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Lazio leaps ahead Barcelona drops as six new clubs make the grade
Posted: Monday October 18, 1999 05:23 PM
ATLANTA (CNN/SI) -- So much for last week's static Top 10. Six new teams appear this week on the CNN/World Soccer Top 10, a unique ranking of football clubs issued each Monday and determined through voting by correspondents from CNN Sports and World Soccer magazine. Italy's Lazio takes over the top spot from Barcelona, which had held the honor for three weeks. Lazio leapt to the top of the Serie A over the weekend with a 3-0 win against Udinese. The runner-up in Italy last year and the holder of the final Cup Winners Cup, Lazio defends its spot on top of Group A in the Champions League October 19 against Maribor of Slovenia. Jumping all the way to number two is Bundesliga leader Borussia Dortmund, which returns to the Top 10 after a one-week absence following a 2-0 win over Arminia Bielefeld on Friday. Dortmund takes on Norwegian champions Rosenborg Tuesday in Group C of the Champions League. Coming in at number three again is Manchester United, which may have taken a step toward regaining its form with a 4-1 win against Watford on Saturday. A tougher test comes Tuesday when it travels to take on Marseille in Champions League action. Barcelona ranks fourth after losing its lead in the Spanish Primera to newly promoted Rayo Vallecano. The defending Spanish champ was drawn twice in the last week, 2-2 at home against Real Madrid midweek and 3-3 with lowly Numancia on Saturday. Barca faces England's Arsenal Tuesday at Wembley in a battle for the lead in the Champions League Group B. Defending German champion Bayern Munich boosted its standing by three places by beating Hertha Berlin 3-1 on Saturday. Bayern travels to Valencia, Spain, on Wednesday looking to take over the lead in Champions League Group F. Appearing at number six is PSV Eindhoven, which is unbeaten and untied atop Holland's first division after eight games. By contrast, the Dutch club will look to pick up its first Champions League Group F win Wednesday at Glasgow Rangers. The next three spots are occupied by teams making their first appearance in the Top 10. Number-seven Spartak Moscow virtually clinched its seventh league title in eight years after beating city rival Lokomotiv 3-0 Saturday. The Russian club hosts Holland's Willem II Tilburg Wednesday with first place within sight in Champions League Group G. Coming in at number eight is Leeds United, which sits atop the English Premier League after 11 games. In at number nine is perennial Argentine power River Plate, which took a share of the league lead by downing defending champion Boca Juniors 2-0 over the weekend. Rounding out the Top 10 in a three-way tie are Italy's Inter Milan, Germany's Bayer Leverkusen and Brazil's Corinthians. Dropping out this week are AC Milan, Boca Juniors, Chelsea and Real Madrid.
Click here for the current set of Top 10 reactions.
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