Kekso

Mata, followed by Hazard.

To whoever called Steaua gippos - thanks, mate. Tell that to ex-Steaua Super Dan next time you see him. "In other news", that minute when Torres came back on the pitch with a nameless shirt had a sort of poetic significance to it. Perhaps this is the game that [finally] marks his transition from nameless to Torres? Stranger things have happened.

I attended the first leg. Regardless of what you saw on TV, you can be sure Steaua will fight tooth and nail for this. It's the biggest game for them since the UEFA Cup semis a few years ago, when they won 1-0 against Boro in Bucharest and led them 2-0 in England, only to eventually lose 4-2 and miss the final.

Tongue-in-cheek guide for Chelsea fans in Bucharest, made by a Romanian television: http://videonews.antena3.ro/video/fotbal/guide-for-chelsea-s-fans-who-arrive-in-bucharest-for-the-match-against-steaua.html

Almost every time Super Dan gives a longer interview to the Romanian press, he mentions a) how wonderful his last visit to SB was, and how he was greeted and cheered by fans; b) that his dream is to one day manage Chelsea. Some have even said that the main reason he chose Russian sides lately (Kuban Krasnodar, now Dynamo Moscow) was to somehow enter the Russian football world and thus have strong references for the big man. He could've gone to an Arab country for a lot more money, but that would have probably been the end of his European career as a manager. I know that if he ever gets to Chelsea, it will be the chance for him, so frankly I would rather see him take over the club at the very peak of his managing career. He's still a couple of years short of that moment. But as a Romanian Chelsea fan, you can imagine how beautiful this would be for me.

And I should probably move my info from the Sparta Prague thread onto this one, apologies to those who've already seen those posts. The stadium where Steaua plays hosted the Europa League final last season, Atletico Madrid v. Athletic Bilbao. And during Steaua matches: 55,600 seats, and as Nick was saying, all online tickets were sold yesterday in a mere couple of hours. It's going to be packed. Other info: Bucharest is the 7th largest city in the European Union (~ 2 million). There are parts of it you don't want to be in, but the city itself is worth a once-in-a-lifetime visit. Lots of nightlife and modern art, and a general feeling you're in the Balkans - kind of a poor man's combination between Berlin and Istanbul. Also, Steaua have the same number of European Cup / Champions League finals and the same number of wins as Chelsea. In the 1986 final they beat Barcelona on penalties after a scoreless draw (in Spain, no less - the final was played in Seville). Three years later in the 1989 final, they lost 0-4 to the AC Milan of van Basten, Rijkaard and Gullit (this, on the Camp Nou of their previous rivals).

The highlights of Steaua's win over Ajax this Thursday in Bucharest (2-0; 4-2 in penalties): http://vimeo.com/60250562

Your token Romanian fan is here again! One of the local teams, CFR Cluj (who played Chelsea back in the Scolari days) were knocked out by Inter tonight, but no biggie, I'm a fan of the other, less internationally famous local team. I then watched Steaua against Ajax and I have to say they were impressive. I'm thinking of either going to the Bucharest game (sadly, not in my Chelsea shirt, I do intend to make the trip back home) or the one over in London. Remains to be seen. Anyway, if you've got any questions on Steaua, I'd be happy to help.

Funnily, Atletico will reach the final having only won 2 of the 14 games they've played this season in Europe. 0-0 APOEL 0-2 Porto 0-4 Chelsea 2-2 Chelsea 1-1 APOEL 0-3 Porto 1-1 Galatasaray 3-1 Galatasaray 0-0 Sporting 2-2 Sporting 2-2 Valencia 0-0 Valencia 1-0 L'pool 1-2 L'pool

First leg was 1-0 for the Spaniards and away goals count (they have 1 on Anfield).

So after losing to Stuttgart away, Petrescu's Unirea Urziceni will take on Liverpool in the Europa League. First leg to be played in England on Feb 18. That's two reasons to support Petrescu :lol:

Think I've posted this before (at least partly), but here's a summary of his UCL results this season: 16/09 Sevilla FC 2 - 0 Unirea Urziceni 29/09 Unirea Urziceni 1 - 1 VfB Stuttgart 20/10 Rangers FC 1 - 4 Unirea Urziceni 04/11 Unirea Urziceni 1 - 1 Rangers FC 24/11 Unirea Urziceni 1 - 0 Sevilla FC 09/12 VfB Stuttgart 20:45 Unirea Urziceni 8 points so far, only needs a draw against 3rd placed Stuttgart to advance to the UCL round of sixteen! Fingers crossed

Dan Petrescu's Champions League results with Unirea so far: 16/09 Sevilla FC 2 - 0 Unirea Urziceni 29/09 Unirea Urziceni 1 - 1 VfB Stuttgart 29/09 Rangers FC 1 - 4 Unirea Urziceni Second place in the group.

From uefa.com: Keep an eye on them. By the way, does Unirea's new logo (reportedly designed by Petrescu himself) look familiar?

His Unirea finished 5th last year and played in the UEFA Cup. They met Hamburg (1st place in the Bundesliga at the time) and got a 0-0 in Germany after a great tactical display, but were defeated 0-2 back in Romania. He's also been in the UEFA Cup while coaching Wisla Krakow. Unirea will be playing in the Champions League group stage this autumn, meaning he will add at least 6 UCL games to his portfolio. He's not ready for Chelsea yet, but he's stated time and time again that he dreams of training Steaua and Chelsea, the teams closest to his heart. Maybe he will, some day. Steaua is significantly more potent than Unirea when it comes to money, so he should get better results in the European cups if he ever reaches the helm there. He definitely needs another step or two between Unirea and top-level European football. What I like about him most are his tactical discipline, his eye for rough diamonds and the feeling of comradeship he instills wherever he goes. He's tough and has high demands, yet the players see him as a friend. Unirea are basically a band of players gathered from mid-table Romanian teams - he's molded them into a tight squad. If I may, I would compare him to Jose while at Leiria. So, who knows, in 10 years he could be managing some of the players who are currently in Chelsea's youth squad. The only difference is that Petrescu is hectic on the bench. Or maybe 'passionate' is a better word. I went to CFR Cluj - Unirea (1-0) and it was a nice game, but he was tossing his jacket and water bottles around every ten minutes. Even worse - more like Hull. Unirea only advanced to our second division in 2003 and to our first division in 2006 (that's when he took over). And now they've won it.

I don't think it was a conspiracy either, just horrible horrible refereeing. Not sure how he was meant to help them when he left then in 10 men with a goal down and half an hour to go on away ground. Someone probably let him know he made a bad call by dismissing Abidal and from there on he tried to compensate by not giving Chelsea any kind of justice. I don't know, perhaps in 11 men they would have attacked in waves and scored or maybe we would've gotten a break on the counter and buried the game (and also kept our composure knowing they're still dangerous). We'll never know. One thing's for certain, games like these should only be handled by the finest referees at UEFA's disposal, not ones that crumble under the pressure. It's sad that the hard work against Liverpool (not to mention the rest of the UCL season) was ruined by human error - and not ours.

After all these bad emotions, the moment I will finally see JT lift that trophy above his head will only seem sweeter. I hope he'll do it one day - against the plotting, against the haters.. And no one will be able to take it away.

f**k it. Heads up. At the top every year, going to win it sometime soon.

"Carefree" every few minutes, with "We All Follow The Chelsea" thrown in for good measure. Nice game, loved the bit at the end with Drogba and the champagne. Truly a good week for Chelsea!

2-1. Wish granted. :P But seriously, it doesn't matter to Cluj anymore, so I truly hope Chelsea win.

I live in Cluj.. Oh how I regret that my home team messed up the games against Bordeaux after beating Roma in Italy and then drawing against Chelsea. You have to acknowledge that Cluj are at least good UEFA Cup material, if not Champions League. But they'll finish fourth no matter what.

JT. I was at the game, every time the home team's players ran towards Terry you could hear the crowd sigh half a second before he would even touch the ball. He did his job and helped Chelsea preserve a clean sheet. The problems lied in midfield and attack. Chelsea's wing attacks and crosses were either blocked by Cluj's wingbacks or cleared into the stands by the central defenders, while the Lampard - Ballack duo didn't work at all. The few usable passes that they actually sent up front were wasted by Drogba and Anelka. The team also lacked determination in midfield. After an hour of play it seemed like they were comfortable with a draw, Ballack looked like he would have rather been at home watering his lawn or watching TV. Completely uninterested.

Hehe. Yeah, he's a fiesty little fella.

Right. I was at the stadium last night and somewhat disappointed with the English fans. No singing, nothing? They just stood there. There was more singing in the pubs before and after the game. Anyway.. I'm pleased with the result. Chelsea will surely qualify and Cluj also have their chance now. I liked the atmosphere on the stadium and there's still a part of me that can't believe a team from this city is playing in the Champions League. Against Chelsea no less.