Champions League Preview Group H
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by Tyduffy
Sevilla
Sevilla finished 3rd in La Liga last season finishing 1 pt shy behind Barcelona and Real Madrid, earning them a Champions League birth for this season. They also won their 2nd consecutive UEFA Cup, beating fellow Spanish side Espanyol on penalties in the final.
Despite their recent success, Sevilla are usually a selling club. The summer was rife with rumors that Daniel Alves would be heading to either Chelsea, Barcelona, or Real Madrid. Though, he remains with the club because no one met their steep asking price. They made a couple budget moves to supplement the squad, bringing in Kone from PSV and Chelsea chuckler Khalid Boulahrouz on loan. The key will be whether or not Fredi Kanoute can replicate his incredible form (30 goals in 48 appearances) from last season.
The beginning of the season was marred by Antonio Puerta's tragic death after a heart attack on the pitch against Getafe. However, Sevilla have coped admirably and have been in excellent form qualifying for the Champions League with ease and winning the Spanish and European Super Cups. They get the nod in this group because of the incentives. There is obviously the emotional aspect with Puerta's death, but also this is a squad that will want to prove themselves. There is also the fact that both Alves and manager Juande Ramos will need success to get their much desired tickets out of town.
Arsenal
Arsenal were a bit of a disappointment last season, despite finishing fourth comfortably. They qualified for the knockout stages in the Champions League, but were eliminated by PSV in the first round. The obvious noteworthy move was the selling of club captain Thierry Henry to Barcelona. Wenger made some under the radar sigings with right-back Bakary Sagna and striker Eduardo Da Silva, though it clearly didn't match the tens of millions spent by Manchester United and Liverpool.
Uncertainty over the future of the club and the lack of spending, tempered expectations from Arsenal supporters to start the season. That said, they have started off with a bang, getting an unexpected glut of goals from a midfield that was silent much of last season. They are currently tied for first in the Premier League, and qualified easily for the Champions League. They should qualify easily out of this group (because the rest of it isn't very good), though they have some holes (Central Defense, Wings) which may be exploited.
Slavia Prague
Slavia Prague finished 2nd in the Czech League last season. They have fallen on financial hard times, and rely mostly upon younger players to fill out the squad like Marek Suchy and Dusan Svento, who has drawn interest from some English clubs. They surprised Ajax winning 3-1 on aggregate in their Champions League qualifier, in order to qualify for the tournament.
Steaua Bucuresti
Steaua finished second in the Romanian League last season, finishing six pts behind Dinamo Bucuresti. They are currently tied for 8th in Liga I with 10 pts after 5 matches. They qualified for the Champions League for the first time in ten seasons after beating Belarussian club BATE Borisov 4-3 on aggregate.
