The Champions League is almost upon us again. Any thoughts on how Basel will do against Deportivo? It is at home which should benifit Basel some, but Deportivo has been playing meaningful games for a while now. Basel has been playing only friendlies. It will be interesting to see how sharp they will be. Plus Antonio Esposito will be out with injury. http://www.uefa.com/competitions/UCL/news/Kind=1/newsId=52276.html I think a 1-1 or 2-2 tie would be good. It would give Basel some confidence, which they could then take into the later games.
Absolutely, a tie gains little. To advance, they must overtake Deportivo. They must win at home, and gain at least a tie in La Coruna. Long odds, but little choice.
Long odds indeed, but there are also points to be gained for the Uefa league ranking. We got the 2 CL spots back - now we gotta keep 'em.
I am hoping for a win, but it will be difficult. If they do get three points, that could give them confidence with the last three games. A tie in Spain would mean 4 points. With games against Juve at home and at Man U, third place ispossible, but this game is pivitol.
Good news for Basel. César Martín the Spanish international defender for Deportivo will miss the game because of an injury he picked up in wednesday's friendly of Spain agianst Germany. He injured his groin. He is going to be out of both games. This could help a lot. Martin is a mainstay in defence. Four points from the two games became a little more possible. Link: http://www.uefa.com/competitions/UCL/news/Kind=1/newsId=54231.html
Bad news for Basel. Zurich beat them 3-0 over the weekend, with a good number of the first team Basel players in the game. Not the best way to go into a pivitol CL game.
I got a bad feeling about this. It doesn't seem Basel is ready yet after the winter-break. All the test games they had didn't go very well (like losing 3-1 to Sturm Graz) and this last game dogpiles on those other showings. The big question in the press today is the health status from Murat Yakin, as he didn't exactly have a great game against FCZ. Looks like my game prediction is far-fetched to say the least...
If Basel was to win in wednesday, that would give them three points. I imagine that Man U will beat Juventus, as Juve has the flu running around its camp and a bunch of players wont play. That would leave the standings like this. Man U 9 points Juve 4 points Basel 3 points DC 1 point With awin, things are still possible for Basel, but with their recent form, I think it would be a strech
Here is what UEFA.com says about the match. It should be great! http://www.uefa.com/competitions/UCL/fixturesresults/round=1637/match=1038249/Report=PR.html
I never really thought about the impact of the weather in Basel. This might give Basel the edge that they need. Also, Deportivo needs to win this game as well - so there might be space for counters.
It worked for the USMNT in Columbus vs Mexico, it could work for Basel. One of the biggest questions that is being asked is of Basel are they mentally ready for a game despite not playing a game that means something for two months? http://www.uefa.com/trainingground/News/Kind=8/newsId=54804.html This could have a huge effect on the game. Last week, the USMNT was not ready to play the first 15 minutes against Argentina, and they were quickly down 1-0. They were also coming off a long break, like Basel. Lets hope the same thing doesn't happen to Basel today.
Indeed. Let's also hope that Roy Makaay has a bad day. Christian Gross is right, the opening minutes will be a mental test for Basel. But I am confident - Gross is a great motivator.
The game can be followed on uefa.com's matchtraker feature. Go to their main page, and clik on the "Full" feature for the game. It is free. If you want, you can subscribe to the MatchPass feature. This allows you to listen live to the games in English. Also shortly after the game, it is possible to see highlights on Uefa.com. Just go to the game you want, and click on the highlights.