THE SOCCER REPORT
Champions League returns with PSG, Spurs and Real Madrid wins
Feb 19, 2019, 6:16 am
Adidas unveiled the match ball for the 2019 UEFA Champions League Final. Courtesy: adidas
The theme of this week's actions was international competition with the return of the UEFA Champions League, the Europa League and the third round of the Copa Libertadores of South America. Concacaf teams are about to join in on the action with the start of the 2019 Concacaf Champions League, in which the Houston Dynamo will play in Guatemala City on Tuesday night.
UEFA Champions League
Roma and Tottenham were the winning home sides this week while Real Madrid and PSG picked up important away wins against Ajax and Manchester United respectfully. This week, Lyon vs. Barcelona, Liverpool vs. Bayern Munich, Atletico vs. Juventus and Schalke 04 vs. Manchester City will round out the rest of the round of 16 first leg matches.
Round of 16 - first leg results:
- Roma 2-1 Porto
- Manchester United 0-2 PSG
- Tottenham 3-0 Dortmund
- Ajax 1-2 Real Madrid
UEFA Europa League
Round of 32 - first leg results:
- Fenerbace 1-0 Zenit St. Petersburg
- Olympiacos 2-2 Dynamo Kyiv
- Lazio 0-1 Sevilla
- Rapid Vienna 0-1 Inter Milan
- Slava Praha 0-0 Genk
- Galatasaray 1-2 Benfica
- Rennes 3-3 Real Betis
- BATE 1-0 Arsenal
- FC Krasnodar 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
- Plzen 2-1 Dinamo Zagreb
- Brugge 2-1 Red Bull Salzburg
- Celtic 0-2 Valencia
- Malmo 1-2 Chelsea
- FC Zurich 1-3 Napoli
- Shakhtar Donetsk 2-2 Eintracht Frankfurt
- Sporting CP 0-1 Villareal
- Ajax 1-2 Real Madrid
English Premier League
Action in England's top division was stalled this weekend as the FA Cup took center stage. The quarter-final matches are paired as follows: Millwall vs. Brighton, Swansea City vs. Manchester City, Watford vs. Crystal Palace and Wolves vs. Manchester United. The Prem resumes Friday with a London match-up as West Ham hosts Fulham.
Top six: 1. Manchester City (65), 2. Liverpool (65), 3. Tottenham (60), 4. Manchester United (51), 5. Arsenal (50), 6. Chelsea (50)
Scoring leader: 17 - Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) / Sergio Aguero (Manchester City)
Assists leader: 10 - Eden Hazard (Chelsea FC)
Spain's La Liga
In Spain's top-flight, FC Barcelona continues to make room between themselves and the field in the title race. Leo Messi and co. collected three points while Real Madrid slipped 2-1 to Girona, allowing Atletico Madrid to jump back up to second with a 1-0 win over Rayo Vallecano. The rest of the top six remained the same.
Top six: 1. FC Barcelona (54), 2. Atlético Madrid (47), 3. Real Madrid (45), 4. Sevilla (37), 5. Getafe (36), 6. Alaves (36)
Scoring leader: 22 - Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)
Assists leader: 10 - Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)
German Bundesliga
Borussia Dortmund rebounded from a midweek loss in the Champions League with a draw at Nurnberg, keeping the separation with rivals Bayern Munich to three points. The Black and Yellow lost American Christian Pulisic to injury in the UCL match against Spurs and could be in doubt for a few more games.
Top six: 1. Dortmund (51), 2. Bayern Munich (48), 3. Monchengladbach (43), 4. RB Leipzig (41), 5. Bayer Leverkusen (36), 6. Wolfsburg (35)
Scoring leader: 14 - Luka Jović (Eintracht Frankfurt)
Assists leader: 10 - Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich)
Italian Serie A
Juventus 3-0 Frosinone | Ronaldo and Dybala Help Juventus Beat Frosinone | Serie Awww.youtube.com
Cristiano Ronaldo can't stop scoring, adding one more to his season tally in Juve's 3-0 win over Frosinone. Milan picked up a 3-1 win over Atalanta to solidify their place in the top four. Inter Milan and Roma also picked up three points this week.
Top six: 1. Juventus (66), 2. Napoli (53), 3. Inter Milan (46), 4. Milan (42), 5. Roma (41), 6. Atalanta (38)
Scoring leader: 19 - Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus)
Assists leader: 8 - Suso (A.C. Milan)
French Ligue 1
Marseille made the biggest jump in the standings this week by swapping places with Montpellier and cracking the top four. As for the champs, PSG continues to roll behind the league's top scorer in Mbappé.
Top six: 1. PSG (62), 2. Lille (50), 3. Lyon (46), 4. Marseille (40), 5. Saint-Étienne (40), 6. Montpellier (38)
Scoring leader: 19 - Kylian Mbappé (PSG)
Assists leader: 8 - Nicolas Pepe (Lille) / Angel Di Maria (PSG) / Kenny Lala (Strasbourg)
Dutch Eredivisie
Top three: 1. PSV Eindhoven (57), 2. Ajax (53), 3. Feyenoord (42)
Belgian First Division A
Top three: 1. Genk (57), 2. Club Brugge (49), 3. Standard Liège (46)
Portuguese Primeira Liga
Top three: 1. Porto (54), 2. Benfica (53), 3. Braga (49)
Scottish Premier League
Top three: 1. Celtic (60), 2. Rangers (52), 3. Aberdeen (47)
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Concacaf Champions League
The 2019 edition of the Concacaf Champions League begins Tuesday night with the 1st leg matches of the quarterfinal stage. Costa Rica's Saprissa and Mexico's Tigres UANL will kick this year's edition simultaneously with Panama's Independiente hosting Toronto FC. The Houston Dynamo will face off in Guatemala against Guastatoya in the 9 p.m. match. Matches will be broadcast in English on Yahoo! Sports.
A welcome addition to tomorrow's shirts! 👀 #SCCL2019 #ForeverOrange https://t.co/1h8lCn4Xx0— Houston Dynamo (@Houston Dynamo) 1550534098.0
Major League Soccer
While five MLS teams take part in the Champions League, the rest continue their preparations ahead of the league's opening weekend in two weeks. FC Cincinatti will be the new expansion team that joins the league in 2019.
Liga MX
Top eight: 1. Monterrey (17), 2. Tigres UANL (16), 3. Leon (14), 4. Chivas Guadalajara (14), 5. Necaxa (11), 6. Santos (11), 7. Pachuca (11), 8. Club Tijuana (10)
Scoring leader: 7 - Rogelio Funes Mori (Monterrey)
Assists leader: 5 - Angel Mena (Cruz Azul)
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Copa Libertadores
Third round - first leg matchups:
- Melgar vs. Caracas FC
- Talleres Cordoba vs. Palestino
- Defensor Sporting vs. Atletico Mineiro
- Libertad vs. Atletico Nacional
Superliga Argentina
Top four: 1. Racing Club (45), 2. Defensa y Justicia (45), 3. Boca Juniors (35), 4. Atletico Tucuman (32)
Scoring leader: 15 - Lisandro Lopez (Racing)
Assists leader: 7 - Walter Montillo (Tigre)
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Upcoming Matches (All Times CT):
Tuesday, Feb. 19
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] Liverpool vs. Bayern Munich (TNT/Galavision)
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] Lyon vs. Barcelona (Unimas/Univision Deportes)
9:00 p.m. - [Concacaf Champions League] CD Guastatoya vs. Houston Dynamo (Yahoo! Sports/Univision Deportes)
Wednesday, Feb. 20
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] Atletico Madrid vs. Juventus (TNT/UniMas/Univision Deportes)
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] Schalke 04 vs. Man City (B/R Live/Galavision)
Thursday, Feb. 21
12:00 p.m. - [UEFA Europa League] Arsenal vs. BATE (B/R Live/Galavision)
12:00 p.m. - [UEFA Europa League] Valencia vs. Celtic (B/R Live/Univision Deportes)
12:00 p.m. - [UEFA Europa League] Villarreal vs. Sporting CP (B/R Live/UniMas)
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Europa League] Chelsea vs. Malmo (B/R Live/UniMas)
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Europa League] Inter Milan vs. Rapid Vienna (B/R Live/Galavision)
Friday, Feb. 22
1:30 p.m. - [Bundesliga] Werder Bremen vs. VfB Stuttgart (FS2)
1:45 p.m. - [Premier League] West Ham vs. Fulham (NBC Sports)
Saturday, Feb. 23
8:30 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Bayern Munich vs. Hertha BSC Berlin (FS2)
8:30 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Mönchengladbach vs. VfL Wolfsburg (Univision Deportes)
9:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Burnley vs. Tottenham (NBC Sports)
9:15 a.m. - [La Liga] Sevilla vs. FC Barcelona (beIN Sports)
11:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Leicester vs. Crystal Palace (NBC)
Sunday, Feb. 24
8:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Manchester United vs. Liverpool (NBC Sports)
9:15 a.m. - [La Liga] Atletico Madrid vs. Villarreal (beIN Sports)
10:30 a.m. - [Carabao Cup FInal] Chelsea vs. Manchester City (ESPN+)
11:00 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Borussia Dortmund vs. Bayer 04 Leverkusen (FS2)
1:45 p.m. - [La Liga] Levante vs. Real Madrid (beIN Sports)
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Rockets stumble as Grizzlies snatch victory in controversial finish
Jan 31, 2025, 12:11 pm
Thursday night's one point loss at Memphis aside, what a run the Houston Rockets have been enjoying. Within a two week stretch the Rockets beat the last two NBA Champions (winning on the road in Denver and Boston), and twice beat the Cleveland Cavaliers who have the best record in the league this season and against all other teams are 39-7. Yes, the Nuggets were without Nikola Jokic in their loss to the Rockets but don’t nitpick. Entering February with a 32-15 record exceeds even optimistic preseason hopes. The preseason betting line for the Rockets' season win total was 43, give or take a game. They are on pace to win 55.
In the 2022-23 season the Rockets completed a three-year run as an on-court laughingstock with a 22-60 record. That tied for the second worst record in the NBA, following seasons of 20-62 and 17-55 which each were the worst record in the league. It was an embarrassing stretch for a proud franchise. The Rockets had just three losing seasons total in the 36 seasons prior to their recent three years in the toilet. Following the ‘22-’23 slog, the Rockets’ cross their fingers really hard hope was to win the draft lottery where the unquestioned grand prize was Victor Wembanyama. Alas, the Rockets drew only the fourth pick on lottery night. “Wemby” hasn’t disappointed the San Antonio Spurs at all, and in this his second season he stands a strong chance of winning the Defensive Player of the Year Award.Prevailing sentiment had point guard “Scoot” Henderson as the second-best prospect in the ‘23 draft. The Charlotte Hornets took forward Brandon Miller at number two because they already had LaMelo Ball at point guard. The Portland Trail Blazers then took Henderson at three. Would the Rockets have taken him at number two or three? We don’t know with certainty. Other than for laughs they have no reason to admit they'd have selected "Scoot," any more than Nick Caserio would have to admit the Texans’ would have drafted Bryce Young over C.J. Stroud if they had picked first not second in the 2023 NFL draft. What we do know is the Rockets picked Amen Thompson fourth. Amen to that.
Thompson individually best mirrors the Rockets’ rapid rise from mediocre last season (41-41) to legitimate contender. Thompson was the fourth pick in his draft class, after the Rockets took Jabari Smith third the year before, with Jalen Green the second overall pick the year before that. It was Smith’s broken hand in early January that spurred head coach Ime Udoka to insert Thompson into the starting lineup. I’m guessing neither Thompson nor Smith know the story of Wally Pipp (or perhaps Lou Gehrig either), but how can Udoka put Smith back in the starting lineup? The race is on for which in hindsight will be general manager Rafael Stone’s greater move, taking Thompson at four or swinging the post-draft trade that netted 2021 number 16 selection Alperen Sengun. Sengun Thursday night was named an All-Star game reserve for the first time. One can envision Thompson joining Sengun on an All-Star squad as soon as next season. Credit to Jalen Green for some improvement this season, but the idea that he has made a huge leap and should have made the All-Star game is silly. Green has stretches where hot shooting combines with his explosiveness to make him look like a star, but that is not his body of work. Green’s shooting percentages remain below average from the floor overall and from behind the three-point line.
The Rockets are second in the Western Conference while getting essentially nothing from the third pick in last June’s draft, guard Reed Sheppard. He’s just 20 years old and there is no reason for a pure shooter to lose that skill before he can legally buy a beer, so bust talk is way premature. But Sheppard looked like a poor man’s Bryce Drew (that’s not a compliment) in his early season opportunities, overmatched physically with the game way too fast for him.
When you draft in the top four for four consecutive years, you’re supposed to assemble some stout talent. In consecutive drafts the Seattle Supersonics/Oklahoma City Thunder picked Kevin Durant (at number two), Russell Westbrook (at number four), and James Harden (at number three). Success is no given however even with a raft of high lottery picks. The Minnesota Timberwolves in successive drafts selected third, fifth and sixth the same year, fourth, and second. Their “haul” was O.J. Mayo, Ricky Rubio/Jonny Flynn, Wesley Johnson, and Derrick Williams. Yikes.
The current iteration of the Thunder is obviously the best team in the Western Conference, but until OKC breaks through and wins a conference title, it’s not unreasonable to think OKC can be had in a best-of-seven. That the Rockets make the list of teams who wouldn’t require a miracle to topple the Thunder is a phenomenal development.
Still counting down to the start of spring training, but we have taken no offseason from discussing the Astros. Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for a New Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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