Champions League Wednesday Preview

September 17th, 2008 by SM Dev (Ste)

UEFA Champions League, Matchday 1:

• September 17th, 2008 14:45 (Eastern)
• Live on US channels
  

Wednesday evening heralds the second instalment of the opening round of group games in the Champions League, and if the excitement and action matches Tuesday’s fixtures then football fans are in for a treat.

After Liverpool and Chelsea both got off to winning starts, it is now down to reigning European champions Manchester United, their Premier League rivals Arsenal and SPL title holders Celtic to continue flying the British flag.

United begin the defence of the crown they so dramatically won in Moscow in May at home to Spanish side Villarreal in Group E. Sir Alex Ferguson has Cristiano Ronaldo back at his disposal for the first time this season, and the Portuguese wing wizard’s return to action at Old Trafford will be awaited with great anticipation following the summer soap opera that was his future. A tough task awaits The Red Devils in the shape of Manuel Pellegrini’s team, which contains former United striker Giuseppe Rossi.

Arsenal start their campaign in the Ukraine with a trip to Dynamo Kiev – a side they have not beaten away in this competition in two attempts under Arsene Wenger. However, the last time that happened was in the 2003-04 season and Dynamo’s exit from last year’s competition without a single point will give The Gunners confidence. They have travelled without Samir Nasri and Mikael Silvestre who are both injured, but have Gael Clichy and Emmanuel Eboue back for the clash.

Gordon Strachan’s Celtic side welcome Danish outfit Aalborg to Parkhead for the commencement of their campaign, and the visitors are managed by former Scotland captain Bruce Rioch. It is a game Celtic are expected to win, especially with the daunting task of facing both Manchester United and Villarreal in their other games, and one which Rioch has said he would be happy to take a point from.

Elsewhere, Bayern Munich travel to Romania to face Steaua Bucharest while Lyon entertain Fiorentina in Group F, Luis Arargones takes Fenerbahce to Porto in Arsenal’s group, and there is an intriguing encounter in Group H where Juventus meet last season’s Uefa Cup victors Zenit St Petrersburg while Real Madrid take on BATE at El Santiago Bernabeu.

Click on the links for individual group previews and we will have live coverage of all the action on setantasports.com on Wednesday evening.

Group E:
Manchester United v Villarreal
Celtic v Aalborg

Group F:
Steaua Bucharest v Bayern Munich
Lyon v Fiorentina

Group G:
Porto v Fenerbahce
Dynamo Kiev v Arsenal

Group H:
Juventus v Zenit St Petersburg
Real Madrid v BATE

TV Coverage:

These matches will be show live on US (all times Eastern):

Posted in: World Soccer News

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