<div><figure class="external-image"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-591 aligncenter" src="/files/2009/10/lfc_beachball.jpg" alt="lfc_beachball" width="414" height="258"></figure></div>Matchday 3 sees some crucial match-ups but none may be more important at this stage than the Standard Liege – Olympiacos fixture. Arsenal look to be a lock for top spot in Group H but second place is wide open. A win today for Olympiacos would put them in the driver’s seat.
If they lose at home today against Arsenal, last season’s Eredivise champions AZ Alkmaar could be done. AZ are struggling this season, having already lost five of their ten Eredivisie matches and have only collected one point from the first two Matchdays. Coach Louis van Gaal, who guided them to the title last season, left in the summer to take over at Bayern Munich, and his successor Ronald Koeman, formerly of Barcelona, has not got the team playing at their best yet. Another loss would severely dent their hopes of even making the Europa League parachute spot.
Another club that has under-performed in recent outings is Liverpool. Life was not a beach for the Reds as a loss to Sunderland in the English Premier League on Saturday followed on the heels of a loss in the domestic league to Chelsea and a defeat in the Champions League to Fiorentina. The once-solid back four has many critics now and a loss to Lyon could have the fans and media calling for change.&nbsp; Rafa Benitez&nbsp; might be looking ahead to a crucial clash against Manchester United this coming weekend so it will be interesting to see what his team selection and formation will be. Benitez did indicate in his press conference on Monday that Fernando Torres would not be available so that will likely mean Dirk Kuyt starting up front on his own.
Full Tuesday schedule (my predictions in bold): 
AZ v Arsenal 
Barcelona v Rubin Kazan 
Debreceni v Fiorentina 
Inter Milan v Dynamo Kiev 
Liverpool v Lyon (DRAW) 
Olympiacos v Standard Liege 
Rangers v Unirea Urziceni 
VfB Stuttgart v Sevilla (DRAW)

Tuesday's Games To Watch: Liverpool-Lyon And Standard-Olympiacos

Tuesday's Games To Watch: Liverpool-Lyon And Standard-Olympiacos - World Soccer Talk

<div><figure class="external-image"><img loading="lazy" src="/files/2008/10/cltalk-podcast.jpg" alt="cltalk-podcast.jpg" align="right" width="250" height="280"></figure></div> I had a great conversation with Jonathan Starling of the Third Half podcast last week. We discussed the upcoming UEFA Cup group stage, UEFA’s stance on debt-laden clubs, the situation at Ajax and many other topics.
I’ve posted the Champions League Talk segment of the show <a href="http://www.podbean.com/podcast-download?b=91068&amp;f=http://championsleaguetalk.podbean.com/medias/web/aHR0cDovL21lZGlhNi5wb2RiZWFuLmNvbS85MTA2OC91L0NoYW1waW9uc0xlYWd1ZVRhbGsxLm1wMw/ChampionsLeagueTalk1.mp3" target="_blank">here</a> as a separate podcast file but if you’d like to hear the full show (which has segments with writers from Bundesliga Talk, La Liga Talk and Major League Soccer Talk), please download it from <a href="http://epltalk.libsyn.com/" target="_blank">EPL Talk podcast distribution site</a> or subscribe to the EPL Talk podcast feed via iTunes.

Champions League Talk On The Third Half Podcast

Champions League Talk On The Third Half Podcast - World Soccer Talk

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To say that Tottenham’s season had not got off to the best of starts would be an understatement and things don’t appear to be getting any easier for the north London side. Having managed just two points from their opening six matches Spurs have made their worst start to the season for over 50 years. The worrying sign for Tottenham fans is that there are no signs that they are beginning to turn things around. Against Portsmouth on Sunday they looked toothless and rarely threatened, the complete opposite to what some experts predicted at the start of the season when many thought Spurs would be one of the highest scoring teams in the Premier League this season.
Many of Tottenham’s expensive summer signings have failed to make any kind of impact with the likes of Giovanni and Luka Modric starting on the bench against Portsmouth on Sunday. Things won’t get any easier on Thursday night when they travel to Poland for their Uefa Cup first round, second leg tie against Wisla Krakow.

Anybody who was seen the Real Football Factories will know that the fans in Krakow take their football very seriously and there will be an intimidating atmosphere at the Stadion Wisly. On the pitch things don’t get any better for Tottenham with Wisla getting off to a brilliant start in their domestic league as they find themselves second, winning five of their seven games.
Spurs may hold a slender advantage over Krakow after their 2-1 victory in their home leg but the Polish side showed enough in that game to suggest that they may have enough to turn over their Premier League opposition. The odds are certainly stacked against Tottenham but they are still favourites in the <a href="http://betting.betfair.com/football/uefa-cup/uefa-cup-betting-very-different-fortunes-await-the-011008.html" target="_blank">Uefa Cup betting</a>.
Taking a glance at tonight’s ties you would have to think that one of the Premier League sides in action tonight will go out and other than Everton Spurs would have to be favourites to get the push. In fact it wouldn’t come as a surprise if both Everton and Tottenham found themselves without European football for the rest of the season.
The Toffees have been poor for the majority of the season, a perfect example of that coming against Liverpool at the weekend when they didn’t manage a shot on target. There is obviously something wrong with the Merseyside club because they have retained the same players from last season that nearly carried them to a Champions League spot.
Everton are a real mystery at the minute but there is clearly something wrong with the set-up and their opponents Standard Liege have already shown that they are capable of breaking down the Toffees. The 2-2 draw from the first leg also hands the Belgian side the advantage and they are clear favourites heading into tonight’s match as they look to take out their Champions League heartache at the hands of Liverpool out of their local rivals.
Its going to take a lot for these two English sides to come through their respective ties and make it into the Uefa Cup group stages and you certainly have to <a href="http://betting.betfair.com/football/uefa-cup/" target="_blank">bet on their European opponents.</a>

Tottenham And Everton To Continue To Struggle In Europe

Tottenham And Everton To Continue To Struggle In Europe - World Soccer Talk

<div><figure class="external-image"><img src="/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/liverpool-fc-crest2.jpg" alt="liverpool-fc-crest2.jpg" align="right" vspace="15" hspace="15"></figure></div>The draw for the third and final qualifying round of the Champions League has been made today with Liverpool drawn against Standard Liege.
The first leg will be played in Belgium on August 12th or 13th, while the second leg at Anfield is scheduled for August 26 or 27th.
Standard is one of the most popular clubs in Belgium and historically the third most successful club in the Belgian First Division. They are the current champions of Belgium.

Liverpool Discovers Opponents in Champions League Qualifying

Liverpool Discovers Opponents in Champions League Qualifying - World Soccer Talk

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Leagues: Champions League

Tuesday's Games To Watch: Liverpool-Lyon And Standard-Olympiacos

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Champions League Talk On The Third Half Podcast

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Tottenham And Everton To Continue To Struggle In Europe

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Liverpool Discovers Opponents in Champions League Qualifying