Arsenal's fading title hopes will be on the line on Sunday as the Gunners take on first-place Chelsea in the match of the weekend.
Arsenal is fresh off a 3-1 thumping against Manchester United, while Chelsea looks to rebound after dropping points to Hull City at mid-week
American soccer fans will be up bright and early on Saturday to see Landon Donovan, Tim Howard and Everton face Liverpool at Anfield in the latest installment of the Merseyside Derby. The Toffees will look to keep its unbeaten streak going (They have yet to lose in league play since Donovan arrived).
You can find the SBI Top Ten Matches to Watch, as well as the weekend's soccer TV schedule, after the jump:
SBI's Top 10 Matches to Watch
1. Chelsea vs. Arsenal. Can the Gunners rebound and win at Stamford Bridge? Will John Terry have a nervous breakdown?
2. Liverpool vs. Everton. Winning at Anfield is never easy, but Tim Howard and Landon Donovan will try to pull off the Merseyside upset.
3. Tottenham vs. Aston Villa. Can anybody stop red-hot Jermaine Defoe? Brad Friedel will need to step up in this key battle for fourth place in the EPL.
4. Fiorentina vs. AS Roma. Can Roma dispose of a free-falling Fiorentina and move into sole possession of second place in Serie A?
5. Hull City vs. Manchester City. Jozy Altidore will shoot for his third quality start in a row against a tough Man City defense.
6. Rennes vs. Bordeaux. Will Carlos Bocanegra get another start? We will see if he does, and if he can hold up against the reigning Ligue 1 champions.
7. Barcelona vs. Getafe. Barcelona is still undefeated but they face a Getafe team that has given them all sorts of trouble through recent years.
8. Sao Paolo vs. Santos. Can Robinho still work his magic? He'll be able to show it against the Sao Paolo team that tried to swoop in and steal him away from Santos last month.
9. Wolfsburg vs. Bayern Munich. Wolfsburg is far from a title contender, but still boast Edin Dzeko and Grafite against second-place Bayern.
10. Atlas vs. Club America. After the recent shootings of Salvador Cabanas and Juan Carlos Silva, Club America will try to focus on this visit to Atlas.
THIS WEEKEND'S SOCCER ON TV
SATURDAY
7:30am– ESPN2- Liverpool vs. Everton
9:30am– ESPN360.com- Wolfsburg vs. Bayern Munich
9:45am– Setanta USA- Manchester United vs. Portsmouth
10am– FSC/FSE- Hull City vs. Manchester City
Noon– ESPN Deportes/ESPN360.com- Valencia vs. Real Valladolid
Noon– RAI/ESPN360.com- Palermo vs. Parma
12:15pm– Setanta USA- Doncaster vs. Reading
12:30pm– GolTV- Nuremberg vs. Stuttgart
12:30pm– FSC/FSE- Tottenham vs. Aston Villa
12:45pm– ESPN360.com- PSV vs. ADO Den Haag
2pm– ESPN Deportes/ESPN360.com- Barcelona vs. Getafe
2:40pm– FSC/FSE/RAI/ESPN360- Livorno vs. Juventus
3pm– Setanta USA- Rennes vs. Bordeaux
4pm– GolTV- Real Madrid vs. Espanyol
5pm– FSC/FSE- Palermo vs. Parma (Delayed)
5pm– Setanta USA- Burnley vs. West Ham (Delayed)
6pm– ESPN Deportes/Azteca America- Cruz Azul vs. Santos Laguna
6pm– GolTV- Deportivo Cali vs. Millonarios
7pm– FSC- Sunderland vs. Wigan
8pm– Telefutura- Pachuca vs. San Luis
8pm– Telemundo- Tigres vs. UNAM Pumas
8pm– GolTV_ Cucuta vs. Deportivo Perreira
8:30pm– Setanta USA- Bolton vs. Fulham
9:45pm– Telemund- Atlas vs. Club America
2am– FSC- Sydney FC vs. Perth Glory
SUNDAY
8:30am– Setanta USA- Birmingham vs. Wolves
9am– FSC/FSE- Bologna vs. AC Milan
9am– RAI/ESPN360.com- Inter Milan vs. Cagliari
11am– FSC/FSE- Chelsea vs. Arsenal
11am– DirecTV- Almeria vs. Sporting Gijon
11am– DirectTV- Mallorca vs. Villarreal
11am– DirecTV- Athletic Bilbao vs. Xerez
11am– Setanta USA- Toulouse vs. Lyon
12:55pm– Telemundo- Toluca vs. Monterrey
1pm– GolTV- Real Zaragoza vs. Sevilla
1pm– Setanta USA- Birmingham vs. Wolves
2:45pm- FSC/RAI- Fiorentina vs. AS Roma
3pm– Setanta USA- Marseille vs. Valenciennes
3pm- FSE- Indios vs. Morelia
3pm– GolTV- Racing Santander vs. Atletico Madrid
5pm– GolTV- Sao Paulo vs. Santos (Delayed)
5pm– Azteca America- Indios vs. Morelia (Delayed)
10pm– Setanta USA- Chelsea vs. Arsenal (Delayed)
———-
Which matches are you most looking forward to? Think Arsenal can pull the upset on Chelsea? Looking forward to seeing Landon Donovan face Liverpool?
Share your thoughts below.
i cant believe how much snow i have outside
so that means soccer all day
Lets show how yo u roll LD! I am up, with Blue 9 Donovan Jersey on!!! make us PROUD!
9:45 est
I can’t believe I’m up this early for the everton game.
No ESPN 360 feed. That SUCKS!!!
haha, NICE!
Anyone know what time my boys play at for Aris?
The website is not pulling up.
you can hire loads of coaches, man. jesse is a great motivator, a solid “players” type leader, and a good guy to bring energy and intensity to the mentality of the lads. Also, he will keep the young kids focused. I think it’s a solid hire
ives, i will be at the man u/everton clash in liverpool in a few weeks. not to brag…
that is pretty weird! cant we do better??
No experience, no personal skill as a player. More strategic planning on the bench. This is the sort of hire that make us MNT fans shake our heads in wonder.
Jessie Marsch hired as MNT asst coach… One shouldn’t judge a book by the cover but I don’t think his limited international resume would add anything to the WC preparation. Would love to hear anyone else’s reaction. WHy not hire an assistant who has actually played in the WC? Someone with real coaching experience. It would make too much sense for bradley.
Got my Charlie Davies #9 Sochaux Jersey today! cant wait to see CD light it up in the WQ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Looking forward to watching Landon kill in true HD on the deuce-not the wannabe 480p Shiite FSC is calling HD.
There’s only one team with Landon.
There’s only one team with Landon.
Go Everton!
They usually show College Basketball around that time.
http://tvbythenumbers.com/2010/02/04/fox-soccer-nets-biggest-audience-with-arsenal-manu-match/41138
Someone mentioned it above but I will relay my personal displeasure regarding ESPN and their dealing with Barca television rights. This has happened probably half a dozen times already over the course of the season.
ESPN will purchase Barca rights from GolTV for a Saturday fixture and then only show it on ESPN360/Deportes. Therefore, you dont get to watch the match even though I’ve got ESPN, FSC and GolTV. It’s really poor management of their resources if you ask me, it’s not like ESPN2 has something better to offer at 2pm EST on a Saturday afternoon…WTF
“I’m excited about this opportunity with U.S. Soccer,” said Marsch, 36, about the appointment. “I am looking forward to working hard to help this team be successful in the future.”
A native of Racine, Wisconsin, this is Marsch’s first jaunt in coaching.
Up at 4:45 am for the Merseyside Derby for sure. No way I want to miss that live.
Hey Ives. Not trying to nitpick, just a suggestion, but is there any chance you would consider applying some text formatting for this list going forward. Similar to what is done for the Americans Abroad Look Ahead list. If every item is set in the same manner, it makes lots of information in a list form hard to distinguish.
I would suggest maybe a bold application for the time, italic for the channel and leave the game itself as is. I think this would only help those trying to read the list. Again, just a suggestion from a reader.
LETS GO ORANGE
456, 457, 458.
You’re welcome.
I will be up at 5:30 a.m. Saturday. COYB and all that.
I concur.
Ives, please explain what it means when games say just DirecTV on it… Which channel is that on?
Not sure I like the idea of Marsch as an assistant coach. He was a MLS gamer but he always seemed more grit than technique. Does he have any coaching experience? What’s he going to bring to the table?
that picture is hilarious. it’s like that ball was launched from a canon, and drogba and gallas are preparing for immediate impact to the face.
There’s only one team in London.
There’s only one team in London.
Go Arsenal!
what a weekend. I’ll be up with my 11 mos old daughter watching everton v liverpool at 7:30 East Coast time. I’m a Spurs fan so I’m also excited about the matchup with Villa. Maybe mommy can go get a massage so baby and me can watch spurs try to get a better hold on 4th. Then Sunday Arsenal and Chelsea. And if thats not enough between FSC we get games with Juve, Ac Milan, and Real Madrid. Its good to be a futbol fan in 2010.
It feels great to have ESPN2 and Fox Soccer Channel right about now…..back to back matches with Americans in them? AND ON THE SAME WEEKEND AS THE SUPERBOWL?!?!?! Who would have thought?
hey ives, not trying to be “that” guy, but bayern aren’t in first. agree though, should be a good game to watch.
(SBI-Thanks Tom, I fixed that.)
Post of the decade already goes to…….. johnie! hahahahahaha
Nice. You got a link to that info?
My two cents is that the Man City defense is not ‘tough’. They’re middle of the table in Goals Against and Given is a damn good keeper.
Then again, they’re getting Lescott and another defender (who is it?) back from injury this week or next so their D should improve.
Cheers!
The super bowl is this weekend?
i completely agree with your statments on the right about Maldini Ives…..especially for New York who i wouldnt say need defense the most right now out of most MLS teams
If you are talking about EPL it will be up there with the best. If you are talking about overall, ESPN has had Champions League and World Cup matches so I can’t agree with you there.
4:30 is early on a saturday but I will be up to watch liverpool and everton before taking my daughter to her PDL game.
He did say “might be,” but if it’s not the biggest match ESPN2 has had this year, I don’t know what is, especially from an American point of view. Lando’s recent form coupled with the advancing stage of the season and the proximity in table position between the two teams seems like enough to put it pretty near the top.
On a TV note
Arsenal-Man U last week was the most watched game in FSC history. 370,000 viewers
United versus Portsmouth. Wayne Rooney could put five past the keeper in that one.
Rooting for a draw in the Arsenal/Chelsea match. A win would put United on top by a point, while a tie will only result in both teams sharing top spot in the table. But, I can’t bring myself to root for the Goonners (just like I could never root for Chelsea if the teams’ roles were reversed).
Liverpool Derby: GO MANDON!!! Keep those dirty Reds down the table.
Bayern isn’t in first place. Leverkusen still tops the table.
Lucky for me I’m just getting home from work at that time.
that’s fine. for world cup games, sleep exceptions must be made. in fact, i hardly know a world cup group stage that doesn’t involve huddling in front of the tv pre-dawn trying not to wake up the rest of the house. fortunately none of our group games are that early.
Uh, “the biggest marquee match ever broadcast in the USA ever”? I’ll forgive the redundancy, but I can’t ignore the hyperbole. Are you talking about the biggest soccer match, or biggest EPL soccer match broadcast on ESPN? If it is the latter, that is debatable. If it is the former, you are wrong.
What?!!!! ESPN finally gets a main event match with Liverpool v Everton, which might be on the biggest marquee match ever broadcast in the USA ever (non-PPV), and you want to watch a mis-matched La Liga game? Amazing.
F the super bowl. Watching everton vs pool, then Arsenal vs chelscum, then Syracuse bball. The super bowl is just an afterthought that I might not even remember.
No La Liga on ESPN…damn it.
Better get used to the 7:30 am games. Some of the World Cup games are that early too!
ugh, i won’t be up at 4:30 for the Liverpool derby…