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  The new Champions League season is approaching and brings with it record Premier League representation, a revolutionary playing system, and a final in Budapest, Hungary. English clubs have secured a record six places in the world's most prestigious club competition thanks to their dominance in European competitions. English Invasion of the Champions League English football is celebrating historic success - for the first time in history, six representatives will compete in the Champions League. The qualified clubs are: Manchester City (Premier League champions) Arsenal (2nd place in Premier League) Liverpool (3rd place in Premier League) Chelsea (4th place in Premier League) Newcastle (5th place in Premier League) Tottenham (Europa League winners) England secured the sixth spot through the so-called "European Performance Spot" - a bonus place for the league with the best results in European competitions. The Premier League will thus comprise almost one-...

  Cologne will become the center of the handball world this weekend. The prestigious TruckScout24 EHF FINAL4 2025 will welcome the four best European clubs to the legendary LANXESS Arena in a battle for the Machineseeker EHF Champions League title. Defending champions FC Barcelona stand on the brink of achieving their fourth triumph in five years. The elite tournament offers two days of handball extravaganza featuring absolute European elite. Barcelona will face the challenge of German teams SC Magdeburg and Füchse Berlin alongside French HBC Nantes in a contest where every pass could decide the fate of the season. Schedule of the Premier Tournament Saturday, June 14 kicks off with semifinal battles. At 3:00 PM, Füchse Berlin clash with HBC Nantes in a German-French battle for the final. In the evening duel from 6:00 PM, defending champions Barcelona face SC Magdeburg in a prestigious encounter with the German champions. Sunday, June 15 brings the tournament conclusion with ...

  May 25, 2025   Fulham - Manchester City   Craven Cottage, London On Sunday, May 25, 2025, an important match between Fulham and Manchester City at Craven Cottage will conclude matchday 38 of the Premier League. While the home side Fulham will want to end the season with a positive result, for the Citizens it will be a crucial duel in the battle for Champions League qualification. Fulham are winless in 19 Premier League meetings with Man City (D3 L16), losing the last 14 in a row. Their last victory was in April 2009 at the Etihad Stadium under Roy Hodgson. Manchester City have won each of their last 17 meetings with Fulham in all competitions, the longest winning run one English league side has had against another in history. Fulham have won just one of their 16 Premier League home games against Man City (D5 L10), beating them 2-1 in November 2005 under Chris Coleman. Fulham beat Luton 4-2 on the final day last season, having failed to win their last league game i...

  May 31, 2025 Inter Milan - Paris Saint-Germain 2025 UEFA Champions League Final, Istanbul, Turkey Ahead of Saturday's culmination of the European club season, let's look at the key statistical indicators of players from both Champions League finalists - Inter Milan and Paris Saint-Germain. The statistical data reveals the strengths of both teams and suggests where the decisive factors of the final clash may lie. Inter Milan: Offensive Power and Defensive Stability Lautaro Martínez has become Inter's offensive leader with nine goals in this Champions League season, which is jointly the highest number of goals by an Inter player in a single European campaign. In his last seven Champions League matches, he has scored eight goals and recorded 13 shots on target (2.2 per 90 minutes). The Argentine striker thus confirms his scoring form ahead of the key duel. Yann Sommer is the leading goalkeeper in Opta points rating in this Champions League season with 276.6 points. ...

  May 10, 2025   Holstein Kiel - SC Freiburg   Holstein-Stadion, Kiel, Germany On Saturday, May 10, 2025, Bundesliga newcomer Holstein Kiel will face SC Freiburg in the 33rd round of the German top flight. While the home team is fighting for survival in the highest division, the visitors from Freiburg are in a sensational fourth place in the table and battling for participation in the Champions League. SC Freiburg and Holstein Kiel have only previously met twice in professional football. The "Storks," as the Kiel team is nicknamed, won 2-1 at home in the second round of the 2018/19 DFB-Pokal, while Freiburg secured a 3-2 home victory earlier this season. SC Freiburg have only won one of their last seven Bundesliga games away at league debutants (2 draws, 4 losses): 2-1 at Greuther Fürth in May 2013. They have lost each of their last three such fixtures, scoring two goals and conceding nine. Their most recent trip to a top-flight debutant saw them lose 3-2 in Heidenhei...

  May 7, 2025 Paris Saint-Germain - Arsenal Parc des Princes, Paris, France Paris Saint-Germain will welcome London's Arsenal to their legendary Parc des Princes stadium on Wednesday, May 7, 2025, for the second leg of the Champions League semifinal. The French champions will be defending a 1-0 advantage from the first match, in which Ousmane Dembélé scored an early goal in the 4th minute to secure an important advantage before the home return leg. The first match in London clearly showed the difference in current form between the two teams. While PSG under Luis Enrique's guidance has risen to a new level and become the scourge of English clubs, Arsenal, playing their first Champions League semifinal since 2009, started nervously and was pushed back by their opponent in the opening phase of the match. In the return leg, several players will have key roles, and their individual statistics indicate how important they will be for their teams. PSG midfielder João Neves averag...

  May 6, 2025 Giuseppe Meazza, Milan, Italy The legendary Giuseppe Meazza stadium in Milan is preparing for a magnificent football evening. On Tuesday, May 6, 2025, Inter Milan will welcome FC Barcelona on their home ground in the second leg of the Champions League semifinal. After a dramatic first match that ended in a 3-3 draw, progression to the final remains wide open, and both European giants have a chance to reach the coveted final in London. Inter Milan enters the second leg with a fresh dose of confidence. After an uncomfortable series of five matches without a win, Simone Inzaghi's team managed to defeat Verona 1-0 over the weekend, keeping them in the race for the Italian title, though they still trail league leaders Napoli by three points. The win wasn't spectacular – decided by a penalty in the ninth minute – but it represents an important mental boost for the team. In the first semifinal match at Camp Nou, Inter twice held the lead (2-0 and 3-2), but ultimatel...

  April 26, 2025 Eintracht Frankfurt - RB Leipzig Saturday's Bundesliga clash offers a meeting between third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt and a revitalized RB Leipzig. While the "Eagles" can rely on their home invincibility against the "Red Bulls," the visitors have significantly improved under their new coach. Eintracht Frankfurt have lost both of their competitive meetings against RB Leipzig this season (3-0 away in the DFB-Pokal and 2-1 away in the Bundesliga). However, Eintracht remains unbeaten at home against Leipzig (4 wins, 5 draws). Leipzig haven't faced any other opponent away from home as often in professional football without ever winning. RB Leipzig's tally of 49 points from 30 matches represents their second-worst campaign in the Bundesliga – they have only ever been worse off at this stage in 2017/18 (47 points), the only season in which they have ever missed out on qualifying for the Champions League (finished 6th). Under new coach Zso...

  Internazionale v Bayern Munich (aggregate score: 2-1) April 16, 2025 The iconic San Siro stadium prepares to host a nail-biting conclusion to one of the Champions League's most intriguing quarter-final ties. Internazionale, carrying a slender 2-1 advantage from their historic victory at the Allianz Arena, face a Bayern Munich side that has never lost at this venue in European competition. The head-to-head record between these European giants is perfectly balanced in recent years. The last six meetings between Internazionale and Bayern Munich in the Champions League have seen both sides win three times each, though home advantage has rarely been decisive. Only one of those six victories was achieved by the home team (Bayern winning 2-0 at the Allianz Arena in November 2022). History strongly favors the visitors when it comes to matches at the San Siro. Bayern Munich have won all four of their away games against Internazionale in European competition, including all three in the...

  Real Madrid v Arsenal (aggregate score: 0-3) April 16, 2025 The Santiago Bernabéu, the cathedral of football miracles, prepares for what could be one of the most memorable European nights in its storied history. Real Madrid, the 14-time European champions, find themselves in unfamiliar territory - needing to overturn a three-goal deficit against an Arsenal side that has never conceded a goal to the Spanish giants in European competition. The shocking 3-0 defeat at the Emirates Stadium has left Carlo Ancelotti's men with a mountain to climb. History shows just how difficult their task is - Real Madrid have lost the first leg of a Champions League knockout tie by 3+ goals on five previous occasions, and were eliminated in three of the four previous instances. The sole exception came nearly 50 years ago against Derby County in 1975-76, when they overturned a 1-4 first-leg defeat to win 6-5 on aggregate. "The Bernabéu has seen many magical nights, but we need something spec...

  Borussia Dortmund v Barcelona (aggregate score: 0-4) April 15, 2025 History could be written tonight under the floodlights of the legendary Signal Iduna Park. The Yellow and Black wall of Borussia Dortmund fans will witness an attempt at something that has succeeded only once in 160 previous cases - overturning a four-goal deficit from the first leg. Paradoxically, tonight's opponent, Barcelona, is the only team that has achieved such a comeback - in 2017 against PSG, winning 6-1 after losing 0-4. Can Dortmund return the favor to the Catalans? The numbers don't bode well for Borussia. They have historically never managed to defeat Barcelona in European competitions. In six mutual matches, they have only two draws and four losses. If they don't win today, they will equal their longest winless streak against a single opponent in Europe - seven matches against Scottish Rangers between 1966 and 1999. "We believe in the impossible," Borussia captain Marco Reus ra...

    Aston Villa v Paris SG   April 15, 2025 The setting of the ancient Villa Park trembles with anticipation. The air in Birmingham is charged with an electrifying mixture of hope and nervousness. Could one of the greatest comebacks in Champions League history be born here tonight? Aston Villa faces a monumental task – erasing a two-goal deficit against French giants Paris Saint-Germain and fighting their way to a place in the semi-finals of the world's most prestigious club competition. History knows many stories of the impossible becoming reality. And PSG is precisely the team that can unexpectedly fail even from the most promising positions. Of the seven previous occasions when they won the first leg by two or more goals, they were eliminated three times! Should they fail to advance this time as well, they would become the absolute record holders in the number of eliminations after gaining a two-goal advantage in the first match. Villa Park will breathe as one...

  Barcelona v Borussia Dortmund April 9th, 2025 The second Wednesday quarter-final clash of the Champions League will offer a battle between the Catalan giant and last season's German finalist. Borussia Dortmund has never managed to defeat FC Barcelona in history - in five mutual duels, the yellow and blacks have earned only two draws and lost three times, including a 2-3 defeat in the group stage of the current season. Barcelona has a longer unbeaten streak only against Lyon (8 matches), Napoli, and Werder Bremen (both 6 matches). For Dortmund, Barcelona is not the only Spanish club against which they struggle long-term. Only against two opponents have they recorded a longer series without victory than against Barcelona (5 matches) - against Real Madrid (6, in 2024) and against Rangers (7, in 1999). A true nightmare for Borussia stands on the home bench. Coach Hansi Flick, during his tenure at Bayern Munich and now at Barcelona, has won all six mutual matches against BVB, whi...

  Paris SG v Aston Villa April 9th, 2025 Parc des Princes will witness the historically first encounter between Paris Saint-Germain and Aston Villa. This will be only the second Champions League quarter-final between French and English teams in the last eight seasons, after the match between Manchester City and Lyon in the single match of the 2019-20 season (1:3). PSG eliminated Liverpool in the round of 16 on their way to the quarter-finals, breaking a streak of three consecutive Champions League eliminations against English opponents (against Manchester City in the 2015-16 and 2020-21 seasons and against Manchester United in the 2018-19 season). Aston Villa must deal with a historical away curse against French opponents. In five matches on French soil so far, the "Villans" have not recorded a single victory (2 draws, 3 losses), which is the most away matches without a win against teams from one country. The last two matches, both under coach Unai Emery, ended in defeat...

  Bayern Munich v Internazionale April 8th, 2025 The tenth mutual encounter between these giant clubs will offer a battle of opposites - phenomenal attack against an almost impenetrable defense. The Bavarian side has been more successful in five of the previous nine duels, including the last meeting in the Champions League, when they won both home and away 2-0 in the 2022-23 group stage. However, history shows an interesting paradox. Although Inter has won only two of seven matches against Bayern in the Champions League (1 draw, 4 losses), whenever both teams met in the knockout phase, the Italian club advanced. This happened in the 2009-10 final (2-0) and in the 2010-11 round of 16, when Inter progressed thanks to the away goals rule (3-3 aggregate score). Inter is a true nightmare for Bayern in the knockout phase. Only Real Madrid (seven times) has eliminated the Bavarian side from the Champions League more often than the Nerazzurri (twice), who are one of only five teams to...

  Arsenal v Real Madrid April 8th, 2025 After almost two decades, the giants of European football meet again. Arsenal and Real Madrid last faced each other in the 2005/06 season when they met in the Champions League round of 16. That encounter ended with a surprising progression of the London side, which won 1-0 in Madrid and maintained a goalless draw at home. They thus became one of only two English teams (along with Liverpool) that remained undefeated in their first three duels with Real in European competitions. However, Real Madrid has since gained rich experience with English clubs. Since the 2017/18 season, the White Ballet has played an incredible 22 matches against Premier League teams in the knockout phase of the Champions League (11 wins, 5 draws, 6 losses), which is 10 more than any other team has against sides from one specific country. The reigning champions are true specialists in first-leg knockout matches. In the last eight cases, they haven't lost the opening...