AS Roma made it to 19 games unbeaten and Arik Benado set a new Israeli record while yellow boots, Serbian Oscars and slap-up meals in Lyon feature in UEFA.com's pick of the footballing stories this week.

Team: AS Roma
A 1-0 win at ACF Fiorentina on Sunday was Roma's 19th game without defeat in all competitions and their eighth successive win as the Giallorossi continue to climb the Serie A table. They are now second, nine points behind leaders FC Internazionale Milano. "I don't think there is a team who can compete with Inter in Serie A at the moment," said coach Claudio Ranieri, who replaced Luciano Spalletti early in the season after a poor start to the campaign. "If our fans are dreaming about the Scudetto, they should wake up sharpish. We want to finish in the top three; this is our real objective." Should Roma, who host US Città di Palermo on Saturday, continue on this path, Inter could yet find they are no longer frontrunners in a one-horse race.

Player: Arik Benado (Beitar Jerusalem FC)
Already Israel's most-capped player at senior (94 appearances) and Under-21 (39) levels, Benado reached another landmark when he broke the record for top-flight appearances in Israel last weekend, playing his 535th game as his Beitar Jerusalem FC side drew 0-0 against Bnei Yehuda FC. "For a guy who starts playing football at a young age, 535 appearances sounds like an imaginary figure," the 36-year-old former Maccabi Haifa FC defender said. "Some of the youngsters at the club joke that I began my career playing alongside Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. I just laugh it off, though now more than ever is the time for them to peddle out that gag."

Swings and roundabouts: Stade Rennais FC
Ligue 1 club Stade Rennais FC kissed the stars and hit rock bottom in the space of a few days after following up a memorable victory with a surprise defeat. Having ended FC Girondins de Bordeaux's 15-game unbeaten run with a 4-2 victory at the Route de Lorient Stadium on Saturday, coach Frédéric Antonetti warned "we must keep our feet on the ground". Three days later, he watched his side lose 1-0 to fourth-tier US Quevilly in the French Cup round of 16. "You could give any explanation in the world and it would not be enough," he said. "Bordeaux came to play; Quevilly kept it tight. It's like a massive slap."

Quote: Marcello Lippi (Italy)
"With a song like that the Italy coach has to be there, but the people of Italy need not worry; I will not sing."
The Italy coach assured guests at the Sanremo Music Festival that their ears would not be at risk after he was announced as guest of honour at an event which will feature pop star Pupo (son of the heir to the now defunct Italian throne) dueting with tenor Luca Canonici on the song Italia Amore Mio.

Odd man out: Dick Advocaat (Belgium)
Sunday's UEFA EURO 2012 qualifying draw in Warsaw threw up the usual exciting array of ties, but Belgium's Dutch coach Dick Advocaat could have been forgiven for feeling a bit left out when he joined the coaches of Germany (Joachim Löw), Austria (Dietmar Constantini), Azerbaijan (Berti Vogts) and Kazakhstan (Bernd Storck) on the podium; after all, he was the only one that did not speak German as a first language. Having coached VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach in the mid-2000s, 'The Little General' will sprechen a kleine bit of Deutsch, but may be hoping that the other country in Group A, Turkey, appoint a Dutchman to even up the balance a little.

Oscar winner: Radomir Antić (Serbia)
National team boss Radomir Antić has been named as the most popular man in Serbia after leading his side to the 2010 FIFA World Cup, outstripping local Olympic committee chairman and former basketball star Vlade Divac and fashion model-turned-humanitarian Katarina Rebrača in a public vote to identify the nation's personality of the year. Resisting Hollywood starlet–style tears as he collected his 'Oscar', the 61-year-old said: "This is proof that our national team has the full understanding and support of the supporters. This is an award for the Serbian football family and the Football Association of Serbia; I am proud and on the wings of this award we will fly onward."

Boot-y call: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid CF)
A cloud of mystery hangs over Real Madrid CF's training base after Cristiano Ronaldo was unable to find a pair of yellow boots to train in. Microphones picked him up shouting: "The yellow boots, who has them? Where are they?" The Portugal winger's delight when said boots finally arrived on Wednesday was swiftly overshadowed by Rafael van der Vaart's shock press conference admission that he would be backing his team's local rivals, Club Atlético de Madrid, in their game against league leaders FC Barcelona at the weekend. Admitting that he would be a "fan of Atléti" for the duration of the match, the Dutchman added: "Barcelona won't slip up many times this season, but this week they are coming to Madrid and I have a lot of faith in Atlético; they are going to beat Barça."

Lazarus act: Maccabi Kabilyo Yaffo FC
Back to Israel, where a club founded two years ago by fans following the dissolution of local side Maccabi Jaffa FC in the late 1990s have shocked the nation by reaching the last 16 of the State Cup, beating second-division Hapoel Ironi Kiryat Shmona FC 1-0. The team named in honour of legendary Jaffa goalkeeper Herzel Kabilyo have benefited from the presence of Hapoel Tel-Aviv FC assistant coach Yossi Abuksis in their ranks, but the 39-year-old missed the Kiryat Shmona game because he was on a scouting mission watching FC Rubin Kazan. "The cup is a bonus but our main objective is to bring Jaffa back into the top flight," said the midfielder. "It all began as a joke and a project of two fans but it has turned into a legitimate club."

Good host: Jean-Michel Aulas (Olympique Lyonnais)
Olympique Lyonnais president Jean-Michel Aulas heads up the wealthiest club in France, but he will be breaking bread with the poorest of the poor after inviting the president, coach and captain of third-division Stade Plabennecois Football to the Stade de Gerland for the UEFA Champions League first knockout round game against Real Madrid. With his side freshly qualified for the French Cup last 32, Plabennec president Hervé Le Foll revealed that he wanted Lyon in the next round after saying that the cash-strapped outfit had never received a reply from Aulas having pleaded with the club to participate in a pre-season friendly to raise funds. Aulas responded immediately by inviting Le Foll and colleagues to share the bounty of his footballing feast next week. Bon appétit to all.