Match Preview on Top 100

D2 Final Games of the Season Preview

Thu, 14 Mar 2019 19:53:18 +0100

Milan all but won the title on Sunday night. They would need a catastrophic defeat at home to lowly Villarreal, and a big win at Valencia for de facto runners-up Anderlecht to lose out now.

A catastrophic defeat for Anderlecht, on the other hand, along with a big win for Standard Liege at Newcastle, would see the Belgian clubs swap promotion places.

Cry Wolfsburg!

A more likely scenario, yet one that would not have seemed possible a few games ago, would be defeat for Liege, and a win for form team Wolfsburg in Berlin, results that would see the German club promoted.

There are five teams below Wolfsburg who could all still claim the three remaining play-off places.

Gladbach in fifth host Zenit in sixth, and a draw may well be enough for both.

Inter, who were setting the early-season pace with Milan before dropping off badly, host relegated Galatasaray, and could yet end up failing even to gain a play-off place.

Everyone will be listening to their radios, anxiously waiting for news from Verona and relegated Sevilla, where Manchester City and Sassuolo, respectively, will be hoping to benefit from defeats for Inter, Zenit or Gladbach.

Gala Hell and Hertha Hurt?

With CSKA, Sevilla, Galatasaray and Hertha all already knowing their fate is to play Division Three football next season, all that is left to be decided is who will be sacked.

The Moscow club's manager Jimmy Gouldie is spared that fate, and it would be no surprise to see all three of the others lose, and the axe falling on the Doc's and Rahul's heads.

D1 Final Games of the Season Preview

Thu, 14 Mar 2019 17:51:39 +0100

Barcelona won their fifth D1 title on Sunday night with a 1-0 win at the home of the defending champions, and three-time winners, Bayern Munich.

Fight For Fourth

Still to be settled at the top of the table is who will win the 4th place 'trophy'? Roma, Chelsea or Juventus?

Chelsea and Juventus appear to have the simplest with home fixtures against already relegated PSG, and relegation threatened Dortmund, respectively.

Wins for Chelsea and Juventus will see them finish above Roma unless the latter can beat Bayern's reserves at home.

Chelsea's superior goal difference may well be the deciding factor here.

Spurs to Stay Up? Napoli to Drop?

At the the other end, in addition to PSG, Schalke are already down, leaving an intriguing final round of matches with five teams fighting to avoid the final two relegation places.

Dortmund's tough task in Turin means they are the most likely of the five to be playing the likes of Hamburger next season.

Spurs host Liverpool, knowing that a draw might be enough if Internacional lose by two or more in the Bernabeu.

Napoli visit Genoa, where anything less than a win could see them relegated if Dortmund and Spurs win, or if one of them wins and Internacional draw.

Arsenal are not safe, either, and they go to the Camp Nou to play the newly-crowned champions. If they lose, and the teams below all win, they will go down in one of the shocks of the season.

Division 4 - Match Day 38 Preview

Mon, 06 Mar 2017 21:18:00 +0100

Thursday sees the final games of Season being played out and with still so much to be resolved will it be Escape to Victory or Lost in Space for the clubs and managers fighting for glory and survival, to give an insight into the possible possibilities here is the final preview of this seasons run in.

Division 1

When most expected the title to have been put to bed by now we go into the last day with Bayern 91pts and reigning Champs Barcelona 89pts taking it to the death.

Bayerns lead has been whittled down to 2pt over the past two weeks and Barca must be kicking themselves that they couldn’t capitalise more on Bayerns slip up at Man City as the Spaniards only managed to draw at Liverpool, this leaves Barca needing the Germans to lose whilst they in turn win on the final day, a draw for Bayern should be enough as they currently hold an 8 goal advantage should it come down to goal difference.

Fixtures in the tussle at the top

Bayern v Lazio

Barcelona v Valencia

It’s been known for a long time but confirmation that both of the above will be joined by Real and Juve in next seasons Champions Cup.

Chelsea 55pts, Milan 54pts and Napoli 54pts have secured league qualification to the SMFA Shield but will be scrapping to secure 5^thspot which could be an SMFA Cup place should either Bayern, Barca or Real win this seasons competition.

Spurs 52pts also have a chance of stealing that spot at the death whilst Dortmund also on 52pts would need a to overturn a goal difference deficit of 8 goals to Chelsea.

Fixtures in the battle for 5^th Place.

Chelsea v Arsenal

Milan v Spurs

Napoli v Zenit

Real v Dortmund

Spurs and Dortmund must be mindful that they need to secure league qualification for the SMFA Shield with Liverpool 50pts, Porto 50pts, Valencia 49pts and PSG 47pts all still in with a chance of muscling in, however with Bayern and Liverpool having won the domestic cups that makes an extra 2 league qualification places, another place will be made available courtesy of this seasons SMFA Cup outcome, whoever wins it, this would mean all of the above qualifying.

Fixtures in the race for League qualification to the SMFA Shield.

Milan v Spurs

Real v Dortmund

Juventus v Liverpool

Porto v Schalke

Barcelona v Valencia

Atletico v PSG

A further place could be available depending on the winners of this seasons SMFA Shield, basically if anyone wins it except Lazio, those in with a shout being Monchengladbach 39pts, and Arsenal 37pts

Fixtures for the possible wild card ticket into the SMFA Shield

Monchengladbach v Man City

Chelsea v Arsenal

On to the tussle at the base of the table, with Lazio and Schalke now condemned to Div 2 football the fight to avoid joining them is now between Zenit 33pts, Atletico 34pts, Man City 35pts and Arsenal 37pts, the Gunners had looked safe but still could be pulled down on the last day.

Fixtures in the fight to climb out of the trap door.

Napoli v Zenit

Atletico v PSG

Monchengladbach v Man City

Chelsea v Arsenal

Division 2

The fight for the title goes to the last day between Everton 72pts and Roma 70pts, the other promoted side Man Utd will have to content themselves with having achieved Div 1 football again next season at the first time of asking.

Fixtures in the race for the title

Man Utd v Everton

Roma v Ajax

Inter, Wolfsburg and Southampton have all booked their tickets for the play-off lottery with the final place going to either Genoa 55pts, Ajax 53pts, Internacional 53pts and Fiorentina 53pts.

Fixtures in the struggle to make the play offs.

Sevilla v Genoa

Roma v Ajax

Wolfsburg v Internacional

Spartak v Fiorentina

At the bottom all is decided with CSKA, Newcastle, Shakhtar and Villa all now confirmed as Div 3 clubs for next season.

Division 3

With Sporting 69pts and Swansea 68pts having secured promotion they now go into the last game of the season battling to take home the title

Fixtures in the title smack down.

Sporting v Loko

Sunderland v Swansea

Boca 61pts would need a goal difference miracle to make promotion whilst Villarreal 64pts and Leicester 61pts are both truly in the frame for the last promotion place whilst all are assured of at least a place in the play-offs.

Fixtures in the promotion punch up.

Villarreal v Basel

Leicester v Athletic Club

(Sao Paulo v Boca)

Athletic Club and Sunderland make up the balance of the numbers in this seasons play-off bingo.

In the basement Udinese have joined Stuttgart and Basel in sliding out of the division with the final place being avoided by Stoke 39pts and Palace 41pts.

Fixtures in the trap door shuffle.

Udinese v Stoke

Palace v Galatasaray

Division 4

Hellas have secured promotion, the title, a 2 week vacation in Bermuda and are now sat at home with their slippers on smoking fat cigars whilst Sassuolo 63pts, St Etienne 61pts, Liege 60pts and Sampdoria 60pts fight it out for the other two promotion spots.

Fixtures in the promotion squabble.

Liege v Sassuolo

Chievo v St Etienne

River Plate v Sampdoria

All of the promotion protagonists plus Chievo are assured of a play-off spot with the final spot being fought over by Olympiacos 54pts, Dnipro 53pts and AZ 52pts.

Fixtures in the play-off party.

Kyiv v Olympiacos

Lille v Dnipro

AZ v Zagreb

With West Ham and Montpellier doomed Lille 40pts, River Plate 40pts, Feyenoord 42pts, Bordeaux 43pts, Monaco 43pts and Kyiv 43pts must take it to the wire to decide their fate.

Fixtures in the relegation rough up.

Lille v Dnipro

River Plate v Sampdoria

Feyenoord v Monaco

Bordeaux v Hoffenheim

Kyiv v Olympiacos

Division 5

In the division where nobody seems to want it Dynamo 70pts and Celta Vigo 68pts seem to have reluctantly accepted promotion whilst they still can’t decide on who will have the title and are still prepared to offer the chance of winning it to Santos 67pts.

Fixtures in the title two step.

Santos v Dynamo

Augsburg v Celta Vigo

Whilst in with a chance of the crown Santos haven’t yet secured promotion and have Celtic 64pts chomping at their heels.

Fixtures in the promotion polka.

Santos v Dynamo

Celtic v Malaga

Whichever of the above doesn’t find Wonkas golden ticket to Div 4 will be joined on the play-off roulette wheel by Torino with Hertha 57pts, Rubin Kazan 56pts, Malaga 54pts and Levante 53pts all vying for the chance to put their future on black or red.

Fixtures in the play-off pile up.

Rubin Kazan v Hertha

Celtic v Malaga

Levante v Flamengo

At the foot The Baggies have had a while to practise stirring their wooden spoon and will be looking to give their fans something to cheer about in the final fixture at home to Bremen.

Season 4 - Match Day 37 Preview

Sat, 04 Mar 2017 19:44:00 +0100

With only two games to go Match Day 37 is likely to close a lot of open issues and to try to make things clearer here the if's, but's and maybe's following this Sundays fixtures.

Division 1

Barca have reduced the gap at the top to 3pts with just 2 games left to play, Bayern however have a goal difference advantage of 13 which could be worth an extra point come the 90^th minute of match day 38. The Spaniards visit Liverpool this Sunday whilst the Germans are also in England to play Man City.

With Real and Juve having firmed up their final leagues positions of 3^rd and 4^th respectively the battle for the SMFA Shield places below them continues at a pace.

Chelsea can clinch their spot with victory away to Dortmund whilst Spurs would all but be assured of a place with a win at home to Napoli. Meanwhile Milan, Napoli and Dortmund will also be looking for 3pts to take them to the brink of qualification.

Below them Liverpool, Valencia, Porto and PSG will be looking to capitalise on any slip ups above them.

At the foot of the table Schalke will join Lazio in Div 2 next season if they lose away to fellow strugglers Zenit, a draw may not be enough to keep their survival hopes alive if Man City get an unlikely win against Bayern.

Atletico will be looking for victory at Arsenal and be hoping that Bayern do the expected against City, they will also be hoping for a stalemate between Schalke and Zenit.

As mentioned Zenit will relegate Schalke if they come out on top in their game and will also be hoping for a Bayern victory.

Failure to get any sort of result for Man City will see them drop into the bottom four and face a last day survival battle.

With Arsenal now safe the only other club in in danger are Monchengladbach though victory away to PSG would see them safe.

Division 2

With promotion now secured for Everton, Roma and Man Utd the attention turns to the title which could be Evertons if they win at home to Spartak and Roma fail to win at Sevilla.

Man Utd will hope that both suffer defeats and for a victory away to Genoa to have a last day chance of taking the title.

In the race for the play-off places Wolfsburg could book their ticket with a win at Inter whilst a win for Southampton at home to Lyon would also see them take a seat.

Inter will be looking to turn over the Wolves or at least match Internacionals result at home to Ajax to join the play-off party.

A Genoa victory against Man Utd will see them home and dry if Internacional fail to secure 3pts.

Other than Internacional the hopes of Sevilla, Ajax and Fiorentina of making the play-offs also lie in those above them slipping up whilst they in turn win.

At the bottom both Villa and Shakhtar must win on Sunday to avoid the drop and joining Newcastle and CSKA, Shakthar host the Geordies whilst Villa welcome Fenerbahce.

A win may not be enough for Shakthar if Benfica gain at least a point away to Leverkusen.

Although unlikely to be dragged down a point for Spartak and Fenerbahce against Everton and Villa respectively would see them safe.

Division 3

Both Sporting and Swansea secured promotion on Thursday and are now fighting over the title which will go to the Portuguese club if they win at Galatasaray, the Swans would steal the advantage if the Turks win and they come out on top at home to Boca.

A victory for the Welsh club would see Villarreal promoted if they gain at least a point away to Athletic Club.

Boca will be hoping that Villarreal slip up and that they can turn over Swansea whilst Leicester will be hoping both suffer defeats whilst seeing off Loko in their visit to Moscow.

Athletic Clubs slim hopes of making automatic promotion rest on all the other protagonists above them losing whilst they in turn must see off Villarreal.

All of the above however are assured of at least a play-off spot with Sunderland, Loko and Marseille thrashing it out for the final spot. Sunderland could seal that with a win away to Stuttgart, Loko and Marseille will be looking for the Germans to pull off a shock whilst securing wins against Leicester and PSV.

Whilst Hamburg and Cruzeiro still have a mathematical chance of sneaking a spot this will end if any of the main contenders gain at least a point in their fixtures.

Both Basel and Udinese could join Stuttgart in Div 4 next season if they fail to gain 3pts at home against Hamburg and Sao Paulo. They would also be relegated if both Galatasaray and Palace gain at least a point in their games against Sporting and Stoke.

Stoke in turn need to beat Palace to pull themselves out of the bottom four at the expense of the Londoners, 3pts for Palace however would see them safe.

Galatasaray must put a big dent in Sportings title hopes with a win to guarantee themselves Div 3 football next season.

Besiktas are outsiders for the drop but a win at home to Cruzeiro would end any doubts.

Division 4

With Hellas Verona claiming the title on Thursday there is still the matter of the other two promotion places to be resolved.

Sassuolo could secure their place with victory at Kyiv whilst St Etienne will need a win at home to River Plate and for Sampdoria to lose as they host Bordeaux.

Sampdoria will jump into the auto spots if Sassuolo lose or St Etienne fail to win whilst Liege and Chievo Verona will be hoping they all go down and they in turn are victorious away at Dnipro and Monaco.

A point for Chievo and Dnipro would at least secure their play-off spots and would be joined by Olympiacos if they take 3pts in their home clash with AZ.

A win for Dnipro at Liege would see them leap frog the Greeks if they lose.

Hoffenheims hopes of making the play-off mix strangely depend on fellow contenders AZ beating Olympiacos whilst they in turn must beat Feyenoord at home.

In the basement West Ham are now confirmed as down and will be joined by Montpellier if they lose away at Zagreb.

River Plate could also go through the trap door if they lose to St Etienne and Bordeaux secure at least a point at Sampdoria.

Lille must win at West Ham to maintain their survival battle, a defeat and victories for Bordeaux, Feyenoord and Kyiv would see the French club relegated.

Just outside the bottom four Bordeaux will be looking to beat Sampdoria whilst Feyenoord need a result against Hoffenheim to keep their heads above the relegation quick sand.

A point for Kyiv against Sassuolo would see them confirm their status for next season.

Division 5

The ever changing picture at the top of Div 5 changed yet again on Thursday with Santos taking poll position from Dynamo, both have 67pts with a slim gap in goal difference which guarantees that the title can’t be decided on Sunday however wins for both against fellow promotion contenders Celta Vigo and Celtic would see them both or either in Div 4 next season.

Wins for Celta and Celtic would take everything down to the wire, all of the above are assured of at least a play-off spot together with Torino.

The final spot is being contended for by 7 clubs but Hertha and Malaga could finish the chase if the win against Twente and Flamengo and Rubin lose at Espanyol.

Hopes for Levante, Brugge, Independiente and Espanyol would end if they fail to secure 3pts in their fixtures at Koln, Torino, Bremen and Rubin.

At the bottom West Brom confirmed their wooden spoon status on Thursday by managing only a draw at home to Kolne.

Season 4 - Match Day 36 preview

Tue, 28 Feb 2017 20:52:00 +0100

With just 3 games to go little is decided across the divisions by way of promotion and relegation but rest assured we'll keep you up to speed with our ongoing weekly reviews during the run in.

Division 1

With 3 games left and 5pts the difference Bayern could be crowned Champions if they win at home to PSG and Barca fail to take 3pts in their home fixture against Juve. A draw for the Germans would in reality be enough if the Catalans lose due to their far superior goal difference.

Bayern, Barca and Real who all feature in this seasons semi-finals are joined in having qualified for next seasons Champions Cup by Juve, a further CC place will be available to the 5^th place team should any of the aforementioned trio lift the trophy this season but the other semi-finalist Liverpool will be hoping to book their ticket into the tournament by winning it this time around.

Only 3pts separate eight teams vying for that 5^th place, those being Chelsea, Dortmund, Liverpool, Spurs, Valencia, Milan, Napoli and Porto, add to that group PSG for those contending the 6 automatic Champions Shield Places.

With Liverpool and Bayern having won the League Cup and Shield respectively qualification for the CS places could extend to 9 places (all of the above) courtesy of the Champions Cup outcome.

In the basement Lazio as feared have had their relegation confirmed and nothing but a win away to Napoli will prevent them from finishing bottom.

Above Lazio only 3pts separate Schalke in 19^th and Monchengladbach in 15^th with Atletico, Zenit and Man City sandwiched in between. With none of the bottom clubs facing each other on Thursday all will live to fight at least one more game day.

Whilst Arsenal aren’t mathematically safe they will be breathing soundly and victory at Monchengladbach would secure their status next season due to goal difference.

Division 2

All still to play for in the fight for promotion with Everton stealing the initiative to head the table, Div 1 football beckons both they and Roma if either at least match Wolfsburgs result against Southampton on Thursday.

Man Utd however would need a win, a Wolfsburg defeat and Inter to fail to win for them to make the rise. Naturally Wolfsburg and Inter will be looking for Man Utd to slip up whilst Southampton must overcome The Wolves and hope for results above them to go in their favour to retain their automatic promotion hopes.

Whilst Wolfsburg and Inter are decent bets to be assured of at least a play-off place the other contenders for a place in the lottery are Southampton, Internacional, Genoa, Sevilla, Fiorentina and Ajax but Thursday may thin out the pack somewhat.

At the bottom thin is the operative word when it comes to chances of avoiding the drop. With Newcastle already confirmed as down Shakhtar, Villa and CSKA will all be confirmed as joining them if they lose on Thursday.

Shakthar are down regardless of their result at Fenerbahce if Benfica win at Villa, a result which see the Midlanders through the trap door too. CSKA meanwhile have a stiff challenge as they host high flying Everton.

Division 3

Sporting could seal promotion with victory at home to Stoke if both Villarreal and Boca fail to secure 3pts in their fixtures at home to Loko and Stuttgart respectively. A draw would be enough for the Portuguese outfit if Villarreal and Boca both lose as it would for Swansea in second if they continue their good form with a win at Sao Paulo.

The final automatic promotion place can’t be decided on Thursay with both Villarreal and Boca locked on 60pts, Leicester trail them by 5pts and Athletic Club by 6pts, both will be hoping to capitalise on any slip up to make a last minute push for Div 2.

These two however will be also looking at assuring their play-off places with Sunderland, Loko, and Marseille vying with them for the four places, Hamburg, Cruzeiro and Sao Paulo still have an outside chance of making it too.

With Stuttgart already relegated Udinese could join them with defeat at Palace as could Basel at Cruzeiro, both these two look doomed but will still not have given up the chase.

Above them Stoke currently 4^th from bottom are only 4pts behind PSV in 13^th, they, Besiktas, Galatasary and Palace are likely to scrap it out until Week 37 at the earliest to decide which of them also faces Div 4 football next season.

Division 4

Already promoted Hellas Verona will be looking to take the title by gaining at least a point away to Lille.

The battle to join Hellas is tight with only 5pts separating Sassuolo in 2^nd with Chievo Verona in 6^th, St Etienne, Liege and Sampdoria being sandwiched in between.

All of these look likely to at least make the play-offs with Dnipro Olympiacos and AZ following close enough to have a realistic chance of making the cut.

At the foot defeat for West Ham at Chievo or victory for Bordeaux at home to St Etienne will see them down, even a draw for the Frenchmen would seal the Hammers fate due to their goal difference. A similar fate awaits Montpellier and River Plate if they lose at home to Olympiacos and Dnipro respectively.

Lille currently 4^th from bottom are currently in good form and only 3pts behind Kyiv in 12^th, between them lay Bordeaux, Monaco, Feyenoord and Zagreb, all will be desperate for 3pts on Thursday to increase their hopes of survival.

Division 5

With 3 to play only 6pts separate the top 5 of Moscow, Santos, Celta Vigo, Celtic and Torino, none can confirm promotion this Thursday but all will be desperate for victory, the game between Celtic and Celta Vigo is crucial and will go a long way to making the promotion shake up a lot clearer.

Below the promotion protagonists Hertha, Malaga, Levante, Rubin Kazan, Brugge and Independiente are all in with a shout and scrapping to the death to make it into the play-off bingo call.

At the foot West Broms wooden spoon will be confirmed with anything less than victory at home to Cologne or if Anderlecht win at Santos.

Season 4 - Match Day 35 Preview

Sat, 25 Feb 2017 19:22:00 +0100

The first proper weekly review in this seasons countdown with 4 games left to play who be in the clouds and who will be Claudio is starting to become clearer, so without further a pun on we go …..

Division 1

The title is now a 2 horse race with Reals defeat at the weekend ending any slim hope they had of catching the leaders Bayern, that hope lays with Barca who need 6pts more than the table toppers to reclaim their crown.

The Champions Cup places are all sorted with Bayern, Barca and Real being joined by Juve in next seasons competition.

The automatic Champions Shield spots are far from being decided with clubs from Chelsea in 5^th down to Napoli in in 13^thall being in contention, whilst Arsenal are still mathematically in the mix they will be more concerned about securing their 1^st Division status next season.

In that basement battle Lazio in 20^th are on the verge of the drop, failure to beat fellow relegation battlers Schalke on Sunday will see them relegated, even victory could see them down if Man City match that result against Napoli.

Schalke in 19^th will live to fight another day regardless of this weekends results but will be hoping to gain ground on both Atletico and Zenit above them who in turn will be looking to claw back on Man City and Monchengladbach who sit just out of the relegation places.

Arsenal meanwhile could secure that Div 1 status if they pull off a shock victory at home to Bayern and Zenit lose at Spurs.

Division 2

Roma look to have hit form at the right time having leap frogged Everton on goal difference to head the table but they face stiff competition from the Toffees and Man Utd to claim the title. Wolfsburg still have an outside chance of stealing that silverware but realistically will be looking at trying to secure an automatic promotion spot together with other contenders Southampton, Inter and Internacional who will all still be harbouring hopes of sneaking through the door.

Those not making it will be looking to ensure they at least secure a play-off place with Sevilla, Fiorentina, Genoa and possibly Ajax looking for any slip ups above them to make it into the end of season lottery.

At the foot of the table defeat for Newcastle at Everton will see them all but relegated and definitely down if they fail to win and Benfica manage to get any result at Shakthar.

A Benfica win would also see their opponents Shakthar pushed to the brink whilst Villa will be looking for a result at home to Lyon and CSKA likewise away to Genoa to improve their chances of overhauling Benfica, Spartak and Lyon above them.

Both Fenerbahce and Leverkusen will also be looking for points to put themselves clear of danger and avoid any last day sweats.

Division 3

Promotion and the title is likely to be fought out by the top four of Sporting, Swansea, Villarreal and Boca whilst both Athletic Club and Leicester will hope to capitalise on any slips above them to bring themselves into serious contention.

The battle for the play-offs is likely to extend down as far as PSV in 13^th but they will also be looking over their shoulder to ensure they are drawn into the relegation dog fight.

In that basement Stuttgart look likely to be first to falter and anything short of victory against Swansea on Sunday will see their fate confirmed, even victory could see them drop if Stoke gain a point against Leicester.

Udinese could also go through the trap door if the suffer defeat at the hands of Sporting and Stoke win, whilst Basel can’t go down this weekend their fate would almost be assured with defeat to Marseille.

Palace sitting 4^th from bottom will be hoping to leap frog Stoke, Galatasaray and Besiktas above them if any of that trio suffer defeat and Palace manage a home win against Sao Paulo.

As mentioned PSV still are far from safe sitting 5pts above the drop zone whilst Cruzeiro and Sao Paulo above them are probably safe with a 7pt cushion.

Division 4

Hellas Verona have already assured themselves of 3^rdDivision football next season and victory against local rivals Chievo or defeat for Sassuolo to Montpellier would see them claim the title.

The remaining promotion places are being fought for by Sassuolo, Liege, Sampdoria, St Etienne and Chievo Verona with Olympiacos and Dnipro more likely to make it through the play-offs than automatically.

The other contenders for the play-off places include AZ, Atalanta and Hoffenhem, Dynamo and Feyenoord though still not mathematically out of the picture will be more concerned about securing their status for next season.

In the basement battle West Ham are all but relegated if they lose at home to River Plate and whilst the latter and Montpellier will be put on the brink if they fail to win.

Lille currently sitting 4^th from bottom have given themselves a fighting chance with recent form and victory over Atalanta is likely to pull them out of the drop zone with there being only 3pts between them and Feyenoord four places above them in 13th.

Between these two sit Zagreb, Monaco and Bordeaux who will be desperate for points to avoid being pulled down in to the bottom four.

Division 5

The tightest division of all when it comes to the promotion scrap with Celtic, Dynamo, Celta Vigo, Santos and Torino all having good chance of making the cut.

The pair that don’t make it are likely to be joined in the play-offs by any two from Hertha, Malaga, Levante Rubin Kazan, Independiente and Brugge though the latter two will have to rely on some serious slip ups from those above them.

At the foot of the table West Brom can only catch Anderlecht to avoid the wooden spoon again this season though with only four wins all season it is unlikely they will pull back the 6 point gap in four games.

Season 4 - Match Day 34 Preview

Tue, 21 Feb 2017 20:04:00 +0100

It’s that time again when we count down over the final weeks fixtures in T100 to see who is going to get a medal or a hang mans noose, with 5 games still to go there are more things yet to be decided than whether Trump will be assassinated or impeached within the next 4 years, so without a further a do and putting down my Parker Hale M85 momentarily from my strategic position across from the White House it’s on with the first of this seasons previews.

Division 1

Bayern are looking to ensure a new name will be etched on the T100 Championship Trophy this season with a 5pt lead over Barcelona with Real barely hanging on to the Catalonians coat tails, Juve in 4^thare already out of the title picture and looking to widen the distance to the chasing group to secure Champions Cup football next season.

The chasing pack that could secure Champions Shield places are numerous and life is too short at this time to bore you and myself with the runners and riders.

The real business of Div 1 is relegation and down at the bottom there are quite a few squeaky bums.

Rooted at the bottom at the moment are Lazio who have struggled to get out of 1^st gear all season, above them Schalke are starting to string results together at an ideal time and will have teams above them twitching. Amongst those twitchers above them are without doubt Atletico and Zenit who in turn will be looking at Man City, Monchengladbach and Arsenal with a view to dragging them back down into the drop zone.

Division 2

Everton have overcome a recent hic-up in form to maintain top spot whilst both Roma and Man Utd will have ambitions of toppling them, they in turn are pursued by Southampton Inter and Wolfsburg who must still have automatic promotion ambitions.

Playoff contenders must extend down to Genoa in 10^thwhilst Ajax and Leverkusen below then will still have an eye on possibly sneaking in.

At the bottom Newcastle look up at a host of clubs who are fighting the drop which include Shakhtar, CSKA, Villa, Benfica, Lyon, Spartak and Fenerbahce.

Division 3

Sporting have hit form at the right time and are starting to leave breathing space at the top of the table, below them Swansea Villarreal and Boca are the main contenders for promotion if not the title.

From Athletic in 5^th to Sao Paulo in 13^th, all will have aspirations of making the play-offs whilst at the foot Stuttgart are struggling to find anyone they can claw back on.

Udinese in 19^th to Stoke in 15^th look the likely dance partners for Stuttgart but with so few points between them all the next 5 games are crucial.

Division 4

Hellas are the first club in T100 to determine their future for next season having already secured promotion and being 9pts ahead of Sassuolo in 2^nd look likely to take the title too. Sassuolo look virtually assurwd of promotion whilst St Etienne, Sampdoria, Liege, Verona and Chievo are slugging it out to join them.

Olympiacos, Dnipro, AZ and Kyiv will be looking to for a play-off place whilst sneakily hoping for major slip ups above them to open a promotion door.

At the bottom the trap door is waiting for any four from West Ham at the foot to Kyiv on 10^th to slip up and slide through to the tier below.

Division 5

It’s been all change on a weekly basis nearly in this division with any of Celtic, Celta Vigo, Santos and Dynamo having a serious chance of the titlw, add Torino and Hertha into the automatic promotion mix and Div 5 may be where the action is at the end of this season.

Down to Brugge in 11^th will be harbouring play off hopes whilst down at the bottom West Brom are looking likely to win the wooden spoon and being thankful there isn’t a Frankarama league below them.

Match Day 38 Preview

Tue, 11 Oct 2016 20:13:00 +0100

T100 Season 3 – Match Day 38 Preview

Judgement Day !!!

Well it’s been a long old race but Thursday sees us down the final straight and across the finish line, but who will be on the podium and who will fall at the last hurdle? Here’s the final run-in run-down to look at the definites and the maybes going into the last game of the season.

Division 1

Champions – Barcelona

SMFA Cup Qualifiers– Barcelona, Bayern, Real

Juve (64pts) currently in 4^th will take the final place unless they lose by 9 goals to 5^th place Dortmund (61pts) in their last game of the season clash.

However with Real and Bayern having reached the final of this seasons competition it means an additional qualifier will come from the league so 5^th will also be guaranteed a place in next seasons tournament.

SMFA Shield Qualifiers – Juve or Dortmund, Liverpool, Arsenal, Napoli and Lazio.

Porto also qualify by virtue of winning this season T100 Shield, there is no qualifier from this seasons Cup which was won by Real.

As such the final qualifying place via the league is between PSG (51pts) and Chelsea (48pts), a draw being good enough for the French team at Porto whilst the Blues must win at home to Liverpool and hope the Parisians draw a blank.

All is not lost for the team who loses out because as the 5^thplace will be promoted to the SMFA Cup this means an additional Shield place will also be available via the league.

It doesn’t stop there though as Chelsea and Valencia who are vying for that additional league qualifying place meet in the final of this seasons Shield and as such both will qualify for next seasons tournament.

Confused? So am I and not 100% I have it right and stand to be corrected.

Relegated – Fiorentina and Leverkusen.

The final two drop spots are between Fenerbahce (35pts), Man Utd (35pts) and Schalke (36pts).

If Schalke win at home to Man City, Fenerbahces result at Real and Man Utds at Napoli will be irrelevant, even if the Germans lose by less than 4 goals and the other two draw they will still survive.

If Schalke lose and both Fenerbahce and Man Utd win then goal difference will decide which of them joins the Germans in the drop with the English club having a 1 goal advantage over the Turks going into Thursdays game.

Division 2

Champions – Spurs or Milan?

The script couldn’t have been written any better with a winner takes all title deciding game to finish off the season, Spurs (73pts) visit Milan (73pts), a draw would be enough to see the Londoners crowned by virtue of goals scored as both clubs not only are level on points but on goal difference too.

Promoted – Spurs, Milan and Monchengladbach

Play-Off Qualifiers- Roma

Shakhtar (58pts) need at least a draw at Lyon as do Ajax (58pts) at home to Everton, Zenit (57pts) need a win away to Newcastle to assure their place.

Sevilla (55pts) must see off the visiting Roma and hope that either Shakhtar or Ajax lose and that they can overcome the 5 goal discrepancy in goal difference or failing that that Zenit get no more than a draw.

Spartak (54pts) must win at home to Benfica and rely on Zenit losing and Sevilla failing to win, they must also turn around a 7 goal disadvantage to Zenit.

Relegated – Sporting, Loko, Basel and Boca.

Division 3

Champions – Villa or Genoa?

Villa (69pts) need at least a point from their trip to Besiktas whilst Genoa (66pts) must rely on Villa losing and taking all 3pts away to Cruzeiro.

Promoted – Villa

Whilst Genoa may have title ambitions they have yet to guarantee promotion, realistically they need a draw at Cuzeiro to do so, that or a defeat for Internacional.

For PSV (65pts) only a win away to Palace will assure their promotion.

Internacional (64pts) need a win away to Galatasaray and for either Genoa to lose or PSV to fail to take all 3pts from their game to pip either of them to an automatic spot

Leicester (62pts) must rely on both PSV and Internacional losing whilst they must win at home to Bordeaux for them to make the last promotion spot.

Play-Off Qualifiers– 2 from Genoa, PSV, Internacional and Leicester.

Southampton (58pts) need at least a draw at Monaco or for Besiktas to fail win for them to book their play-off place, similarly for Marseille (57pts) who visit Stoke, a draw would be enough due to their superior goal difference over Besiktas.

Besiktas (55pts) need to beat Villa and hope that either Southampton or Marseille lose in their games.

Relegated – Bordeaux and St Etienne.

To avoid the drop Hoffenheim (40pts) must beat Athletic Club at home and then rely on both Swansea and Monaco losing.

Swansea (42pts) need a victory at home to Udinese and for Monaco to fail to win for them to assure their survival.

For Monaco (43pts), Stoke (44pts) and Udinese (44pts) wins against Southampton, Marseille and Swansea respectively would guarantee Div 3 football next season whilst draws would be enough if either Swansea or Monaco fail to win.

Division 4

Champions – ???

Villarreal (60pts) need to win away to Stuttgart to guarantee the title or rely on Hamburg (59pts) losing at home to Feyenoord. If the Spaniards lose a draw will not be good enough for the Germans unless the defeat is by 8 goals or more.

Sao Paulo (57pts) have a remote chance and whilst they could draw level on points with Villarreal if the they win at home to Dnipro, Villarreal lose and Hamburg fail to win but they would have to overcome a 7 goal deficit in goal difference.

Promoted – Villarreal

A point for Hamburg assures them of Div 3 football next season whilst Sao Paulo need a win to avoid being caught by one of the chasing pack.

Chievo (56pts) need to win away at Koln and for either Hamburg to lose or Sao Paulo to draw.

West Ham (56pts) need to beat Malaga at home and hope Hamburg lose and bith Sao Paulo and Chievo fail to win their games.

Feyenoord (55pts) have to beat Hamburg, rely on Sao Paulo losing and hope that both Chievo and West Ham fail to win their games.

Stuttgart (55pts) need the same results with the addition of Feyenoord failing to win.

Lille (54pts) have an outside chance if they beat Sassuolo at home, Sao Paulo and West Ham lose and Chievo, Feyenoord and Stuttgart all fail to win, if the Frenchmen win by 3 clear goals they would only need the Hammers to draw.

Play-Off Qualifiers

Hamburg are guaranteed at least a play-off spot whilst the current occupants of the places Chievo, West Ham, Feyenoord and Stuttgart all need to win to assure booking their places.

Lille would sneak in if they win and either Chievo or West Ham lose or Feyenoord or Stuttgart fail to win.

Sampdoria (52pts) need to win at Montpellier and for Feyenoord and Stuttgart to lose and for Lille to fail to win.

Hellas (52pts) have to win at Dynamo and hope for the same results with the addition of Sampdoria also failing to take 3pts.

Relegated – Malaga, Dynamo, Torino

Koln (44pts) are down if they lose their home game with Chievo, they stay up if they win and either Dnipro or AZ fail to win, also if River Plate lose and they can overcome a 5 goal deficit in goal difference that mean they survive.

Dnipro (45pts) travel to Sao Paulo needing in reality to match Kolns result or if the Germans draw they cannot afford to lose by more than 3 goals.

AZ (45pts) at home to Atalanta need to match either the result for either Koln or Dnipro result but would also stay up if they lost and Germans manage only a draw due to their goal difference.

River Plate (46pts) travel to Torino needing to match the result of any one of Koln, Dnipro and AZ.

Whilst Atalanta and Montpellier both on (47pts) could be caught the vastly superior goal differences see them safe.

Division 5

Champions – Olympiacos

Promoted – Kyiv and Liege

Play-Off Qualifiers– Flamengo and Brugge

Celtic (56pts) need either a draw at home to Brugge or for Hertha to fail to win.

Santos (54pts) need a win at home to Zagreb or for Hertha, Rubin Kazan to fail to win. If they draw then neither of the challenges must win.

Hertha (53pts) travel to Bremen needing a win and for Santos to lose or draw. Whilst they can catch Celtic if they lose they need to level the 5 goal deficit in goal difference too.

Rubin Kazan (52pts) at home to Partizan also must win and rely on both Santos losing and Hertha failing to win.

Zagreb (52pts) away at Santos need to win and for both Hertha and Rubin Kazan to fail to take 3pts.

Wooden Spoon - Augsburg

Match Day 37 Preview

Sat, 08 Oct 2016 11:28:00 +0100

With just two games to go until the curtains come down on a thrilling season here’s the penultimate run down on those likely to be getting a standing ovation and those rapidly exiting stage left.

Division 1

Thursdays victory in the “clash of the titans’ saw Barca come out on top in their game with Bayern, taking all 3pts and with it the title for the 2^nd season in a row.

In the race for the SMFA Cup places a defeat for Dortmund (61pts) would see Real (64pts) book their spot with a draw and Juve (63pts) do likewise with a victory, both would also qualify if the Germans draw and they both win.

Liverpools hopes are now slim and would vanish if they fail to win their game against Juve.

Dortmund are assured of at least SMFA Shield football next season, as too are Liverpool (57pts), Lazio (53pts) need only a draw on Sunday whilst PSG (51pts) need a win to confirm their place, wins too for Arsenal (50pts) and Napoli (50pts) could be enough if Valencia (47pts)lose.

The final qualifications for these two competitions won’t however be finalised until the outcomes of this season comps are known with additional places likely to be allocated.

The battle to avoid joining Fiorentina and Leverkusen in the drop intensified with Man Utd picking up a valuable win and leap frogging Fenerbahce courtesy of goal difference.

With a goal difference of 3 being all that separates Fenerbahce, Man Utd and Schalke who all have 35pts none can be confirmed as relegated on Sunday.

Atletico sit above these three with 36pts then come Man City on 37pts who finally escaped the bottom four after their win on Thursday.

Victories for these two combined with defeat for any two of that trio of clubs on 35pts will see them safe.

The key games at the top look to be Liverpool-Juventus and Dortmund-Napoli, whilst every game involving the bottom 7 are critical.

Week 37 Fixtures

Real v Lazio

Fenerbahce v Chelsea

Liverpool v Juventus

Dortmund v Napoli

Man Utd v Arsenal

Fiorentina v Schalke

Man City v Leverkusen

Bayern v Porto

PSG v Barcelona

Atletico v Valencia

Division 2

Both Milan and Spurs confirmed promotion back to Div 1 on Thursday, each have 70pts and are separated by 2 goals difference so neither will be crowned Champions this Sunday.

Monchengladbach (67pts) are still in the frame for the title but need a defeat for from both Milan and Spurs in the final 2 games whilst they need two victories.

Roma (61pts) hopes of automatic all but died with that draw with Milan on Thursday, they are however guaranteed a play-off spot.

A win for Ajax (58pts) or defeat for Sevilla will see the Dutch side book their place too, Zenit (56pts) could also join them if they beat Sevilla and Spartak fail to win.

Shaktar (55pts) need a win and for Sevilla and Spartak to lose for them to join the play-off party. For Sevilla (54pts) and Shakthar (55pts), Newcastle (51pts) wins are essential for them to stay in the hunt come the final day.

With Basel and Sporting already gone the two other clubs joining them could be decided this Sunday.

Loko (34pts) in truth are already there due to goal difference whilst Boca (35pts) have a very slim chance of avoiding the drop.

Lyon (40pts) need a win from their remaining games to assure their survival whilst a point would see Loko confirmed as relegated and all but send down Boca on goal difference.

Boca (41pts) need 1pt to confirm their Div 2 status for next season.

Key games at the top which effect both teams involved are those at Monchengladbach, Zenit and Roma whilst down at the bottom every game involving the relegation candidates is now crucial.

Week 37 Fixtures

Lyon v Milan

Shakhtar v Boca

Sporting v Spartak

Benfica v Ajax

Everton v CSKA

Loko v Basel

Wolfsburg v Inter

M’gladbach v Newcastle

Zenit v Sevilla

Roma v Spurs

Division 3

Villa (68pts) missed out confirming their promotion on Thursday with a defeat to form side Monaco, a draw on Sunday against Palace will see them over the line, the title could be theirs too with that result if both Genoa and Internacional who are both on 63pts fail to win.

A win for Genoa at home to Leicester will see them promoted if PSV lose at home to Monaco, that would also be good enough to see Internacional go up too if they beat Swansea at home.

Leicester (62pts) would go above Genoa with victory in their clash as would PSV (62pts) if they also win. Wins or draws for these two would ensure the promotion race is taken all the way to wire.

Southampton (55pts) head a posse of clubs trying to take the last two available play-off places, Marseille (54pts), Besiktas (54pts), Cruseiro (53pts), Athletic Club (51pts) and Sunderland (49pts).

The Saints could book their place with a win over Sunderland if other results go their way but it is likely that the play-off spots won’t be finalised until the last game of the season.

At the foot of the table the battle to avoid joining Bordeaux and St Etienne in Div 4 next season is still raging.

Hoffenheim (37pts) look favourites to go down and defeat at Galatasaray would confirm it.

Above them Stoke, Swansea and Udinese all on 21pts are separated by goal difference which may be crucial come the last day.

Monaco (43pts) after a massive run of form are still not out of danger whilst Palace (45pts) too are still looking over their shoulder.

Galatasaray (47pts) could theoretically be caught on points but goal difference make them assured of survival.

The game of the day at the top has to be Genoa-Leicester whilst other stand out fixtures effecting both ends of the table include Internacional-Swansea and PSV-Monaco, Stokes trip to St Etienne is the pick of the clashes at the bottom.

Week 37 Fixtures

Galatasaray v Hoffenheim

Internacional v Swansea

Udinese v Cruzeiro

Genoa v Leicester

Bordeaux v Besiktas

Villa v Palace

PSV v Monaco

Southampton v Sunderland

St Etienne v Stoke

Marseille v Athletic Club

Division 4

Villarreal (60pts) continue to stutter towards promotion with four draws on the bounce, however another similar result on Sunday would be enough to see them over the line and victory would see them take the title.

Sao Paulo too have had a run of bad form and are joined on 56pts by Hamburg, both would need to win and see all four clubs in the play-off places lose for them to gain promotion this weekend.

Whilst both are undoubtedly focussed on gaining automatic promotion neither are yet assured a play-off place and however a win this Sunday would at least book their places.

Feyenoord and Stuttgart follow closely on 54pts with Chievo and West Ham completing the current clubs in the play-off places both on 53pts, all are poised to take advantage of any slips by the clubs above them.

All of these clubs could confirm at least a play-off spot with a win and defeats for Sampdoria and Lille.

Sampdoria (52pts), Lille (51pts), Hellas (49pts) and Sassuolo (49pts) all have a chance of making the play-off mix up but will be relying on those above them to falter.

In the basement battle to avoid joining Malaga in Div 5 next season both Torino and Dynamo currently on 40pts could be relegated with defeat on Sunday, AZ too could face the drop if they fail to beat Sampdoria and Koln are victorious at West Ham.

Koln (44pts), Dnipro (45pts) and River Plate (45pts) could all be dragged into the bottom four if they lose and AZ win, however defeat for AZ and a victory for Koln would see them safe whilst Dnipro and River Plate would need just a draw.

Atalanta (46pts) and Montpellier (46pts) need a win on Sunday to confirm their Div 4 status next season or defeat for AZ.

Pick of the games at the top must be Villarreal-Hamburg whilst at the bottom all eyes will be on AZ’s trip to Sampdoria, Chievo’s trip to Dynamo and Feyenoord-Torino too will have a big say at both ends of the table.

Week 37 Fixtures

West Ham v Koln

Malaga v Stuttgart

Villarreal v Hamburg

Feyenoord v Torino

River Plate v Montpellier

Sampdoria v AZ

Atalanta v Sao Paulo

Dnipro v Lille

Sassuolo v Hellas

Dynamo v Chievo

Division 5

Kyiv (72pts) displaced Olympiacos (71pts) at the head of the table and having already guaranteed promotion these two face off this Sunday, victory for Kyiv will see them crowned Champions.

Liege (59pts) currently sit in the final automatic promotion spot, victory against West Brom and defeat for Brugge at home to Santos would see them confirm promotion.

Brugge (57pts) need a win on Sunday to maintain their promotion chances whilst Celtic (55pts) would see their hopes dashed with defeat at home to Twente or a win for Liege, likewise for Flamengo (53pts) who host Celta Vigo and Hertha (53pts) who host Rubin Kazan.

Brugge need a point to assure their play-off place whilst Celtic would book theirs with a win. If both Santos and Zagreb lose a draw for Flamengo would be enough to see them confirm their place whilst Hertha would need to win to join them.

Santos (51pts), Zagreb (51pts) and Celta Vigo (50pts) will be looking to benefit from any slip ups from those above them whilst Rubin Kazan (49pts), Bremen (48pts) and Espanyol (48pts) have an outside chance of still making the play-offs.

At the foot of the table Augsburg are assured the wooden spoon for the second season in a row.

Pick of the games this Sunday has to be Olympiacos-Kyiv whilst the matches at Celtic, Brugge, Hertha, Flamengo and Liege will shape the promotion picture for the final game of the season.

Week 37 Fixtures

Celtic v Twente

Brugge v Santos

Zagreb v Independiente

Augsburg v Anderlecht

Olympiacos v Kyiv

Levante v Bremen

Hertha v Rubin Kazan

Partizan v Espanyol

Flamengo v Celta Vigo

Liege v West Brom

Match Day 36 Preview

Tue, 04 Oct 2016 18:53:00 +0100

Limited for time for this MD 36 preview so going to be looking at what could be decided for certain this Thursday, other than Ballotelli being injured or kidnapped by Lizard people.

Division 1

Barca will be crowned Champions if beat Bayern in their head to head fixture.

Real will confirm the Champions Cup place if they win and Dortmund fail to. Barca and Bayern already assured their places.

Dortmund and Liverpool are assured a place in the Shield next season along with T100 Shield winners Porto, PSG will join them with a win at Valencia whilst Arsenal, Lazio and Napoli could all join them if PSG win and Chelsea lose or draw against Real.

At the bottom Leverkusen joined Fiorentina as confirmed casualties and these two meet this Thursday in a battle to avoid the wooden spoon.

Nobody can will be confirmed as joining them after Thursdays fixtures.

Key fixture at the top is Barca v Bayern whilst at the bottom Schalke v Man Utd will go a long way to putting flesh on the relegation bones.

Match Day 36 Fixtures

Chelsea v Real Madrid

Juventus v Fenerbahce

Napoli v Liverpool

Arsenal v Dortmund

Schalke v Man Utd

Leverkusen v Fiorentina

Porto v Man City

Barcelona v Bayern

Valencia v PSG

Lazio v Atletico

Division 2

Milan need a single point at home to Roma to confirm their promotion, whilst a win for Spurs will guarantee Div 1 football regardless of the result in Milan.

Along with Milan and Spurs, Monchengladbach are guaranteed at least a play-off place and Roma could book that ticket too if they chalk up a point and either Shakhtar or Sevilla fail to do likewise.

At the bottom Basel will be confirmed as relegated if they fail to win or both CSKA and Lyon win, a draw for these two would realistically do the trick due to Basels vastly inferior goal difference.

Wins for both CSKA and Lyon would also relegate Sporting regardless of their result, it would effectively also send down Loko even if they won due to goal difference, Boca would live to fight another day if they won.

Key fixtures at the top are Milan v Roma, Spurs v Zenit and Sevilla v Monchengladbach whilst at the basement Boca v Lyon and Cska v Benfica will be the ones to watch.

Match Day 36 Fixtures

Boca v Lyon

Spartak v Shakhtar

Ajax v Sporting

CSKA v Benfica

Basel v Everton

Inter v Loko

Newcastle v Wolfsburg

Sevilla v Monchengladbach

Spurs v Zenit

Milan v Roma

Division 3

Victory on Thursday would see Villa promoted whilst even a draw would be good enough if any 2 of Leicester, Internacional or PSV fail to win.

The title would be Villas if they win and Genoa fail to take all 3pts in their fixture.

Genoa and Leicester are assured at least a play-off place and a point for Internacional will make sure they join them, victory for PSV will assure their place too.

At the foot of the table nobody can be confirmed as joining Bordeaux and St Etienne in Div 4 this Thursday.

Pick of the fixtures will have to be Monaco v Villa for its effect at both ends of the table, otherwise at the top Leicester v Udinese and Besiktas v Genoa will be critical. At the bottom Hoffenheims trip to Marseille is crucial.

Match Day 36 Fixtures

Swansea v Galatasaray

Cruzeiro v Internacional

Leicester v Udinese

Besiktas v Genoa

Palace v Bordeaux

Monaco v Villa

Sunderland v PSV

Stoke v Southampton

Athletic Club v St Etienne

Hoffenheim v Marseille

Division 4

At the top Villarreal could be promoted if they win and two from Hamburg, Feyenoord and West Ham fail to.

They could claim the title with a win and defeat for Sao Paulo and if Hamburg, Feyenoord and West Ham all fail to win.

The Yellow Submarine are assured at least a play–off spot and Sao Paulo are the only others that could guarantee that if they win and two from Stuttgart, Chievo and Lille lose.

At the foot Malagas relegation is confirmed, Dynamo Moscow could join them if they lose on Thursday, defeats for Torino and AZ would also see them on the brink of the drop.

Pick of the fixtures see Villareals trip to Torino having implications at both ends whilst Sao Paulo v Sampdoria and Stuttgart v West Ham will have a big impact on the promotion and play-off shake up. At the bottom Koln v Dynamo Moscow will be critical as will AZ v River Plate.

Match Day 36 Fixtures

Stuttgart v West Ham

Hamburg v Malaga

Torino v Villarreal

Montpellier v Feyenoord

AZ v River Plate

Sao Paulo v Sampdoria

Lille v Atalanta

Hellas v Dnipro

Chievo v Sassuolo

Koln v Dynamo Moscow

Division 5

Both Olympiacos and Kyiv confirmed their promotion to Div 4 on Sunday, Liege could do the same on Thursday if they win and Flamengo, Celtic and Brugge all fail to do similarly.

Liege are all but assured a play-off place but it is unlikely anyone else will have the same comfort after Thursdays games.

At the base a win for West Brom and defeat for Augsburg will confirm the Germans as the wooden spoon winners again this season.

Games to watch have to be Kyiv v Augsburg, West Brom v Flamengo and Santos v Celtic.

Match Day 36 Fixtures

Santos v Celtic

Independiente v Brugge

Anderlecht v Zagreb

Kyiv v Augsburg

Bremen v Olympiacos

Rubin Kazan v Levante

Espanyol v Hertha

Celta Vigo v Partizan

West Brom v Flamengo

Twente v Liege

Match Day 35 Preview

Fri, 30 Sep 2016 19:07:00 +0100

With only four games to go and clubs rapidly running out of runway after Thursdays fixtures here’s the update on the likely crash landers and those joining the mile high club.

Division 1

Both Barca (93pts) and Bayern (88pts) won again this Thursday leaving the Spaniards 5pt lead over the Germans in the battle for the title in tact, Bayern will be looking to their future clash on MD 36 knowing that victory is a must and hope that either Man City, PSG or Atletico can take points in Barcas other remaining fixtures.

In the battle to join these two in the SMFA Champions Cup Real stumbled with defeat away to Napoli, the Spaniards being joined on 60pts by Juve with Dortmund on 58pts after their win over Leverkusen then Liverpool on 55pts after their surprise defeat at Schalke.

Dortmund are assured at least an SMFA Shield spot with Liverpool all but guaranteed a place too, Lazio (50pts), Arsenal (49pts), Napoli (49pts) and PSG (48pts) currently sit in the other places with a comfortable gap to 11^th placed Valencia (44pts).

Whilst additional Cup and Shield spots may arise from the outcomes of this seasons competitions the only other club guaranteed a spot is Porto after their T100 Shield victory.

At the bottom defeat for Fiorentina (18pts) to Barcelona condemned them to Div 2 football next season, Leverkusens (21pts) failure to pick up points against Dortmund mean that a similar fate awaits them if they lose to Man Utd on Sunday or, due to their much poorer goal difference, Fenerbahce or Schalke pick up a point.

Man Utd (29pts) despite defeat at Porto on Thursday are far from down and will be hoping for 3pts at home to fellow strugglers Leverkusen on Sunday to gain ground on the teams above them.

Fenerbahce (32pts) have slipped into the bottom four by nature of an inferior goal difference to Schalke, which could be crucial come the final game. The Turks off the back of a defeat to Arsenal host an in form Napoli side whilst the Germans follow up a surprise victory over Liverpool with a tough trip to their fellow countrymen Dortmund.

Then come Man City (34pts) who gained a vital point at Valencia on Thursday, they have the unenviable task of taking on Barca at the Ethiad whilst the last of those realistically in danger Atletico (36pts) are away to a PSG side currently struggling for form.

Whilst all games at this stage are crucial the stand out fixture at the top has to be Juves visit to Real whilst at the bottom the Man Utd, Leverkusen clash is a must win game for both clubs.

Week 35 Fixtures

Chelsea v Lazio

Real Madrid v Juventus

Fenerbahce v Napoli

Liverpool v Arsenal

Dortmund v Schalke

Man Utd v Leverkusen

Fiorentina v Porto

Man City v Barcelona

Bayern v Valencia

PSG v Atletico

Division 2

None of the protagonists currently in the automatic promotion spots managed a win between them in their Thursday fixtures with Milan (68pts) drawing at home to Zenit whilst Monchengladbach (64pts) went down away at Roma and Spurs (64pts) lost at the Lane to Wolfsburg.

All are still favourites to go up, for Milan realistically a draw away to Boca on Sunday will see their return to the top flight by virtue of their superior goal difference to Roma who are the only club outside the top three that could possibly catch them. Monchengladbachs game with Spurs would see a victor with the opportunity of gaining promotion on MD 36 whilst a loser would still have clear daylight between them and 4^th place.

That spot is currently occupied by Roma (57pts) whose victory over Spurs saw them leap frog over Zenit (56pts) after their draw in Milan, these two face each other on Sunday in a game which will end any outside hopes of automatic promotion for one if not both clubs, though both appear assured of a play-off place.

Ajax (55pts) currently sit in 6^th and look comfortable play-off candidates after their win at home to Lyon and sit ahead of Shakthar (51pts) who drew at CSKA in the Thursday games. These two go head to head on Sunday and whilst the Dutch club would not lose their current position with a defeat the Ukranians would likely slip out of the play-off spots if they fail to take all 3 points.

Sevilla (51pts) will be looking to follow up their victory against Loko and capitalise on any slip up by Shakthar with a result away to Wolfsburg. Spartak (49pts) visit Lyon and will look to continue the form that saw off Boca in their Thursday fixture.

Internazionale (48pts) went ahead of Newcastle on goal difference courtesy of home win against Benfica whilst the Toon went down at home to Everton, this Sunday it is the turn of the Brazilians to face Everton at home whilst the Geordies travel to Loko.

Everton and Wolfsburg both on 45pts have an outside chance of making the play-offs but will need to win all their remaining games and hope for a collapse from the group of clubs above them.

At the foot of the table Sporting (29pts) gave their faint survival hopes a boost with victory against fellow relegation strugglers Basel (31pts), the Portuguese side will hope for more of the same at home to CSKA on Sunday whilst their Swiss counterparts will need to reverse their fortunes at Benfica.

Boca (33pts) sit below Loko in the bottom four slots by a margin of -1 goal difference after their defeats on Thursday and both have tough home fixtures previously covered to look forward to on Sunday.

Benfica (38pts) slipped to 16^th below CSKA and Lyon both on 39pts after their results and all need a result on Thursday to ease the relegation threat.

The Monchengladbach-Spurs clash is the stand out fixture at the top whilst Zenit-Roma and Shakhtar-Ajax will also have a big impact for the clubs chasing the play-offs, meanwhile Milans visit to Boca will influence the picture at both ends of the table.

At the bottom all eyes will be on Benfica v Basel, victory for Benfica will relegate their opponents and all but condemn Sporting regardless of their result due to their inferior goal difference.

Week 35 Fixtures

Boca v Milan

Lyon v Spartak

Shakhtar v Ajax

Sporting v CSKA

Benfica v Basel

Everton v Internazionale

Loko v Newcastle

Wolfsburg v Sevilla

M’gladbach v Spurs

Zenit v Roma

Division 3

Villas (67pts) victory at Stoke on Thursday sees them within touching distance of promotion, victory at home to Sunderland on Sunday and Leicester failing to win at Internacional would confirm it.

Whilst Villa appear to be Champions elect a victory would also confirm them as title winners if Genoa (60pts) suffer a home defeat to Palace and Internacional (60pts) lose in the previously mentioned fixture with Leicester. Wins however assure the pair of at least a play-off spot.

Leicester (58pts) will take over the third automatic promotion spot with a win in that game at Internacional and would assure them of a play-off spot if Cruzeiro fail to win.

PSV (56pts) host Stoke and will be looking to gain ground should any of those above them slip up with Besiktas and Athletic Club both on 51pts looking to do likewise with fixtures away to Udinese and Southampton respectively.

Cruzeiro (50pts) who travel to Galatasaray could rise into the play-off places with a win if either Athletic Club or Besiktas fail to gain all 3pts. Wins for Southampton (49pts) at home to Athletic Club, Marseille (48pts) at St Etienne and Sunderland (48pts) at Villa are all vital to keep their respective challnges for the play-offs.

Galatasary (46pts) still aren’t out of the frame but will see their game with Cruzeiro as a must win to maintain any hopes.

After defeat to Udinese on Thursday Palace (44pts) realistically are now out of the picture.

At the bottom Bordeaux (23pts) may be down but they are still fighting with victory away at Sunderland on Thursday. Fellow French strugglers St Etienne (29pts) also recorded a vital win away to Hoffenheim which maintains their slim hopes of survival, this Sunday they host countrymen Marseille in a game they cannot afford to lose or the result at Swansea will send them down.

Above them are three clubs on 37pts, Swansea, Udinese and Hoffenheim, whilst Udinese host Besiktas, Swansea welcome Hoffenheim to the Liberty Stadium where as previously mentioned any result here will condemn St Etienne if they fail to win by virtue of the massively inferior goal difference.

Monaco (39pts) will be looking to keep their excellent run of form going away to relegated Bordeaux whilst Stoke (41pts) will be hoping to get something from their trip to PSV to ease the chances of them being dragged closer to the drop zone.

The top pick of games in the promotion battle looks to be Leicesters trip to Internacional whith the key battle at the bottom being Swansea-Hoffenheim.

Week 35 Fixtures

Swansea v Hoffenheim

Galatasaray v Cruzeiro

Internacional v Leicester

Udinese v Besiktas

Genoa v Palace

Bordeaux v Monaco

Villa v Sunderland

PSV v Stoke

Southampton v Athletic Club

St Etienne v Marseille

Division 4

If anything things are getting even tighter in what has to be one of the most closely contested and exciting Divisions there is likely to be for some time.

Villarreal (58pts) continue to stutter at the top with a draw away to AZ that saw their lead cut by West Ham (53pts) whose win at Torino took them to 2^nd above Sao Paulo (52pts) who drew at home to Feyenoord.

The Yellow Submarine could all but confirm promotion due to goal difference with a win at home to Montpellier and if there are losses for both Feyenoord and Sampdoria. The Hammers host Hamburg whilst The Spoon Army travel to River Plate.

Feyenoord (52pts) dropped outside the top three on goal difference after their result on Thursday and will be hoping for a home victory against AZ to get back in automatic spots.

Sampdoria (51pts) gained ground with their win at Hellas Verona and will look to continue that run at home to Lille. Hamburg (50pts) also kept the pressure up with victory over fellow German side Stuttgart and now have tricky trip to the London Stadium on Sunday.

Chievo Verona (49pts) complete the teams currently in the play-off spots and they will be looking to get back to winning ways in their visit to Dnipro.

Stuttgart (48pts) dropped to 8^th after defeat to Hamburg and face yet another German side when Koln come visiting. Lille (47pts) have that trip to Sampdoria whilst Sassuolo (46pts) will look to continue their current good run at home to Dynamo Moscow.

Hellas Verona and River Plate both on 45pts, the former have a trip to draw specialists Atalanta whilst River Plate host Sao Paulo.

Then there are four clubs on 44pts, Montpellier, Atalanta, Koln and Dnipro in 16^th and a mere 5pts off the play-offs.

Looking the other way at the foot of the table Malaga (34pts), Torino (36pts) and Dynamo Moscow (37pts) all failed to gain any points on Thursday and whilst AZ (38pts) did pick up a point at home to Villarreal the bottom four are now adrift of Dnipro in 16^th by 6pts.

Malaga face Torino which will surely condemn one if not both teams to the drop,

Whilst Dynamo have a trip to Sasuolo , AZ face Feyenoord and Dnipro host Chievo.

The tussle that catches the eye at the top is Hamburgs trip to West Ham whilst at the bottom it has to be Malaga-Torino, anything other than victory for the Anchovies sees them relegated.

Week 35 Fixtures

Stuttgart v Koln

West Ham v Hamburg

Malaga v Torino

Villarreal v Montpellier

Feyenoord v AZ

River Plate v Sao Paulo

Sampdoria v Lille

Atalanta v Hellas Verona

Dnipro v Chievo Verona

Sassuolo v Dynamo Moscow

Division 5

Despite neither side being victorious this Thursday both Kyiv and Olympiacos managed to seal promotion thanks to Flamengo going down at Twente. Both clubs have 68pts as they now battle for the title, this Sunday Kyiv travel to Zagreb whilst The Legend host Rubin Kazan.

In the battle for the final promotion place Liege (56ts) have a 2pt lead over Flamengo (54pts) and face each other this Sunday in what will be a crucial game at the top.

Brugge (54pts) and Celtic (51pts) are the other two realistically challenging for the final automatic spot, the Belgiums host countrymen Anderlecht whilst the Scots host Independiente.

Celta Vigo (49pts) pushed their way into the play-off spots with victory over Levante, this being at the expense of Zagreb (49pts) who could only manage a draw at Bremen and now trail on goal difference.

Santos and Hertha both sit in contention on 47pts with the Brazilians hosting Twente whilst the Germans host Celta Vigo.

Rubin Kazan (46pts) and Espanyol (45pts) are probably the last of the outsiders with a realistic chance of challenging, Kazan must see off Olympiacos whilst the Spaniards have a short trip to Levante

At the bottom it now looks a straight fight between Augsburg (27pts) and West Brom (29pts), Augsburg host Bremen whilst West Brom travel to Partizan.

Flamengo-Liege heads the top of the table clash to watch whilst the games at Augsburg and Partizan may see a change at the bottom.

Week 35 Fixtures

Santos v Twente

Celtic v Independiente

Brugge v Anderlecht

Zagreb v Kyiv

Augsburg v Bremen

Olympiacos v Rubin Kazan

Levante v Espanyol

Hertha v Celta Vigo

Partizan v West Brom

Flamengo v Liege

Match Day 34 Preview

Tue, 27 Sep 2016 16:40:00 +0100

With 5 games left to play things are starting to get a bit clearer in the battles for glory and the scraps for survival, whilst little is decided for certain there are a few inevitabilities beginning to appear.

Division 1

In the battle to be Champions Bayern are pushing Barca all the way but there appears to be no crack in the Spanish sides resolve to keep their crown, with 5pts separating the two their clash on MD36 will be pivotal.

Real need a single point to confirm their appearance in the SMFA Champions Cup next season whilst Juve continue to stutter and hold on to 4^thspot by 2pts from both Liverpool and Dortmund who must harbour hopes of overtaking the Italians who must face both of the challengers in the run in.

After a recent dip in form PSG have seen their challenge wain and will surely have to be content with an SMFA Shield place. Both Lazio and Arsenal have hit a bad patch of form as they look to secure their berths in the competition but both they together with Napoli still look favourites to qualify whilst Valencia, Chelsea and Porto could sneak in if any of the above slip up.

At the foot of the table the fat lady is warmed up and the curtains are ready to be raised for Fiorentina, failure to gain 3pts away to Barcelona on MD34 or victory for Fenerbahce and a point for Man City will see the Florence clubs relegation confirmed.

Leverkusen seem destined for the same fate and whilst they can’t be relegated this Thursday failure to win will surely see them going down.

The battle above this pair intensified with a vital win on MD33 for Man City over Atletico lifting them 4pts clear of the drop zone and dragging the Spaniards back into the relegation mix. City leap frogged Fenerbahce who drew with fellow strugglers Schalke, the Germans will be the happier of the two as they jump above Man Utd on goal difference after they went down to Barca.

Whilst there are no head to heads on MD34 that stand out as key fixtures there are plenty of clashes which will have a bearing at both the top and bottom.

Match Day 34 Fixtures

Juventus v Chelsea

Napoli v Real

Arsenal v Fenerbahce

Schalke v Liverpool

Leverkusen v Dortmund

Porto v Man Utd

Barcelona v Fiorentina

Valencia v Man City

Atletico v Bayern

Lazio v PSG

Division 2

The automatic promotion spots look likely to go to the three current occupants, Milan, Monchengladbach and Spurs. Milans promotion could be confirmed on MD 34 if they manage a victory over Zenit.

Zenits draw with Monchengladbach on Sunday leaves them with fading hopes of an automatic spot though they could still have a major impact on deciding the Champions with that game to come against Milan and also with Spurs to play too. Roma failed to capitalise drawing with Wolfsburg though they too will have a big say in the top 3 shake up with games against all the contenders in the run in.

Both will be concentrating on cementing a place in the play-offs with Ajax and Shakthar occupying the other two places whilst Sevilla, Newcastle, Spartak and Internazionale are all in contention and will be looking to capitalise on any slip ups.

Whilst mathematically all the other teams down to CSKA in 16^th could make the play-offs most will be concentrating on looking at avoiding being drawn into the relegation battle.

Sporting are likely to be the first casualties here, defeat on Thursday to fellow strugglers Basel would all but but condemn the Portuguese club to Div 3 football next season which would be confirmed if they lose and both CSKA and Benfica gain at least a point.

Basels recent run of good form came to an end with defeat to Shakhtar on Sunday but they have done enough in recent weeks to keep themselves within 2pts of both Boca and Loko above them.

A 5pt gap separates Loko in 17^thfrom their Moscow rivals CSKA and Benfica above them, Lyons good run continued with victory over CSKA at the weekend seeing them now 6pts clear of the drop zone.

This Thursdays pick of the fixtures at the top of the table are Milans clash with Zenit and Roma taking on Monchengladbach whilst at the bottom Sportings visit to Basel will be pivotal.

Match Day 34 Fixtures

Spartak v Boca

Ajax v Lyon

CSKA v Shakhtar

Basel v Sporting

Internazionale v Benfica

Newcastle v Everton

Sevilla v Loko

Spurs v Wolfsburg

Roma v Monchengladbach

Milan v Zenit

Division 3

Things remain tight at the top of Div 3 but Villa are starting to put some daylight between themselves and their rivals and have built up a 7pt cushion to 4^th place and are currently looking like the only firm favourites for promotion.

Both Genoa and Internacional have hit a bad patch of form which has allowed Leicester to close the gap with PSV, Besiktas and Athletic Club all still in the picture too despite all dropping points at the weekend.

The latter three though will also have to look over their shoulder as they are being pursued by clubs eager to grab one of the play-off spots. This group realistically extends down to Palace in 13^th with the next placed four of Stoke, Monaco, Hoffenheim and Swansea all not yet mathematically out of the picture though they will all be surely concentrating on the battle at the bottom.

Bordeaux were T100’s first confirmed casualties of the season, with defeat at Stoke for them and wins for Hoffenheim and Swansea on Sunday sending them through the trap door. St Etienne are in danger of making it a French relegation double and defeat for them away at Hoffenheim on Thursday would all but seal their fate.

Just 4pts separate Udinese, Swansea, Hoffenhein and Swansea as they scrap to avoid making up the foursome of teams destined for Div 4.

Stoke are by no means out of the woods currently sitting 4pts above 17^th placed Swansea, Palace should be safe with their 7pt cushion.

The previously mentioned game between Hoffenheim and St Etienne is the key fixture at the foot of the table on Thursday with the games at Besiktas and Athletic Club being the ones to watch at the top.

Match Day 34 Fixtures

Cruzeiro v Swansea

Leicester v Galatasaray

Besiktas v Internacional

Palace v Udinese

Monaco v Genoa

Sunderland v Bordeaux

Stoke v Villa

Athletic Club v PSV

Marseille v Southampton

Hoffenheim v St Etienne

Division 4

Sau Paulo’s form has faltered leading up to the run in seeing them concede the leadership to Villarreal who now have a 6pt lead at the top over the Brazilians and Feyenoord in third.

West Ham, Sampdoria, Chievo Verona and Stuttgart currently sitting in the play-off spots are all within one win of catching the 2^nd and 3^rd place clubs.

This league has been too close to call all season and looks like going all the way to the wire with clubs down as far as Dnipro in 16^th only 7pts away and having a realistic chance of making a late push for the play-off party.

Similarly at the foot of the table where Malaga despite 1pt in 6 games are still by no means certainties for the drop, though a serious turn around in form needs to start soon.

Above them 7pts separates 19^thplaced Torino from 12^th placed Atalanta with Dynamo and AZ currently making up the quartet in the drop zone, whilst a win won’t see any of them climb out of the bottom four on Thursday it would bring the pack above them well within striking distance for Sunday.

The stand out fixture at the top of table without doubt is Feyenoords visit to Sau Paulo whilst at the bottom Dyanamo’s clash with Dnipro and Malaga’s trip to Montpellier will be vital fixtures.

Match Day 34 Fixtures

Hamburg v Stuttgart

Torino v West Ham

Montpellier v Malaga

AZ v Villarreal

Sao Paulo v Feyenoord

Lille v River Plate

Hellas Verona v Sampdoria

Chievo Verona v Atalanta

Dynamo v Dnipro

Koln v Sassuolo

Division 5

Kyiv who at one time looked likely to build an unassailable lead at the top lead the league by a single point from Olympiacos, these two are nailed on for promotion and are now scrapping over who will take the title, a battle that may be decided on MD37 when the two clubs meet. In the meantime a win for both clubs or defeat for Flamengo would see their promotions confirmed this Thursday.

In the play-off spots Flamengo sit 3pts ahead of Celtic and Brugge who in turn sit 3pts above Zagreb. A chasing posse of clubs within 7pts extend down to Bremen in 13^th, all who will be hoping to put a run of results together to make the play-offs come the end of the season.

At the foot of the table Augsberg did their battle to avoid winning the wooden spoon again this season no harm with victory over Espanyol at the weekend and will need to continue that form if they are to overhaul either West Brom or Partizan above them who look the most likely of clubs in the basement to be caught.

The pick of the fixtures this Thursday is the visit of Brugge to Kyiv which could have a major bearing on the title and promotion picture for both clubs.

Match Day 34 Fixtures

Independiente v Santos

Anderlecht v Celtic

Kyiv v Brugge

Bremen v Zagreb

Kazan v Augsburg

Espanyol v Olympiacos

Celta Vigo v Levante

West Brom v Hertha

Liege v Partizan

Twente v Flamengo

The Run In - Match Day 33

Fri, 23 Sep 2016 20:19:00 +0100

It’s that time of season we all love or hate, the final run in, the push for glory or the panic to avoid the trap door, 6 games left to decide if we’re polishing up our silverware or polishing up our CV’s.

In what has been yet another quality season at T100 very little is yet decided in the shake ups at the top and bottoms but the coming games will soon change all that and this is the first of this seasons’ countdown.

Division 1

At the top it’s a 2 horse race for the title with Bayern trailing by two and half lengths to Barca who are looking like coasting in at a canter. With 5 points between them it is hard to see the Spanish giants dropping that many points in 6 games when they’ve dropped only 9 in 32 so far this season.

Both of the above are already assured of SMFA Champions Cup football next season but who will join them is still in the balance. After unusually inconsistent seasons both Real and Juve have bobbed in and out of the top 4 but currently hold those berths being closely Dortmund and Liverpool, whilst PSG have an outside chance of being in contention their current poor form would indicate that is unlikely.

Arsenal, Lazio and Napoli are realistically out of that race but likely to secure SMFA Shield places, Porto have secured a place courtesy of their T100 Shield win, Valencia and Chelsea have a lot of ground to make up to be in contention but both could still qualify by winning this seasons tournament.

At the dark end of the table Fiorentina look doomed, defeat on Sunday and victories for Man City and Fenerbahce would confirm their relegation, Leverkusen too look highly unlikely to avoid the drop and must win all their remaining games and hope results above them go their way.

Schalke, Man Utd, Man City and Fenerbahce are divided by 3 points as they battle to avoid the drop, Atletico have seen a current run of form starting to pull them clear but they together with Chelsea, Porto and Valencia are not yet safe.

Arsenal, Lazio and Napoli all just need 2 points to mathematically confirm their Div 1 status for next season.

Division 2

It’s hard to look beyond the current top 3 of Milan, Monchengladbach and Spurs for automatic promotion, however which one of them will take the title is far from being decided.

Senit, Roma, Ajax and Shakhtar currently hold the play-off berths but Sevilla, Newcastle, Spartak, Inter, Wolfsburg and Everton will all harbour hopes of gaining ground during the run in.

Whilst at the bottom nobody is going to be relegated this Sunday Sporting must start putting together a run if they are not going to be playing in Div 3 next season. Basels recent run of good form see’s them with a fighting chance of survival along with Boca and Loko all currently in the bottom four, whilst mathematically nobody up to 6^th are currently safe in reality it is likely that only Lyon, Benfica and CSKA are in danger of being dragged into the mix.

Division 3

In a tight division nothing looks like being decided early.

Villa look likely to get automatic promotion but both Genoa and Internacional have both hit a bad run of form at the tail end of the season, all down to Athletic in 7^th are in contention with play-off hopefuls realistically extending down to Marseille in 11^th.

At the base defeat for Bordeaux and victory for Monaco will see the French club all but doomed, St Etienne look likely to follow but not imminently, the likely other contenders for the drop currently look to come from Udinese, Hoffenhem, Monaco, Swansea and Stoke whilst nobody up to PSV in 5^thare currently mathematically safe.

Division 4

In the crazy World that has been Div 4 this season absolutely nothing is close to being decided.

Whilst Villareal look the only decent odds on bet for promotion anyone down to Sassuolo in 16^th could make the rise.

Going the other way there are currently no teams showing they intend to be favourites with only 8 points between 10^th and 20^th.

This division looks certain to go to the wire.

Division 5

The Champions look likely to be either Kyiv or Olympiacos with the battle to join them in promotion being between Flamengo, Liege, Brugge and Celtic.

Play-off contenders together with those mentioned above look likely to come from Celta Vigo, Zagreb, Hertha, Rubin Kazan and Santos.

Augsburg are current favourites for the wooden spoon but West Brom, Partizan and Levante will be looking over their shoulders.

Match Day 38 - The Final Countdown

Thu, 19 May 2016 17:02:00 +0100

Well we’re coming up to the last game of a fascinating season and so many issues have come right down to the wire so here’s a look at the final day possible movers, shakers and heartbreakers.

Division 1

Champions – Barcelona

Champions Cup Qualifiers – Barcelona, Bayern, Real & Juventus

I stand to be corrected but my understanding is Man U will also qualify if they beat Bayern in the final and Porto will qualify if Bayern win.

Champions Shield Qualifiers – Porto, Man U, Chelsea, Arsenal, Atletico

Fenerbahce will definitely qualify if they gain a point , whilst if they lose both Fiorentina and Man City could catch them mathematically their goal difference deficit is such that they would have to break all known T100 scoring records.

Again don’t quote me but as either Man U or Porto are expected to be promoted to the Champions Cup it could create an extra place in the Shield which will go to either Man City or Fiorentina if they fail to pull of the miracle of sneaking past Fenerbahce and to add further uncertainty a the team not qualifying through this route could join them if Chelseas win the SMFA Shield.

Not forgetting Stuttgart from Div 5 who will have qualified through their Top100 Shield win.

Confused, so am I.

The two are tied on points with Fiorentina having a 6 goal advantage in goal difference, City host Barca whilst Fiorentina are away to Juve.

On to the bottom end which is far more straight forward.

Relegated – Sevilla, Lyon and Milan.

In the frame to possibly join them are Lazio 36pts, Inter 37pts, Liverpool 38pts and outsiders Leverkusen 39pts.

A point for Lazio away to Man Utd would be enough for them to call clear if Inter fail to win away at Porto, if Lazio and Inter manage to win then Liverpool would be down if they fail to win at home to Madrid, meanwhile Leverkusen only need a point away to Milan to assure their safety but are unlikely to see all 3 clubs below them win and overhaul them.

Division 2

Promoted – Dortmund, Napoli and Schalke.

The Champions have yet to be crowned, Dortmund need a win away to Monchengladbach whilst Napoli need the Germans to fail to register 3pts whilst winning themselves at home to Boca.

Play-Offs – Only PSG have a guaranteed place due to the last day fixtures. The remaining berths being between Wolfsburg 62pts, Roma 61pts, Everton 61pts, Spartak 60pts and Newcastle 60pts who are all in the frame.

The critical game here on the last day will be Wolfsburg v Spartak, a win for either club secure their spot whilst a draw would see the Germans guaranteed a place.

Roma and Everton need wins away to St-Etienne and Galatasary respectively, whilst Newcastle must rely on Roma and Everton failing to win and Spartak getting no more than a point whilst they themselves win at home to Sporting.

At the foot of the table.

Relegated – Athletic Club, Galatasaray and Sunderlan.

The last place on the trap door is between St-Etienne and Sporting. St-Etienne must win at home to Roma and hope Sporting lose away to Newcastle, if the Portuguese side draw the Frenchmen must win by 5 clear goals.

Division 3

Promoted – CSKA and Basel.

Ajax are all but there unless an 8 goal deficit in goal difference can be overturned by Villa. Ajax face Lille away whilst Villa are away to Palace.

The race to be Champions is still a 3 way race, CSKA must win away to Swansea to secure the title, if they fail to do so and Basel secure 3pts away to Sassuolo then the title goes to them, if both fail to win then Ajax could sneak through the back door if they win at Palace, but it would have to be by 5 clear goals if CSKA manage a draw.

Play-Offs – Villa are guaranteed their place in the dust off, whilst the other 3 places are to be slugged out between Marseille, Leicester, Shakhtar, PSV and Bordeaux.

Relegated – Sampdoria and Sassuolo

In the basement battle to avoid sliding into Div 4 it looks certain that Lille will drop unless they win, Hamburg fail to gain a point, Hoffenheim lose and the Frenchmen overturn a 15 goal deficit.

Hamburg on the other hand have their destiny in their own hands, a win for them at home to Monaco will see them leapfrog the visitors.

Hoffenheim need to win at home to Marseille to be sure of avoiding the drop whilst Palace require a point at home to Villa to ensure safety.

Monaco as mentioned need to avoid defeat at Hamburg in what is arguably the divisions fixture of the season.

Division 4

Promoted – Southampton

The Saints can secure the title with victory in the match of the day away to Internacional whilst the Brazilians will secure promotion and possibly the title if they win.

Malaga will book their place in Div 3 with a win at home to Cologne and would be Champions if Internacional v Southampton ends up a draw or if Internacional win but by 1 goal less than the Spaniards due to their goals scored record.

Genoa could go up if they win at home to Udinese and Southampton either win or draw, a win would also see them pop the champagne if Malaga lose or draw.

Play-Offs – One from Internacional, Malaga, and Genoa will tussle it out with Udinese and Torino.

Atalanta will join them if they avoid defeat at AZ whilst the Dutch side will take the spot with a victory, another crucial fixture for sure.

Relegated – Celta Vigo, West Brom and Levante

To avoid joining them Espanyol must win at home to Torino whilst relying on Hellas failing to win at home to West Ham, a draw wouldn't be good enough for the Italians if the Spaniards win with their superior goal difference.

Division 5

Champions – Villareal

Promoted – Feyenoord and Stuttgart

Play-Offs – Hertha, Sao Paulo, Santos and Celtic

Augsburg are confirmed as the wooden spoon winners, to avoid finishing a fated second from bottom Bremen need a win at home to Rubin Kazan whilst relying on Twente losing, a point for the Belgians sees them clear.

Good luck to all and may the algorithms run fairly.

Match Day 36 - What Could be Decided

Mon, 09 May 2016 07:41:00 +0100

Every set of match day results now have an ever increasing effect on the shifting sands of the league landscapes so here’s how things have been effected after Match Day 35 and what could be resolved on Match Day 36.

Division 1

The Champions are still to be crowned with Barca still needing a win to confirm it, though a draw would surely see their massively superior goal difference take them over the line.

Both Bayern and Real have assured themselves of Champions Cup football next season alongside Barca with Juve, Porto and Man U still in the hunt for the final berth.

Chelsea have secured a Champions Shield spot and with 3 other places still up for grabs the list of mathematical contenders extends improbably all the way down to Lazio in 15^th.

At the bottom Lyon and Milan could both join Sevilla in dropping to Div 2 if they lose and both Leverkusen and Lazio win and Valencia get a point.

Division 2

Both Napoli and Schalke have joined Dortmund in gaining promotion to Div 1, the title however cannot be decided just yet.

The play-off places are still to be decided with clubs down to Loko in 12^th having a mathematical chance of securing a place.

At the bottom Galatasaray and, Sunderland could be relegated if they lose or Sporting and Boca both win, this would also condemn St Etienne if they fail to get maximum points.

Division 3

Promotion cannot be mathematically secured but a win for Basel and defeat for Villa would see the Swiss club virtually home and dry due to their goal difference, potentially any 3 clubs from the top 10 could nick a promotion slot but realistically they are likely to go to any of the top 5.

Play-off hopefuls extend all the way down to Cruzeiro in 13^thwho are not yet clear of being possibly relegated.

Failure to win for Sampdoria and Sassuolo see them relegated and even victories could see them drop if Palace and Hamburg both win.

Division 4

At the top matters are still far from being decided with 11 clubs still having a mathematical chance of promotion but in all likelihood the final top 3 will come from the current 6 heading the table.

Play-off potentials extend down to Montpellier in 14^theven if their chances are slim and they will be more focused on what is happening below them.

At the foot of the table Levante have slipped through the trap door and another defeat will see them finish in the bottom 2, defeat for Celta Vigo will see them also playing in Div 5 next season if both Hellas Verona and Espanyol win.

Division 5

Feyenoord have secured promotion alongside Villareal, a point for Stuttgart or defeat for both Hertha and Santos will see Stuttgart taking the final automatic promotion spot.

A win for Villareal or defeat for Feyenoord will see the Spanish club taking the title.

Both Hertha and Santos have secured their play-off berths and wins for Sao Paulo and Celtic or defeat for Olympiacos will see them taking the other 2 places.

At the basement Augsberg could be confirmed as a bottom 2 finisher If they fail to win and either Twente or Bremen secure 3pts.

Possibles & Maybes on Match Day 35

Sun, 08 May 2016 11:56:00 +0100

With just 4 games to go there are still a lot of issues to be decided in T100, some of which could be confirmed tonight on Match Day 35 so here’s a brief look through what could be resolved tonight.

Division 1

The Champions haven’t really been in question for some time but a win for Barca or defeat for both Bayern and Real would see Barcelona confirmed as Champions after an outstanding season.

Wins for Bayern and Real would see them confirm their Champions Cup place for next season joining Barca, the 4^th berth is some way off being decided with Juve and Porto the primary contenders and Man U holding on to an outside chance.

Chelsea would secure Champions Shield football with a win tonight or if Man C, Fenerbahce and Fiorentina all lose. With two from those fighting for the Champions Cup spots joining them it leaves 3 places still being fought for and unlikely to be settled until the last day of the season.

At the bottom Sevilla are unfortunately already down and confirmed to finish bottom but no other club is that far adrift that they can be confirmed as joining them after tonight’s results.

Division 2

Dortmund secured promotion on Match Day 34, both Napoli and Schalke could join them with wins tonight or defeat for Roma. The destination of the title however looks like it will go all the way down to the wire.

One from Napoli, Schalke and Roma are assured of a play-off berth if they fail to make automatic promotion, the other 3 places are far from being decided.

Athletic Club are already destined for Div 3 and destined to finish in the bottom 2. Defeat for Galatasaray combined with wins for Boca and Sporting would see the Turkish club also relegated.

Division 3

One of the tightest promotion races see’s no possibility of any club being able to secure their place in Div 2 tonight. The only thing that could be confirmed at the top is if PSV, Stoke and Swansea all lose then Ajax and Basel could assure themselves of at least a play-off spot with a win.

At the bottom defeat for Sassuolo sees them relegated with a win for Monaco and a draw for Hamburg also condemning Sampdoria to the drop if they fail to win.

Division 4

Even tighter at the top than Div 3 nothing here can be decided at all after tonight’s games.

At the bottom however defeat for Levante will see them relegated.

Division 5

Villarreal are already assured Div 4 football next season but the title won’t be decided tonight. Victory for Feyenoord will mean they join Villarreal as would defeat for Hertha. Stuttgart could also go up if they win and Hertha lose.

Hertha will claim a play-off spot with a win tonight or a defeat for Olympiacos to Santos which would also see the Brazilians assured of a play-off berth, Sao Paulo could also claim a spot if they win and Olympiacos lose.

Nothing can be decided at the foot of the table with Augsburg, Twente and Bremen all still fighting to avoid finishing in the dreaded bottom 2.

Putin Cup - Match Day 10 Update

Thu, 28 Apr 2016 08:29:00 +0100

The concluding fixtures saw a dramatic end to the Putin Cup with Dynamo having completed their fixtures powerless to effect the outcome and only being able to hope that Spartak could do them a favour by taking at least a point from Lokomotiv.

CSKA Moscow 0 v 2 Zenit

CSKA who until their last two fixtures looked like contenders for the cup hosted a Zenit side still looking to get their first points on the board.

The visitors recent improvement continued as they got off to the perfect start on 9 minutes when Van Ginkel latched on to a ball from Danny hitting it first time to give Valdes no chance in the CSKA goal.

CSKA weren’t going to make it easy though with Lodygin being called into action to prevent efforts from Benteks and Djuricic from levelling things.

Zenit however sealed victory in the second half when on 67 minutes Danny again was the provider this time for Dzyuba whose first touch took him past his marker before rifling a shot past Valdes.

A late effort from Dos Santos nearly gave the hosts the goal that their play had deserved but again found Lodygin on form in the Zenit net.

CSKA Chief Smith will be glad to see the back of this tournament that for so long promised so much and can now concentrate fully on their Div 3 promotion push, for Hassan he will be pleased to have finally broken their duck in the tournament and will hope they can carry the form into their push to move safely away from the Div 2 drop zone.

Spartak Moscow 1 v 2 Lokomotiv Moscow

It was a must win game for Loko who were looking for 3 points to overhaul Dynamo and clinch the Putin Cup at the death.

It started well for the visitors when in the 9^thminute Mamaev threaded a ball through to Vucinic who stoked a sweet shot into the top corner beyond the despairing dive of Alvarado.

But the hosts weren’t going to lie down and within 4 minutes had drawn level, Popov neatly played in Berg who from close range made no mistake giving Guilherme no chance in the Loko goal.

If the nerves were beginning to jangle in the Loko camp they were eased on the 24 minute mark when Zurutza squared a ball to Mamaev who’s dipping shot left Alvarado stranded.

Having made it to half time with their lead in tact Loko came out for the second half with slightly less attacking intent and happy to absorb Spartak pressure and had Guilherme to thank on 50 minutes when he saved from a great Popov effort.

Spartak were struggling to make inroads into Lokos defense and when they did they found Guilherme equal to the challenge notably saving from Shirokov in the 73^rd minute which could have set up a grandstand finish.

But despite Spartaks efforts they could not find away through and as the referee blew the final whistle it signalled jubilant celebrations from the away supporters.

Dynamo Boss Razzaque can have no complaints at the effort that Spartak put into this game and manager Houston will be looking for that effort to be carried on into their Div 2 promotion push. For Loko Gaffer Owen he can look forward to planning for the World Club Cup and also transferring the clubs cup performances into the league.

Final Table	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts

Lokomotiv Moscow	8	5	2	1	10	4	6	17
Dynamo Moscow	8	5	2	1	9	4	5	17
Spartak Moscow	8	4	0	4	10	10	0	12
CSKA Moscow	8	3	0	5	5	8	-3	9
Zenit St Petersburg	8	1	0	7	7	14	-7	3

Putin Cup - Match Day 9 Update

Fri, 22 Apr 2016 08:05:00 +0100

Match Day 9 in the Putin Cup was a night of Moscow derbies with top two Spartak and Dynamo going head to head in their final group games to try lay claim to the cup whilst Lokomotiv and CSKA locked horns battling to keep themselves in the hunt.

Lokomotiv Moscow 2 v 1 CSKA Moscow

A Loko side who’s recent form in the competition has been on the rise hosted a CSKA side who have in the past weeks seen theirs slipping and were hoping that their visit to the Lokomotiv Stadium would reverse that trend.

With honours even through the opening exchanges the deadlock was broken in the 36^th minute Vucinic teed up Samedov who’s shot from the edge of the area beat the dive of the despairing Valdes to put Loko ahead.

It looked like they would carry that advantage into the interval until a teasing cross from Dos Santos was met on the full by Djuricic who’s header left Guilherme wrong footed and restored parity for CSKA on 42minutes.

In a nervy second half neither side were willing to push forward and expose themselves to the counter and with little in the way of attacking intent it looked like the game was going to fizzle out into a draw until the 83^rd minute when Samedov was on hand to turn a ball from Zurutuza passed Valdes for the winner.

Smith will be gutted as CSKA’s quest for the cup and World Club qualification ended tonight and will be looking to correct the dip in form which has also effected recent league results, Owen on the other hand knows that this result puts Loko’s cup destiny in their own hands going into their final fixture against Spartak.

Dynamo Moscow 2 v 1 Spartak Moscow

Spartak came to the Arena-Khimki hoping to find a Dynamo side still recovering from the hangover of their brave cup final defeat to Bayern whilst Dynamo were hoping to brush that set back aside in their quest for another chance of silverware.

There seemed to be no sign of mental or physical fatigue for the hosts who started strongly and took the lead in the 9^th minute when Denisov curled a free kick around the wall that Alvarado could only admire as it sailed past him and into the net.

Spartak were level on 28 minutes however when Popov laid a ball to Munoz who from fully 30 yards unleashed a thunderbolt that caught Victor completely off guard and out of his ground as it rifled over him and under the bar.

10 minutes into the second half and Dynamo regained the lead, Damari threading a neat ball through to Davis who struck the ball in his stride giving Alvarado no time to react.

The visitors pushed forward and began to dominate the closing stages as Dynamo tired, sensing the need to freshen things up Razzaque used his allocation of substitutions on the hour which did enough to inject the necessary energy to see out the final 30 minutes unscathed.

In a finely balanced game Spartak boss Houston will be bitterly disappointed to have come away without a share of the spoils and having relinquished their chance of winning the cup, for Razzaque this will have been the perfect tonic but knows that cup glory could once again be snatched away from him at the death and will hope tonight's visitors will do them a favour next week against Loko.

Match Day 9 Table	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts

Dynamo Moscow	8	5	2	1	9	4	5	17
Lokomotiv Moscow	7	4	2	1	8	3	5	14
Spartak Moscow	7	4	0	3	9	8	1	12
CSKA Moscow	7	3	0	4	5	6	-1	9
Zenit St Petersburg	7	0	0	7	5	14	-9	0

Match Day 9 Fixtures

CSKA Moscow v Zenit

Spartak Moscow v Lokomotiv Moscow

Putin Cup - Match Day 8 Update

Thu, 14 Apr 2016 18:08:00 +0100

With only two games left the Putin Cup is getting hotter than a Russian female shot putters under crackers and nearly has hairy, all is to play for with nothing yet, a bit like the contents of a Russian female shot putters under crackers !!!

Zenit 0 v 2 Lokomotiv Moscow

Zenit were looking to turn their improved form into consolation points whilst Loko were hoping to get back to winning ways after their week off from the action.

In a game with lots of huff but little puff the result was decided by goals at either end of the allotted 90.

Loko struck early when in the 9^th minute Samedov crossed for Zurutza to head past Lodygin but had to wait until the 88^thminute to finally settle things when Samedov turned provider for a carbon copy of his earlier goal with Granqvist this time applying the finishing touch.

Zenit Boss Hassan will be disappointed that his side didn’t show more in this fixture but is surely using them now as practise games whilst Loko Supremo Owen will be delighted to have made ground on Spartak and be breathing down the neck of Dynamo with a game in hand.

CSKA Moscow 0 v 1 Dynamo Moscow

Second met third in this Moscow derby which may go a long way to deciding if either of these two clubs will get their hands on the Putin Cup.

In a fairly evenly balanced encounter which hosts CSKA edged in terms of possession and goal scoring opportunities it was the visitors who were the only side to manage to convert when on 64 minutes Ari running onto a through ball from Ionov unleashed a fearsome drive from fully 25 yards that Valdes could do nothing about but admire.

Benteke had the only opportunity to make it all square 2 minutes later but after being wrong footed Victor did well to recover and save with his feet.

CSKA Manager Smith will be bitterly disappointed that his side couldn’t turn their chances into goals whilst opposite number Razzaque will just be glad to get another 3 points on the board to keep his side in pole position to take the trophy.

Match Day 8 Table	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts

Dynamo Moscow	7	4	2	1	7	3	4	14
Spartak Moscow	6	4	0	2	8	6	2	12
Lokomotiv Moscow	6	3	2	1	6	2	4	11
CSKA Moscow	6	3	0	3	4	4	0	9
Zenit St Petersburg	7	0	0	7	5	14	-9	0

Match Day 9 Fixtures – Weds 20^th April

Dynamo Moscow v Spartak Moscow

Lokomotiv Moscow v CSKA Moscow

Achilles Cup - Match Day 6 Update

Thu, 14 Apr 2016 17:27:00 +0100

The final group games in the Achilles Cup pushed it all the way in the race to qualify for the Final to see who progresses to the World Club Cup.

Fenerbahce 2 v 1 Galatasaray

In a must win game Fenerbahce raced out of the traps looking fully intent on ensuring they did what was needed to secure 3 points and hope that the Olympiacos could do them a favour at Besiktas.

With barely 60 seconds on the clock Diego raced onto a through ball from Callejon and rifled a shot from the edge of the area that flew past a stranded Muslara and in off the post to put the Yellow Canaries ahead.

This set the tone for the game with Fenerbahce constantly pushing for the cushion of a second but they had to wait until the 49^th minute when Callejon was again the provider this time for Potuk who made no mistake from close range.

The home fans celebrations were somewhat subdued with news having come through from the Vodafone Arena that Besiktas were ahead meaning if that result stayed the same the score here was meaningless.

Then after the hour the news came through that Olympiacos had equalised sparking the home fans into life, but with their destiny in their own hands nerves began to creep in to the hosts and in the 82^ndminute those nerves were put on edge when Pizarro set up Inan to finish sweetly and set up a tense finally.

Fenerbahce battened down the hatches determined to hold on to what they had and successfully saw out the final few minutes which culminated in an explosion of fireworks and flares as the home fans knew there team had just sneaked across the line at the death.

This tournament has never been a priority for Gala Boss Prince and he will be glad to be able to concentrate fully on league survival, Fenerbahce Chief Brown will now be hoping to see off their Greek opponents in the two legged final and take his side into the World Club Cup.

Besiktas 1 v 1 Olympiacos

Besiktas went into this game knowing a win was the only result that would definitely see them progress whilst Olympiacos had the comfort of being home and hosed, a point would be enough to ensure they topped the table and gained the 2^nd leg home advantage in the final.

Olympiacos looked like they had the cigar on in a first half that saw all the threat coming from the hosts who must have wondered how they managed to go in at the interval level with Wolfswinkel spurning a hat-trick of chances.

The hosts finally got their reward on 52 minutes Vazquez turned and struck a shit from the edge of the area that Kapino managed to get a glove to but was beaten by the power.

The home crowd who had been edgy up to this point erupted turning the stadium into a deafening cauldron of noise but just after the hour they were silenced, Mogilvets split the defence with a ball through to Benitez who kept his composure one on one against Zengin to slide the ball under the onrushing keeper.

Besiktas had no reply and as the clock ticked away their resolve visibly ebbed. The news had filtered through from Fenerbahce and at the final whistle to a man they looked visibly distraught as their Greek opponents celebrated around them.

Vogeleer will be devastated to have failed to qualify after being in the frame for the majority of the group stage, his opposite number McLean will be looking forward to locking horns with his countryman Brown in Achilles Cup final with a Highland twist.

Group Final Standings

	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts

Olympiacos	6	3	3	0	11	6	5	12
Fenerbahce	6	3	1	2	7	5	2	10
Besiktas	6	3	1	2	7	7	-3	10
Galatasaray	6	0	1	5	7	14	-7	1

Final 1^st Leg – Weds 20^th April

Fenerbahce v Olympiacos

Final 2^nd Leg – Wed 27^th April

Olympiacos v Fenerbahce

Achilles Cup - Match Day 6 Permutations

Fri, 08 Apr 2016 07:49:00 +0100

It has gone down to wire in the inaugural Achilles Cup and with just one game to play the only things that are known are that Galatasaray have won the wooden spoon and that Olympiacos are in the final, whether they will finish top of the group is yet to be decided.

As it Stands	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts

Olympiacos	5	3	2	0	10	5	5	11
Besiktas	5	3	0	2	4	7	-3	9
Fenerbahce	5	2	1	2	5	4	1	7
Galatasaray	5	0	1	4	6	12	-6	1

Match Day 6 Fixtures – Weds 13^th April

Besiktas v Olympiacos

Fenerbahce v Galatasaray

The permutations for the three clubs in contention are limited with the required results as follows.

Olympiacos – For the Greeks they just have to avoid being beaten by Besiktas in their final fixture to finish top of the table, no one would bet against it as they are unbeaten in their previous five outings in the competition.

Besiktas – They have their destiny in their own hands but need to win against Olympiacos to progress into the final, no mean feat considering the Greeks record. A draw wouldn’t be good enough if Fenerbahce win as their Turkish rivals have a superior goal difference.

Fenerbahce – The Yellow Canaries will only be singing if they win and Besiktas lose, any other result will see them as dead as a Norwegian Blue in a Monty Pythion sketch.

Predictions?

Given Galatasarys woeful form in the competition and home advantage I would expect Fenerbahce to be too strong for their opponents and to get the win they need.

A hard one to call in the other fixture given the previously mentioned impressive record of Olympiacos, it would be a brave or foolish man to bet against them completing the group stage unbeaten. Call me a fool because I have a feeling that with home advantage and a win at all costs situation the Black Eagles may find their Greek opponents without their foot fully on the gas pedal having already qualified.

Whichever way it goes good luck to all and may the ball run true.

Putin Cup - Match Day 7 Update

Thu, 07 Apr 2016 19:28:00 +0100

At the start of the evening a single point separated the top four teams and with Lokomotiv having the night off from the action it was a chance for the other three clubs to try and open up a gap at the top of the table.

Spartak Moscow 1 v 0 CSKA Moscow

This Moscow derby between the tables top two teams promised fireworks and is was aptly enough Spartak who showed most spark.

They took the lead on 10 minutes when Popov converted a penalty after a clumsy challenge by Lovren on Shirokov.

This looked by being the first of many as the CSKA defence was tested time and again by the hosts as they pushed forward. The visitors were content to counter attack whilst their back line held firm under the pressure but there chances of sneaking an equaliser evaporated in the 81^stminute when Carrillo was rightly shown a straight red after a disgraceful challenge on Shirikov.

Houston will be ecstatic as his Spartak side returned to the top of the table whilst CSKA supremo Smith will be desperately disappointed with his teams performance and the result which sees them drop out of the qualification places.

Dynamo Moscow 3 v 2 Zenit

Dynamo went into the game knowing a win would take them into the top two whilst Zenit were still looking for their first point of the tournament but buoyed by their previous performance against Spartak.

Zenit fans must have feared a landslide after Dynamo took the lead on 12 minutes through Valbuena and then an own goal by Neto on 23 minutes, but Zenit are made of sterner stuff these days and pulled a goal back 2 minutes later with a Villa strike.

Davis restored the two goal lead Dynamo for the hosts a minute after the interval but Dzyuba hauled Zenit back into the game within 2 minutes.

Despite their efforts Zenit couldn’t find the equaliser which on the balance of play they will feel they deserved.

Razzaque will take his side to CSKA next week needing a win to keep up the pressure at the top, Hassan on the other hand will be looking for his sides improved performances to translate into points in the remaining two fixtures.

Match Day 7 Table	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts

Spartak Moscow	6	4	0	2	8	6	2	12
Dynamo Moscow	6	3	2	1	6	3	3	11
CSKA Moscow	5	3	0	2	4	3	1	9
Lokomotiv Moscow	5	2	2	1	4	2	2	8
Zenit St Petersburg	6	0	0	6	5	12	-7	0

Match Day 8 Fixtures – Weds 13^th April

Zenit St Petersburg v Lokomotiv Moscow

CSKA Moscow v Dynamo Moscow

Achilles Cup - Match Day 5 Update

Thu, 07 Apr 2016 07:50:00 +0100

The penultimate game day in the Achilles Cup could have seen all matters resolved but as it turned out qualification is still on a knife edge for both Besiktas and Fenerbahce in what will be an exciting finish to the group on Match Day 6.

Olympiacos 5 v 2 Galatasaray

The Greeks went into this game knowing that a win would seal their place in the group final.

Olympiacos must have been confident of their unbeaten record standing up against the visitors winless one and so it turned out as the hosts put on a fine attacking display doubling their goal tally for the competition.

Soriano (5) and Fortounis (24) netted for the hosts before Yilmaz pulled one back for the Turks on 28 minutes. Then it became the Conca show with the Argentinian restoring the Greeks two goal advantage 12 minutes before the break and then extending it on 64 minutes. Osman looked to have restored some respectability to the score line for Gala with a strike on 82 minutes but a minute later Conca completed hi hat-trick.

Olympiacos chief McLean will be delighted to have qualified with a game to spare and will be more than pleased with the style in which it was done, seeing Conca finally find his scoring touch since his move from Shanghai will be a welcome bonus. Gala boss Prince must feel the sooner this Achilles Cup campaign finishes the better and concentration can be given fully to steering the club away from the drop zone in Division 2.

Fenerbahce 3 v 1 Besiktas

The hosts went into this game knowing anything short of a win would realistically end their ambitions of progressing in the tournament whilst the visitors were looking to book their place in the final with anything other than a defeat.

The crowd were determined to play their part with over eleven thousand roaring on their teams. If there were any nerves in either camp they didn’t show with both teams settling in well to an even first half that ended with the Fenerbahce ahead through a Schennikov goal on 13 minutes.

The hosts weren’t content to sit back and came out for the second 45 minutes with more purpose and intent. Toni doubled their lead on 53 minutes before Onazi pulled Besiktas back into the game on 62 minutes, then 10 minutes before the end Martinez sealed the win for the home side with a superb strike to the delight and relief of the Yellow Caries supporters.

Fenerbahce gaffer Brown knows that qualification isn’t in their own hands but must go into their last game against Galatasaray with confidence meanwhile opposite number Vogeleer knows his Besiktas side must match or better Fenerbahces result next week if they are to progress.

Match Day 5 Table	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts

Olympiacos	5	3	2	0	10	5	5	11
Besiktas	5	3	0	2	4	7	-3	9
Fenerbahce	5	2	1	2	5	4	1	7
Galatasaray	5	0	1	4	6	12	-6	1

Match Day 6 Fixtures – Weds 13^th April

Besiktas v Olympiacos

Fenerbahce v Galatasaray

Putin Cup - Match Day 6 Update

Fri, 01 Apr 2016 01:40:00 +0100

CSKA Moscow had the night off in the Putin Cup and Manager Smith will no doubt have been a happy man watching the results come in as his team remain top of the pile with the chasing pack concertinaing up behind.

Lokomotiv Moscow 0 v 0 Dynamo Moscow

Both clubs had the opportunity to jump into top spot going into this fixture and it proved to weigh heavy on the players in a nervy Moscow derby.

Dynamo had the better of the first half with CSKA keeper Guilherme pulling off saves from Adam, Ari, Ionov and Wesley whilst a sole effort from Soldado was the only real action Victor saw in the Lokomotiv goal.

The hosts faired better in the second half with Zurtuza and couple of efforts from Mamaev keeping Victor on his toes whilst Loko failed to register a single effort on target.

Both Owen and Razzaque will be disappointed not to be heading the table but will accept that a draw was a fair result on the overall balance of play which keeps both teams firmly in with a chance of progressing.

Zenit St Petersburg 2 v 3 Spartak Moscow

Zenit went into this game playing for pride whilst Spartak were hoping to regain ground at the top of the table that they had lost in recent weeks, in the end both Managers will believe they achieved their objectives.

Zenit took the lead on 12 minutes when Danny latched onto a through ball from Perez and placed his shot just beyond the despairing dive of Alvarado.

Lodygin in the Zenit goal made fine stops from Berg and twice from Costa before Alvarado was called into action again to prevent Danny from doubling his tally.

It looked like Zenit would make it to the break with their lead in tact but on 38 minutes Perez squared the ball to Shirikov who unleashed an unstoppable effort from outside the box which Lodygin could nothing but admire as the ball sailed past him into the net and sent the teams in at half time all square.

Spartak started the second half on the front foot and nearly stole the lead in 52 minutes when Promes whipped in a free kick which Soudani met on the full only to see Lodygin tip past the post.

The same pair combined again 4 minutes later to put Spartak into the lead, this time Soudani feeding Promes whose strong diagonal run into the right hand side of the area ended with a well placed effort that Lodgyin this time could do nothing about.

But Zenit weren’t prepared to lay down and their fighting spirit was rewarded on 69 minutes when Dzyuba met a cross from Kiyotake and planted his header passed Alvarado for the equaliser.

The home crowd had hardly finished celebrating when 2 minutes later Promes hammered a free kick through the jumping defensive wall and passed a despairing Lodygin.

This time Zenit had no response and Spartak comfortably saw out the remainder of the game with Alvarado not being called into action again.

Zenit boss Hassan will be pleased with the heart and at times enterprise shown by his players but knows the result now ends any faint hopes that may have lingered of progressing, his opposite number Houston will be buoyed by the steel his side showed in the face of determined opponents to grind out a win that puts them level on points but in second place to CSKA on goal difference who they meet next week.

Match Day 6	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts

CSKA Moscow	4	3	0	1	4	2	2	9
Spartak Moscow	5	3	0	2	7	6	1	9
Lokomotiv Moscow	5	2	2	1	4	2	2	8
Dynamo Moscow	5	2	2	1	3	2	1	8
Zenit St Petersburg	5	0	0	5	3	9	-6	0

Match Day 7 Fixtures – Weds 6^th April

Spartak Moscow v CSKA Moscow

Dynamo Moscow v Zenit