Chamakh's Bordeaux lost yesterday

Bordeaux's hopes of a place in Europe next season ended on a sour note in Lens yesterday, as second half goals from Tofilou Maoulida and Issam Jemaá sealed a hard-fought 4-3 win for the home side - who had an extra man on the pitch.

Girondins Bordeaux, who just months ago were on track to retain their Ligue and Ligue Cup crowns desperately needed the three points in Lens to have any chance of pipping Montpellier to fifth place and the final Europa

Blanc "We earned our qualification" Chamakh "I hope we can avoid Lyon and Barcelona"

Laurent Blanc is a very happy man (kindly refer to the side bar for an
article on the importance he attached to winning the tie). I apologise
for my inability to embed the link inside the post, that's because I
am using my phone to blog.

Yesterday, the gaffer admitted that the onus was on them to win and
progress to the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the first
time in 22 years.
But today Blanc carries the aura of a fulfilled man. And he didn't shy
away from suggestions that French clubs are weak in Europe, instead
the Frenchman believes all that is about to change.

Blanc said: "We made a very positive start, we opened the scoring from
a set piece. There were lots of positives up until the 65th minute.
Altogether, they played a good match and we earned our qualification.

"We'll have to see how the French clubs go in to the quarter-finals.
If we make it through, it could well mean that French football has
bridged some of the gap behind the big countries like Spain, England
and even Italy. Among the eight clubs who are through to the quarters,
there are six or even seven who would want to be drawn with Bordeaux.
For me, there's one team I really want to avoid, that's Barcelona, who
remain the most frightening side in the competition."

Just like his Boss Arsenal target Chamakh has revealed that he's
scared of Barcelona and even Ligue 1 rival Lyon. Don't worry kid, you
can choose us. I promise we won't bore you guys with uninspiring
football, rather when we are done, you will definately attest to our
superiority.

The Moroccan international said, his late strike relieved him and his
team mates of the threat their visitors posed: "The Champions League
quarter-finals! If you'd told us at the start of the season that we'd
be here, we wouldn't have believed you. It was difficult, but we went
after this quarter-finals spot and it's a pure joy, a real pleasure.

"We can't deny that we had a few scares, when they equalised and the
fact that we were down to ten men.
The fact that I scored at the end was a big relief for me and the
team, I can't deny that. Now for the draw, I hope we can avoid Lyon
and Barcelona and go as far as possible in the competition. We'll play
without pressure."

Chamahk's Coach believes they can end their 22-year UCL quarter-final wait

Girondins de Boardeaux have every reason to fight to the finish today
as manager Laurent Blanc plots their first quarter-final breakthrough
in more than two decades.

A dip in form has seen the French Champions lose their massive nine
points advantage at the top of Ligue 1, excluding their match in hand.
They have failed to pick all three points from their last three
domestic games. Prompting the charge from Blanc, who would love
nothing but an uncomplicated win over Olympiakos (Bordeaux have the
advantage courtesy Michael Ciani's strike at Piraeus) in the return
leg of the UEFA Champions League to help his side regain a bit of
confidence needed to ease out their fears.

Bordeaux are France most experienced club, with a massive
record of 169 European matches to their credit. But Blanc knows his
team very well, and has acknowledged the simple fact that they are
under intense pressure to deliver tonight.

The gaffer, though is under no illusion that tonight's encounter with
Olympiakos will be a routine dispatch, and insists they must
rediscover the stellar form that helped them end Lyon's dominance last
year if they are to win a trophy this year.

"I hope the team rediscovers the competitive spirit we had in 2009,"
he said. "otherwise we will have problems both in the Champions League
and in the League. This game is a turning point. My team needs to
regain its soul."

Blanc is adamant they can scale through tonight's hurdle, if they
imbibe the mental strength and attitude that enabled them beat
Juventus 2-0 at the Stadio Olympico during the group stages of the
UEFA Champions League.

"We went to Turin with a lot of desire, we had the desire to play and,
above all, not feel what French clubs often feel against big famous
clubs - a certain fragility, a certain compley. My players got over
that," he concluded.

As Les Girondins look forward to exploring new possibilities, I wish
Chamack and the club he must leave come August, the very best in their
ensueing endeavour.