Edit: The draw is done and I congratulate the Swiss. The possibly strongest team from the third second group got the worst team from the first seeding group, the worst team from the second seeding group, and as a little bonus, one of the worst teams from the fourth seeding group. That's how you fix an unfortunate slip in the rankings. Welcome to Brazil, Sepp.
####
Today the European qualifying groups for Brazil 2014 takes place.
I think there is something seriously wrong with the way the qualification campaigns are organized in Europe.
53 teams are competing for 13 spots. They will be split in nine groups with six teams in most. The nine winners qualify, the eight best runners-up are drawn in play-off pairs for the remaining spot. The runner-up obtaining the worst result in qualification (deducting the results against the worst placed team in each group) is out.
53 teams! Each team will play 10 games (8 for some) and possibly 2 play off games. Many of these games will be pretty lame as more then half of the teams know they will never qualify.
So what do we do? To me the obvious solution would be fewer groups, and fewer games. 13 is a difficult number but here is my suggestion:
The 21 best ranked teams are automatically qualified for the second phase of the qualification.
The other 32 start earlier, in a 1st qualification round. 8 groups with four teams in each. The group winners and the best runner-up qualify for the next round.
At the second stage, we then have six groups with six teams in each. The first two in each qualify, and the two best third placed go head to head in a play off for the last spot.
This way, all games would be somewhat meaningful. Instead of explaning why, let me just give an example of what is could look like
First stage
Group 1
1 Romania
2 Georgia
3Faroe Island
4 Wales
Group 2
1 Bulgaria
2 Lithuania
3 Azerbaijan
4 Liechtenstein
Group 3
1 Hungary
2 Albania
3 Macedonia
4 Iceland
Group 4
1 Ukraine
2 Scotland
3 Moldova
4 Kazakhstan
Group 5
1 Belarus
2 Northern Irland
3 Latvia
4 Luxembourg
Group 6
1 Bosnia
2 Austria
3 Cyprus
4 Malta
Group 7
1 Czech Republic
2 Poland
3 Estonia
4 Andorra
Group 8
1 Belgium
2 Armenia
3 Finland
4 San Marino
Lets say the teams in bold go through. In the main qualification we would then have for example:
Group 1
1 Spain
2 Russia
3 Sweden
4 Bosnia
5 Belarus
Group 2
1 Holland
2 Montenegro
3 Denmark
4 Czech Republic
5 Ukraine
Group 3
1 Germany
2 France
3 Slovenia
4 Belgium
5 Hungary
Group 4
1 England
2 Greece
3 Turkey
4 Ireland
5 Bulgaria
Group 5
1 Portugal
2 Norway
3 Serbia
4 Israel
5 Romania
Group 6
1 Italy
2 Croatia
3 Slovakia
4 Switzerland
5 Austria
More fun, no?
Instead we're stuck with this.
First seeded:
Spain
Holland
Germany
Italy
England
Portugal
Croatia
.Greece
Norway
Second seeded:
France
Russia
Sweden
Denmark
Turkey
Serbia
Slovakia
Montenegro
Slovenia
Third seeded:
Switzerland
Ukraine
Bosnia
Czech Republic
Belgium
Ireland
Hungary
Israel
Belarus
Fourth seeded:
Bulgaria
Romania
Scotland
Poland
Austria
Northern Ireland
Lithuania
Albania
Georgia
Fifth seeded:
Finland
Cyprus
Macedonia
Latvia
Estonia
Armenia
Moldova
Azerbaijan
Faroe Islands
Sixth seed:
Iceland
Wales
Kazakhstan
Liechtenstein
Luxembourg
Malta
Andorra
San Marino
(I have ranked the teams in each group according to what I consider to be their strength).
Any draw where we get Norway or Greece is a good draw.
Saturday 30 July 2011
Thursday 28 July 2011
Blue skies for Malmö
The best results by Swedish teams in Europe on this side of the Millenium before this Tuesday? Swedish league football has been a sad story in these years, so you will not be very impressed. Just wanted to illustrate that Malmö FF's 1-0 win at Ibrox last night was quite spectacular. Where do we place it? Seems to me we have to go back to Helsingborg's run in the Champions League 2000 to find anything similar. A good sign, it is about time we have a Swedish team in the Champions League. I hope they go through.
Here's my top 10 (Örebro's performance against Sarajevo nowhere near)
Helsingborg-Inter 1-0 (Champions League third qualifying round 2000)
Inter-Helsingborg 0-0 (Champions League third qualifying round 2000)
Bayern Munchen-Helsingborg 0-0 (Champions League group stage 2000)
Galatasaray-Helsingborg 2-3 (UEFA Cup group stage 2007)
Sporting Lisbon-Halmstad 2-3 (after extra time, UEFA Cup first round 2005)
Halmstad-Benfica 2-1 (UEFA Cup first round 2000)
Juventus-Djurgården 2-2 (Champions League third qualifying round 2004)
Benfica-Halmstad 2-2 (UEFA Cup first round 2000)
Braga-Elfsborg 1-2 (Europa League 3rd qualifying round 2009)
Feyenoord-Kalmar FF 0-1 (UEFA Cup first round 2008, but kicked out 2-1 on aggregate)
Here's my top 10 (Örebro's performance against Sarajevo nowhere near)
Helsingborg-Inter 1-0 (Champions League third qualifying round 2000)
Inter-Helsingborg 0-0 (Champions League third qualifying round 2000)
Bayern Munchen-Helsingborg 0-0 (Champions League group stage 2000)
Galatasaray-Helsingborg 2-3 (UEFA Cup group stage 2007)
Sporting Lisbon-Halmstad 2-3 (after extra time, UEFA Cup first round 2005)
Halmstad-Benfica 2-1 (UEFA Cup first round 2000)
Juventus-Djurgården 2-2 (Champions League third qualifying round 2004)
Benfica-Halmstad 2-2 (UEFA Cup first round 2000)
Braga-Elfsborg 1-2 (Europa League 3rd qualifying round 2009)
Feyenoord-Kalmar FF 0-1 (UEFA Cup first round 2008, but kicked out 2-1 on aggregate)
Fixing the fixtures
I have never fully understood the process for establishing the Serie A fixtures. It is not a draw for certain, or maybe there's partially a draw. As I said, I'm not sure. Does anyone know? Or is it better not to know?
What I do know is that almost every year, Milan and Lazio face off somewhere around the 2nd and the 4th round. And that usually the Milan derby takes place fairly late in the season.
This year, Napoli's president according to reports petitioned that Napoli should not play against big teams the week after a Champions League week. He was unsuccessful. At the early stage of the season, Napoli will play both Milan and Inter after a Champions League week. That made president Aurelio De Laurentiis so angry that he left the buidling, and asked a random passer-by on a motorcycle for a ride away from there, mumbling that he was ashamed to be an Italian and that he would go back to producing movies.
An amusing and yet confusing story. Are you allowed to make such petitions? And why being so upset? Not only Napoli but also the opponents Milan and Inter will play in the Champions League that week, and we do not know yet which of the teams will get one day more of rest than the other.
What I take away from the draw (or whatever it is) is that even if Milan would straggle behind Inter this season, we should still have a decent hope if we are six points behind with two games to go. The season ends with the derby della madonnina in round 37, and on the last day Inter travel to Rome to play Lazio. They did that also in 2002, with a chance of securing the title, and I will never forget these beautiful scenes. The Inter-loser days may be over, but Italians have a hard time ignoring the curse of history.
What I do know is that almost every year, Milan and Lazio face off somewhere around the 2nd and the 4th round. And that usually the Milan derby takes place fairly late in the season.
This year, Napoli's president according to reports petitioned that Napoli should not play against big teams the week after a Champions League week. He was unsuccessful. At the early stage of the season, Napoli will play both Milan and Inter after a Champions League week. That made president Aurelio De Laurentiis so angry that he left the buidling, and asked a random passer-by on a motorcycle for a ride away from there, mumbling that he was ashamed to be an Italian and that he would go back to producing movies.
An amusing and yet confusing story. Are you allowed to make such petitions? And why being so upset? Not only Napoli but also the opponents Milan and Inter will play in the Champions League that week, and we do not know yet which of the teams will get one day more of rest than the other.
What I take away from the draw (or whatever it is) is that even if Milan would straggle behind Inter this season, we should still have a decent hope if we are six points behind with two games to go. The season ends with the derby della madonnina in round 37, and on the last day Inter travel to Rome to play Lazio. They did that also in 2002, with a chance of securing the title, and I will never forget these beautiful scenes. The Inter-loser days may be over, but Italians have a hard time ignoring the curse of history.
Tuesday 26 July 2011
Window of fear
Örebro SK has finally won a football game. After I wrote the post "Crul summer", anticipating an overly tough schedule on the squad, we lined up the following results (Örebro's result first).
Halmstad (away) 0-0
Djurgården (home) 1-2
Mjällby (away) 1-2
Elfsborg (home) 0-3
Elfsborg (away 0-3
Sarajevo (home) 0-0
Gais (away) 1-4
Sarajevo (away) 0-2 (thus we're kicked out of EL)
Norrköping (home) 2-0. Finally.
Apart from Elfsborg, all these games were played against teams we should normally beat. Really.
Hopefully things will go in the right directions from now onwards. Players aer coming back from injury. We can still end in the top 4. We can still win the cup. The cup here becomes more and more important this year. We need a title to remedy the disastrous season so far. And get another shot at Europa League. And get a reason to attract good players. Which brings me to the next topic.
The Örebro SK way of dealing with contracting is not to keep players on a tight leash. Cut some slack and you will be more likely to convince players to play with us for less money than you would get elsewhere. We keep costs down but get very little from selling on the transfer market. Play it safe. Something like that.
Gotta say I like it. But it does make you very nervous every time a transfer window is about to open. Now we had the strange situation that the European transfer window has been opened for a while (thus foreign clubs can sign our players) whereas our own transfer window is mid-season and only opens on Monday.
We have two things to deal with.
Immediate band aid
Not sure how we ended up with one central defender in the entire squad (who is currently injured). Or, I do, actually. The last few seasons we have decided not to extend the contracts of players like Bertin Ze and Holgersson. This season, we shipped away Lumbana on loan to Iceland before the seaon started, and in June almost simultaneously sold Almebäck and ended the contract with Oskar Johansson. Suddenly we have Wikström as the only natural choice. Haginge is the obvious cover for Almebäck with his speed - and this was something the club had in mind although he prefers to full back role. But it happens, dear ÖSK, that a central defender gets injured or suspended. It happended now and so midfielder Nordback had to fall back and start as a central defender against both Sarajevo and against Norrköping. And he has not impressed anyone.
Now the club has laid eyes on Icelander Eid Aaron Sigurbjörnsson from IBV Vestmannaeyjar. Hard to find solid information on him on the internet. That in itself is rather worrying these days. But a new defender, possibly with language problems, needs time to fit into a new club. And coach Sixten has usually been careful in that regard. So it may take a while before Eid is functional, even if we sign him. I would think we need one more central defender. Christoffer Wiktorson from local rival Degerfors seems a good alternative as he would be more likely to find his way into the Örebro way of playing quickly. Although the Degerfors web site markets him as very short, very light and extremly old, he is rumoured to be a very talented player. We missed Mellberg in the 90s. Let's not miss this one.
The club is also looking for a centre forward. Here ÖSK has been a bit but just a bit more unlucky. We have three for one position, but all of them are prone to injuries (and we knew that). First choice Haddad has played only five games this season (we won four of them and he scored in three). Second choice Atashkadeh has picked up a few minor injuries, and has rarely been in shape to act as the Haddad back-up he was intended to be.
Third choice Staaf is not a very good footballer, but holds an ok goal scoring average. He is starting right now but Sixten tried not only Haddad and Atashkadeh but also Lushtaku, Rama, Paulinho and (in pre-season) Bedoya in this position before giving Staaf a chance. So if we find a striker it better be one that is made of steel.
Rebuilding for the future - extend contracts or look for replacements
Here is the contract status of the players with highest average ratings so far this season (Rank, Player, Rating, Status)
1. Bedoya (2.85): Signed for Glasgow Rangers. May leave as free agent in October or for a negligible fee any day now.
2. Almebäck (2.58): Already gone, to Brugge.
3. Alvbåge (2.56): Expiring contract, has declared that he intends to leave as free agent after the season. The club has stated they are looking for a replacement.
4. Rama (2.40): Is contracted also for 2012 and 2013.
5. Gerzic (2.36): Expiring contract, may well leave as he has not yet accepted the offers for a contract extension.
Get on it!
Halmstad (away) 0-0
Djurgården (home) 1-2
Mjällby (away) 1-2
Elfsborg (home) 0-3
Elfsborg (away 0-3
Sarajevo (home) 0-0
Gais (away) 1-4
Sarajevo (away) 0-2 (thus we're kicked out of EL)
Norrköping (home) 2-0. Finally.
Apart from Elfsborg, all these games were played against teams we should normally beat. Really.
Hopefully things will go in the right directions from now onwards. Players aer coming back from injury. We can still end in the top 4. We can still win the cup. The cup here becomes more and more important this year. We need a title to remedy the disastrous season so far. And get another shot at Europa League. And get a reason to attract good players. Which brings me to the next topic.
The Örebro SK way of dealing with contracting is not to keep players on a tight leash. Cut some slack and you will be more likely to convince players to play with us for less money than you would get elsewhere. We keep costs down but get very little from selling on the transfer market. Play it safe. Something like that.
Gotta say I like it. But it does make you very nervous every time a transfer window is about to open. Now we had the strange situation that the European transfer window has been opened for a while (thus foreign clubs can sign our players) whereas our own transfer window is mid-season and only opens on Monday.
We have two things to deal with.
Immediate band aid
Not sure how we ended up with one central defender in the entire squad (who is currently injured). Or, I do, actually. The last few seasons we have decided not to extend the contracts of players like Bertin Ze and Holgersson. This season, we shipped away Lumbana on loan to Iceland before the seaon started, and in June almost simultaneously sold Almebäck and ended the contract with Oskar Johansson. Suddenly we have Wikström as the only natural choice. Haginge is the obvious cover for Almebäck with his speed - and this was something the club had in mind although he prefers to full back role. But it happens, dear ÖSK, that a central defender gets injured or suspended. It happended now and so midfielder Nordback had to fall back and start as a central defender against both Sarajevo and against Norrköping. And he has not impressed anyone.
Now the club has laid eyes on Icelander Eid Aaron Sigurbjörnsson from IBV Vestmannaeyjar. Hard to find solid information on him on the internet. That in itself is rather worrying these days. But a new defender, possibly with language problems, needs time to fit into a new club. And coach Sixten has usually been careful in that regard. So it may take a while before Eid is functional, even if we sign him. I would think we need one more central defender. Christoffer Wiktorson from local rival Degerfors seems a good alternative as he would be more likely to find his way into the Örebro way of playing quickly. Although the Degerfors web site markets him as very short, very light and extremly old, he is rumoured to be a very talented player. We missed Mellberg in the 90s. Let's not miss this one.
The club is also looking for a centre forward. Here ÖSK has been a bit but just a bit more unlucky. We have three for one position, but all of them are prone to injuries (and we knew that). First choice Haddad has played only five games this season (we won four of them and he scored in three). Second choice Atashkadeh has picked up a few minor injuries, and has rarely been in shape to act as the Haddad back-up he was intended to be.
Third choice Staaf is not a very good footballer, but holds an ok goal scoring average. He is starting right now but Sixten tried not only Haddad and Atashkadeh but also Lushtaku, Rama, Paulinho and (in pre-season) Bedoya in this position before giving Staaf a chance. So if we find a striker it better be one that is made of steel.
Rebuilding for the future - extend contracts or look for replacements
Here is the contract status of the players with highest average ratings so far this season (Rank, Player, Rating, Status)
1. Bedoya (2.85): Signed for Glasgow Rangers. May leave as free agent in October or for a negligible fee any day now.
2. Almebäck (2.58): Already gone, to Brugge.
3. Alvbåge (2.56): Expiring contract, has declared that he intends to leave as free agent after the season. The club has stated they are looking for a replacement.
4. Rama (2.40): Is contracted also for 2012 and 2013.
5. Gerzic (2.36): Expiring contract, may well leave as he has not yet accepted the offers for a contract extension.
Get on it!
Thursday 21 July 2011
Bullet with butterfly wings
2011 was supposed to be the big season. Instead of chasing our first gold, we have to accept that after five straight losses in the league we have gone from number three to fighting to avoid relegation. Örebro gone Sampdoria. Me no like.
So with the league being what it is, we still have to competitions we're still in. And today is a crucial day for both of them.
The cup semifinals are drawn tonight, just after the end of the Sarajevo-Örebro SK clash in the Europa League qualifications, the second leg after a goal less draw in Örebro.
But we come to Sarajevo with weak ammunition. Not only do we have a raft of injuries and one player sold. Yesterday we learnt that Lushtaku cannot get an entry visa to Bosnia since he is Kosovan and Kosovo is not recognized by Bosnia. Maybe the fact that Lushtaku at least accoring to some sources on the web is the son of politician/mayor/maffioso Sami Lushtako has something to do with it as well.
Anyway, look at the expected starting 11 this season:
Goal: Alvbåge - available but has just kind of made clear he will leave at the end of the season
Rightback: Anttonen - njured in the beginning of the season, now injured again
Central defender 1: Almebäck - sold and gone
Central defender 2: Wikström - injured
Rightback: Wowoah - available, always available
Defensive midfieder: Kihlberg - available but unimpressive
Running midfielder: Bedoya - brilliant before the gold cup, then back only to be sent off, and then picking up an injury. And probably he is happy not to play anyway as he is about to be sold and doesn't want to get cuptied. We may never see him in black and white again
Offensive midfielder: Gerzic - available and oh so important today
Rightwing: Astvald - just back from injury but having a terrible terrible season
Centerforward: Haddad - injured, on his way back.
Leftwing: Rama - available
There was a lot of talk of the breadth of the squad at the beginning of the season. Well, it's looking pretty thin now as many of the back up players are injured too and since we only have one natural central defender in the squad, who is injured.
So tonight I expect to see:
Alvbåge
Wirtanten (third choice right back)
Haginge (a right back going central)
Nordback (a midfielder falling back)
Wowoah
Kihlberg
Paulinho (a winger in midfield)
Gerzic
Astvald
Staaf (sixth choice a centre forward)
Rama
Bench:
Nurme, Johansson, Abdulahi, Berger, Nilsson, Ibrahim, Yasin.
If we make it it will be the biggest achievement by Swedes in Sarajevo since Wassberg one the 50 km in 1984.
So with the league being what it is, we still have to competitions we're still in. And today is a crucial day for both of them.
The cup semifinals are drawn tonight, just after the end of the Sarajevo-Örebro SK clash in the Europa League qualifications, the second leg after a goal less draw in Örebro.
But we come to Sarajevo with weak ammunition. Not only do we have a raft of injuries and one player sold. Yesterday we learnt that Lushtaku cannot get an entry visa to Bosnia since he is Kosovan and Kosovo is not recognized by Bosnia. Maybe the fact that Lushtaku at least accoring to some sources on the web is the son of politician/mayor/maffioso Sami Lushtako has something to do with it as well.
Anyway, look at the expected starting 11 this season:
Goal: Alvbåge - available but has just kind of made clear he will leave at the end of the season
Rightback: Anttonen - njured in the beginning of the season, now injured again
Central defender 1: Almebäck - sold and gone
Central defender 2: Wikström - injured
Rightback: Wowoah - available, always available
Defensive midfieder: Kihlberg - available but unimpressive
Running midfielder: Bedoya - brilliant before the gold cup, then back only to be sent off, and then picking up an injury. And probably he is happy not to play anyway as he is about to be sold and doesn't want to get cuptied. We may never see him in black and white again
Offensive midfielder: Gerzic - available and oh so important today
Rightwing: Astvald - just back from injury but having a terrible terrible season
Centerforward: Haddad - injured, on his way back.
Leftwing: Rama - available
There was a lot of talk of the breadth of the squad at the beginning of the season. Well, it's looking pretty thin now as many of the back up players are injured too and since we only have one natural central defender in the squad, who is injured.
So tonight I expect to see:
Alvbåge
Wirtanten (third choice right back)
Haginge (a right back going central)
Nordback (a midfielder falling back)
Wowoah
Kihlberg
Paulinho (a winger in midfield)
Gerzic
Astvald
Staaf (sixth choice a centre forward)
Rama
Bench:
Nurme, Johansson, Abdulahi, Berger, Nilsson, Ibrahim, Yasin.
If we make it it will be the biggest achievement by Swedes in Sarajevo since Wassberg one the 50 km in 1984.
Thursday 14 July 2011
Getting ready for Diego and Diego's son-in-law
And when I'm at it, don't for a second think that I am not aware of the fact that the draw for the 3rd round of the qualification happens already tomorrow.
I'm afraid there will be no mapping of each possible contender here, but let's just look at the possible oppponents for Örebro, should they proceed to the next stage.
We are talking some serious teams here. I think we cannot play Elfsborg or Helsingborg. I list the other in categories (i) should not be possible, (ii) very very tough, (iii) very tough and (iv) 50/50 or better chance
[Edit: downgraded Alania to a 50/50. This is the team we lost to, 2-1, in a pre-season friendly in Turkey. Or not so friendly, actually. It was a brutal game and Marcus Astvald after the game stated that Russians were "one of the ugliest people there are". "Ugly" in a brutal football kind of way, but still Marcus had to retract that statement. Anyway, I noticed that Alania is a second division team that qualified for the Europa League as cup runner up. They did so without scoring one single goal before the final, which they lost. All other games they won on walk over or on penalties after goal less draws, all against teams far from the elite of Russian football. They currently play in the Russian second league, where they are in second position]
Should not be possible
Atletico Madrid (Forlan and Kun Aguero may be gone by then, but still)
Fulham (if they beat Crusaders, which they will)
Palermo
Very very tough
AZ Alkmaar
Hapoel Tel Aviv
PAOK Saloniki
Stoke City
Rennes
Nacional (if they beat FH)
Mainz 05
Vitoria Guimares
Bursaspor
Very tough
Club Brugge (against Iron Mike!)
Sparta Prague
Dinamo Bucharest
Red Bull Salzburg (if they beat Liepajas Metalurgs)
Austria Wien (if they beat Rudar)
Young Boys
Anorthosis (if they beat Gagra)
Levski Sofia
Zilina (if they beat KR Reykjavik)
Karpaty Lviv
Red Star
ADO Den Haag (if they beat Tauras)
Gaziantepspor (if they beat Minsk)
Olympiakos Volou (if they beat Rad)
50/50 or better chance
Crusaders (if they beat Fulham, like that would happen)
Liepajas Metalurgs (if they beat Red Bull Salzburg, not very likely)
Rudar (if they beat Austria)
Alania Vladikavkaz
Gagra (if they beat Anorthosis)
KR Reykjavik (if they beat Zilina)
FH (if they beat Nacional)
Mlada Boleslav
Brondby
Sherif Tirasspol (if they beat Zeljeznicar)
Zeljeznicar (if they beat Sherif)
Tauras (if they beat ADO)
Lokomotiv Sofia (if they beat Metalurg Skopje)
Skopje (if they beat Metalurg)
Hearts
Minsk (if they beat Gaziantepspor)
Rad (if they beat Volou)
I'm afraid there will be no mapping of each possible contender here, but let's just look at the possible oppponents for Örebro, should they proceed to the next stage.
We are talking some serious teams here. I think we cannot play Elfsborg or Helsingborg. I list the other in categories (i) should not be possible, (ii) very very tough, (iii) very tough and (iv) 50/50 or better chance
[Edit: downgraded Alania to a 50/50. This is the team we lost to, 2-1, in a pre-season friendly in Turkey. Or not so friendly, actually. It was a brutal game and Marcus Astvald after the game stated that Russians were "one of the ugliest people there are". "Ugly" in a brutal football kind of way, but still Marcus had to retract that statement. Anyway, I noticed that Alania is a second division team that qualified for the Europa League as cup runner up. They did so without scoring one single goal before the final, which they lost. All other games they won on walk over or on penalties after goal less draws, all against teams far from the elite of Russian football. They currently play in the Russian second league, where they are in second position]
Should not be possible
Atletico Madrid (Forlan and Kun Aguero may be gone by then, but still)
Fulham (if they beat Crusaders, which they will)
Palermo
Very very tough
AZ Alkmaar
Hapoel Tel Aviv
PAOK Saloniki
Stoke City
Rennes
Nacional (if they beat FH)
Mainz 05
Vitoria Guimares
Bursaspor
Very tough
Club Brugge (against Iron Mike!)
Sparta Prague
Dinamo Bucharest
Red Bull Salzburg (if they beat Liepajas Metalurgs)
Austria Wien (if they beat Rudar)
Young Boys
Anorthosis (if they beat Gagra)
Levski Sofia
Zilina (if they beat KR Reykjavik)
Karpaty Lviv
Red Star
ADO Den Haag (if they beat Tauras)
Gaziantepspor (if they beat Minsk)
Olympiakos Volou (if they beat Rad)
50/50 or better chance
Crusaders (if they beat Fulham, like that would happen)
Liepajas Metalurgs (if they beat Red Bull Salzburg, not very likely)
Rudar (if they beat Austria)
Alania Vladikavkaz
Gagra (if they beat Anorthosis)
KR Reykjavik (if they beat Zilina)
FH (if they beat Nacional)
Mlada Boleslav
Brondby
Sherif Tirasspol (if they beat Zeljeznicar)
Zeljeznicar (if they beat Sherif)
Tauras (if they beat ADO)
Lokomotiv Sofia (if they beat Metalurg Skopje)
Skopje (if they beat Metalurg)
Hearts
Minsk (if they beat Gaziantepspor)
Rad (if they beat Volou)
Too late, tonight, to drag the past out into the light
I should be fired for negligence. The whole spring I have followed (i) Bedoya's struggle to make it to the Gold cup squad and (ii) Örebro's preparations for the Europan League qualifications. And when the things are actulally happening: total silence, pitch darkness.
Two main reasons, really. Lots of real work and, more importantly, an austrich in the sand reaction to Örebro's absolutely miserable summer so far. No wins in five games, four straight losses. But some sneak peaks into press reports suggest that we played ok in the last game.
And tonight's the night. Time to look forward. I wish I could be in Örebro tonight.
What else can I say. We are playing a team with plenty of new players. A team with a small budget. A team from a league that so far in the qualification has not impressed.
Champions Borac Banjaluka lost 5-1 to admittedly strong Maccabi Haifa last night. Siroki Birjeg, that easily beat Olimpija Ljubljana last year and oddly enough played them again this year now lost 3-0 on aggregate.
So had we not had one of our worst spells ever, we would have been clear favourites tonight. Now, I just don't know.
Two main reasons, really. Lots of real work and, more importantly, an austrich in the sand reaction to Örebro's absolutely miserable summer so far. No wins in five games, four straight losses. But some sneak peaks into press reports suggest that we played ok in the last game.
And tonight's the night. Time to look forward. I wish I could be in Örebro tonight.
What else can I say. We are playing a team with plenty of new players. A team with a small budget. A team from a league that so far in the qualification has not impressed.
Champions Borac Banjaluka lost 5-1 to admittedly strong Maccabi Haifa last night. Siroki Birjeg, that easily beat Olimpija Ljubljana last year and oddly enough played them again this year now lost 3-0 on aggregate.
So had we not had one of our worst spells ever, we would have been clear favourites tonight. Now, I just don't know.
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