Ninis comes of age at Panathinaikos

Thursday, 15 February 2007
by Vassiliki Papantonopoulou
from Athens
Sixteen-year-old Sotirios Ninis has been conspicuous by his absence from school lately. The reason? He has been otherwise engaged with Greek giants Panathinaikos FC. Ninis has not missed a game since his debut last month and is poised to make his European bow in Thursday's trip to RC Lens.

Team first
Ninis has been a revelation. He was voted the player of the round on his first appearance, a 1-0 home win against Egaleo FC on 7 January. In his fourth game came his first goal, and it was anything but low-key. Dribbling past two defenders, he fired in a long-range shot that earned a 2-0 victory against Panionios FC and sent the home crowd into raptures. For all the acclaim, he is keeping calm. "My priority is the team and not my personal statistics," he said. "I am not affected by the media hype about my performances, because I don't care about it".

Rapid rise
Born on 3 April 1990, Ninis is the youngest player to have scored for Panathinaikos in the history of the professional top flight in Greece. His potential has been evident for some time with his old-fashioned wing play on the right, based on excellent technique and great crossing ability, earning many admirers. Few were surprised in December when he was given a long-term contract or when Victor Muñoz called him into the first-team squad barely two months after taking over as coach.

Looking ahead
Lens are up next for Panathinaikos in the UEFA Cup Round of 32 and given that Ninis has also played a key role in the club winning through to the semi-finals of the Greek Cup, he is likely to play some part in France. Well off the pace in the domestic league, Panathinaikos are determined to prolong their UEFA Cup adventure. Should they see off Lens, then a tie against either Bayer 04 Leverkusen or Blackburn Rovers FC awaits in the last 16.

Former glory
Panathiniakos's finest hour to date was finishing runners-up in the 1971 European Champion Clubs’ Cup final, nearly two decades before Ninis was born. In fact, Greece are arguably the biggest nation never to have won a continental trophy at club level. While Ninis may claim not to be concerned with personal statistics, you can bet he is keen to change that particular fact. That is provided he can get more time off from his studies - although evening classes have been lined up to fill the gap. Whatever is in store at night school, though, it surely will not be as big a test as he will get this Thursday.

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Matches to go ahead in Milan

Thursday, 15 February 2007
Details have been issued of the two forthcoming UEFA Champions League matches to take place in Milan, Italy.

Inter-Valencia
The first knockout round, first-leg match between FC Internazionale Milano and Valencia CF next Tuesday will be played at the Giuseppe Meazza stadium (kick-off 20.45CET).

Permitted capacity
UEFA was informed of the venue by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) after the latter had been involved in consultations with the Italian Ministry of Home Affairs in the wake of recent spectator incidents in Italy. The permitted capacity will be 36,000. This includes the five per cent reserved for visiting supporters, i.e. 1,800 tickets to be sold via the visiting team.

New measures
The FIGC told UEFA that the stadium was already in conformity with some of the measures provided for by Italian law, and that additional work was undertaken to fully comply with new measures that have come into force. However, some work must still be done before full capacity will be allowed at the venue.

Milan-Celtic
The UEFA Champions League tie involving AC Milan and Celtic FC will also be played at the Giuseppe Meazza stadium on 7 March (20.45CET) in front of a limited number of spectators, with the exact capacity still to be determined. However, the capacity will include 4,500 seats reserved for Scottish supporters.

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Resurgent Bremen fighting fit

Thursday, 15 February 2007
by Steffen Potter
from Frankfurt
Back-to-back Bundesliga defeats may have dented their German title hopes, but Werder Bremen underlined their European credentials with a 3-0 UEFA Cup Round of 32 first-leg victory against AFC Ajax.

Resurgent confidence
Sub-standard performances in their last two league outings have left Thomas Schaaf's side six points adrift of FC Schalke 04 in the title race, but there was no sign of malaise as Bremen put three goals past ten-man Ajax last night. Olaf Lindenbergh's dismissal for a second bookable offence after just 23 minutes handed Bremen the initiative and they took full advantage as Per Mertesacker, Naldo and Torsten Frings all scored in the second half.

'We are back'
"My team has shown that we are back," said Schaaf. "We haven't played all that badly in recent weeks but we lacked that little bit extra you need to win games. We have discussed the mistakes we made in the past 14 days and the team has improved and returned to the levels of the past." Schaaf accepted that Lindenbergh's dismissal had helped his side regain their footing, while Ajax coach Henk ten Cate was also in no doubt of its significance. "It was a difficult match for us," said the Dutchman. "We gave them very few chances in the first half but lost a lot of strength in the process."

Gloomy assessment
Understandably, Ajax are not feeling overly optimistic about next week's second leg. "Anything is possible in football, but Bremen really have a very strong team," said defender Jaap Stam. Bremen general manager Klaus Allofs added: "If we play like this in the return, we're sure to qualify." While a Round of 16 tie against FC Spartak Moskva or RC Celta de Vigo may already be on Bremen minds, their main talking point last night was their hopes of another Bundesliga crown, with a huge northern derby against Hamburger SV looming on Saturday.

Critics silenced
Mertesacker, scorer of the opener against Ajax, believes the UEFA Cup win has given Bremen wings after losing their last match 4-1 at VfB Stuttgart. "This was a clear message to all those who had written us off," he said. "It's nice to silence our critics just four days after the Stuttgart game. We are back up to international level and have shown we can dominate a match again. Now we have to do the same in the Bundesliga." Schaaf agreed, adding: "We are on the right path. We have to continue this on Saturday and achieve the same kind of dominance as we did today."


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Coaches raise Israeli standard

Thursday, 15 February 2007
by Ofer Ronen-Abels
from Tel-Aviv
On a good night for Israeli football, both Hapoel Tel-Aviv FC coach Nir Levin and Maccabi Haifa FC counterpart Roni Levy had reasons to be cheerful.

'Fragile result'
Levin only took the reins ten days ago and his European bow was Wednesday's 2-1 home victory against Rangers FC in the UEFA Cup Round of 32. "It's a highly respectable home result but a very fragile one if you consider the return leg at Ibrox," he said. "The game in Glasgow will be a completely different story. We've proved we can perform on the European stage but we have a serious challenge in store. There were a few spells when we didn't play well and Rangers had a few chances and a potentially perfect night was spoiled by the goal we conceded which could prove vital over the two legs."

Fans praised
That strike came from Nacho Novo in the 53rd minute, ten minutes after Salim Toema had opened the scoring for Hapoel with a stunning free-kick. "I knew as soon as I hit it that the ball was heading into the top corner," he said. "But the goal is nothing in comparison to our fans who pushed us all the way and deserve just as much credit as any of the players." Barukh Dego then settled the first leg in the 76th minute, saying of his winner: "I've waited a long time for this goal and was very excited when I scored. We know that matches in Europe are a matter of life or death and I'm happy we still have a chance ahead of the return leg."

'Mighty proud'
In Russia, Maccabi Haifa coach Levy was proud that his side had held PFC CSKA Moscow to a goalless draw in Vladikavkaz, although he confessed to mixed feelings after the stalemate. "My players deserve all the credit and I am mighty proud of them on a professional and personal level," said Levy. "I am delighted we have brought the deciding match back to Israel, but on the other I am disappointed as we were worth at least a couple of goals on the night."

'Tough to beat'
Midfielder Gustavo Boccoli ventured that it had been a resilient all-round performance but also urged caution ahead of next Thursday's return: "We had a good game in every department. We have taken a large step towards our goal, but it is still only one step. Our players proved that once the going gets tough, we are a very difficult side to beat."

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Grassroots on agenda

Thursday, 15 February 2007
A keynote UEFA conference in Helsinki in April will seek to encourage the greater promotion of grassroots activities throughout Europe.

Grassroots drive
The 7th UEFA Grassroots Football Conference, scheduled for 2-5 April in the Finnish capital, will mark another important moment in a concerted UEFA drive which is progressing according to the belief that the élite sector can only flourish if the basis of the game is healthy and thriving. National associations' grassroots managers, instructors and co-ordinators will be invited to the conference, which will also look to develop the UEFA Grassroots Charter, an essential component of the European body's comprehensive support for its 53 member associations.

Motivate and stimulate
UEFA technical director Andy Roxburgh said: "The idea of the Charter is that it serves as an endorsement of associations' grassroots programmes. UEFA's job is to motivate the associations, stimulate and support them in building up their grassroots programmes." A series of regional workshops throughout Europe last year helped the associations familiarise themselves with the Charter - underpinning UEFA's overall drive to help improve the associations' structures and leadership at political, administrative and technical levels.

Great enthusiasm
UEFA's Executive Committee approved the creation of a Grassroots Charter in 2004, and it has been taken up with great enthusiasm, with 14 associations signing up so far. Signing the Charter means a national association satisfies certain basic minimum criteria. Associations enter with basic one-star status, and additional stars are given on the basis of specific areas - these include the nurturing of women's and girls' football, social programmes including disability football, number of participants, and the promotion of grassroots football. Up to seven stars are possible, which would mean a national association pursues even more comprehensive policies.

Conference items
Other scheduled items at the conference include club-based development, association activities, and planned work at UEFA EURO 2008™ next summer.

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Bremen flurry floors ten-man Ajax

Wednesday, 14 February 2007
Werder Bremen made amends for a dip of form in the Bundesliga by wearing down ten-man Ajax for a convincing victory in Wednesday's UEFA Cup Round of 32 first-leg tie.

Making merry
After successive domestic defeats left them six points off the pace in the German title race, Bremen made the most of Ajax midfielder Olaf Lindenbergh's first-half dismissal thanks to second-half strikes from Per Mertesacker, Naldo and Torsten Frings.

Missed opportunities
The Dutch side were always facing an uphill struggle once Lindenbergh had received his second yellow card within the space of three minutes, following a trip on Frings, 24 minutes into this Weserstadion encounter. Bremen immediately spurned the chance of the breakthrough when no one applied the finishing touch to a fine Miroslav Klose cross. Ryan Babel was equally wasteful after Wesley Sneijder's good work had created the opening for Ajax.

Floodgates open
It was the visitors who were left to rue their profligacy three minutes after the break when Mertesacker struck after Ajax keeper Maarten Stekelenburg had parried Jurica Vranješ' attempt following a corner. One became two soon after, Naldo's header from a Frings corner being adjudged to have crossed the line. Naldo then nodded wide from an easier opportunity, before Ajax's Hedwiges Maduro forced a save from Tim Wiese. The icing on the cake for Thomas Schaaf's men came on 71 minutes when Frings converted Klose's inviting cross, despite the best efforts of defender Johnny Heitinga. Ajax were relieved to see a Diego strike rebound off a post, leaving the deficit at 3-0 going into next week's return.

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Dinamo agony as Miccoli delivers

Wednesday, 14 February 2007
SL Benfica gained the advantage against FC Dinamo 1948 Bucuresti but could yet regret a failure to convert their chances in Wednesday's UEFA Cup Round of 32 first-leg tie.

Lack of finish
A late goal by substitute Fabrizio Miccoli gave Benfica victory and saved them embarrassment after they had missed a series of opportunities and hit the woodwork twice in the second half. Mircea Rednic's men fought hard to keep out the hosts, who in the end were let down by poor finishing.

Profligacy
Dinamo started brightly and the first opening fell to Catalin Munteanu in the eighth minute, but his 20-metre effort sailed wide. Then Cosmin Moti threatened with a header which again had too much purchase on it. Stung into action, Benfica began to assert their dominance. Nuno Gomes, who had already tested Bogdan Lobont's reflexes, rattled the post with a first-time shot shortly after the half-hour and the Lisbon giants should have edged ahead when Konstantinos Katsouranis was played through but lacked the necessary composure.

Late drama
After the break, Anderson, Rui Costa and Léo all came close, before Simão let fly a 20-metre drive which Lobont did well to parry. The Portugal winger then fired in a trademark free-kick which came back off the crossbar. But in the 90th minute, just when it seemed the Romanian league leaders had done enough to earn a draw, Rui Costa delivered a perfect cross which Miccoli smashed high into the net from ten metres to steal the initiative.

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Leverkusen edge five-goal thriller

Wednesday, 14 February 2007
Bayer 04 Leverkusen had the better of a five-goal thriller against Blackburn Rovers FC, although Shabani Nonda's late goal has left next week's return leg at Ewood Park wide open.

Callsen-Bracker header
Leverkusen took the lead after 18 minutes of this Round of 32 tie when Jan-Ingwer Callsen-Bracker headed in Bernd Schneider's centre from close range. David Bentley equalised for the visitors on 38 minutes when he fired a right-footed shot that was deflected on its way into the net.

Two-goal cushion
It was not all square for long, though, as Carsten Ramelow restored home advantage two minutes before the break. After collecting a pass from Stefan Kiessling, the 32-year-old unleashed a 20-metre strike that also took a major deflection to foil goalkeeper Brad Friedel. Schneider gave the German side a two-goal cushion eleven minutes after the break when Gonzalo Castro drilled in a cross from the right which the 33-year-old flicked into the far corner with a superb back-heel.

Nonda hope
With the match seemingly heading for a convincing home win, the Premiership outfit reduced the arrears when Nonda registered four minutes from time what may prove to be an invaluable second away goal. Aaron Mokoena, who will miss the return after receiving a booking, flicked on Bentley's centre in a crowded penalty area where Nonda readjusted before powering a right-foot volley into the roof of the net.

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Fenerbahçe fightback thwarts AZ

Wednesday, 14 February 2007
Fenerbahçe SK threw themselves a UEFA Cup lifeline after coming from two goals behind midway through the second half to draw 3-3 with AZ Alkmaar. Tümer Metin was the hero for the Turkish side, his second strike on 75 minutes levelling the tie ahead of next week's meeting in the Netherlands.

Alkmaar ahead
The visitors started the brighter and were rewarded with the opening goal after 15 minutes when Maarten Martens slid in Demy de Zeeuw and the midfielder fired in. The breakthrough sparked the home team into life and Tümer restored parity 13 minutes later by hammering a 20-metre effort past Boy Waterman. But the game really came to life when the Dutch outfit scored twice in as many minutes early in the second half.

Double strike
Nourdin Boukhari put AZ back in front with a rising left-footed drive on 62 minutes before Julian Jenner, who had replaced injured midfielder Rogier Molhoek in the first period, stunned the Sükrü Saraçoglu crowd by drilling a low shot past Volkan Demirel from the edge of the area. Zico's men crucially reduced arrears within four minutes, though, with Tuncay Sanli sweeping home from 12 metres to set up a frantic finish.

Saviour Tümer
Gijs Luirink made a goalline clearance to stop Alex's corner flying directly into the Alkmaar net before Louis van Gaal's team finally succumbed to the hosts' fightback. Tümer again let fly from distance and Waterman could only watch as the strike rifled past him to keep Fenerbahçe hopes alive.

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PSG take charge in Athens

Wednesday, 14 February 2007
Goals by defenders Sammy Traoré and Bernard Mendy put Paris Saint-Germain FC in the driving seat after the first leg of their UEFA Cup Round of 32 tie against AEK Athens FC in the Greek capital.

Defensive double
Traoré gave the French side, who languish in 16th place in Ligue 1, the lead on the stroke of half-time before Mendy added a stunning second in the closing moments of a match that was Paul Le Guen's first European game since taking over as PSG coach.

Entertaining half
Both teams hit the woodwork in an entertaining first half - Cristian Rodriguez for PSG with a header from a David Hellebuyck corner and Júlio César for AEK with a curling effort – but it was the hosts who had the better of the opening 45 minutes, Pantelis Kapetanos also going close with a volley. It would be the visitors who went into the break ahead, however, after Traoré rose highest to nod in Hellebuyck's corner.

Kalou chance
Chances were more limited in the second period but buoyed by Traoré's breakthrough, PSG had the better of the early exchanges as Bonaventure Kalou fired straight at a covering defender with the goal gaping following fine play from Amara Diané. AEK still posed a threat themselves, with Kapetanos bringing down a long ball but shooting straight at PSG keeper Mickaël Landreau's legs, yet it was the Parisians who always looked the likelier scorers. Kalou nearly did so when heading narrowly wide from Mamadou Sakho's cross, before Mendy struck at the death with an unstoppable drive into the far corner.

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Osasuna hold out for Bordeaux draw

Wednesday, 14 February 2007
CA Osasuna produced a stubborn defensive display to frustrate FC Girondins de Bordeaux and claim a valuable clean sheet from this UEFA Cup Round of 32 first-leg tie.

Advantage Osasuna
With genuine chances scarce at the Stade Chaban-Delmas, the French club were left to rue a failure to make more of their territorial advantage, with the result favouring Osasuna ahead of next week's return match in Pamplona.

Strike threat
Bordeaux threatened intermittently on an uneven surface, with their best moments of the first half involving Juan Pablo Francia, who was unable to trouble goalkeeper Ricardo López from ten metres, and his lively strike partner Marouane Chamakh. The latter was centimetres away from applying the finishing touch to a David Jemmali cross on 44 minutes. Osasuna's sole effort of note had been a Pierre Webó header straight at goalkeeper Ulrich Ramé.

Huff and puff
The Spanish side continued to soak up the pressure after the restart, and not even the introduction of Edixon Perea for Vladimír Šmicer could break their concentration. Javier Flaño's heavy back-pass did worry his own goalkeeper, Ricardo, whose was later tested by a Julien Faubert shot. However, for all the hosts' huff and puff, there was no danger of a late crash by the visitors.

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