Quarter Finals Preview
We are minutes away from the kickoff of the Knockout Rounds!
Unusually for this stage of the tournaments we have no matchups featuring league rivals; all eight pairings feature teams from different leagues. Strangely enough, we do have two CL runners-up playing each other for a place in the SF’s and spookily, we have three reunions from the Second Round of the BFFA Cup…
Sporting Wicker Park vs. Fergi Time
The first meeting of the pair comes as both sit fifth in their leagues (Prem v Cham) and both arrive with extremely similar form – both are WWLLW- in the league and both were 4-2 in the CL Group Stage. Both even have the dubious honour of calling themselves CL Runners-Up – SWP in 2017 and Fergi Time last year. Wicker Park are the current holders of the IML, but avoided falling into the secondary tournament this time around, owning Group A and advancing as group winners.
Looking at last week’s line-ups, both teams were backing Arsenal and Brighton players, both have Kaoru Mitoma and have played him every week. However, the fixtures this week may force some changes with SWP’s Gunners going up against Trippier, and Fergi’s Seagulls facing Branthwaite. These match-ups may see Núñez v Morris, Turner v Diaby and Rodri v Solanke play out as potential difference-makers in this first leg.
Smash & Grab vs. Hung Like a Bony
Two teams at the top of their game and vying for a place in the Semi-Finals are Smash and Hung. Smash & Grab have won their last five in the league and are currently top of the Premier League; Hung have won their last four and are second in the Championship. And there are a lot of similarities between the two too. They are neck-and-neck at fifth place in the Best-ish rankings, both on exactly 471FPts. There are some common players too, players who would be Cup-tied in a more enlightened format. Last week, five players featured in both squads (some on the pitch, some on the bench) – Pedro Porro, Burn, Foden, Hojlund and Watkins – so this fixture may be decided by today’s transfers and savvy man-management.
Smash & Grab have been to the CL SF’s before, but Hung LaB have not been to the QF’s until now. However, the one-and-only time that they have met before Hung knocked S&G out of the 2020 Winter Cup (winning 67-41) and went on to make it to the Semis, losing after a replay to the eventual winners.
Gloopy Yarbles vs. CG XI
The second of three first-meetings in this year’s CL QF’s pits the current holders against a team of rookies. Both teams were promoted last season after pretty successful campaigns, but now face much sterner challenges in the higher leagues. Both are three wins from first place, but due to the different landscapes of their leagues, Gloopy are up in fourth place while CG XI are lower down in eighth.
To compare the two sides, Gloopy are scoring better overall – 468 against CG’s 441, but week-to-week CG XI have outscored Gloopy five times out of the ten. So the question is can either team outscore the other twice over the next two weekends? Both teams have Julian Alvarez, but both teams have made changes this gameweek. We will have to wait for the weekend to finish to see how these changes affect the Quarter-Final.
De Bruyne Trousers vs. Housewives Favourite
This one will also be interesting. The only team to collect five wins from this year’s group stage, De Bruyne Trousers, are into the Quarter-Finals at their first attempt at the Champions League. They face a team that has been to the CL QF’s once before, WIves Fave.
Carlton Morris, Yoane Wissa and Pau Torres featured for both teams last week so may or may not be utilised over the next two weeks, however, we may see Konsa v Morris & Foden v Kerkez in this battle for a first CL SF, or will could be a shootout between the Brighton and Spurs midfielders.
The first and second legs of the Quarter-Finals will playout this weekend and next. Then after the international break the Semi-Finals will be ready to go.
Semi-Finals:
Winner QF1 vs. Winner QF2
Winner QF3 vs. WInner QF4
Again, two legs (GW’s 13 & 14). Winners meet in the Final.
The Champions League Final will be played in Gameweek 17, on the weekend of the 16th December.
The Intramural League
Also…
The teams that finished third in each Champions League group are not completely out of the extra tourneys this autumn. They get a second chance in The Intramural League.
The Quarter Finals:
Allison Wonderland vs. BattleVAR Galactico
The first time this match was played, it gave BattleVAR Galactico a place in the Spring Cup Third Round. BVAR beat Klopps and Robbers 39-22 and went on to beat El Dude Bros in R3. Following that, the pair both fought over League One for two seasons and in both campaigns Allison Wonderland won three of their four matches. The most recent game was a 39-31 win for Allison and was decisive in their promotion to the Championship.
Due to their fifth-place finish, and with only three teams in the League One IMLQ, BattleVAR only needed to win one more game to qualify for this match, and they did it with a 46-40 win over East Loop United. Allison Wonderland on the other hand went through the Champions League Group Stage and missed out on advancement only by points scored which, of course, bodes well for the Galacticos…
Barons vs. Harambe Hotspur
Barons were extremely unlucky not to make the Champions League Quarter-Finals after finishing third despite winning four of their six group games. They are the first team that has suffered that terrible fate, and now their Quarter-Final experience will be a far less glamorous one.
Harambe Hotspur qualified for the IML after scoring 45 FPts in both of the final two weeks, seeing off two now-defunct teams, Conte’s Cockerels and Orewa Ostriches. Harambe are currently 4th in League Two, an improvement on ninth, and come into this fixture unbeaten in the last six. Barons on the other hand have won just once in the league in that time, so they will be hoping that their CL form carries over to the IML. Keep an eye out for what Grealish does for either team, and whether Watkin’s current form can outperform Haaland’s over two weeks.
Atletico Topo Chico vs. Route 57 FC
Route 57 saw off former IML winners Cullen the Herd and the twice-Championship champions Boss in the IML Qualifiers last season to be here this weekend. ATC failed to win enough CL group games to qualify for their QF’s (despite getting the 6th-best fantasy points total of the sixteen). ATC also found themselves in the IML QF’s last season via the same route, losing both legs there to Jaysokker. Jaysokker then lost on aggregate to Route 57 FC in the Semis, who then lost 50-40 to Sporting Wicker Park in the Final.
Both teams surpassed 50FPts last week; Dominik Szoboszlai and Darwin Núñez returning double figures for ATC, while the Villa midfield duo of Duggie Luiz and Johnny McGinn contributed well behind Callum Wilson for the Oxon outfit. It looks like the first leg could be decided on Sunday with the midlands pair looking for GI at the City Ground first up, then ATC’s Liverpudlians striding out at Kenilworth Road to give their rebuttal. It will be the first meeting between ATC and R57, and with the away side on a 7-game winning streak, it looks like the odds are in the favour of the Premier League side.
El Dude Bros vs. GoFys FC
GoFys qualified for this season’s Intramural League by beating rivals StillluvQPR in their IMLQSF and then yours truly in the final game of the season. The El Dude Brothers finished third in Group D with a disappointing 2-4 record and are a little shy of the .500 in the PL too. Their debut season in the top flight has been an up-and-down experience so far; their current form reads WLWLW. In the Championship, GoFys currently look like they will be facing another relegation battle this season after clawing a narrow escape last april. They have lost the last three, WWLLL, but are looking for a win again the team in tenth this weekend.
Previously, the pair have played in the BFFA Cup, in the Second Round of the Spring Cup in 2021 where they drew 38-38, followed by a 61-40 win for El Dude Bros in the replay. Then in last season’s Championship, El DUde Bros won three of their four encounters and earned that promotion to the Premier League. Both teams have been unlucky with injuries in th first part of the season and will take to the field(s) with bruised limbs and bruised egos. For the Championship side, their defence may be the route to victory, with three of their five starters facing bottom-four teams who are typically conceded many and scoring few. For the Premier League hopefuls, a strong five in midfield looks like the key to success, although this week they face three very difficult opponents.
Semi-Finals: Gameweeks 13 & 14
The IML Final: Gameweek 16
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