February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
There was no cat and mouse from Barcelona against Inter Milan in the CL last week. They took only 7 minutes to make it clear that they would not be holding hands with Milan. Indeed, Barcelona were in no mood for complacency. Javier Saviola hit the opener with Philip Cocu making it 2-0 in the 29th minute. As the Barca fans filled Camp Nou with hectic screams of celebration, Inter could not respond. And then Patrick Kluivert finished off the Italians in the 66th minute. That 3-0 drubbing can be rectified as early as today when Barca travel to Inter’s San Siro for the return leg. Inter must win.
Newcastle got on the table with a 3-1 win over Bayer, thus putting pressure on Inter for second place. Newcastle is at home today in St. James’ Park. The Toon army look to be red-hot favorites to win this one whereas the Inter/Barca game is less easy to call. Last week, without the leadership of Alan Shearer and the quick-paced Craig Bellamy, Newcastle shot into a 2-0 lead against Bayer with a brace from Shola Ameobi within 15 minutes. The absence of the experienced Newcastle strikers also opened the door for Lomana Tresor LuaLua who secured the points for United in the 32nd minute. The new names coming to the rescue for Newcastle have inspired the belief that they can once again produce a comeback to qualify for the CL quarterfinals.
Toon manager Bobby Robson is building a young side that he reckons can compete and finally destroy the stranglehold that Arsenal and Manchester United have on the Premiership. A 3-0 victory over Leeds at the weekend was the perfect tonic for the Magpies to enter today’s return leg. Robson’s honest opinion that his squad is “not sufficient” is admirable, but in the same breath he said he thinks they can battle on in the two campaigns. “We’ve the Champions League, which we haven’t given up on after winning last week against Bayer, and if we win the return today we have a chance,” he said.
The future is indeed bright for Newcastle with several squad players in their early 20s and their coach telling them they are looking good for the CL next year. But the true test is today’s game against Bayer. However, there’s too much talk about how good Newcastle can be, just as there’s too much emphasis on how old Robson is. For now, the Toon army must guard against complacency as they prepare to take on the Germans in St James’ Park.
As for the Irish interest on Tyneside, Republic of Ireland’s goalkeeper Shay Given believes that the longer Newcastle stay involved in the CL the greater the spinoff for him and teammate Andy O’Brien in Euro 2004. “It can only help in the development of players — and at the end of the line, there must be a plus for countries like us,” he said. Manager Robson added: “What impresses me most about Shay is his work ethic and his readiness to take advice on board. It makes him more valuable to both Newcastle and Ireland.”
The boss also hopes CL experience will help make O’Brien an Irish regular. O’Brien traveled to the World Cup but did not get playing time. But a spot in the last eight of the CL might convince Brian Kerr to include him in the national team. “We believe we’re still in with a chance of making the last eight in the competition,” O’Brien said. “There is a fantastic buzz at the club. We took time to adjust, but we feel more comfortable now.”
Group B is a bit more complicated than Group A. Ajax Amsterdam threw a spanner in the works when they tied Arsenal at Highbury last week. The swing of the game was somewhat different to what Arsenal are used to in the Premiership. When it came to exploiting space, the Gunners did not look as dangerous as they do in their domestic games. Ajax was able to adapt and reshuffle their shape with much composure and organization. The impressive tie by Ajax has reminded Arsenal that they have still have a lot to do in the competition. However, Arsenal’s away form in the CL has been good. Right now, though, with Valencia joining Arsenal and Ajax on five points, Group B looks very much like the group of death. While the Gunners must get a result on the road against Ajax in the Amsterdam Arena, it’s likely Valencia can handle Roma in Spain. John Carew scored the winner in the 78th minute for Valencia against Roma last week. The Spanish club is usually underestimated but always manage to make the next round.
Arsenal could not have had a better preparation for today’s game in Holland than their 5-1 thumping of Manchester City over the weekend. Within 20 minutes, the game was over with four different names on the Gunners’ scoresheet: Bergkamp, Pires, Henry and Campbell. It was no surprise to see Patrick Vieira making it No. 5. To try to take care of individuals on the Arsenal team is a mistake: there are simply too many weapons. Ajax did not fall into this trap and indeed did a textbook job playing the in-form Gunners. Arsenal have a long way to go in this group of death, but their experience should get them through.