UEFA Champions League: No Goals In Barcelona-Milan, But Bayern Munich Beat Marseille

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 Champions League: Barcelona Submit Formal Complaint Over Pitch

Barcelona failed to win the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarterfinal against AC Milan and, well, they're not very happy about it. Although the defending champions played fairly well, they weren't at their best and Milan were full value for the 0-0 draw, meaning that Pep Guardiola's side have failed to score an away goal in a knockout fixture for the first time ever.

So they're blaming the pitch:

FC Barcelona has lodged a complaint with UEFA over the state of the pitch at the Giuseppe Meazza (San Siro) stadium during the Champions League match.

While Barcelona may have had a point - the turf at the San Siro has been rather notoriously awful this year, and it's probably not a coincidence that it's been in particular poor condition whenever Milan have had to deal with passing-heavy sides - it's difficult not to see this as the Catalans not just being sore losers (draw-ers?). Barca give the impression that they simply expect the opposition to accept that Barcelona's way is the true way and not do anything about stopping them. That might be unfair, but since UEFA are highly unlikely to do anything about Wednesday's events, kicking up a public fuss about it is ultimately counterproductive.

Barcelona and AC Milan fought out a scoreless draw on Wednesday at the San Siro. For more on the two sides, check out Barca Blaugranes and the AC Milan Offside.

Marseille Vs. Bayern Munich, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Germans In Control After 2-0 Win

Bayern Munich look well on their way to a tantalizing UEFA Champions League semifinal tie against Real Madrid. The German club defeated Olympique Marseille, 2-0, in the first leg of their quarterfinal tie on Wednesday thanks to goals by Mario Gomez and Arjen Robben, putting them in complete control as they head back to the Allianz Arena for the second leg.

It was actually Marseille who almost struck early, but Manuel Neuer was there to make a tremendous save on a Stephane Mbia header. When the rebound fell to Loic Remy in front, he disappointingly blasted it into the side netting and Marseille's best chance was gone.

That Remy miss proved to be vital, but maybe not as vital as a referee's decision. Phillip Lahm handled a Marseille pass, but it went uncalled by the referee. He quickly turned it into a Bayern attack, too, and eventually Robben slipped Gomez in for a clinical finish. Controversial or not, the Germans were up, 1-0.

Neuer's save on Mbia wasn't the only time he was called into action. He made a few other nice saves and kept Marseille scoreless, and then in the 69th minute Robben put the tie to bed. The Dutchman put the Marseille defense on their heels before a beautiful one-two. Robben passed to Thomas Muller, who chipped the ball perfectly for Robben's run. A delicate first touch and cool finish to the far post was all it took and Bayern were on cruise control.

Neither Bayern Munich nor Marseille will be particularly happy with the way they played, but Marseille is just not a good team right now so Bayern didn't have to be good to win. Even Bastian Schweinsteiger's late yellow card, which will keep him out of the return leg, won't matter too much. Bayern are staring down the semifinals, where Real Madrid will likely await them. Let the drooling commence.

We'll have constant updates during this match in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on Bayern, head over to Bayern Munich blog Bavarian Football Works.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Final Score, Rossoneri Hold Blaugrana Scoreless

AC Milan will still be underdogs when they head to the Camp Nou, but they have done enough to deny Barcelona an away goal and give themselves a chance to advance to the UEFA Champions League semifinals. Milan couldn't create a goal themselves, but they defended brilliantly to hold on for a 0-0 draw.

The first half was a bit more eventful than the second, with Milan having more chances to score. Robinho had a terrible miss in the 2nd minute with a shanked volley, while Zlatan Ibrahimovic made a mess of a clear chance in the 20th minute for Milan. Barcelona had a couple of great opportunities, but some good goalkeeping by Christian Abbiati kept Barcelona off the scoreboard, along with one spectacular clearance by Luca Antonini on a 35th minute Alexis Sanchez breakaway.

The first half got off to a bad start for Milan, as Robinho picked up an injury in a challenge with Javier Mascherano in the 51st minute. He came back onto the pitch and attempted to run it off, but he was unable to continue. Stephan El Shaarawy came on to replace him.

Milan had an excellent spell of possession in the 57th minute and looked like they were going to at least challenge Victor Valdes, but no one was able to pull the trigger. Both Andres Nocerino and Ibrahimovic had great shooting opportunities, but opted to pass when they should have shot. Barca eventually won the ball back and sent Lionel Messi out on the counter. Alessandro Nesta stopped him from getting into a shooting position the only way he knew how.

In the 66th minute, Urby Emmanuelson came on for a tired-looking Kevin-Prince Boateng. It took just one minute for him to absolutely blow a golden chance. Ibrahimovic played him through on goal with a stunning through ball, but Emmanuelson somehow took a touch away from the goal that instantly took away a shooting chance, even though he was clearly one-on-one with Valdes. It was a touch almost too poor to be believed.

In the 74th minute, Milan had to take off Nesta, who was limping noticeably. With no true central defenders on teh bench, everyone watched in horror as Djamel Mesbah -- the goat of the 3-0 loss to Arsenal -- came on to the pitch. Daniele Bonera moved to the center of defense and Luca Antonini moved to right back.

While Mesbah didn't exactly do anything to improve his reputation, Antonini's move to right back turned out to be crucial. In the 87th minute, he made a fantastic clearance, denying Cristian Tello what would have been a game-winning goal.

This is the first time in nine games in all competitions that Lionel Messi has failed to score, and it is the first time in Pep Guardiola's tenure as Barcelona manager that he has failed to get an away goal in a Champions League knockout stage tie.

You can find all of our coverage from the day's games in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes and The AC Milan Offside.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Antonini Block Keeps Match Level

Wow, that's brilliant defending by AC Milan. There's a slip in the box and suddenly Lionel Messi is clear, forcing Christian Abbiati into a full-stretch save with a vicious low shot. The goalkeeper can't hold on, and the ball rolls towards the onrushing Cristian Tello, steaming in at the far post with what looks like an open goal to aim at. The youngster seems destined to score only for a superb sliding black by Luca Antonini to deny him. Fistpumps from the defender after that one, and well deserved - that was wonderful stuff.

Barcelona are still attacking, of course, and Messi gets tangled up with two players as he tries to break into the box again. The Argentinian hits the deck pretty hard but no penalty is given. It would have been a very soft call, but Jonas Eriksson could easily have given it to make up for the Alexis Sanchez non-penalty in the first half. Fortunately, he didn't. There are three minutes of injury time and it's still 0-0.

We'll have constant updates during this match in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes and The AC Milan Offside.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Milan Look To Hold On For Draw

AC Milan appear to be closing in on a very good result here. A 0-0 draw in the home leg against the better team is always welcome in the UEFA Champions League knockout stages, although nobody's managed it against Pep Guardiola's Barcelona in, well, ever. The Catalans have managed an away goal in every one of their knockout games over the last four seasons, which is fairly impressive stuff - Milan breaking that streak would be just as impressive.

The visitors aren't done attacking, however. Pedro and Cristian Tello are both looking lively, and it takes some very cool defending from Clarence Seedorf to clear the ball after a bit of a muddle on the left side of Christian Abbiati's penalty box - eventually the ball is removed from the Milan half for good when Carles Puyol brings down Stephan El-Shaarawy near the centre circle. Five minutes to go, and it's just a matter of the hosts hanging on. Can they do it?

We'll have constant updates during this match in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes and The AC Milan Offside.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Nesta Injured, Replaced By Mesbah

Oof, that's another injury blow for AC Milan. Alessandro Nesta is off for reasons that aren't entirely clear but definitely aren't tactical, because it's not-very-defensive fullback Djamel Mesbah who replaces him. Barcelona are difficult enough to beat at full strength, but Milan have now been forced into two injury-related substitutions and have none left to play with.

Barcelona do have subs left - Pedro is on for the impressive Alexis Sanchez. The visitors instantly go on the attack, and Cristian Tello combines with Lionel Messi to free up the latter near the penalty spot. A goal looks imminent until a wonderful block by Massimo Ambrosini deflects the ball behind for a corner. Carles Puyol nearly puts the ball in the back of the net from said corner with a quite wonderful diving header, but the ball trickles just wide of Christian Abbiati's far post with the goalkeeper helpless. Still 0-0, about ten minutes plus stoppages to go.

Follow Milan and Barcelona live in this story stream as we constantly update you with the latest news from both Champions League quarterfinal matches today. For more on the hosts, visit AC Milan Offside, and for the visitors check out Barca Blaugranes.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Milan Looking Strong

AC Milan might have looked overmatched for long, long spells of the first half, but they've probably been the better side in the second. Barcelona are being a little bit sloppy at both ends of the pitch now, giving away possession too easily ont he attack and letting Zlatan Ibrahimovic bully them when the hosts come forward, and that means that Milan can relax a little bit, holding possession in the visitors' half.

Barcelona look rattled, and they're being forced into rather aimless punts forward, which isn't like them at all. They'll need to settle down here or Milan look reasonably likely to shut them out (or even score a goal of their own), which would be a great result. This, of course, means that a Barca goal is imminent. On cue, Cristian Tello, who's on for Andres Iniesta, smacks the ball into the side netting.

We'll have constant updates during this match in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes and The AC Milan Offside.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Emanuelson Subbed On, Blows Chance With First Touch

It's gone eerily quiet on the Milanese front - quiet enough for me to check whether the Milanese front is actually a thing or not (Google says no, for whatever that's worth). The most interesting thing that's happened at the San Siro in the past few minutes has been Barcelona winning the first corner of the match via a nice piece of skill by Lionel Messi, but the delivery is totally wasted by Carles Puyol misjudging the flight of the ball while in acres of space. That's really shocking.

AC Milan have made a change, with Urby Emanuelson coming on for Kevin-Prince Boateng, and his first touch is pretty impressively bad. Zlatan Ibrahimovic flicks the ball around the Barcelona defence, Emanuelson is onto it in a flash, and for some reasons pushes the ball so far wide of goal the entire back line can catch up to him. That was a bit of a whoopsie.

We'll have constant updates during this match in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes and The AC Milan Offside.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Nesta Booked For Foul On Messi

Well that sure is interesting. AC Milan spring a quite brilliant counterattack, opening up Barcelona with a nice pass to Antonio Nocerino, who's in miles of space down the right flank. The midfielder drives forward only to see his low cross cut out by Carles Puyol, but Milan retain possession and cycle the ball back around Victor Valdes' box for a few seconds before another cross is swung towards the imposing figure of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Uncharacteristically, the big Swede miscontrols, and the chance is gone.

Barcelona aren't taking this lying down, of course - Alessandro Nesta has just been booked for a bizarre flying 'tackle' on Lionel Messi - entirely deserved, that - and the little Argentinian isn't far off from scoring with the resultant free kick. This match is still scoreless, and I'm not entirely how. About an hour gone at the San Siro.

We'll have constant updates during this match in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes and The AC Milan Offside.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Robinho Injury Forces Substition

Bad news for AC Milan - Robinho's managed to hurt himself and he won't be able to carry on. The Brazilian went down under a tackle from Javier Mascherano and was widely mocked by pretty much everyone for rolling around in pain after what looked like a pretty tame challenge, but the magical spray didn't fix him and it turns out he's actually hurt. I hope you bullies feel good about yourselves. Not really sure what's wrong with him though.

Anyway, Stephan El-Shaarawy comes on to replace the stricken striker. Does the youngster have what it takes to get Milan on the scoresheet? Probably not, but Milan can hope. They do look like they have a shot of beating Barcelona here, which would be a superb result, but they've wasted too many chances (including one by Robinho in the first minute) for their own good. Right now, their attacking play mostly appears to consist of Zlatan Ibrahimovic being offside.

We'll have constant updates during this match in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes and The AC Milan Offside.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Second Half Underway

The second half is underway at the San Siro, where Barcelona and AC Milan are locked in a scoreless draw. It's not even that one-sided, although the visitors are clearly the better side. Milan have had plenty of chances and could definitely win this, although they'll be very worried about the horrible, horrible things Alexis Sanchez and Xavi are doing to their defence. Look out for a big refereeing call this half after the former was incorrectly denied a penalty, incidentally.

It's Andres Iniesta who provides the first piece of real attacking thrust of the half, cutting inside from the left winger before fizzing a shot just wide of Christian Abbiati's near post. It's not close enough to really trouble the Milan man, however - Iniesta's taking too many of those low-percentage efforts to be a threat here. Still 0-0 here.

We'll have constant updates during this match in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes and The AC Milan Offside.

Marseille Vs. Bayern Munich, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Bavarians Lead 1-0 At Halftime

Update: Marseille 0-2 Bayern Munich, Final Score

Bayern Munich are in the drivers' seat in their UEFA Champions League tie against Marseille. The home side almost got to halftime with the score tied at 0-0, which would have suited them just fine, but they're in a big hole thanks to Mario Gomez's 44th minute goal. L'OM are going to be effectively out of the competition without a comeback in the second half, and Bayern will feel very comfortable with their 1-0 lead.

Marseille actually had the first great opportunity in the match to score. In the 8th minute, Manuel Neuer saved a header from Stephane Mbia on a corner kick, but his save fell to Loic Remy. The Marseille striker had room to shoot and teammates to cross to, but instead put a bad shot into the side netting.

The Bayern goal came just before half in beautiful, though controversial fashion. Mario Gomez applied the finish on the end of a beautiful team move.

But wait, how did that move start? How does Phillip Lahm win the ball back from Mathieu Valbuena before starting that attack?

Oh.

We'll have constant updates during this match in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on Bayern, head over to Bayern Munich blog Bavarian Football Works.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Scoreless At Halftime In Entertaining Match

Update: AC Milan 0-0 Barcelona, Final Score

AC Milan are currently keeping a clean sheet against Barcelona, and they're not bad going forward themselves. Some suspected that this marquee UEFA Champions League quarterfinal could turn into a complete mismatch with Thiago Silva and Ignazio Abate on the sidelines injured, but it's gone well so far. Barcelona look like the slightly better side, but Milan are holding their own and will be pleased to go into halftime of the first leg with a 0-0 draw.

The truth is, Milan should have taken the lead in the opening minutes. Robinho had the game's first great chance in the 2nd minute, but he shanked a wide-open volley terribly.

The next 15 minutes or so were all Barcelona, and they probably should have scored. Their first great chance came in the 9th minute, after a terrible AC Milan giveaway. Lionel Messi had a close-range shot, but Christian Abbiati came up with the save. Daniel Alves had a chance to score on the rebound, but his shot was blocked and cleared away.

Barcelona had a massive penalty shout in the 16th minute and they were unlucky not to get it. Alexis Sanchez was brought down by Abbiati as he extended for the ball, but the referee waived play on. The ball was running away from Sanchez and it wasn't denial of a goal scoring opportunity, but Abbiati did make significant contact. Judge for yourself whether or not a penalty should have been given.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic had a brilliant chance to put his team ahead four minutes later, but couldn't take it. Clarence Seedorf set him up with an absolutely stunning through ball, but Ibrahimovic couldn't hit his shot correctly and put a weak effort directly into the stomach of Victor Valdes.

Barcelona would create a couple more chances before the halftime whistle blew, but was unable to capitalize. Messi set up Xavi Hernandez with a spectacular one-touch give-and-go move in the 26th minute, but Xavi's shot was saved by Abbiati. In the 35th minute, Alexis Sanchez found himself one-on-one with Abbiati after a clearance over the top of the defense turned into a scoring opportunity for the Chilean, but Luca Antonini recovered to make a spectacular last-ditch tackle.

Barca have all of the possession as expected, but it's been a fairly even match. Milan look capable of scoring, and a Barcelona goal seems likely, but certainly not inevitable.

We'll have constant updates during this match in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes and The AC Milan Offside.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Milan Still Looking To Counter

Stop the presses: Lionel Messi just completely misjudged the flight of a path. The Argentinian allows Barcelona to lose possession in the middle of the pitch and AC Milan can break upfield, Antonio Nocerino taking advantage of Andres Iniesta's apparent refusal to track back to surge down the right wing and cross for Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who has his hand in the air to annoy Dani Alves.

The Brazilian screams for handball, but Ibrahimovic pulls his arms down before the ball gets to him, and eventually possession falls to Robinho, who could be ambitious and take a shot or could pass it backwards for a rather more useless long-range shot. Guess which one happens!

Barcelona manage to regroup and attack, with Xavi (who's been brilliant so far) blasts just over the crossbar after Milan's defence once again completely fails to track him. The hosts are using a zonal marking system, which means they're not getting drawn out of position by Barca... but they're also not actually tackling them either, which could be problematic. Still 0-0 at the San Siro, anyway, and halftime looms.

Follow Milan and Barcelona live in this story stream as we constantly update you with the latest news from both Champions League quarterfinal matches today. For more on the hosts, visit AC Milan Offside, and for the visitors check out Barca Blaugranes.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Antonini Tackle Saves Milan

It's deflections o'clock at the San Siro, apparently. It's also Barcelona crosses-o'clock as the Catalans routinely eviscerate AC Milan's back line. Dani Alves is the latest to whip in a delivery, and Chrisian Abbiati is again fairly happy that the resultant shot takes a strange bounce and ends up looping into his gloves.

At the other end of the pitch, Zlatan Ibrahimovic decides to take on all three Barcelona centre backs and, amazingly, nearly manages it before being thwarted by the wonderfully-maned Carles Puyol, who immediately starts a counterattack which releases Alexis Sanchez straight down the middle. The Chilean looks like he's one-on-one with Abbiati, but Luca Antonini comes out of nowhere with a superb sliding tackle and saves the day for Milan. That was very, very close to the opener.

And then Milan counter, working both sides of the pitch superbly only for Clarance Seedorf to completely mishit an admittedly very difficult volley. This is a good game, incidentally. If you hate defending, anyway.

Follow Milan and Barcelona live in this story stream as we constantly update you with the latest news from both Champions League quarterfinal matches today. For more on the hosts, visit AC Milan Offside, and for the visitors check out Barca Blaugranes.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Both Sides Continuing To Attack

This is much more fun than Barcelona's away match against Bayer Leverkusen - AC Milan are here to play football rather than do defensive drills for ninety minutes, and that means some neat little attacks for both sides. Inevitably, that means the hosts are leaking chances, but they're doing their fair share of attacking as well, and Kevin-Prince Boateng has just blazed over the bar following decent work by Robinho and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. It was recalled for a handball somewhere in the buildup, however.

The whole Barcelona back line is looking pretty nervous about having to deal with Milan's potent front line. They're not passing well, they're not clearing effectively and they're making mistakes. It's almost as bad as watching Arsenal against Ibrahimovic, except for the fact that Milan almost never have the ball. As long as Barcelona retain possession, they're safe, and they'll probably score an away goal at some point too. They nearly manage it with a really lovely piece of play which ends in a Xavi shot - but unfortunately for the visitors it's deflected into Christian Abbiati's grateful hands.

Follow Milan and Barcelona live in this story stream as we constantly update you with the latest news from both Champions League quarterfinal matches today. For more on the hosts, visit AC Milan Offside, and for the visitors check out Barca Blaugranes.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Seedorf Booked, Abbiati Saves From Xavi

We've got our first booking of the match, and it goes to one of AC Milan's elder statesmen. You don't often think of Clarence Seedorf as particularly chippy, but the veteran midfielder decided to show Xavi he was around with a late shoulder charge, and referee Jonas Eriksson decides it's worth a yellow card. Was a tad soft to me, but that's probably because I've been watching too much Premier League football.

Anyway, things are still mostly Barcelona here at the San Siro, which is basically what you'd expect, but Milan are still pressing extremely hard whenever the ball gets into the visitors half, which is not often, and Barcelona's defence looks pretty nervous. Not as nervous as Milan's, mind - they don't seem to be able to track Barcelona's movement, and they're getting ripped apart whenever the Catalans go forward. Xavi and Lionel Messi combine for a one-two that bypasses six players, and Christian Abbiati just about beats the former's shot away. If that had fallen to Messi... well.

Follow Milan and Barcelona live in this story stream as we constantly update you with the latest news from both Champions League quarterfinal matches today. For more on the hosts, visit AC Milan Offside, and for the visitors check out Barca Blaugranes.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Messi Goal Disallowed, Valdes Makes Key Save

Barcelona finally have the ball in the back of the net at the San Siro, but they don't have the advantage over AC Milan in their UEFA Champions League quarterfinal - Lionel Messi's close range finish has been ruled out for offside. The visitors' movement is simply overwhelming Milan's defence, and there was an another example here as the Rossoneri were caught too narrow, allowing Dani Alves to surge down the right and play a tidy cross for the Argentinian to finish. He was well offside, so it was a good call.

Milan aren't defending well, but they're still a very potent attacking force and it's former Barca man Zlatan Ibrahimovic who's causing the most trouble. Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano are theoretically defending him, but Clarance Seedorf slips the big Swede through with a brilliant through ball only for Victor Valdes to make the save one on one. That was a chance he had to put away.

Follow Milan and Barcelona live in this story stream as we constantly update you with the latest news from both Champions League quarterfinal matches today. For more on the hosts, visit AC Milan Offside, and for the visitors check out Barca Blaugranes.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Visitors Denied Clear Penalty

Things are starting to calm down a little bit, which is good for Barcelona because they're so ludicrously good at keeping possession and they'll be able to wear AC Milan out if they can keep hold of the ball. It's not so good for the entertainment value of the game - the opening exchanges were both exciting and hilarious, and I was hoping that things would keep going on in that sort of range.

Instead, the last few minutes have mostly focused on the visitors keeping possession thirty yards from Christian Abbiati's goal, and a long spell of possession ends with Luca Antonini chopping Lionel Messi down. Dani Alves looks like he's going to take the free kick, but Barca run a trick play and Alexis Sanchez looks certain to score after working free six yards out. Abbiati comes out, and Sanchez gets barrelled over by the goalkeeper. No penalty is given for some reason, possibly involving the Chilean's reputation for diving. Barcelona are furious, and for good reason. That was fairly clear-cut.

Follow Milan and Barcelona live in this story stream as we constantly update you with the latest news from both Champions League quarterfinal matches today. For more on the hosts, visit AC Milan Offside, and for the visitors check out Barca Blaugranes.

GIF: Robinho Thinks The Goal Is 30-Feet Tall

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Dani Alves Misses Barcelona's 1st Chance

Not so much with the free kick then. Lionel Messi had done brilliantly to earn a foul just outside Christian Abbiati's box, weaving through three defenders before Alessandro Nesta brought him down with a nasty little foul, but his delivery left something to be desired, starting with not falling over. The ball ends up flying through the AC Milan anyway, leaving Seydou Keita to try to nod home in acrobatic and ultimately futile fashion, but he was offside anyway so no worries there.

There's better from Barcelona's perspective on the next real attack. Milan's defence gets confused when Xavi pushes forward into the box, and the Spain star lays the ball off to Messi, whose fairly tame shot is spilled by Abbiati. Right back Dani Alves is onto the loose ball in a flash, but somehow he fails to turn the ball into an empty net. Both sides probably ought to have scored already - this is a very very open match.

Follow Milan and Barcelona live in this story stream as we constantly update you with the latest news from both Champions League quarterfinal matches today. For more on the hosts, visit AC Milan Offside, and for the visitors check out Barca Blaugranes.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Game Underway, Milan Blow Early Chances

We're off and running at the San Siro, where AC Milan are taking on Barcelona in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarterfinals. Milan have never lost a home quarterfinal in the CL, and so far things are looking pretty good for the hosts. They're putting significant pressure on Barcelona's back line and are forcing their guests into some crazy mistakes. It's something of a miracle (from Barca's standpoint) that Milan aren't already ahead.

A mistake from Javier Mascherano ended up gifting Kevin-Prince Boateng with a free shot on goal from 16 yards, but the Nigerian hesitated and saw his drive blocked. Seconds later, Zlatan Ibrahimovic managed to send in a header that released Robinho one on one against Victor Valdes, but the Brazilian skied his effort harmlessly over when you'd have put money on him to bury it. I have no idea how he failed to score there.

Barcelona are doing some attacking of their own, and Lionel Messi has given Milan a scare with a driving cross before winning a free kick at the edge of the box, but the home side have had the better chances early. Let's see what Barca make of this set piece though...

Follow Milan and Barcelona live in this story stream as we constantly update you with the latest news from both Champions League quarterfinal matches today. For more on the hosts, visit AC Milan Offside, and for the visitors check out Barca Blaugranes.

Marseille Vs. Bayern Munich, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Lineups

Marseille are without Steve Mandanda in goal and they're in pretty terrible form at the moment. All signs point to them struggling to deal with Bayern Munich. Bayern's defense is hardly spectacular, however, and the home side has plenty going forward. It seems highly unlikely that they're going to be able to prevent the Bavarians from getting an away goal, but a win will keep things interesting. They have a shot at that, with Loic Remy surprisingly in the starting lineup after recovering from an injury. Bayern Munich field their new standard-issue lineup with Rafinha out for bad form and Bastian Schweinsteiger out for yet another injury issue.

Marseille Lineup (4-2-3-1): Andrade; Fanni, Nkoulou, Morel, Azpilicueta; Diarra, Mbia; A. Ayew, Valbuena, Amalfitano; Remy

Bayern Munich Lineup (4-2-3-1): Neuer; Alaba, Badstuber, Boateng, Lahm; Luiz Gustavo, Kroos; Robben, Müller, Ribery; Gomez

Kickoff is at 2:45 p.m. ET, 8:45 p.m. local time from Stade Velodrome in Marseille. You can find the game on FOX Soccer Plus in the USA, Sportsnet regionals in Canada and Sky Sports 2 in the UK.

We'll have live coverage of the game in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on Bayern, head over to Bayern Munich blog Bavarian Football Works.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Lineups

The absences of Eric Abidal and Adriano mean that basically every Barcelona lineup is a mystery. We can argue about the formation until we're blue in the face, but it's impossible to tell until they take the pitch. Even then, they're Barcelona, and the formation doesn't matter that much. If they play a back four, Carles Puyol will play left back. If not, he'll play left central defense with Daniel Alves as a right forward. Kevin-Prince Boateng and Clarence Seedorf return for Milan, while Massimo Ambrosini is in for the suspended Mark van Bommel and Alessandro Nesta starts in place of the injured Thiago Silva.

AC Milan Lineup (4-3-1-2): Abbiati; Antonini, Mexes, Nesta, Bonera; Nocerino, Ambrosini, Seedorf; Boateng; Ibrahimovic, Robinho

Barcelona Lineup (3-4-3): Valdes; Puyol, Pique, Mascherano; Busquets, Keita, Xavi, Iniesta; Sanchez, Messi, Alves

Kickoff is at 2:45 p.m. ET, 8:45 p.m. local time from the San Siro in Milan. You can catch the game on FOX Soccer Channel in the USA, Sportsnet World in Canada, and Sky Sports 1 in the UK.

We'll have live coverage of the game in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes and The AC Milan Offside.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 Champions League: Write Off Milan At Your Peril

AC Milan's victory over Arsenal in the last round of the UEFA Champions League is a quarterfinal tie against Barcelona. That's generally been a death sentence for European teams - in the last three seasons the only side that's been able to get past the Catalans has been Inter Milan under Jose Mourinho. Barcelona are favourites in this tie and the smart money is probably on them winning the whole thing, and that means that Milan are being written off in advance.

If you're a Milan fan, that must be frustrating. The Rossoneri are a genuinely good side. They won the Scudetto in the 2010/11 season. They absolutely annihilated Arsenal in the first leg of their knockout-round tie, winning 4-0 at the San Siro, and lest anyone forget, they've already played Barcelona this season, losing 5-4 on aggregate but earning a 2-2 draw at the Camp Nou in the process. They're too good a team to simply write off here, and Gianfranco at the AC Milan Offside is frustrated that the world at large is doing just that.

[In] the first CL final I remember, I had to listen to pundits laud Cruyff's Barca and that Milan had no chance. I had to hear how Milan couldn't compete because Baresi was out injured or that our team couldn't handle the free flowing football. Now, seventeen years later it is the same old song and dance. Silva is hurt probably won't play, Milan is to old and slow to compete. Don't you think people would learn a bit from history? I am not saying it is going to be easy, in fact I am not even saying it is possible, but I sure as hell am not going to roll over and concede this tie

Milan aren't favourites, or anything particularly close, but there's no reason that they'll fold like APOEL Nicosia did against Real Madrid. The last time Barcelona went to the San Siro in a knockout game, they were beaten 3-1 by unfancied Inter and then eliminated in the reverse fixture. Can we honestly say that there's no way Milan can do the same?

We'll have live coverage of the game in our UEFA Champions League Wednesday StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes and The AC Milan Offside.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, UEFA 2012 Champions League: Barcelona Must Take Milan Seriously

Are Barcelona really the best team in the world? For some, that sort of claim rings inherently false - the defending European champions don't even appear to be the best team in Spain. They're nowhere near Real Madrid in La Liga, so how can they really be the world's best?

In response, the easy answer is that the dropped points in the league aren't an accurate reflection of Barcelona's talent, and that perhaps the team as a whole is a little bit jaded. Motivation, apparently, is the key to explaining their lack of form against the smaller clubs, the one Jose Mourinho's Madrid are routinely annihilating. Barcelona's play in the big matches are cited as evidence that they're essentially the unstoppable force we've gotten used to over the last few seasons. All they need is to care.

That's the view Arron Duckling over at Barca Blaugranes subscribes to, and that means that he believes Pep Guardiola has a critically important role in the match. He needs to get his side to treat UEFA Champions League quarterfinal opponents AC Milan seriously at the San Siro in order to get Barcelona to produce the sort of football that can kill off the tie in the first leg:

Clearly, Pep feels that motivation is the issue, and his quotes in the pre-match press conference hint to me that he wants the team to send him a message tomorrow. As per usual, he will give out the ingredients for success; it’s down to the players to cook up a treat on the San Siro pitch. With the title race becoming a factor once again, it would be so easy for the players to get carried away with their own hype. Even though they have been playing badly over the course of the season, they are still in with a shout of winning the title, surely they can get away with an average performance here and there?

Not so, Pep says "the only sure thing is that if we don't play two extraordinary games we won't make it to the semi-final". Once again, I agree totally, but I have faith in the team. They have been in this situation plenty of times before, they know what it will take, and I think they will deliver.

In all probability, Barcelona will deliver. Their domestic form could be better, it's true, but they absolutely demolished a good side in Bayer Leverkusen in the Round of 16, and there's no reason to think they can't beat Milan today. It's simply a question of whether the Serie A leaders can keep it close for later.

Marseille Vs. Bayern Munich, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Bayern Looking For Key Away Win

Let's face it - Marseille are probably going to get absolutely hammered by Bayern Munich on Wednesday.

AC Milan Vs. Barcelona, 2012 UEFA Champions League: Defensive Absences Hinder Rossoneri

AC Milan are dealing with injury troubles, and their backup defenders will need to step up against Barcelona.