CL '09/'10 -- Group Stages

[hitmannq8]

First of all, if the CL trophy could speak I'm sure it would want to say to us "WELCOME BACK!!!!!!!!". We've really missed the CL and we don't want to ever part with it again. It has harmed us in many ways and most importantly financially.

I believe Milan are still a seed one team, can anyone confirm this? If that's true, then we could face our one and only Kaka in the group stage! We also would not be in the same group as Barcelona, and the 4 English clubs as they are all seed ones. You guys would want to face Real in the group stages or not? Any other teams that you'd like to avoid/face?

[GeoTav]

First of all, if the CL trophy could speak I'm sure it would want to say to us "WELCOME BACK!!!!!!!!". We've really missed the CL and we don't want to ever part with it again. It has harmed us in many ways and most importantly financially.

I believe Milan are still a seed one team, can anyone confirm this? If that's true, then we could face our one and only Kaka in the group stage! We also would not be in the same group as Barcelona, and the 4 English clubs as they are all seed ones. You guys would want to face Real in the group stages or not? Any other teams that you'd like to avoid/face?

With all the changes made in the team, I'd enjoy a very easy group (if that can happen ...), anyway not a "death group", you know, when you are picked in the same group with the strongest team of the second seed, the best team of the third seed ans the best team of the fourth seed or something like that ...

So of course, for entertainment, the best for us, Milan fans, would be to have a group stage against good teams and then playing against the best ones, but strategically, if we only think about winning, I don't want Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid if they qualify, Lyon if they qualify, Porto, ... in our group.

[Dutchie-Milan]

Wauw its like i havent seen Milan play for 5 years in CL,damn its like it was long back when i saw us play against the best teams in Europe,it really was a awful year without CL,i really missed it.

And i think we also can win it this year,IF are first team stays healthy,i dont see why we could not win the CL,assuming we will get another fullback,this team can win CL.

Abbiati
Zambrotta-Nesta-Silva-New
Gattuso-Pirlo-Flamini/Ambro
Ronaldinho
Pato-Huntelaar.

I think this team has the quality to win the CL,for sure,its a mix between young dynamic players AND experienced players who are always fiered up for big matches (read: Seedorf).The quality is there,so i dont worry.

[Ceceves]

Yep, it's good to be back! Maybe our old warhorses can really pull something off in the Champions League (since we have so many "great champions", as Galliani loves to remind us!), I mean players like Ronaldinho, Seedorf, Pirlo etc. etc. However remembering our last campaign (07-08), I remain sceptical.

I believe Milan are still a seed one team, can anyone confirm this?

Yes, even if all the highest ranked teams qualify, we still have the 5th highest coefficient. Despite having endured a year without CL (and a terrible, if pointless UEFA Cup campaign) and the aforementioned, disspointing campaign of 07-08 we remain the highest seeded Italian team - by some distance.

[Az.]

When is the draw for the group stages ?I hope we get a easy group and top it .

Were back :djn::3band:

[bLOND !-,-!]

27.08.2009 is the draw for the group stage ;)

[Jasper]

When is the draw for the group stages ?I hope we get a easy group and top it .

Hopefully Poli will make it through and we have 2 easy games against them :D

[Az.]

Hopefully Poli will make it through and we have 2 easy games against them :D

Haha ,i really hope if we pass the last round we get Milan in the group for two reasons :

-would love to see how it is to be a away fan in san siro
-if Milan play like they do in the friendly's we have a chance of winning a game :ilol:

[mly]

Isn't there a chance that we might get Real Madrid in the group stages?

[Jasper]

Isn't there a chance that we might get Real Madrid in the group stages?
Yes there is. 1/6 most probably(1/7 if Arsenal and Lyon both loose their play-off games)

[housin7]

Just did a quick browsing.. I'm actually surprised that even with our absence last season, we still have higher coefficient than Inter and Juve. I have always thought that Pot 1 should consist of defending champion + 7 winners of the bigger leagues in Europe (Italy, England, Spanish, France, Dutch, Portugal and Scotland(?)). Guess I learn something new everyday :D

UEFA Champions League group stage
Position Club Coefficient
1 FC Barcelona (ESP) 121.853
2 Liverpool FC (ENG) 118.899
3 Chelsea FC (ENG) 118.899
4 Manchester United FC (ENG) 111.899
5 Sevilla FC (ESP) 110.853
6 AC Milan (ITA) 110.582
7 FC Bayern München (GER) 98.339
8 FC Internazionale Milano (ITA) 87.582
9 Real Madrid CF (ESP) 78.853
10 PFC CSKA Moskva (RUS) 71.525
11 FC Porto (POR) 68.292
12 AZ Alkmaar (NED) 64.826
13 Juventus (ITA) 63.582
14 Rangers FC (SCO) 56.575
15 Olympique de Marseille (FRA) 48.033
16 FC Dynamo Kyiv (UKR) 46.370
17 FC Girondins de Bordeaux (FRA) 40.033
18 Beşiktaş JK (TUR) 32.445
19 VfL Wolfsburg (GER)
21.339
20 R. Standard de Liège (BEL) 21.065
21 FC Rubin Kazan (RUS) 9.525
22 AFC Unirea Urziceni (ROU) 8.781

UEFA Champions League play-off - Non-Champions Path
Position Club Coefficient
1 Arsenal FC (ENG) 106.899
2 Olympique Lyonnais (FRA) 91.033
3 VfB Stuttgart (GER)
45.339
4 ACF Fiorentina (ITA) 42.582
5 Club Atlético de Madrid (SPA) 41.853

[hitmannq8]

Inter and Real are in the second seed if Arsenal qualify.... Inter's dominance in Italy and failure to cause a threat in Europe is a mystery most of us will never understand... they really suck!

[Tony75]

Inter and Real are in the second seed if Arsenal qualify.... Inter's dominance in Italy and failure to cause a threat in Europe is a mystery most of us will never understand... they really suck!

It's no mystery. They have no creativity in mid, and lacked a proper striker beside ibrahamobitch.

They'll still suck this season.

[HO-YOUNG]

if we win it this year it would be 3 times and the most for the decade... and i can get to boast of about our greatness...

[Lebanese]

if we win it this year it would be 3 times and the most for the decade... and i can get to boast of about our greatness...


Clichy, hernanez , vdv, nistelroy then we are set :d other than this we are dreaming to get past the 16th.

[Gabriel489]

U know what will happen, Milan will end up with Real, Bordeux and Wolfsburg in the group stages.

Gourcuff and Kaka will play like crap and a lot of us here will be saying, there are not special, they sucks.....then Dzeko will score and beat Milan by himself, and most of us here will be like damn, if only Berlu paid more to sign him over the summer......at the end, Milan got crashed out, as Real and Wolfs advance to Knockout stage and Bordeux made it to UEFA CUP. Then everyone will be saying if only Berlu signed Dzeko.

[kastriot]

I dont think Kaka will pay bad at Real, he is made for spanish league,there are just couple of defenders who can take him. Simple Logic. :D

Plus, from the preseason you can tell that Pellegrini has made Kaka "THE MAN" of Real, he pulls the strings in this team. Everything goes through him. And that will probably suit him even more.

[hitmannq8]

The draw is in 7 hours... the teams to avoid in pot 3 are bordeaux and atletico.... pot 4 wolfsburg....

lets hope for an easy group :v408:

[kris]

Kazan is the only team I'd really avoid. I am game for the rest, although some are funnier.

ManU and Real in the same group would be nice.

[El Fre]

THE POTS
Pot 1
Barcelona
Liverpool
Chelsea
Manchester United
AC Milan
Arsenal
Sevilla
Bayern Munich

Pot 2
Lyon
Inter
Real Madrid
CSKA Moscow
FC Porto
AZ Alkmaar
Juventus
Rangers

Pot 3
Olympiakos
Marseille
Dinamo Kiev
VfB Stuttgart
Fiorentina
Atletico Madrid
Bordeaux
Besiktas

Pot 4
VfL Wolfsburg
Standard Liege
Maccabi Haifa
FC Zurich
Rubin Kazan
Unirea Urziceni
APOEL Nicosia
Debrecen

The draw is in 7 hours... the teams to avoid in pot 3 are bordeaux and atletico.... pot 4 wolfsburg....

lets hope for an easy group :v408:

I second that. Also, it would be nice to get AZ Alkmaar from pot 2.

FORZA MILAN!!!

[kakacmilan best]

I heard that Maccabi Haifa crushed a good team (can't remeber) and have a very good team also.

[Milan_Kaka]

The perfect group for us would be:
AC Milan
AZ Alkmaar/CSKA Moscow
Besiktas
APOEL Nicosia/Debercen

But then again, the downside of it is that we will have a hard time finding the matches on TV! Haha

[otoniel]

AC Milan Gets group C :)

[NAMMY]

Yay Paolo!

[boing boing]

Pot 4 has so many unknown teams making this year's UCL competition all the more difficult.

[El Fre]

Real Madrid!!!!

[otoniel]

milan gets madrid increible

[boing boing]

WTF! Milan against Real Madrid. This is getting more difficult for us.

[Jeff]

Why not? What's the problem?

[El Fre]

It's no problem, we need 2 weak teams and that's it

[NAMMY]

Oh dear ....

[El Fre]

Barca Vs Inter

[otoniel]

we get to try out the santiago bernabeu pitch to prepare for the final ;)

[hitmannq8]

omg kaka's coming home.... lol inter vs barca!! i cant believe the english got soooooo easy teams.. like every single year this decade!

[Arildonardo]

omg kaka's coming home.... lol inter vs barca!! i cant believe the english got soooooo easy teams.. like every single year this decade!

Had the same thought... Those lucky bastards!

[El Fre]

It will be very emotional....Kaka at San Siro again...

[Arildonardo]

Probably get Bordeaux with Gourcuff and Wolfsburg with Dzeko as well... :)

[brk]

I have a feeling we're going to get Wolfsburg and Bordeaux next...

[johncharles365]

english teams are very lucky but some of the epl teams are weak at the moment i hope to see lyon cska and porto cause a upset

[otoniel]

bayern, juve , bordeaux its pretty tough group

[brk]

Bordeaux with Bayern and Juve.

[El Fre]

where are you watching guys? Justin keeps throwing me out...:(

[brk]

It has to be Dynamo, Marseille or Olympiacos.

Edit: Marseille or Olym

Edit: It's Milan, Real and Marseille. Who's next?

[El Fre]

Marseille....

[Arildonardo]

We're quite unlucky so far...

[brk]

Some really really tough groups all around, except for United and Arsenal.

[otoniel]

yeah we have the toughest group so far...

[otoniel]

how come olympiacos went straight arsenals group H? instead of making a draw for milans group C and H

[El Fre]

We need a weak team from pot 4 or we're in deep sh!t

[brk]

Anyone but Wolfsburg from Pot 4....

[pazj]

can you guys believe the luck of Man Utd and Arsenal? fiorentina also have a a hell of a task with Liverpool and Lyon

[Dutchie-Milan]

Some really really tough groups all around, except for United and Arsenal.

Everybody has tough groups,Real is not strong as team we can beat them,Marseille shouldnt be a problem

[johncharles365]

come on zurich and hiafa

[pazj]

whos the hottie doing the presenting?

[brk]

how come olympiacos went straight arsenals group H? instead of making a draw for milans group C and H

I think it's because two French teams are playing on Tuesday, so they had to go Wednesday.

[Christian]

Juve didn't get hasn't gotten the best group either yet: Bayern Munich, Juventus, Bordeaux, and Inter: Barcelona, Inter, Dynamo Kyiv.

Anyway, Milan vs Real Madrid, what a game that's gonna be.

[NAMMY]

Don't forget Hunterlaar is going back to Madrid too lol.

[El Fre]

Arsenal, lucky bastards

[brk]

I want Unirea.

edit: Damn

[Arildonardo]

Damn, look at group G and H! Easy...

[Christian]

Arsenal, lucky bastards

Ye, Arsenal, Man Utd and Sevilla ... Lucky lucky.

[El Fre]

Seville also lucky

[pazj]

Arsenal will get through to second round with reserves playing. lol

[El Fre]

Finally some good news...no wolf

[brk]

Yes!

Wolfsburg are with Man Utd.

[El Fre]

Just rubin to dodge

ZURICH

[Dutchie-Milan]

Anyone but Wolfsburg from Pot 4....

No Wolfsburg,Zurich we beat them last year

[johncharles365]

yeah zurich

[Arildonardo]

Real Madrid, Marseille and Zürich.

[brk]

Milan, Real Madrid, Marseille, FC Zurich. We should beat this group.

[Christian]

Bah, wanted APOEL.

[Arildonardo]

Milan, Real Madrid, Marseille, FC Zurich. We should beat this group.

Marseille is the team to beat. Real will go through, Zürich will go out. It's up to Milan and Marseille to decide the group.

[El Fre]

Ok....not great, but not bad...

GEO, report on Marseille ASAP :)

[pazj]

Group A
Bayern Munich
Juventus
Bordeaux
Maccabi Haifa

Group B
Man Utd
CSKA Moscow
Besiktas
Wolfsburg

Group C
Milan
Real Madrid
Marseille
FC Zurich

Group D
Chelsea
Porto
Atletico Madrid
APOEL Nicosia

Group E
Liverpool
Lyon
Fiorentina
Debrecen

Group F
Barcelona
Inter
Dinamo Kiev
Rubin Kazan

Group G
Sevilla
Rangers
Stuttgart
Unirea Urziceni

Group H
Arsenal
AZ Alkmaar
Olympiakos
Standard Lieg

[Jeff]

Love it. Nothing more than testing against Real Madrid.

[spina_don]

its hard to detect the toughest group....Milan's group is alright...Real Madrid is good but at least they lack defense...however, we'll have our mouth full with their Attack...Also, its very weird to see kaka against AC Milan, Ibra to play against Inter and Eto'o against barca...very weird indeed..

[Jeff]

All staged again isn't it :D?

[OCmilano]

Yes i wanted rm or chelsea.. This is great. We willl finish 1st or 2nd in this group.

[nefremo]

Who do we play on the first matchday???

[boing boing]

Why not? What's the problem?

It's no problem, we need 2 weak teams and that's it

I would have liked to have easier teams this year as Leonardo is a new coach. RM this year will be unpredictable because they have many top players in their team. One moment of individual brilliance from any one of their players can be enough to defeat any team.

Marseille is more stable than RM but it is the top 2 team in pot 3. It is also a good team with Ben Arfa, Niang and the likes. It is also a premier feeder club with good players coming from their team just about every year.

Zurich is the only consolation.

Technically, we have the second toughest group on the paper. I hope this serves as an incentive for Galliani to buy the players Leo wants. Anyway, I am excited about playing in UCL this year. Forza Milan :5schal:

[spina_don]

These are really good team but if Milan are on their A game, we should be able to beat these teams comfortably...

[El Fre]

When will we know the fixtures?

[Rick]

I was hoping to draw Real Madrid. Can't wait to kick their sorry butts. :5schal:

[otoniel]

Dates for Matchdays http://www.uefa.com/uefa/keytopics/kind=64/newsid=836938.html

[Milan4eva]

02/03 we qualified having not been in CL the previous season as well. We faced Real as well in the group stage that year, albeit it being last 16 (old format). ;););)

[Rick]

Champions League Dates

September 15: Olympique Marseille - Milan
September 30: Milan - FC Zürich
October 21: Real Madrid - Milan
November 3 : Milan - Real Madrid
November 25: Milan - Olympique Marseille
December 8: FC Zürich - Milan

[brk]

Wow, that's probably the worst schedule we could have possibly hoped for... Or is it? It puts a lot of pressure on the first game. If we win, we're basically through. If we lose, it gets a lot harder. More so than if it was against Real.

Also, Marseille could be playing their sixth game against a Real that has already qualified.

[nefremo]

Thanks Rick!

That's a very weird fixture list. I thought as group leaders we would play the first match at home. It makes no sense. We play our first and our last match away. No advantage at all.

Anyhow...it is what it is. It is a very very tough group.....but it could have been worse then this too. We need to beat Marseille in the first game and start off with 3 points........given that we should be able to beat Zurich as well. It is important that we play the 2 consecutive matches with Madrid with less pressure. So going into those games with 6 points will be great and a lot less pressure against Madrid.

[Rick]

Thanks Rick!

That's a very weird fixture list. I thought as group leaders we would play the first match at home. It makes no sense. We play our first and our last match away. No advantage at all.

Anyhow...it is what it is. It is a very very tough group.....but it could have been worse then this too. We need to beat Marseille in the first game and start off with 3 points........given that we should be able to beat Zurich as well. It is important that we play the 2 consecutive matches with Madrid with less pressure. So going into those games with 6 points will be great and a lot less pressure against Madrid.

No problem! :5ok:

Yeah, I don't know how they figure it all out. But in the end you have to play them all. If Milan wins the first one in France, that will turn the schedule into a huge advantage.

[brk]

Yup, from what I can see, the first game is far more important than it usually is. It's not make-or-break, but it's close. A win would be great, but a draw is just as good.

[Milan_Kaka]

Does anyone know who we will be playing against in Serie A around the time when we will be facing Real Madrid?

[nefremo]

It'll look something like this.

Milan - Roma 10/18
Real - Milan 10/21

Then we play Chievo(away 10/25)), Napoli(away 10/28), and Parma(home 11/01).....and Madrid (11/03) again. I guess there will be a midweek fixture in Serie A that week. It'll be a loaded schedule for sure (7 games in the space of a less then a month, if you add the Lazio game following the second Madrid match) ....and on top of that two of those games are consecutive away matches (Chievo + Napoli).

But besides the point.....I think people are putting way too much emphasis on the Madrid game. Yes it'll be a stunning encounter.....but if we win our first 2 games, we can make the Madrid encounters a little less important and they won't weight as much on our competition.

[Jeff]

I don't get it; why are we feeling so afraid to face Madrid? Yes - they are very powerful in their attack, but Milan is not a walkover either (no disrespect, but if I'm a supporter of the 4-seed team, I'm going to be extra worried).

We need to put this thought that "Milan is in deep s*it" away and start supporting the club, rather than finding excuses to blame the management. Yes - we know it's terrible to sell Kaka`, but it is what it is. We move on.

[sheva-gila]

I dont think Rmadrid is superios to us the are galacticos on paper only

[mihan]

Either way, I don't see RM win the CL this year, perhaps next season or so they would have a good chance. All the teams, players and organizations would bounce back toward the ferocious approach they had on the market, and let's pray that the refs won't join the mop of underdogs. In this century, Chelsea has not won yet, and I don't see Man City do in 5 years.

[Blacktop]

It will be very emotional....Kaka at San Siro again...

Great, that means more of Kaka's smarmy, gag-inducing "I miss Milan" interviews. Shoot me now.

[hwmook]

I don't get it; why are we feeling so afraid to face Madrid? Yes - they are very powerful in their attack, but Milan is not a walkover either (no disrespect, but if I'm a supporter of the 4-seed team, I'm going to be extra worried).

We need to put this thought that "Milan is in deep s*it" away and start supporting the club, rather than finding excuses to blame the management. Yes - we know it's terrible to sell Kaka`, but it is what it is. We move on.

Agreed, i am happy we got RM because they are a unbalanced team IMO and their way of playing suit us just fine. Let's not forget that we not only beat but taught them a lesson 7 years ago with their previous edition of galaticos. I am pretty sure Nesta know how to stop kaka from pulling the strings for RM.

Marseille is also fine with me, we should not have a problem with them. Only Lyon is scary in France. As long as Lyon is not in the same group as us, i am fine with any french.

Zurich is a good draw IMO, at least its a team that we are familiar with, i will be worried about some relative unknown teams.

All in all, i am happy about the draw and i have a feeling we will top the group and qualify after 4 games. I am going to place my bets now. :de3:

[El Fre]

Great, that means more of Kaka's smarmy, gag-inducing "I miss Milan" interviews. Shoot me now.

Taylor, you know how I feel about you and your posts...:heart::heart::heart:

You're only making it worse :grinser:

You're right, it'll probably get very annoying

[GeoTav]

I simply don't like our group ...

Let's hope that the players of Real Madrid don't gel, let's hope that Marseille isn't as strong as they could be on paper (they have some new interesting players). I don't speak about Zurich, but we will have to take 6 points against them to be sure to qualify.

[El Fre]

I like our group because we can beat all of them. The only problem is our overall fixture list. We will play a game every 3 days and our first team simply can't take it. Our first 11 are as good as Barca, Real, Chelsea...but our second 11 are as bad as Livorno, Bari, Sunderland...

I don't know how they plan to keep them fresh...we need more players.

[sheva-gila]

I like our group because we can beat all of them. The only problem is our overall fixture list. We will play a game every 3 days and our first team simply can't take it. Our first 11 are as good as Barca, Real, Chelsea...but our second 11 are as bad as Livorno, Bari, Sunderland...

I don't know how they plan to keep them fresh...we need more players.

if we'd menage to take 6 points against marseille and zurich than realmadrid will be our victim

[Reza]

Jeff is right but at the same I agree with GeoTav.
If we are talking on paper this is a difficult group, I would say Arsenal's, Sevilla's and even ManU's group are easier to deal with...again on paper :D

[Jeff]

I simply don't like our group ...

Let's hope that the players of Real Madrid don't gel, let's hope that Marseille isn't as strong as they could be on paper (they have some new interesting players). I don't speak about Zurich, but we will have to take 6 points against them to be sure to qualify.

Instead of hoping RM not to gel, or Marseille isn't as strong as they are, why don't we hope for Duck-hunter to work, and R80 to work magic? That Janku will run up and down the flank, that Zambrotta will be able to defend, and that Nesta-Thiago Silva partnership is going to rock?

I like our group because we can beat all of them. The only problem is our overall fixture list. We will play a game every 3 days and our first team simply can't take it. Our first 11 are as good as Barca, Real, Chelsea...but our second 11 are as bad as Livorno, Bari, Sunderland...

I don't know how they plan to keep them fresh...we need more players.

I agree. Good point.

***

And ya, more "I love Milan" Bull.

[GeoTav]

Instead of hoping RM not to gel, or Marseille isn't as strong as they are, why don't we hope for Duck-hunter to work, and R80 to work magic? That Janku will run up and down the flank, that Zambrotta will be able to defend, and that Nesta-Thiago Silva partnership is going to rock?

Of course, I hope all that, but I also remember that our team becomes stronger after January ... so it's why I hope that our group will be easier than expected.

Maybe that will change with Leonardo as our coach ... who knows ?

[sheva-gila]

Maybe that will change with Leonardo as our coach ... who knows ?

friend of mine just came back from italy he talked with some italians who says that leo is a mix of capello-carleto-wenger, leo aslo likes to work with youngsters

[GeoTav]

friend of mine just came back from italy he talked with some italians who says that leo is a mix of capello-carleto-wenger, leo aslo likes to work with youngsters

But Leonardo can be a mix between all the best coaches of all times in football history, we don't know how he will prepare his team ...

Ancelotti wanted a strong team after January because our objectives often had to be reached between January and May (mainly CL, but also Serie A before Calciopoli). It was a choice ...

When your team is very strong between August/September and December, it's sometimes a problem after ...

So, firstly, let's see how our team will do for these first next months (and already this week end against Inter), but I tend to think, after what we saw this summer, that Leonardo will also try to make our team the best after January.

PS: Thanks to this group, I'm sure to see Marseille-Milan in two weeks and Milan-Marseille on TV !! I think I will also be able to watch Milan-Madrid and Madrid-Milan on TV too depending on the other games of the French teams. For Milan-Zurich and Zurich-Milan, I'm pretty sure I will have to watch on Internet :( ...

[Christian]

The way I see it our first elleven can beat the best, but as mentioned earlier we have absolutly no quality backups except for in the central midfield and in the 'Huntelaar' position. There's simply a lack of depth (although Barcelona had the same problem last season, and still do, and it turned out fine for them although they were extremely lucky regarding injuries).

That's why I think it's good that we face Marseille first, since at the moment we don't have any serious injuries, and in a month or so, when we face Marseille, there's a good chance that players like Gattuso and Nesta will be back at 100%, and the chance that we'll have any key players injured will be smaller. Ofcourse this goes for Marseille aswell, but as I said, I doubt that they have as much lack of depth as we do.

Also Real Madrid in the middle is fine, because that's just enough time for Kaká to pick up his yearly knee-injury.

About Kaká comments about Milan, I kinda like that he says stuff like that still. I mean look at Cristiano Ronaldo, Xabi Alonso etc. they put in transfer requests and don't seem to give a poop about their former clubs. Also Inter's former players keep saying bad stuff about Merda, which I think is hilarious. Ibrahimovic keeps slamming Inter week in and week out, Maxwell clearly didn't like Inter one bit, and same can be said about Burdisso. No wonder they can't do anything in Europe, non of the players care anything for the club.

[Jeff]

Also Real Madrid in the middle is fine, because that's just enough time for Kaká to pick up his yearly knee-injury.

About Kaká comments about Milan, I kinda like that he says stuff like that still. I mean look at Cristiano Ronaldo, Xabi Alonso etc. they put in transfer requests and don't seem to give a poop about their former clubs. Also Inter's former players keep saying bad stuff about Merda, which I think is hilarious. Ibrahimovic keeps slamming Inter week in and week out, Maxwell clearly didn't like Inter one bit, and same can be said about Burdisso. No wonder they can't do anything in Europe, non of the players care anything for the club.

That's a very sharp statement from you, on all fronts :beach:.

[mihan]

We'd better not finish No.2 in the group coz then we are highly likely-80% chance to face an EPL team in final 16, not that I fear EPL but you always want better odds.

Mourinho is sly? I say Juventino Platini.

[rt9]

Isn't there a chance that we might get Real Madrid in the group stages?

I take everyone back to this post about a week ago :) Yes, there is every chance in the world!!

Honestly, I am very glad. And if anyone has anything to fear, it's Real Merda, not us. They've been a disaster in Europe over the years and again with a new coach and a new team and sky high expectations. Their worst nightmare is to be play a CL seasoned team like Milan, and quite frankly, we don't have too much pressure on us this year due to our mercato, so we have it all to gain and they have it all to lose. Forza Milan.

[Gabriel489]

When Milan play Real, it will depends on our FB.
I am saying that b/c CR7 always have trouble playing against exp. FB as exp FB actually use positioning to shut him down instead of trying to out run him. (Cissohko is the only exception for the past 3 years) Thus, if Zambro is injured, Milan will be in big trouble as I don't think there is anyone who can contain CR7 in Milan, unless Gattuso fouled him all the time.
The good news is that Robben is as good as gone, thats one less weapon Milan need to worry about.

Maybe Milan will keep Oddo just to play against CR7

[vivardo]

When Milan play Real, it will depends on our FB.
I am saying that b/c CR7 always have trouble playing against exp. FB as exp FB actually use positioning to shut him down instead of trying to out run him. (Cissohko is the only exception for the past 3 years)

I agree with you. I personally thought that Zambro was decent against CR7 in the CL 2008 semis. Anyway, I would be a LOT LOT more worried about kaka than CR7.

[ACMILAN1983]

We beat who is put in front of us, whether it is Real or Zurich. Let's just focus on progressing through the group stages.

[El Fre]

We beat who is put in front of us, whether it is Real or Zurich. Let's just focus on progressing through the group stages.

Agreed. One game at the time. That's the way to win trophies.

Right now we have to focus on Inter.

[GeoTav]

Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit !! (copyright: Clay Davis in The Wire)

I just noticed that there will be 3 games between French and Italian teams for the first game: Juventus - Bordeaux and Marseille - Milan Tuesday, and Lyon - Fiorentina Wednesday ... I'm not sure anymore if I'll be able to watch Milan on TV now (depending on what game TV channels will choose) !! :(

[Christian]

Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit !! (copyright: Clay Davis in The Wire) (

:pp20:

Btw, Gattuso has ripped C.Ronaldo a new one everytime we faced Man Utd as far as I remember, both in 2005(?) and the last time, but looking at Real Madrid now, it looks like it's Kaká that's gonna be the problem.

[Jeff]

Given his recent record of injury, it may well be the case that he'll be out injured by the time he plays us.

[Gabriel489]

Same thing can be said about Nesta, Jeff.

[Tony75]

Abate can tear them both apart.

[Tassotti]

:pp20:

Btw, Gattuso has ripped C.Ronaldo a new one everytime we faced Man Utd as far as I remember, both in 2005(?) and the last time, but looking at Real Madrid now, it looks like it's Kaká that's gonna be the problem.

Flamini ripped Kaka in 2008 CL 1/8 finals...

[SANT]

I'm a bit upset that in the middle of this "who plays against who" we're overlooked the UEFA's award to the great Paolo Maldini

[Jeff]

Haha, you are right Sant. You are very right :).

Forza Paolo!

(Inzaghi?)

J

[shegs]

The plaque was massive, jst like il capitano was for milan!

[boing boing]

Our UCL Squad this year:

Portieri: Dida, Abbiati, Storari, Roma.

Difensori: Kaladze, Onyewu, Nesta, Zambrotta, Jankulovski, Thiago Silva, Oddo, Antonini.

Centrocampisti: Gattuso, Seedorf, Flamini, Abate, Pirlo, Ambrosini.

Attaccanti: Pato, Inzaghi, Huntelaar, Borriello, Di Gennaro, Ronaldinho.

Players left out: Bonera and Favalli.

I have absolutely no idea why these players were left out. They are very good back ups. More importantly, Dida and Oddo are in the squad in spite of being unwanted.

[K77SH C]

Our UCL Squad this year:

Portieri: Dida, Abbiati, Storari, Roma.

Difensori: Kaladze, Onyewu, Nesta, Zambrotta, Jankulovski, Thiago Silva, Oddo, Antonini.

Centrocampisti: Gattuso, Seedorf, Flamini, Abate, Pirlo, Ambrosini.

Attaccanti: Pato, Inzaghi, Huntelaar, Borriello, Di Gennaro, Ronaldinho.

Players left out: Bonera and Favalli.

I have absolutely no idea why these players were left out. They are very good back ups. More importantly, Dida and Oddo are in the squad in spite of being unwanted.

Would you really leave Oddo and Antonini out? What would you do when Zambro and Janku get injured? Not only do we lack runners ahead of the defence, we would be forced to play centre backs on both flanks.

Then again, Di gennaro could have been left out. But isnt this what everyone wanted from Carlo. More kids, less Favallis???

[GeoTav]

Would you really leave Oddo and Antonini out? What would you do when Zambro and Janku get injured? Not only do we lack runners ahead of the defence, we would be forced to play centre backs on both flanks.

Then again, Di gennaro could have been left out. But isnt this what everyone wanted from Carlo. More kids, less Favallis???

Anyway, our list has 24 players instead of 25 because we didn't have enough players grown in Milan. You need 4 guys, we have 3: Antonini, Di Gennaro and Abate. So if you don't put Antonini or Di Gennaro, you can't replace them.

Then, the worst choice for me is Oddo <-> Bonera, I know Oddo is experienced, but it was obvious that Leonardo didn't want him at all, so does that mean that Bonera is more than "not wanted" ?

For the goalkeepers, Dida or Roma, one of them, is useless, so one of them could have been replaced by Favalli or someone else ... especially when we know that our defence has some very injury-prone players (Kaladze and Nesta).

So that list is not very logical from my point of view. Also, if we can have 25 players, why didn't they include Albertazzi for example in that list, he is a player who has grown in Milan, so depending on his age (when you are younger than **, you can play without being in the list), he could have been included ...

Another weird choice in Milan ... I hope Leonardo and the players will cancel this strange feeling I have now ...

[boing boing]

Would you really leave Oddo and Antonini out? What would you do when Zambro and Janku get injured? Not only do we lack runners ahead of the defence, we would be forced to play centre backs on both flanks.

Then again, Di gennaro could have been left out. But isnt this what everyone wanted from Carlo. More kids, less Favallis???

I wouldn't want Antonini out. I never wanted that. I certainly would have had taken Bonera instead of Dida. Bonera can form good CB partnership with Nesta and is also handy as a make-shift RB.

Favalli for Oddo is in the balance. Favalli is versatile as last year he played as a CB and LB. He can come on during the end of the game to help dampen the opposition's attack without being jittery. He can also play full 90 minutes with a few problems.

I have always wanted quality and security in any of the players that we have on our roster, be it kids or older players.

[Blacktop]

I would not use the likes of Antonini and Albertazzi for matches as crucial as the Champions League. It's not really the best medium for them to gain match experience.

[ACMILAN1983]

Anyway, our list has 24 players instead of 25 because we didn't have enough players grown in Milan. You need 4 guys, we have 3: Antonini, Di Gennaro and Abate. So if you don't put Antonini or Di Gennaro, you can't replace them.

Then, the worst choice for me is Oddo <-> Bonera, I know Oddo is experienced, but it was obvious that Leonardo didn't want him at all, so does that mean that Bonera is more than "not wanted" ?

For the goalkeepers, Dida or Roma, one of them, is useless, so one of them could have been replaced by Favalli or someone else ... especially when we know that our defence has some very injury-prone players (Kaladze and Nesta).

So that list is not very logical from my point of view. Also, if we can have 25 players, why didn't they include Albertazzi for example in that list, he is a player who has grown in Milan, so depending on his age (when you are younger than **, you can play without being in the list), he could have been included ...

Another weird choice in Milan ... I hope Leonardo and the players will cancel this strange feeling I have now ...

Oddo is also homegrown, which is why I think he's in. Bonera should take up the final spot, I presume it's related to these injuries he's got.

[shegs]

What's this stuff about homegrown players?

[GeoTav]

What's this stuff about homegrown players?

For CL, you have to include 4 homegrown players ... we have only 3, it's why we can't have a 25-player list.

And Oddo isn't ACMILAN1983.

[ACMILAN1983]

For CL, you have to include 4 homegrown players ... we have only 3, it's why we can't have a 25-player list.

And Oddo isn't ACMILAN1983.

Are you sure? He was part of our youth setup.

[Tony75]

Homegrown also includes players who played in country from age of 17-21, otherwise inert wouldn't be able to play in europe.

[GeoTav]

There are the homegrown players, the ones from Milan (4 needed), and there is the homegrown players from Italy (I don't know how many).

[El Fre]

I think Oddo is homegrown(from Milan), because I remember Galliani bragging that it is partly the reason we bought him.

[mrki]

Bonera out... in Milan there is chaos. Well as long as Mr. Calrence Seedorf is not angry we should all be happy. Brvouse you know, if he sits on the bench one game he can go to Galliani and then half the team will get their wages cut... That is how professional Milan is today!

[Mystik]

To clear up any confusion: We can register a maximum of 25 players on List A, of which places 18-25 must be locally trained and of these 8 players only a maximum of 4 can be association trained.

Locally trained means "Club Trained" or "Association trained". Club Trained players have to be registered for Milan for at least 3 entire seasons between the ages of 15 and 21, while an association trained player has been registered for any team in Italy for 3 entire seasons between the ages of 15 and 21.

[Acmir^]

To clear up any confusion: We can register a maximum of 25 players on List A, of which places 18-25 must be locally trained and of these 8 players only a maximum of 4 can be association trained.

Locally trained means "Club Trained" or "Association trained". Club Trained players have to be registered for Milan for at least 3 entire seasons between the ages of 15 and 21, while an association trained player has been registered for any team in Italy for 3 entire seasons between the ages of 15 and 21.


So, I still don't understand why we left one empty spot. Could it be that we are saving it for a player that we'll buy in January? (wishful thinking I know:tong:)

[GeoTav]

So, I still don't understand why we left one empty spot. Could it be that we are saving it for a player that we'll buy in January? (wishful thinking I know:tong:)

No because teams can change some players in their list before the start of the Round Robin games ...

[Rossoneri Fuego]

^^it could be for beckham remember?

[Gio-mania]

as Fuego said, probably Beckham.... he is all we are getting, if we are getting anyone.
unless ofc we do so bad that Berlu realizes the situation (one wonders how bad we will have to drop for that to happen).

[Mystik]

We can change up to 3 players on the list before the knockout rounds I believe. The only reason why I can think we haven't registered 25 is that maybe we only have 3 locally trained players and not a full 4. Oddo, Di Gennaro and Ambro should count. Antonini should count as well according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luca_Antonini but I'm not sure. It's all a bit confusing really...

[GeoTav]

We can change up to 3 players on the list before the knockout rounds I believe. The only reason why I can think we haven't registered 25 is that maybe we only have 3 locally trained players and not a full 4. Oddo, Di Gennaro and Ambro should count. Antonini should count as well according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luca_Antonini but I'm not sure. It's all a bit confusing really...

It's what I said previously but they told me I'm wrong ... :D

[ElJaffacakeo]

Hernanes or Marquinhos anyone? He could fill the non-EU spot they have available.

http://rossoneri.snirz.com/tag/anderson-hernanes-de-carvalho-andrade-lima/