Much like everyone else, I don't look forward to international breaks. Now, don't get me wrong, I like International football, but whom am I to support when it comes to players from Bielefeld? Jorg Böhme hasn't gotten a call up from Germany in a while, Artur Wichniarek remains a mysterious omission from the Polish national team, Abdelaziz Ahanfouf is in a similar situation, and Sibusiso Zuma played for South Africa in August in their match against Scotland, but left in the 14th minute due to poor match fitness. Well, this lack of international stars will at least save Ernst Middendorp from complaining how having so many internationals on his squad means the schedule should be overhauled to fit his whims. But I digress.

I only got to see the first half of the match on Saturday, as activities kept me away from my PC (and all day Sunday for that matter), but I have to say that what I did see wasn't much to see. Both sides seemed entrenched in midfield, and both sides managed two shot apiece, and the only serious effort by Christian Eigler until Bielefeld went up 1-0 on an own goal off of a free kick by Jorg Böhme. It wasn't the first time Bielefeld scored in the game, however, as Christian Eigler scored in the 19th minute, but the goal was called back after the referee said Eigler handled the ball before scoring. Replays showed the call was correct, but denied Eigler a hat trick (more on that later).

The second half, however, was a crazy half of football, with Rostock drawing immediately level in the 46th minute with a Bicycle Kick by Enrico Kern. Rather than folding, Bielefeld inflicted on Hansa what they experienced in their last match against Duisburg. Eigler scored in the 50th and 55th minutes, and Wichniarek put the game out of reach in the 59th minute. Rostock finished up the scoring in the 63rd minute by a brace from Kai Bulow. Even despite that goal, the result was not in doubt as Rostock showed why they're propping up the table with 0 points.

With the win, Bielefeld took second place in the Bundesliga after Eintracht Frankfurt's 2-1 win over Hamburger SV and Bayern Munich's hard-fought 1-1 draw with Schalke. Here's what the top of the table looks like:

(1) Bayern Munich: 3-0-2; 11 Points; +10 Goal Differential
(2 [tie]) Arminia Bielefeld: 3-1-1; 10 Points; +3 Goal Differential
(2 [tie]) Eintracht Frankfurt: 3-1-1; 10 Points; +2 Goal Differential
(4 [tie]) Three teams tied with 9 Points

Champions League Group Stage spot. Let's keep it that way. 

Before the game, however was a special ceremony for defender Marcio Borges, who retired after eight successful seasons with the club. The mercurial defender was a lynch-pin of the back line, and will be missed. Click on the link below for a short tribute to him, as well as his emotional reaction to the ceremony. He will be greatly missed.

Marcio Borges Tribute

Picture of the Week:

Marcio Borges thanks the fans after his retirement ceremony.

Next Week's match: Home vs. Hannover 96 on Wednesday 26 September die Blauen Blog Weekday Special. Woohoo!

Week 1 is almost in the books across Europe, other than a match left in Ligue 1. With Serie A, la Liga, and the Eredivisie left to open, this week's Fantasy Football Roundup is a bit light.

Before I go into this week, a word about how I'm looking at fantasy football.

I run a UEFA Fantasy league with a bunch of relative newbies to the game, and a few die-hards sprinkled in. The way we run things is a little different than most fantasy leagues. Unlike most other leagues, we have a draft and when it comes to the matches, we don't roll out an 11-man squad, but rather 8 field players and a goalkeeper. Since this is our first season doing this, it's necessary that we keep things simple because our player pool is from England, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Scotland, and Spain. A wrinkle to this is that during the closed transfer period, teams can only pick from their "feeder league," much like how a team has (in the case of English teams, "in theory") to use their reserves in case of injury to the regulars. Of course, during the transfer windows, everyone is available to everyone.

So with that said, here's our scoring system:

• Goal: 2 points
• Assist: 1 Point
• Yellow Card: -1 Point
• Red Card: -2 Points

In addition to these, goalkeepers are scored for the following:

• Save: 1 Point
• Goal Conceded: -1 Point
• Clean Sheet: 2 Points
• Win: 2 Points
• Draw: 1 Point

Now that your head's spinning, let's take a look at the leagues across Europe.

English Premier League

Field Player of the Week: Obafemi Martins (F), Newcastle United: 4 points (1 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Martins played a big role in Newcastle's 3-1 thumping of Bolton by putting 2 goals past Jussi Jaaskelainen. If anything his play will make him a certain target of countless rumours in the British tabloids for a move to Chelsea, Arsenal, or Manchester Untied (more on that in a bit)

Goalkeeper of the Week: Marcus Hahnemann, Reading: 13 Points (1 App, 1 Draw, 10 S, 0 GC, 1 CS, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Reading's American Goalkeeper proved to be an impenetrable shield across the goal mouth for the Royals, as they weathered a constant attack by Manchester United for a hard-earned 0-0 draw at Old Trafford. Though some have pegged Reading for a Sophomore Slump, Hahnemann's play may have much to say to disprove the naysayers.

Player to Pick Up: Carlos Tevez (F), Manchester United: 0 Points (DNP)

This summer's biggest transfer saga, having finally signed with Manchester United this week, will be thrust into the spotlight slightly faster than expected, with the injury suffered by Wayne Rooney in today's match against Reading . With a fractured foot, Rooney is expected to be out for nearly the next two months, so expect the Argentinian to spearhead the Red Devils' attack next week at Portsmouth, unless they make a bid for someone else, like Martins from Newcastle.

French Ligue 1

Field Player of the Week: Tulio De Melo (F), Le Mans: 5 Points (1 App, 3 G, 0 A, 1 YC, 0 RC)

De Melo's Hat Trick against Sochaux was the second of the season for the usually goal-starved Ligue 1, and provided all the offence Le Mans needed to dispatch Sochaux 3-1. The 17th minute subsitute scored on a Penalty in the first half, and only needed 10 minutes in the second half to complete the Hat Trick.

Goalkeeper of the Week: Teddy Richert, Sochaux: 8 Points (1 App, 1 Loss, 8 S, 3 GC, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Goalkeepers for sorry sides are a mixed bag. Some teams prop up the rest of the league table as a result of their goalkeeper, and others prop up the league table despite their goalkeeper's play. Sochaux sit in 16th despite the play of Richert, who had to face 11 shots in their 3-1 loss to Le Mans. Looking at the flow of play, Richert was more than a match for all of Le Mans, except for the aforementioned De Melo, who netted a Hat Trick.

Player to Pick Up: Johan Audel (F), Valenciennes: 2 Points (1 App, 1 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Seriously, if you haven't picked up the early-season goal scoring leader, well, what are you waiting for? Audel's four goals is not only the entire offencive output of Valenciennes so far this season, but his four goals are more than 17 of the 20 teams in Ligue 1 so far also. Here's to continued success for Audel.

German Bundesliga

Field Player of the Week: Miroslav Klose (F), Bayern Munich: 5 Points (1 App, 2 G, 1 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Klose, who basically tapped himself up to go to Bayern Munich this past Spring, got right to business Saturday with 2 goals and an assist as Bayern crushed Hansa Rostock 3-0 in the Bundesliga opener for both teams.

Goalkeeper of the Week: Tomislav Piplica, Energie Cottbus: 10 Points (1 App, 1 Draw, 0 GC, 7 S, 1 CS, 0 YC, 0 RC)

The Bosnian goalkeeper held back a constant attack by Bayer Leverkusen to salvage a point for the Eastern German side. His 7 saves were tied for first in the league for the week with Hansa Rostock Goalkeeper Stefan Wächter, who stopped 7 shots in a 3-1 loss to Bayern Munich.

Player to Pick Up: Diego (M), Werder Bremen: 2 Points (1 App, 1 G, 1 A, 1 YC, 0 RC)

The Brazilian playmaker will be called upon to carry more of the offencive load for Werder with the departure of Miroslav Klose, and the initial prognosis is good so far. Diego scored on a penalty and assisted on the other goal in Bremen's 2-2 draw with VfL Bochum. Fantasy-wise, Diego will need to keep the Yellow Cards down, as last season he received 9 Yellow Cards, which led the North German side.

Scottish Premier League

Field Player of the Week: Merouane Zemmama (M), Hibernian: 3 Points (1 App, 2 G, 0 A, 1 YC, 0 RC)

The Moroccan striker spearheaded Hibs' 4-2 comeback win against Premier League newcomers Gretna on Sunday, coming off the bench in the 61st minute to score twice within a 20 minute span. Zemmama's 2 goals matched his entire output for last season, where he only managed 2 goals in 25 appearances.

Goalkeeper of the Week: Chris Smith, St. Mirren: 9 Points (1 App, 1 Loss, 9 S, 2 GC, 0 CS, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Like Teddy Richert, Chris Smith may have let in 2 goals in the 2-0 loss to Rangers, but his 9 saves kept the score from being far worse. Now, if St. Mirren could score a goal, perhaps they could have a chance at getting out of the cellar of the Scottish Premier League.

Player to Pick Up: Barry Ferguson (M), Rangers: 2 Points (1 App, 1 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Ferguson added to his league-leading goal total by scoring against Falkirk on Sunday. Ferguson's 4 goals puts him within range of his 4 goals from last season, but a far cry from his 16 goals in the 2002/03 season where he scored 16 goals for Rangers.

Team of the Week

Goalkeeper

• Marcus Hahnemann, Reading: 13 Points (1 App, 1 Draw, 10 S, 0 GC, 1 CS, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Field Players

• Merouane Zemmama (M), Hibernian: 3 Points (1 App, 2 G, 0 A, 1 YC, 0 RC)
• Wendel (M), Girodins de Bordeaux: 4 Points (1 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Tamas Hajnal (M), Karsruhe: 4 Points (1 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Rafik Saïfi (M), Lorient: 4 Points (1 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Pascal Feindouno (F), St. Etienne: 4 Points (1 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Obafemi Martins (F), Newcastle United: 4 points (1 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Miroslav Klose (F), Bayern Munich: 5 Points (1 App, 2 G, 1 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Tulio De Melo (F), Le Mans: 5 Points (1 App, 3 G, 0 A, 1 YC, 0 RC)
  

Until next time, folks!