumours. Mr. Giggs has been a very important player in Machester United for many years. He has been crucial in many victories, and a joy to watch. He is already 32 years old, so probably heading towards the sunset of a glorious career. It would be sad to see him end it on the Real Madrid bench.

Steven Gerrard to stay in Liverpool

The soap opera about where Steven Gerrard would be playing next season seems to have ended. Mr. Gerrard has now apparently confirmed that he will stay in Liverpool. I do not understand the intricacies of the whole affair, but I certainly think this is the best for both Liverpool and Mr. Gerrard. Why leave the success he is having in a great club like Liverpool, to go to Real Madrid or Chelsea? In Madrid, he would probably just become another marginal superstar in a team that has won nothing for two seasons (which team is the greatest: non-winners Real Madrid or CL Champions Liverpool?). In Chelsea, he would be fighting for his position.
No, as a football fan, I am happy that he is staying in Liverpool. With new players and renewed motivation, Liverpool will continue upwards next season - both defending their CL title, but also fighting for the Premier League title. Mr. Gerrard will certainly be central in this, and continue showing his skills for Liverpool fans in particular and football fans in general.

Lots of practice

It was the day for the most important game of the season, between Brøndby and FC Copenhagen. Copenhagen defender Ole Tobiasen had to get to Brøndby for the match. On his way there, he got lost. Realizing that he was getting late, he suddenly saw Brøndby coach Michael Laudrup, and decided he would ask for directions.
"Excuse me Mr. Laudrup? How do I get to Brøndby?"
"Lots and lots of practice and many hours of training, kid".

FIFA World Youth Champions 2005

Last Saturday, the final of the FIFA World Youth Championship was played in the Netherlands. I did not have the fortune to watch the match, because I was rocking and drinking at the Roskilde Festival. However, I was glad to hear that Argentina won a tight match 2-1 against a well-playing Nigeria team. Both Argentinean goals were scored on penalty by Lionel Messi - a rising 19-year old Argentinean star, who plays for Barcelona. I do not think this is the last time I will be writing about Mr. Messi.
This was the 15th final of a tournament which started in 1977, and was won by the USSR. The tournament has largely been led by the two South American giants, Brazil and Argentina. Brazil has won four times, and with this year's victory, Argentina has won five. The following table gives a full overview of the tournament:

Tunisia 1977	USSR	Mexico	Brazil	Uruguay
Japan 1979	Argentina	USSR	Uruguay	Poland
Australia 1981	West Germany	Qatar	Romania	England
Mexico 1983	Brazil	Argentina	Poland	South Corea
USSR 1985	Brazil	Spain	Nigeria	USSR
Chile 1987	Yugoslavia	West Germany	East Germany	Chile
Saudi Arabia 1989	Portugal	Nigeria	Brazil	USA
Portugal 1991	Portugal	Brazil	USSR	Australia
Australia 1993	Brazil	Ghana	England	Australia
Qatar 1995	Argentina	Brazil	Portugal	Spain
Malaysia 1997	Argentina	Uruguay	Ireland	Ghana
Nigeria 1999	Spain	Japan	Mali	Uruguay
Argentina 2001	Argentina	Ghana	Egypt	Paraguay
UAE 2003	Brazil	Spain	Colombia	Argentina
Netherlands 2005	Argentina	Nigeria	Brazil	Morocco

The next tournament in 2007, will be hosted by Canada. It will again be a good opportunity to see the rising stars of international football. The matches are usually very entertaining, and the tournament is beginning to attract much greater attention! And surely, we might already see some of the players in next years World Cup in Germany!