Plus weâve a TFK AFC match on Thursday night so the squad will be staying overnight in a Ballsbridge hotel on Wednesday anyway. A few mineral waters, a pasta dish and back to the team base by 9pm.
Boerrigter is out of the second leg against Elfsborg - heâs not travelling. Samaras is fully fit though so wouldnât have expected Boerrigter to play anyway. Mjallby also confirmed that Wilson is also fine to play, though there is persistent interest from Nottingham Forest.
I expect weâll line up the same way as the home leg but with Ledley in for Kayal.
signing in for tonightâs games
Macc Tel-Aviv V FC Basel
(agg 0-1)
18:00
Show
Steaua Buchât V Dinamo Tbilisi
(agg 2-0)
18:45
Show
NK Maribor V Apoel Nicosia
(agg 1-1)
19:00
Show
Skenderbeu V FC Shakhtyor Karaganda
(agg 0-3)
19:00
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Fenerbahce V SV Salzburg
(agg 1-1)
19:45
Show
Partizan Bâgrade V Ludogorets Razgrad
(agg 1-2)
19:45
Show
Grasshoppers V Lyon
(agg 0-1)
20:00
[quote=âRocko, post: 813014, member: 1â]Boerrigter is out of the second leg against Elfsborg - heâs not travelling. Samaras is fully fit though so wouldnât have expected Boerrigter to play anyway. Mjallby also confirmed that Wilson is also fine to play, though there is persistent interest from Nottingham Forest.
I expect weâll line up the same way as the home leg but with Ledley in for Kayal.[/quote]
Iâd include Mulgrew in the team, but at centre back. You expect the 4-2-3-1 then with the same front 4 as last week? I wouldnât be surprised to see a 4-4-1-1 with Stokes left out and Mulgrew on the left with Samaras upfront.
Salah travelled to Tel aviv after all
JERUSALEM â An Egyptian player for a Swiss soccer team agreed to travel to Israel for a qualifying match after first refusing for political reasons.
Mohamed Salah will join the Football Club Basel for its UEFA Champions League qualifying game against Maccabi Tel Aviv on Tuesday evening, the team announced over the weekend.
Related:
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[*]Salah, 21, reportedly changed his mind after meeting with team officials. He has been under pressure from his fellow countrymen to boycott the match.
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âI will fly to Israel,â he said in a statement. âFootball is more important than politics and it is my job.
âIn my thoughts I am going to play in Palestine and not Israel, and I am also going to score and win there. The Zionist flag wonât be shown in the Champions League.â
In the first match between the two teams, which Basel won 1-0, Salah avoided shaking hands with members of the Israeli team, which includes 4 Israeli-Arabs.
Another Egyptian player for FC Basel, Mohamed El Neny, also will travel to Israel with the team, according to reports.
[SIZE=5]Yellow-and-blue in 1-0 hole ahead of return leg Champions League qualifier at Bloomfield.[/SIZE]
http://www.jpost.com/HttpHandlers/ShowImage.ashx?ID=224110
MACCABI TEL AVIV striker Barak Itzhaki Photo: Maccabi Tel Aviv website
After all the build-up to the showdown was overshadowed by matters completely unrelated to sports, Maccabi Tel Aviv will need to overcome the distractions, as well as a 1-0 deficit against a tough FC Basel side, to keep alive its Champions League dream on Tuesday night.
Maccabi hosts Basel in the second leg of the third qualifying round at Bloomfield Stadium, looking to erase last weekâs slender defeat in Switzerland.
The four-time defending Swiss champion dominated the first half and Maccabi was fortunate to find itself just onegoal down at the break, with Valentin Stocker scoring the opener in the 39th minute.
Maccabi finally found its rhythm after the interval, but couldnât convert its chances and will require an almost flawless performance to stun Basel, which reached the Europa League semifinals last season.
âOur approach will be the same throughout the game,â said Maccabi coach Paulo Sousa. âWe have to take into account that Basel will have its chances, but we want to score from the first minute.â
Sousa continued to spread optimism regarding Maccabiâs chances on Tuesday.
âI thought from the beginning that we could beat Basel because Iâm an optimistic person,â he said. âFrom what Iâve seen from my players Iâve got even more confidence, especially after the first game. I think we can cause Basel difficulties but we need to perform really well individually and collectively. Since we finished the first leg I feel that my players are confident and that we will do it and qualify.â
Sousa was doing his best to focus on the game itself, with Baselâs Egyptian players Mohamed Salah and Mohamed Elneny garnering much of the attention over the past week.
Salah was reported to have said that he had no choice but to travel to Israel and that in his mind he will be playing in Palestine.
However, he denied the claims on Monday.
âIâm here with my team because we need to win and want to reach the Champions League,â he said. âIf anyone reads any political statement from me it is not true.â
Salah was one of Baselâs best players last week and is expected to start once more in the second leg, with Mohamed Elneny also likely to be in the first 11.
âWe wanted to win by two goals in the first leg, but I believe that our 1-0 win will also prove to be enough,â said Basel coach Murat Yakin, who refused to answer any questions regarding his Egyptians.
âMaccabi will be ready, but we are experienced in these situations.
We just need to play the way we did in the first half last week. Maccabi has a strong attacking game, but Iâm optimistic.â
Maccabi is expected to make one change to the team that played in Switzerland, with Tal Ben-Haim to take the place of Omri Altman in the midfield.
âWe didnât show enough character in the first half last week and when you do that against a team like Basel you get punished,â said midfeilder Alberman. âWe will have to be brave on Tuesday, but also make sure we donât concede.
I hadnât forgotten about Mulgrew. Definitely not. Iâm seething with anyone who even suspects that might be the case.
Iâd start Mulgrew instead of Ambrose with Wilson shifting to right centre back and leaving the remainder as is, but I accept thatâs unlikely. Samaras has an excellent goalscoring record in Europe but without Hooper I donât think we can afford to leave Stokes out. He has by far the best strike rate out of anyone else left and I think it would be a big risk to omit him. Also, donât think Samaras is suited to playing as a lone striker, even with Commons supporting. He doesnât lay the ball off enough to maintain possession.
game on in Tel Aviv
cant understand how it was agreed on an 8pm start, its 35 degrees
Salah has started for basel and shook hands with maccabi before KO
The athmosphere looks pretty intense here on TV
Penalty to Basel
1-0 , perfect strike by Schar - maccabi need 3
2-0 basel, Salah scores and kisses the turf
game over
3-1 Basel now
4-1 on agg
3-2 basel
4-2 on agg
basel are reeling
some match thisâŚ
basel , after going 3-0 are falling apart
3-2 now, Maccabi just hit the post
Maharan Radi has just scored an absolute screamer
3-3 on the night
4-3 Basel on agg
maccabi need 2 more - 55 mins
Basel always seem to be involved in great European games.
they jusr cant defend the lead
its all out attack, this could end up 5 all id say
Are these teams domestic season started