SOCCER
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
After the first two games last week it looks as though it will be an all German Final but I would be surprised if there wasn't an upset somewhere.
In tonight's semi-final we have Dortmund heading to Madrid to defend a 4-1 lead from the first leg. That away goal could be massive. Dortmund have been having a fantastic year but nobody would rule out the possibility of Real Madrid winning 3-0 against anyone. Whilst it's unlikely that Dortmund will collapse, if Cristiano Ronaldo arrives in the right mood, he could do enough damage to overturn the deficit.
Similarly, in the other tie, Bayern Munich look to have one foot in the Final but if there's one place in the world I'd not want to be defending a four goal lead it would be the Camp Nou. Barcelona on their day are simply irresistible. Xavi, Iniesta and Messi are among the best players in the world and when things click for them there is no limits to what they are capable of. I seem to remember a few weeks back that the obituaries were being written after Barcelona's 2-0 defeat to AC Milan. On that occasion they turned it around with a 4-0 win. Obviously, Bayern are a better side than Milan but Barcelona also have extra gears to go through and I certainly wouldn't rule them out.
Without doubt it looks likely that Dortmund and Bayern will meet at Wembley but they would be very wise not to make any travel arrangements just yet as funny things can happen in the Champions League and with the two best players in the world trying to spoil their plans, there will most likely be a sting in the tail somewhere along the line.
QUIZ
With the Champions League semi-finals taking place this week it seems to be a good time to have a Champions League quiz. Either comment on this with answers or respond on Twitter, @gjsportsblog.
1. The last Final to take place at Wembley was between Barcelona and Manchester United but who were the beaten semi-finalists?
2. Who are the top three goalscorers in Champions League/European Cup history?
3. Lionel Messi has finished as top goal scorer in the Champions League/European four times. Which other striker has won the title four times?
4. Five different English clubs have won the Champions League/European Cup but how many titles do they have between them?
5. Which European city has the most combined wins?
AMERICAN FOOTBALL
NFL
The big story in the NFL this week was the 2013 Draft in New York. It wasn't a great draft for the skill positions with just one quarterback and no running backs being selected in the first round. Instead there were a huge eighteen line men drafted including the first seven picks overall.
Eric Fisher an OT from Central Michigan went to the Kansas City Chiefs with the first pick of the draft. In other high profile picks many expected Geno Smith of West Virginia to be the first quarterback drafted but the Buffalo Bills surprised everyone by picking EJ Manuel of Florida State with the 16th pick. Geno Smith ended up dropping out of the first round completely before being selected by the New York Jets with the 39th pick.
With the 38th pick the San Diego Chargers made a very clever move in my opinion by selecting Notre Dame's, Manti Te'o. I was very disappointed that the Eagles passed on him with the 35th pick. Te'o has obviously suffered because of his off the field issues and a disappointing display in the BCS Championship game against Alabama but if the draft had took place at the start of December he would have been a high first rounder. He won't be the first or last player to play badly against Alabama and whilst the fake girlfriend story is possibly one of the most bizarre I have ever read these things don't tend to stick around too long in sports. Sure you will be hot news and everyone will be talking about you for a while but this story has ESPN 30 for 30 series written all over it when Manti wins the Defensive Rookie of the Year award next season.
Another player who fell a lot lower in the draft than he maybe should have is USC quarterback, Matt Barkley who went to the Philadelphia Eagles as the first pick of the fourth round (98th overall). Barkley has talent and was listed as one of the favourites for last years Heisman Trophy but he and USC had a disappointing year. In his first three years he was showing signs of improvement every year and if he can adjust to the NFL then the Eagles could have got themselves an excellent talent.
Meanwhile, in other NFL news, the New York Jets have released Tim Tebow. Once the Jets drafted Geno Smith it became clear that they would have to move someone on and it's not really a surprise that Tebow pulled the short straw. My own thoughts on Tebow are that he gets quite a tough time from NFL fans and commentators. His throwing action isn't perfect but in today's NFL were there is so much emphasis on the mobility of quarterbacks I can't understand why nobody can find a use for him. The Jets looked like a perfect fit to me. They were struggling at receiver and with Mark Sanchez having such a bad season, Tebow would have been a perfect fit to give them something different. Rex Ryan loves confusing offenses with different defensive schemes so I am surprised he didn't try to run more schemes with Tebow confusing defenses. At time of writing there seems to be a lot of teams linked with Tebow but no concrete offers. Hopefully, his career will continue in the NFL as while he's not perfect, I think he still has a lot to offer the league.
ICE HOCKEY
NHL
It didn't look likely last week but the Detroit Red Wings have kept "the streak" alive. The Wings finished the regular season with four consecutive wins and it was enough to secure the Western Conference's seventh seed and extend their playoff streak to 22 seasons in a row.
The Red Wings will obviously be delighted to extend the streak but they will be even happier to secure the seventh seed and therefore avoid a first round match up with the Chicago Blackhawks. I don't say that to disrespect the Anaheim Ducks as they have done well to secure the second seed but the fact is the Red Wings have a better record against them than they do against the Blackhawks. In their seven games against the two the Red Wings have picked up two wins and a defeat against Anaheim compared to four defeats against Chicago. Anaheim will still be expected to progress but in playoff hockey anything can happen.
In other playoff ties are:
WEST
Chicago Blackhawks v Minnesota Wild
Vancouver Canucks v San Jose Sharks
St Louis Blues v LA Kings
EAST
Pittsburgh Penguins v New York Islanders
Montreal Canadiens v Ottawa Senators
Washington Capitals v New York Rangers
Boston Bruins v Toronto Maple Leafs
The regular season records would suggest that the Blackhawks and the Penguins are the favourites for the Stanley Cup but no number one seed has won it since the 2007-08 Red Wings so this years title is still very much up for grabs.
BASKETBALL
NBA
I couldn't possibly do this edition of the Sportzine without giving the Chicago Bulls a mention. I've been watching basketball for almost twenty years now and Saturday nights game against the Brooklyn Nets was as entertaining as it gets.
The Bulls started well and it looked like they were heading towards a comfortable win in the first half but the Nets finished the first half strongly and then stepped things up a gear in the second half. With three minutes to go the Nets looked to have tied the series as they led by fourteen. However, Nate Robinson and the Bulls had other ideas and they rallied superbly to take the game to overtime.
Robinson's fourth quarter performance was outstanding and he single handedly dragged the Bulls back into the game. He scored 23 points in the fourth quarter which is just one point less than Michael Jordan's franchise record. He continued to make things on offence until he was eventually fouled out of the game in the second overtime.
Credit to the Nets, once they gave away the fourteen point lead I expected them to collapse but they bounced back and held their nerve well to come from behind in the first two overtimes to keep themselves alive. Eventually the Bulls secured a memorable win when they left the Nets with too much to do in the third overtime, running out 142-134 winners to take a 3-1 lead in the series.
Since then the series has returned to Brooklyn were the Nets have forced a game six after a comfortable, 110-91 win.
In the other games, Miami and San Antonio have swept the Bucks and the Lakers to secure their passage to the next round. New York, Golden State and Oklahoma City are just one game away from progression, holding 3-1 leads. The two series that look to be heading to the wire are Indiana v Atlanta and Memphis v LA Clippers. Both are locked at 2-2 although if the games go with home court advantage it will be Indiana and LA who progress.
There is much basketball still be be played but I still haven't saw anything that makes me believe anyone can stop the Heat repeating as NBA champions.
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