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| Monday, December 16, 2002 15:53 EST |
ESPN's World Club Top 25
[ESPN]
AC Milan, boosted by a pair of victories away from home this week, held onto the top spot in the ESPN World Club Top 25 for the second consecutive week. Filippo Inzaghi scored the game-winning goal in Dortmund while Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko scored the winner over Como in Serie A action on Sunday.
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The ESPN World Club Top 25, a computer based ranking of the world's top clubs, was developed by the staff at ESPN International in 1999. Now in its fourth season, the Top 25 formula takes into consideration performances in league, continental and cup competitions.
The Top 25 will be released every Sunday night throughout the football club season during ESPN's SportsCenter broadcast from Buenos Aires.
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ESPN's World Club Top 25: December 15, 2002 |
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Club
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Country
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Points
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Last Week
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Comment
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1. AC Milan
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Italy
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275.00
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1
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Serie A leaders en route to UCL quarterfinals
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2. Arsenal
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England
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265.44
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2
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1-1 draw in London derby at Tottenham
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3. Valencia
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Spain
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260.00
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4
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Carew: Two goals in win over Villarreal
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4. Inter Milan
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Italy
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259.50
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6
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Di Biagio: Two goals vs. Leverkusen
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5. Manchester United
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England
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259.36
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5
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Wins vs. Deportivo, West Ham at Old Trafford
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6. Real Madrid
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Spain
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257.38
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8
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Nine goals in last two league games
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7. Bayern Munich
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Germany
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246.10
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3
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Held to scoreless draw by Schalke
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8. Lazio
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Italy
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244.33
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10
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Fiore: Two goals in win at Juventus
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9. Borussia Dortmund
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Germany
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243.15
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9
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Rebound from Milan loss with 4-0 win at weekend
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10. Juventus
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Italy
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238.50
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7
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Loss at home to Lazio
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11. Real Sociedad
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Spain
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221.92
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12
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Third straight win; running away with La Liga
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12. Ajax
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Netherlands
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219.88
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11
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First loss in league play this season
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13. Independiente
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Argentina
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218.68
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13
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Idle
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14. FC Porto
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Portugal
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216.14
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16
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Still unbeaten in Portugal
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15. Santos
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Brazil
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213.39
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25
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First Brazilian league title in club history
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16. Deportivo La Coruna
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Spain
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211.57
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19
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Unbeaten in last eight in La Liga
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17. Morelia
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Mexico
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208.86
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20
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Advance to Mexican final
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18. Liverpool
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England
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207.56
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14
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2-1 loss at Sunderland
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19. San Lorenzo
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Argentina
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204.00
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16
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2002 Copa Sudamericana Champions
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20. Newcastle United
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England
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201.29
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17
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1-1 draw at Southampton
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21. Boca Juniors
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Argentina
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197.97
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21
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Idle
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22. Celtic
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Scotland
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197.50
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24
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Advanced to fourth round of UEFA Cup
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23. Besiktas
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Turkey
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195.66
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NR
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Moved into fourth round of UEFA Cup
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24. Werder Bremen
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Germany
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195.40
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NR
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Six points behind Bayern in Bundesliga
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25. River Plate
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Argentina
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194.73
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23
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Idle
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Dropped out:
No. 15 Real Betis (Spain)
No. 18 Celta Vigo (Spain) |
Arsenal and Valencia are chasing Milan for the top spot. The two clubs played to a scoreless draw in London this week in Champions League action.
Inter Milan and Manchester United are not far behind in the rankings. Both clubs also picked up a pair of wins this week.
Real Madrid rallied from a 2-0 deficit to defeat Recreativo 4-2 in Madrid on Sunday. Raul netted his fifth goal in his last three overall matches.
Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich tumbled out of the Top 5 after being held to a scorless draw by Schalke.
Dutch league leaders Ajax suffered its first defeat of the season in a 4-2 loss to rivals PSV on Sunday.
Morelia advanced to Mexican Apertura final despite a 2-1 loss to UNAM on Sunday. Morelia will meet Toluca in the two-leg final this week with the hopes of winning its second winter title in three seasons.
Santos recorded its first Brazilian title since the league was created 30 years ago. Santos, the eighth seed in the playoffs, defeated Sao Paulo, Gremio and Corinthians en route to the championship.
San Lorenzo won the Copa Sudamericana with a 4-0 aggregate victory over Atletico Nacional this week. San Lorenzo, the 2001 Mercosur Champions, took home a trophy for the second straight season.
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