La Liga

UEFA Cup 2008-09 Group Stages draw

The draw for the group stages of the 2008-09 UEFA Cup has been made, and we have some excellent fixtures within.

Portsmouth, in their debut season in Europe, will get a chance to play AC Milan at Fratton Park. Pompey are in Group E along with Herenveen, Braga and Wolfsburg.

There are eight groups in all, and 3 teams from each group qualify for the next round. They will be joined by the eight third placed teams in each Champions League group.

Group A :-

Schalke ( Germany)
Paris St.Germain ( France)
Manchester City ( England)
Racing Santander ( Spain)
FC Twente ( Netherlands)

Group B :-

Benfica ( Portugal)
Olympiakos ( Greece)
Galatasaray ( Turkey)
Hertha Berlin ( Germany)
Metalist Kharkiv ( Ukraine)

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Villareal 1-0 Celtic- Group E- 30/9/08- Champions League

A stunning second half free kick from Marcos Senna gave Villareal a crucial 1-0 win over Scottish giants Celtic in a Group E Champions League encounter on Tuesday night at El Madrigal. In the other Group E fixture, Manchester United beat Aalborg 3-0, with Dimitar Berbatov grabbing a brace.

Gordon Strachan swapped his 4-4-2 for a 4-2-3-1, with Greek striker Samaras playing alone upfront, and Shaun Maloney and Aiden McGeady on the wings. The Hoops played well in the first half, and had a glorious chance to go ahead just before the break, but Villareal goalkeeper Diego Lopez denied Samaras after a moment of madness from Submarines defender Godin.

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Benfica loan Jose Antonio Reyes

Portuguese giants SL Benfica have announced the signing of Atletico winger Jose Antonio Reyes on a season long loan. The former Arsenal player, deemed surplus to requirements after just one season at Vicente Calderon, becomes Benfica’s fourth summer signing after Pablo Aimar, Carlos Martins and Javier Balboa. Benfica have paid €2.65 million for 25% of Reyes’ playing rights, with an option to buy the remaining 3/4th when the loan spell ends.

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