Champions League, Wigan, Fabregas

Champions League is back on the agenda for tonight with 3 British clubs in this half of the draw still in the mixer right now. 3 could soon become 1 though with both Rangers and surprisingly Liverpool teetering on the edge of going out. Liverpool's group (E) has Lyon already through and the other spot will be filled by either Liverpool or more likely Fiorentina. If the Italians beat Lyon at home tonight then it's all over for Rafa regardless of what they do. If they lose and Liverpool win (and Liverpool should win, their game in Debrecen is against a team who have lost all 4 games so far) then Liverpool will have things back in their hands when they play Fiorentina at Anfield in 'matchday 6' where they'd need to beat the Itai's. A draw in Florence tonight though would make things even stickier. Providing Liverpool beat Debrecen and Fiorentina then they would be level with Fior and so things would go down to the head to head - Fior beat Liverpool 2-0 in the return game so it would have to be some night at Anfield to see Liverpool squeak through. The bottom line here is that Rafa's team have got themselves into one motherfuck of a position and if they somehow do get out of this, they'll be very very jammy. The home defeat to Lyon was a killer, not holding on for the win in France was costly too, and even the game they did win was a dire 1-0 over tonight's opponents from Hungary. Personally I think Fiorentina will beat Lyon tonight and we'll be done with it.

Rangers' group (G) is so poor (with the exception of Sevilla who are already through as winners) that with 2 points with 2 games to go Rangers are still well in the mix to get to the knockout stage. A win at home to Stuttgart tonight is a must and they have to hope that Sevilla don't lose to Unirea, then things go down to the last game. Quite remarkable really, Rangers are a side who are normally pretty strong at home in Europe and have already been battered by Sevilla and Unirea at Ibrox. I've done the maths and it's possible that if Rangers win tonight and results go right they might only need a draw in Seville in the last game, and would therefore qualify with a ridiculous 6 points! Realistically they've gotta be going for 2 wins, which is why there are murmurings that Kris Boyd will be given a rare start in Europe tonight, I assume to go 442 and go for the Germans. There is still that 3rd place to play for of course which still bizarrely gets you into the Europa League, somewhere that Rangers might be able to punch their weight.

Arsenal in group H need just a point tonight at home to Liege to secure qualification and a win would definitely give them top spot, but we might get that anyway if results work out. Arsenal have looked ok in qualifying, beating AZ and Olympiakos at home but a sloppy last minute set piece (set piece? Arsenal? No, I don't believe you) in Holland and a mental opening 10 mins in Belgium (2-0 down, came back to do 'em 3-2) are still reminders of Arsenals frailties. I don't expect the same problems to feature tonight despite the fact I think the boss will rotate a little with Chelsea in mind. Eboue will do is typical right back job to rest Sagna's legs, Gallas may drop out, Vela might get a run, maybe even someone like Merida. The other 3 teams still have a chance of getting through so I expect Liege to push us hard but in the end at home, in front of your fans, gotta be home win.

Group F is probably the most fascinating of the lot with Inter, Kazan (congratulations, they were crowned Russian champions again on the weekend), Barca and Kiev on 6,5,5,4 points respectively. The big game is at the San Siro of course, and if either side lose AND there is a winner in the other game then one of the big boys will be in some serious danger. Too many permutations here for me to comment further, just sit back and watch the fireworks.

The Wigan players have had something to say following their 9-1 thrashing at Tottenham on Sunday, they're going to refund the tickets of all the supporters who went to the game. While this might only be about 15 tickets (rugby town) it is a mighty admirable thing to offer and I applaud the Wigan players for doing so. It's all well and good saying that they'll look at themselves, watch the tape and work on X,Y,Z blah blah blah, but this is a real genuine way of saying sorry and I think it's a good move. At home to Sunderland next boys, get stuck into 'em.

Finally Cesc Fabregas was the nominated player to take part in the Champions League press conference for Arsenal yesterday, and the headlines coming out are 'gooner for life' etc. That's not the case though is it? I think all Arsenal fans love Cesc, love him like our son/brother/dad (delete as appropriate) and want him to be here forever, doing his little shimmy pass, his emotional celebrations and just being Cescy. But it's inevitable that he will go back to Spain, one day. The task for the manager and the club is to make that 'one day' in 7/8/10 years, not 2 or 3. He's a catalan boy so back to Barca would seem logical but I've also seen quotes saying his family would bless his move to Madrid if it came along, and make no mistake that over the next few summers there will be intense pressure from both clubs. If Madrid have 80mill to spend on Ronaldo, 50 of Kaka, 40 on Benzema then it's safe to say there is money there, and Barca aren't exactlty poor neither. It's gotta be on the pitch that makes the difference, winning the league and/or Champions League in the next year or 2 would play a big part in keep our captain around for a very long time. Take her easy.