What?? They fought over THAT??!!

Listen to this. Two team mates from Liverpool FC recently had a fight over....karaoke! Apparently, what happened was that Welshman Craig Bellamy took exception to Norway's John Arne Riise's refusal to participate in a karaoke session, & so attacked Riise with a golf club. Riise, understandably, was irritated by this, so they had a scuffle & had to be pulled apart by team mates. All this took place one nite, while the Liverpool FC players were on training camp. They had quite a bit of alchohol after dinner, & perhaps Bellamy's behaviour may have been influenced by drunkenness. But then again, Bellamy is a fiery & controversial character - he's had a history of trouble at previous football clubs & also allegedly gets into fights at nightclubs. Needless to say, the management at Liverpool FC are not impressed with the karaoke dispute, & probably feel that the club may have lost some face over this incident.

As a karaoke & football nut, I had to laugh when I heard about the incident. I've never heard this kind of thing happen before, & I certainly can't imagine myself behaving like that if a friend refuses to sing at karaoke!

And oh, the UEFA Champions League is now in the knockout stage. The round of 16 matches are as follows:

Glasgow Celtic (Scotland) v AC Milan (Italy)
PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) v Arsenal (England)
Lille (France) v Manchester United (England)
Real Madrid (Spain) v Bayern Munich (Germany)
AS Roma (Italy) v Lyon (France)
Barcelona (Spain) v Liverpool (England)
Porto (Portugal) v Chelsea (England)
Internazionale Milan (Italy) v Valencia (Spain)

The ties are played on home & away basis, over 2 legs. The teams named first play the first leg at home. The first leg will be played tomorrow morning & Thursday morning.

Here's my forecast for the two legs (not just the outcome of this week's first leg):

Celtic v Milan:

Milan has the greater European pedigree & that alone makes them favourites against Celtic. Celtic will provide stiff resistance, but over the 2 legs, you have to fancy the Italian side. Milan are not having the best season domestically in Italy, but their troubles should not affect them too much in Europe. Celtic's form away from home is mediocre, & so they must try to get a good result at home to take to Italy for the second leg. Verdict - Milan to go through.

PSV Eindhoven v Arsenal:

For a Dutch side, PSV are quite tight defensively. But I don't think that would be enough against Arsenal. Expect the Londoners to prevail over the 2 legs. Arsenal have played PSV a few times over the last few years & have not lost. I can't see that changing anytime soon. Arsene Wenger has done well to introduce the Arsenal youngsters in various matches over the last few months. The ties against PSV will show how far the Arsenal youngsters have progressed. Verdict - Arsenal to overcome PSV, although no one will find PSV to be pushovers (they are not top of the Dutch league for nothing).

Lille v Manchester United:

Lille beat Manchester United at the Stade de France during the group stage of last season's competiton, a result which contributed to United's premature demise last season. United, strong favourites for this tie, will not want a repeat of that embarassment. They will want revenge on Lille & I think they will get it. Young Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo is one to watch. Verdict - Manchester United to progress.

Real Madrid v Bayern Munich:

These 2 European giants must have won more than a dozen European cups between them. Both sides have met many many times in this competiton, in the past. Despite their reputation, however, both sides enter this tie not exactly in great shape. Real are inconsistent in the Spanish league, & their recent performances have not impressed their fans. Bayern are floundering in fourth place in the German Bundesliga, which is disappointing for their high standards. Both have a chance to put aside their domestic woes aside. This one's tough to predict. I somehow think Bayern will go through - I hear Real will have a couple of defensive players missing the first leg through injuries. Small things like that can decide European ties. Verdict - Bayern Munich, but I can easily be wrong, as no one can absolutely discount Real Madrid.

AS Roma v Lyon:

This is one of the toughest ties to call - probably only Inter v Valencia will be harder to predict (see below). One of Italy's best sides against France's strongest club. Each side have strong claims to favouritism. Roma are very strong at home. Lyon are not bad playing away from home, & they have managed to draw 1-1 at Real Madrid's home ground. OK, maybe currently Real are not the fearsome side of old. But that result shows that Lyon will not be intimidated by their opponent's reputation or by playing in front of a huge home crowd, so I don't think playing in front of the fanatical Roma fans will faze them too much. Both have strong sides & good squads, but Lyon's squad looks more cohesive compared to Roma's as the Lyon players have played together more & so would be more familiar with each other's play. Verdict - Lyon to progress, over two very tough matches. Nevertheless, I won't be surprised at all if Roma emerge victorious.

Barcelona v Liverpool:

Another glamour tie. In one corner, you have Barcelona, full of entertaining, passing, attacking football which I dearly love. In the other corner, you have Liverpool FC, the club which has won more European Cups than any other British clubs. These 2 sides won the last 2 Champions League - Liverpool in 2005, when they sensationally came back from 3 goals down to draw Milan 3-3, & then won the penalty shootout; Barcelona in 2006 when they beat Arsenal in another closely fought final. Barcelona FC have one of the most recognised footballers on the planet - the great Brazilian, Ronaldinho. But the club is more than just him - they have other stars as well. Liverpool will look to midfielder Steven Gerrard for inspiration. Which of these 2 will lead their team past this tie? I think it will be Barcelona. It's a great shame both these sides have to meet to early - whoever wins can go very far in the competition, whoever loses can say they are unlucky to be drawn against such a strong opponent at this stage. Verdict - Barcelona over 2 intriguing legs.

Porto v Chelsea:

There's something about this competiton, where a player or coach have a good chance to get to face a club that he has played for or coached in the past. From memory, it happens every season & now it's happened again - Chelsea's Jose Mourinho faces his old club Porto. Mourinho won this competition with Porto in 2004, just before joining Chelsea whom he led to 2 consecutive English Premier League titles. He has yet to win the Champions League it with Chelsea, & to do so, he must get past his old club. While Porto will not be pushovers, Chelsea have the bigger & better squad, & should progress. Verdict: Chelsea to be too strong for Porto.

Internazionale v Valencia:

Of all the ties, this is the toughest to call. Punters should hedge their bets. An all-Mediterranean clash, with both sides in great domestic form. Inter can't seem to do anything wrong this season in the Italian league - they are well ahead in Serie A, still have not lost a league match this season & surely no one can stop them from winning the league. Valencia are fresh from beating Barcelona over the weekend & in doing so, put themselves very much back in the Spanish title hunt. Who to tip in this tie? Hmmm, u might just as well flip a coin & decide. It could be that close. Looking closely, Inter's squad is probably a tad stronger, & perhaps they will be the one to go through. Verdict: Inter to just edge out Valencia over two very very closely fought matches. I don't think anyone will be entirely surprised if the tie's decided by penalty shootout.