World Club Rankings - Top 25 - 1969

Now that the weekly rankings have come to an end for the season, it’s time to publish more of the annual rankings that have been an occasional fixture on this site.

After seeing United Kingdom powerhouses in the making Celtic and Manchester United take the Champions Cup titles in 1967 and 1968, the European Championship went back to the mainland in 1969. Although they finished third in Serie A, AC Milan was able to take home the Champions Cup with a 4-1 victory over Ajax and Johan Cruyff thanks in large part by Pierino Prati’s hat trick. Due to their poor domestic finish, the championship wasn’t enough to take AC Milan to the top spot, but it did secure the team a spot in the top five. Other winners of European Cups didn’t fare as well in the rankings, but in the big picture, I’m sure they’d rather have their silverware than my rankings. (Both of the runners-up did find a home in the rankings, however.) In the Cup Winners Cup, Slovan Bratislava defeated FC Barcelona 3-2. More impressively (because they are my team), the Inter Cities Fairs Cup title went to Newcastle United, in an extremely rare case of trophy-collecting, defeating Ujpest Dozsa in both legs of a two-leg final, 3-0 and 3-2.

In the Copa Libertadores, Estudiantes defeated Nacional, 1-0 and 2-0 in the finals to win its second consecutive South American title. Once again, Estudiantes’ poor domestic effort kept them from challenging as the world’s best club, but at least they did squeak into the bottom of the rankings this time.

I’m not sure if it’s possible to win the Team of the Year title without winning your domestic league, and not many domestic champions scored top spots in international competition in 1969, so the top spot was up for grabs in 1969. The title this year went to Leeds United, who won the English Championship by finishing six points clear of Liverpool. The leaders in points in the other top leagues in the world were Fiorentina, Real Madrid, Boca Juniors and Celtic. All of those clubs, and many others, are identified below.

World Club Rankings – Top 25 – 1969

1. Leeds United (Eng) – Inter Cities Fairs Cup – QF; only time as number one in the world.
2. Nacional (Uru) – Copa Libertadores – RU; sixth consecutive Top 25.
3. Fiorentina (Ita) – ICFC – 3R; best ever finish in the rankings.
4. AC Milan (Ita) – Champions Cup – Winner; best finish to date.
5. Spartak Trnava (Tch) – CC – SF; only Top 20 finish.
6. Ajax (Ned) – CC – RU; first time in the Top 10.
7. Penarol (Uru) – CL – SF; sixth consecutive Top 10.
8. Boca Juniors (Arg)
9. Celtic (Sco) – CC – QF; third consecutive Top 10.
10. Real Madrid (Esp) – CC – 2R; tenth consecutive Top 10
11. Cagliari (Ita)
12. Liverpool (Eng) – ICFC – 1R
13. River Plate (Arg)
14. Rangers (Sco) – ICFC – SF; fourth consecutive Top 25.
15. Benfica (Por) – CC – QF; ninth consecutive Top 25.
16. Everton (Eng)
17. San Lorenzo (Arg) – first ever ranking.
18. Internazionale (Ita)
19. Feyenoord (Ned) – ICFC – 1R
20. Ujpest Dozsa (Hun) – ICFC – RU
21. Las Palmas (Esp)
22. Manchester United (Eng) – CC – SF
23. Barcelona (Esp) – CWC – RU; fourth consecutive Top 25.
24. Independiente (Arg)
25. Estudiantes (Arg) – Copa Libertadores – Winner

Past Final Season Top 25s: 2007, 1968, 1967, 1966, 1965, 1964, 1963, 1962, 1961, 1960

WCR Weekend Soccer Television Schedule

The list is getting easier to compile as the number of games available keeps shrinking. Since I will have to work this weekend, this is a mixed blessing for me. You can decide whether it is for you.

The matches available this weekend can be lumped into three categories: International Friendlies, MLS and South American Club matches. With respect to the Friendlies, many of the teams vying for the Euro 2008 title in a few weeks will be getting warmed-up and used to playing with each other again as national teams such as those from Germany, Portugal and France all see action. In the MLS, there will be some interesting games, particularly as the Western Division leading Los Angeles Galaxy travel to the great white north to take on Toronto FC and third-place Colorado hosts second-place FC Dallas. The South American matches are the only place where you can see WCR Top 25 Clubs in actions as LDU Quito hosts Olmedo on GolTV on Saturday and River Plate plays Colon on FSC on Sunday. Also worth watching is the simulcast of the two teams tied at the top of the Uruguayan Clausura as GolTV switches between both Penarol and River Plate (the other one) on Sunday.

The Top Five Games of the week feature doesn’t seem to be necessary at this time of the year, with so few games, so I think I’ll pass on it for now. If you have any comments about any of the games or are aware of anything I missed, please feel free to post it in the comments or send me an e-mail. Enjoy the weekend!!

Saturday, May 31, 2008

7:15 am – Scotland at Czech Republic (Delayed) (Setanta)
11:30 am – Serbia at Germany (GolTV)
1:15 pm – Georgia at Portugal (Setanta)
2:00 pm – Cerro at Nacional (GolTV)
3:15 pm – Paraguay at France (JIP) (Setanta)
3:30 pm – Los Angeles Galaxy at FC Toronto (MLS Direct Kick)
7:00 pm – (22) LDU Quito at CD Olmedo (GolTV)
8:30 pm – New York Red Bulls at Houston Dynamo (HDNet)
9:00 pm – San Jose Earthquakes at Real Salt Lake (FSC)
10:30 pm – Columbus Crew at Chivas USA (MLS Direct Kick)

Sunday, June 1, 2008

3:00 am – Iraq at Austraila (ESPN 360)
9:00 am – Wales at Netherlands (ESPN 360)
2:00 pm – Rampla Juniors at Penarol; Juventud at River Plate (GolTV)
2:00 pm – (19) River Plate at Colon (FSC)
3:00 pm – Croatia at Hungary (Delayed) (Setanta)
3:00 pm – FC Dallas at Colorado Rapids (TeleFutura)

Non-Televised Games involving Top 25 Teams:

Sun. 3:00 pm – (23) Cruzeiro at Coritiba
Sun. 3:00 pm – (8) Sao Paulo at Santos
Sun. 5:15 pm – Flamengo at (14) Fluminense
Sun. 6:30 pm – Arsenal de Sarandi at (11) Boca Juniors

WCR Top 25 Clubs in the World - Final Weekly Edition

I hate penalty kicks for a championship match. There should be a replay. If they decided it like they did a boxing match, I think Chelsea might have won in a split decision. (On another note, I think boxing matches that don’t end in a knockout should be settled with penalty kicks. To the crotch. Yeah. That’d be cool.) Admittedly, the penalty kicks created a ton of drama. Cristiano Ronaldo went from hero to goat to saved in a matter of minutes. On the other hand, John Terry went from hero (great second-half save) to tragic figure because of a bad pitch in bad weather. This game was just screaming for an old-fashioned replay.

Congratulations to Manchester United. You’ve spent several weeks at the top of the WCR Top 25 and justified the ranking with their victory. Chelsea also demonstrated that their number two ranking was justified. I’m going to miss European club soccer, but it’ll be nice to get outside over the weekends for a change.

In the Copa Libertadores, there were numerous upsets, though only one was truly shocking. Fluminense and Sao Paulo, who are both off to poor starts in the Brasileiro Serie A, faced off with Fluminense squeaking by. LDU Quito was a little more surprising, not because they aren’t good, but because I thought San Lorenzo was better. Club America beating Santos, on the other hand, was a shocker. How could a team do so poorly in domestic action and yet play so well against some of the best clubs in South America? Finally, Boca Juniors victory over Atlas should have surprised nobody.

To those of you who have been following these weekly rankings, it’s time to bid a fond farewell. The rankings are not going away completely, but there is no longer any justification to publish them weekly. It’ll be back in a few weeks when the semifinals of the Copa Libertadores is complete and again in July at its conclusion. Then, in August, we will have a pre-season ranking and I expect the weekly rankings will return in September. In the meantime, we’ll be publishing a ton of annual rankings over the summer to keep you entertained and informed. We may be publishing other features if we can think of any. If there are any you can think of, especially involving numbers and rankings, please let me know and we may work them in.

And now, the final Weekly Club Ranking of the season.

World Club Rankings – May 26, 2008

1. Manchester United (Eng) (1) – The Red Devils have spent the entire second half of the season on top of the charts and Wednesday night (and Thursday morning in Moscow), they showed why. In a tale of two halves, Manchester United dominated the first half, survived the second half, and defeated Chelsea on penalty kicks to win their third Champions League title. Perhaps you were a bit lucky, but you wouldn’t have won if you hadn’t put yourself in position to take advantage of a little luck. The reason you’re on top has more to do with your Premiership title than the Champions League victory, but nobody can say that the best team didn’t win.

2. Chelsea (Eng) (2) – I feel so bad for John Terry. Poor conditions on a poor pitch together with some poor luck and Terry will always be remembered for missing that penalty kick, though he will be remembered for his skill and leadership, as well. Losing 1-1 to Manchester United was fitting as they were the two best teams in the world and the closest of margins is something we expected. Oh, and before I forget, Didier, you’re an idiot. And what does Avram Grant get for taking a struggling team with a ton of talent to just an angel hair below the peak of European football? Fired. Talk about a tough job. My guess is that he will be replaced with Frank Rijkaard, but who knows for sure?

3. Internazionale (Ita) (3) – Fell to Roma in the Coppa Italia final 1-2 on Saturday, but you can’t take the scudetto away. The only team besides Manchester United to hold the top spot in the WCR rankings this year had a great season and, like Chelsea, will likely have a new coach next season. I’m rooting for Jose Mourinho.

4. Real Madrid (Esp) (5) – Got crushed in a friendly with Al-Nasr (KSA) 1-4 this week, but friendlies don’t mean much. Dominating season in La Liga.

5. Porto (Por) (6)

6. Roma (Ita) (7) – They couldn’t quite chase down Inter Milan for the league title, but winning the Coppa Italia over their rivals in a match in which they pretty much dominated will leave the team with a pleasant finish to a great season. It was unfortunate that they couldn’t advance further in the Champions League, but consider them victims of a lousy draw.

7. Arsenal (Eng) (8)

8. Sao Paulo (Bra) (4) – It wasn’t a good week in Sao Paulo this time around. They started it off by being eliminated in the Copa Libertadores quarterfinals to Fluminense, falling 1-3 in the away match. They followed that up by having to fight back for a 1-1 draw with Coritiba in domestic action. Why is Sao Paulo still ranked so high? Because it is too early in the Brasileiro season to base statistics solely on this season’s stats, Sao Paulo is still getting credit for its tremendous season in 2007. By the time the next rankings come out, that will change. With its poor beginning to the season, Sao Paulo likely will not be around for the next set of rankings. Between now and the next rankings, Sao Paulo will play Santos and Atletico-MG.

9. Lyon (Fra) (10) – Defeated Paris St.-Germain 1-0 in extra time to win a historic double in French football. While I thought PSG outplayed Lyon and deserved the victory, a win is a win and earns additional silverware. Play a friendly this week against Al-Shabab from the United Arab Emirates.

10. Juventus (Ita) (11) – Didn’t look good against South China, falling 1-2 in a friendly, but I’ve already let my thoughts on friendlies be known. In another friendly, Juventus goes to the A-League to face Melbourne Victory this week.

11. Boca Juniors (Arg) (20) – Boca has gone from a club struggling in the Copa Libertadores to the new favorite to repeat by virtue of some upsets and Palermo’s hat trick in Boca’s 3-0 victory over Atlas in Mexico this past week. Managed only a 1-1 draw against Velez Sarsfield this past weekend. Up next for Boca Juniors is Flumiinense in the Libertadores semifinals. Their next two domestic matches won’t be cakewalks either as they take on Copa Sudamericana champion Arsenal de Sarandi and Argentine Apertura champion Lanus.

12. Bayern Munchen (Ger) (9) – How did Bayern fall three spots after a week of idleness? Because Club America upset Santos in the Copa Libertadores. I won’t go into the details, but it caused some shuffling in the formulas and German teams paid the price. Math is funny, sometimes, huh?

13. Villarreal (Esp) (12)

14. Fluminense (Bra) (24) – The good news is that Fluminense defeated Sao Paulo 3-1 to advance to the Copa Libertadores semifinals. The bad news is that they lost to SPORT 1-2 in the Brasileiro and are off to an even worse start domestically than Sao Paulo has. I’m not even sure that advancing to the Libertadores finals will keep them in the rankings if they don’t pick things up domestically. The worse news is they face Boca Juniors in the upcoming round. Over the next few weeks, Fluminense play Flamengo and Gremio as they try to turn things around.

15. Barcelona (Esp) (13) – Like Real Madrid last week, Barcelona will face a club from Saudi Arabia this week when they face Al-Ittihad. We’ll see if they are able to reverse the results that European powerhouses have had in post-season friendlies thus far.

16. Liverpool (Eng) (14)

17. Sporting CP (Por) (15)

18. PSV Eindhoven (Ned) (16)

19. River Plate (Arg) (NR) – Having fallen out of the Copa Libertadores, River Plate has taken advantage by tying for the lead of the Argentina Clausura with Estudiantes, defeating Huracan 1-0 this weekend. Relatively easy schedule goes along with that lead as River’s opponents the next few weeks are Colon de Santa Fe and Olimpo.

20. Ajax (Ned) (18)

21. Bordeaux (Fra) (19)

22. LDU Quito (Ecu) (NR) – Last week, an anonymous poster questioned whether Liga would get any respect if they advanced to the Copa Libertadores semifinals. The answer is yes. They would have received even more respect had they not taken the weekend off and fallen to second place in the domestic table. It required penalty kicks, but LDU Quito advanced past San Lorenzo and earn the opportunity to play the surprising Club America in the Libertadores semifinals. Next weekend, Liga plays CD Olmedo in domestic action.

23. Cruzeiro (Bra) (NR) – Unlike their Brazilian counterparts in the Top 25, Cruzeiro has been prospering early in the Brasileiro Serie A, defeating Santos 4-0 this weekend. Cruzeiro has matches coming up against Coritiba and Vasco da Gama in Serie A action.

24. Everton (Eng) (23)

25. Fiorentina (Ita) (25)

Bubbling Under (alphabetically): Atletico de Madrid (Esp), Benfica (Por), Celtic (Sco), AC Milan (Ita), Werder Bremen (Ger)

Bubbling Under a Little Deeper (alphabetically): Aston Villa (Eng), Chivas de Guadalajara (Mex), Estudiantes (Arg), River Plate (Uru), Sevilla (Esp)

Matches Between Top 25 Teams Over Next Few Weeks:
28 May – (14) Fluminense at (11) Boca Juniors
4 June – (11) Boca Juniors at (14) Fluminense

WCR Top 25 Weekend American Television Schedule

This is what we’re left with. Normally, I wouldn’t list non-top division games, but there’s not a lot to list, so I will. Normally, I wouldn’t list under-23 matches, but there’s not a lot to list, so I will. It’s not that there’s not a lot left going on in the world of football after the Champions League final, but the best competition going on right now is the Copa Libertadores and it takes place during the week. There is certainly a dearth of weekend matches. I’ll list them, but I’m not ready to put them into my top five games of the weekend.

That is not to say that there is NOTHING going on this weekend, because there are two potentially great matches this weekend. First of all, and most importantly, is a matchup of two teams in the top seven of the WCR Top 25 Clubs as Roma takes on Internazionale in the finals of the Coppa Italia. Simultaneously, Lyon takes on Paris St.-Germain in the final of the French Cup. These are far and away the best games of the weekend and they are, of course, taking place at the same time on the same day. Thanks, scheduling gods. I guess that what DVRs are for.

The only other games involving a ranked team on television is Juventus playing in its Asian tour and Boca Juniors travelling to play Velez Sarsfield. There are, of course, games involving ranked teams that aren’t being televised, but this week, they are all Brazilian. Those are at the bottom of the list.

I’m not sure what to put in the Top 5 games of the weekend after the first two, but I’ll make do. I’m tempted to put the Toronto FC/DC United game in just because I’m going to it (and I may have an extra ticket if anybody wants to go), but it is pretty slim pickings – as it will be throughout the summer.

Top Five Games of the Weekend
1. Roma vs. Inter Milan (Sat. 3pm – FSC)
2. Lyon vs. Paris St. Germain (Sat. 3pm – Setanta)
3. Boca Juniors at Velez Sarsfield (Sun. 3pm – FSE)
4. Santos at Cruzeiro (Sun. 3pm – Not Televised)
5. New England Revolution at Columbus Crew (Sun 7:30 pm – FSC)

Saturday, May 24, 2008

9:00 am – Hull City at Bristol City (Setanta)
12:30 pm – France U-23 vs. Netherlands U-23 (FSC)
1:00 pm – (11) Juventus at Shenhua FC (Delayed) (GolTV)
2:30 pm – Chile U-23 vs. Japan U-23 (Delayed) (FSC)
3:00 pm – (7) Roma vs (3) Milan (GolTV)
3:00 pm – (10) Lyon vs. Paris St.-Germain (Setanta)
7:30 pm – Deportivo Cali at Independiente Medellin (GolTV)
7:30 pm – New England Revolution at Columbus Crew (FSC)
7:30 pm – Toronto FC at DC United (MLS Direct Kick)
8:30 pm – Real Salt Lake at FC Dallas (MLS Direct Kick)
9:30 pm – Chivas USA at Colorado Rapids (MLS Direct Kick)
10:30 pm – Kansas City Wizards at Los Angeles Galaxy (HDNet)

Sunday, May 25, 2008

9:30 am – Leeds at Doncaster (Setanta)
12 noon – Italy U-23 vs. United States U-23 (FSC)
2:00 pm – Ivory Coast U-23 vs. Turkey U-23 (Delayed) (FSC)
2:30 pm – Uruguay vs. Turkey (Setanta)
3:00 pm – Chicago Fire at New York Red Bulls (TeleFutura)
5:00 pm – (20) Boca Juniors at Velez Sarsfield (Delayed) (FSC) (Live at 3pm on FSE)
6:30 pm – Quindio at Chico (GolTV)
11:00 pm – Chivas de Guadalajara vs. Club America (Delayed) (FSC) (Live at 9pm on FSE)

Non-Televised Games Involving Top 25 Teams

Sun. 3pm – Cortiba at (4) Sao Paulo
Sun. 3pm – (17) Santos at Cruzeiro
Sun. 3pm – (24) Fluminense at SPORT

WCR Top 25 Clubs in the World - Penultimate Edition

Here we are nearing the end of the season and it’s almost time to close the door on another season of weekly World Club Rankings. There was the potential for a lot of movement in the charts this week, but in the end, teams that needed to win to maintain their place ended up winning. The best part of the weekend was trying to watch four Serie A games at one time. At one point in the second half, Roma was in the lead and AC Milan was heading the Champions League. But, then, Inter scored and Fiorentina scored and the top five in Italy remained unchanged. In France, Lyon defeated Auxerre to win its 231st consecutive Ligue Un championship and the top three in Germany remained unchanged as Bayern, Bremen and Schalke all won.

In South America, there were surprises galore in the Copa Libertadores, although they won’t show up on the charts until after the quarterfinal’s second legs take place. Nevertheless, how are teams that did so horribly in the Mexican Clausura (Atlas and Club America) doing so well against Boca Juniors and Santos, respectively. There is still a tight fight at the top of the Argentine Clausura and the Brasileiro Serie A is just getting under way.

What’s coming up this week? Oh, yeah. The top two teams in the world play each other in the European Championship? That should be enough. Both teams appear to be in good physical shape and we may be looking at an instant classic on Wednesday. That is the 800 pound gorilla in the room of football, but here at World Club Rankings, we like to look at all of the little monkeys in the room, too. In South America, the quarterfinals of the Copa Libertadores, where pre-tourney favorites Sao Paulo, Boca Juniors and Santos all have to fight to advance. Over the weekend, there are a few domestic cups out there to be won as Roma gets a chance to get a little revenge on Internazionale in the Coppa Italia finals and Lyon faces Paris St.-Germain in France.

Now, we reach the end of the story telling portion of this blog entry. Next, the penultimate weekly Top 25 of the season. Oh yeah, by the way, congratulations to Zenit St. Petersburg on their UEFA Cup title!!

World Club Rankings Top 25 – May 19, 2008

1. Manchester United (Eng) (1) – Is it just a coincidence that the Premier League ended a week earlier than all of the other major European leagues and that both of the teams in the Champions League finals are from the Premier League and get a week and a half to prepare for the final? What’s that? It is? Okay.

2. Chelsea (Eng) (2) – See, when teams stop playing over the weekend, I have nothing to say on the Top 25 lists. That’s why this is the penultimate Top 25 list. Anyway, Manchester United and Chelsea play on Wednesday in the Champions League finals. Just in case you hadn’t heard about it by now. My prediction?

3. Internazionale (Ita) (3) – At halftime, it looked like Inter may be in trouble, but a pair of second half goals gave Internazionale a victory over Parma and their third-straight Scudetto. The season isn’t over for Inter yet, though, as they play AS Roma in the Coppa Italia final this weekend in what has to be anti-climactic after the Serie A race and the Champions League, but it could be a good game, nonetheless.

4. Sao Paulo (Bra) (4) – Defeated Fluminense 1-0 in Copa Libertadores action before continuing its disappointing start to the Brasileiro Serie A season by managing only a 1-1 draw with Atletico—PR. The second leg of the Copa Libertadores quarterfinal is on Wednesday and Coritiba is on the schedule over the weekend.

5. Real Madrid (Esp) (5) – Finished off its La Liga championship season with a 5-2 victory over Levante. While the season is over for all intents and purposes, Real Madrid faces Saudi team Al-Nasr in a friendly this week.

6. Porto (Por) (6) – Failed to score a domestic double by falling to Sporting CP 0-2 in extra time in the Portuguese Cup final. Thus ends another season in Portugal.

7. Roma (Ita) (7) – Managed only a 1-1 draw with Catania, but by the time Catania scored its goal, Inter had already scored two against Parma, so it didn’t matter much. Can still win a trophy for the season with a victory over Inter Milan this weekend in the Coppa Italia finals.

8. Arsenal (Eng) (8) – Don’t really have much to add that hasn’t been said throughout the season.

9. Bayern Munchen (Ger) (9) – Saw Oliver Kahn off victoriously by defeating Hertha Berlin 4-1 and setting the Bundesliga record for fewest goals allowed in a season. Congrats Bayern.

10. Lyon (Fra) (10) – Defeated Auxerre 3-1 to clinch its 7th consecutive Ligue Un title. (See, I know it’s not really their 231st consecutive title.) Now, if they could only break through in Europe and bring some glory to France.

11. Juventus (Ita) (11) Managed only a 3-3 draw against Sampdoria. Another season is over and now that other cheating bastards have been picked out (I’m looking at you, Porto), I will hereby retire my affectionate Juventus nickname.

12. Villarreal (Esp) (12) – Finished up a historic season with a 2-0 victory over Deportivo La Coruna. Congratulations Yellow Submarine and see you in the Champions League group stage!!!

13. Barcelona (Esp) (14) – Saw Frank Rijkaard off in style with a fun, if not exciting, 5-3 victory over Real Murcia. Might see you in the Champions League semifinals, but we won’t know until after the third qualifying round. Better luck next year.

14. Liverpool (Eng) (13) – I know some of you are Liverpool fans. Was this year disappointing? Fourth place isn’t so bad and you did make the Champions League semifinals. I’d kill for a season like that from Newcastle United, but I have to assume that you wanted more.

15. Sporting CP (Por) (15) – Defeated Porto 2-0 to win the domestic cup competition and to finish an impressive season as the second best team in Portugal. What the hell happened to you Benfica?

16. PSV Eindhoven (Ned) (16) – Pass

17. Santos (Bra) (NR) – Santos can attribute their return to the rankings courtesy of their good start in the Brasileiro Serie A, defeating Ipatinga 4-0 this week. They damn sure don’t owe it to their Copa Libertadores play, losing to Club America (last place in the Mexican Clausura) 0-2. Host the second leg this week and play an away match against Cruzeiro over the weekend.

18. Ajax (Ned) (17) – Managed only a scoreless draw against Twente to be eliminated from next year’s Champions League, thanks to the pathetic way that the Dutch pick their representatives. Thankfully, this is the last season of this unfair system.

19. Bordeaux (Fra) (18) – In a similar boat as Roma, needing a win and a little luck this weekend and receiving neither. Drew 2-2 with Lens, relegating Lens, but not mattering much for Bordeaux as Lyon was busy clinching the Ligue Un title regardless of Bordeaux’s results. A very good season lands Bordeaux in next season’s Champions League group stage.

20. Boca Juniors (Arg) (NR) – Boca returns to the rankings this week after moving from sixth to third in the Argentine Clausura via a 2-1 defeat of Racing Club this weekend. Did not fare as well at home against Atlas, drawing 2-2 and must now succeed in Mexico if they want to successfully defend their Copa Libertadores title.

21. Sevilla (Esp) (NR) – After a very slow start and the tragic death of Antonio Puerta, Sevilla eventually bounced back to finish tied for fourth in La Liga. Finished the season well with a 4-1 victory over Athletic de Bilbao. Sevilla missed the Champions League for next year, but they do have a pretty good recent history in the UEFA Cup which may serve them well next season.

22. Werder Bremen (Ger) (22) – Finished its season this weekend with a 1-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen, knocking Leverkusen out of European competition next year. Second place in the Bundesliga automatically places Bremen in the group stage of next year’s Champions League.

23. Everton (Eng) (21) – Good team in a great league. I think Kevin Keegan’s right. Fifth place is a tremendous accomplishment; unfortunately, it’s all most of the Premier League teams can really play for.

24. Fluminense (Bra) (19) – Didn’t fare well anywhere this week. Lost to Sao Paulo 0-1 in the Copa Libertadores and fell 0-2 to Nautico in domestic action. Could be worse. A one goal deficit on the road isn’t impossible to overcome and the Brasileiro Serie A season is still in its infancy. Play the home match against Sao Paulo this week and SPORT over the weekend.

25. Fiorentina (Ita) (23) – Thank you Fiorentina!!! For the second straight year, AC Milan played like crap during the Serie A season and rested their reputation on Champions League play. Next year, they won’t have the opportunity. Maybe they’ll finally play up to our expectations.

Bubbling Under (alphabetically): Benfica (Por), Cruzeiro (Bra), Estudiantes (Arg), AC Milan (Ita), San Lorenzo (Arg).

Next Five European Teams: (31) Celtic (Sco), (33) Aston Villa (Eng), (35) Atletico de Madrid (Esp), (36) Schalke 04 (Ger), (38) Vitoria Guimaraes (Por)

Games Between Top 25 Teams This Week
21 May – (1) Manchester United vs. (2) Chelsea
21 May – (4) Sao Paulo at (24) Fluminense
24 May – (3) Internazionale vs. (7) AS Roma

Euro 2008 - RPI Prediction Experiment

Here at World Club Rankings, we focus on club teams, as opposed to national teams. We do weekly rankings, annual rankings, but we don’t do international rankings. It’s not that we don’t appreciate a good international match and we are definitely looking forward to Euro 2008. It’s just that international football just isn’t our thing.

Nevertheless, it’s a relatively slow Saturday on the world club football scene (outside of Germany and France) and we haven’t created a new spreadsheet in some time, and we do love ourselves some math, so we decided to apply some old fashioned college basketball formulas to the Euro 2008 teams because, well, why not?

Here’s what we decided to do. We applied the RPI formulas to the sixteen teams participating in Euro 2008. We decided to use the pre-2004 RPI formula because (a) it is much simpler and time is always limited and (b) it makes it easier to account for draws. How is the old school RPI determined? I’m glad you asked. Basically, it takes team records and breaks them into three components, does a little math, and then adds them together.

What are the three components? You ask a lot of questions. The first component is team winning percentage. For the purposes of this experiment, a draw counts as half of a half of a loss. Winning percentage accounts for 25% of the RPI. The second component is opponent’s winning percentage. This is pretty straight forward – it’s the combined record of your opponents. If a nation plays another nation three times, the opponent’s record is counted three times. Opponent’s winning percentage accounts for 50% of the RPI. The third component is opponent’s opponent’s winning percentage. Same process, taken a step further. Opponent’s opponent’s winning percentage accounts for the final 25% of the RPI.

For the game pool, I went back five years. Why five years? It gives me enough data to give meaning to the math. There’s no magic to the number – it’s just what I decided to use. Also, for the purposes of the team records, I decided to apply all games each nation played against any other nation in Euro 2008. I didn’t count games against non-Euro 2008 nations because, to do that, I’d have to expand the RPI to over 200 nations instead of just 16, which would take forever and, frankly, I have a little bit of a life. Also, again, I believe I was able to get meaningful data from using these sixteen teams. Also, I included all games I could find, including friendlies and games that did not necessarily mean anything at the time they were played. Does this skew the numbers a little bit? Probably. It really doesn’t matter, because this is basically just an experiment and should give us interesting, if not exactly accurate results.

Before I get to the results, let me just say that this is merely an experiment to see how a commonly used formula in one sport applies to Euro 2008. It doesn’t take into account home/away games (like the post-2003 RPI) and is not meant to be definitive. The data I found included 138 games. If I missed one or two (though I tried to be careful), it’s not the end of the world. If you’re looking for any national bias, I am not European, so I don’t really have a dog in this hunt. I’ll be rooting for the home of my grandfather (Germany), but no bias that I am aware of enters the formulas. Finally, this was just done to kill some time on a boring Saturday afternoon. I hope you find it at least half as interesting as I found it to do.

THE RESULTS

Component One – Winning Percentage (25%)

This component is pretty straight forward. Again, assuming most people didn’t bother to read the admittedly verbose prose above, the records are based on all internationals games played between two teams that are in Euro 2008 over the past five years, with a draw counting as half a win and half a loss.

Winning Percentages:

1. Italy (.6500)
2. France (.6429)
3. Poland (.6071)
4. Germany (.5833)
5. Greece (.5750)
6. Netherlands (.5682)
7. Spain (.5667)
8. Romania (.5417)
9. Croatia (.4643)
10. Turkey (.4615)
11. Czech Republic (.4444)
12. Sweden (.4412)
13. Portugal (.4211)
14. Russia (.3750)
15. Switzerland (.3333)
16. Austria (.1538)

Component Two – Opponent’s Winning Percentage (50%)

This component is the combined record of each of the opponents for each national team.

Opponent’s Winning Percentage:

1. Sweden (.5518)
2. Portugal (.5442)
3. Romania (.5318)
4. Czech Republic (.5208)
5. Spain (.5194)
6. Turkey (.5180)
7. Italy (.5168)
8. Switzerland (.5113)
9. Austria (.5042)
10. Greece (.4865)
11. France (.4849)
12. Russia (.4794)
13. Croatia (.4729)
14. Germany (.4712)
15. Netherlands (.4629)
16. Poland (.4435)

A few observations: Teams that not only played above .500, but also did it against teams above .500 were Italy, Spain and Romania. Poland had a great winning percentage, but did it against weak competition. The opponents of both Switzerland and Austria played over .500 – primarily one assumes because those teams got to play Austria and Switzerland.

Opponent’s Opponent’s Winning Percentage (25%)

I don’t think I can explain it better than that. It is what it sounds like. It may be a tad convoluted, but I didn’t invent the formula. I just applied it to something to which it was never intended to be applied.

Opponent’s Opponent’s Winning Percentage:

1. Greece (.5131)
2. Poland (.5127)
3. Netherlands (.5118)
4. Spain (.5074)
5. Germany (.5065)
6. Russia (.5034)
7. France (.5018)
8. Croatia (.5018)
9. Turkey (.4996)
10. Italy (.4983)
11. Czech Republic (.4880)
12. Portugal (.4869)
13. Romania (.4857)
14. Sweden (.4856)
15. Switzerland (.4856)
16. Austria (.4816)

I won’t even pretend to know how to analyze these numbers. Now, we take the three components, put them together, add a pinch of salt and stir so nothing gets stuck to the bottom, and see what we get for the final RPI ranking.

EURO 2008 TEAM RPI RANKING:

1. Italy (.5454)
2. France (.5286)
3. Spain (.5282)
4. Romania (.5227)
5. Greece (.5153)
6. Germany (.5080)
7. Sweden (.5076)
8. Poland (.5017)
9. Netherlands (.5014)
10. Turkey (.4993)
11. Portugal (.4991)
12. Czech Republic (.4935)
13. Croatia (.4780)
14. Switzerland (.4603)
15. Russia (.4593)
16. Austria (.4110)

I think that’s pretty interesting. Now, let us apply it to the groups in Euro 2008:

EURO 2008 PREDICTIONS – THE EXPERIMENT

Group A:

(10) Turkey
(11) Portugal
(12) Czech Republic
(14) Switzerland

If Group C is the group of death, Group A has to be considered the group of the dead. I have to say that I was surprised to see any team with Cristiano Ronaldo ranked this low. The fact that all of the teams rank between tenth and fourteenth indicate that this group is wide open and any one of the four teams could advance. With home field advantage, I would not be at all surprised to see Switzerland go through. For the purposes of this experiment, however, let’s say Turkey wins the group and Portugal also advances.

Group B:

(6) Germany
(8) Poland
(13) Croatia
(16) Austria

Continuing with the top heavy (light) Group A/B half of the draw, in which there are only two of the top nine teams in the tournament. This is the group in which there is the clearest delineation between the top two teams and the bottom two teams in the group. It is more of a coin flip to determine the winner of the group, but we’ll go with Germany to win and Poland to advance.

Group C:

(1 ) Italy
(2) France
(4) Romania
(9) Netherlands

Wow. Which of the football draw gods did these teams piss off in order to get such a strong group. With three of the top four clubs in the RPI, as well as the number nine team, it is perfectly conceivable that the best team in the world may not even advance to the Euro 2008 quarterfinals. Despite it being unfair, it should make for some awesome games in the group stage. Although Romania might claim a spot, we’ll go with Italy as the group winner and France as the runner-up.

Group D:

(3) Spain
(5) Greece
(7) Sweden
(15) Russia

First of all, let’s just take Russia out of the equation. I saw the Spain team, which was announced earlier today, and it’s hard to imagine that team being stopped by any other team in this group. That notwithstanding, the numbers indicate that this is a three-way battle for two spots and that any one of those three might spend the knockout stages at home. To keep with the tradition began above, we’ll go with Spain as the winner and Greece as the runner-up.

Knockout Rounds

In the quarterfinals and semifinals, Group A and B are in one draw while Groups C and D are in the other, with the winners of one playing the runner-up of the other in the quarterfinals. If the numbers are accurate at all, a few things are clear: (1) The bottom half of the draw is superior to the top half of the draw, with seven of the top nine teams in the tournament in Groups C or D. Within the two draws, Group B appears to have the best two teams in the top half, while the best teams from the bottom half appear to come from Group C, though Group D is also loaded. If the RPI holds up (and I have no reason to believe it will – remember, this is just a random Saturday afternoon experiment), the knockout stages will play out as follows:

Quarterfinals:

Poland over Turkey
Germany over Portugal
Italy over Greece
France over Spain

Semifinals:

Germany over Poland
Italy over France

Finals:

Italy over Germany

Is this how it’ll turn out? I doubt it, but I had fun plugging all of the data into the spreadsheets and seeing how the formulas played out. Again, I hope you find it half as interesting as I found doing it. It should be fun and I can’t wait!!

WCR Weekend Soccer Television Schedule

This is the way the season ends.
This is the way the season ends.
This is the way the season ends.
Not with a bang but a whimper.

I believe that was written by Tottenham Spurs Eliot.

The season doesn’t quite end with a whimper, but the games to watch are becoming few and far between as many of the WCR Top 25 teams have completed their seasons. The primary exception to this poem is in Italy, where things are still wide open. Inter Milan can clinch another Serie A title with a victory, but any other result leaves the door open for Roma to claim the title with a victory of its own. And it’s not like their opponents will be passive participants as both are going to fight to avoid relegation. Likewise, Fiorentina can clinch a Champions League spot with a victory and relegate (so to speak) AC Milan to next year’s UEFA Cup, but Fiorentina has had a problem coping with success at times this year and those matches should be exciting as well.

Things are coming down to the wire in France, as well, as Lyon tries to hold off Bordeaux for their 215th consecutive title and Paris St.-Germain tries to hold of RC Lens to remain in Ligue Un. But those games aren’t being televised (unless Setanta picks one of them up on Saturday), so there’s a limit to how excited I can get. [Update: The Lyon and Bordeaux games will be televised on Setanta on Saturday.] Also, things are mostly wrapped up at the top in Germany with respect to the Champions League spots, though Schalke 04 and Werder Bremen are still trying to determine who gets the second group stage spot. The German UEFA Cup spots are wide, wide open, with four teams battling for two UEFA Cup and one Intertoto Cup spot, but only one game invovling those teams is being televised (Arminia Bielefeld/VfB Stuttgart) and that game isn’t televised until 150 minutes until after it’s over. As for Spain . . . yawn. (I don’t get too excited about games for relegation.)

Of course there are Mexican Apertura Playoff games and MLS games, but the matchups for those don’t appear too intriguing unless you want to see if the old Houston Dynamo is back against Chicago or see which team between D.C. United and Chivas USA has fallen the furthest from last year.

Top Five Games of the Weekend:

1. Inter Milan at Parma (Sun. 9am, FSC)
2. Roma at Catania (Sun. 11am, FSC)
3. Fiorentina at Torino (Sun. 9am, ESPN 360)
4. Udinese at AC Milan (Sun. 1pm, FSC)
5. River Plate at Independiente (Sun. 4pm, FSC)

Saturday, May 17, 2008

9:30 am – Schalke 04 at Nurnberg (GolTV)
11:30 am – Hertha Berlin at (9) Bayern Munchen (Delayed) (GolTV)
2:00 pm – Arminia Bielefeld at VfB Stuttgart (Delayed) (GolTV)

3:00 pm - 10) Lyon at Auxerre (Setanta)
4:00 pm – (14) Barcelona at Real Murcia (GolTV)
4:00 pm – Columbus Crew at Toronto FC (MLS Direct Kick)
7:30 pm – Kansas City Wizards at New York Red Bulls (MLS Direct Kick)
7:30 pm – San Jose Earthquakes at New England Revolution (HDNet)
7:45 pm – (18) Bordeaux at Lens (Delayed) (Setanta)
8:30 pm – Houston Dynamo at Chicago Fire (MLS Direct Kick)
9:00 pm – Monterrey at Chivas de Guadalajara (TeleFutura)
10:30 pm – D.C. United at Chivas USA (FSC)

Sunday, May 18, 2008

7:00 am – Beijing at Dalian Shide (ESPN 360)
9:00 am – (3) Inter Milan at Parma (FSC)
11:00 am – (7) Roma at Catania (Delyaed) (FSC) (Live at 9am on FSE and ESPN 360)
9:00 am – (23) Fiorentina at Torino
12 noon – Real Zaragoza at Real Mallorca (GolTV)
1:00 pm – Udinese at AC Milan (FSC) (Live at 9am on ESPN 360)
1:00 pm – Toluca at San Luis (Univision)
1:00 pm – (25) San Lorenzo at Huracan (Telemundo)
2:00 pm – Levante at (5) Real Madrid (GolTV)
3:00 pm – Los Angeles Galaxy at FC Dallas (TeleFutura)
4:00 pm – (20) River Plate at Independiente (Delayed) (FSC) (Live at 3pm on FSE)
4:30 pm – Millonarios at Envigado (GolTV)

Non-Televised Games Involving Top 25 Teams:

Sat. 9am – (11) Juventus at Sampdoria
Sat. 9:30am – (22) Werder Bremen at Bayer Leverkusen
Sat. 4:30pm – Veitoria Setubal vs. (15) Sporting CP
Sun. 8:30 am – FC Twente at (17) Ajax
Sun. noon – (24) Atletico de Madrid at Valencia
Sun. 3pm – (4) Sao Paulo at Atletico-PR
Sun. 3pm – Nautico at (19) Fluminense
Sun. 3pm – (12) Villarreal at Deportivo La Coruna

Ranked Teams Off This Weekend: (1) Manchester United, (2) Chelsea, (6) Porto, (8) Arsenal, (13) Liverpool, (16) PSV Eindhoven, (21) Everton

Predictapalooza - Champions League, UEFA Cup, Copa Libertadores

Prediction season soon will be coming to an end. This is the last chance for me to make predictions for the Champions League and the UEFA Cup and there are only a few more chances for the Copa Libertadores. I’m coming off of mixed results in the last round. I was 2-0 in the last Champions League round, but since Manchester United and Chelsea are at the top of the WCR Top 25, so I was pretty confident in those predictions. On the other hand, my UEFA Cup predictions were pretty poor, to say the least, but I figured Rangers and Fiorentina would be close. As far as Zenit beating Bayern, I just never saw it coming. In the Copa Libertadores, I finished the first knockout stage at 5-3, with the Club America victory being the one that surprised me the most.

If you want to see the predictions of others for the Champions League, check out the CL Prediction Round Table on Soccer City FC. They’ve even taken to quoting the WCR Oracle, so we encourage you to check it out.

Champions League Prediction:

Manchester United over Chelsea, 2-1

I think Manchester United is just going to have too much firepower on their side, what with Ronaldo, Tevez, Rooney and the referees playing so well for them recently. I’m not sure how serious Terry is hurt, but I don’t think it’s going to matter. Manyoo is just solid all of the way around. I still believe Chelsea is the second best team in the world since the New Year, but I think they are just a weapon or two short, though seeing Shevchenko score against Bolton may provide a little hope.

UEFA Cup Prediction:

Rangers over Zenit St. Petersburg, 2-0

I told you Zenit was going to lose to Villarreal, didn’t I? I told you they’d lose to Marseille, didn’t I? I told you they’d lose to Bayer Leverkusen, didn’t I? I told you they’d lose to Bayern Munchen, didn’t I? Why in the hell are you still listening to me? While the Russian federation has allowed Zenit to take all of the time off it needs to prepare, the Scottish FA has not taken it easy at all on Rangers. Nevertheless, I’ve been saying it all along and I’m bound to be right eventually. This is where eventually runs out. Please don’t make a liar out of me, Rangers.

Copa Libertadores Predictions:

Sao Paulo over Fluminense, 3-2 in aggregate

This may very well be a matchup of the two best teams remaining in the Copa Libertadores. Ever since the year started and Sao Paulo started playing in the Paulista League, and even at times in the Copa Libertadores, Sao Paulo has looked a little rusty, but Fluminense should be suffering from some rust of its own because of the Brazilian schedule. I’m going with Sao Paulo, but this should be close.

Boca Juniors over Atlas, 4-1 in aggregate

Unlike the Brazilian teams, neither of these teams should be rusty. Boca Juniors has already faced its toughest competition in its semifinal draw, defeating Cruzeiro in the last round. An Atlas team that is not nearly as good as last year had the benefit of playing a Lanus team that is much, much worse than it was in the Apertura. Boca Juniors has been inconsistent, falling to sixth in a very tight Argentine Clausura, but I think the talent will prevail in this matchup.

San Lorenzo over LDU Quito, 2-1 in aggregate

I knew that the San Lorenzo/River Plate matchup was going to be close, but I did expect a different result. Nevermind that, though. San Lorenzo deserved to advance. I also expected a different result in the Estudiantes/LDU Quito matchup. I’ve only been able to see LDU Quito play in the course of the Copa Libertadores, but I have been impressed. They handled Estudiantes pretty well and Estudiantes is a very good team. This is another matchup that could go either way. I think San Lorenzo is a little more talented, but Liga does not lack for confidence. I’m going with San Lorenzo in a squeaker.

Santos over Club America, 6-1 in aggregate

Somebody please explain what the hell happened in Rio de Janiero last week. I though Flamengo over Club America was the easiest pick to make, seeing as Club America could manage only two (TWO) victories in the Mexican Clausura. I felt even better about the pick when Flamengo won the first game 4-2 in Mexico. Then, pigs started flying, cats started chasing dogs, snowballs froze in hell and Club America advanced in the Copa Libertadores quarterfinals. Can lightning strike twice in Brazil? I doubt it, but I guess it’s already struck four times in St. Petersburg (see above) so anything is possible, but I just don’t see it.

WCR Top 25 Clubs in the World - Congrats Manyoo

As the season draws to an end, we are getting close to the (temporary) end of the weekly version of the WCR Top 25 Clubs in the World rankings. As England and Portugal drew to a close this weekend, and Germany, France, Italy and Spain all finish up in a flurry of action next weekend, there won’t be enough movement in the rankings to justify running the stats every week. I anticipate publishing weekly rankings through the end of the Champions League, with additional rankings after the completion of the Copa Libertadores semifinals (early June) and championship (early July). Then, perhaps, a pre-season ranking to take place in early August before the rankings return to being a weekly fixture in September. During the break, I will continue publishing Annual Rankings from 1969 to 2006 (probably at a rate of a few a week). I may be experimenting with other features. If there’s anything else you’d like to see, let me know. I’m always looking for new ideas.

Now, to the rankings. Congratulations to Manchester United for winning another Premier League title. Manyoo remains at the top of the rankings and deservedly so. Other teams that were hoping to wrap things up this weekend weren’t as fortunate as Inter Milan stumbled in its match against Siena to have its Serie A lead cut to one and Bordeaux kept pace with Lyon to stay within striking distance with one fixture to go. Should make for an exciting weekend next weekend.

Most of the changes in the rankings this week take place because of things going on in South America. The quarterfinals are now set in the Copa Libertadores and it seems that some clubs did well in that tournament and some clubs did well domestically, but very few (save, perhaps LDU Quito) managed to do well in both. This resulted in teams moving around the rankings and a few teams being completely knocked out. This makes room for additional European teams who have been playing well recently such as Atletico de Madrid and Werder Bremen.

The most exciting matches of the upcoming week will likely be this weekend as championships will be determined in Serie A and La Championnat and European spots and relegations will be determined. Besides this, there are two matchups between Top 25 teams this week. The first takes place Wednesday as Sao Paulo hosts Fluminense in the first leg of a Copa Libertadores quarterfinal. The other takes place on Sunday as Porto and Sporting CP face off in the finals of the Portuguese Cup competition.

Now on to the rankings.

WCR Top 25 Clubs in the World – May 12, 2008

1. Manchester United (Eng) (1) – I’m guessing you already know this by now, but Manyoo defeated Wigan Athletic 2-0 to win yet another Premier League title. The best team in the world now has only one test to go, but that test is more than a week away, so we’ll discuss that another time.

2. Chelsea (Eng) (2) – Only managed a draw with Bolton this weekend, giving up a late goal. As it turned out, Manyoo was doing its job, so Chelsea’s result didn’t matter in the big picture. Still, it would have been for the ol’ confidence to have a victory going into its match against Manyoo in the Champions League final. But, again, another story for another blog entry.

3. Internazionale (Ita) (3) – Defeated Lazio in Rome to advance to the final of the Coppa Italia, but the big news of the week was Inter’s failure to defeat Siena, leaving Inter with a mere one-point lead over Roma for the Serie A title.

4. Sao Paulo (Bra) (4) – Defeated Nacional 2-0 to advance to the quarterfinals of the Copa Libertadores. They didn’t fare as well in their Brasileiro debut, losing 0-1 to Gremio. This week, Sao Paulo faces another tough opponent in Libertadores actions, hosting Fluminense. This weekend, Sao Paulo plays Atletico-PR as it tries to get back on track of its Brazilian Championship defense.

5. Real Madrid (Esp) (5) – Real is once again the highest ranked team without a meaningful game remaining. Humiliated Barcelona 4-1 at midweek last week before following that up with a 2-2 draw against Real Zaragoza. Finish up their La Liga championship season this weekend against Levante.

6. Porto (Por) (6) – Defeated Naval 2-0 this weekend to finish off its bwin Liga season. This weekend, Porto goes for the domestic double as they face Sporting CP in the final of the Portuguese Cup.

7. Roma (Ita) (7) – Defeated Atalanta 2-1 to take advantage of Inter Milan’s stumble and move within a point of the top spot of Serie A. Also moved past Catania to move on to the finals of the Coppa Italia where they will be facing, of course, Inter Milan. Close out the Serie A season this weekend, once again facing Catania, and hoping for a little help.

8. Arsenal (Eng) (8) – Finished off their season this week defeating Sunderland 1-0. Thus ends another cupless season for the Gunners.

9. Bayern Munchen (Ger) (11) – Defeated a pair of teams in Bundesliga action this week, defeating Arminia Bielefeld 2-0 and Duisburg 3-2, dooming the latter to relegation. Host Hertha Berlin this weekend to finish off the season.

10. Lyon (Fra) (10) – Defeated Nancy Lorraine 1-0, but that wasn’t enough to win the Ligue Un title. They get a chance to clinch the championship if they can defeat Auxerre. Also defeated Sedan to move into the final of the French Cup competition against Paris St.-Germain, who is probably more focused on avoiding relegation.

11. Juventus (Ita) (9) – Could manage only a draw against Catania 1-1. Doesn’t matter though. Finishes off the season this weekend against Sampdoria.

12. Villarreal (Esp) (13) – Finishing off the season in great style by winning two matches this week by a score of 2-0, first Recreativo de Huelva and then Espanyol over the weekend. Finish in second place of the Primera Division. Face Deportivo la Coruna this weekend to finish the season.

13. Liverpool (Eng) (15) – Outlasted Tottenham Hotspur to a 2-0 victory as Liverpool finished off its 2007/08 season. Good luck next year.

14. Barcelona (Esp) (12) – This team has completely turned to crap, especially defensively. Managed to give up seven, yes seven, goals this week, losing 1-4 to Real Madrid and 2-3 to Real Mallorca. Yet another Real opponent this weekend as they play Real Murcia.

15. Sporting CP (Por) (17) – Defeated Boavista 2-1 to finish in second place in the bwin Liga and earn a return trip to next year’s Champions League. Finish the season off next weekend as they try to win the Portuguese Cup in a classic matchup against Porto.

16. PSV Eindhoven (Ned) (18) – Moved up two spots even though they haven’t played in weeks. Not bad.

17. Ajax (Ned) (22) – Another beneficiary of the weird stuff going on in South America. Lost the away leg of the Dutch Champions League playoffs 1-2 to Twente. Next Sunday, they get the rematch at home.

18. Bordeaux (Fra) (24) – Defeated Sochaux 2-0 this week to keep pace with Lyon in Ligue Un. This week they face Lens as they hope for Auxerre to defeat Lyon. Unfortunately, a Bordeaux victory also means relegation for Lens and nobody wants to see that.

19. Fluminense (Bra) (14) – Managed only a goalless draw against Atletico-MG in the opening of the Brasileiro, but did advance in the Copa Libertadores, defeating Atletico Nacional of Colombia. It doesn’t get any easier in the quarterfinals as they take on Sao Paulo.

20. River Plate (Arg) (16) – River Plate landed an unfortunate draw in the Copa Libertadores first knockout stage in San Lorenzo and it became River’s only knockout stage in the tournament. To make amends, River defeated Gimnasia La Plata 4-2 on Sunday to move back on top of the Argentine Clausura. Face Independiente next week as they try to maintain that position.

21. Everton (Eng) (25) – Finished the season in a bittersweet way for me, defeating my beloved Newcastle United 3-1. I have to admit that I was rooting against Everton, but they are a quality team and I’m glad they qualified for the UEFA Cup. I just wish somebody had told them that they could have qualified with a draw.

22. Werder Bremen (Ger) (NR) – Bremen returns to the rankings after a long absence after having a tremendous end of the season. They have qualified for a return trip to the Champions League and can qualify for a group stage spot by defeating Bayer Leverkusen.

23. Fiorentina (Ita) (NR) – Returns to the final Champions League spot in Serie A by taking advantage of another AC Milan failure by defeating Parma 3-1. Now it’s time to see if Fiorentina is going to choke. Travel to Turin next week to finish the season off against Torino. It’s never easy playing on the road in Italy, but this is a game that Fiorentina should be able to handle. Unless they choke.

24. Atletico de Madrid (Esp) (NR) – Yet another team makes a long awaited return to the rankings. Atletico defeated Deportivo La Coruna 1-0 this weekend to move into a tie for third place with Barcelona in the Primera Division – who saw that coming two months ago – and to guarantee its first crack at the Champions League in a dozen years.

25. San Lorenzo (Arg) (21) – This team is in the opposite boat as River Plate. Successful against River in the Copa Libertadores, but fell to Independiente 0-1 to fall out of the lead of the Clausura. This week, face a good LDU Quito team in the Libertadores quarterfinals and look to rebound in the Clausura against Huracan.

Bubbling Under (alphabetically): Benfica (Por), Chivas de Guadalajara (Mex), AC Milan (Ita), Santos (Bra), Sevilla (Esp)

Other Copa Libertadores Teams + One: (32) Boca Juniors (Arg), (40) LDU Quito (Ecu), (48) Pachuca (Mex), (105) Atlas (Mex), (177) Club America (Mex)

Matches Between Top 25 Clubs This Week:
14 May - (19) Fluminense at (4) Sao Paulo
18 May - (6) Porto vs. (15) Sporting CP

Weekend Soccer Television Schedule

This week is a week of teams fighting for championships, European spots and to avoid relegation. Nevertheless, there are not very many games in which international powerhouses are facing each other. There are no matchups between WCR Top 25 teams this weekend, as those were held during the week with Real Madrid embarrassing Barcelona 4-1 yesterday and San Lorenzo taking on River Plate this evening in the Copa Libertadores.

Perhaps most surprising to me is the fact that there are major teams with international followings that are not on American television this week. This list includes Arsenal, Bayern Munchen and AC Milan. Granted, Arse’s and Bayern’s games are pretty much meaningless, but Milan is still fighting off Fiorentina for the final Champions League spot from Serie A.

It also doesn’t help matters that most of the top European leagues are playing their matches at the same time. All of the best games are on Sunday and most of them will be going on simultaneously. Thank goodness for tape-delayed broadcasts.

Picking the top five games of the week this week is a bit of a daunting task, but since Manyoo and Inter are fighting for championships this week, they have to be included. Lyon/Nancy Lorraine and Estudiantes/Boca Juniors would definitely be listed if they were televised, but since they’re not, they have to be scrutinized a bit more. It’s a tough week to try and choose, but choose I will:

Top Five Games of the Weekend:

1. Espanyol at Villarreal (Sun. 10pm – GolTV)
2. Manchester United at Wigan Athletic (Sun. 10am – Setanta)
3. Siena at Inter Milan (Sun. 2pm – FSC)
4. Bolton Wanderers at Chelsea (Sun. 10am – FSC)
5. Estudiantes at Boca Juniors (Sun. 1pm – Telemundo)

Saturday, May 10, 2008

7:30 am – Beijing at Liaoning FC (ESPN 360)
9:30 am – Hannover 96 at Werder Bremen (GolTV)
11:00 am – Locomotiv at Tom (ESPN 360)
11:30 am – Eintracht Frankfurt at Schalke 04 (Delayed) (GolTV)
1:30 pm – VfB Stuttgart at Wolfsburg (Delayed) (GolTV)
7:30 pm – Bucaramanga at Millonarios (GolTV)
8:00 pm – Pachuca at San Luis (TeleFutura)
8:30 pm – Colorado Rapids at Houston Dynamo (FSC)
9:00 pm – Real Salt Lake at FC Dallas (MLS Direct Kick)
9:30 pm – Emelec at Barcelona (Delayed) (GolTV)
10:00 pm – San Jose Earthquakes at Columbus Crew (MLS Direct Kick)
10:30 pm – Los Angeles Galaxy at New York Red Bulls (HDNet)

Sunday, May 11, 2008

3:30 am – Guangzhou at Dalian Shide (ESPN 360)
6:00 am – Saturn at Dynamo Moscow (ESPN 360)
9:00 am – Catania at (9) Juventus (ESPN 360)
10:00 am – Bolton Wanderers at (2) Chelsea (FSC)
10:00 am – (1) Manchester United at Wigan Athletic (Setanta)
12 noon – Newcastle United at (25) Everton (Delyaed) (FSC)
12:30 pm – Fulham at Portsmouth (Delayed) (Setanta)

1:00 pm - (20) Estudiantes at Boca Juniors (Telemundo)
2:00 pm – Siena at (3) Inter Milan (Delayed) (FSC) (Live at 9am on ESPN 360)
2:15 pm – Blackburn Rovers at Birmingham City (Delayed) (Setanta)
3:00 pm – (5) Real Madrid at Real Zaragoza (GolTV)
3:00 pm – New England Revolution at Chivas USA (TeleFutura)
4:00 pm – Reading at Derby County (Delayed) (Setanta)
5:00 pm – Real Mallorca at (12) Barcelona (Delayed) (GolTV)
5:00 pm – Atlas at Necaxa (Galavision)
5:00 pm – Atalanta at (7) Roma (Delayed) (FSC) (Live at 9am on ESPN 360)
6:30 pm – Manchester City at Middlesbrough (Delayed) (FSE)
7:00 pm – Nacional at Penarol (Delayed) (GolTV)
7:00 pm – (15) Liverpool at Tottenham Hotspur (Delayed) (FSC)
10:00 pm – Espanyol at (13) Villarreal (Delayed) (GolTV)
11:00 pm – Gimnasia LP at (16) River Plate (Delayed) (FSC) (Live at 4pm on FSE)

Non-Televised Games Involving Top 25 Teams:

Sat. 5/10 – 9:30am – (11) Bayern Munchen at Duisburg
Sat. 5/10 – 2pm – (22) Ajax at Twente
Sat. 5/10 – 2:45pm – (6) Porto at Naval
Sat. 5/10 – 2:45pm – Nancy Lorraine at (10) Lyon
Sat. 5/10 – 2:45pm – Sochaux at (24) Bordeaux
Sat. 5/10 – 5pm – Gremio at (4) Sao Paulo
Sat. 5/10 – 5pm – (23) Cruzeiro at Vitoria
Sun. 5/11 – 9am – (19) AC Milan at Napoli
Sun. 5/11 – 10am – (8) Arsenal at Sunderland
Sun. 5/11 – 3:15pm – Boavista at (17) Sporting CP
Sun. 5/11 – 5pm – (14) Fluminense at Atletico-MG
Sun. 5/11 6pm – (22) San Lorenzo at Independiente

No Game Scheduled: (18) PSV Eindhoven

WCR Top 25 Clubs in the World - Cinco de Mayo Edition

A lot to go through this week, let’s see if I can cover at least a portion of it. First of all, bonus points have been eliminated for teams that have been eliminated from their continental competitions. The big losers in the Top 25 this week are Barcelona, Liverpool and Deportivo Saprissa. The big winners turn out to be everybody else who move up to fill in spots that those teams left behind. There will be another shakeup next week with respect to South American teams as the Round of Sixteen concludes on Thursday. Currently, the eight group winners in the Copa Libertadores have received bonus points. Next week, those points will belong to the eight teams that advance to the quarterfinals. In the annual rankings, which is done at the end of the year, bonus points will be awarded to all teams that reached the semifinals in their respective continental competitions, but since the weekly rankings merely are a snapshot at the football world at the moment, it seems appropriate only to award them for those teams still alive in the weekly rankings. (The weekly rankings are a work in progress and comments that don’t hurt my feelings are always appreciated.)

The rankings also go a little crazy this week with respect to Italian teams because they went a little crazy themselves. Fiorentina went from the catbird’s seat to the corner seat with the dunce’s cap after falling to Cagliari and allowing AC Milan into the final Champions League spot. Inter actually moved up in the rankings, despite the loss, because of the fall of Barcelona and Liverpool, but AC Milan moved up a lot, returning to the Top 25 in a big way. Contrarily, Fiorentina , after falling (sort of) to Rangers in the UEFA Cup and Cagliari in Serie A, fall from the rankings completely.

As always, there are lots of great games this week. There are no real matchups of titans this weekend, but with so many teams fighting for European spots or trying to avoid relegation, there are hardly any meaningless games this week. In addition, the much anticipated (at least by me) Brasileiro League begins this weekend. The only two matchups between Top 25 teams both take place at midweek this week. Real Madrid hosts Barcelona on Wednesday in a game that will not have a great deal of importance with respect to where the teams place in La Liga, but has a lot of importance to lovers of great football. On Thursday, River Plate hosts San Lorenzo in the second leg of their Copa Libertadores Round of 16 matchup, with River Plate having to overcome a 2-1 deficit that it earned in its away match.

I want to give some props to some newly crowned champions. Bayern Munchen clinched the Bundesliga title and Real Madrid rode two late goals in rapid succession to claim a second consecutive (and 31st overall) La Liga Primera Division title. Most of all, I’d like to congratulate Pachuca for winning the CONCACAF Champions Cup and being the first team to punch its ticket for the FIFA Club World Cup. I wish there was a place for them in the rankings, but they didn’t even qualify for the playoffs in the Mexican Primera Division and that’s enough to keep them out.

Finally, last week, this site saw by far the most traffic it has ever seen due to being posted on several forums and fan sites. This is, in large part, due to the fact that it was picked up by C’mon You Irons last week and it’s greatly appreciated on our parts. Hopefully, they’ll make our rankings a new tradition at their site.

Saprissa’s out. Fiorentina’s out. Who’s in? That’s what the rest of the article is about.

World Club Rankings – May 5, 2008

1. Manchester United (Eng) (1) – Unsurprisingly, Manyoo advanced to the first-ever all-England Champions League final by defeating Barcelona 1-0. Even more unsurprisingly, Manyoo moved closer to a second consecutive Premiership title by defeating West Ham 4-1 at Old Trafford this weekend. Coming up, Manchester United has an opportunity to clinch the title against Wigan Athletic, if Newcastle United doesn’t clinch it for them first by picking up a point or three against Chelsea today.

2. Chelsea (Eng) (2) – It must be tough being the second best club in the world, only to play in the league with the best club in the world. Defeated Liverpool 3-2 to advance to the Champions League finals against Manyoo. Obviously, they have a fair shot in that game. Furthermore, all hope is not yet lost with respect to the Premiership title. First of all, Chelsea needs a victory at St. James’ Park later today. They also need a victory against Bolton this coming weekend. They also need some luck and a Wigan Athletic miracle. (Speaking of which, that 1-1 draw at home against Wigan a few weeks ago may keep giving Chelsea supporters nightmares throughout the summer.)

3. Internazionale (Ita) (6) – Obviously, they move up because of the falling of those teams defeated in the Champions League this week and not by virtue of their 1-2 defeat at the hands of their cross-town rivals. Along with Roma’s victory, Serie A is once again beginning to look competitive, but the road for Inter should get easier as we go on. This week, Inter travels to Rome to play the second-leg of their Coppa Italia semifinal with Lazio, after a goalless draw in the first leg. In Serie A action, Inter hosts Siena as it tries to close the door on another title.

4. Sao Paulo (Bra) (4) – Managed a draw on the road against Nacional (Uru) in the first leg of their Copa Libertadores Round of Sixteen matchup. Second leg is this week in Brazil. This weekend, Sao Paulo begins its defense of its Brasileiro League title at home against Gremio.

5. Real Madrid (Esp) (9) – In a week when all of the teams at the top of the table in La Liga won for a change, Real Madrid defeated Osasuna 2-1 to clinch its second consecutive Primera Division title. I would say that the rest of its games are meaningless, but since they host Barcelona on Wednesday, that can’t be said because no game between Real Madrid and Barcelona is EVER meaningless. Games between Real Madrid and Real Zaragoza, however, may be meaningless and one of those take place on Sunday.

6. Porto (Por) (8) – Last week, I was proud that Porto played so well against Vitoria Guimaraes even though they had already clinched the bwin Liga title and the game was meaningless to them. It looks like they went ahead and called it a season this week as they lost for the first time at home this season as they fell to Nacional (Por) 0-3. Will they show up this weekend against Naval? Does it matter?

7. Roma (Ita) (10) – Defeated Sampdoria 3-0 this weekend to move three points closer to Inter Milan in its quest for a Serie A title. This weekend, they host Atalanta as they hope for similar results for both themselves and Inter. In the meantime, Roma goes on the road to play the second leg of their Coppa Italia semifinal with Catania, holding a 1-0 advantage.

8. Arsenal (Eng) (12) – Defeated Everton 1-0 this weekend to keep itself within striking distance of Chelsea for second place in the Premiership. The Gunners head northeast this weekend to take on Sunderland.

9. Juventus (Ita) (14) – I’m not sure why Juventus jumped past Lyon this week after falling 0-1 to Siena yesterday, but the numbers do what they do and I just type them up once a week. This week Juventus hosts Catania in Serie A action.

10. Lyon (Fra) (13) – Similar to the race in Italy, every time Lyon looks like they’ve gotten things all wrapped up, they slip. This week, Lyon scored a goalless draw against Nice to allow Bordeaux to move a few points closer to the top. This week, Lyon faces Sedan in a domestic cup semifinal and then host Nancy Lorraine this weekend, who are currently in the final Ligue Un Champions League spot.

11. Bayern Munchen (Ger) (16) – This move would be even more surprising than Juventus’, except for the fact that UEFA Cup matches are of minimal value in these rankings. Nevertheless, losing 0-4 to Zenit St. Petersburg in the semifinals of that competition had to be embarrassing, not to mention tremendously disappointing. Perhaps they are over it by now, however, after clinching another Bundesliga title (and their first in a row . . .) by scoring a goalless draw against Wolfsburg this weekend. Now their games are meaningless and they have two of them this week – first against Arminia Bielefeld on Wednesday and then against Duisburg on Saturday.

12. Barcelona (Esp) (3) – I guess this shows you how important the Super Bonus Points were to Barcelona’s rankings last week, falling nine spots after being eliminated by Manchester United despite crushing Valencia like a rotten orange, 6-0. Barcelona’s games still have meanings as they try to chase down Villarreal for second place in La Liga. Most importantly, they travel to Madrid to play Real in what is always one of the big games of the year. With whatever adrenaline is remaining, Barca hosts Real Mallorca this weekend.

13. Villarreal (Esp) (17) – Still just below Barca in the rankings despite being ahead of them on the table based upon goal differential. Most importantly, Villarreal’s goal differential against Getafe was +2 this weekend as they defeated the tough out 2-0. Play two games against two potentially (occasionally?) tough teams in Recreativo de Huelva at midweek and Espanyol this weekend.

14. Fluminense (Bra) (15) – Move up a notch after defeating Atletico Nacional 2-1 in Colombia in the first leg of its Copa Libertadores Round of Sixteen matchup. Come back to Brazil for the return leg on Tuesday and then open up its domestic league season this weekend against Atletico-MG.

15. Liverpool (Eng) (5) – This seems to be much closer to where Liverpool should be as a fourth-place team in the Premiership. Liverpool was eliminated by Chelsea in the Champions League, as I’m guessing you’ve heard by now. Defeated Manchester City 1-0 this weekend, which is admirable against a solid team, given that the competitive portion of Liverpool’s season already has concluded. This week, Liverpool travels back to London to face Tottenham Hotspur.

16. River Plate (Arg) (7) – Dropped nine notches without being eliminated from the Champions League, which I suppose is sort of notable in its own right? What was River’s reason for falling? A pair of losses. Lost the away leg of its Copa LIbertadores Round of Sixteen matchup with fellow Argentine team San Lorenzo. To follow that up, River fell to Boca Juniors 0-1 yesterday to fall down the table of the Argentine Clausura. This week, River Plate gets another shot at San Lorenzo in CL action and hosts Independiente in domestic action.

17. Sporting CP (Por) (18) – As it attempts to hold on to second position in the bwin Liga, Sporting CP defeated Paco Ferreira 1-0 this weekend. Will try to clinch that position this weekend when they host Boavista.

18. PSV Eindhoven (Ned) (19) – Good luck in the Champions League.

19. AC Milan (Ita) (NR) – Defeated cross-town rivals Internazionale 2-1 to move into Serie A’s final Champions League spot. Travel to Naples this weekend as they try to hold on to that spot against Napoli.

20. Estudiantes (Arg) (11) – Much like River Plate, Estudinates lost in its away match in the Copa Libertadores, falling to LDU Quito 0-2, and then lost 1-2 to Argentinos Juniors in domestic action. Presumably, Estudiantes will have an easier time at home for the return match with LDU, but this weekend will be tougher when they host Boca Juniors.

21. San Lorenzo (Arg) (NR) – Moved into the top of the Argentine Clausura table this weekend after defeating River Plate 2-1 in Copa Libertadores action. Face River Plate in the away match on Thursday and then attempt to defend their domestic lead this weekend when they host Independiente.

22. Ajax (Ned) (22) – Defeated Heerenveen 2-1 in the first leg of their playoff for the final Eredivisie Champions League spot. Ajax hosts Heerenveen in the return match later today and their later schedule will depend upon the results of that match.

23. Cruzeiro (Bra) (21) – Lost in Argentina this weekend, falling 1-2 to Boca Juniors in Copa Libertadores action. The return leg is Wednesday. On Sunday, Cruzeiro hits the road to play Vitoria as it opens its Brasileiro League season.

24. Bordeaux (Fra) (23) – Defeated Marseille 2-1 to move two points closer to Lyon and to move Marseille back behind Nancy Lorraine for the final Ligue Un Champions League position. As they try to reel Lyon in, Bordeaux host Sochaux on Saturday.

25. Everton (Eng) (25) – Fell to Arsenal 0-1 in London this weekend, but held on to their fifth-place position in the Premiership and held on to the final spot in the weekly rankings. Finish off their season this weekend when they host Newcastle United.

Bubbling Under (Alphabetically): Atletico de Madrid (Esp), Benfica (Por), Boca Juniors (Arg), Celtic (Sco), Flamengo (Bra).

Numbers Forty to Eighty: (40) Sevilla (Esp), (50) Vitoria Guimaraes (Por), (60) Independiente (Arg), (70) Bayer Leverkusen (Ger), (80) Nacional (Uru).

Matches Between Top 25 Teams This Week:
7 May – (12) Barcelona at (5) Real Madrid
8 May – (21) San Lorenzo at (16) River Plate (Copa Libertadores)