Category: UEFA Champions League

The Old Firm derby on Sunday will have Europa League teams. If Celtic have deep regrets over misfires in Kazakhstan, Rangers endured a night of near-historic shame in Belgium, utterly incapable of recovering from the first‑leg performance. By contrast to this horror show, that night of blunder was a creditable showing. Russell Martin’s team made it so simple for an admittedly high-class Brugge side.

On Martin the jury is out, his winless start to the domestic season followed by this nightmare. The former Southampton manager’s stewardship is in grave danger after 10 games in charge. The response of the club’s new 49ers ownership, for whom Martin was the first managerial appointment, is keenly awaited. The depths to which Rangers plunged, particularly in the first half, made a mockery of his continued self-belief, his proclamations that his is the only way forward.

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The joy of a Bigger Cup European tour is what makes a season for the fans – the trinket on offer in Budapest is merely a bonus. Six Premier League sides will get to test themselves against the best over the coming months and there are a few new faces in the competition and some intriguing passport stamps to collect. Who wouldn’t want to travel to the Cypriot city of Paphos in September to watch their beloved club play David Luiz’s Pafos FC? The temperature reaches 29C and there is no chance of rain. There are miles and miles of beaches to enjoy with a Keo in hand. If anything, the prospect of a 90-minute match is a bit of a distraction. The even better news is there are flights from London, Manchester and Newcastle.

I’m someone who is passionate and will fight ever[y] time I step on the pitch. But I need to set a better example and you fans know how much I love you and this club” – West Ham’s Jarrod Bowen takes to InstaChat to expain why he appeared to lose his cool with a West Ham fan after they were knocked out of the Milk Cup by Wolves.

A doff of the cap to the Leeds fans, who went from chanting Sheffield Wednesday’s hopefully soon to be ex-owner, Dejphon Chansiri’s name to booing their own side and leaving during the penalty shootout as they lost to what is essentially our under-21 team. And an extra doff of the cap to Dominic Calvert-Lewin, making his debut for Leeds, who fluffed three easy chances to win it for them in the last 10 minutes and then, in the penalty shootout, did his own heartwarming tribute to Wednesday legend Chris Waddle (circa Italia 1990). Hurrah!” – Noble Francis.

Thank you Celtic for giving us the daunting prospect of impossible away-day draws, cheesy headlines and, worst of all, hearing about that teenager Chelsea have already signed until 2068 every single week. Yes Kairat Almighty, the unbeaten at home Beast from the Far East. The broadcasters and tabloids are going to milk this to the last drop aren’t they? As a Spurs fan, I am already dreading the second half of our inevitable fixture against them. I hope you enjoy Bigger Vase, Celtic” –Yannick Woudstra.

I can assure Alex Cameron (yesterday’s Football Daily) he was not alone in his interpretation of your wine-related strapline. Maybe readers could suggest suitable managerial or player candidates to receive a bottle of Chateau d’Arse, an amusing little Fitou from the Languedoc-Rousillon region” – Max Maxwell.

Federico Macheda (yesterday’s Football Daily) – now there’s a blast from the past! The last time I heard that name, I looked like Jack Grealish before he signed for City. Fortunately, as someone who’s only 40 in January, I’m still some ways away from looking like Everton Grealish” – Rowan Sweeney.

This is an extract from our daily football email … Football Daily. To get the full version, just visit this page and follow the instructions.

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Penalties did for both Leeds and Celtic, with Kairat Almaty beating the Scots 3-2 after a drab goalless draw, and Leeds beaten 3-0 by Sheffield Wednesday

Joe Pearson has filed a half-time match report: “As a retired football fan in central Indiana, I always enjoy the opportunity to watch an early afternoon weekday match,” he enthuses. “But. This match is dire. I feel I have made a bad life choice.”

Still no sign of a goal in this tie, but the two teams now have 15 minutes to come up with a plan to create one.

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Beyond midnight, many miles beyond the borders of Europe, Temirlan Anarbekov was writing his name into Celtic infamy. The 21‑year‑old rookie goalkeeper had made the penalty shootout saves that guided Kazakhstan’s Kairat Almaty into the Champions League group stage.

Adam Idah, Luke McCowan and Daizen Maeda each saw attempts saved by a keeper turned to in emergency. Kasper Schmeichel, his opposite number, could only offer congratulations as Celtic incurred the heavy cost of a poor performance over 210 goalless minutes before their lack of composure from the spot.

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Celtic still have plenty of work to do to reach the Champions League after drawing a blank in the first leg of their playoff against Kairat at Parkhead.

In Brendan Rodgers’ 800th match as a manager, there was no traditional early onslaught by the hosts as the accomplished Kazakhstani side more than matched their hosts. However, with Yang Hyun-jun on for Adam Idah and Daizen Maeda moving to centre-forward at the start of the second half, Celtic stepped up the pace and piled on the pressure in the later stages but could not find a way through despite 10 added minutes.

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Russell Martin’s eighth match of a Rangers reign already riddled with doubts veered close to a living nightmare. Championship promotion races and playoffs, the ill winds of struggling in the Premier League have nothing on the fever-dream pressures of trying to turn around an ailing Glaswegian giant.

Martin may be the true believer in his processes but in an environment where snap decisions are often sustained, he will not have long to set them in place. “I think the precursor to change is pain,” he said after an agonising night for Rangers fans. “I knew coming here that there was going to be some pain early on.”

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Manager faces a tricky task against Club Brugge and can not afford background music to become any more discordant

Rangers supporters are entitled to feel conflicted over the prospect of Champions League participation. The kudos and finance that come with involvement against Europe’s elite would be welcome. There must also be an awareness, however, that it may be a chastening experience.

Rangers’ last involvement in the competition proper ended with them on zero points and a minus-20 goal difference at the end of the group stage. That squad, from the 2022-23 campaign, was stronger than the wholly unconvincing class of 2025.

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• Jhon Durán helps Mourinho’s side to 5-2 aggregate win

• Rangers advance to face Club Brugge in playoffs

José Mourinho is one round away from taking Fenerbahce back into the Champions League for the first time in 17 years.

The storied head coach’s team surged into the Champions League qualifying playoffs by overturning a two-goal deficit in a 5-2 qualifying round win against Robin van Persie’s Feyenoord.

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Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce roared back to set up a playoff with Benfica, while Bromley stunned Ipswich in the Carabao Cup

15 min: Fenerbahce 0-0 Feyenoord (agg: 1-2) Jhon Duran – the very same – has just hit the side netting with Fener’s first half-chance. Feyenoord have probably played the more intricate football but Fenerbahce look a threat on the break.

Champions League qualifying latest (6pm KOs unless stated)

Qarabag 4-1 Shkendija (5pm, agg: 5-1)

FC Copenhagen 0-0 Malmo FF (agg: 0-0)

Fenerbahce 0-0 Feyenoord (agg: 1-2)

Pafos 1-0 Dynamo Kyiv (agg: 2-0)

Plzen 0-0 Rangers (agg: 0-3)

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• Rangers win 3-0 in first leg of third qualifying round

• Team respond to Martin’s anger after Motherwell draw

Russell Martin’s bold team selection paid off as Rangers defeated Viktoria Plzen 3-0 in the first leg of their Champions League third qualifying round tie at Ibrox.

Martin hit out at some of his squad following their deflating 1-1 draw at Motherwell on Saturday, questioning mentality, egos and application and the captain, James Tavernier, and the midfielder Nicolas Raskin were the biggest names among the expected changes.

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• Rangers draw 1-1 in Athens to win 3-1 on aggregate

• Shelbourne into Europa League after Qarabag defeat

Djeidi Gassama turned super-sub once again with a crucial goal as Rangers beat profligate Panathinaikos 3-1 on aggregate in their Champions League second qualifier in Athens.

Leading 2-0 from the first leg at Ibrox, only another fine performance in the Olympic stadium from Rangers’ goalkeeper Jack Butland, who thwarted the Greek side in the first leg, kept the tie goalless at the break. Filip Djuricic opened the scoring with a header in the 53rd minute but moments after coming off the bench, Gassama, who scored from a substitute’s role on his debut last week, levelled at 1-1 with a stunning drive.

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London-born winger is rekindling his joy for the game in an unlikely location and is about to live out a lifelong dream with Zrinjski Mostar

At the end of last year Tyler Burey was playing out of position in defence for a team doomed to relegation from the Football League. Seven months later he is preparing to make his Champions League debut after leaving England behind, seeking to rediscover his love for the game in an unlikely location.

Burey moved to Igman Konjic, a club in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in January on a short-term deal and impressed to such an extent that the country’s title winners, Zrinjski Mostar, signed him on a two-year contract. On Tuesday they visit Virtus of San Marino in the opening leg of their Champions League first qualifying round tie, allowing Burey to live out a lifelong dream.

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Football Daily would prefer not to have to think about Copa Gianni at all but we have a certain professional obligation to do so and have never knowingly been found shirking in the face of our responsibilities. To keep things simple, we prefer to view the tournament as a stand-alone competition that’s taking place between the end of the last season and the beginning of the next one, but the fact that it’s being contested by clubs instead of countries leaves plenty of room for debate. Watching Kingsley Coman “sprint” on to a through-ball from Harry Kane during Bayern Munich’s defeat by PSG as if he was running in knee-deep wet cement, we were presented with the sight of a player in next season’s kit who was quite clearly exhausted by the exertions of the one that may or may not have ended before the tournament in which he was playing started. Does the goal he didn’t score go down in the official xG column of last season, next season, or neither?

There’s me being able to walk down the stairs after I’ve played 90 minutes of football, there’s me in the future when I have children being able to walk around properly, being able to bend down and pick up toys, there’s me being able to do normal life things like put on socks without being in pain and, for the first time in a long time, I genuinely didn’t think about the response of the public because that just wasn’t a priority” – Millie Bright reveals how she is feeling better in her mind after taking the decision to miss Euro 2025 and prioritise her recovery from a knee injury.

Sometimes Mauricio Pochettino wants it to be a penalty, sometimes he doesn’t. There’s just no pleasing some people. Extra moaning points for Poch insinuating that the officials were swayed by the pro-Mexico crowd for a game that USA USA USA were playing at home. P.S. A doff of the cap to Mexico for that uber cool black and gold kit …” – Noble Francis.

With a tip of the cap to The Usual Suspects … the greatest trick Infantino ever pulled was turning me into a Chelsea fan for two hours rooting against Infantino’s home team making the finals” – Harry Webb.

I can’t have been your only reader who paused between Friday’s tea time email and big website’s MBM coverage of the Jurassic reunion opening gig, to turn the dial of my retro digital transistors to the political satirical radio broadcast, Deadringers. I – and what I suspect to be 1,056 others – nearly choked on my fermented tofu when I heard a repeat of your dinosaur banter about the aforementioned group of monobrows. I assume the requisite phone calls were made – i.e. your people calling their people, etc – and payment made (four pack of budget Tin) before Tom Baker’s closing remarks” – Nicholas Tipple.

This is an extract from our daily football email … Football Daily. To get the full version, just visit this page and follow the instructions.

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With the top-level juggernaut careering away the majority of Europe’s clubs need help and should be better rewarded for players they develop

While a dozen of Europe’s elite clubs were chasing the American dream, 170 of their less garlanded peers gathered for a barbecue next to Lake Geneva. They had converged on Uefa’s headquarters to attend the qualifying round draws for next season’s continental competitions; Tuesday night was time to get together, perhaps to speed-date representatives of the team you had been paired with or simply to cut loose before a labyrinthine summer spent journeying in search of league-phase football.

Borussia Dortmund were slugging out a goalless draw with Fluminense while the meat hit the grills, but “Club World Cup” is a dirty formulation in Nyon’s corridors of power. Any available screens showed action from Uefa’s own Under-21 Championship and alternative sources of entertainment roamed the pastel green lawns. A caricature artist did the rounds, stopping at the table occupied by Aleksander Ceferin and putting his pencil to work.

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After years as a directionless collection of celebrity footballers, PSG are a true team now. But they still represent one of the sport’s darkest trends

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Paris Saint-Germain’s success in the Champions League final on Saturday was a victory for youth and adventure. It was a victory for a team built with a coherent vision, and a rebuke to those who believe the game is just about collecting the biggest names. It was a victory for Luis Enrique, a very fine coach who has suffered dreadful personal tragedy. It was a victory for forward-thinking, progressive, fluent football.

But it was also a victory for sportswashing.

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