Europa League 2014-15 - Pt.1

Robespierre wrote:I know just in Italy it will be 1 PM So it will be in 10 hours here

Robespierre wrote:I know just in Italy it will be 1 PM So it will be in 10 hours here

Thanks Rob, good luck!

Yep, they can, we faced Viola at this stage last year!

serieAkings wrote:Can Italian teams get drawn against each other in this stage?

Yes, unfortunately ( because I don't want it , although it bring luck to us in '91 and '94 ) we can .

Really hoping Ajax win it, but again, can't see a genuine winner after Wolfsburg or Napoli.

All the info from the official website:

There are no seeded teams or country protection in the round of 16 draw.

• Based on the decision taken by the UEFA Emergency Panel, teams from Russia and Ukraine shall not be drawn together. Four clubs are concerned by this decision: FC Dinamo Moskva (RUS), FC Zenit (RUS), FC Dynamo Kyiv (UKR) and FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk (UKR).

• In order to implement the decision of the UEFA Emergency Panel, the first two pairings to be drawn will be those involving the two Ukrainian clubs (FC Dinamo Kyiv and FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk).

• The two balls containing the names of FC Dynamo Kyiv and FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk are set apart. The ball containing the name of FC Dynamo Kyiv is placed first in a large empty bowl.

• Then, another bowl is prepared containing all the clubs eligible to play FC Dynamo Kyiv (including FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk but excluding the two Russian clubs). A ball is drawn from this bowl and placed in the large bowl to complete the first pairing. The first team drawn from the large bowl will play its first match at home, against the second team drawn.

• Then, another bowl is prepared containing the names of all the clubs eligible to play FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk (excluding the two Russian clubs). A ball is drawn from this bowl and placed in the large bowl to complete the second pairing. The first team drawn from the large bowl will play its first match at home, against the second team drawn.

• The 12 remaining balls are placed in the large central bowl and shuffled. The first team subsequently drawn will play its first match at home, against the second team drawn. The same procedure is repeated to complete the round of 16 pairings.

• Ties are on 12 and 19 March with the kick-off times and any reversals to be confirmed later on Friday.


I know it's not a funny thing but still kinda laughable that UEFA had to f*ck up the whole draw because of the Ukrainian conflict.

dronte wrote:I know it's not a funny thing but still kinda laughable that UEFA had to f*ck up the whole draw because of the Ukrainian conflict.

Well, FIFA also had to go around some conflicting country pairings, IIRC. I guess that's better than having stuff blow up really bad if you don't just keep them apart.

I'm not sure if it actually hurts Italian teams. It basically makes sure that 2 of the 8 matches cannot be a pairing of countries because they will have to play a Ukrainian or Russian side. It might still happen, but it's less likely to.

Actually it should be better for the Italian sides as there are two pairings less that don't involve Italian teams.

Yep, exactly. Better chances for Italy this way.

Normally, the  Europa League draw is random (no country rules, etc.) at this point.
But Uefa has decided again   Russian teams (2) and Ukrainian teams (2) teams can't face each other.

Everton vs Dynamo Kyiv
Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk vs Ajax
Zenit vs Torino
Wolfsburg vs Inter
Villareal vs Sevilla
Napoli vs Dinamo Moscow
Club Brugge vs Besiktas
Fiorentina vs Roma

And of course
as always
we have taken the toughest team .  lol

Fiorentina and Roma must be positively sick of each other, they've already faced off in the Coppa Italia this year.

A difficult draw for Inter however I've been highly impressed with their attacking play under Mancini, so there is hope. I've no confidence their defence will be able to cope and Brozovic's absence is a significant blow as he brings great balance to the midfield however it's not an insurmountable obstacle.

I'm unsure of what to think of Torino's draw. You would expect Zenit to progress but they're such a strange, inconsistent team that anything could happen. Truly capable of the sublime and the ridiculous.

Villareal vs Sevilla

FFS Villa vs Sevilla and Viola vs Roma.

Disappointed in Viola - Roma but otherwise some interesting draws. Wolfsburg - Inter should be very interesting.

You guys wanna know something funny? 5 Italian teams classified, there is no positive goal.com editorial about this. If only 1 or no teams would have classified, they would have been a Kris article destroying Serie A. Thy really are Calcio haters, people used to say it and I never saw it like that, but now i think I do.

@djfawnz

Don't be too upset. Goal.com don't like the Bundesliga either. They are huge Premheads and CR7 fanatics...

GoonerJay29 wrote:Everton vs Dynamo Kyiv
Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk vs Ajax
Zenit vs Torino
Wolfsburg vs Inter
Villareal vs Sevilla
Napoli vs Dinamo Moscow
Club Brugge vs Besiktas
Fiorentina vs Roma

I hope   the 2nd leg won't be useless for us
Our defence suffered also at Celtic Park and Wolfsburg is GOAT in their stadium ...won 4-1 against Bayern . Well , we are going to face the favorite team of this cup ....

djfawnz wrote:You guys wanna know something funny? 5 Italian teams classified, there is no positive goal.com editorial about this. If only 1 or no teams would have classified, they would have been a Kris article destroying Serie A. Thy really are Calcio haters, people used to say it and I never saw it like that, but now i think I do.

really ?

back when i used to go to that site, Carlo Garganese was always treating italian football as the best thing since sliced bread  and displayed frequent anti-british sentiments , and always whining about Germany's advancing coefficient .

is he even with them anymore ? always disliked that self righteous prick.

djfawnz wrote:You guys wanna know something funny? 5 Italian teams classified, there is no positive goal.com editorial about this. If only 1 or no teams would have classified, they would have been a Kris article destroying Serie A. Thy really are Calcio haters, people used to say it and I never saw it like that, but now i think I do.

So you want praise for finally taken the competition seriously in how many years?

Lol, funny tie... Would be happy if Roma progressed and if they lost too... If they won, they would have less energy available in Serie A lol

Not praise, but they released an when Juventus won about how a win is not a win. Yesterday, they released an editorial saying how is was Pochettino's fault Tottenham lost, as if Fiorentina was an easy fixture.

At this point the only reason we should concentrate on the EL is to qualify for the CL. With that its pointless to hope avoiding a tough team only to face them in a latter stage. I rather face wolfsburg now when we're in a sick form with a complete squadand now is the time.

As for the rest of Serie A, i think Napoli has a real chance, and one of Roma and Fio will make it through. Torino has it tough but they might as well surprise us like they did yesterday. Should be interesting to watch

Ugh Fiorentina.

That one could go either way....we beat them handily in the league, but they did eliminate us just as easily in the Coppa though.

Very even tie. If we play like we did in the first half yesterday, I like our chances though familiar landscapes of Serie A sides will likely be more a hindrance to us than a help.

The devil you know and all that...