New Year Celebrations...

Well, the plans for a weekend getaway from the building turned out to be a dud...

The "series" of meetings at 1030 each night proved futile with NOwhere to go...

People had their "egos" coming in the way of celebrations...

and finally its the people themselves who suffered and made others suffer...

it was disheartning to see tears in a few eyes while there were gloomy faces all around..


lets pray, that people keep their "egos" aside the next time and come toghether as before towards celebrating the functions coming up....

Signing off on a sad note..

:(

but, "happy new year" to all.......

IPL - II gets underway...!!

Cricket's biggest and grandest contest, the Indian Premier League gets underway with the first match between Mumbai Indians and the Chennai Super Kings at 2pm Indian Standard Time....

Also, last year's winners, the Rajasthan Royals get ready to defend their title with their first match against the Bangalore royal challengers in the second match today...

The IPL -II promises to be exciting with a host of new signings by team looking forward to prove a point and one can also look forward to some raw talent stored in the arsenal of the teams...

Among the major signings are England's Kevin Peitersen (Bangalore Royal Challengers) , Fred Flintoff (Chennai Super Kings) , J Dumminy (Mumbai Indians) to name a few...

One can really look forward to some exciting cricket being played over the next 40 days with the previously hired players trying to justify their places in the respective sides while the new signings trying to prove their worth...

Man City 2-1 Hamburg (3-4).. Brave ManCity out of UEFA ...

Micah Richards missed a late chance as City tried to take the tie into extra-time

Manchester City won a pulsating Uefa Cup quarter-final second leg against Hamburg but crashed out of the competition 4-3 on aggregate.

Hamburg took an early lead when Paolo Guerrero beat Shay Given from 12 yards.

Elano equalised from the spot for City, while the Brazilian twice hit the woodwork with brilliant free-kicks.

Felipe Caicedo, who later missed from close range, put City in front with a neat finish before Richard Dunne was sent off as Hamburg held on.

City were dealt a blow before the game had even begun with the news that winger Shaun Wright-Phillips had failed a late fitness test on his ankle.

Needing two goals to advance, having lost the first leg 3-1, City started the game at a frantic pace and, roared on by ferocious support, almost scored an early goal through defender Micah Richards.

But having been played in by Elano, Richards lost his footing and his shot was comfortably gathered by keeper Frank Rost.

As City pressed forward they were vulnerable on the counter-attack and Hamburg made the task even harder for Mark Hughes' side with a 10th-minute goal.

Jonathan Pitroipa, who had begun the game well, found space on the right wing and his low cross was not dealt with by Dunne, the ball eventually finding its way to Guerrero who fired low past Given.

It meant that City now needed three goals just to force extra-time and they went some way to achieving that task with a 15th-minute equaliser.

It came from the penalty spot through Elano after his 20-yard effort had been handled by Piotr Trochowski. It looked a harsh decision with the Hamburg man knowing very little about the shot.

Trochowski then had two half-chances in quick succession, with Hamburg looking comfortable and composed on the ball.

City played with intensity and pace though, with Stephen Ireland and Caicedo having chances of their own, but the closest they came to taking the lead was on the stroke of half-time when Elano crashed a thunderous free-kick against the crossbar after Robinho had been fouled.

Five minutes after the restart, City reduced the aggregate deficit further with Caicedo making it 2-1 on the night.

The impressive Ireland provided the pass but Caicedo made the goal when he received the ball on the edge of the area and stepped inside his marker, showing neat footwork before firing low past Rost from 12 yards.

The goal spurred City on further as the Hamburg defence looked increasingly nervous and vulnerable.

And just five minutes later City were almost level when Elano smashed the ball against the post from another free-kick.

From the resulting corner Rost fumbled into the path of Caicedo but he fired over from just five yards out with the goal at his mercy.

On the hour, Hamburg had Rost to thank for keeping the score at 2-1, saving brilliantly from Robinho's close-range volley.

Minutes later Caicedo, who was giving the Hamburg defence a torrid evening, had the ball in the net but it was ruled out for offside as City edged closer to a crucial third goal.

Robinho went close with a near-post header with 25 minutes remaining as the Hamburg defence dropped deeper.

Manchester City's task was made harder with the sending off of Dunne, who was given his marching orders for two bookable offences.

City's captain was a persistent offender throughout the game and could have no complaints, having been booked early in the first half.

With a man advantage Hamburg's Dennis Aogo forced a fine low save from Given as City looked to reorganise themselves following Dunne's departure.

Seven minutes remained when Given saved well with his feet from Ivica Olic's close-range shot, and Richards then had a brilliant opportunity to send the tie into extra-time but he fired a volley high over Rost's goal.

In the final minutes, substitute Daniel Sturridge fired a shot into the side-netting and Hamburg held on to set up a semi-final with fellow Germans Werder Bremen.

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Man City: Given, Richards, Onuoha, Dunne, Bridge, Zabaleta (Fernandes 77), Kompany, Ireland, Elano (Sturridge 84), Robinho, Caicedo.
Subs Not Used: Hart, Garrido, Petrov, Evans, Logan.

Sent Off: Dunne (75).

Booked: Dunne, Kompany.

Goals: Elano 17 pen, Caicedo 50.

Hamburg: Rost, Boateng, Gravgaard, Mathijsen, Jansen, Pitroipa, Jarolim, Aogo, Trochowski (Petric 73), Guerrero, Olic.
Subs Not Used: Hesl, Da Silva, Ndjeng, Rincon, Schulz, Torun.

Goals: Guerrero 12.

Att: 47,009

Ref: Nicola Rizzoli (Italy).

Arsenal 3-0 Villarreal (agg 4-1)

Walcott scored Arsenal's first and was the inspiration behind their victory

Arsenal produced a dominant attacking display to beat 10-man Villarreal and set up a Champions League semi-final showdown with Manchester United.

Theo Walcott scored the first goal, collecting a Cesc Fabregas flick before running clear and chipping in.

Emmanuel Adebayor put the hosts firmly in charge, producing a neat finish with the outside of his right foot.

Sebastian Eguren was then sent off for disputing an Arsenal penalty that Robin van Persie scored to seal the victory.

In 2006 Arsenal faced Villarreal in a Champions League semi-final and after securing a 1-0 first-leg advantage would have paid for their defensive approach to the second leg had Jens Lehmann not saved Juan Roman Riquelme's last minute penalty.

Partly due to this chastening experience, and partly because of the loss of a number of key defenders through injury, Arsene Wenger decided attack was the most efficient form of defence.

From the off Arsenal bit into tackles, were the first to loose balls and at every opportunity sought to release the superb Walcott down the right.

Every time the England winger received the ball he threatened to embarrass the Villarreal defence, in particular his marker - the Spanish international full-back Joan Capdevila.

It was a break from Walcott that created the Gunners' first chance.

His initial cross evaded Van Persie in the box but Fabregas was able to collect on the opposite wing and find the Dutch striker with a cross, which he headed over the bar.

Walcott's next contribution to the game was even more significant.

Emmanuel Eboue's forward pass was flicked on by Fabregas into the path of Walcott, who bore down on goal and lured out Villarreal keeper Diego Lopez before exquisitely chipping the ball over him to reward his side's initial endeavour.

For all the talk of Arsenal's defensive fallibility in the absence of William Gallas, Bacary Sagna, Manuel Almunia and Gael Clichy, it was the Spaniards who were vulnerable.

It would be simplistic to blame the absence of influential midfielder Marcos Senna from the Villarreal side when so many of his team-mates' performances were lacking.

In one incident Gonzalo Rodriguez twice plunged his side into trouble.

His needless foul on Adebayor on the edge of the box gave Van Persie the chance to strike a free-kick that Lopez could not hold and Adebayor's follow-up header was almost knocked over the line by the defender before he finally cleared.

The start to the second half was not quite as frenetic as the first but this did not prevent Arsenal from seizing their opportunity to take firm control of the tie.

Van Persie picked up the ball in the Villarreal half and drove forward before neatly playing in Adebayor whose finish, with the outside of his right foot, was too good for Lopez.

Arsenal's control of the tie was converted into certain qualification nine minutes later.

Walcott dribbled into the box from the right and drew a rash challenge from Diego Godin, prompting the referee to point to the spot.

The Villarreal players protested vociferously, pointing out that the linesman had not signalled for a penalty.

Referee Wolfgang Stark took exception and brandished a second yellow card to Eguren, resulting in his dismissal.

Unperturbed by the raised emotions of the opposition, Van Persie strode up and fired in the penalty to the left of Lopez.

All three goalscorers were substituted soon after and rightly received a standing ovation.

Two of the replacements - Nicklas Bendtner and Abou Diaby - combined late on to almost score the Gunners' fourth but the latter flashed his shot across goal after being fed by the former.

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Arsenal: Fabianski, Eboue, Toure, Silvestre, Gibbs, Walcott (Denilson 77), Song Billong, Fabregas, Nasri, Adebayor (Bendtner 83), Van Persie (Diaby 77).
Subs Not Used: Mannone, Eduardo, Vela, Ramsey.

Booked: Silvestre, Gibbs.

Goals: Walcott 10, Adebayor 60, Van Persie 69 pen.

Villarreal: Diego Lopez, Angel, Rodriguez, Godin, Capdevila, Cani (Pablo 70), Eguren, Bruno (Nihat 64), Fernandez (Ibagaza 64), Pires, Rossi.
Subs Not Used: Viera, Llorente, Javi Venta, Fuentes.

Sent Off: Eguren (68).

Booked: Eguren, Cani, Godin.

Agg (4-1)

Att: 58,233

Ref: Wolfgang Stark (Germany).

Manchester United beat FC Porto at home..!!

FC Porto 0-1 Man Utd (agg 2-3)

Ronaldo's second Champions League goal of the season was spectacular

Cristiano Ronaldo struck a stunning winner as Manchester United saw off the threat of Porto to seal a Champions League semi-final tie against Arsenal.

Ronaldo's thunderous early strike from just shy of 40 yards flew across goal and into the top corner.

Nemanja Vidic missed a great chance from five yards late in the first half and Dimitar Berbatov had a shot saved.

Lisandro Lopez might have scored a dramatic late goal for Porto, but Edwin van der Sar saved his weak shot.

It was United's first clean sheet since their Champions League victory over Inter Milan on 11 March and it could not have been more timely as United became the first English club to win at Porto in European competition.

With Rio Ferdinand restored to the side after a three-game absence there was an increased assuredness to the United backline and in truth Porto failed to create any clear-cut openings until Lisandro's 85th-minute chance.

However, United's failure to score a decisive second goal ensured a nervous final few minutes to the tie as Porto pushed for the equaliser that would have put them through on the away goals rule.

The first 20 minutes of the match must have been close to perfect for United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, who was presiding over his 150th Champions League game.

Wayne Rooney started on the right with Ryan Giggs on the left and Ronaldo supporting Berbatov up front. This formation allowed Ronaldo to occasionally drop deep in search of possession, which he did after six minutes before smashing his amazing goal.

United dominated possession, allowing them to play the game at a steady, controlled tempo, and there were few alarms for Van der Sar, who allowed a free-kick from Bruno Alves to drift wide of his goal.

Porto gradually forced their way into the match, slowly pushing United towards their own goal, and Van der Sar was eventually forced into action to save Christian Sapanuru's shot on the turn while Bruno Alves headed wide from a free-kick.

The home team lost momentum when Lucho Gonzalez was stretchered off the field after a delay while he received treatment and United went on to create a brilliant chance to take full control of the match.

John O'Shea flicked on Giggs's corner and the ball dropped invitingly to the unmarked Vidic but the defender's effort flew wastefully over the crossbar.

Raul Meireles and Hulk shot over after the break while Berbatov collected a beautifully weighted pass from Rooney but his subsequent shot lacked power and Helton saved.

By this stage it was pouring down in Porto but Van der Sar made no mistake with a Hulk free-kick, while Rolando headed wide beyond the far post for the home side.

The visitors continued to press and the match became increasingly tense as United dropped deeper and deeper.

But it was United, who play Everton in an FA Cup semi-final on Sunday, who went close to a second goal, with Helton making a good low save to claw away Ronaldo's shot.

---

FC Porto: Helton, Sapunaru (Costa 80), Rolando, Bruno Alves, Cissokho, Lucho Gonzalez (Mariano Gonzalez 31), Fernando, Raul Meireles, Lopez, Hulk, Rodriguez (Farias 64).
Subs Not Used: Nuno, Stepanov, Guarin, Madrid.

Man Utd: Van der Sar, O'Shea, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, Giggs, Carrick, Anderson (Scholes 78), Rooney, Berbatov (Nani 68), Ronaldo.
Subs Not Used: Foster, Neville, Evans, Tevez, Macheda.

Booked: Vidic, Evra.

Goals: Ronaldo 6.

Att: 50,000

Ref: Massimo Busacca (Switzerland).

This win makes ManU the first English team to beat FC Porto at home...

Kudos to ManU....