Rosický
fit
Both the Czechs and Germans have ten points from four UEFA EURO 2008™
qualifying games, and victory for either side could therefore prove
pivotal in the race to reach Austria and Switzerland. Brückner's chief
concern was captain Tomáš Rosický, who has not played for Arsenal FC
since 20 February because of a groin strain, but the coach believes the
26-year-old "is fully fit" and could turn out for the Gunners against
Aston Villa FC on Wednesday.
Strikers
find range
Although the Czech top flight only resumed after its winter break at the
weekend, Brückner need not worry about a lack of match action as only
four of his squad play in the 1. Liga. Two of his foreign-based talents,
Jan Koller of AS Monaco FC and Olympique Lyonnais forward Milan Baroš,
are also in form having struck seven goals between them recently in
Ligue 1.
Tomáš Zápotočný, David Jarolím and Marek Heinz have been overlooked, but David Pudil retains his place after a promising debut against Belgium last month
February
friendly
The FC Dynamo Kyiv midfielder missed February's friendly international
against Israel but has now returned to Blokhin's 23-man squad. The
attack is spearheaded by Chelsea FC striker Andriy Shevchenko and Andriy
Voronin, who has agreed to join Liverpool FC from Bayer 04 Leverkusen in
the summer. Former FC Shakhtar Donetsk captain Anatoliy Tymoschuk is
included as an FC Zenit St. Petersburg player for the first time, while
FC Groningen midfielder Evgen Levchenko, who won his second cap against
Israel, retains his place.
Rebrov's Dynamo team-mate Olexandr Shovkovskiy, who is looking to win his 77th cap, is one of three goalkeepers in the squad along with rising stars Bohdan Shust and Andriy Pyatov. Ukraine have six points after three fixtures and are fourth in the section, three points behind joint leaders Scotland and France and one adrift of FIFA world Cup winners Italy, although they have a game in hand on all three sides.
The first leg of the semi-final between Manchester United and AC Milan reminded football fans why they love the game.
Despite falling behind to an early goal, the Rossoneri played some sumptuous attacking football to take the lead at Old Trafford. Carlo Ancelotti's side played in defiance of the cantenaccio stereotype and also to the myriad problems which blight Italian football.
It was Wayne Rooney who eventually purloined Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka's limelight in the first leg - although the latter's two away goals could well decide the tie. The Premiership leaders conceded those crucial away goals but as United fans readily point out; the defensive unit was bereft of key personnel.
Despite his sometimes lumbering style, the Red Devils missed the presence of Rio Ferdinand. The absence of Nemanja Vidic and captain Gary Neville further compounded Sir Alex Ferguson's problems at the back. Kaka of course capitalised on United's fragility and made Patrice Evra and Gabriel Heinze look Laurel and Hardy especially when he scored his and Milan's second.
The injury concerns may be easing for the English giants as both Ferdinand and Vidic have travelled to Italy - but Ferguson remains cautious saying: "It is too early to say whether they will play."
The Scot will have to conjure all of his managerial wisdom when selecting his defence as the England international has not played for 10 days, while his Serbian partner has been sidelined since the end of March.
Considering Heinze's calamitous performance at centre-back at Old Trafford, Ferguson may well take a risk on one of his first choice duo, despite their lack of time on the park. The Argentine is likely to be shipped out to his favoured left-back role because of Evra's suspension.
He as well as Ronaldo and Paul Scholes are just one yellow card from suspension. Scholes will want to tread lightly as he famously missed United's triumph in Barcelona in 1999 due to a ban. Wily as he is Ancelotti might look to ask Gennaro 'the Snarl' Gattuso to hound the former England midfielder in an attempt to elicit a reaction.
