DAMIR MIRVIĆ (RUSELAR) tipuje Belgisku 2.ligu

Lomel je ubedljivo osvojio drugi period, čime je osigurao učešće u plej-ofu, ukoliko mu izmakne prva pozicija na kraju šampionata. Ovo je prvo kolo trećeg perioda, traje 12 kola, pa imajte u vidu da će Mons, Dender, Oud Heverle i ostali klubovi sa velikim ambicijama da jure treću “zvezdicu”.
Ovog vikenda prilično sam uveren u trijumf Dendera, bez obzira na to što je Turnaut napravio par iznenađenja u poslednje vreme.
DENDER – TURNAUT     1

Ipak, najsigurniji je kec na Antverpen, jer igra mnogo bolje od kako je jesenas promenio trenera, a i dolazi mu ekipa Turnaija, koja je već viđena u Trećoj ligi.

ANTVERPEN – TURNAI     1

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27-01-2011 20:45 Juventus - Roma

Taking The Coppa Seriously

Technically Juventus still remain in with a chance of winning the Scudetto but realistically the Bianconeri are fighting for a place in the top four in Serie A. With 35 points from 21 matches, Juve are currently stationed in sixth place and are nine points behind leaders Milan.

Results have been tough to gain since the start of the new year as after back-to-back hammerings by Parma and Napoli in the league, Luigi Del Neri's side won against Catania and Bari in the Coppa Italia and Serie A respectively before drawing a blank against Sampdoria at Genoa at the weekend. The suspicion is that Juve's season has collapsed, that they would struggle ever for a top-six finish.

Which is why, perhaps, Del Neri is so focussed on winning the Italian Cup as a possible back-up. Winning the competition would guarantee them a place in the Europa League next season and would also keep their confidence and motivation level high. Speaking in the pre-match press conference on Wednesday, the 60-year-old enthused just that.

“For us the Coppa Italia is a big stimulus and we have the obligation to honour the Coppa Italia to the full, regardless what the future looks like," explained Del Neri. "The match against Roma is going to be important. I expect Roma to come out and be highly motivated.

"Matches against Roma are always very intense on the pitch in terms of the support from the crowd. Therefore I have to pick a top-level team to play against them. The players most in form will play, this is because we want to qualify and keep on fighting to win the Coppa Italia.”

Looking For More Adventure

Roma's league campaign took some time to take off but the Giallorossi are now placed in a great position to challenge for the Scudetto. Perched on third spot in the league standings, Claudio Ranieri's side have 38 points from 21 matches and are six points behind leaders Milan.

The former Italian champions will head into tonight's Coppa Italia tie against Juventus on the back of three competitive wins and a victory in Turin will see them win their seventh game in eight. In the Round of 16 the Lupi defeated city-rivals Lazio 2-1 in Rome and will take a shot at the semis by winning in Turin tonight.

Coach Ranieri knows that it will be a tough match and despite Juve's recent troubles believes that the Old Lady have the potential to win. He said on Wednesday, "Juventus are a big side, a big contender, both in the championship and in the TIM Cup.

"We’re playing away from home, it’s a shame that we’re not in front of our own fans, but we’ll do all we can to return victorious.

"Juventus at home always play good football. Their squad is strong and built to win. We need to be aware that it’ll be a very difficult game. I’m not worried, just respectful towards them."

TEAM NEWS

Juventus

Paolo De Ceglio, Fabio Quagliarella and Luca Toni remain injured but Vincenzo Iaquinta has returned to fitness. Felipe Melo is also available for selection.

Marco Storari will start in goal and Milos Krasic and Simone Pepe will be on the two flanks in the midfield. Alessandro Del Piero and Amauri will be the forwards upfront in a 4-4-2 system.

Roma

Talisman Francesco Totti remains suspended and Adriano is injured. Mirko Vucinic and Marco Borriello will be the two strikers upfront with Jeremy Menez expected to line up behind them as the creator-in-chief.

Prediction

This is a tricky game to call. Although Juventus will have home advantage, Roma do have the quality to register a victory in Turin. The encounter could well go into extra-time and perhaps even penalties, but one suspects that Juve would eventually claw out with a win in the 30-minute period.

Juventus 2-1 Roma

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26-01-2011 22:00 Barcelona - Almeria

High Demands

Barcelona maintained their ferocious pace atop the Primera Division on Saturday night, blasting past Racing Santander 3-0 at Camp Nou to maintain their four point advantage over Real Madrid. Perhaps more pertinently, Pep Guardiola’s side showed that a shock midweek loss against Betis in the second leg of their Copa del Rey was a one-off, allowing la Blaugrana to approach Wednesday’s encounter against Almeria off the back of yet another win.

Los Verdiblancos posed Barca no problems. Pedro started the rout with less than 100 seconds on the clock, finishing a sweet passing movement from close range. Lionel Messi then exorcised the ghosts of a penalty miss against Betis by ramming a similar chance low into the visiting goal before the break, while Andres Iniesta was left to complete a simple win with time running out.

“Much effort is behind routine wins such as this, and playing in two competitions at once is very hard,” Guardiola explained after the weekend fixture. “Despite everything the team is always up and ready to generate a lot of chances.

“We dominated Racing with no problems. [It] was a dangerous game.”

After suffering elimination from the Copa del Rey at the quarter-final stage last season by Sevilla, Barca have already bettered that performance, but Guardiola is aware of the need for more players to step forward. “We need people in the squad to give us a hand because we are one step away from the final,” he said.

Under the charge of Guardiola, Barca have boasted a remarkable hunger to win every title on offer, and this edition of the Copa is no exception.

Showing Signs Of Improvement

Almeria started the season poorly, but after two months at the helm, Jose Luis Oltra finally has the Andalucian club playing in an improved manner. Success was first tasted in the early rounds of the Copa del Rey, but this fostered confidence that has been taken into the league, bearing significant fruit in recent league encounters.

Ten days ago Real Madrid were held to a 1-1 draw at the Estadio del Mediterraneo, doing Barcelona a great favour, and then at the weekend Almeria recorded their first league win at the venue all season, scoring an extremely precious 3-2 success over Osasuna.

“Anything to add is good, and the point against Real Madrid is best complimented by this win against Osasuna,” former Tenerife boss Oltra explained to the media after the game. “We are now fully into the [relegation] fight... The team is in good shape and we are competing well.”

Prior to Oltra’s appointment in the south of Spain, Juan Manuel Lillo saw his reign brutally cut short by a magnificent Barca performance at the Estadio del Mediterraneo. On that evening, la Blaugrana hit a staggering eight goals past the Andalucians, who were left thoroughly embarrassed by the whole affair.

Even in a more positive spell of form, Almeria will be doing well to keep this match competitive into the second leg.

TEAM NEWS

Barcelona

Carles Puyol is likely to be given the chance to sit this match out as he nurses a minor injury. Dani Alves is almost ready to return, but this match is expected to come just a little too soon. Jeffren Suarez is also absent.

Bojan Krkic and substitute goalkeeper Jose Pinto have been suffering from a stomach bug.

Almeria

Modeste M'Bami returns to the squad after suspension. Juanito, Juanma Ortiz and Marcelo Silva remain absent.

Prediction

Barcelona remain an almost unstoppable force. Last week’s loss at Betis was caused by complacency, and that will not be afforded on Sunday night’s fixture. Expect Pep Guardiola’s side to sweep away even an improved Almeria side.

Barcelona 3-0 Almeria

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26-01-2011 20:45 Napoli - Inter

Sky's The Limit For Napoli

Napoli are in the midst of a fairytale season as the former Italian champions are going great guns in all competitions. The only Italian team to qualify for the knockout rounds of the Europa League, the Partenopei are just four points behind league leaders and Italian giants Milan in Serie A and tonight have the chance to take a shot at the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia.

Napoli striker Edinson Cavani has claimed that they have set no particular objectives in stone for themselves, insisting that the Azzurri are ready for any challenge. Winning against Italian and European champions Inter tonight will pose a great and serious challenge but one suspects that the Neapolitans are ready for it.

Walter Mazzarri's side defeated relegation-threatened Bari 2-0 away from home in the league at the weekend and are in sight of their first Scudetto since 1990. That followed a 2-1 defeat of Bologna in the Round of 16 of the Coppa Italia, prior to which they had drawn with Fiorentina and triumphed over Juventus at the Stadio San Paolo.

Coach Mazzarri is intent on getting one over on Inter, who destroyed Napoli 3-1 at San Siro in a league encounter at the start of the new year, and enthused on Tuesday, "We have a very important game ahead of us tomorrow and we are playing a team of a high level, we cannot allow ourselves to become distracted.

"They [Inter] come off the back of a loss and so they will be very motivated and it's not often they mess up two games in a row. We need to be perfect to get through the round."

Has The Bubble Burst?

Udinese in Udine were said to be Inter's toughest test since Leonardo took over the coaching responsibilities at the Nerazzurri from Rafael Benitez on Christmas Eve and so it proved, as the Italian and European champions tripped to a 3-1 defeat to the Bianconeri in the league at the weekend.

Not only did it bring to a halt Inter's five-game winning run under the 41-year-old Brazilian tactician, it also forced them to go nine points behind leaders and arch-rivals Milan in the table and raised the debate on whether the Nerazzurri's bubble has burst.

Inter's defence looked shaky and the midfield didn't create too much, raising questions on how Leonardo will fix these problems in the coming weeks, especially in the absence of a number of key players because of injuries.

Some answers could be given tonight as Inter travel to Naples to take on a Napoli side they had hammered in Leonardo's first competitive game in charge of the Milanese team. The Beneamata didn't show too much of conviction in their last Coppa Italia encounter, just about edging past Genoa 3-2 in the Round of 16, and Leonardo knows that they would have to raise their level higher than that tonight.

"In their last games Napoli have done very well, even against us," said the Brazilian on Tuesday. "Playing at the San Paolo is something different. The fans are very passionate.

"It will be a tough game as they are a team in form. We want to do well in the Coppa Italia and we see this as an important game."

TEAM NEWS

Napoli

Mazzarri will carry on with his usual formation with three at the back and Edinson Cavani as the lone striker upfront with Marek Hamsik and Ezequiel Lavezzi playing behind him as the two main creative minds in the line-up.

Inter

Striker Diego Milito is unavailable for the trip to Naples and Julio Cesar, Wesley Sneijder and Walter Samuel remain injured as well. Philippe Coutinho has been included in the 20-man squad.

Prediction

This could potentially be one of the best games of the new year. Napoli will adopt their usual attacking philosophy while Inter coach Leonardo will target a win to sustain dreams of a treble triumph. Both sides will opt for attacking football and this could make for an interesting game. A narrow Inter win is likely be the eventual outcome.

Napoli 0-1 Inter Milan

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26-01-2011 20:00 Sevilla - Real

Maintain Defensive Intensity

The Copa del Rey is now approaching boiling point, and Wednesday night’s clash between Sevilla and Real Madrid arguably provides the most mouth-watering encounter to date. Los Nervionenses are the defending champions, while los Blancos are attempting to challenge Barcelona’s dominance of the domestic game and are desperate for any title to boost morale and appease fans after last term’s trophyless campaign.

Champions League football was the target of the Andalucians at the beginning of the campaign, but having dropped well off the pace, they will have to reassess their goals. Reaching the Europa League will certainly be considered attainable, and for Sevilla, the Copa provides the most direct route into the continent’s second tier competition.

Despite sacking coach Antonio Alvarez earlier this term, the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan side have not kicked on as they would have liked. A poor run of form immediately before Christmas has been alleviated somewhat by recent positive performances, including a 4-1 win over Levante on Saturday night, which have breathed new life into los Rojiblancos.

“We have to try to maintain that defensive intensity because if we score and defend well it can guarantee success,” Manzano explained after the weekend’s emphatic victory.

While other sides have approached the Copa with a cool attitude, the former Mallorca coach confirmed that his side are eager to succeed, stating: “The team will give their best to get a good result against Madrid, and we are desperate to get through to the final.”

This season has been riddled with disappointment for Sevilla to date; now provides the conquerors of Barcelona last term with another shot at glory this.

Going For Gold

The last major title lifted by Real Madrid came in season 2007-08, when they lifted the Primera Division crown, but since then they’ve been forced to watch frustrated as Barcelona have dominated the Spanish game. Attempting to redress the balance, Jose Mourinho is desperate for his side to claim any title in order to give fans of los Blancos some joy.

Even in the Copa del Rey, the capital side have attacked their matches with 100 per cent concentration, and the Portuguese coach even made changes at the weekend to allow some of his star players to rest their legs in preparation for what promises to be a difficult match in Sevilla.

Los Blancos have dropped four points off the pace of Barcelona in the Primera Division, but kept in the same ballpark as la Blaugrana with a difficult victory over Mallorca at the weekend. A smart finish from Karim Benzema gave the hosts a 1-0 victory on Sunday night, though the victory could have been made more comfortable had chances been taken.

“We did not play well and so we had difficulties,” Ricardo Carvalho told the press after the weekend’s narrow success. “The main thing was to win after a draw against Almeria but we have to play better.

“We must stay focused on playing better. We know that for Madrid it is important to win trophies.”

Having suffered an embarrassing exit last season against Alcorcon, los Blancos are clearly aiming to make it up to their fans by reaching their first domestic cup final since 2004.

TEAM NEWS

Sevilla

Gregorio Manzano has named the same 18 players who featured at the weekend in his squad and has added Alexis and Lautaro Acosta to his panel. Ivica Dragutinovic is yet to return, though he is training fully now.

Real Madrid

Sami Khedira has been named in a 23-man panel for this fixture. Pepe, Jerzy Dudek and Gonzalo Higuain have all been ruled out because of injury.

Emmanuel Adebayor signed for the club on Tuesday evening, though this match comes too soon for him.

Prediction

Undoubtedly this will be Real Madrid’s stiffest test in the Copa del Rey to date. Sevilla may not have displayed a good deal of consistent home form all season, but they’re starting to approach their best and will be confident after such an easy weekend success. Having knocked out Barcelona last term, los Nervionenses are not opposition to be taken lightly, but even if they achieve a good result on Wednesday night, they won’t have enough at the Bernabeu to eliminate Madrid.

Sevilla 1-2 Real Madrid

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