The second week of the Champions League has just finished, and all five British teams are in first or second place in their groups. Some open thread for comments on the season so far.

Rangers were certainly ready for their visit to Manchester United. Werder Bremen showed heart in coming from 2-0 down to draw. Eight games down, eighty-eight to go. Any thoughts on today's games?

In late May, UEFA's exec committee passed a few new rules. You've probably heard about them:

Uefa has approved plans to force clubs in European competition to spend only what they earn. The financial fair play rules will require clubs to break even over a rolling three-year period if they want to play in the Champions League or Europa League.

This will take effect in 2012, though clubs will be given leeway over a six-year grace period. UEFA boss Michael Platini justifies the new rules thusly:

"This approval is the start of an important journey for European football's club finances as we begin to put stability and economic common sense back into football. I thank all the stakeholders who have supported this along the way."

I'm all for fair play, and everyone reading this blog would probably like to see more of it in European football. The 'haves' at the top of the EPL and La Liga, along with giants like Juventus and Bayern Munich, have a stranglehold on the vast majority of the cash in the game. A look at the revenue numbers tracked by Deloitte reveals 10 teams pulling in at least 196m euros per season, with Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Manchester United dwarfing everyone else by pulling in over 300m each. Teams raking in that kind of dough should have to work hard to wind up in the red... which is apparently just what they're doing. There's the insane debt at Man U from the Glazers' leveraged buyout, the monster loan taken out by Real to go on their Galacticos spending spree last year, and Barca's recent loan taken out to pay staff and players -- and that's just off the top of my head. With teams like these unable to spend within their earnings, it's easy to see why Platini's new rules would appear helpful. But spending within your means is only half of an equation, and on its own can make matters of fairness worse. Teams also need to share revenue to avoid entrenching the elite clubs and blocking anyone else from joining their ranks. Let's take a look at why UEFA's financial fair play rules, as they stand, have a chance of making the problems in the game worse, not better (unless you're running one of the top 10 clubs, of course).

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Some people are just a little too sensitive, and throughout his career, Samuel Eto'o has demonstrated he's one of them. The most recent drama: after being criticized by former Cameroon great Roger Milla, Eto'o hinted he could sit out the World Cup. That's an overreaction to the statements of one person unassociated with the Cameroon Football Federation -- certainly England would have nobody on the roster if every former-great-turned-bitter-blowhard's criticism stung their players as much. As the team captain, the highest scoring player in the history of Cameroon as well as in the African Cup of Nations, a gold medalist for his country and so forth, Eto'o ought to be comfortable enough with his national contributions to shrug it off. Fortunately, after some ass-kissing by CFF execs, he will be on the plane. Somebody out there doesn't like me! I cannot go on. Offputting moments like these have popped up with Eto'o from time to time. In 2007, he once refused to go in as a sub for Barca, and everyone from the press to Ronaldinho weighed in with consternation. Before that, he derided Madrid fans via a chant calling them bastards when celebrating the 04-05 La Liga title. (Thanks Wikipedia!). And when he was shipped off to Inter this summer along with a boatload of cash for Ibrahimovic, people whispered about it being a locker room move as much as anything else. But we come not to bury Eto'o but to praise him. Because he's just won 6 major trophies in 2 years with 2 different teams in 2 different leagues playing 2 different roles, and nobody seems to care that we'll never see anything like it again.

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I don't care if you hate his style, I don't care if you hate his personality, I don't care if you hate his hair. (For some reason, I do kind of hate his hair). Today, the entire world -- even those detractors who scream into their pillows in frustration every night -- must bow to the footballing supremacy of Jose Mourinho. He's moving that ball WITH HIS MIND. He beat the English Champions and his former employers. He beat the Spanish champions and defending Euro kings with some luck but also after unjustly being dropped to 10 men. And he beat the German champions in a match his team managed to dominate despite having (wanting?) the ball only 30% of the time. How could you do better in one year than beating the champions of the top 3 leagues in the world on your way to the treble? And now he wants to move on, of course. After the dust settles on his dominance, some contrarians will peek out of their foxholes this summer and lob grenades like: 1) It's irresponsible/uncool not to stay at Inter and defend the treble. Oh yeah? Ask Pep Guardiola if he had as much fun this season as last. Never mind that 09-10 Barca might actually beat the 08-09 version if they could play each other. And never mind that he won La Liga with a stunning 99 points in what might've been the greatest two-team race in football history. I bet he feels disappointed right now, angry and frustrated and incomplete. He's probably slamming ulcer meds because epic success cannot be topped, and now the media, fans, players, and his own conscience will never let him forget that any season without 3 trophies will fall short compared to last year. Unlike Mourinho, of course, Pep is deeply loyal to his lifelong club, so he battles on. But if you're wondering whether it's "worth it" to stick around and defend a treble, whether Mourinho will miss out on some kind of awesome adventure, the answer is no. 2) Yeah, Pep's loyal! Jose's not, and that sucks. What is it with sports? Otherwise rational people who believe in democracy and personal freedom and such somehow demand blind and eternal fealty to a crest and a shirt, regardless of whether it's better for the person from whom they demand it. Jose gave Porto the title of a lifetime. He gave Chelsea their first English titles in almost 50 years. He delivered Inter one of the best trebles of all time. To put it another way, he sticks around until the job is done. Don't take it out on him that those who follow can't always build on his success. Clearly, Mourinho enjoys taking over troubled teams with excellent resources and delivering titles. He loves being the savior to fans used to bitter disappointment. And by now, no one can doubt he's the best there ever was at it. Why should he stick around in the shadow of his own success if that's not the challenge that appeals to him? How can a guy who provides the best season in the history of club after club somehow be indebted to any of them in any way? If anything, they should send him shavings from any subsequent hardware earned in his wake. Mourinho gets hired to take a team to the top of the mountain. He stays until he does that. In my book, that's plenty loyal. 3) Oooh, but he's regret going to Real Madrid this time! [sacarsm] Yeah, lots of coaches hate being given the most talent in the world, elite footballers who are burning with desire to unseat the nemeses that just whupped them. Coaches hate being handed even more money to augment such a squad. And coaches hate taking over the most popular team in the world at a time when expectations have ebbed to the point where any trophy will do. [/sarcasm] A lot of people believe the Galacticos can't win because there's too much 'me' and not enough 'us' in the locker room. And that's just what Mourinho wants you to think. There's not nearly enough appreciation for how Mourinho handled Samuel Eto'o at Inter this year. He took a guy who's supposedly a clubhouse problem, asked him to play support for another striker, and got nothing but good results (and no resistance) along the way. We'll talk more about Mr. Eto'o this week, but that's impressive coaching. And it's not like his Chelsea locker room was full of giving souls, either. Yet Mourinho always finds a way to build a hell of a machine from whatever parts you give him, so I'm fairly sure he won't regret being given the best possible parts and budget on the planet. Mourinho thrives on The Next Great Challenge. For him now, it'll be taking a 3rd team to a Champs title, overtaking what might be the best side in the world in Barca, and taming the massive egos and salaries at Real Madrid. After what he's done elsewhere, I can't actually imagine him being fully engaged by anything less. 4) He won't last long at Madrid, though! Duh. He doesn't last long anywhere. Again, he comes in to take a team to the top, then he moves on. So yeah, when he gets weary of the Spanish media, when he does his job with Real Madrid in whatever as-yet-unknown glorious fashion, he'll move on again. Maybe a national side for World Cup glory? Maybe taking a team from relegation in a league to the title? Maybe coaching Heaven vs Hell? Who knows. But odds are he won't move on until he's earned the right, just like he has at every stop before.

[Note: This piece was intended for Friday but our site issues held it up a bit.]

"I find it a complete disgrace and unacceptable," said Wenger. "We won't accept the way we have been treated in this case for two reasons. I believe that you can debate whether it was a penalty or not. For me it's a witch-hunt that we see and not an objective judgment of a case. "This charge implies there was intent and a desire to cheat the referee. Having watched the pictures again there was nothing conclusive. It singles out a player in Europe to be a cheat and that is not acceptable. Uefa has taken action that is not defendable."

So Eduardo made a run at goal and supposedly went down too easily. Now he's being reviewed. This is "undefendable"? In the immortal voice of Bill and/or Ted, you, like, protest way too much, dude. Is it worthy of review by UEFA? Was this a sinister act by Eduardo? Watch the play and replays and you decide: Here's my reaction:

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Does Europe not have delay? Are all the games available played live? In other words, is it REALLY SO HARD for the British announcers to refrain from discussing other Champions League qualifying matches while calling their own? I'm just saying.

As far as Champs qualifying rounds go, you couldn't ask for a better match-up than Arsenal-Celtic. A scrappy, capable underdog with rowdy home fans vs. everybody's Premier League darling from a few days ago. As stoney pointed out, injuries have dented Arsenal in the midfield, and I would agree with him that their best starting 11 pushes Arshavin back and brings in Eduardo. Here's what the series of tubes we call the internet has to say about the game today: Bleacher Report:

One of Arsenal's biggest advantages in this fixture is none other than the Celtic manager himself; Tony Mowbray. Forget about the fact that West Brom were relegated under him, he is a brilliant manager that refuses to give up on his beliefs. Mowbray plays attacking football and nothing else, that alone gives Arsenal the advantage that they are looking for. Playing against Arsenal in their own style is an attempt at suicide.

Who Ate All The Pies:

So this won't be another six-goal football lesson by Arsenal. Celtic will scrap and hustle and do everything they can to stay in the tie. A score draw then? I call 1-1.

Telegraph:

Hailing his young squad's unity it seems life at Arsenal is far more harmonious without Adebayor and Toure, who were both at the centre of dressing room unrest last season. “We have a united spirit," Wenger said ahead of his side's Champions League qualifier against Celtic.

Celtic @ The Offside:

I think Celtic will come out attacking and get an early goal. Arsenal will then be out for blood and pepper the Celtic goal, but the Bhoys will bend but not break and take a 1-0 lead to North London.

Remember this? It was only three days ago, and yet today's Champions League game will have a very different tone. Arsenal's midfield is currently in tatters. Walcott, Nasri, and Rosicky are out. Cesc and Denilson are questionable. Also, Sagna may not play today. If all of the questionable folks don't play, I think the starting lineup will be: Arshavin - RVP - Bendtner Song - Diaby - Ramsey Clichy - Gallas - Vermaelen - Eboue That midfield looks pretty rough. I'd prefer to start Eduardo up top and push Arshavin back to midfield for Ramsey, but I don't think the boss will do it. Today we need the goalscorers up front to show up. Alex Song also needs to have a big day and put the midfield on his shoulders. Come on you gunners.