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This Weekend’s Soccer on TV (& SBI’s Top Ten Matches to Watch)

The battle for the Scudetto has become a two-team race early on, with Napoli emerging as the strongest contender for the crown currently being worn by Juventus.

Both teams are sporting the same unbeaten record, but with Juve having not lost a league game since the 2009/2010 season, they defending champions will be favored. Napoli will certainly have a chance, and it should be noted that Napoli is the same side that defeated Juventus in the Coppa Italia last season so they will go in with the confidence that they can beat the Turin giants again.

In England, Tottenham plays host to Chelsea in a London Derby with some extra sizzle provided by Andres Villas Boas’ status as Chelsea’s former manager. Clint Dempsey is coming off scoring against Manchester United for the first time, and he will now look to burn a Chelsea side he has scored four goals against in his career.

College soccer provides a treat tonight as ACC powers Maryland and North Carolina collide in a match-up of the top two teams in the nation. That Friday match will serve as a good appetizer ahead of a loaded slate of top MLS match-ups that includes San Jose-LA, New York-Sporting KC and Seattle-FC Dallas.

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. Tottenham vs. Chelsea. Andres Villas Boas will certainly be looking for some revenge against the team that fired him a year ago. Chelsea’s started the season well, but will be tested in this one.

2. Juventus vs. Napoli. Juve continues to look like the class of Serie A, but Napoli has an identical record and will be looking to jump past the defending champions with a victory. Edinson Cavani has been on fire lately, but Juve’s defense will be tough to crack. The battle in midfield will also be fun to watch.

3. San Jose Earthquakes vs. Los Angeles Galaxy. MLS Western Conference powers collide in what could be a playoff preview.

4. Lazio vs. AC Milan. The blue side of Rome is off to a solid start in Serie A, currently in third place, and Lazio will be looking to keep Milan’s league woes going.

5. Manchester United vs. Stoke City. Geoff Cameron and Maurice Edu will be looking to get on the field for the Potters as they visit Old Trafford to take on the strong Red Devils.

6. Sporting Kansas City vs. New York Red Bulls. The Red Bulls were humbled at home the last time they met KC at Red Bull Arena, but the pressure of avoiding the wild card round should help produce a better effort against a streaking KC side.

7. North Carolina vs. Maryland. The two best college teams in the nation square off in a clash that will feature several top pro prospects, including North Carolina’s Mikey Lopez and Maryland’s Patrick Mullins.

8. Seattle Sounders vs. FC Dallas. Major playoff implications for both teams as Seattle tries to stay alive for the No. 2 seed in the West, while Dallas is just trying to stay alive at all for a playoff place.

9. Deportivo La Coruna vs. Barcelona. As well as Lionel Messi is playing you don’t want to miss him play ever, and throw in the impending birth of his first child and you know he’ll work some magic.

10. Valencia vs. Athletic Bilbao. Some of the best talent in Spain not tied to Barca and Madrid will be on display in what should be an entertaining match.

THIS WEEKEND’S SOCCER ON TV

FRIDAY

2:30pm- GolTV- Hoffenheim vs. Greuther Fuerth

2:45pm- Univision Deportes- Bordeaux vs. Lille

6pm- ESPNU- North Carolina vs. Maryland

11pm- Fox Soccer Channel- Cal Poly vs. UCSB

SATURDAY

7:45am- ESPN2- Tottenham vs. Chelsea

9:30am- GolTV- Fortuna Dusseldorf vs. Bayern Munich

10am- Fox Soccer Channel- Manchester United vs. Stoke City

10am- Fox Soccer Plus- West Bromwich Albion vs. Manchester City

10am- FoxSoccer2Go.com- Fulham vs. Aston Villa

10am- FoxSoccer2Go.com- Liverpool vs. Reading

10am- FoxSoccer2Go.com- Swanswea City vs. Wigan Athletic

10am- FoxSoccer2Go.com- West Ham vs. Southampton

10am-beIN Sport en Espanol- Malaga vs. Real Valladolid

11am- Univision Deportes- Paris St. Germain vs. Reims

Noon- beIN Sport- Juventus vs. Napoli

Noon- beIN Sport en Espanol- Real Madrid vs. Celta Vigo

12:30pm- Fox Soccer Channel- Norwich City vs. Arsenal

12:30pm- GolTV- Werder Bremen vs. Borussia Moenchengladbach

12:45pm- ESPN3.com- Heracles vs. Ajax

1:30pm- MLS Direct Kick- Toronto FC vs. Montreal Impact

1:45pm- ESPN3.com- PSV Eindhoven vs. Willem II

2pm- beIN Sport- Valencia vs. Athletic Bilbao

2pm- Univision Deportes- Rennes vs. Montpellier

2:30pm- GolTV- Borussia Dortmund vs. Schalke 04 (Delayed)

2:45pm- beIN Sport en Espanol- Lazio vs. AC Milan

4pm- beIN Sport- Deportivo La Coruna vs. Barcelona

7pm- MLS Direct Kick/MSG Plus- New York Red Bulls vs. Sporting Kansas City

7:05pm- Fox Soccer Channel- U.S. Women’s National Team vs. Germany

7:30pm- NBC Sports Network- Houston Dynamo vs. Philadelphia Union

7:30pm- MLS Direct Kick- D.C. United vs. Columbus Crew

7:30pm- MLS Direct Kick- New England Revolution vs. Chicago Fire

10:30pm- MLS Direct Kick- Chivas USA vs. Colorado Rapids

SUNDAY

7:45am- Fox Soccer Plus- Heart of Midlothian vs. Motherwell

8am- Univision Deportes- Ajaccio vs. Bastia

8:30am- Fox Soccer Channel- Sunderland vs. Newcastle

9am- beIN Sport- Inter Milan vs. Catania

9am- beIN Sport en Espanol- Parma vs. Sampdoria

9:30am- GolTV- Nurnberg vs. Augsburg

11am- Fox Soccer Channel- Queens Park Rangers vs. Everton

11am- Univision Deportes- Olympique Lyon vs. Brest

11;30am- GolTV- Hamburg vs. Stutgart

1pm- beIN Sport- Chievo vs. Fiorentina (Delayed)

2:45pm- beIN Sport- Genoa vs. Roma

3:30pm- beIN Sport en Espanol- Real Sociedad vs. Atletico Madrid

7pm- MLS Direct Kick- Vancouver Whitecaps vs. Portland Timbers

7pm- San Jose Earthquakes vs. Los Angeles Galaxy- Galavision

9pm- ESPN- Seattle Sounders vs. FC Dallas

Comments

  1. Let’s not forget today’s game between Dortmund vs Schalke, one of the most fierce rivalries in the world of soccer. Game is in Dortmund’s 80,000 seat stadium with Dortmund desperately needing a win or potentially falling 12 points behind FC Bayern.

    And cannot wait for Wednesday’s Champions League match at Dortmund against Real Madrid.

    Reply
  2. I’m old enough to remember when the only soccer you could get on TV was from PBS, Toby Charles the announcer on Soccer from Germany. Now there is literally more than you can choose from. A football fan’s nirvana.Unfortunately for us on the West Coast, Tottenham v. Chelsea starts at an ungodly hour of 4:30. Thank heavens for Tivo.

    Reply
  3. I wish Fox Soccer would stop choosing the top teams in the Premier League playing at home. Chelsea vs. Norwich a couple weeks ago and United – Stoke this weekend? There’s no drama there. Stoke at least has a chance, but United should win easily. Yes I know that’s how they’ll get the highest ratings.

    Reply
    • Exactly! Huge rivalry and a game that is never boring to watch. Drop the college game, Barca or Man U games from the top 10 since one will be a boring slow game (man u), one will be a one sided snooze (Barca), and the other will be at a level that shouldn’t be compared to the rest of the list (college)

      Reply
    • Agreed especially since Columbus has been in the playoffs every year since 2007 which is the last time United made the playoffs and this could pretty much knock the Crew out.

      I like the idea of the list though and enjoyed reading about the different league games and even a very good college one.

      Reply

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