Odds and Sods

This will be the first of a series of four previews for the UEFA Champions League quartefinals.

AC Milan

Associazione Calcio Milan (yes they maintain the English spelling) is one of the traditional giants of Italian and European football.  They have won the scudetto (Italian title) 17 times, with 14 2nd place finishes.  They have also won 6 Champions’ League and UEFA Cups, the last coming in 2003.

The 2006-7 season has proven rather bleak for the Rossoneri.  They were implicated in last season’s match-fixing scandal.  Their punishment was reduced to a 30 point deduction from last year’s total (allowing them to participate in the Champions’ League) and an 8 point deduction to start this season.

They have been plagued by poor form for much of the season, often blamed on a roster with aging and ineffective stars (like Andrea Pirlo) as well as the loss of prolific striker Andiry Shevchenko, sold to Chelsea.  Brazilian striker Ronaldo was brought in to bolster the front line, but, cup-tied with Real Madrid, he remains ineligible for this competition.  They have won their last 3 league matches, and currently sit on 44 pts from 29 matches, 4 pts behind 4th place Palermo with a game in hand for the final UEFA Cup spot.

Last round’s faceoff with Celtic was a grudgematch, which ended 1-0 on aggregate, after a Kaka goal in extra time in the 2nd leg at the San Siro.  Celtic drew much of the plaudits, as many had predicted an easy victory for AC Milan.

Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich have traditionally been the best club in Germany, home to legends such as Franz Beckenbauer and others.  They have 20 German Championships under their belt, 4 since 2000.  They hold an additional 4 European titles, the most recent coming in 2001.

The 2006-7 campaign has disappointed Bayern supporters as well.  With Michael Ballack departing for Chelsea, Owen Hargreaves being injured for much of the season, “Basti Fantasti” Sebastian Deisler retiring at the age of 27, they have struggled to get consistent midfield play and their form has suffered because of it.  They currently sit in 4th place in the Bundesliga on 47 pts, 6 pts behind leaders Schalke and 2 pts behind 3rd place Stuttgart for the final Champions League place.

Their last round was an epic clash of the titans with rival Real Madrid.  Franco’s boys dominated the first match and should have won 3-1, though a late goal by Mark Van Bommell to make it 3-2 would prove critical.  Roy Makaay evened the aggregate at 3-3 with the fastest Champions League goal ever in the 2nd leg.  The scoreline would finish 4-4 with Bayern getting the edge for having more away goals.

Prediction

Both teams have been disappointing this season, but one has to give the edge to Bayern.  Milan failed to impress as they scraped through Group H, fairly clearly the easiest group, while Bayern won a tougher group featuring Italian juggernauts Inter.  Milan drew what should have been an easy opponent in Celtic, and scraped their way through once again.  Bayern haven’t been playing more beautiful football, but they have been frisky and scoring goals of late, which should give them the edge to move on to the semi-final.