Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/262615
23 Sport maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 19 FEBRUARY 2014 Answers to the MaltaToday crossword will be published next Wednesday WEATHER Partly cloudy becoming rather cloudy VISIBILITY: Generally good WIND: South to Southeast force 5 to 6 locally force 6 to 7 at first, becoming force 5 during the day, and becoming force 3 to 4 locally force 4 to 5 in the evening. SEA: Rough SWELL: Low East to Southeast, becoming low to moderate locally moderate South to Southeast and becoming moderate overnight Sea Temp: 16 °C A B C D E F G H 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 White to play and mate in four moves A B C D E F G H 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Last week's solution Sudoku rules are extremely easy: Fill all empty squares so that the numbers 1 to 9 appear once in each row, column and 9x9 box. SHOWERS 19 º C / 14 º C UV INDEX: 3 Today's Weather Chess Sudoku Pursuits b8=Qf6 Rg6 Qb1 Kh8 Rxg6 Kh7 Qd3 Kh8 Qh3# WE has been waiting for a long time but those familiar goosebumps re- turned last night as the Champions League anthem blasted through our TV speakers once again. Midweek football is finally back, with some tasty clashes in the first knockout round of the UEFA Champions League. Last night we were entertained by the tournament's biggest clash as Barcelona travelled to Manchester City and tonight's double header sees Spanish dark horses Atletico Madrid face a fading AC Milan, while Arse- nal take on the giants of Munich. Labelling Arsenal Davids in their clash against Goliaths Bayern Mu- nich might be a tad unfair on them however Bayern's dominance this season and last can not be exagger- ated. They are cruising in the Bun- desliga, ploughing 16 points clear and their winning appetite has no signs of fading. A tasty 4-0 win over Freiburg must have set alarm bells of in Wenger's minds as he looks to start off this clash better off than he did last season. In March's round of the last 16 Bayern raced to a 3-1 win at the Emirates, leaving Arsenal to fight for their lives in the second leg. They bounced back, winning 2-0 away from home however Bayern squeeze through on away goals ruling. Another heroic failure by Arsenal leaves a sour taste however Wenger's men must be more motivated this time around to exact their revenge. Their improvement this season is clear as they have even been labelled as title challengers by some. Their fixture draw has not been kind to them however as clashes against ri- vals Tottenham, Chelsea and Man City follow their Champions League second leg. If they can come out of that rough patch unscratched then they will tru- ly deserve to be labelled as title chal- lengers however many are beginning to argue that the cracks are cropping up, as Liverpool highlighted in their emphatic 5-1 thrashing at Anfield. Arsenal might have managed to beat them in the cup last weekend how- ever we all saw the help they got from Howard Webb. Atletico's revival will be sending shivers down the backs of any team preparing to face them right now. They are the in form team of Europe and are currently joint leaders of the Liga in Spain. Fearful might their opponents be, they are now facing European experts Milan who have won this trophy seven times. Despite a disastrous league position, Atletico boss Diego Simeone will have to tak- ing his opponents seriously as AC Milan tend to do the impossible in Europe and has a squad bursting with experience managed by the man who has won the competition three times with three different clubs. Clarence Seedorf might be new in manage- ment but his playing experience will certainly be called upon if his team is to make an impact in this round. If we were exited about the matches this week a glance at next weeks fix- tures sees the return of King Drogba to the Bridge as Chelsea take on Galatasaray on the same night Schal- ke entertain Real Madrid in what can be a high scoring encounter. Tuesday's early kick off is Zenit vs Dortmund but that same evening will be another challenge for David Moyes as his Manchester United take on Olympiacos. In a twist of fortunes this tournament is the only patch of praise Moyes has received as man- ager of United as his side remains unbeaten so far this campaign. The same can definitely not be said about his league form with United having already lost eight games out of 26. Europa Distraction With Manchester United now sit- ting 11 points off Liverpool in fourth fans are beginning to cast an eye on the thought of being busy on a Thursday night. Qualifying for the Europa League seems to be their only hope this season however many ar- gue that this competition will only serve to be a distraction to United due to its intense fixture list. Partici- pating can be ideal to blood new tal- ent however I can hardly see United wanting to challenge for the Cup due to other pressing issues. Next season all United need to do is focus on getting themselves back into the top four, otherwise face further star- vation from being part of Europe's elite – and in no way does the Europa League compensate for the absence of Champions League for any big clubs. OPINION Mark Strijbosch Special nights return Manchester City's Martin Demichelis (R) fouls Barcelona's Lionel Messi to concede a penalty Across 1. Mail charge (7) 5. Unconventional (7) 9. Tearoom (7) 10. Wanderer (5) 11. Sudden forward thrust (5) 12. Limb of a felled tree (3) 13. Not winners (6) 14. Repay (6) 15. Part of verb to be (3) 17. Issued every three months (9) 21. Chafe (3) 23. South Wales town (6) 24. Reduce to a lower grade (6) 27. Step in ballet (3) 28. Take as one's own (5) 29. Small fi rework (5) 30. Ask (7) 31. Wife of a duke (7) 32. Nonsense (7) Down 1. Kneecap (7) 2. Glitter (7) 3. Capital of Greece (6) 4. Investigators (9) 5. Unpaid (5) 6. Good-bye (8) 7. Full of envy (7) 8. Violent whirlwind (7) 16. Sleuth (9) 18. Unsteady (8) 19. Lubricated (7) 20. Invertebrate (7) 21. Reproduction (7) 22. Implore urgently (7) 25. Not allowing light to pass through (6) 26. Crates (5)