UEFA Champions League: Champs Dethroned: Inter Versus Bayern In Final

At Barcelona:

Despite dropping a 1-0 decision on the road to Barcelona in game two of their two match UEFA Champions League semifinal series (Gerard Pique scoring at 84 minutes), Inter Milan still won the two-game set 3-2 on aggregate.  The Nerozzurri (with their happy players celebrating as pictured here) will take on Bayern Munich in Madrid on May 22 for the European club championship. It will be Inter's first appearance in the final since 1972 (when they lost at Rotterdam to Ajax Amsterdam 2-0) and they will seek their first title since 1965, when they defeated SL Benfica 1-0 on their home pitch in Milan.

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UEFA Champions League: Ivica Olic Hat Trick Propels Bayern To First Final Since 2001

At Lyon, France:

Ivica Olic's natural hat trick (26', 67',78', that's him celebrating) propelled Bayern Munich to a 3-0 road beatdown of Lyon in match two and a 4-0 aggregate win for their two-game series.  Bayern will move on to the May 22 final at Madrid, facing the winner of Barcelona-Inter Milan (with Inter leading 3-1 on aggregate).  This will be their first final appearance since winning the title in 2001 when they defeated Valencia in the penalty-kick shootout in Milan, Italy, and the first appearance by a German club in the final since Bayer Leverkusen dropped the title match at Glasgow, Scotland against Real Madrid in 2002.

Getty Images photo.

One consequence of the Bayern victory was that Rangers, who won the Scottish Premier League title on Sunday, will now automatically qualify for the Group Stage of next year's Champions League.

UEFA Champions League: Arjen Robben Does It Again For Bayern In Semifinal Opener

At Munich, Germany:

Arjen Robben provided the only goal of the match at 69 minutes (he's seen here celebrating)as Bayern Munich took the opening game of their two-match UEFA Champions League semifinal series with Lyon 1-0 on Wednesday.  This was a match in which both teams finished with ten men, which Bayern's Franck Ribery and Lyon's Jeremy Toulalan were both ejected via the red card.

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Next week, Lyon will host Bayern Munich in game two of their respective series on Tuesday, and Inter Milan (up 3-1 on aggregate) will travel to Barcelona for game two, which will be played on Wednesday.

UEFA Champions League: Inter Closing In On Ousting Champs

At Milan, Italy:

Wesley Snijder (30'), Maicon (48'), and Diego Milito (61') provided the goalpower that carried Inter Milan to a 3-1 home win over Barcelona in match one of their UEFA Champions League two-game semifinal series.  Pictured here are happy Nerozzurri players celebrating their opening-match win.

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UEFA Champions League: Bayern And Lyon Advance To Semis Despite Losing Game Two On The Road

The quarterfinal round of the UEFA Champions League concluded with two games on Wednesday.

At Manchester, England:

Despite dropping a 3-2 road decision in game two to Manchester United, Bayern Munich, with the score 4-4 on aggregate for the two-game set, advanced because of the higher number of away goals (2-1) Ivica Olic (43') and Arjen Robben (74') provided the goals that sent Bayern into the semifinals.  Pictured here are the two Bayern goalscorers celebrating the series-winning tally.

At Bordeaux, France:

Despite dropping a 1-0 decision on the road in the second game of their two-match series, Lyon still defeated Bordeaux in the series 4-3 on aggregate. Kim Kallstrom and his teammates are photographed here celebrating the guests' first-ever appearance in the Champions League's semifinal round.

Both Photos © Getty Images

Munich will the site of the opening match between Bayern Munich and Lyon on April 21, with the return match in Lyon, France on April 27, with the winner heading to the May 22 final in Madrid against the Inter Milan-Barcelona winner.


For the first time since 2004 (when Jose Mourinho-coached FC Porto defeated AS Monaco), there will be no English clubs in the Champions League final and for the first time since 2003, there will be no English clubs in the semifinal round.

UEFA Champions League: Inter vs. Barca In Semis

Two series in the quarterfinal round of the UEFA Champions League concluded on Tuesday.

At Moscow:

Wesley Sneijder scored the only goal of the match at 6 minutes (that's him celebrating) as Inter Milan defeated CSKA Moscow 1-0 on the road in game two and took out the Horses in the two-match series 2-0 on aggregate, advancing to the semifinal round for the first time since 2003.

At Barcelona:

Barcelona defeated visiting Arsenal 4-1 in game two, enabling the defending champions to win  their two-match set 6-3 on aggregate, thanks to Lionel Messi's quadruple (21', 37', 42', 88', that's him pictured here, celebrating).

Both photos © Getty Images

Inter Milan will host the first match between themselves and Barcelona on April 20, with the return match to take place on April 28 in Barcelona.

Gunners Come Back From Two-Goal Deficit To Salvage Game-One Draw With Barca; Nerrazzurri Take Opener With Horses

Two more two-match series in the UEFA Champions League's quarterfinal round opened on Wednesday.

At London:

Goals from Theo Walcott (69') and Cesc Fabregas (PK-85', that's him pictured here) enabled Arsenal to come back from a 2-0 deficit to gain a 2-2 home draw in game one with Barcelona.  Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored both goals for the Catalans (46', 59').

At Milan, Italy:

Diego Milito scored the only goal of the match (65', pictured here) as Inter Milan downed visiting CSKA Moscow in game one 1-0.


Both photos © Getty Images

Bayern And Lyon Take Quarterfinal Openers

The quarterfinal round of the UEFA Champions League commenced Tuesday as two of the two-game series got under way.

At Munich, Germany:

Ivica Olic scored the game winner in second-half stoppage time (90'+2, that's him pictured here, along with Franck Ribery, who had tied the game at 77 minutes) as Bayern Munich came from behind and took game one of their two-match set with Manchester United 2-1 at home.  Wayne Rooney scored an away goal at two minutes for the Red Devils, but came up injured toward the end of the match.

At Lyon, France:

Lisandro scored twice (10', PK-77', that's him celebrating his first tally) as Lyon defeated visiting Bordeaux 3-1 in the series opener.

Both photos © Getty Images

Champions League Draw: Gunners To Get Crack At Barca; There Will Be A French Team In the Semis

At Nyon, Switzerland:

The drawings for the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds of the UEFA Champions League took place on Friday.

Here are the quarterfinal round match-ups with the team hosting the opening game of the respective two-match series listed first.  The first games will be played on March 30 and 31, with the return matches played on April 6 and 7.

Lyon vs. Bordeaux

Bayern Munich vs. Manchester United

Arsenal vs. Barcelona


Inter Milan vs. CSKA Moscow


The winners would advance to the semifinal round.  The opening matches will take place on April 20 and 21, with the return contests taking place on April 27 and 28.  The club hosting the respective series openers are listed first.


Bayern Munich/Manchester United winner vs. Lyon/Bordeaux Winner


Inter Milan/CSKA Moscow winner vs. Arsenal/Barcelona winner

Leo The Lion Leads Barca Into Quarterfinals; Bordeaux Also In Elite Eight

The UEFA Champions League's Round of 16 concluded with two games on Wednesday.

At Barcelona:

Lionel Messi's double (13', 60', that's him celebrating) helped carry Barcelona to a 4-0 game-two home fistbeating of VfB Stuttgart, enabling the defending champions to take the two-match set 5-1 on aggregate.

At Bordeaux, France:

Yoann Gourcuff (5', that's him celebrating with teammates) and Marouane Chamakh (88') each tallied once as Bordeaux defeated visiting Olympiacos 2-1 in game two and took the two-game series 3-1 on aggregate.

The drawing for the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds will take place this coming Friday at Nyon, Switzerland.

Both photos © Getty Images.

Slammin' Sammy Places Inter In Quarterfinals; Horses Also Advance

Two more Round of 16 two-match sets in the UEFA Champions League concluded on Tuesday.

At London:

Samuel Eto'o scored the only goal of the match (78', pictured here in this photo from Getty Images) as Inter Milan knocked off Chelsea 1-0 on the road in game two and took the two-game series 3-1 on aggregate.

At Seville, Spain:

Tomas Necid (39') and Keisuke Honda (55', he's seen here mobbed by teammates in this Associated Press photo) provided the scoring that carried CSKA Moscow to a 2-1 game-two road win over Sevilla and a series win over the Spanish club 3-2 on aggregate.  The Horses advanced to the Champions League's quarterfinal round for the first time.

UEFA Champions League: Red Devils Smash Rossoneri To Advance; Lyon Stun Galacticos

Two more Round of 16 series in the UEFA Champions League concluded on Wednesday.

At Manchester England:

Goals from Wayne Rooney (13' , 46', that's him scoring that first goal with his noggin), J. S. Park (59'), and Darren Fletcher (88') lifted Manchester United to a 4-0 frontier-styled home fistbeating of AC Milan in game two of their two-match series, enabling the Red Devils to take the set 7-2 on aggregate.


At Madrid, Spain:

Miralem Pjanic scored what proved to be the series-winning goal at 75 minutes (he's seen here mobbed by teammates afterward) as Lyon gained a game-two  1-1 road draw with Real Madrid and knocked out the nine-time European club champions by winning the two-match set 2-1 on aggregate.


Both photos © Getty Images.

Gunners and Bayern Reach Elite Eight

Two Round of 16 two-match series concluded Tuesday in the UEFA Champions League.

At London:

Nicklas Bendtner's hat trick (10', 25', PK-90') helped Arsenal more than cancel out their game one road defeat with a 5-0 home demolition of FC Porto in match two to take the two-game series 6-2 on aggregate. Here's Nick (left), celebrating with fellow goal scorer Samir Nasri (63').

At Florence, Italy:

Despite dropping a 3-2 road decision to Fiorentina in game two, Bayern Munich (with the score 4-4 on aggregate for the two games), thanks to the away goals rule, advanced to the quarterfinal round.   Mark van Bommel (60') and Arjen Robben (65', pictured here) provided the scoring for the visitors. 


Both photos © Getty Images.

Pair Of Goals Give Inter 2-1 Advantage After Match One; Horses Settle For Home Draw With Sevilla

Two more Round of 16 series in the UEFA Champions League got under way on Wednesday.

At Moscow:

Mark Gonzalez equalized things at 66 minutes, enabling CSKA Moscow to salvage a 1-1 game-one home draw with Sevilla. The Spanish club did get a big away goal from Alvaro Negredo at 25 minutes, and here he is being seen celebrating.

At Milan, Italy:

Diego Milito (3', that's him being mobbed by joyous teammates) and Esteban Cambiasso (55') provided the scoring that carried Inter Milan to a 2-1 game-one home win over Chelsea. The Blues, though, did get what might still be in the end, a precious away goal at 51 minutes from Salomon Kalou.

Both Photos © Getty Images

Zlatan's Goal Lifts Barca To Road Draw In Stuttgart; Bordeaux Takes Opener On Road In Athens

Two more two-game, home-and-away, total-goals series commenced Tuesday as Sweet Sixteen play in the UEFA Champions League resumed.

At Stuttgart, Germany:

Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored the equalizer at 52 minutes, lifting Barcelona to a 1-1 road draw in their series opener with VfB Stuttgart. The hosts were represented on the scoreboard with Cacau's header at 25 minutes. That's Zlatan, seen here celebrating after beating Stuttgart goalkeeper Jens Lehmann for the game-tying goal.

At Athens, Greece:

Michael Ciani scored the only goal of the match in first-half stoppage time (45'+2) as Bordeaux took game one 1-0 on the road against Olympiacos. That's Michael, seen here beating Olympiacos goalkeeper Antonis Nikopolidis for the game's lone tally with his header.

Both photos are from Getty Images.

Dragons Take Opener Though Sol's Goal Keeps Gunners Alive; Bayern Pick Up Late Home Win

The opening week of Round of 16 play in the UEFA Champions League concluded with two Wednesday contests.

At Porto, Portugal:

Goals from Silvestre Varela (11') and Falcao (51', he's seen here celebrating) enabled FC Porto to take game one with Arsenal 2-1 at home. The Gunners, though got an important away goal at 18 minutes from Sol Campbell, his first in UCL competition since his goal vs. Barcelona in the 2006 final.

At Munich, Germany:

Miroslav Klose's late goal (89'), combined with Arjen Robben's successful penalty kick (48'; he's seen here celebrating), carried Bayern Munich to a 2-1 series-opening home win over Fiorentina. The Italian club stayed in this two-match series, thanks to Per Kroldrup's goal at 50 minutes.

Both photos from Getty Images.

Wayne Rooney Double Lifts Red Devils; Lyon On Top After Home Win

The knockout stage of the UEFA Champions League commenced Tuesday with the opening of the Round of 16.

At Milan, Italy:

Manchester United, thanks to goals from Paul Scholes (36') and Wayne Rooney (66', 74'; he's pictured here in this Getty Images photo milking the applause from visiting fans) took match one of their two-game series with AC Milan 3-2 on the road.

At Lyon, France:

Jean Il Makoun scored the only goal of the match at 47 minutes Lyon defeated Real Madrid at home for the third time in five years, taking match one 1-0. In this Getty Images photo, Jean is being mobbed by happy teammates.

Champions League Group Stage Draw

Here are the results from Thursday's draw for the group stage of the 2009-10 UEFA Champions League that took place in Monaco.

Group A:

Bayern Munich
Juventus
Bordeaux
Maccabi Haifa FC


Group B:

Manchester United
CSKA Moscow
Besiktas
VfL Wolfsburg


Group C:

AC Milan
Real Madrid
Marseille
FC Zurich

Group D:

Chelsea
FC Porto
Atletico Madrid
APOEL FC


Group E:

Liverpool
Lyon
Fiorentina
Debreceni VSC


Group F:

Barcelona
Inter Milan
Dynamo Kiev
FC Rubin Kazan

Group G:

Sevilla
Rangers
VfB Stuttgart
Unirea Urziceni


Group H:

Arsenal
AZ Alkmaar
Olympiacos
Standard de Liege

In each group, each team would play each of the other teams twice, once at home, once on the road. The top two teams in each group would advance to the knockout stage, beginning with the round of 16.

The third-place clubs in each group would move on to the round of 32 in the Europa League.

Group stage play will begin on September 15 and 16.

Olympiacos, APOEL, Gunners, Stuttgart, and Fiorentina Reach Champions League Group Stage

The playoff round for group stage berths in the UEFA Champions League concluded Wednesday.

Champions Path:

At Athens:

Kostas Mitroglou scored the only goal of the match at 82 minutes as Olympiacos defeated FC Sheriff 1-0 at home in game two of their two-match home-and-away series and took the two-match set 3-0 on aggregate to return to the Champions League group stage.

At Nicosia, Cypryus:

APOEL FC overturned last week's 1-0 road loss with a 3-1 home triumph in game two to eliminate FC Copenhagen 3-2 on aggregate. Kamil Kosowski (2') and Chrysostomos Michail (PK-18', 41') provided the goals that placed the Cypriot club in the group stage for the first time.

Non-Champions Path:

At London:

Eduardo (PK-28'), Emmanuel Eboue (53'), and Andrei Arshvin (74') each contributed a goal as Arsenal took care of visiting Celtic 3-1 in game two and 5-1 on aggregate in the series. For the Gunners, it will be their 12th consecutive appearance in the Champions League's group stage.

At Stuttgart, Germany:

A 0-0 home draw with FC Timisoara in game two was good enough for VfB Stuttgart to take the two-match set 2-0 on aggregate and advance to the group stage for the second time in three years.

At Florence, Italy:

Stevan Jovetic scored the series-winning goal at 54 minutes as Fiorentina gained a 1-1 home draw with Sporting and took the series (3-3) due to the fact they outscored the Portuguese club 2-1 on the road.

The five teams that were eliminated from Champions League play will take part in the group stage of the Europa League.

The draw for the Champions League group stage will take place in Monaco on Thursday.

Atletico, Lyon, Debreceni, Maccabi Haifa, FC Zurich Advance To Group Stage

Five clubs won their way to the UEFA Champions League's group stage on Tuesday.

Champions Path:

At Tel Aviv, Israel:

Goals from Vladimer Dvalishvili (31'), Eyal Golasa (57'), and Mohammad Ghadir (90') powered Maccabi Haifa FC to an easy 3-0 home thumping of FC Red Bull Salzburg in game two of their two-game series and a 5-1 aggregate win for the series, lifting the Israeli club into the UEFA Champions League group stage for the first time since 2002-03.

At Budapest, Hungary:

Jozsef Varga (13') and Gergely Rudolf (35') each tallied once as Debreceni VSC blanked visiting PFC Levski Sofia 2-0 in game two to take the two-match set 4-1 on aggregate to become the first Hungarian club to reach the Champions League's group stage since Ferencvarosi TC in 1994-95.

At St. Gallen, Switzerland:

With goals courtesy of Johan Vonlanthen (6') and Almen Abdi (90'+2), FC Zurich defeated visiting FK Ventspils 2-1 in game two to take the two-game set 5-1 on aggregate. For the Swiss club, this marks their first-ever group stage appearance.

Non-Champions Path:

Lisandro's first-half hat trick (26', 32', 41') guided Lyon to a 3-1 game-two road win over RSC Anderlecht. The long-time French powerhouse finished off their Belgian opponents 8-2 on aggregate and will compete in the group stage for the tenth straight season.

At Madrid:

Sergio Aguero scored in the 83rd minute as Atletico Madrid defeated visiting Panathinaikos 2-0 in game two to take their two-match series 5-2 on aggregate. They will agian compete in the group stage.

The five clubs that lost their two-match series today, as well as tomorrow's losers will still play in the group stage of the Europa League.