UEFA Cup / Alsy / 12 March 2009 / Leave a comment

Alister Morgan looks at the careers of two Brazilian attackers, both successful, but maybe not playing for the clubs they expected to be...

A Brazilian teenager signs for Santos, is hailed as "the next Pele", plays for Brazil before being transferred to Europe. Thereafter it's a long career of outrageous stepovers, glittering trophies and trophy women. This should mirror the career paths of compatriots Robinho and Diego but both teenage prodigies left for Europe's elite only to find themselves in the Uefa Cup not the Champions League.

Diego made his debut for Santos aged-16, along with the 17-year-old Robinho. Both players quickly established themselves with devastating attacking play. Diego is a centre midfielder and number 10 in the classic Brazilian mould. Blessed with fantastic technique he operates best in the area between the halfway line and opposition area. Comparison with Kaka is not too far-fetched as the best parts of Diego's game are his ability to dribble past defenders and deliver sumptuous passes.

Diego boasted an impressive strike rate (a goal every three games for Santos) convincing FC Porto to buy him in 2004. They would have probably liked Robinho too, but Santos held onto him for another season. Real Madrid bagged Robinho for €24m but three years on both players have taken unexpected European detours.

Diego's stay in Portugal was short and unsuccessful so when the chance of a move to Werder Bremen arrived he took it and has flourished ever since. He remains the creative heart of the Bremen side scoring 34 times in 74 appearances to date but while Bremen sit mid-table in the Bundesliga they are performing well in the Uefa Cup.

Manchester City also remain in the Uefa mix with Robinho at the heart of their attacking play. One can only imagine what these former club-mates say about their 'day jobs' when on international duty.

Bremen entertain St Etienne; another side enduring a terrible domestic season lying one place above Ligue 1's relegation zone. Despite an impressive away win against Olympiakos in the last round the odds on another St Etienne win at [7.4] seem about right. Bremen are [1.58] to win which seems a little ungenerous for a team without a win in their last six Bundesliga games but this is the same squad who finished second to Bayern last season and qualified for the group stages of this years Champions League.

Diego isn't the only bright light in this underperforming team. Peruvian striker Claudio Pizzaro proved his pedigree with two goals against Milan in the last round while Torsten Frings and Clemens Fritz are available following injury. The Uefa Cup represents Bremen's final chance to turn around a disastrous season. I expect them to be too strong for Alain Perrin's team in this first-leg so I would back Bremen to win both halves at [4.3].

City fans shouldn't be fooled by the low profile of visiting team Aalborg. The Danish side sprung a few surprises in the Champions League group stages (including beating Celtic) and are currently 16-matches unbeaten. Mark Hughes' men are [1.57] to win or you can back AaB to win at [7.8] with the draw a generous [4.1]. The superior personnel at Hughes' disposal suggests a home win despite some serious injury problems with Vincent Kompany and Craig Bellamy likely to miss out. The good news is that Robinho is fit to play so City should maintain their impressive home record of scoring in almost every game.

The problem for both sides is inconsistent defending - Under 2.5 goals at [2.04] and Over 2.5 Goals at [1.93] sums things up well. Hughes barely has the personnel to grind out a 1-0 win but he does have a squad capable of scoring goals so I'd back City to win 2-1 at [10] or 3-1 at [15.5]. City should win comfortably but I suspect AaB (that undefeated streak has to be respected) will take an away-goal back to Denmark for an interesting second-leg.

Best Bets: Bremen Win Both Halves @ [4.3]; City win 3-1@ [15.5].