Knockout Draw: Who do we want?
by bearcatcardfan on Dec 8, 2011 12:54 PM EST
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Who would you rather see in the knockout stage?
With the knockout stage draw next Friday, who would you like to match up with in the next round?
I personally am partial to the Russian teams. They will be just back from pre-season and might not be incredibly match fit. I also wouldn't mind seeing FC Basel as we handled them reasonably easily a couple of years ago. Lyon is a type of team that Arsene Wenger has had success against as manager. Bayer Leverkusen is an unknown to me and I assume we could get past them. Then there's Napoli and AC Milan, Arsenal have had a lot of success in the past against Italian teams but I think they have to be the scariest as far as potential match ups due to who they had to play in their group stages.
I think on a more serious note, I am just happy to be in this stage of the competition. It could be worse, we could be Manchester and already be out of the competition. We are already assured knockout stage money and as much as I would like to go on in the most prestigious competition in Europe, I don't think our squad depth allows us to be viable in the 3 remaining competitions, especially having to make up for the horrendous start in August.
What do you guys/gals think?
Do we want a test or an easy trek to the next round?
How much effort should we put in to European competition with such a dogfight to get back in to the top 4 ahead of us?
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I would like to point out that the Russian Premier League just ended a couple of weekends ago
November 27th was the last day, and Zenit won the title.
UMD Bulldogs: 2011 NCAA Hockey Nat'l Champions; 2009 & 2011 NCAA DII Football Nat'l Champions
"Terry's down, oh my! Van Persie all by himself now, around Cech, and that'll do it!"
so wouldn't we rather see CSKA?
or do we want the test of facing the champions?
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
by bearcatcardfan on Dec 8, 2011 1:59 PM EST up reply actions
I might be wrong, but I think he was implying either Russian team would be favorable since they would be well into their offseason by the time the tie is played.
I know I put that in the post,
I just didn’t really know why there was a big deal about Zenit when CSKA also made it through.
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
by bearcatcardfan on Dec 8, 2011 2:58 PM EST up reply actions
I didn't mean to imply a big deal about Zenit
I’d rather face either of the Russian teams because they just ended their season and they could be exhausted and quite out of it like you stated, but then again, do you want an away leg in a country where they’ll play in temps of borderline zero degrees? I don’t know man…
UMD Bulldogs: 2011 NCAA Hockey Nat'l Champions; 2009 & 2011 NCAA DII Football Nat'l Champions
"Terry's down, oh my! Van Persie all by himself now, around Cech, and that'll do it!"
we did it last year in the "handegg" semifinal
at least it stopped snowing
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
by bearcatcardfan on Dec 8, 2011 5:10 PM EST up reply actions
Nah, they went into break
The first phase ended and they started 2 fixtures of the second phase
AAARRRRRRRSSSSSHHHHHHHHAAAAAAVVVVVIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNN!
Dream goal!
Sort of true
This is the transition year for the Russian League. They will now split the league into two groups, the top half playing for the CL spots and the bottom half playing for relegation. This allows them to begin the next season in August and get on the Bundesliga schedule. It won’t be a traditional offseason for the Russian clubs, more like a shorter winter break.
by Stephen Schmidt on Dec 13, 2011 12:05 PM EST up reply actions
To be the best you have to beat the best
I don’t really care who Arsenal plays because at some point there will be a Spanish behemoth in the way anyway.
Thursday nights on Channel 5!
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
by bearcatcardfan on Dec 9, 2011 5:36 AM EST up reply actions
Actually, besides the obvious, I don't want to play Marseilles.
I’d also rather not play Leverkusen. Both teams are very tough.
I’ve seen Moscow play and they don’t impress me at all. I pick them.
Alex Song - Krunk as Fuck!
Manchester United begs to differ...
UMD Bulldogs: 2011 NCAA Hockey Nat'l Champions; 2009 & 2011 NCAA DII Football Nat'l Champions
"Victoria Concordia Crescit"
I think we're better than Manchester United
AAARRRRRRRSSSSSHHHHHHHHAAAAAAVVVVVIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNN!
Dream goal!
by Aidan Gibson on Dec 10, 2011 6:23 PM EST up reply actions
I 8-2 tell you this,
OMG GET IT GET IT?
Now with mustache guarantee!
by HoodRiverDuck on Dec 12, 2011 11:09 AM EST up reply actions
was going to post this exactly but I hit delete as I thought it was in poor taste
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
by bearcatcardfan on Dec 12, 2011 4:50 PM EST up reply actions
I'm all about poor taste.
Now with mustache guarantee!
by HoodRiverDuck on Dec 13, 2011 1:15 PM EST up reply actions
That's offensive
Captain, there are doubt''s...
by Match Day 5 on Dec 12, 2011 7:51 PM EST up reply actions 4 recs
lol, love it!
Alex Song - Krunk as Fuck!
by Midasknight on Dec 14, 2011 12:32 AM EST up reply actions
i watched that game. Basel were definitely a weak team, aided by some good fortune.
And I would rate them as probably the weakest or one of the weakest on that poll list.
SBN Bloglist:
The Short Fuse (Arsenal, EPL)
Sactown Royalty (Kings, NBA)
by silverace99 on Dec 11, 2011 12:41 AM EST up reply actions
You also apparantly hate trophies
the easier your road, the more able you are to throw everything you have at the final rounds. I’ll take a UCL title with a soft road over an exit in the first KO round.
I disagree
It’s injuries that hurt later rounds. That and exhaustion.
Whoever we draw, we’ll be putting our best in form 11 out there.
I love trophies.
The more difficult opponents, the higher the chance of getting knocked out
I’d rather take my chances with one or two tough draws than with several. Yes, injury and fatigue kick in during the later rounds, but that applies to the opponents as well. Plus, a huge chunk of the team will be coming back, having had little to exhaust them, but injury.
rounds are spread out from here to may.
There’s no correlation between later rounds and injuries.
SBN Bloglist:
The Short Fuse (Arsenal, EPL)
Sactown Royalty (Kings, NBA)
by silverace99 on Dec 15, 2011 12:10 AM EST up reply actions
There is a correlation between how long into the season it is and injuries
The more games you play, the higher the chance you get injured. And as more games are traditionally played at the end of the year due to accumulated schedule congestion, the more injuries in the later rounds of tournaments.
by Adnan Ilyas on Dec 15, 2011 12:51 PM EST up reply actions
i can agree with that.
but the same applies to your opponent. I’d rather have the easy draws earlier, let the good teams mess each other up first.
SBN Bloglist:
The Short Fuse (Arsenal, EPL)
Sactown Royalty (Kings, NBA)
Effectively though, your playing two seasons
You’ve got to remember that there’s EPL matches on nearly every weekend until May, and FA Cup matches along with the Champions League. Anyone can get injured in any one of these matches
UMD Bulldogs: 2011 NCAA DI Men's Hockey Nat'l Champions; 2009 & 2011 NCAA DII Football Nat'l Champions
"Victoria Concordia Crescit"
Arsene is a genius.
He clearly decided to have all of our injuries happen early so we’ll be fully fit down the stretch.
Brilliant!!
Alex Song - Krunk as Fuck!
I much prefer that to the 'Appy 'Arry strategy
of crashing out of all cup competitions as early as possible.
Does anybody happen to know when the draw is?
UMD Bulldogs: 2011 NCAA DI Men's Hockey Nat'l Champions; 2009 & 2011 NCAA DII Football Nat'l Champions
"Victoria Concordia Crescit"
I want Zenit St Petersburg
I haven’t seen them, but CSKA Moscow has some players who scare me. Also, Meerkat used to play for them and maybe being in the cold will wake him up, or something. I’d rather put off the good teams until later, if possible – I want to go far in the Champions League one way or the other, and that should make it easier.
Anyone but Napoli, though – they scare the shit out of me.
WRITTEN IN THE STAAAAARS, A MILLION MILES AWAAAAAAY
I write about the Arsenal for The Short Fuse.
T-minus 2 hours
is anyone else going to watch; I’m pumped.
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
quit babbling and draw asshole.
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
yeah highlights
I don’t care I want to see who plays who.
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
Napoli vs. Chelsea
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
Milan vs. Arsenal
BLEEP
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
Basel vs. Bayern Munich
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
Leyverkusen vs. Barcelona
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
CSKA Moscow vs. Real Madrid
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
Zenit vs. Benfica
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
Marseilles vs. Inter
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
UEFA's continued dislike of Arsenal continues.
I think we’re as good as Milan but it will be a very tough match. Pato scares the crap out of me.
at least if we go through there is hope for a couple of slightly easier matchups
Chuck Norris doesn't need a bat.
he just roundhouse kicks the ball out of the park.
by bearcatcardfan on Dec 16, 2011 6:27 AM EST up reply actions
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