SPORTS

Fenerbahce threaten English hopes

April 08, 2008 15:46 IST

Fenerbahce will be hoping to reach their first Champions League semi-final and damage England's hopes of dominating this season's competition when they face Chelsea on Tuesday.

Fenerbahce start the second leg of their quarter-final 2-1 ahead at Stamford Bridge (1845 GMT) after their unexpected win over the London side in Istanbul last week.

If they should finish the evening still holding the upper hand, they would have pulled off a major shock and prevented what looked likely to be the appearance of three English clubs in the last four.

Chelsea are expected to be one, along with either Liverpool or Arsenal who meet at Anfield, and Manchester United, who have a 2-0 first-leg advantage over AS Roma. Barcelona, 1-0 up against Schalke 04, also look destined for the semis.

Even though they are a goal down, Chelsea start as favourites to advance as they have not lost at home in Europe since Barcelona beat them at the Bridge in February 2006 and they rarely fail to win at home in Europe.

Their last 10 home matches in the competition have produced seven victories and three draws.

Fenerbahce, on the other hand, are poor travellers having lost five and drawn two of their last seven away matches in the competition proper.

The day's other quarter-final is at Anfield between Liverpool and Arsenal, who meet each other for the third time in a week.

Liverpool marginally hold the upper hand after drawing 1-1 at Arsenal in last week's first leg, the same result as their Premier League meeting at the Emirates on Saturday.

The other two quarter-finals are on Wednesday. The winner of the Liverpool-Arsenal tie will face Chelsea or Fenerbahce in one semi, while Manchester United would meet Barcelona in the last four if both their second legs go according to form.

The semi-finals will be played on April 22-23 and April 29-30 with the final in Moscow on May 21.

Source: REUTERS
© Copyright 2024 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.

NEXT ARTICLE