Best they can hope for: Semi-finals.
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The Algerian has been one of the stars of the Premier League so far and not even the worldwide break could slow him down.
Meanwhile, the first free UEFA Europa League live broadcast on BT Sport Showcase will be Anderlecht v Monaco on Thursday, September 17th. It is no fluke.
Of course, such judgement at this stage is purely speculation but United appear to be a second-, or maybe even third-tier, side when measured against teams like Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.
Similarly, Bayern have knocked out English teams on five occasions since 2009.
This encounter has a distinct sense of deja vu about it as Wolfsburg hosted their Russian rivals in their only previous Champions League campaign in 2009.
More than ever the key to winning a Champions League tie is to score the first goal.
That duo – along with Nicolas Otamendi and Fabian Delph – must prove enough to finally establish City as a major Champions League force.
Ioan Lupescu, Uefa’s technical director, sounded out leading managers including Arsène Wenger and Manuel Pellegrini at the recent elite club coaches’ forum in Nyon and he told The Independent: “Possession is only important for the majority of them if you have progression, if you have penetration, if you have a final act at the end”. They have obviously made a very slow start, but I’m sure they will recover.
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The Dutchman achieved the minimum requirement of qualifying for the competition last season-yet like a hiker reaching the summit of a long, arduous climb, United must now ask themselves: what next?
Ronaldo needs two more goals to become Real Madrid’s highest goalscorer in the Champions League / European Cup history. Chelsea were unable to complete their preferred transfer business with Jose Mourinho reminded of what he missed out as centre-back John Stones played an impressive role in Everton’s 3-1 victory over the Blues. But now, we have to show if we are able to play at that level and that I don’t know.
Ultra HD is a new technology said to offer four times the detail of HD television.
Flash forward just 24 months, however, and there’s no way anyone will be dismissing it as a blip should the now embattled Blues suffer another shock to the system in the form of anything less than a win against Maccabi Tel Aviv in west London tomorrow night.
Arsenal are now stuck with the label as the only club in Europe’s top five leagues not to sign an outfield player following the solitary acquisition of Petr Cech. They take on Kazakh debutants Astana who are the first team from their country to qualify for the Champions League group phase.
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Returning to the lineup after shaking off an abdominal injury, Ibrahimovic looked short on fitness and lacked his usual assurance, but he emphatically turned provider in the 61st minute, running onto a left-wing cross from Maxwell and acrobatically back-heeling the ball up to Cavani, who nodded down past goalkeeper Johan Wiland despite being off balance.
