SL Benfica stood firm in the face of a tide of pressure from FC København as Kostas Katsouranis' first-half goal proved enough to secure a 3-1 aggregate victory for the Portuguese outfit, and a place in the UEFA Champions League group stage.
The hosts had started best, chalking up several chances in the first 15 minutes and looked the stronger team for much of the match but failed to convert their opportunities into goals.
With so many players having their careers guided by agents and motivated by cold-blooded, cool-headed monetary considerations and advertising contracts we rarely get to see a player whose hot-blooded love for a club continues to gush uncontrollably from the bottom of his heart. It may be old school but it’s a lesson that Rui Costa continues to deliver in style.
"(Luisao) is not fit enough to play the friendly against Algeria on August 22," said a statement from the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF).
Adu was inserted as an attacking midfielder, but drifted out to the wings in an attempt to find some space to operate. As the new boy in town, he limited himself to quick, snappy passes instead of trying to run at defenders. Early in the second half, Adu sent a pass to the Paraguayan Oscar Cardozo, whose header was stopped by goalkeeper Jesper Christiansen. Late in the game, Adu attempted a bicycle kick, but his shot went wide of the goal.
A late Rui Costa goal ensured SL Benfica took the advantage from the first leg of their UEFA Champions League third qualifying round tie against FC København.
Canadian international Atiba Hutchinson scored in a losing cause Tuesday as FC Copenhagen was beaten 2-1 by Portugal's Benfica in the third qualifying round of the Champions League.
Freddy Adu made his European debut Tuesday, drawing cheers when he entered as a first-half substitute for Benfica of Portugal during its 2-1 Champions League victory over FC Copenhagen. [...] Adu, one of the highest-profile players in Major League Soccer, got a taste of how hard it is to please Benfica's fans. The team was jeered off the field at halftime.
It’s a case of déjà vu in the Portuguese capital as Benfica attempt to bring home the bacon with a win against the great Danes.
There is no denying that Benfica looks to be more formidable of the two and with the advantage of the home ground and above all the partisan fans, we can expect a better showing with the need to chalk up a huge win to take to Copenhagen for the return leg.
Approximate outcome probabilities: home win: 70%, draw: 20%, away win: 10%.
[Manuel Fernandes] had been named in the Benfica squad for their Champions League qualifying match against FC Copenhagen tonight, but he did not join up with the squad once confirmation of Everton's offer arrived. The midfielder would be ineligible to play for Everton in the Uefa Cup should he play against the Danes
"I do not know a lot about Benfica's current situation, but I still consider them favourites to qualify for the group stage," [Copenhagen coach Ståle Solbakken] said. "However, they may not be much stronger than Beitar Jerusalem were at this moment in time."
Kale, for the second time in a week, found only air, and Allback silenced about 20,000 Beitar fans at Teddy with an easy touch into the net.
A fabulous pass by Idan Tal sent in Alvarez on the right who pushed into the penalty area and passed to Itzhaki to slot home on the hour mark.
"It is matches like those ones that you live for as a football player. It's always great fun measuring yourself against the greatest teams in Europe and now we have another chance to do that." - Hjate Bo Nørregaard
"If I were one of their fans, I wouldn't pay a shekel to see [FC København]. The truth is I wouldn't go for free because they're a disgusting team, and they played old-fashioned soccer, which was just enough to get by us. I didn't come to Beitar just for Europe, but there's no doubt it was a part I looked forward to." - Idan Tal
[...] the truth is that Beitar isn't a team worthy of even coming close to the Champions League. Neither is FC Copenhagen for that matter - if that consoles anyone.
"In Canada nobody knows me." - Atiba Hutchinson.
"I'm certain that if we play at our regular level we will progress" - Jerusalem coach Itzhak Schum
"We spoke a lot about the Beitar fans' fanaticism, but this is soccer and we are professionals. An enthusiastic crowd is good for the home team, but we will be focusing on the match. I am more worried about the heat and the weather than I am about the crowd." - Ståle Solbakken.
"We need to score in the away match, that is the key. The moment that we score, Beitar will have to get three." - Jesper Grønkjær.
"København are a good side yet we can still beat them and reach the next stage, where Benfica are waiting." - Beitar coach Itzhak Shum.
FC København (DEN) v Beitar Jerusalem FC (ISR): Drawing each other is just not a very good feeling for either team as they both expected to make it beyond this round. Beitar Jerusalem's owner, Arcadi Gaydamak has invested heavily in strengthening his team and expects a return on that investment. Both teams are full of national team players of Scandinavian countries and Israel respectively - and Israel has done very well so far in the European Championship qualification group E where they are currently ranked second three points ahead of England. ... Approximate outcome probabilities: Home win 60%, draw 25%, away win 15%.
While he may not fear death, Solbakken is apprehensive about the encounter with Beitar, especially about having to travel to Jerusalem for the return, he says. "After three games we finally won in the league, but we still haven't reached the point where we need to be as far as our game is concerned. After all, we won against a weak team and Beitar is a lot more dangerous."
Is there any player in particular that worries you at Beitar?
Solbakken: "No, but Beitar is a good team that could easily fit among the top teams in Denmark. Beitar has a strong defense and in our first matches this season we have found it hard to create chances. In our last match we created chances, but still found it hard to score."
Romulo Marques Antoneli, aka Romulo, who yesterday completed his move to Beitar Jerusalem, is described by the Brazilian press as a "physical striker who knows how to seize his chance."
However, his previous opportunity on the European stage started in similar cicrumstances to those that brought him to Beitar, and ended in misery.
[...] to be pitted against Danish champion FC Copenhagen has made the light at the end of the qualifying tunnel seem even further than before.
Copenhagen is not just the biggest team in Denmark, but it has recently become one of the powerhouses of Scandanavian soccer. [...]
It's not going to be easy for Betar on July 31, with the first game in Denmark, but with good preparation the Israelis could produce a shock result, which would incidentally only take them through to a second qualifying game against even higher quality oppositoin.
"The draw is difficult, but reasonable," Betar coach Yitzhak Schum said. "We must advance no matter who we face. I hope that after the tie is over we'll be able to say that the draw was good."
[...]
"The draw could have been better and it could have been worse," Betar midfielder Michael Zandberg said. "Copenhagen is a strong side with European experience and we can't afford to underestimate any team."
[...]
"I think this is a good draw, we could have been drawn against better sides," veteran defender David Amsalem said. "It's always better to play the first leg away from home. They don't know what Teddy's like and our main goal will be to settle the tie in Jerusalem."
The first bump on our road to more international glory has just appeared like a rabbit out of the magician's hat: it's Beitar Jerusalem [UEFA.com | Wikipedia] of Israel.
THOMAS GRAVESEN took dog’s abuse, his team were howling and they got a hounding.
The midfielder bought to be Celtic’s heartbeat had the homecoming from HELL.
[...]
Copenhagen’s first foray into the group stages may have seen them banished out of Europe without the consolation of a UEFA Cup slot but they bowed out with pride.
Benfica were held here, Sir Alex Ferguson’s mighty Manchester United famously vanquished. Celtic? They were destroyed.
Underneath the Parken Stadion’s space-age retractable roof a new surface had been laid yet it still looked patchy in the gnawing cold of a biting evening.
