UEFA CUP Group Stage Preview - Groups E - H

UEFA Cup Group Stage Preview II

Matchday 1 of the UEFA Cup is on Thursday, October 25, 2007.

Continuing on, here's the outlook for the remaining groups in the 2007-08 UEFA Cup Group Stage: Groups E - H. Once more, lots of interesting matchups and intriguing ties. Plenty of very good teams that lurk in the middle to upper reaches of domestic leagues that never quite get the media attention that they deserve.

Groups A - D can be found here.

Group E

First of all there's Bayer Leverkusen and Toulouse.

Ending this weekend, Bayer were seventh in the Bundesliga while Toulouse were in tenth place in Ligue 1. Bayer has a better set of players with Theofanis Gekas, Steffan Kießling and Sergej Barbarez firing up the attack while Bernd Schneider and Swiss midfielder Tranquillo Barnetta dovetail in the middle of the park. At the back ex-Inter defender Vratislav Gresko, Tunisian Karim Haggui and German Manuel Friedrich keep opponents at bay. Toulouse, on the other hand, are a handy outfit but lack the cutting edge required to trouble top sides. The only quality player thay have is Johan Elmander and he's not giving defenders nightmares when they sleep. In the recent Champions' League qualifier versus Liverpool, the Ligue 1 team matched Liverpool, and even troubled them, at times, but when push came to shove, fell apart worryingly.

Bayer host Toulouse on Matchday 1 and the winner of that game should go on to top the group.

Now, in addition to the above duo, there is another side who will cause all sorts of problems to both of them and everyone else later in the competition. I present to you Spartak Moscow, who've slipped in unnoticed at the back of the class. Whereas one of Bayer and Toulouse should finish first, Spartak will definitely finish second. The Russian side will ride in the slipstream of the top two and leapfrog one of them to second spot in the group. Spartak have lots of recent European experience and have a well drilled side boasting the likes of Ygor Titov, Maxim Kalinichenko and Roman Pavlyuchenko. Yeah, you'd never heard of Nemanja Vidic either but look at him now.

Spartak host Bayer at home and visit Toulouse. Four points from those two games should prove enough to send Spartak through given that they also have to host Zurich and visit Sparta Prague. Bayer can build on their win in game 1 by avoiding defeat in Russia, but if they lose to Toulouse in the opener the momentum will be with the French club. Toulouse avoid the trip to Russia when they host Spartak at home. If the game between the German and French side ends in a draw, depriving both sides of precious points, Spartak could even go on to top the group. The fixtures make for an interesting set of results.

Sparta Prague seemed more interested in preventing football than playing it, in the Champion's League qualifier against Arsenal. Their robust approach can ruffle some feathers in this group, but they won't go far. FC Zurich is here mainly to make up the numbers. They'll look to their away tilt at Sparta to avoid the wooden spoon but being the away team in that game hands the Czech side the advantage.

Projected Finish:

Bayer
Spartak
Toulouse
Sparta
Zurich


Group F

This one's easy. Bayern Munich bestride the group like a colossus. Favourites for this group and early favourites for the UEFA Cup altogether. Look for them to be the only side to finish the group stage with 12 points from four straight wins. All the other teams will be looking for damage control in their games against the German behemoths and the only race in this group is the one for second place. Bayern have the best playing corps, are playing the best and boast too much experience.

Behind Bayern I'm tempted to place Sporting Braga. Their main rivals for that spot would be England's Bolton Wanderers whom they play on Matchday 1. However, the Portugese side make up for being the away team in that game with an abundance of flair and skill. And they intend to play football, as opposed to Bolton, Nicholas Anelka apart, who seem intent on kicking and bruising opponents. Bolton barely scraped past Rabotnicki in their qualifying fixture while Braga made up for losing the away leg by hammering Hammarby in the return fixture. Since both teams will probably lose to Bayern, the other tie that should make a difference to both sides would be their respective games against ex-European Champions Red Star Belgrade. Whereas Bolton travel to Belgrade, Braga, crucially, play the Serbian side at home.

Worryingly for Bolton (and Braga), if they slip up against Red Star, they could even fall behind them into 4th place. Bolton should especially be worried as they are quite simply too bad a team to worry opponents whereas Braga have a more creative style that leads to more goal scoring oportunities. And Bolton have no manager while Anelka will almost certainly leave before long. Sentimentally it would be great to see Red Star progress at the expense of the English team, and it they can pick up four points from the two fixtures against Bolton and Aris (whom they play away), they most certainly will.

Finally, I suspect, the PAOK supporting half of the city of Thessaloniki, will be untroubled by my assertion that Aris will prop up the group. Like Larissa, they've done wonders by toppling Real Zaragoza in the qualifying round, but will be out of their depth in the group stage. Their best hope for points will be the home game against Red Star.

This is the only group to feature two fomer club champions of Europe. I've already named Red Star as one of them, surely everyone knows the other.

Projected Finish:

Bayern
Braga
Red Star
Bolton
Aris

Group G

The biggest team in this group is undoubtably Tottenham but the best one is arguably Getafe. And then we have Anderlecht who regularly feature in Europe, although their recent exploits have been less than memorable. Tottenham have been in some sort of a slump, stuck just above the relegation zone and the transfer rumours around the jovial manager Martin Jol refuse to go away. They have one of the costliest striking corps in the competition but their collective quality exists only on paper. Dimitar Berbatov may indeed be one of the classiest strikers in Europe but Darrent Bent is a criminal waste of money and Jermaine Defoe is terribly erratic. Still, despite blowing hot and cold domestically, Spurs should edge the group.

Their closest competitors should be Getafe. The Spanish team are a decent side but not quite as good as the class last year under Real Madrid coach Bernd Schuster. Pablo Hernandez and Fabio Celestini are a fine axis in midfield with the former a dead ball specialist as well. Strikers Blanco Kepa and Nigerian Ikechukwu Uche are quite handy and can perforate quite a few defences around the continent. At the back ex-Milan defender Cosmin Contra, veteran David Belenguer and David Cortes form an effective rearguard in front of Argentine custodian Roberto Abbodanzieri. Getafe are singularly effective without being distinctly dangerous.

It all comes down to the opener on Matchday 1 between the two. Spurs host Getafe and whoever wins that game should ease to top spot. Thereafter Spurs visit Anderlecht and Hapoel Tel Aviv while Getafe play host to the same two teams. Needless to say, Getafe stand to claim at least four points and will be looking for six from those two games while Spurs will happily settle for four. With whipping boys Aalborg to visit the Londoners later, Spurs will be looking at a better run-in if they can avoid defeat on their travels. On the other hand if Getafe do win the group opener, the group will be theirs to lose and they could end up with ten points as group winners.

Anderlecht, as always it seems, are unable to trouble the top teams and are a little too good for the lesser sides. Perpetually big fish in a tiny pond, the advent of money into the European game has both passed them by and rendered them impotent without depriving them of their chance of competing in Europe altogether. They won't trouble the top two but should beat Hapoel Tel Aviv and Aalborg handily. Their main chance of breaking into the top two is when they host Tottenham but whereas Spurs will settle for a draw, Anderlecht will need to win.

Hapoel to finish fourth and Aalborg to end up in fifth.

Projected Finish:

Tottenham
Getafe
Anderlecht
Hapoel
Aalborg

Group H

The last of the eight groups is a fairly open one. French side Bordeaux stand out as early favourites with everyone playing for second place, it would seem. They are doing well domestically and are a well knit side who travel well. Resurgent French striker David Bellion is having a spectacular season up front aided and abetted by Brazilian midfielder Wendel. Additionally goalkeeper Ulrich Rame is one of the best to have between the pipes while David Jemmali, Souleymane Diawara and Marc Planus form an effective if unfashionable defence in front of him. Wendel is reinforced by the returning Johan Micoud, who is enjoying something of an Indian summer, Mathieu Chalme, Brazilian Fernando Megezzano and French International Alou Diarra in a tidy midfield.

Turkish side Galatasaray, winners in 2000, have fallen off their glory days despite being injected with some imported Brazilians. Their game on the opening day against Bordeaux is essentially the group decider and Le Girondins should prove too much for Gala. Also, even though Bordeaux have to travel to Greece to play Panionos just like Gala, the Greek side will look to win the latter match against their Turkish neighbours more than the former tilt against the French team. Trans-Aegean matches always have plenty riding on them and after the recent internationals between Greece and Turkey in the Euro 2008 qualifiers, expect this game to have plenty of drama. So, Gala's two away games are against the two toughest sides they can play in an away fixture and they will be hoping to at best avoid defeat in both of them.

Bordeaux should build on their opening day win with a further 6 points at Austria Vienna and at home to Sweden's Helsingborgs. If they can get atleast 7 points from their first 3 games, they are essentially home and dry. However, if Gala win at Bordeaux on Matchday 1, they would be much better placed to pick up 6 points in the 2 home games against the Swedes and Austrians.

Still, it's hard to see past Bordeaux and unless Gala have a nightmare, these two are assured of progression to the knockout rounds. For third place it's a toss up between Vienna and Panionos. Panionos host the two best teams in the group so their home games aren't walkovers and have the additional disadvantage of playing the decider against Vienna away. Those two should ensure that the Austrian side just edge out Panionos to 3rd place. In a recurrent theme in my preview, I once again pick the Nordic side to finish last.

Projected Finish:

Bordeaux
Galatasaray
Austria Vienna
Panionos
Helsingborgs