Malmo FF vs. AZ Alkmaar UEFA Europa League preview
Malmo FF are already out of the running for a UEFA Europa League round of 32 place, but the Swedish club will look to end a shaky run in Group G against an AZ Alkmaar side without a European away win since 2007.
The Dutch side won 4-1 when the teams met for the first time on matchday one. Jozy Altidore found the target with a tremendous long-range strike 21 minutes in, and Rasmus Elm (32) converted a penalty against his compatriots before Adam Maher (39) beat Johan Dahlin for a third time before the break. Brett Holman’s great run and finish (49) made it 4-0, with Daniel Larsson’s reply from the spot (72) little consolation for Malmö.
Malmo have played two-legged ties against Dutch sides twice, losing out to Feyenoord (agg: 5-1) in the second round of the 1979/80 UEFA Cup and AFC Ajax (agg: 3-2) in the 1986/87 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup quarter-finals. In terms of individual games, their record is W1 D1 L3 (W1 D1 L0 at home).
AZ’s only previous experience of Swedish opposition came in last season’s UEFA Europa League third qualifying round, where they eliminated IFK Göteborg, winning 2-0 in the Netherlands before a 1-0 defeat in Gothenburg.
Malmo have won only once in seven European games since beating Rangers FC in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League third qualifying round. A 2-0 victory against GNK Dinamo Zagreb could not make up for a 4-1 loss in the first leg of their play-off tie, and they have lost all four of their UEFA Europa League group stage games.
AZ aAlkmaar re eager to bring an end to a 14-game wait for a victory on the road in European competition; they have recorded six wins and eight defeats on their continental travels since winning 1-0 at FC Paços de Ferreira in a 20 September 2007 UEFA Cup first round game
Celtic FC vs. Atletico de Madrid UEFA Europa League preview
Atletico de Madrid will complete their passage to the UEFA Europa League round of 32 if they can record a second Group I win against Celtic FC in the sides’ sixth continental meeting.
Goals from summer signings Falcao (3) and Diego (68) secured the 2009/10 winners a 2-0 victory when the sides met on matchday one. Atletico remain unbeaten in five games against the Hoops, three wins and two draws.
Atletico and Celtic met in two previous two-legged UEFA ties, with the Spanish club getting the better of both, eliminating the Bhoys from the 1973/74 European Champion Clubs’ Cup semi-finals and the first round of the 1985/86 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup.
The teams for their first contest, in which Juan Carlos Lorenzo’s Atlético drew 0-0 against Jock Stein’s Hoops in Glasgow on 10 April 1974, were:
Celtic: Connaghan, Hay, Brogan, Murray, McNeill, McCluskey, Johnstone, Hood, Deans (Wilson 60), Callaghan, Dalglish.
Atletico: Reina, Melo, Ruben Diaz, Benegas, Ovejero, Eusebio Bejarano, Ramón Heredia, Adelardo Rodríguez, Garate (Alberto 67), Irureta (Quique Hernandez 70), Ayala. Ayala (20), Ruben Diaz (56) and substitute Quique Hernández (83) were all sent off for Atlético. Read more
Valencia vs. Genk Champions League preview
Genk, who failed to win a game during their only previous UEFA Champions League participation in 2002/03, have this and the home game with Leverkusen on 6 December to try and open their account in the group stage.
Valencia CF’s defeat of Bayer 04 Leverkusen last time out – their first victory in seven UEFA Champions League outings – cut their Group E deficit behind the German side to just a single point and they will be hoping to overtake them on matchday five when KRC Genk come to Mestalla.
Jeroen Simaeys was in the Club Brugge KV team that drew 1-1 away to Valencia in the 2008/09 UEFA Cup group stage.
Anthony Vanden Borre’s RSC Anderlecht lost 2-0 in Valencia in the UEFA Champions League group stage on 14 September 2004.
Vanden Borre was also part of the Belgium team that lost both FIFA World Cup qualifiers to Spain in October 2008 (1-2) and September 2009 (0-5) as well as the 2-0 World Cup qualifying reverse in October 2005, which also featured Thomas Buffel and David Albelda. Albelda was also involved in the 2-0 home win for Spain against Buffel’s Belgium a year earlier. Read more
Panini America Brings Black Friday Shopping Frenzy to the Sports Card Industry With National Promotion
Panini America has created a special trading card set devoted to Black Friday that will be available in more than 230 independent retailers nationwide through a unique wrapper-redemption program beginning Friday.
You can find the list of participating hobby retailers at: http://paniniamerica.wordpress.com/
The special set features cards of star players from the NFL, NHL and Major League Baseball Players Association as well as autographs from Super Bowl XLV MVP Aaron Rodgers, Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, NHL No. 1 overall pick Ryan Nugent-Hopkins of the Edmonton Oilers and many more.
Panini America’s Black Friday set includes 19 base cards, 13 Rookie Cards and more than 3,000 rare autograph and memorabilia cards, highlighted by unique trading cards embedded with pieces of end zone pylons and footballs that were used during the 2011 NFL Pro Bowl and Super Bowl XLV, where the Green Bay Packers defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-25 to capture their fourth Super Bowl Championship and 13th NFL Championship. Read more
Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal share honours in the 2011 ATP World Tour Awards
Bryan brothers, del Potro, Raonic, Bogomolov among award winners
Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal share honours in the 2011 ATP World Tour Awards presented by Moët & Chandon, which were announced in London on the eve of the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. Players will receive their awards in special, on-court ceremonies at The O2 throughout the week.
Djokovic receives the year-end ATP World Tour No. 1 award for the first time following a banner year in which he won three Grand Slam titles and a record five ATP World Tour Masters 1000 titles.
Federer edged out his competitors in two award categories, respectively selected by fans and ATP World Tour players. The 30-year-old Swiss extended his reign as the ATPWorldTour.com Fans’ Favourite presented by RICOH to a ninth straight year, and won the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award for a seventh time in eight years. Since 2003, Federer has now won 22 ATP World Tour Awards. Read more