Jose Mourinho created history and is most likely to leave Inter Milan after he successfully brought the Champions League trophy to the San Siro after beating Bayern Munich 2-0. He is mostly expected to take over the helm at Real Madrid. Coincidentally, the final of the Champions League was held at the Barnebue.

Clearly voicing his unhappiness in Italy throughout the season, he has stated his intent to move back to England but with no openings at the moment and a clear indication that Real Madrid might not be having a manager soon it might be the ideal place for him next. He said"My work is done, I want to win the Champions League with three clubs. I feel great sadness at possibly leaving, but in my professional life I try to be as cold as possible to find what I need to do next. I did what I had to, my work is done, I am in the history of the club and Inter will never be the same again. I don't want to talk too much, as otherwise I'll cry and change my mind. The chances of me leaving are better than me staying, yes. You can say that.”

He added that “The president is fantastic, I thank him for all he decided to do. It's not easy to change the coach when you've won the Scudetto. It was also a risk for me, as if I didn't at least win the Scudetto my career could end with the way the media treated me. I have won everything I could win and if my decision is what I think it will be - not 100% yet, but I've got a good idea - I am going after something that gives me great motivation. I am one of the only coaches to have won the Champions League with two clubs, now I would like to be the first who does it with three. I never really say goodbye. Returning to Stamford Bridge made it feel like home and I will always feel at home at San Siro. I have been very happy here, not so much in Italian football, as I don't like presidents saying their coaches are better or the way the media have treated me. I want to run a risk.”

“ If I come to Spain and play against the super Barcelona, it is an enormous challenge and if I do come to Madrid it is to try and win a third Champions League. I don't tend to stay long at clubs, as I always want to risk and try for something more, so I have to chase a new ambition. I want to point out I have not spoken to anyone from Real Madrid, nor do we have a deal. They are the only club that can tempt me away and give me that new challenge. I reserved the right to take a few days and make my own decision on my future. I thank Italian football for what it has done for me. It is very difficult, every game is tough and the atmosphere is not easy for the manager of a big club, while even the media forced me to be better by keeping me under pressure for 24 hours a day.  I thank Italian football, as all this made me a better coach now than I was when I got here. For the last three or four months I have been considering my next step and after this final, the important thing is that Inter keep hold of Massimo Moratti, Javier Zanetti and Samuel Eto'o."

 Harry Redknapp, the manager of Tottenham Hotspur has vowed that they will go on the attack in their strategy when the UEFA Champions League commence next season regardless of whether they are in the third round or at the group stage. They are now fourth and has  a slight chance of leapfrogging Arsenal to third if they beat Burnley and Arsenal loses to Fulham.

Redknapp said "We will be positive - I love to watch teams like the Manchester United team when they were playing with wingers and two up front, that's how I like to see the game played. We've played some great football this year, it's been a pleasure to watch - we move the ball, pass the ball, we are a good football team. We will have go in the Champions League. What have you got to lose? You've got to have a go.''

He added that "One or two people ridiculed me because I said there were good English coaches and there are. If they are just given the right jobs with the right players then they can do just as good a job as anybody else, no doubt about that. There are some terrific coaches in this country at all levels and it's a crying shame that more of them don't get the chance to manage at a bigger club. I don't see why I should pack in. I'm on the road at half past five every morning and I don't feel like an old man. If I wanted to walk the dogs up a beach every day I would pack it in.  love football - if I wasn't here I would go and manage a kids' team.''

 Jose Mourinho, the Inter Milan manager said that he is awe of Barcelona almost immediately after having hit out at the players after the infamous 3-1 win over the defending champions of the UEFA Champions League at the San Siro.

 
3 goals from Wesley Sneijder, Maicon and Diego Milito means Inter travel to the Nou Camp next week with a 2 goal advantage. Mourinho said “Barcelona is a beautiful school of football. You can go through the whole history of Barca - from the dream team with Cruyff, the team of (Louis) Van Gaal, (Frank) Rijkaard's Champions League winners, Pep's Champions League winners and then the person who comes after Pep. It's a football school, it's fantastic. This is a school that we are not at yet, but I hope that Inter can become this. Inter is a club which often changes its culture of game and coaches, or it used to change these. I hope Inter can find this stability in future, and they can do it with wins because wins are important for people to believe in a way of playing."

He added that "We are not playing a small team, we are playing Barcelona; a great team with a great coach and great fans. We go to Barcelona and we are ahead, and we want to go into the final, but we are not there yet.”

Pep Guardiola, his counterpart last night said “The pitch was not wet as we like it because they had chosen not to water it, and it is their right to do that. But it did not favour our game. We were only really concentrating for the last 20 minutes, but this is the way it went. The return leg should be a different story, though. We are an exemplary team in many, many ways. I am proud of how my team is and congratulate Inter in Milan and we'll see you again next Wednesday. The stadium will be full and we can do it."

 

 

 After the cancellation of flights throughout Europe due to the volcanic ash clouds in recent days, there has been reports that the UEFA Champions League games might have to be postponed but UEFA has since confirmed that the games will go on as planned. This is where Barcelona is set to play Inter Milan while Lyon has a game against Bayern Munich in the semi finals of the competition.

According to UEFA, "Both of this week's UEFA Champions League semi-final first legs will go ahead as scheduled this week despite the current restriction on European air travel due to the volcanic cloud. The refereeing team that has been announced for the match on Tuesday is so far maintained and a backup appointment has been prepared in case it should prove necessary to make a replacement. Both visiting teams have taken all the necessary steps to rearrange their travel plans to ensure they reach their match venues on time. FC Barcelona are away to FC Internazionale Milano at 20.45CET on Tuesday and Olympique Lyonnais are at FC Bayern Munchen 24 hours later."

In its other competition, the Europa League, Liverpool is up against Athletico Madrid while Fulham has to play Hamburg. "A decision will be taken in the coming days about Thursday's two UEFA Europa League matches: Club Atletico de Madrid v Liverpool FC and Hamburger SV v Fulham FC, as well as for the UEFA Futsal Cup finals in Lisbon from Friday. However, Sunday's UEFA Women's Champions League semi-final between Umea IK and Lyon in Sweden was postponed as the French side were unable to travel."

 Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has yet again put the blame of his team’s defeat on the referee where the Red Devils were sent packing by Bayern Munich despite winning 3-2 at Old Trafford. Bayern qualified for the semi finals with a 4-4 aggregate but went through by away goals.

United would have won the tie because by the end of the first half, they were 3-1 up but by the time the second half started, Rafael was sent off for the second yellow card offence and then Arjen Robben scored the second goal to seal the game. It showed Ferguson’s desperation as he fielded a not so fit Wayne Rooney but although it did pay off, it did not meet the objective in the end.

Ferguson said "There is no doubt about it. They were never getting through that tie. With 11 men, we had no problem. The young boy showed a bit of inexperience, but they got him sent off, everyone sprinted towards the referee - typcal Germans.”

His counter part Luis van Gaal said I thought England was noted for fairness. I have been confronted with three comments. It is not what I call fair play. I do not share Sir Alex's opinion. Control is part of being a professional footballer. Every player must know his job. If you pick up one yellow card, a second means a sending off. Every player should know that and it was a yellow card offence. It was the player who made the foul. As for United winning with 11, we will never know that, neither Sir Alex nor me, because this game will not be played again. It is easy to say these things after a loss.''

 Arsenal suffered a humiliating loss to Barcelona despite riding high on confidence when they were thrashed 4-1 singlehandedly by wonder-kid Lionel Messi. The UEFA Champions League quarterfinal clash promised much with a 2-2 result of the first leg at the Emirates and Arsenal was confident they could keep Barcelona from scoring but it turned out to be a totally different affair.

Nicklas Bendtner gave the Gunners the lead midway through the first half but only to have the goal canceled out by Messi who then went on to score 2 more thereby completing his hat-trick. In the second half, Messi scored another solo goal which put the aggregate at 6-3.

Arsene Wenger, the manager said "I believe that we lost against a team that is better than us and have the best player in the world. Congratulations to Barcelona - they were better than us. Over two games, for a team like Arsenal, we conceded cheap goals. They didn't have to work hard enough. When you have players like Messi, any mistake you can play for it. We battled, we came back, we started well and at 3-1 we had chances to come back to 3-2. We missed a few opportunities where we could have been more dangerous.''

 Wayne Rooney will not be featured in the UEFA Champions League second leg in Old Trafford where they are looking to overturn a 2-1 deficit. Team manager Sir Alex Ferguson said that there is ‘no chance’ Rooney can be fit for the clash after he suffered an injury to his knee at Munich.

He said ''He's got no chance. We’ve made some good progress with the lad, the medical team have done fantastic, but I'm not prepared to take a risk on a player who is not 100% fit. 'The boy is making good progress. The medical team have done a fantastic job but it is an ankle injury the same as any other ankle injury. You can't take a risk with a player who is not 100%. 'I don't think he will be on the bench although he might talk me into it, it is a difficult one.''

 Thierry Henry, an alumni of the Arsenal Invincibles Side in 2003-04 who returned to the Emirates Stadium with Barcelona said that his return to the home of his former club was ‘special’. The all-time record goalscorer was introduced in the second half to a warming and familiar welcome for the Gunners’ legend. The game ended in a 2-2 draw with the return leg set for a bigger clash in the Nou Camp.

He said "A bit emotional? No, a lot. It was a lot emotional. It was pretty special. Obviously coming on you heard what happened, and the special moment was at the end.  Like we always do with our team, Barcelona, we went to see our fans and I said to myself that I had to thank the Arsenal fans for the welcome back and you saw what happened.  I always said I have never hidden the love I have for the club and I think the fans showed tonight they still love me. It was a great feeling. Amazing. I'm not surprised they came back, especially with the fans, it always helps. You can be 2-0 down at home and if the fans start to boo it is hard, but they were helping them to come back in the game. I know exactly what can happen here."

 Manchester United suffered a minor blow for a place in the semi-final of the UEFA Champions League when they lost to Bayern Munich 2-1 but the major blow was to Wayne Rooney who had to be helped off the pitch with a leg injury.

Rooney took the lead for United with a second minute goal and it looked like the Devils would be cruising to home to a valuable away goal when Franck Ribery scored in the 76th minute before Ivica Olic gave the home side the advantage with a last minute goal. The away goal might prove crucial for United but the problem they have now would be if Rooney is available for the return leg in Old Trafford.

Team manager Sir Alex Fergusons aid that they will have to ‘wait and see’ who bad the injury is. He said "He's obviously hurt his ankle. We'll know better tomorrow. It's too early to say. I don't think it's terribly serious, but we'll wait and see."

 Thomas Vermaelen, the Arsenal defender has diffuse the fear among his team mates as they brace themselves to face Lionel Messi and co from FC Barcelona in the upcoming UEFA Champions League quarterfinals. While the whole footballing world has been amazed and awe-struck with Messi’s wonder dribbles, Vermaelen said that there is ‘no time to be intimidated’ by the Argentinean.
 
Cesc Fabregas, the captain might not be available for the clash and Vermaelen would have a hard time containing the Messi and Henry if they want to go to Spain in the second leg with any advantage. He said "We are not focussed on individuals, because we have to play our own game and play as a team. You are aware of the qualities of the opponents, but you also know what your own strengths are. Messi is a very good player, one of the best players in the world. Of course you enjoy watching him play, because he is a real footballer. However, there will be no time to be intimidated tomorrow. You do not have to be nervous or look at individual players. You have to be focused on your own performance and the team's performance. You cannot look at how great Messi is, because you have to play your own game."
 
 
If they can stop Barca from getting that precious away goal, then Arsenal has a good chance of advancing to the semi-finals. Vermaelen added that "It is one of the biggest games you can play in, against one of the best sides in the world. However, it is important to play as a team and hopefully we can show how good we are. We have to be mentally strong and we have showed that this season. If you want to win the Champions League, you have to beat the best teams. I have no time to be proud. I am still only 24 and there is room for me to develop as a player. I am happy at the moment, but things can be better in the future."
 

 Arsenal legend Thierry Henry is set to return to the Emirates Stadium to face his former club as he prepares with his current team Barcelona in the upcoming mouth-watering quarterfinal of the UEFA Champions League and Henry is said to be ready for the ‘emotional’ return.

He said "I'm very emotional, but also staying calm. It will be a strange game for me. Before the draw I said that I did not want to face Arsenal. That was my wish. But now that's the game we've got and we'll have to give everything. It's very special. To return home is strange and even more so in the quarter-finals of the Champions League. It will be different because I spent seven years at Highbury and only one at the Emirates, but to see the people, the fans and the other employees at the club again will be very strange.”

 As Manchester United prepares to meet Bayern Munich in the upcoming UEFA Champions League, good news comes at the best times as it was revealed that Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand are both fit and will be travelling with the team to Germany.
 
Both the players were not featured in last weekend’s game against Bolton which the Red Devils won 4-0 as Sir Alex Ferguson did not want to aggravate their injury any further. Rooney is suffering from a foot problem while Ferdinand is having problems with his groin. Nemanja Vidic, United’s defender said "Bayern build things up well from the back and they have a few players with real quality on the ball - people like Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben. They have pace and skill and can beat defenders one on one. They also have a few big forwards who are very good in the penalty area - they're old-fashioned goalscoring strikers. Like every team, Bayern have strengths and weaknesses. They'll try and play to their strengths, while we'll look to exploit their weaknesses. We're going to Munich looking to win the game."

 And so the  draw has been made and the quarter finals through to the final of this year’s UEFA Champions League would surely be mouth watering enough. Of course there is the all-French line up where Lyon was drawn against Bordeaux where the winner is set to play either the other BIG clash of Bayern Munich against Manchester United

On the other end, Arsenal is drawn against defending champions Barcelona while Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan has the easiest pathway against CSKA Moscow although it might be unwise to write the Russians off now. And so, Madrid awaits.
Below is the match up.

Lyon     v    Bordeaux
Bayern Munich     v    Manchester United
Arsenal     v    Barcelona
Internazionale     v    CSKA Moscow

SEMI-FINALS: April 20 & 21 and  April 27 & 28       

Bayern Munich or Manchester United v Lyon or Bordeaux
       
Internazionale or CSKA Moscow v    Arsenal or Barcelona
       

  After the catastrophic defeat to Inter Milan, John Terry, the Chelsea captain got involved in a car accident which caused a security staff to have his leg injured. Terry then voluntarily went to the police station to have his statement recorded and apologized to the man.

Terry’s spokesperson said "John was travelling at about 2-3mph, edging towards the exit of the car park, when he was surrounded by a pack of photographers who were jostling the car. He drove off unaware of any incident but he's been told since and has rung the injured person and spoken to him."

The incident was confirmed by the club where its spokesman said "We can confirm there was an unfortunate accident as John Terry left Stamford Bridge last night. When driving out of the stadium at approximately 1-2mph in a queue of traffic exiting the ground, his car was surrounded by photographers and fans. In the melee that ensued a member of Chelsea's security staff was knocked to the ground, making contact with the car. He suffered a badly bruised leg. John was aware at the time that there was a lot of contact with his car during the incident, but not that anyone was injured as a result. Upon hearing of the injury, John spoke to the police. He has also been in contact with the staff member to check on his welfare.''

 Jose Mourinho, the former Chelsea manager who brought Inter Milan to Stamford Bridge for the second leg of the UEFA Champions League which they lead with a 2-1 score line was more than happy after his team came away with a  1-0 victory. This ensured that they progress to the last 8 of the tournament while Chelsea yet again, failed in the glamorous tournament despite standing in as favourites.

Samuel Eto’o scored in the 78th minute to give the visitors the edge with a 3-1 aggregate and that was good enough for the Italian club. Mourinho, who had won the Champions League only once with Porto and never with Chelsea said "I celebrated a lot in the dressing room when the game was over. It was a big victory for my team. As I have said before, I am a professional, I love Chelsea, I love this stadium, I love these people but I am a professional. Who knows, in the future I may coach another English team and I will come here (again) as an opponent.''

Claiming that the better team won the match, he added that "I think everything was superior. I don't think it was tactics, it was attitude on the pitch. They (Chelsea) had reactions of frustration, of a team that felt the opposition was superior. Our team started the second half in an incredible way. We were the best team by far. Chelsea is a great team, we know that and we came here knowing very well the way they play. We knew that if you don't control the game by having the ball you have no chance. Every player performed at the highest level to win here, this must be almost a perfect performance. We deserve so much this victory, we were the best team.''

His counterpart, Carlo Ancelotti, the Chelsea manager was gracious in defeat but did not say anything about the sending off of Didier Drogba. He said “I think we didn't play how we wanted to. Inter put some pressure on our midfield and we had a lot of difficulty playing. Inter played a very good game, strong in defence, good on the counter-attack, and we didn't play how we wanted. I think we played better in the first game and now were not able to repeat the same play, so Inter deserve to win. Congratulations to Inter.''

 Whether or not Manuel Pellegrini will be sacked from Real Madrid after they were ousted by Lyon in the UEFA Champions League will yet to be seen but the verdict has already been handed out to the team, especially from the media crazy Spanish press who now wants to see Pellegrini out of the club for failing not only to bring the trophy back but has spent a fortune in what was seen as the ‘New Galacticos’.

One of the headlines read, "OUT. Goodbye Champions, Goodbye Pellegrini." With a further elaboration that said "The same upset as every year. Madrid again go crashing against the curse of the last-16. Lyon join Juventus, Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Roma and Liverpool in the list of executioners." Another one read "Football has no price. Lyon question the realism of the mega-project of Florentino Perez and Madrid, who ran out of steam in the second half, fell for the sixth successive season in the last-16. Titles are not bought, they are won."

 David Beckham was gracious in defeat after they lost 4-0 to Manchester United which effectively sent them out of the UEFA Champions League where he called Wayne Rooney as one of the world’s best players. Rooney scored 2 goals for The Devils to progress.

Beckham said ''He's such an exceptional talent. I think without a doubt he's one of the best, if not the best, player at the moment along with [Cristiano] Ronaldo and [Lionel] Messi. It was a disappointing night because we lost the game but returning here is always special. It was unbelievable. I have to say thank you. It was really incredible. It was nice to be back, a disappointing night but nice to be back.''

 Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson denied that there will be disruptions in the Champions League clash with AC Milan with the anti-Glazer supporters planning to come out in full force when the Italian club visits Old Trafford. He has instead called on the fans to come out and support the team instead.

He said "It is too important a game. Old Trafford will be rocking and I am sure whether they are wearing the traditional red and white or the protest green and gold scarves the supporters will be united and speaking with one voice to get us safely through. Ronaldo's departure has nothing to do with Wayne's form. The credit must go to Wayne's development as a footballer and his rise in the game. I just wish we still had Cristiano here as well.''

He added that "I am finding it difficult to pick their team but I don't know whether Beckham will start.  I have not got that down in my conclusions about their team. He has not started a game since the first leg, so it is difficult to say what impact he will have on the game.  But he will be there and the one thing you have to be aware of is his delivery of the ball, which is fantastic. That is the threat. There are a lot of threats in their team of course, but we are well aware of David's.''

 Nicklas Bendtner stood up to the test for Arsenal when he scored a hat-trick against Porto which ensured that they progress to the last eight of the UEFA Champions League with a 5-0 victory over Porto. Samir Nasri and Emmanuel Eboue grabbed the other 2 goals to end the night of a remarkable comeback after trailing 2-1 at Porto in the first leg.


Bendtner who missed many chances in the Burnley game before coming into this one said “Every time I play a game, I put it behind me as soon as it's finished. Sometimes it's one of those days and today I put it right. I'm happy with my hat-trick but tomorrow we move on. It was good to score early but I don't know if that affected my game."

Arsene Wenger, the manager surely felt that his faith in Bendtner paid off saying that "I hope it will not give him too much confidence. It's good for him. He played well on Saturday but missed chances. Today he had less chances and scored more goals. I hope it gives him the desire to work even harder. It's never perfect but it was a very good performance, a strong performance. We had a very good first half, suffered a bit at the beginning of the second half, but after the goal of Nasri it made a big difference and from then it was easy. It was individual brilliance (from Nasri) but overall we had a solid team performance, we were serious, had good solidarity and, as we can play, a fluid game."


On whether he want to meet any English teams in the next round, he said "I have a funny feeling maybe it's good for us to play and English team. We have not done well against Chelsea and against Man U this year and it would be a good chance to show we can do it against them."

 Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has another headache to take care of after it was revealed that his captain, Cesc Fabregas will not be available for the clash against Porto in the last 16 round of the UEFA Champions League. He failed to train after suffered an injury in his hamstring after the game against Burnley which the Gunners won 3-1.

Wenger said "We cannot even take a gamble, so he is not available. I was hoping (he could be on the bench) after the (Burnley) game because we were quite cautious with him and he was not adamant about coming off, yet he still damaged his hamstring and we cannot take a gamble on him. Ideally you want him to be there. We want to qualify and the absence of Cesc is not any excuse at all. We have enough players and a strong enough squad to still get round that and have a very good chance to qualify."