By RYAN TOLMICH
When Barcelona kick off their 2014-15 La Liga campaign Sunday, they will likely do so shorthanded.
Barcelona are set to take on Elche on Sunday and, as expected, forward Luis Suarez will be unavailable due to suspension. However, Suarez’s absence may be compounded due to the injury woes of Neymar, who picked up a sprained ankle this week in training.
Meanwhile, the other two pillars of La Liga’s triumvirate, Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid, collide once again Friday in the second leg of their Super Cup clash. The two will resume play at Atletico’s Vicente Calderon Stadium after drawing 1-1 at the Bernabeu Tuesday.
In addition to the action in Spain, the Premier League returns for the league’s second showing, with the weekend’s action highlighted by a Saturday clash between Arsenal and Everton. The action is also highlighted by Louis Van Gaal’s second outing in charge of Manchester United, who take on Sunderland Sunday.
In other action, Bayern Munich takes on Wolfsburg, Borussia Dortmund hosts Bayer Leverkusen and Chelsea take on the recently promoted Leicester City.
Here’s a rundown of This Weekend’s Soccer on TV:
FRIDAY
2:30 p.m. – Bayern Munich vs. Wolfsburg – GOLTV USA
2:30 p.m. – Evian TG vs Paris Saint-Germain – beIN Sports USA
4:30 p.m. – Atletico Madrid vs. Real Madrid – ESPN3
8:30 p.m. – Morelia vs. Tigres UANL – ESPN Deportes/Azteca America
9:00 p.m. – FC Dallas vs. Real Salt Lake – NBCSN
10:30 p.m. – Santos Laguna vs. Toluca – Azteca America
SATURDAY
7:15 a.m. – Ipswich Town vs. Norwich City – beIN Sports USA
7:45 a.m. – Aston Villa vs. Newcastle United – NBCSN
9:30 a.m. – Hannover 96 vs. Schalke 04- GOLTV USA
10:00 a.m. – Chelsea vs. Leicester City- NBCSN
10:00 a.m. – Crystal Palace vs. West Ham United – Premier League Extra Time
10:00 a.m. – Southampton vs. West Bromwich Albion – Premier League Extra Time
10:00 a.m. – Swansea City vs. Burnley – Premier League Extra Time
11:00 a.m. – Guingamp vs. Olympique Marseille – beIN Sports USA
12:30 p.m. – Borussia Dortmund vs. Bayer Leverkusen – GOLTV USA
12:30 p.m. – Everton vs. Arsenal – NBC
1:00 p.m. – Malaga vs. Athletic Bilbao – beIN Sports USA
1:00 p.m. – Portland Thorns FC vs. FC Kansas City – ESPN2
3:00 p.m. – Sevilla vs. Valencia – beIN Sports USA
3:00 p.m. – Granada vs. Deportivo La Coruna – beIN Sports USA
5:00 p.m. – Almeria vs. Espanyol – beIN SPorts USA
5:30 p.m. – Atletico Mineiro vs. Ineternacional – ESPN 3
6:00 p.m. – Cruz Azul vs. Queretaro – Univision
6:00 p.m. – Veracruz vs. Chivas de Guadalajara – Univision Deportes
7:00 p.m. – New York Red Bulls vs. Montreal Impact – MLS Direct Kick
7:00 p.m. – Toronto FC vs. Chicago Fire – MLS Direct Kick
7:30 p.m. – New England Revolution vs. Chivas USA – MLS Direct Kick
7:30 p.m. – Columbus Crew vs. Houston Dynamo – MLS Direct Kick
8:00 p.m. – Monterrey vs. Puebla – Univision Deportes
8:30 p.m. – Sporting KC vs. D.C. United – MLS Direct Kick
9:00 p.m. – Pachuca vs. Atlas – Telemundo
10:00 p.m. – Chiapas vs. Club America – Univision Deportes
10:30 p.m. – LA Galaxy vs. Vancouver Whitecaps – MLS DIrect Kick
SUNDAY
8:00 a.m. – Olympique Lyonnais vs Lens – beIN Sports Connect
8:30 a.m. – Tottenham Hotspur vs. Queens Park Rangers – CNBC
8:30 a.m. – Hull City vs. Stoke City – Premier League Extra Time
9:30 a.m. – Paderborn 07 vs Mainz 05 – GOLTV USA
11:00 a.m. – Saint-Etienne vs Rennes – beIN Sports USA
11:30 a.m. – Borussia Monchengladbach vs. Stuttgart – GOLTV USA
11:00 a.m. – Sunderland vs. Manchester United – NBCSN
1:00 p.m. – Eibar vs. Real Sociedad – beIN Sports USA
1 p.m. – Pumas UNAM vs. Club Tijuana – Univision
3:00 p.m. – Nantes vs. Monaco – beIn Sports USA
3:00 p.m. – Celta de Vigo vs. Getafe – beIN Sports USA
3:00 p.m. – Barcelona vs. Elche – beIN Sports USA
5:00 p.m. – Portland Timbers vs. Seattle Sounders – ESPN 2
5:00 p.m. – Levante vs. Villarreal – beIN Sports USA
6:00 p.m. – Universidad de Guadalajara vs. Club Leon – Univision Deportes
8:00 p.m. – Philadelphia Union vs. San Jose Earthquakes – Univision Deportes
11:00 p.m. – Seattle Reign FC vs. Washington Spirit – ESPN2
so far the entire game between Atleti and Real has been played with the players laying on the grass or surrounding the ref.
bye bye Simone! enjoy the rest of the game from the locker room.
Why is it Americans complain there is no violence in soccer and then complain when there is some?
I don’t think he mentioned violence…
lol who is complaining about violence? i’ve never, ever, said soccer is non-contact or a game for the faint hearted. stop drawing conclusions out of nowhere…
i see espn3 is branching into Brazilian soccer?! might check that out.
What’s that? ESPN3 has the Spanish Super Cup second leg, and Ronaldo is playing, you say?
Playing was a relative term.
aupa Atleti!!!
Green’s on the bench against Wolfsburg!!
just saw that, very cool.
I don’t think we see him. They have a 17 year old out there already. I don’t think they want 2 guys quite that young with a scoreline this close.
Who the hell gets goltv anymore?
Crazy how beIN destroyed them.
One should never look forward to anything that Fox has to offer, but due to GOL TV’s unavailability, I look forward to Fox Sports acquiring the rights to the Bundesliga beginning next season.
agreed. hopefully they get the appletv function.
right now, if everything was on espn I would be happy.
GolTV used to be part of my package until beIN came around. at that point, GolTV was moved to another tier. was that U-verse being lame? maybe. or did beIN and GolTV make a deal of sorts?
NASL Game of the Week, Mr. Tolmich! Cosmos vs. Minn United on ESPN3…