

Champions League
Vacation Extends Through Weekend
By: Greg |The league international break continues through the weekend and the next meaningful league matches are going to be played at the end of next week.
European competitions (ie Champions League) start “for real” this coming week with Sporting taking on Barcelona and Porto host Turkish outfit Fenerbahçe.
I’m going to Virginia for work [...]
Champions League Groups Set
By: Greg |With Guimarães losing to FC Basel 1893 last night, Porto and Sporting stand alone as the sole Portuguese representatives in this season’s iteration of the UEFA Champions League.
At the draw, UEFA officials made sure to remind us that a cloud exists over Porto’s participation this year due to their implication in the Golden [...]
Vitória de Guimarães For The Portuguese Trifecta?
By: Greg |It’s Judgement Day for Smokin’ Manny Cajuda and his boys from Guimarães. Tonight (locally), they square off against FC Basel 1893 at St. Jakob Park in Switzerland for the right to play in the group stages of this year’s Champions League tournament.
The first match, played at Estádio D. Afonso Henriques in Portugal, [...]
Workweek In Review: 8/11 – 8/15
By: Greg |Since I only blog during the week (sorry, I get even MORE drunk on the weekends than on work days, so I probably couldn’t even find my computer on a Saturday if I wanted to) I figured that calling this “Week In Review” would be short changing you two days. During the season you’ll [...]
UEFA Qualifier “Fun” Time
By: Greg |I don’t understand how they find these matches to be played on equal terms. Certain leagues are in full swing (Guimarães faced a team last night that had played six real matches already to Guimarães’ zero) and thus the players are definitively match fit and past “preseason” mode. Guimarães six matches into the [...]
Joh-Zay Mourinho Rooting for Vitória de Guimarães
By: Greg |Since Mourinho, like the Irishman “Stephen” from Braveheart, speaks directly with God (and makes sure that God picks up Jose’s Armani suits from the cleaners), whenever a quote comes out of his mouth, it’s transcribed directly into the Gospel According to Mourinho. This time, however, the gospel writers were on lunch so the Inter [...]
Some Benfica Bits and Times, They Are A Changin’
By: Greg |Benfica 2 – 1 Vitoria Guimarães — Benfica have had an exciting transfer period with a round of crappy pre-season results thrown in. Before defeating Vitoria Guimarães last night 2-1, the Encarnados had been winless with two draws and two defeats.
Given their massive changes in both coach and personnel, Benfica have had [...]
UEFA Competition Draws Released, Assume the Position
By: Greg |I understand that monster clubs like Barcelona, Arsenal, and Liverpool are actually involved in the third qualifying round for the Champions League this year. I know that they’re easily super odds-on favorites to make it to the group stages. However, a quick glance at the majority of teams involved in these rounds tells [...]
Do You Buy Into The “New” Benfica?
By: Greg |In the past fifteen seasons, Benfica have won only two league championships and two league cups. After this most recent, disastrous campaign when they finished fourth and “qualified” for the UEFA Cup, Benfica’s powers that be decided that it was time to take a new direction. They decided to be somewhat bold and [...]
Final Decision Handed Down On Porto’s Champions League Participation This Year
By: Greg |After a whole ass load of “they’re in” and “they’re out” conjecturing, the Court of Arbitration for Sport has informed UEFA that in spite of the evidence brought forth by Portuguese giants Benfica and flavor of the month Vitória de Guimarães, Porto are to participate in this year’s iteration of the Champions League tournament. [...]






