Well, closest to home, Arsenal lost 1-0 to PSV in Eindhoven and have it all to do now. They dominated the first half, probably should have scored at least one, if not two, and then started to get sloppy in the second half and Edison Mendez fired a longe range shot in. It was very shabby all in all, the defence just let him have a go and Lehmann didn't react at all. The shot wasn't the greatest, but it did the job. The Arse tried to forward, and PSV looked very threatening on the counter-attack. That worries me for the second leg, because PSV are very clever and adept, and they will probably adopt the same strategy of trying to hit Arsenal on the break, and being very stubborn to break down. One away goal and, in my mind, the tie is over. Arsenal look a bit tired, bereft of attacking threat, and most importanly Thierry Henry is in his worst patch of form since joining the club. He doesn't look confident, he can't outrun people, can't beat them, is showing a very sloppy touch, and generally doesn't look like threatening or brilliant. It doesn't help that he seems petulant, disaffected and a bit disinterested. Maybe he needs a rest, maybe he needs to be tripped off the armband, maybe he needs a good telling off, but realistically none of those are going to happen because with Robin Van Persie out, and Julio Baptista showing all the touch and composure of a boxer, he has to play. But quite honestly this season, we have played some of our best stuff without him, and he really hampers the team on days like this. Last season, and at several points over his Arsenal career, he has carried the team, but right now the team has to carry him, and the weight seems to be too much to bear. Hopefully he can reach into that moody mind of his and bring out that fire that seems to be lacking.

At Parkhead, Celtic played out a 0-0 draw at home to AC Milan, and I think that's a great result for them. Milan are having a terrible season domestically, and are under pressure to do well in the Champions League. Wee Gordon Strachan has got his team playing decently, and with committment, physicality and Shunsuke Nakamura, Celtic have every chance of making it through. The Scots play very "British" football - they will fight for everything, never give up, and with Nakamura there is always the danger of them scoring from a free-kick, or having the Japan international create chances for Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink or Jiri Jarosik. If they score first, they will fight unbelievably to try and hold on, and if Milan score first you can be sure they'll sweat blood trying to equalise. Either way that away goal will be important, and I see Milan having to score at least 2 to go through.

In Madrid, two ailing European giants squared up against each other. Real Madrid beat Bayern Munich 3-2, but those two away goals are crucial for the Germans. Both teams are former European champions, and stalwarts in the Champions League, but they are struggling badly in their respective leagues. Real have always been known for patches of comedy and inconsistency, but Bayern have always had a reputation for consistency and toughness. This year both are hovering around the top of their leagues, but unable to seriously challenge for anything. The Real circus has proved very difficult to stop, and Bayern have attempted to rectify things by bringing back the legendary Ottmar Hitzeld, their former coach and man who has won two Champions League titles. Raul scored 2 and Ruud van Horsefacerooij the other as Real went up 3-1 in the first half, Lucio had briefly answered for the Bavarians. But if Bayern were sloppy in the first, then Real were in the second, and they conceded a very late goal, Mark van Bommel scoring to make it 3-2. That's a significant away goal advantage, and I think Bayern can pinch the goal they need. Real are on the way down - Capello has been unpopular and not too effective, and has allegedly tried to hand in his resignation, but Hitzfeld has only just arrived in Munich and is still working his magic. By the time March 7 rolls around I expect Bayern will be in much better shape.

And lastly to Lille, and the most controversial game of the round so far. Man United won 1-0 right at the death with a quickly-taken free-kick that Lille were very unhappy about. The Lille players walked off the pitch in protest, and there was chaos everywhere. The fans were enraged and throwing things on the field, and it was not just Giggs' goal that made them unhappy, but the fact that Peter Odemwingie had had what seemed like a perfectly good header disallowed for a foul earlier in the match. It was a game that Lille had been brightest in, driving forward and attacking United's goal, but eventually United had more experience and solidity. You can't really blame them for taking a quick free-kick because the referee allowed them too, but at the same time the referee did not do a particularly good job. I still think it's not over for Lille, and the second leg will be interesting because Lille are a very, very feisty side. Having conceded an away goal, they will have nothing to lose, so the second leg in Manchester looks like it will be a very, very exciting game.

Following on from my own views on David Beckham joining the MLS, here is what the rest of the bloggers at OleOle had to say:

Mike T	When I read this morning that David Beckham had signed for the Los Angeles Galaxy, my first thought was: why not Urawa Reds? There had been some rumours - mainly concocted by Beckham and his agents in order to procure a super-rich new contract, no doubt, that Beckham would consider plying his trade in the J-League. Yet when I read of the amounts of money being offered by LA Galaxy for his signature, I suddenly realised there was no chance of any club in Japan matching that kind of offer. So what sort of player are the Galaxy getting for their wads of cash? An under-appreciated one at Real Madrid, in my opinion. But Beckham was as much a victim of politics at the Madrid giants, as he was a player dropped for poor form. That's why I was surprised by his decision to play in the MLS. In some way, I think there'll be parallels with Dwight Yorke's signing for Sydney FC in the A-League. Yorke proved good value in getting fans through the turnstiles, but found his value diminishing on the pitch. There's no doubt that Beckham is a supremely gifted player. But he relies a lot on the ability of the players around him. So will he raise the profile of the MLS and get more fans through the gates? Probably. Will he single-handedly lift the standard of football in the US? I doubt it.
Footie Girl	Beckham's decision to move to the MLS is a tacit admission that he can't hack it at the top level any more. I've never been a huge fan of his, but still, you have to feel for the guy. Just a bit, because after all he's getting $250 million to dry his tears. So, instead of sliding into obscurity at Bolton or wherever, he gets a hefty paycheque, a cushy lifestyle in Los Angeles, and an opportunity to reinvent himself as a sort of ambassador of football. In return, Major League Soccer is getting the most marketable footballer in the world. The deal made front-page news when it was announced, but the question is whether it's going to have enough of a long-term impact to repay their rather sizeable investment. Now they've got Becks to bend in a few free kicks and smile pretty for the cameras, but if they really want to sell their product, they're going to have to improve the league from the ground up, rather than just bringing in more aging galacticos.
Oz	"David, what are you doing?" Probably the words of every football fan across the length of the UK upon hearing month-old rumours substantiated yesterday. All and sundry know that he has at least 3-4 years left of playing at the highest level and the quality of his suitors makes the decision even more baffling (Says the Englishman, predictably! -SM). $55 million/year goes some way to explaining it but most will hope that the US league takes off properly following this coup, to ensure that DB's final few years were not wasted away in a backwater league....
Gabriele	The real winner in Beckham’s transfer to LA Galaxy is Victoria. In my opinion, this is her choice, for her career as an actress. Of course, Becks made a very good deal, earning an incredibly high amount of money, especially compared to the insubstantial toughness of MLS, but I think he would have preferred to keep on playing in Europe. MLS executives think this is a big business for them, I'm sure there will be a great interest around Beckham at the beginning, but we don't know what will be in the next future. To make MLS grow, one single top player is not enough, and I am afraid they don't have money left to "invite" other top players to join the league. Beckham is the best footballer they could sign in terms of image: the Becks will certainly feed all gossip media in Hollywood and generally in the US, but technically speaking a talented player, even a juggler (not necessarily Ronaldinho) would have been better. Americans think about sport as a show, what kind of show a player like Beckham can give them? Crosses and free kicks? I'm not so sure…
Mauricio	US 250 million dollars? I bet Pele is wondering at home: Why don’t I play nowadays???? I think Beckham is absolutely right. In the first place, Real Madrid have already been half way to Hollywood in the last four seasons. Media players like Ronaldo and Becks, after all they won, have to hit the road and try other things in their careers. Although everybody will be saying Beckham is finished, I think playing in the MLS is definitely a better move than playing in Saudi Arabia or other of these great money making countries. And if I were in charge of CONMEBOL, I would straight away invite MLS teams to play in the Copa Libertadores, and get a share of the Becks money too.

It's 2007, and the blogging goes on. It's been a good weekend of football, and Arsenal beat Liverpool at Anfield 3-1 with two absolute corkers from Tomas Rosicky. Henrik Larsson scored his first goal for Man United, and Kiraly did his first blunder for Villa, as the reds won 2-1, and Tottenham embarassed themselves a bit with a goalless draw against Cardiff at Ninian Park. Charlton and the lovely Alan Pardew went one step further and lost 2-0 to Nottingham Forest.

There are some interesting blogs kicking around the site, with a distinctly Arsenal flavour. There's one on Freddie Ljungberg, Arjun's done a great bit on Flamini and tackling, Mauricio brings us the latest news on Alexandre Pato, and you can enjoy Footie Girl's excellent FA Cup Preview with a good dose of hindsight. Teo gives us the latest on the Melbourne Victory, and our Chinese correspondent Zhixiang gives us some info on Charlton's new signing - China captain Zheng Zhi.

Enjoy! And please get in touch with your feedback, or if you would like to write.

I came across this while clearing up all the junk on my server today. I had forgotten i'd done it, and I suppose this means that I didn't take the loss TOO seriously then. ;)

Hello readers,

As you may have noticed (or may not have, obviously), we've now got a little User Contributed News section going on the site, and i'd like to encourage you to play around with it, and obviously send us the football news that you think people should know about.

We've also added a handy little login feature on the right hand side, and we hope that our live scores, fixtures and tables will be ready for you quite soon as well.

So keep checking in, and if you have a minute, then register.

We're busy here at OleOle, but we're going to enjoy a few days off for the festive period, and we'd like to give our best wishes to all our readers and contributers as well.

After I stupidly drank the water I was supposed to rinse my mouth and wash my hands with at the Meiji shrine in Harajuku yesterday, oddness ensued sometime later. This is the same water that everyone else washes their hands with, and in my ongoingly poor attempts at sign language in Tokyo, this was just the latest in a series of interesting misunderstandings.

So then, a few hours later as my stomach rumbled and my paranoia rumbled even more, I began contemplating a bit of death, and thought... "You know... it's OK as long as it happens after Sunday, because I really don't want to miss the football". And so now that brings us to today. My stomach feels fine (last night's drinks and thus-induced visit to McDonald's excepted). The sun unfortunately is not shining as it should be, but that's alright because they have lights in stadiums these days.

So the schedule goes a little something like this:

4.20 PM - Al-Ahly vs Club America
7.20 PM - Barcelona vs Internacional

Obviously, I have probably got the home and away teams mixed up there, but really since it's an Egyptian, a Mexican, a Spanish and a Brazilian team playing in Yokohama, Japan, I don't think it matters too much.

Well stay tuned for our coverage as always, blogging on the spot (this would be a nice time for a "blogspot" pun, but then... would we be sued?).

Al-Ahly will be the more motivated of the two teams in their contest, and there should be some good football on show. Claudio Lopez and Blanco will probably be rested, but Ahly's 3 centrebacks shouldn't breathe too easily because Nelson Cuevas can kill any defence when he's up for it. Islam Al-Shater will continue to bomb down the right flank for the Egyptians, and we have to see what frame of mind Flavio will be in today before making any kind of prediction or judgment. Still, there will be some attractive football on show.

As for Barca and Inter, it will be a tough contest. The Brazilians will be fighting hard in this game, taking a more Argentine or Uruguayan approach some might say. But they will try to play their football whenever they can. This might be a cracking match, maybe not as free-flowing and attacking as the Barca-America or Inter-Ahly games, but definitely an intense, exciting contest.

So stay tuned, and find a TV to watch the games if you can, because you'll miss out on some good football otherwise. Don't believe the people who say "It's a joke cup", and "no one really cares", they're full of shit.

The atmosphere has been utterly brilliant. The stadium is majestic, and sold out. The press boxes are excellent with internet and power connections, hence this post. What more could we have asked for.

Compared to the other games so far the atmosphere here is seriously good. All the Japanese fans are going for Barca, but it's the few hundred Club America fans in the corner that havae been making the noise. They've been singing non-stop and putting their European counterparts to shame.

Matchwise, Barca took control early on, and are 2-0 up. But Claudio Lopez had a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper early on, and if he'd taken his chances, things might be quite, quite different now.

Both Barca and America have been playing some good stuff, but the difference is that Barca look infinitely more intimidating when they go forward. Blano is on the bench, and might pop up for this half.

Stay tuned, the second half has kicked off, and i'm getting back to the action. Ta.

"Unbelievable" for two reasons:

1. For playing the best football they've played in the last two seasons, and perhaps the best they've produced in the Champions League, especially against a team as solid and canny as CSKA Moscow.

2. For squandering chance, after chance, after chance. 29 shots on goal, only 5 on target, and Rosicky missing a wide open goal from about 3 feet away. Criminal.

Arsenal started this game on the back of some criticism and tension. They were unable to break down a dogged, unambitious Everton side over the weekend (who should have received far more criticism for the way they played [or declined to] for a team purporting to have ambitions of Europe on a regular basis). In Moscow, CSKA played better, probably the first team to outplay them this season, but Arsenal were denied a draw by an absurd refereeing decision to disallow Thierry Henry's late goal. And although they gave Reading a masterclass in football the weekend after, last Saturday's game against Everton was throwback to what people have come to identify the Arsenal with over the last couple of years - all foreplay without any real hanky panky. Arsenal passed the ball beautifully, every which way posssible, had about 90% of the second half posession (a record maybe?) but eventually were unable to create any real clear cut chances despite having 23 shots to Everton's 2. It didn't help that Tim Howard was in good form as well, but with Everton playing a 1-9-1 formation, good chances were few and far between.

The post-match criticism of that performance echoed a common consensus amongst Arsenal fans - that Arsenal lack a Plan B (not that Arsene Wenger seems to care). The awkward presence of the injured Emmanuel Adebayor challenging for high balls was missed, and would probably have lent some more legitimacy to the crosses that Robin Van Persie was swinging into the box with no one there. Arsenal weren't outfought, and they definitely weren't outplayed. Everton just decided to be football's version of a chastity belt, and Arsenal for all their effort, were unable to penetrate their defence (WOEFUL pun, yes I know). To further the discomfort after the match, a hack from the News of the World, Antony Kastrinakis, decided to concoct a story about Thierry Henry and the team being booed, and then all the broadsheets and "proper" papers and everyone else decided to be clever and relay the story. So suddenly a 1-1 draw turns into a mini-crisis.

Well the CSKA Moscow tie at Ashburton Grove was supposed to be the next step in series of difficult games, and everyone was doing their best to rally the troops. Thierry Henry said he didn't believe the story and wanted the fans to get behind the team, Wenger said he wasn't concerned, and that negative football was terrible, and that Arsenal wanted to punish teams that played negatively, and meanwhile CSKA were talking up their chances and warning Arsenal not to underestimate them.

As it so happened, CSKA were torn apart. If Everton were a chastity belt, then CSKA were something along the lines of a complete bimbo on a drinking binge. Except, the irony in the midst of all these awful sexual metaphors, was that Arsenal just could not finish.

From the moment the game kicked off, Arsenal took control, and repeatedly ran rings around CSKA with their passing, pace and movement. The shooting prowess however was non-existent. Robin Van Persie had 3 quite clear chances, ones that we've seen him bury before. Henry had two decent chances, ones that we've seen him nonchalantly stroke home on previous occassions. Fabregas rounded the keeper and rushed a shot wide of an open goal when he had time to take a touch and compose himself. Rosicky had one of the most incredible misfires ever, missing an absolutely open goal from right in front of the penalty spot, sidefooting the ball to the keeper who was lying at the left far post having tried to cut out Henry's cross. Words can't do justice to it.

Yes, the CSKA keeper Igor Akinfeev did well, but he was not really tested enough. He made one great save from a late Gilberto header, and came off his line bravely to put off Henry and Van Persie, but he wasn't tested enough. Akinfeev, as well as the CSKA's defenstroika won plaudits from the commentator, but the truth is that on 9 out of 10 occassions they should and would have been 3 or 4 goals down at half-time. The Arsenal finishing was embarassingly bad, and there can't really be any explanation for it other than just having an "off day", because Van Persie and Henry have scored those and tougher ones before.

For Arsenal, well... everyone was quite good except for Henry, and Van Persie (who was quite involved in the play, but rubbish in front of goal), but the midfield trio of Fabregas, Rosicky and Hleb were oustanding - their movement tore CSKA to shreds, and Hleb in particular was very, very good for most of the game except one occassion where he should have probably shot instead of squaring a slightly poor ball to Henry.

For CSKA, well their Vicente Del Bosque lookalike coach can be proud about Ignashevich's outstanding commitment at the back, and Akinfeev's great shot-stopping and agility. He might not make it in the Premiership because of his smallish frame and lack of presence (although Shay Given has always done well), but he will be a top class keeper, and could do well in someplace like La Liga where shot-stoppers like Iker Casillas and Victor Valdes thrive. I was also very impressed by Vagner Love. After playing well and giving the defence a hard time in Moscow, he led the line very well in London. He's a quick, skilfull striker, like many Brazilians, but he was also outstanding as a target man, playing with his back to goal. Time and time again long clearances or goal kicks would be sent up field, and more often than not, he would materialise exactly where they were landing, controlling them with one touch, or dribbling to the wings to make time and space, or providing clever little lay-offs and flick-ons to his teammates. He was unlucky not to get a goal, when he easily bamboozled Gallas but then shot weakly at Lehmann, who made a good save and then gathered the ball at the second attempt after it had rolled behind him. That was a lucky escape for a very unlucky Arsenal.

It was probably the most one-sided 0-0 i've ever seen, especially in the Champions League, between two good teams. But I won't talk about it anymore. YouTube highlights are below. Enjoy!

Well, we've had a great response to the launch of our website. Thanks to all our visitors for taking the time to come and check the site out, and we encourage more of you to enter the contest - it's a great opportunity.

I've also been disappointed by the lack of comments! Loads of hits, but no one with anything to say? What happened to football fans being the lippiest bunch around??

So anyways, today was the "much anticipated" Barcelona v Chelsea rematch - the 3,327th time they've played in the last two seasons, and it ended in a 2-2 draw. Deco put them up 1-0, and then Frank Lampard equalised to make it 1-1 with a goal that for once was both good AND did not involve 6 massive deflections off the knees or arses of the other team. Eidur Gudjohnsen then fired home to put Barca en route to victory, but some poor concentration and defending from Barca (coupled with great stamina and doggedness from Chelsea) saw Drogba score in injury time to salvage a draw. It was an exciting game, with some very good goals.

For the first one Deco carried the ball for about 20 or 30 yards down the left flank before cutting sharply inside and shooting from just outside the box into the far corner. It really was a cracking strike - a low, rising show, hit with great power straight through the legs of the lunging Carvalho. Hilario couldn't get near it.

Lampard's equaliser was an equally sensational goal. Essien chested the ball down about 40 yards out, and clipped a speculative lobbed pass over the defense which Lampard ran onto. He missed his first touch, and so had to shepherd the ball away towards the byline, giving the defender time to recover. However as he moved away from the goal along the byline, back turned to the keeper, he looked up to seek out options, and then swivelled to stroke a dipping lob over Valdes from an impossibly acute angle.

It was a great goal, but Valdes should have been positioned better. He first came off his line when anticipating a shot from Lampard from Essien's pass, but then instead of going back into position, he continued to hover around the near post even when Lampard was moving away from goal and had a defender covering.

There was also more than a hint of flukiness about the goal, because Lampard never once looked to see where the keeper was. Right before he struck it, he took a look up to see who was arriving in the box - Ballack was starting a run towards the far post, and Drogba was lurking close by at the near post, so it might well have been intended as a cross. But since we'll never know, we'll give him the benefit of the doubt, because it was a nice goal as it turned out.

Gudjohnsen's goal was all about Ronaldinho. The perma-smile Brazilian was hugging the left touchline, and brought down a long pass from defence with one touch, and then flicked it past the right-back Boulahrouz in almost the same motion. He then slid a perfect pass across the face of goal with the outside of his right foot, and Gudjohnsen nipped ahead of the Chelsea defenders to convincingly fire home. A good moment for him up against his former club, and it will give him confidence at a time when the critics have been in full flow.

As for Chelsea's equaliser... well I think most people could see it coming. They lost the ball far upfield, with too many players committed too far forward. Either they lacked concentration, or stamina, but their attempts to win back the ball were exasperated. When they lost the ball, and Chelsea charged forward down the right with Essien, they put in a few half hearted challenges, and a few desperate sliding tackles and lunges when they would have been better served trying to get back into position and slow down the play. Essien powered forward and lumped it into the box, it was nodded down by Terry at the far post, and then Drogba chested it forward and stroked it home. Marquez was very culpable, first ball watching when Essien delivered the cross - meaning that Zambrotta had to try and mark Drogba, leaving Lampard free behind him, and then when Zambrotta moved back towards Terry, Marquez vaguely waved a back heel at the ball when Drogba chested it past him.

I think it was a fair result, but Chelsea's celebrations at the end were once again far too over the top. They are not winning any friends with the way they continually behave, and this was just the latest installment. Mourinho sets the tone for this team, and there is a visible lack of class in the way they conduct themselves. It is tiring to see them always behave like angry underdogs, when in fact they are bankrolled by one of the most powerful men in the world - flagrantly breaking the laws and conventions of football, throwing money at anything and everything, and generally destroying the whole idea of "competition". Apart from the various tapping up scandals, and the fact that they blatantly sabotage the transfers of other big Premiership teams, their disgustingly opulent spending has not resulted in anything close to the standard of football that you'd expect from a team with such overwhelmingly large resources. All Abramovich is doing is buying results, albeit indirectly. I hope for the sake of the Premiership that someone else can win the title this year, because if Chelsea win, and Abramovich spunks another 100 million pounds in the summer, hope will well and truly be hanging by a thread.

Well the version 1.0 of OleOle is finally up and running, and is the start of what should be some very exciting times!

Give us a buzz if you're interested in writing for or representing your favourite club or league on the website.

Yesterday in the champions league... well, some very dodgy refereeing in the Arsenal vs CSKA Moscow game. Granted, Arsenal didn't show up to well in terms of overall play, but they were denied a brilliant (and perfectly legitimate) equaliser near the end for an alleged "handball" by Thierry Henry. I'm not sure why the referee called it, he wasn't in a good position at all to see it, and his response (the whistle and yellow card) was so quick that it seemed almost predetermined.



I've heard conflicting reports, but one said that the linesman flagged to show that it was a goal, and the referee ignored this. If anyone was in a position to see whether it was a goal, it was the linesman. Another strange factor was the lack of any replays. They showed umpteen slow motion shots of the CSKA attacker Dudu having his shots and headers blocked, but in this one defining incident of the match, the broadcasters failed to show anything other than a single slow motion of the original camera angle, when in fact there were angles available from the other side where the replays would have been far more telling. On Setanta Sports, in the post game show, the pundits were in the midst of discussing how bad of a refereeing decision it was, when the replay began. Then the host suddenly cut in, said goodbye, and they switched over to the Manchester United v FC Copenhagen game. FIFA trying to save face? Or Roman Abramovich's dodgy billions? Well either way, Thierry Henry was clearly unhappy...