Celtic Vs Helsingborg Match Preview

 Celtic Vs Helsingborg Match Preview

Celtic manager Neil Lennon has to have been happy with his teams performance in Sweden. Georgio Samaras provided the perfect start by setting up Kris Commons for the opening goal of the game in the first two minutes and the Commons returned the favour providing Samaras with an assist in the 75th minute. Celtic look alot better this year than they have in previous years and a win at home will ensure passage to the next round of the Champions League which would be a great achievement as Celtic havent made the Group stages of the competition in a few years now.

Helsingborg come into this game with little to lose trailing 2-0 on aggregate. Unfortunately for the Swedish side though they were completely outplayed in the first leg with Celtic having 67% of possession and scoring two good goals. Coach Hareide will set his side up to go for it but with limited international experience in the side its hard to see how Helsingborg can get the win they need to go through. Alvaro Santos and Mahalunga will provide a threat for the swedes but I just cant see them getting anything from this game.

Celtic looked good in the last leg and had a rare away win. I think that at home with Celtic Park rocking and a great atmosphere that Celtic will get a win and push them one step closer to the Champions League proper. Follow me on twitter @antonpippo Take a look at our EUFA Champions League Round Up for a look at the other non featured games taking place on Wednesday night.

article source: http://sportschatplace.com/soccer/anthony/2012/august/29/celtic-helsingborg/

UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE (QUALIFYING PLAY OFF ROUND)

Aug 22, 2012 - Like the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Europa League has a playoff round for clubs attempting to qualify for the group stage. Unlike the Champions League, the Europa League's playoff round features lots of teams that even hardcore followers of European football have never even heard of.

This year's playoff round also features some good matchups between teams that probably should not have been matched up against each other. Anzhi Makhachkala and AZ Alkmaar, both of whom would be favorites to make the knockout stages if they got through to the group stage, have to go through each other. The same can be said about Stuttgart and Dinamo Moscow.

Then, there are the awesome teams that you'll never hear from again. APOEL Nicosia should probably dispatch of Neftchi Baku of Azerbaijan. Don't expect to see too much more of Luxembourg's F91 Dudelange, or Georgia's Dila Gori. And congratulations to Moldova's FC Sheriff, who somehow get here every year.

Schedule (all times ET)

Tuesday

Stuttgart vs. Dinamo Moscow - 12:15 p.m.

Wednesday

Anzhi Makhachkala vs. AZ Alkmaar - 12 p.m.
Neftchi Baku vs. APOEL Nicosia - 12 p.m
Tromso vs. Partizan Belgrade - 12:30 p.m.
FK Ekranas vs. Steaua Bucharest - 12:30 p.m.
AIK vs. CSKA Moscow - 1 p.m.
Atromitos vs. Newcastle United - 1 p.m.
Legia Warsaw vs. Rosenborg - 1 p.m.
Liberec vs. Dnipro - 1 p.m.
Molde vs. Heerenveen - 1 p.m.
FC Sheriff vs. Marseille - 1 p.m.
Bursaspor vs. FC Twente - 1:30 p.m.
Dinamo Bucharest vs. Metalist Kharkiv - 1:30 p.m.
Lucerne vs. Racing Genk - 1:30 p.m.
F91 Dudelange vs. Hapoel Tel-Aviv - 2 p.m.
Feyenoord vs. Sparta Prague - 2 p.m.
Trabzonspor vs. Videoton FC - 2 p.m.
FC Midjytlland vs. BSC Young Boys - 2:15 p.m.
Debrecen vs. Club Brugge - 2:30 p.m.
KSC Lokeren vs. Viktoria Plzen - 2:30 p.m.
PAOK vs. Rapid Vienna - 2:30 p.m.
Crvena Zvezda vs. Bordeaux - 2:45 p.m.
FC Vaslui vs. Inter Milan - 2:45 p.m.
Heart of Midlothian vs. Liverpool - 2:45 p.m.
Motherwell vs. Levante - 2:45 p.m.
Slask Wroclaw vs. Hannover 96 - 2:45 p.m.
AC Horsens vs. Sporting Lisbon - 3 p.m.
Athletic Bilbao vs. HJK - 3 p.m.
Maritimo vs. Dila Gori - 3 p.m.
Mura vs. Lazio - 3 p.m.
Zeta vs. PSV Eindhoven - 3 p.m.

Dinamo deny Ludogorets at the death

GNK Dinamo Zagreb 3-2 PFC Ludogorets Razgrad (agg: 4-3)A Domagoj Vida winner eight minutes into added time earned the Croatian side a place in the third qualifying round and denied the debutants.

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UEFA Champions League debutants PFC Ludogorets Razgrad were denied a place in the third qualifying round by Domagoj Vida's winner eight minutes into added time.

With the score level at 1-1 from the first leg in Bulgaria, Ante Čačić's men had a slight advantage heading into the return. However, a spirited attacking display from the visitors helped them twice take the lead, through Emil Gargorov and Marcelinho. Ante Rukavina cancelled out both goals, and Marcelinho was sent off, but a defiant Ludogorets looked set to progress until Vida's last-gasp intervention.

The visitors started the brighter and were rewarded when captain Gargorov headed in Ivan Stoyanov's free-kick. Dinamo struggled to impose themselves but equalised from a rare foray forward on 33 minutes. Šime Vrsaljko broke down the right and crossed for Rukavina to head in off a post.

Ludogorets continued to impress and were ahead again soon after. Marcelinho capitalised on another excellent Stoyanov set-piece to grab his second of the tie. However, the midfielder was shown a red card on 57 minutes after collecting his second booking. Buoyed by their numerical advantage, Dinamo surged forward and levelled again on the hour through Rukavina, who reacted quickest when Milan Badelj's pass deflected his way.

Despite their pressure, though, a winning goal seemed unlikely until the very last touch of the match, when Vida's terrific header from substitute Ivan Peko's right-wing cross sent the home fans into raptures. The visitors' misery was compounded when Miroslav Ivanov saw red in the aftermath of the goal. Dinamo go through to play Moldova's FC Sheriff in the next round, with the first leg next Wednesday.

Article Source: http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/season=2013/matches/round=2000344/match=2009433/postmatch/report/index.html

Vardar yet to peak ahead of BATE decider

"Our best is yet to come," said FK Vardar coach Ilco Gjorgioski as his side look to overturn a 3-2 first-leg deficit in Wednesday's second qualifying round decider against FC BATE Borisov.

FK Vardar coach Ilco Gjorgioski believes his side are yet to reach their peak as they bid to overturn a 3-2 first-leg deficit against FC BATE Borisov on Wednesday.

A 33,000 sell-out crowd is expected at the National Arena Filip II Macedonian for Vardar's first UEFA Champions League game on home soil in nine years, but they have work to do to reach the next round after conceding twice in added time to surrender the initiative in Belarus. "The game in Borisov showed us that we must keep our concentration until the final whistle," said Gjorgioski. "My main goal now is to focus the players' minds, but I know that my players are professionals who will recover from the setback and give it their all."

The 41-year-old coach took charge last summer and led Vardar to a record sixth title. Now Gjorgioski has his sights set on Vardar becoming the first Macedonian side to reach the UEFA Champions League group stage. The Red and Blacks came close in 2003/04 but, having knocked out Barry Town AFC and PFC CSKA Moskva, were eliminated 5-4 on aggregate by AC Sparta Praha in the third qualifying round.

"We've a great chance to get a result which will take us into the next round," added Gjorgioski, who lost to BATE coach Victor Goncharenko twice during his spell in charge of FK Makedonija GP Skopje. "I am sure that this time we will be the side celebrating at the end. The psychological advantage will be with BATE and we're going to be under pressure, but I'm convinced that my players can deal with the challenge. We have our own strengths and our best is yet to come."

Forward Ostoja Stjepanovic, who set up Jovan Kostovski for Vardar's equaliser and scored their second goal in the first leg, echoed his coach's thoughts and is optimistic that his side will progress. "We shouldn't waste our time lamenting the lost opportunity in the first game," he said. "Now we have the challenge of an even more difficult game, but I believe we will go through to the next round."

Vardar spokesman Riste Vlahov told UEFA.com that their supporters will enjoy the occasion as they bid to reach the third qualifying round, where either KS Skënderbeu or Debreceni VSC lie in wait. "It's going to be a spectacular night for the fans," he said. "We're all going to feel the magic of the Champions League."

Source Article: http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=1842887.html

Spain Looks Forward to Advance versus Republic of Ireland

SPAIN	Tournament Statistics (as of June 14, 2012)		REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
1	Goals Scored		1
9	Attempts On Target		5
9	Attempts Off Target		8
7	Corners		1
12	Fouls Committed		12
3	Yellow Cards		1
0	Red Cards		0
PREDICTED STARTING LINEUPS
Spain (4-2-3-1)		Casillas; Arbeloa, Ramos, Pique, Alba; Alonso, Busquets; Xavi, Iniesta, Silva; Torres
Ireland (4-4-2)		Given; Ward, Dunne, St Ledger, O’Shea; McGeady, Whelan, Andrews, Duff; Walters, Keane

Spain (N) vs. Ireland Match Preview 

Date: June 15, 2012

Time: 2:45 AM (GMT +8:00)

GDANSK: The prospects of Group C teams have become more unpredictable after Republic of Ireland suffered a disappointing loss versus Croatia at 3-1. Spain and Italy stalled one another in a draw at 1-1, citing signals of stronger winning determination from both teams.

Spain’s duty as defending champion is to strengthen their defense in order to thwart any scoring attempt of Republic of Ireland – a feat which can determine La Roja’s defense of their championship title. Republic of Ireland, on the other hand, has to recoup from their fatal mistakes against Croatia which caused the Croat’s currently wide gap from the rest of Group C.

Previous Matches

The most recent match between Spain and Republic of Ireland was during the 2002 World Cup. The match was a closely-fought one at 1-1, only to be won by Spain via a penalty shootout.

Spain won all of their last 15 competitive games, including their 2010 World Cup championship title. They are also the champions of EURO 2008.

Republic of Ireland was unbeaten in 14 matches (both competitive and friendly). Their 3-1 loss to Croatia was their heaviest major tournament loss.

Pre-Match Developments

It is unsure whether Vicente Del Bosque will pit in Fernando Torres in Spain’s starting lineup after the striker failed to show competence during their match against Italy. Their six-man midfield against the Azzurri might be altered, although changes have yet to be announced.

Giovanni Trapattoni, on the other hand, is persistent with his current starting lineup. Despite his team’s poor performance versus Croatia, no changes have been announced on Republic of Ireland’s starters.

Spain-Republic of Ireland Predictions

Sports Statistics Information Centre

(as of June 14, 2012)

v  Disclaimer: All information above is provided free for members as a 12BET service. The prediction statistics are purely a view point and there is no guarantee on the returns. Hence all members or visitors are requested to apply their prudence before acting on any of the recommendations. Neither 12BET nor any of its promoters, members, or employees holds any responsibility of any losses incurred (if any) by acting on the recommendations.

Republic of Ireland is placed at a difficult time after their focus on strengthening their defensive and counterattacking techniques have been shattered by a solid Croatia. The Irish squad lacked strikers in their roster, thus they are faced with the challenge of how to shoot the ball inside the net.

Spain, on the other hand, has to return to playing formidable possession football, which helped them gain their 2008 EURO and 2010 World Cup championship titles. Their recent match against Italy was far from resembling their usual possessiveness of the ball, which became apparent when the Azzurri treaded comfortably on La Roja’s midfield.

Overall, Spain can expect a convenient win against the Republic of Ireland, especially if they choose to become more firm in their possessive playing approach. Spain can be countered with frustrations if Republic of Ireland strengthens their defensive play for this match. 

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Denmark meets up Portugal in 2012 European Championship

Portugal (N) vs. Denmark June 14, 2012 12:00am GMT+8

June 13, 2012 – for the fifth time after four years Denmark and Portugal will meet again I a competitive fight on Wednesday. This two teams have been drawn together and both qualify the 2010 world Cup and Euro 2012. Portugal was known for their qualifying through playoff while Denmark directly qualified for the finals from gaining more points.

This is the first of those five games that will be played at a neutral site, and based on the results of the last four games, this should add some serious unpredictability to the match. In World Cup qualifying, Denmark shockingly upset Portugal on the road, then drew them at home. In both of their Euro 2012 qualifying matches, the home side won.

Portugal played seventy odd minutes of defensive football against Germany, they set out their stall to be defensive and relied on Ronaldo creating something on his own up front but the one positive from the loss to Germany was once they went behind Portugal opened up and played football creating three guilt edged chances that should have been converted and should what they can do going forward. Hopefully the Portugese will be let off the leash from the start here against a dogged Denmark. In two games in qualifying for the tournament Portugal beat Denmark 4-1 at home but lost 2-1 away. This is an intriguing game and with the likes of Nani, Cristiano Ronaldo, Meireles, Pepe and Contreau there is plenty of talent here in this Portugal side and they know they must win.

Denmark pulled off the shock of the first round beating the Netherlands 1-0. While the Oranje dominated the game and created a heap of chances Denmark did defend well. Daniel agger the Danish captain is the rock at the back and will be the key player for Denmark in the marshalling of Cristiano Ronaldo who will play through the center. With Bendtner and Eriksen through the center this is a solid side built on hard work. Coach Olsen will look for more of the same agaisnt Portugal, play on the counter attack and hold a high solid defensive line. Ericksen wasnt great for me in the first game in the group but he is still young and it was hard for an attacking player as Denmark were defending for so long.

Possible Lineups

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Czech Republic (N) vs. Greece LIVE 12:00 AM GMT+8 @ 12BET.COM

Group A makes its second match day foray into Euro 2012 action as Greece take on the Czech Republic on Tuesday June 12 at the Municipal Stadium Wroclaw, Wroclaw.

With Greece having churned out a 1-1 draw with Poland, and the Czech Republic having been thumped by Russia 4-1, there is plenty to play for going into this clash.

Having the more attacking potential, Greece and has the additional option of Dimitris Salpingidis, a substitute against Poland who came on to score the equalizer and win the penalty that was subsequently missed.

Undefeated in the tournament qualifiers and plucky winners eight years ago, Greece provides both inspiration to other small footballing nations and hope to its fans so in need of a sporting distraction.

Greece contributed admirably to the thrilling tournament opener and, in Giorgos Samaras and Theofanis Gekas, coach Fernando Santos has two frustrating yet proven goal scorers to call on. 

Playing for Eintracht Frankfurt during the 2010-2011 season, Gekas scored so many goals that his underrated team was in the top four of the top German league with around half all matches played. Then, mysteriously, he stopped scoring, and Eintracht was relegated.

However, Jaroslav Plasil and Petr Jiracek are part of a Czech midfield that should be able to dominate the central parts of the pitch. Plasil, in particular, is one to watch after setting up five of his side's first eight shots against Russia, according to Opta Sports.

Completing a tricky trio is Arsenal midfielder Tomas Rosicky. Arsene Wenger, his club coach, when recently asked about Rosicky said simply, "I love Tomas Rosicky, personally, as a man and as a player."

Euro 2012 Group Stage – Poland Vs Greece Match Preview

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Poland Vs Greece Match Preview

In the build-up to the first activity of this season's European Championships, the betting for the Greece vs. Poland has thrown on a variety of events. When the draw was declared and the accessories were set for each team, Greece were the possibilities on favorites to choose up a win in this fascinating first experience of the tournament.

Check back for the you win match preview guide for the Euro group A stage game of Poland Vs Greece.

A couple of days before the game kicks off, we’ll be giving you our exclusive betting guide to Poland Vs Greece, with an in depth look at all the components that are likely to affect the outcome of the match – including the team line up, latest happenings off the pitch, potential goal scorers and the likely Poland Vs Greece final score and how this could affect group A.

This will allow you to make an informed decision and take advantage of some of the very best odds on Poland Vs Greece with 12bet.com.

In the mean time you can check out more about each of the individual Poland football team and Greece football team by looking at our teams guide.

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Poland Vs Greece Match Preview

 

 

In the build-up to the first activity of this season's European Championships, the betting for the Greece vs. Poland has thrown on a variety of events. When the draw was declared and the accessories were set for each team, Greece were the possibilities on favorites to choose up a win in this fascinating first experience of the tournament.

Check back for the you win match preview guide for the Euro group A stage game of Poland Vs Greece.

A couple of days before the game kicks off, we’ll be giving you our exclusive betting guide to Poland Vs Greece, with an in depth look at all the components that are likely to affect the outcome of the match – including the team line up, latest happenings off the pitch, potential goal scorers and the likely Poland Vs Greece final score and how this could affect group A.

This will allow you to make an informed decision and take advantage of some of the very best odds on Poland Vs Greece with youwin.com.

In the mean time you can check out more about each of the individual Poland football team and Greece football team by looking at our teams guide.