I'm sure Weir will be missed in an attacking sense though, his assist in the game against Holland was awesome.

I'm sorry, I couldn't resist.

Will Der Hammer be playing for Stuttgart?

Well to be fair few teams (or maybe no team) can hold a candle to Barca when it comes to ball possession.

Smug alert!

Aaaaaaaaaaand, in the 'brain? what brain?' category, we have Sporting's Vukcevic, who scored the equalizing goal for his team and took off his jersey to celebrate. Only problem with that is that he'd already picked up a yellow. So...Sporting have drawn even but now they're down to ten guys.

Messi publicly slagged off Rangers 2 seasons ago for that very reason.

I mean what do players like Henry, Messi and Xavi expect? Why are they offended when the majority of teams they face don't want to go 4-3-3 and open the game up, knowing full well they will get tonked by the Catalans?

It's only idiocy on the part of guys like Messi to publicly insult their opponents who play to their strengths and try to stop Barca. Only Barca can play like Barca.

so milan's the only italian team that won their game...who would've thought, lol

so milan's the only italian team that won their game...who would've thought, lol

Messi publicly slagged off Rangers 2 seasons ago for that very reason.

I mean what do players like Henry, Messi and Xavi expect? Why are they offended when the majority of teams they face don't want to go 4-3-3 and open the game up, knowing full well they will get tonked by the Catalans?

It's only idiocy on the part of guys like Messi to publicly insult their opponents who play to their strengths and try to stop Barca. Only Barca can play like Barca.

I wouldn't worry about that, Messi has the mental age of a 12 year old girl, he really does. He may not cheat like Ronaldo, but I've never seen somebody complain so much when he loses a ball.

So Rubin Kazan - cugini started a bit earlier than today's other CL matches. It's 1-1 in the 65th and Balotelli has just been sent off on accumulation of cards (second was a foul from behind). One of the few times i want to see that team actually do well and...this. oy.

Frightening, isn't it? But yeah, I do in this particular context. I want all the Italian squads to win so that we keep the coefficient high and have 4 entries (if they don't do well this year, we lose one and Germany gains one).

Forza Fiorentina
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OMG @ Barca's Pedro. another amazing player in the caliber of Xavi, Iniesta, Messi, etc etc etc rises from Barca's youth academy. what an absolutely great youth academy that is.

Rangers 1-4 Sevilla.. Sorry Danny, but it is quite funny.

^^I read on football italia that the two sets of fans have been twinned. I like Fiorentina a bit less now!

1-1!?!?!? Now I get why Mourinho wanted Zurich in his group!

Don't forget, hes te greatest coach EVA!!!

OMG @ Barca's Pedro. another amazing player in the caliber of Xavi, Iniesta, Messi, etc etc etc rises from Barca's youth academy. what an absolutely great youth academy that is.

Rangers 1-4 Sevilla.. Sorry Danny, but it is quite funny.

How did you feel about the arsenal-mancity game?

How did you feel about the arsenal-mancity game?

CL Debate: Stevan Jovetic & Fiorentina Show Dreadful Inter Just What They Are Missing
It was a mixed night for Italian clubs in Europe on Tuesday as Fiorentina beat Liverpool and Inter drew with Rubin Kazan. Carlo Garganese had a smile put on his face by the Viola, but is concerned about the Nerazzurri...

The month of September has taught us many things; from Kanye West being the biggest idiot in the world, to Roman Polanski perhaps regretting travelling to Switzerland, to Inter realising that they have about as much chance of winning the Champions League as they did last year (and the year before that…and the year before that…and the year before that…)

The reasons for Inter’s recent struggles in Europe have been debated until breaking point - too much pressure, not enough Italians, an inadequate midfield, no creativity. Some or all of these deficiencies were once again apparent yesterday evening as the Nerazzurri eked out a fortuitous 1-1 draw at Rubin Kazan.

With all due respect to the Russian champions, a tight unit who play very well as a team and possess a superb individual in Alejandro Dominguez – who scored a brilliant opener – these are the kind of teams that Inter must be beating convincingly.

The fact they were second best even before Mario Balotelli’s somewhat harsh red card on the hour mark, and only earned a point thanks to the woodwork and some horrific finishing, is a real concern.

Injuries played their part, as Thiago Motta, Wesley Sneijder and Diego Milito were all sidelined, but there are now question marks as to whether Inter will even escape from the group stages, let alone make a significant impact in the knockout stages. As things stand Jose Mourinho’s men possess two points more than they deserve on merit.

If ever they required a lesson on how to play in Europe it arrived from the most unlikely of sources last night as Fiorentina produced their best European performance since the days of Gabriel Batistuta to blow away Liverpool 2-0 at the Stadio Franchi in Group E.

The star of the show was teenage wonderkid Stevan Jovetic, who scored both goals and ran the English side ragged – earning comparisons to the Viola’s hero of the late 1980s Roberto Baggio. If there is one player who Inter are in desperate need of it is a Jovetic locating space between the midfield and attack, running at the defence, slipping through passes, and finishing like a hitman.

Mourinho could have signed Antonio Cassano, but instead he opted for the ‘safe’ option in Wesley Sneijder. While the Dutchman has barely featured this season due to injury, it is clear that Inter have looked better when he has played. The only problem is that while Sneijder is good, he is not good enough to build your team around. Coupled with the fact that the ex-Real Madrid man is not a natural trequartista, and that he is incredibly injury-prone, and the end result is that Inter are starting to look not too much different to last season in terms of overall quality.

The knives for Italian football were already starting to come out following Inter’s sorry showing, and rightfully so. After all, this was supposedly Italy’s best team – what hope was there for the rest of the Calcio gang?

Thankfully, Fiorentina restored some pride in Serie A, and also shut up some premfaced SKY pundits like Phil Thompson, who hilariously said beforehand that the Viola were “on the same level as West Ham”, by not just beating the mighty Liverpool but trouncing them in an irresistible first half display.

The Tuscans played the kind of football that many people believe needs to be exhibited more in Europe by Italian clubs – it was fast, flowing, one-touch, direct at times, and clinical. Liverpool didn’t know what had hit them. Alessandro Gamberini marked Fernando Torres as well as any defender ever has, while Cristiano Zanetti was a class act in midfield.

If Fiorentina can now win their home and away double-header against Debrecen, they will be in a wonderful position to qualify for the last 16, which considering the miserable summer transfer campaign and sale of star man Felipe Melo to Juventus will be a fine achievement in a group containing Liverpool and Lyon.

As for Inter, they should still have more than enough to also reach the second round, but as the tension rises so do the doubts about whether the Nerazzurri are any better than they were last season.

What are your views on this topic? What do you make of last night’s games, and Inter and Fiorentina? Goal.com wants to know what YOU think…

Carlo Garganese, Goal.com

Rangers 0 - 0 Sevilla (Fishdoll fins up to Danny for staying level but why were the rangers guys fighting amongst themselves?)

Rangers 1-4 Sevilla.. Sorry Danny, but it is quite funny.

Denied a stone wall penalty, which would have made it 1-0 at half time had it been scored.

No excuses though, our defence caved in disgracefully when we lost a goal thanks to another hopeless decision of a goal kick when the bloody ball went out off 2 Sevilla defenders. They went up our end and scored.

Should have won that game - we outplayed Sevilla ffs.

I hope they don't go on to prove me wrong but... Inter=European failure! what they need to get to rule Europe is another Calciopoli, or better say a Europoli, which is never gonna happen

Italian media tear into Mourinho Wednesday 30 September, 2009

what do you think of fabiano scoring against rangers

Further evidence of why Milan should have signed him. Not least because the bugger wouldn't have been playing against Rangers haha.

true, but you have to admit, he was presented ALOT more chances then hunter does with in balls from Navas/adriano/konko and gives by Freddy, he is getting alot more attention from his team mates

It's true that a striker needs chances to score, to actually get goals, I agree there. But Hunter isn't appearing capable of the rest of the game Fabiano is so good at, like holding up the ball, winning headers, making runs behind the defence.

Being a striker is more than just goals. Which is why Kris Boyd at Rangers is such a controversial figure.

Remember folks, if Klass lives up to his name, I'll be the first one to say 'yup folks, I was well wrong, I was totally off the mark' because Milan's future and performances and health are way more important than my opinion or whether I'm right or wrong.

But I can't see it happening at the moment.

1-1!?!?!? Now I get why Mourinho wanted Zurich in his group!

Sevilla and Lyon are playing great football at the moment! Do you still watch Sevilla?

Denied a stone wall penalty, which would have made it 1-0 at half time had it been scored.

No excuses though, our defence caved in disgracefully when we lost a goal thanks to another hopeless decision of a goal kick when the bloody ball went out off 2 Sevilla defenders. They went up our end and scored.

Should have won that game - we outplayed Sevilla ffs.

Milan Defeat To Zurich Is 'Very Good' For Real Madrid - Kaka
The Brazilian says finishing top of Group C is very important...

Real Madrid midfield playmaker Kaka has said that FC Zurich's shock UEFA Champions League win over his former club Milan is good news for Los Blancos, who consolidated their position as Group C leaders with a comfortable 3-0 win over Marseille at the Bernabeu.

"For us it was very good that they lost because we are first in the group with two games to come against Milan and qualifying and topping the group depends on us. It is very important to top the group," Kaka said according to Goal.com Spain.

Kaka scored Madrid's second from the penalty spot against Marseille after man-of-the-match Cristiano Ronaldo, who scored two, was hacked down by Souleymane Diawara, who was sent off for a second bookable offence.

Afterwards the Brazilian praised his Portuguese team-mate for leading the way and said patience was the key to unlocking the Marseille defence.

"Games aren't always easy. The first half was difficult for us but with a little patience and a goal from Cristiano Ronaldo things got easier," added Kaka.

Paul Madden, Goal.com