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UEFA Champions League: Your Running Commentary

Bayern Munich Arsenal (Getty Images)

By FRANCO PANIZO

The second legs of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 series begin on Tuesday, and for Arsenal that means one last chance to salvage their hopes in the competition.

It will not be easy, though.

Arsenal will enter Allianz-Arena to take on red-hot Bayern Munich (3:45pm – Fox Deportes/Fox Soccer 2Go) and try and overturn a 2-0 deficit. Arsene Wenger and his Gunners are the underdogs in this one, and rightly so considering that hosts are the reigning Champions League winners and have won all 10 of their matches across all competitions this year.

Tuesday’s other match will pit Atletico Madrid against AC Milan (3:45pm – Fox Soccer Plus/Fox Soccer 2Go). The Italian heavyweights surrendered a late goal to drop the first leg at home, 1-0, and will need to muster up quite the response in Spain if they are to knock off an Atletico side that is dreaming big under head coach Diego Simeone.

If you will be watching today’s action, please feel free to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below.

Enjoy the action.

Comments

  1. On Yahoo sports there is a commenter that goes by the nim TA. Here’s what I believe, TA there, and biff here are one and the same.

    You know biff, what gave you away was when you posted; Arsenal will win 3:1 and you will revel in watching Bayern players in the prone position on their backs crying like babies. There were other tells, too many to mention.

    btw, how does crow taste?

    Reply
  2. Wenger screwed up big time starting Ozil against Bayern in Munich after Ozil’s wimpy performance against Bayern in London. Foolish decision.

    Reply
    • u r so right biff. Wenger should do what most want, sack Özil and sent him home. To Dortmund!

      Just kidding about the first part biff,

      Reply
  3. This a joke, Robben gets away with diving all day. He just earned a penalty with a dive and got away with one earlier, there needs to be retroactive punishment for this nonsense, there must. Suspend repeating divers

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    • Yeah, Robben definitely one of the Top Five divers in the world, and he always does it with such flair, flailing with his arms. He should have seen yellow for his first dive today. And, actually, Robben dived in the first game in London against Arsenal for which Szceleny got the red card. Javi Martinez also was doing some fine diving today.

      Reply
  4. Goodbye Milan and Arsenal. Your GLORY was in the past

    Atletico has had some of the best world class strikers in the past decade. Torres, Aguero, Forlan, Falcao, Costa, Villa

    Reply
  5. Schweinsteiger is so underrated.

    He’s no Pirlo or Xavi or Alonso or Yaya Toure but he’s def a top 5 central midfielder in the world

    Reply
  6. Martinez dives at halfline and gets the call, could have easily been a break for Arsenal. Martinez will get torched at CB against better teams in this competition.

    Reply
  7. Lahm flops when touched, Podolski takes it and finishes it. Lahm was barely touched and goes down, you’re a defender stay up and play.

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    • They are pretty terrible too. Getting on to Giroud for not shooting when clear Giroud was screwing up for not centering the ball to Poldoski. Color commentators seem intentionally superficial sometimes.

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  8. Oxlade-Chamberlain is the only Arsenal player that looks dangerous at all, they need to get the ball to him more, his pace is concerning Bayern clearly.

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    • Can this guy be banned? I’m pretty sure he’s posted this article in about five different articles, if you’re going to flame the MLS this probably isn’t the place for you.

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  9. i sure wish Bradley stayed at ROMA. he chased the $$$ and lost the GLORY. He could be playing in the CL next season and fighting for the title as we speak.

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    • Bradley is fighting for a title.

      As I said above, plus show up Saturday, you can stand next to me if you want.
      Gonna be a blast.

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    • Not sure what he’ll do without the glory of being the 5th center mid on a team that probably wont get to the knockout stage of next year’s champions league.

      Such a mercenary. No heart on this bradley character.

      Reply
      • A player has to compete for those starting spots on good European clubs. At least, Bradley won’t have to face that problem at Toronto.

  10. Despite Mesut Ozil’s good performance against Everton over the weekend, I think Wenger would be wise not to start him in Munich against Bayern. I am still highly skeptical that Ozil is capable of fighting hard against his German national team buddies.That said, maybe Wenger and the team have succeeded in getting Ozil fired up and in pit bull mode and nothing would make me happier than to see him score and/or assist on two or three goals and knock Bayern out of the Champions League.

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    • Geez, I don’t know about that at all… completely disagree with you on this one. Sitting his quality against Bayern seems suicide and… he’s a pro. If when I have ever played against buddies or a brother, I have had every if not extra motivation to stomp them. $h!t talking rights are priceless among friends. Plus, playing in his home country against its premier club… all seem like huge motivating factors to me.

      Reply
  11. It’s a shame guys like Tim Howard or Clint Dempsey don’t play in the CL.

    they sure have the talent. Like for a Inter Milan or Galatarsaray or Marseille

    Reply
  12. This is how our USMNT keeper “rests” himself fit for the World Cup, which starts in just 3 months.

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2577295/Everton-keeper-Tim-Howard-heads-tattoo-parlour-ink-ahead-Cardiff-City-clash.html

    His new tat says, “What’s past, is past.”

    That’s fitting for a keeper who just let 2 “past” vs Ukraine and I’m expecting up to 15 more to go “past” at the World Cup.

    Question for Klinsi: Why didn’t Guzan start vs. Ukraine? I don’t see Guzan posting pics of “hisself” getting tats like Howard, so Guzan has better character to say the least.

    At the end of the day, Howard’s time as #1 for USMNT has “past”.

    Reply
      • “”I reread this twice to see if I could make sense of it. I couldn’t.””

        Did you click on the link to the story in the Daily Mail? Or, do I need
        to come over to your mother’s basement and show you how that works?

      • Ztom is a supernatural being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore. He is very strong, but slow and dim-witted, and turns to stone upon contact with sunlight.

      • Gentle ZTom, I did read the link. I just don’t understand how tattoos reflect the quality of a man’s moral character or goalkeeping prowess.

    • yeah it wouldn’t hurt JK if he let Guzan play in a few of these friendlies. Give Howard some rest, some R&R. Personally Howard is better than Guzan if only by .0000001%. But would love to see them both play in the World Cup. A great tournament for Guzan could see a big move for him. He’s on low wages and he’s quite good. Maybe a move to a bigger club in a foreign league.

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      • Guzan is a much better pk stopper, but Timmy is probably better all around. Although I think the gap has closed. I thought Guzan was going to surpass Timmy before the World Cup but instead he will just take over fulltime after the cup. It won’t be much of a loss.

      • .0000001% was more than enough to turn the tide in Ice Pirates. Don’t underestimate the .0000001%!

      • Guzan played better than Howard for most of 2013. JK stuck by Howard and Howard got better.

        I suspect JK stuck with Howard because :

        1. Howard usually raises his game when pressured.
        2. Howard is probably more of a presence in the locker room
        3. Timmy would not do well as a backup, while Guzan is used to it.

        Had JK instead promoted Guzan to #1 my guess is you would have a #1 keeper and a #2 keeper.

        This way you have a #1 keeper, Howard and a #1A keeper Guzan.

        The way it is today, I’m not at all concerned about the keeper situation. Even if we had to use Nicky in the World Cup the USMNT would be just fine at the keeper position.

    • Yep. Let’s get rid of all the guys on the team with tattoos. Clearly it’s a indication of lack of character, and few people know how exhausting it is to sit in a chair with your arm at your side.

      Klinsman compliments of Howard performance after the Ukraine game were clearly a result of Howard threatening him if he did not say as Howard instructed. You could see Howard’s shadow during the interview rubbing his hand in his fist. Klinsman looked terrified. Guzan, meanwhile, had been bound and beaten up by the rest of the tattooed USMNT’ers, otherwise he would have prevented the loss, scored the winning goal, and saved Klinsman from bullying.

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    • You clearly didn’t watch the Ukraine game if you came away with that analysis smh….TH stopped the initial shots of each of the goals scored(at point blank range mind you) only for the lazy CB’s to mess up a fine effort by Timmie and not track back to defend the rebound shots on goal! It’s fine if you hate the man(only god knows why) but don’t make a buffoon of yourself by talking nonsense!

      Reply
      • “ZTom” is the same guy who on another thread kept insisting that Tim Howard (and Michael Bradley!) were responsible for the poor US performance in the 2006 World Cup. Could not be put off even by the fact that Howard didn’t play in the 2006 World Cup, nor by the fact that Bradley was not on the roster.

    • ZTom is just a sour cuss. All the haterade is seeping from his pores today. He can’t help himself.

      Howard was not at fault for either of the goals scored against him last week. Even Ray Charles could see that.

      Reply
    • Why is getting another tattoo a call to bench Howard in favor of Guzan? I am glad that Guzan is around to deputize, but I don’t see how the latest incarnation of a Big Brad is better than Timmy Ho.

      Reply

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