Spanish quartet eye another Champions League sweep
Spain's four Champions League clubs all posted wins on matchday one and a repeat clean sweep could be on the cards this week, despite a couple of difficult fixtures.
Spain's four Champions League clubs all posted wins on matchday one and a repeat clean sweep could be on the cards this week, despite a couple of difficult fixtures.
Defending champions Real Madrid will expect to ease past Genk at the Bernabeu in group C on Wednesday following their impressive 3-0 win at AS Roma, while Valencia are playing so well that even a tough group B trip to Spartak Moscow on the same night should not prove a problem.
Deportivo Coruna, who ended Bayern Munich's 29-game unbeaten home run in the competition with a superb 3-2 win last week, face more big name opposition in the shape of visiting AC Milan in group G on Tuesday.
Barcelona have probably the hardest job of the quartet when they play Galatasaray in Istanbul in group H, also on Tuesday.
Ronaldo looks set to take his place in the Real squad for the first time since his 45 million euros ($46.08 million) move from Inter Milan, though the defending champions hardly look to be in need of his firepower.
So far this season they have scored six goals in their two completed league games, three in the Super Cup another eight in a King's Cup match and the three in Rome last week.
Ronaldo, who turned 26 on Sunday and could start on the bench, promised goals for his new club. "There won't be any excuses if I don't score, I'm certain about that," the Brazilian said in an interview in the Spanish daily ABC on Sunday.
Roma visit AEK Athens in Wednesday's other group C match.
Barcelona had to work hard for a 3-2 home win over Club Bruges last week but had a satisfying 2-0 victory over city rivals Espanyol on Saturday.
They will also look to last year's Champions League for extra confidence against Galatasaray, impressive 2-0 victors at Lokomotiv Moscow.
Luis Enrique's goal gave the Spaniards a 1-0 away win in the final group game last year to send them into the quarter-finals at Galatasaray's expense.
In the other group H game Bruges host Lokomotiv with both sides seeking their first point.
Last season's runners-up Bayer Leverkusen are having a torrid time -- no surprise after they sold their two best players, Germany's Michael Ballack and Brazilian Ze Roberto, to arch-rivals Bayern Munich during the close season.
Saturday's 3-2 defeat at Werder Bremen left them fourth-last in the Bundesliga and they are still reeling from last week's 6-2 thrashing at the hands of Olympiakos Piraeus.
On Tuesday they host Manchester United in group F, a repeat of last year's two legged semi-final, which the Germans won on the away goals rule.
United thumped Maccabi Haifa 5-2 last week but had to work hard for a 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur in the English premier league on Saturday after again struggling to turn chances into goals.
Olympiakos will hope to consolidate their place on top of the group with a win against Haifa, the match being played in Cyprus for security reasons.
Bayern Munich got back to winning ways domestically, beating Energie Cottbus 3-1 to stay clear at the top of the Bundesliga, but are by no means guaranteed victory at RC Lens on Tuesday after the French side played well in their 2-1 loss at AC Milan.
Arsenal were comfortable 2-0 group A winners over Borussia Dortmund in their opener, but needed an injury-time goal by Nigerian Nwankwo Kanu to beat Bolton Wanderers and maintain their place at the top of the premier league.
They travel to PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday, with Dennis Bergkamp making the trip to his homeland, while Dortmund host AJ Auxerre in the group's other match.
England's two other contenders -- Liverpool and Newcastle United -- lost their opening fixtures 2-0, but both bounced back with premier league wins by the same score on Saturday.
Liverpool, outplayed by Valencia, made hard work of beating West Bromwich Albion and will hope Michael Owen quickly recovers his scoring touch, preferably at home to Basel in their group B match on Wednesday.
Newcastle were similarly outclassed at Dynamo Kiev in group E, but had a local derby premier league win over Sunderland to lift morale ahead of Tuesday's home game against Feyenoord.
Kiev travel to Juventus, who drew 1-1 with the Dutch club last week, in the other group E game.
Group D leaders Ajax Amsterdam visit Inter Milan in a repeat of the 1972 final, while French side Olympique Lyon are at home to Rosenborg Trondheim of Norway in the group's other match.