After the game, Jonk was graded as a failing grade by the media, which was still very traitorous in his career. Jonk himself is not depressed, but he himself has to admit that he is not in shape in today's game.

In the first round of the 2008-2009 Premier League season, in the traditional four finals of the Premier League, except for Manchester United, who were held to a draw at home by Newcastle, the other three teams all won.

Chelsea thrashed Portsmouth 4-0 at their home stadium at Stamford Bridge, with Joe Cole, Nicolas Anelka, Frank Lampard and Deco all four in unison, with Scolari's blue strikers on high note.

Arsenal's narrow 1-0 win over promoted Masy Bromwich Albion at the Emirates Stadium was a game in which Arsenal's performance was not good, and summer signing Nasri stepped up at the crucial moment and fired a beautiful volley to help the defending champions get the season off to a good start.

Liverpool also beat Sunderland 1-0 away at Sunderland, with Fernando Torres netting the only goal of the game near the end of the game to save the Reds.

Therefore, after this round, the whole of England is saying that the Chelsea people are strong, Arsenal has stepped up in Nasri at a critical moment, Liverpool also has Torres, only Manchester United, the European champion Manchester United's table is disappointing, whether it is Jonk or Rooney or Cristiano Ronaldo, when the team needs heroes the most, quietly......

On 23 August 2008, Manchester United started their first away game of the new season in the second round of the Premier League, and they also won their first game of the new season, beating Portsmouth 1-0 away.

Facing Portsmouth, who suffered a four-goal defeat to Chelsea in the previous round of the league, Manchester United were not so convincing, winning by just one goal. It was the only goal of the game. It wasn't scored by Jonk, but. But it was Jonk who assisted Cristiano Ronaldo to score.

The victory in this game made Manchester United fans happy, compared to the team's victory. They were even happier that Jonker was in better shape in this match.

Everyone knows that if Manchester United are to challenge for all titles this season, Jonker's form will undoubtedly be crucial.

In the face of Jonck's declining state, the English media did not immediately accuse, this is not because the media have changed their sex, of course, because they are still waiting, if Jonck's state does not improve, of course, these reporters will not forget to fall into the ground. It's been more than a month since the European Championships, the new season has begun, and they finally jumped at the chance to fire on Jonker.

However, before that, the English media had to praise Jonk and Manchester United.

At 18 o'clock on the 28th, the UEFA Best Awards Ceremony of the last season and the draw ceremony for the group stage of the Champions Cup of the 2008-2009 season were held in Monte Carlo.

At the scene, the award of last season's European Champions Cup was interspersed with the group draw for the group stage of the Champions Cup of the new season.

Best goalkeeper: Petr Cech (Chelsea)

The first award was given for the best goalkeeper award, with Cech beating Edwin van der Sar, Almunia Almunia, Manuel Neuer and Reina. He was named Goalkeeper of the Year and won the honour for the first time in 2005.

This was a bit of a surprise to people who had previously predicted that the award for best goalkeeper should go to Manchester United's veteran Dutch goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar.

But. Van der Sar is open-minded, saying in an interview with the media that he can accompany the team to the top of Europe for the second year in a row. Winning the European Champions Cup is already the greatest glory. For the rest, he wouldn't want to ask for too much.

Interestingly. Cech was presented to former Manchester United goalkeeper Schmeichel, who won the inaugural Goalkeeper of the Year award in 1998.

Next up was the award for the best defender, with former Milan captain Baresi presenting the award to Barcelona captain Puyol as the guest of honour.

Although Barcelona lost to Manchester United in the final, the Barcelona captain still won the award for the best defender over Rio Ferdinand, who was very popular with Manchester United.

However, Puyol was clearly not in a good mood, and this past season, he reached the Champions League final with Barcelona, finishing runners-up, and in the European Championship, he was also eliminated by Jonker's Portugal in the final, which made Puyol look bad.

"For me personally, this is an astonishing achievement. In order to be a great defender, you have to have a lot of qualities, such as being fast, strong, and having a good header. You also need a lot of great teammates around you, and I'm lucky I have that. Of course, if I can bring a championship to the team, I am willing to give up my personal glory. Puyol said this when the host asked him to give his acceptance speech.

The subsequent award for the best midfielder belonged to Cristiano Ronaldo, in fact, Manchester United's No. 7 should be more precise, it should belong to the striker, but since almost everyone knows who the best striker will be, it was also a compromise and awarded the award of best midfielder to Cristiano Ronaldo.

Interestingly, Cristiano Ronaldo was presented with another Manchester United man - Manchester United legend Sir Bobby Charlton.

Cristiano Ronaldo was delighted to receive the award, saying: "I feel good about this award, you see some world-class players and it's very competitive, so it's great to get him in the end. ”

In the end, it was an open secret that Jonker won the best player and best striker awards without any suspense.

UEFA President Michel Platini personally handed over the crystal trophy to Jonker.

"I said I saw you in Monte Carlo in August, and congratulations, Jonck." Platini said with a smile.

"Thank you." Jonk responded politely. This is the third consecutive year that he has won the Champions Cup Player of the Year and Top Scorer, which is an unprecedented feat.

The next day, Jonker's photo of the crystal trophy in his left and right hands made headlines in the big sports media, with The Times headline being the most sensational and exaggerated.

"Three in a row! He always makes history! ”

At the end of the award ceremony, the draw for the group stage of the 2008-2009 UEFA Champions League was completed. The final group breakdown is as follows:

Group A: Chelsea, Roma, Bordeaux, Cluj (Romania);

Group B: Inter Milan, Bremen, Panathinaikos, Anososis (Cyprus);

Group C: Barcelona, Sporting Lisbon, Basel, Shakhtar Donetsk;

Group D: Liverpool, PSV Eindhoven, Marseille, Atletico Madrid;

Group E: Manchester United, Villarreal, Celtic, Aalborg (Denmark);

Group F: Lyon, Bayern Munich, Fenerbahce, Fiorentina;

Group G: Arsenal, Porto, Bucharest Star, Dynamo Kyiv;

Group H: Real Madrid, Juventus, Zenit St. Petersburg, Borisol (Belarus)

Once the group draw is over, the four powerhouses of the Premier League, Eredivisie, La Liga and Ligue 1 are in Group D. This complicates the group's outward form. In terms of strength, Liverpool deserves to be the favorite to qualify. The experience Benitez has honed over the years in the Champions League is also the foundation of the Reds' success. In addition to Liverpool, the probability of the other three teams qualifying is almost the same, Eindhoven and Marseille have participated in the Champions League year after year and have rich experience, while Atletico Madrid is the first time to return to the Champions League family after many years, but they continue to recruit this year, and a group of strong reinforcements have allowed them to eliminate the Bundesliga powerhouse Schalke 04, which is extraordinary.

Of the other two groups that are expected to be the Group of Death, Group H has two giants, Real Madrid and Juventus. They have naturally become the first choice to qualify, in addition, the League Cup winners Zenit team should not be overlooked, the Russians are backed by strong economic strength, and their unique geographical advantage is also the reason why Zenit and the giants are in contention. As for Borisol in Belarus, he can only play the role of accompanying the prince to study.

In Group F, Bayern Munich and Lyon, two of the giants of their respective leagues last season, met with the former being a hard-working team and the latter having been in the Champions League for many years. They are naturally the favourites to qualify. What cannot be ignored is Fiorentina, under the leadership of Prandelli, the Purple Lily is strong, and there are fierce generals such as Gilardino and Mutu. If you're not careful, Fiorentina could be the dark horse in Group F. As for the Bucharest Star, the strength is limited. It's hard to make a difference.

"English Civil War", the British media is very interested in Manchester United and Celtic drawing together. After all, these two clubs have a long history and there are many news points to dig up. The most obvious point is. They were the first clubs in England and England to win the European Cup. That's why both The Sun and The Independent use the same headline.

Manchester United have made good signings and it is a good start to a title defence for the Red Devils and the first step in Ferguson's plan to catch up with Liverpool. The Guardian also looked ahead to the group stage: "It's a relatively easy start for Manchester United and Ferguson will definitely want to win another trophy. As for Celtic, will they be able to make it through the group stage for the third year in a row? ”

For Wayne Rooney, the fight against Villarreal may be a good opportunity for revenge, with The Independent noting: "A trip to Spain will remind Rooney of many memories of the past, having been called off by the Red-Den, who had sent off David Beckham, for a sarcastic applause against the same team in September 2005. ”

As for Alex Ferguson, there wasn't much he could complain about tonight, "maybe he will have something to say about three Chelsea players who have been voted European Player of the Year", the Times joked.

Liverpool's deep death group is also unanimously recognised, with The Guardian stating that "Liverpool face perhaps the toughest group of any English team, with Fernando Torres taking on his former club Atletico Madrid, will they be able to shake off their poor form at the start of the season?" The Times affirmed: "If you look at the teams below Tier 2, Atletico are definitely the ones you want to avoid, and unfortunately PSV Eindhoven are in this group. ”

As big names, Liverpool certainly have a better chance than the other three, but The Times also warns that seeding doesn't mean anything: "Seeding always favours the big names, and Liverpool are only in the group stage through the play-offs, but are already the third-seeded team in the points. But don't underestimate other teams, Chelsea didn't go from rookie to current No. 1. Florence, for example, they also have their chances. ”

The Independent is more focused on Torres, "wearing an Anfield achiē back to Calderón." Torres must have been upset. "The Times thinks it's nothing," since he left. Atletico are stronger. ”

Arsenal are good, The Guardian says: "They will be very confident of going through the group stage. The test will be that the young team will have to deal with two difficult road trips first. The Times also said: "Arsenal should be able to break through Group C, although Arsene Wenger will be a little concerned about the extremely long road trips to Istanbul and Kiev respectively. ”

Chelsea have had little problem qualifying from the group, with The Guardian noting: 'Chelsea are perhaps the happiest English side, with Roma, Bordeaux and Cluj struggling to pose a threat. So who is the furthest English team? The Independent also said, "With Scolari, Chelsea will be aiming to go one step further than last season's results, despite the penalty shoot-out defeat to Manchester United in May." The Times reminded fans to pay attention to the game. Chelsea and Roma are not to be missed, with each other seeing each other as their biggest rivals. ”

The top 32 of the Champions League have been grouped, and the fate of the two giants of Real Madrid and Barcelona is different. Real Madrid have been placed in the Group of Death, with the Blancos battling Juventus and Zenit St. Petersburg for the right to qualify. Barça were clearly lucky, with Sporting Lisbon, Basel and Shakhtar Donetsk unable to pose a substantial threat to the red and blues. The Spanish media unanimously agreed that the two giants had very different fortunes, and the battle between Liverpool and Atletico Madrid was portrayed as a one-man battle for Torres.

At the time, the newspaper was focusing on two teams in Madrid - "Torres returns to Calderón and the Bernabeu welcomes Juventus". "Real Madrid are out of luck, old rivals Juventus, UEFA Cup winners Zenit and the mysterious Borissol are not easy to match. Barcelona are clearly one of the luckiest teams, while Villarreal will face a test for Manchester United. "The newspaper Ace focused its coverage on Torres." After an 11-year hiatus, Atletico are back in the Champions League, with Liverpool, PSV Eindhoven and Marseille in Group D. Fernando Torres, who will return to the Vicente Calderón Stadium, where he played for 10 years. ”

Marca newspaper reported under the headline "Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid are in trouble": "The draw result is the most favorable for Barcelona. They are the favourites to top the group. Real Madrid are out of luck and the La Liga champions will be tested by Juventus and Zenit. Villarreal will face Manchester United, with the biggest suspense being Atletico's Group D. Liverpool, PSV Eindhoven and Marseille are relatively close. The group is likely to form a scuffle, with Torres also returning home to face his former club. ”

"Daily Sports" expressed its joy at signing the lottery with the title of "Barcelona has no suspense about promotion". Le Monde Sport gloated over Real Madrid's poor grouping under the headline "Group finalized": "Barcelona will accept the challenge of Sporting Lisbon, Basel and Shakhtar Donnesco, while Real Madrid are in the group of death for the first time in many years. Their opponents include Juventus, Zenit and Borisol. Villarreal will face Manchester United, while Torres' return to the Stade Calderón is destined to be the highlight of Group D. ”

"Torres will face Atletico Madrid", and the relatively impartial newspaper Le Monde also set its sights on Torres: "After the Champions League grouping, Torres and Atletico had to meet in a narrow way, and the moment he returned to the Calderón stadium will forever go down in history. Real Madrid and Juventus met again after four years, Villarreal was lucky, and of course Barcelona were happier. ”

Villarreal, Celtic, Alborg ...... As soon as the three opponents of the defending Champions League champions Manchester United in the group stage were announced, there was a high level of optimism in both the media and within the club. Manchester United's Champions League defence kicks off on 17 September at home to Villarreal, meaning it will be sandwiched between away games against Liverpool and Chelsea, and the three games in mid-to-late September will not be easy for United.

Villarreal should be the biggest threat to Manchester United in this group, the two teams met in the 2005/06 season, and the result was a blank in both games, but the problem is that the Red Devils ended up at the bottom of the group, and the "Yellow Submarine" qualified by the top of the group, which is a bad memory, especially at the Love Song Stadium Rooney was dissatisfied with the referee's decision, clapped in front of Nelson, and was expelled by the Danish "high" with a direct red card. This time, the away game on November 25 (group round 5) against the Yellow Submarine will be revenge for the Red Devils, but they will also have a derby against Manchester City on the 30th, and Ferguson will have to work hard for it. Other than that. Youngster Rossi will also get a chance to face his former club as a result.

Manchester United's chief executive, David Gill, had this to say: "Overall, we're happy with the group and we don't have to go too far to play away. And after the schedule is announced. Our first game was at home to Villarreal, which was a good match between the two away games against Liverpool and Chelsea. Villarreal is a very good Spanish club. We will face former player Rossi. I'm sure he's hungry to get back to Old Trafford. ”

Celtic, this is another direct conversation between Strachan and Ferguson, the tension between the two has long been eased, but it is a good flashpoint for the media and the team to meet again. In the 06/07 season, both sides won at their respective home stadiums and ended up topping the group to qualify. From the point of view of the British, they hope that such a good thing will happen again.

Manchester United's match against Celtic is in the third and fourth rounds, also known as "back-to-back"; Manchester United will play at home on 21 October, followed by a Premier League win away on 5 November, and a league trip to Arsenal on 8 November. on this. Both Manchester United and Celtic are looking forward to these two games. David Gill said: "Both teams have very passionate fans and I'm sure the players and fans are looking forward to both games. I still remember the game against Celtic who beat us and then qualified for the tournament and the fans were a little bit incredible. ”

Shunsuke Nakamura shone in the last meeting between the two sides, but who will cause problems for the Red Devils this time? Striker McDonald should be one of the options, having played for Motherwell two years ago. "The two games against Manchester United will certainly be fantastic, this is a confrontation between Scotland and England. We played against them a couple of years ago and won a game and I'm sure both games will be played in a great atmosphere. ”

As for the mysterious division of this group, Alborg, I am afraid it is difficult to pose a threat to Manchester United. 1998/99 season. Manchester United have played another Danish club, Brondby, and the result is that they have scored 11 goals in both games. In the 06/07 season against Copenhagen, the Red Devils also won by three goals. The away game against Alborg on 30 September (second round) and at home to Alborg on 10 December (final round) were both relatively good opponents in the domestic league. Therefore, it will be difficult for the Danish club to break out and get a bargain from the Red Devils.

Ferguson had a smile on his face when he saw Villarreal from La Liga in Pot 2 of the same group, and it was not too difficult to play against.

But. The third team in the same group is Celtic, which makes the old Scottish man a little wary. Two seasons ago, Manchester United had that brawl with Celtic. shocked the European football world, and a number of Manchester United big players, including Jonk, were suspended, which also made the relationship between the already tense English team and the Scottish team even more strained.

Therefore, Ferguson could almost have predicted that the game between Manchester United and Celtic would be a difficult one.

As for the fourth pot team in the same group - Aalborg from Denmark, Lord Fold did not pay too much attention, the club of a league like Denmark can enter the main match of the European Champions Cup, which is due to Platini's policy of supporting small and medium-sized leagues in Europe, their strength is limited, even if they enter the main match of the European Champions Cup, it is just a formality, and they can get the third place in the group to compete for a ticket to the League Cup, and continue to stay in the European arena, which is the most pragmatic goal of a team like Aalburg.

On this night, in addition to the Champions Cup group stage draw ceremony, the draw for the first round of the Confederations Cup was also held.

Last season, Serie A giants AC Milan finished fifth in the league and will have to compete in the League Cup this season, which also made Jonker, who attended the award ceremony, sigh.

AC Milan manager Ancelotti also took the time to chat with Jonker, and his love for Jonker was overflowing, of course, Ancelotti also knew that Ferguson would not let Jonker leave Manchester United, besides, now AC Milan is playing in the League Cup, even if Jonk will leave Manchester United, he will not choose the current Rossoneri. (To be continued......)