While they may not have been persuasive early on at home (and really they have not ) their away form has been awesome. Losing only two points from a possible 27!
A big problem for CCL is that there is not enough star power for the media to want to pay for it. There are no globally known names that are in the contest apart from Landon Donovan, and he isn't even with the Galaxy squad at the moment. Quite frankly, nobody really seems to care about the CCL. Would there be a nationally televised game on ESPN if an American side didn't get into the final of the CCL? Probably not. Come to think about it they probably wouldn't put it on ESPN2 if TWO American teams made it to the final.
Arsenal were the surprise team of the champions league last year, going all of the way to the closing and defying expectations with each game. This year, they appear to be overestimated. The Gunners haven't yet settled into their new Emirates Stadium. The squad look noticeably uncomfortable and will take more time to jell. In ì¼ë³¸ì•¼êµ¬ì¤‘계 of the above, it's worth looking at the others. CSKA are a enormous price at 10/1 and the 2005 UEFA Cup winners have to be endorsed to win this group. Russia is an intimidating place for visiting teams and the Muscovites are more than capable of promising results from their travels.
Unfortunately, they can't match Barcelona in terms of finishing ability. Or probably defending, for that matter. In fact, in those two sections they themselves can be matched by quite a number of those'lesser' teams in English football.
Arsene Wenger. A man who believes in nurturing talent. The squad he has currently assembled is really a true reflection on what could be achieved if you stick to a squad that knows and performs well together. They're playing fantasy football right now, and only a couple of months ago Wenger's future was in doubt.
Ronaldo is as usual, the hero turn villain when he missed his spot kick. I guessed he will find a boot into his face by Sir Alex if Manchester United were to lose due to that. He is one lucky boy!
The teams in first and second position in the Championship league are automatically promoted to the Premiership. A play off round decides who gets promoted from the third to sixth team. The soccer teams who finish 3, 4, 5, and 6th battle it out to see who moves up. The 3rd and 4th team play each other and the 5th and 6th teams get a match. The winners of those games then play each other to determine who is promoted.