Manchester United's brutal stretch of tough matches continues on Sunday with a showdown against rival Liverpool, a match-up that headlines This Weekend's Soccer on TV.
A mid-week loss to Chelsea has shaved Manchester United's lead over Arsenal down to four points, with the Gunners holding a game in hand, which means United can't afford to slip up again. Liverpool has other concerns, namely holding on to Europa League berth, with a Champions League place looking too far out of reach.
There are top match-ups all across Europe this weekend. Steve Cherundolo and Hannover 96 take on Bayern Munich in a battle for a UEFA Champions League berth, while Marseille and Lille square off in a match-up of two of the top teams in France.
Here is a rundown of This Weekend's Soccer on TV, as well as SBI's Top Ten Matches to Watch:
SBI's TOP TEN MATCHES TO WATCH
1. Liverpool vs. Manchester United. The rivalry is fierce enough, but both teams needs points from this one.
2. Hannover 96 vs. Bayern Munich. Steve Cherundolo's Hannover side is trying to hold onto third place in the Bundesliga against a suddenly struggling Bayern squad.
3. Fulham vs. Blackburn. Clint Dempsey and Jermaine Jones square off in what should be a fierce and entertaining contest.
4. Bolton vs. Aston Villa. Stuart Holden could square off against Michael Bradley in a game Villa needs badly to stop a recent slide.
5. Juventus vs. AC Milan. This match-up would usually be one or two on this list, but Juve's struggles drop it a notch. Should still be a fun one to watch.
6. Olympique Marseille vs. Lille. First-place Lille stands just a point ahead of Marseille, who just might be distracted by the impending Champions League match vs. Manchester United.
7. Atletico Madrid vs. Villarreal. Diego Forlan, Sergio Aguero and Giuseppe Rossi all doing battle? Expect plenty of attacking soccer and goals.
8. Chivas Guadalajara vs. Tigres. Long-time Chivas USA defender Jonathan Bornstein faces the Mothership for the first time.
9. Lazio vs. Palermo. Lazio's Hernanes and Palermo's Javier Pastore are two of the best players in Serie A, and this one
10. Arsenal vs. Sunderland. Can the Gunners keep the pressure on Manchester United with a win against a Sunderland side fighting for a Europa League berth?
THIS WEEKEND'S SOCCER ON TV
FRIDAY
2:45pm- ESPN3.com– Lecce vs. AS Roma
9pm- Galavision– Tecos vs. Pachuca
3am- Fox Soccer Channel– Central Coast Mariners vs. Gold Coast United
SATURDAY
7:45am- ESPN2- Birmingham City vs. West Bromwich Albion
9:30am- GolTV– Hannover 96 vs. Bayern Munich
10am- Fox Soccer Channel– Arsenal vs. Sunderland
10am- FoxSoccer.tv– Fulham vs. Blackburn
10am- Fox Soccer Plus– Newcastle vs. Everton
10am- FoxSoccer.tv– West Ham United vs. Stoke City
Noon- ESPN3.com– Mallorca vs. Valencia
Noon- Fox Soccer Plus– Fulham vs. Blackburn (Delayed)
12:20pm- FoxSoccer.tv– Cardiff City vs. Ipswich Town
12:30pm- Fox Soccer Channel– Manchester City vs. Wigan Athletic
12:30pm- GolTV– Bayer Leverkusen vs. VfL Wolfsburg
1pm- FoxSoccer.tv– Caen vs. Saint Etienne
1pm- FoxSoccer.tv– Lorient vs. Nancy
1pm- FoxSoccer.tv– Montpellier vs. Stade Rennes
1pm- FoxSoccer.tv– Nice vs. Lens
1pm- FoxSoccer.tv– Toulouse vs. Sochaux
1pm- FoxSoccer.tv- Valenciennes vs. Monaco
2pm- ESPN3.com– Barcelona vs. Real Zaragoza
2pm- Fox Soccer Plus– Cardiff City vs. Ipswich Town (Delayed)
2:45pm- Fox Soccer Channel- Juventus vs. AC Milan
3pm FoxSoccer.tv– Auxerre vs. Paris St. Germain
4pm- GolTV– Atletico Madrid vs. Villarreal
5pm- Fox Soccer Channel– Bolton vs. Aston Villa
6pm- Telemundo– Monterrey vs. Queretaro
6:20pm- GolTV– Nacional de Medellin vs. Junior Barranquilla
7:55pm- Telefutura– Santos Laguna vs. Club America
8pm- Telemundo– Chivas Guadalajara vs. Tigres UANL
10pm- Telefutura– Atlante vs. UNAM Pumas
10pm- Galavision– San Luis vs. Jaguares (Delayed)
SUNDAY
6:30am- ESPN3.com– Sampdoria vs. AC Cesena
8:30am- Fox Soccer Channel- Liverpool vs. Manchester United
9am- ESPN3.com– Inter Milan vs. Genoa
9:30am- ESPN3.com– SC Freiburg vs. Werder Bremen
10:30am- ESPN3.com– Ajax Amsterdam vs. AZ Alkmaar
11am- Fox Soccer Channel– Wolverhampton vs. Tottenham
11am- DirecTV– Sporting Gijon vs. Getafe
11am- ESPN3.com– Malaga vs. Osasuna
11am- DirecTV– Levante vs. Espanyol
11am- FoxSoccer.tv– Brest vs. Bordeaux
11am- FoxSoccer.tv– Olympique Lyon vs. Arles
11am- Fox Soccer Plus– West Ham United vs. Stoke City
1pm- GolTV– Athletic Bilbao vs. Sevilla
1pm- Telemundo– Toluca vs. Morelia
2:45pm- ESPN3.com– Lazio vs. Palermo
3pm- GolTV– Racing Santander vs. Real Madrid
3pm- Fox Soccer Plus– Olympique Marseille vs. Lille
3:15pm- ESPN3.com– Sporting Braga vs. Benfica
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What matches are you most looking forward to? Who do you see winning the United-Liverpool clash? Which match-up of Americans facing each other do you think will be the most entertaining?
Share your thoughts below.
I bet 10bux says Holden scores against you guys tomm.
I got that feelin, that cowbell fever feelin
Villa have had a “recent slide”? We’ve only lost 2 of the last 10 in all competitions. We took 12 of 21 points from league matches during that span. Not title-winning form, but not a “recent slide” either.
Very, very little chance that Bradley will start tomorrow.
Woops. YES, those dates are one day forward for each!
I know that it’s a time slot / contractural thing. Although I’m hoping someone could explain it further.
ESPN gets the Lunchtime kick off game, which ever that game that is. And I think it’s somewhat the featured game that day.. (I noticed the SKY advertisement for the game on SKY sportsnews. I think it’s like the Thurs night NFL network game. They make the schedule well in advance, they try to spread the coverage around and hope some of the games they pick will turn out interesting.
Agreed. With all the games to choose from how can ESPN 2 decide to show Birmingham City and West Brom?
thsoe dates are wrong. por v sea is 3/4……IE today.
Thanks for the tip! Looking forward to seeing those three teams face off.
For the sake of completeness, Azteca America has Cruz Azul-Necaxa Saturday 6pm ET and Puebla-Atlas Sunday 1pm ET (what ever happened to Edgar Castillo?).
Chivas-Tigres does look interesting even if midfielder Bornstein doesn’t play(seems to be a bit out of favor lately). Tigres are seven points ahead of Chivas in Group 1, and have a chance to go from 2nd to 1st in the general table if Pumas stumble. Chivas have been a bit disappointing and up to this point Tigres have exceeded expectations.
Not on TV, but at least some interest in watching. Go to any of the teams’ or MLS website to watch a streaming video.
Cascadia Summit
3/5 POR v. SEA 7:30 PST
3/6 POR v. VAN 4:00 PST
3/7 VAN v. SEA 3:00 PST
I was thinking the same thing. Damn you ESPN and Comcast!
dis is good, hopefully bradley gets playing time.
unless he had a lights out performance during the week theres no way hes starting.
the players that are ahead of him were rested during that game and should be starting. He can break into the starting lineup, theres no doubt he has a future there.
I dont remember exactly what game or games it was that Holden showed what he could do, I remember it was against Tottenham in a 4-1 loss where Holden looked like the best player on the field, then got a start and never looked back. They had Wilshire there so I guess he was starting next to him in the EPL starts? I dont remember.
Thats what Bradley has to do(if theres any less meaningful games left for him to start in)
He has to be lights out during one of those less meaningful games where they rest their starters and earn his spot.
What, no love for Athletic Bilbao vs. Sevilla (6 vs. 7 in the La Liga table, both vying for the last Europa League spot, with the winner eclipsing Espanyol for 5th) or Ajax Amsterdam vs. AZ Alkmaar (3 vs. 5 – a win for AZ Alkmaar would damage Ajax’s title chances)?
Wow, Birmingham – West Brom on the only HD channel I get. Fantastic.
I guess you’re referencing the FA cup, but having gotten 5 points from their last 3 league games (including a 4-1 drubbing of Blackburn), I’d hardly consider Villa to be on a slide.