Cristiano Will Always Be CR7: Champions League Update: Sept. 28

In the first of a two-day CL extravaganza, there weren't many surprises.

PARTIZAN BELGRADE VS ARSENAL
Arsenal put away a pesky Partizan Belgrade 3-1 in their "Thunderdome" stadium, replete with waving flags, and hilarious banners befitting their "Gravediggers" moniker. The atmosphere wasn't enough to beat the Gunners, who actually should have scored a fourth when Arshavin's penalty was denied. After Cleo levelled for the home side in the 33' he also managed to miss a penalty in the 82' which would have put them even with the Gunners. Playing a man down for most of the second half when Jovanovic hauled down Chamakh in the area (56'), they put on a late effort but it wasn't to be.
Goals: Arshavin (15'), Chamakh (71'), Squillaci (84')
Cleo (33')

CHELSEA VS OLYMPIQUE MARSEILLES
The score of this match (2-0 Chelsea) doesn't really tell the story. The Marseillaise dominated possession and also had 6 more shots than the Blues. Unfortunately for the Ligue 1 Champions, their shots were just off the mark or blocked by Chelsea defenders. On the other hand, the Blues were fortunate that everything was going right for them. In the 7' John Terry jumped on a loose rebound and flicked it home. But Marseilles continued to batter the Chelsea goal. In true Stamford Bridge style, the Blues were given a break by the referee when he gave a spotkick to them for Stephane Mbia barely touching the ball in the area. Anelka slotted home and the score was 2-0. Despite Marseilles picking up the pace in the second half, they couldn't find the bag and Chelsea secured the three points.

AJ AUXERRE VS REAL MADRID
Once again the Merengues showed no goal-scoring ability whatsoever. Their attack was thwarted each time and Cristiano Ronaldo could not hit the broadside of a barn (see photos). His frustration is growing, and it is for the fans as well. A year ago they were blasting in the goals but they haven't found a good mix and look impotent in front of the net. If not for late sub Angel di Maria (who has been so-so so far) los Blancos would have been blanked again for the second-straight match. Di Maria found the bag in the 81' minute to spare Jo Jo Mourinho's traveling circus a red-faced return to the Bernabeu. As it is, they should be ashamed of themselves. They took 19 shots (compared to Auxerre's 9) and dominated possession 70-30.
Overall, it was not a good game for Real, despite J-Mo saying it was. The other story for the night was the "tecnico luso's" decision to start Karim Benzema, who has never impressed since his much-ballyhooed arrival in the summer of 2009. His ineffectiveness was noted by Mo-Mo and he withdrew Benz late on...for Di Maria...who scored. Another nail in the coffin for the Frenchman (see the attached photo for his reaction).

What's wrong with this picture? When the manager tries to be the star of the show...

No love loss here...when Benzema was subbed off, his manager wouldn't look at him, and it's obvious that Benzema was not happy and didn't want to be "consoled" by his manager. Don't look for Benz to start another match for a long time.