Good afternoon and Merry Christmas to everybody. I hope your holiday was as enjoyable as mine was (and for those of you who don’t observe Christmas, I hope you enjoyed the day off.)
It is around that time when you’ve unwrapped all the presents, the kids have spent a little time playing with all their new toys (the ones they like anyway), and things are a little slow. It’s a good time to relax, watch some TV (and take in some of the TIVO’d action from the weekend if you didn’t already get around to watching all of the weekend’s great games).
If you are lucky enough to also have tomorrow off then you are in for a nice mid-week treat. It is Boxing Day in England, which means a full slate of EPL matches. Fox Soccer Channel and Setanta Sports USA have us covered, showing eight different games which will give us a chance to see as many as eight Americans play. Yes, I know, I don’t normally list Setanta, but I know that enough of you die-hards have already added it to your cable packages (and maybe some of you even got it for Christmas).
So, without further Freddy Adu, here is tomorrow’s soccer TV schedule:
WEDNESDAY
8am- Setanta USA- West Ham vs. Reading. Jonathan Spector, Marcus Hahnemann and Bobby Convey should all play key roles in this mid-table clash.
8am- FSC- Chelsea vs. Aston Villa. No Americans but you do have Chelsea desperately trying to stay close to Arsenal and Man U and Villa trying to jump in range of a European spot.
10am– Setanta USA- Sunderland vs. Manchester United. Roy Keane vs. Sir Alex Ferguson. Nice little subplot but you can’t like Sunderland’s chances, even at home.
10am– FSC- Derby vs. Liverpool. Doesn’t Liverpool’s 6-0 blowout of Derby seem like ages ago? It was Sept. 1 and something tells me the Rams will put up a much tougher fight. Does that mean they’ll win? No, but here’s hoping Eddie Lewis and Benny Feilhaber can earn starts.
Noon– Setanta USA- Tottenham vs. Fulham. The Clint Dempsey show is on Setanta this time, which could lead to several folks signing up for the channel (when I say the love for Fulham in the USA is crazy I’m serious).
Noon– FSC- Everton vs. Bolton. Everton’s hot streak was halted by Man U but Tim Howard’s boys can’t afford to relax, or they will risk losing grip on a European spot. Bolton has been better lately but hasn’t won on the road since September. Where for art though Johann Smith?
2:30pm– FSC- Portsmouth vs. Arsenal. Two offensive-minded teams collide in what could be the day’s most entertaining match. Nevermind the major Fantasy EPL implications.
5pm– FSC- Birmingham vs. Middlesbrough. Two teams trying to avoid the bottom three square off in a match about as appealing as that plaid tie you just got for Christmas. And the best part? It’s tape-delayed.
Enjoy the soccer and, once again, have a Merry Christmas.