Arsenal and Barcelona advanced to the European Champions League final this week. A pair of scoreless draws were enough to see them through to the final (May 17 in Paris), but the games weren’t without drama. Arsenal keeper Jens Lehmann (the new German national team starter) had to turn away a Villarreal penalty shot in the 81st minute to preserve the Gunners’ spot; and AC Milan’s Andriy Shevchenko had a late game-winner against Barca disallowed on a questionable foul call. And just how deep is the English Premier League? This is the second year in a row that the fifth-place team in England has advanced to the Champions League final; Liverpool won it all over AC Milan in last year’s memorable final.
The FA Cup Final was set this week as well: It’ll be Liverpool and West Ham United, in a matchup of two of the top fan bases in the sport. Everybody loves the Merseysiders, and the Hammers are an East London working-class favorite (last seen around here as the home side in the SXSW Film People’s Choice winner Hooligans), back in the FA Cup Final for the first time in a quarter-century. May 13 in Millennium Stadium.
This article appears in April 28 • 2006.