When Steven Gerrard collided with Atletico Madrid's Mariano Pernia in the third minute of injury time at Anfield Tuesday night, was Swedish referee Martin Hansen's decision to award a penalty influenced by the deafening cry from The Kop? Or was it to compensate for the incident that Hansen failed to call in the first half […]

Matchday 4 should be a pivotal one as many groups may well be decided once the games are completed. Who needs a win and who can afford to slip? Let's take a look at Tuesday's games. Group A Roma need to win at home against Chelsea but that is looking to be a tall order […]

In what has to be considered a poor decision, the UEFA Appeals Body has reduced the initial three-match stadium closure to a two-match behind closed doors sentence, with one match deferred for two years. Consequently, Atlético must play their next home fixture in the Champions League, against PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday November 26th, without any […]

It's a pretty safe bet Madrid's Vincente Calderon Stadium will be at capacity today when Liverpool visits for its Champions League Group D match against Atletico Madrid. Shame. You never get a second chance to make a first impression, and UEFA will never get a second chance to make its first major stance against racism […]

The group stage of the Champions League begins today with several intriguing matches as well as the return of Chelsea and Liverpool to continental football. Be sure to set your DVRs for the following matches on TV today in the United States (all times eastern). Bordeaux vs. Chelsea: 2:30pm ESPN2/ESPN360.com Sporting Lisbon vs. Barcelona: 2:30pm- […]

Schalke, currently sitting at the top of the Bundesliga, have surged ahead to the peak of another, less prestigious table – the goalkeeper injury table. First choice keeper Manuel Neuer has yet to make an appearance this season, having broken his fifth metatarsal during a pre-season friendly against SpVgg Erkenschwick (currently playing in the equivalent […]

I'll have more analysis and comments later but for now just a quick update on the results of today's drawing. Some of the groupings, as in past seasons, was almost a bit too predictable but there are some interesting matchups ahead (Real Madrid – Juventus springs to mind as does Manchester United – Celtic and […]

After leading 1-0 from the first leg, Schalke had to have had some confidence going into Madrid for the second leg. A strong performance from Atletico saw them thump the German team 4-0 to advance to the group stage for the first time since 1996-97. I had picked Atletico as my 'dark-horse' team in the […]

While you're enjoying EPL Talk, don't forget to check out the sister sites in our network for a taste of German, Italian, Spanish, European and American soccer. Bundesliga Talk has the statistics comparing Schalke to Atletico Madrid for the most enticing Champions League third round qualifying match. Another new article written by Bundeliga Talk correspondent […]

Yesterday was the draw for the 3rd qualifying round of the Champions League, the last hurdle before the group stages commence. There are plenty of interesting ties (Steve McClaren's FC Twente vs. Arsenal topping the list), but in pure footballing terms the best fixture pits Schalke 04 against Atletico Madrid. Neither is the most accomplished […]

Although the Champions League Second Qualifying Round is still underway, the draw for the Third Round took place today and it has presented us with some very interesting matchups. The marquee matchup has to be FC Schalke 04 against Club Atletico de Madrid but the Arsenal – FC Twente fixture will garner much attention from […]

Fred Rutten isn't the only new Dutch manager in the Bundesliga, as ex-Tottenham Martin Jol took over the reigns of Hamburg earlier this month. It's been nearly 30 years since Jol's last appearance in Germany. He made 9 appearances for Bayern Munich as a midfielder in 1978/79 before returning to the Netherlands the next season. […]

Take a look at this article that came out today on ESPNsoccernet about Manchester City striker Rolando Bianchi:ROME, Dec 28 (Reuters) – Italian striker Rolando Bianchi aims to reach double figures at Manchester City this season but does not plan staying in the Premier League in the long term.'I hope to score at least 10 […]