Soccer: Champions League Second round: There should be no screeches as the well-oiled machinery of the Champions League glides the three Premiership clubs towards the quarter-finals. Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United had cause to be smug while appreciating the benefits of being seeded after topping their groups.
And their satisfaction will have been deepened by the luck of yesterday's draw, whereby Real Madrid have been paired with Bayern Munich.
Bayern scraped into the knockout stage on the final night yet their pedigree makes them dangerous opponents for the tournament favourites.
The early elimination of either Madrid or Bayern is an added bonus to the top three in the Premiership, who face VfB Stuttgart, Celta Vigo and Porto respectively. Each of these teams has its virtues, but none has the all-round strength of England's trio. The Bundesliga club will be given the most solemn consideration, if only because of a well founded apprehension over the tenacity of German footballers.
Alex Ferguson, for example, must still be grouchy over being deprived of a return to Hampden Park when a moderate Bayer Leverkusen went to the 2002 final there by beating United. Stuttgart, who won at home against Ferguson's men, this season, can be equally awkward.
They were defeated by Chelsea in the 1998 Cup Winners' Cup final, but the club has an entirely fresh identity these days. Felix Magath, the strong-willed coach, prizes the malleability of youth and the oldest of his five attackers is the 22-year-old Hungarian Imre Szabics. Kevin Kuranyi is the forward most likely to conceal his callowness.
Magath, however, may not be able to counter all the damaging side-effects of inexperience. Stuttgart are starting to feel the strains of an arduous season. Their four most recent fixtures have seen them overcome by United at Old Trafford, knocked out of the German Cup and held to draws in two league fixtures. Although they still head the table by two points, they travel to meet Bayern Munich today.
The goalkeeper Timo Hildebrand has conceded just three goals in the Bundesliga this season, but his team-mates are not causing enough disturbances at the other end of the pitch. It is hard to guess how strong Magath's fledglings will be when they have to face the Stamford Bridge club in February.
"It will be important to see our condition when we play Stuttgart but if we are strong like now, I am very confident," said the Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri.
While Magath could sense trouble ahead, the hardships are already upon Miguel Angel Lotina. Immediately after this week's 2-1 victory over Champions League holders Milan at San Siro, the Celta Vigo coach incorporated black humour into his appreciation of the result. While noting his team had guaranteed further Champions League football he was not at all sure he would be around to share it.
The side is currently 17th in La Liga. Their prominence on the European scene is the true surprise since this is their first venture into its premier tournament. The former Arsenal full back Silvinho is in a squad that possesses scant prestige. The names that catch the eye include those of Savo Milosevic, who was never an object of utter devotion at Aston Villa, and the Russian veteran Aleksandr Mostovoi.
The club has become adept at making the most of flawed materials. Juanfran, for example, climbed from the lower divisions, slipped back at Valencia and then resumed an ascent at Celta that has taken him into the Spain team. The voracious overlapping of the left back seems to express the passionate determination with which he has prevented his career from flagging.
Arsenal, under Arsene Wenger, have some experience of being trampled by La Liga players. He has taken the Highbury club to Spain on six occasions, collecting five defeats and a draw. It is a record to inspire a certain reserve in a manager.
"I respect Celta Vigo because they have come out of a difficult group," Wenger said. "They knocked out Ajax and Bruges and, as well, I respect the Spanish League because every year they're consistent and get their teams through. The positive side for us is they're not doing well in the league."
The win at San Siro came against the unconventional line-up fielded by Milan, who had already qualified and were more concerned with tomorrow's Inter-Continental Cup meeting with Boca Juniors in Tokyo. Celta are tidy and durable, but limitations are reflected in the draw with Bruges at home. If Arsenal can avoid a relapse into the lacklustre tone that has disfigured their Champions League record, they ought to outclass Lotina's team.
United have been presented with adversaries who are far more sleek. Bobby Robson's former assistant and protege Jose Mourinho has produced a Porto side of dash and achievement. They are the UEFA Cup holders, thanks to the 3-2 defeat of Celtic, and the expressive Deco devises openings for Derlei, the poacher hero-worshipped by fans as "The Ninja". Ferguson admires Porto: "If you want to progress you have to beat the best teams and they are one of the best," he said.
Even so, the Scot will ignore the draw at a waterlogged Bernabeu on Wednesday and focus instead on the 3-1 win for Real Madrid in Porto that exposed the shortcomings of Mourinho's team, whose veteran centre half Jorge Costa and goalkeeper Vitor Baia can be vulnerable.
All in all, Ferguson, Wenger and Ranieri should be in high spirits.
First Legs
Tuesday, February 24th
Sparta Prague v AC Milan
Celta Vigo v Arsenal
Lokomotiv Moscow v AS Monaco
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
Wednesday, February 25th
Deportivo La Coruna v Juventus
Porto v Manchester United
VfB Stuttgart v Chelsea
Real Sociedad v Olympique Lyon
Second Legs
Tuesday, March 9th
Juventus v Deportivo La Coruna
Manchester United v Porto
Chelsea v VfB Stuttgart
Olympique Lyon v Real Sociedad
Wednesday, March 10th
AC Milan v Sparta Prague
Arsenal v Celta Vigo
AS Monaco v Lokomotiv Moscow
Real Madrid v Bayern Munich
ON TV: Tues Feb 24th: Celta Vigo v Arsenal (ITV 1); Bayern Munich v Real Madrid (ITV 2). Tues Mar 9th: Manchester Utd v Porto (ITV); Chelsea v VfB Stuttgart (ITV). Sky will show all the other matches.
BETTING (William Hill): 4-1 Real Madrid, 9-2 Manchester United, 5-1 Arsenal, 6-1 Juventus , 13-2 Chelsea, 7-1 AC Milan, 20-1 Bayern Munich, Deportivo La Coruna, 25-1 VfB Stuttgart, AS Monaco, 33-1 Olympique Lyon, 40-1 Real Sociedad, 50-1 Porto, 66-1 Celta Vigo, Lokomotiv Moscow 125-1 Sparta Prague
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