ROMA FINALE 2009

The Roma Final 2009/ Rome Finale 2009 will be the 54th final of the UEFA Champions League football tournament and the 17th final under the current format. The final will be played at the Olimpico Stadio in Rome with a seating capacity of more than eighty thousand peoples.

The 2009 UEFA Champions League Final will take place at the "Roma Stadio Olimpico" stadium. This is the modern multifunctional sports complex and its main part is the Grand Sports Arena "Roma Stadio Olimpico" which actually will host the Champions League final. Its total capacity is more than 80 000 seats - it's the biggest sports stadium in Rome.

Rome is the capital city of Italy and is Italy's largest and most populous city. It is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River. The temperature during the heat of the day often exceeds 32 °C.

Experienced campaigners commit to Villarreal

Villarreal CF have rewarded Robert Pirès and Javi Venta with one-year contract extensions which tie the duo to the club until 30 June 2010.

Experienced campaigners
Former France midfield player Pirès, 35, joined in summer 2006 from Arsenal FC – Villarreal's opponents in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals – and continues to be an integral part of Manuel Pellegrini's plans having made 23 Liga appearances this term. The 33-year-old defender Javi Venta, meanwhile, has played 15 times in the Spanish top flight this season, taking his tally to 157 over seven seasons. Both players will hope to feature when the Gunners visit El Madrigal for Tuesday's first leg.

'Very happy'
Pirès said: "I'm 35 and there are very few players at my age who are given an opportunity like this one. I feel good physically and mentally. I've signed a one-year extension for the moment and we'll see what happens in the future. My great hope is to win a title with Villarreal." Venta added: "I'm very happy that I'm staying. I was always sure of what I wanted to do but it was up to the club to make a decision. If it were up to me I'd retire here."

Chatting to Liverpool FC captain Steven Gerrard

Steven Gerrard sat down and talked with press about Liverpool's victory against Real Madrid as well as the possibility of this year winning the champions league.

How does the Madrid victory rank alongside all the big European nights at Anfield?
Steven Gerrard: It ranks right alongside the best ones. I have been lucky enough to play in some big games at Anfield, especially in the Champions League, but the Real Madrid victory is certainly up there. We've got fantastic supporters who raise their performance on European nights. They bring their flags and make an awful lot of noise which gives the Liverpool players a big lift and a big help on the night.

Were you aware that you were playing in your 100th European match?
Gerrard: Yes, of course. It was a special night for me, personally. A lot of people were texting me on my mobile phone before the game, reminding me, but I already knew. I was very happy to reach that milestone and it makes me feel really proud to achieve that.

Liverpool were crowned European champions in Rome in both 1977 and 1984. Does it add extra significance ahead of this year's final at the Stadio Olimpico?
Gerrard: I'd say so. Obviously that's the history of the football club, and the idea for us players today is to add to that history – we want to be the team that goes to Rome and does it again. We remember those magical nights, so if we were to go and do that again, it would be really special.

You were born and raised in the city. What does Liverpool FC mean to you?
Gerrard: It means everything to me. I've supported the club ever since I started watching football. A lot of my family are Liverpool supporters, a lot of my friends, and I still live in the city. So when we do win and get good results, and win trophies, it's nice to be part of it and enjoy it with the supporters.

Interview with Manchester United forward, Carlos Tevez!

This was an interview with Argentinean forward Carlos Tévez. In the interview he was asked about Manchester United near future in the premier league and champions league.

Will you reach the UEFA Champions League semis by defeating FC Porto?
Carlos Tévez: I think we stand a great chance. Over the last few days we have been with our international teams and with our families, which has given us a good chance to relax and switch off a bit. I'm sure when we regroup in England we will already be thinking about the game. We want to keep on winning titles.
How good is Porto?

Tévez: They are a good team with lots of attacking power. They have great strikers and they are going through a very good period at the moment. It won't be easy to beat them, but we have confidence in ourselves. We are dreaming of returning to the final and winning the Champions League once again.

Do you think Manchester United's recent defeats will affect your performance against Porto and also in the Premier League?
Tévez: No. Because we've had two defeats everyone thinks we're going to fall, but I don't. It's true that we feel a little bit worn out at this stage of the season, but we will fight for the Premier League and the Champions League until the very end. It's a very strong team and I think we still have margin for error. Although Liverpool are close to us, we have to just think about ourselves. I've told Javier Mascherano that he is going to be disappointed [laughs].

Barcelona to lose on first leg against Bayern Munich

Barcelona F.C will most likely lose its first leg of the Champions league quarter-finals on April 8 as it appears two essential players will not be able to play. Andrés Iniesta and Yaya Touré both face a race to be fit for the first leg of FC Barcelona's UEFA Champions League quarter-final against FC Bayern München after the midfield pair picked up identical injuries during Sunday’s game against Málaga CF.

Touré, 25, was replaced in the 25th minute after failing to recover from a challenge with opposition full-back Nacho and was later diagnosed with a small tear to his right adductor muscle. The 24-year-old Iniesta, who has been restricted to 19 Liga appearances this season because of injury problems, lasted an hour before being forced off with the same complaint. Both players have been given an estimated recovery time of 15 days.

What are the implications of this absences? Simple and obvious; Barcelona will lose! More specifically the team will lose pass effectiveness in the midfield as well as experience and dexterity. This is crucial for Barcelona as Messi and Henry rely heavily in these two men for the passes to score goals.

Bayern unbeaten
The two teams have met four times in European competition, with Bayern yet to be beaten. The German champions triumphed 2-1 at Camp Nou after drawing the first leg of a 1995/96 UEFA Cup semi-final, with Klinsmann appearing in both matches and Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola featuring in the first. They faced off again in the 1998/99 UEFA Champions League group stage, with Bayern winning 1-0 at home and 2-1 again in Spain.

Barcelona Analysts such as Juan Jose Palacios and Felipe Iregui however still remain positive and believe Barcelona will be able to solve this issue and beat Bayern Munich. I just don’t see how, I guess they believe in miracles.

A liitle bit of history

As we approach to another champion’s league final is important that we know a little bit of the history of the cup and its most flourishing teams. The Champion’s league was founded in 1955 and below is a list of its five most successful teams and the number of trophies won by each.

1-Real Madrid 9 cups

2-AC Milan 7

3-Liverpool 5

4-Bayern Munich 4

5-Ajax 4

Interesting enough this year Liverpool and Bayern Munich are still alive this year and may perhaps increase the number of trophies. This table also allows us to understand the clear supremacy of Real Madrid on this cup as well as its superiority in Europe through the past century and the current one. It also raises the question as to where is Barcelona F.C and Manchester United? who proclaim themselves to be better that Real Madrid these days.

Best team in Europe says goodbye to the competition

Real Madrid the best club in Europe said two weeks ago goodbye to the competition after losing 4-0 to Liverpool. Real Madrid the likely champion this year is now eliminated and raised the question of who will win this year in Rome?. His captain Raul Gonzalez explains how much this hurt the morale of his team. This loss comes to a surprise to the whole world as Real Madrid were coming on the back of a run of eleven matches, last time this happen was in 1956.

"Losing 4-0 in this competition really hurts but we must lift ourselves," the Madrid captain said. "These things come in cycles and we have to accept them. Madrid went many years without winning the European Cup and then came another cycle in which we were always in the semi-finals".