CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: FENERBAHÇE (this article is available in Spanish)

In this article we start our analysis of the different games in the first knockout round of the Champions League. Today we will focus on Sevilla FC´s rival, a Turkish team, Fenerbahçe Istambul. The truth is that it presents a very open eliminatory without-under our point of view, a clear favourite, as the Istanbul´s team has a very solid block with good individualities in all the lines.
Fenerbahçe is doing a good season until this moment, sine it only lost 3 official games-2 in the Turkish league and the other in the Champions league, in San Siro, against Inter-,being really a dangerous team when it plays supported by its brave fans of the Sükrü Saracoglu Stadium, which is a real “pressure cooker” –it is normal when you are in a Turkish stadium, as Galatasaray's Ali Sami Yen or Inönü of Besiktas, to give some examples-, and in this stadium is where we think that the eliminatory can be decided, because if Sevilla FC does not get a good result in its away game, it will have many difficulties in order to mend the elimantory in its Sanchez Pizjuán´s stadium, as the turkish team has a good defensive line and with players like Alex or Deivid, Fenerbaçhe can be very dangerous.

As we have said, Zico, the brazilian coach of Fenerbahçe,-he uses a 4-4-2 or 4-5-1 system- has a lot of players with a good level in all lines, as the goalkeeper Volkan Demirel- he is the habitual goalkeeper of the Turkish National teams-, who offers full guarantees, since he is a very sober and secure goalkeeper.Moreover, he is also helped by a very experienced defensive line, formed by players like the Uruguayan central defender Diego Lugano, which is accompanied by the Brazilian Central defender Edu Dracena-he is a player of verde-amarela team-.The owner of the right back is Gókan Gönül, who is a player of the Turkish national team-signed this season for 1.5 million euros from Genclerbirligi- and of course, we must mention a classic of the international football during the last decade, Roberto Carlos, who is playing in a good level, although we must remember that he is 34 year´s old and of course he can not run as he was accustomed to do.
In the bench, there are also players with experience and forcefulness as the versatile Deniz Baris, who has played more than 20 games with Turkish national team and can occupy any defensive position, or Önder Turaci- he is an interesting under 21 Belgian right back- or the Brazilian nationalized Turkish, Gökcek Vederson, which is the responsible to assist Roberto Carlos.

Midfielders: The Turkish team has a mixture of containment and hard players with other imaginative players with a high quality. In the first style, we should point out the Brazilian, nationalized Turkish, Mehmet Aurelio-which we have spoken more than once, as a possible Valencia CF ´S new player-, who never loses his position and he is a great destroyer of the rival game. For this mission, Mehmet will have a big assistant, since Fenerbahhçe has signed a very good defensive midfielder, the Chilean Claudio Maldonado. Both will be an excellent couple and the rivals will have many difficulties in order to overcome these two good defensive midfielders, especially if Zico adds another midfielder like Selcuk Sahin – player of the Turkish National team-, who is a tough player- this season, he has already seen 6 yellow cards in 13 league´s games-, or portentous Stephen Appian, who may not play against Sevilla, as he is injured for the rest of season.

But the key player of the team is another Brazilian, Alex, who plays as offensive midfielder. He is an excellent, marvellous player,sice he is very technical, with a great vision of the game and with a tremendous punch- he has scored more than 60 goals in 3 and a half seasons-. Therefore, Sevilla must defend with great concentration, trying not to make mistakes on the edge of the area, because it is clear the Ottoman danger with the free-kicks, either with the power of Roberto Carlos or with the quality of Alex, who ends his contract with Fenerbaçhe in 2009, so it is possible that we can see an Alex´s transfer during next summer, although he has the problem of his age, since he is 30 year´s old, but If I have a team, I will sign this player-48 games with Brazilian National team- sure, because he is a phenomenon with the ball in his left feet. Moreover, we should mention Ali Bilgin-a right midfielder- and Ugur Boral –player of the Turkish national team international, Kemal Aslan- an offensive midfielder- and the left offensive midfielder, Gürhan Gürsoy

Finally, we will refer to the forwards of the team, being the main danger the Turkish national team´s player Semit Sentürk, who is a strong striker with a good “scorer sense of smell”. He is always in the right place and he shots with both legs or with his head. Alongside Sentürk, Sevilla´s defenders must be careful with the mobility of the Brazilian Deivid de Souza, who is a very skillful striker, and this year, he is scoring a number worthy of goals, remembering his Brazilian period- he scored 21 goals with Santos and 15 golas in 19 games with Cruzeiro-. This is a player with a lot of experience, because he played in the best Brazilian teams, in Girondins Bordeaux and Sporting Club of Portugal. These two good strikers have left in the bench a classical of the European football, Mateja Kezman,who is a good striker, but since he left Psv, he is unlucky, but anyway Sevilla´s defenders must pay attention if he is in the field, cause anytime he can score. The other strikers of Fenerbahçe are the young Colin Kazim-Richards (he was born in England, but he has Turkish nationality) and Ilhan Parlak, both under 21 players with Turkish national team. These 2 young strikers do not have many chances in Fenerbahçe and they usually play the last minutes of the games.

To Sump up,Fenerbahçe is a good team and we think that this round is 50-50 and the little details of Alex, Luis Fabiano, Kanoute, Jesus Navas or Deivid will decide which team will play the quarter final of the Champions League.
Cheers,
J&F