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Soccer Wednesday Preview: City-Spurs “playoff”; Inter-Roma Coppa Italia final

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By AVI CREDITOR

Although Major League Soccer's seventh week of action gets underway on Wednesday, there are a couple of high-profile matches in England and Italy that deserve the bulk of fans' attention.

Manchester City hosts Tottenham (2:55 p.m EST, ESPN2) in what is essentially a winner-take-all bout for a spot in next year's UEFA Champions League. Spurs have held onto fourth place in the Premier League for quite a while, but City is just one point off the pace after its come-from-behind victory over Aston Villa on Saturday.

Last week, City manager Roberto Mancini likened the match against Aston Villa to a Champions League semifinal, and the match against Tottenham to a Champions League final. Because both teams are likely, though certainly not guaranteed, to win their respective finales on Sunday (Manchester City is at West Ham, Tottenham is at Burnley), Mancini may indeed have a prophetic analogy.

Tottenham handled Manchester City at White Hart Lane on Dec. 16, 3-0, in the teams' earlier meeting this season.

Meanwhile, in Italy…

…two teams tussling for the Serie A crown will meet in the Coppa Italia final, as Inter Milan takes on AS Roma at the Stadio Olimpico (2:45 p.m. EST, GOLTV/ESPN3.com).

Inter has become the talk of the world after its masterful Champions League performance against Barcelona, and it can take a giant step toward securing a dream treble by defeating Roma.

Roma has won the competition a record nine times (tied for the most with Juventus), with the most recent title coming in 2008. Inter has won the competition five times, but not since 2006. The two are not strangers to each other on this stage: They faced each other in every final from 2005-2008.

Jose Mourinho's men lead Claudio Ranieri's by two points in the Serie A standings with two league matches to play, but Roma will have the home-field advantage on Wednesday as it tries to secure at least one piece of silverware this season.

The two played to a 1-1 draw in their first league meeting this season, and Roma defeated Inter at home in their second meeting on March 27, 2-1.

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Will you be watching either match? Who are you pulling for to finish fourth in the Premier League? Do you think Inter can win the Coppa Italia, Serie A and Champions League titles?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. City have made steps over the years to improve, just like Spurs. The Sven year, last year, this year. It’s not like City came up and bought everyone in one year. Did they win the lottery after the Shiniwatta mess, yes, but Spurs aren’t exactly Exeter City either.

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  2. There’s nothing bitter about someone wanting things to change a little in the EPL. The big four had gotten stale.

    Any complaints anyone has about City just buying their way in should a) Look at Chelsea b) realize that ManU is nothing but a cashcow now for the Glazers c) Arsenal’s boardroom is a billionaire’s battleground

    If City has Champions League football and Billions to spend, then look out… the Transfer window is going to be wild this summer!

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  3. City need to stay steady… key player will be Patrick Vieira – if he can roll back the years like he did on Saturday, the Blues should just edge it… Also, the other key players are the keepers, since City just signed Fulop last week and Gomes is supposedly out… City 2-1 Spurs!!!

    CTID

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  4. Come on you Spurs!! I would much rather root for a team that has been built on hard work and over time than Citeh! Reward the efforts over time rather than just the $$. I’m not a Spurs guy myself, but have friends that are and see no reason to root for the Oil Baron’s team.

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  5. Law school exams can wait. Spurs-City is going to be EPIC. If you’re in NYC and you’re a Spurs fan, Perdition in Hell’s Kitchen is where you want to be tomorrow afternoon.

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  6. They’re rumored, in-line or targeting a few Arsenal players, yea?

    Specifically; Gallas and Eboue, right?

    I don’t follow them closely enough but is there any other rumors out there for whom they’re targeting?

    I will say this: Jeremy Menez is special. Love watching that guy.

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  7. This is true.

    However, since I’ll refrain from taking up too much text space in justifying why I ” like ” City (not a true supporter of the Club), I’ll simply say this:

    They are ruffling the feathers, shifting the balance slowly and ultimately shaking up the what was becoming quite stale and far too routine at the top of the table.

    That alone, in my eyes…makes them somewhat of a David *AND* Goliath. Paradoxical as that is, I choose to see them as the David……..for now.

    …but I’ll be first in line to cheer against them after they’ve won countless titles or become the sincere big dog in terms of trophies and success.

    Make sense? Probably not, but that’s my short summary of thinking.

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  8. I’m torn on who to root for. One the one hand, who (as a neutral) wants to support a team that went out and spent a gajillion dollars and helped inflate the transfer market in the process? On the other hand, I agree that it would be nice to annoy Sir Alex and the Utd fans.

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  9. you’re wrong playa… atleast i hope to lord almighty that you are wrong… on at 2 eastern on espn 2.. at least in chicago it is 🙂

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  10. I had my hopes up too but I just read this… oh well, it would be nice to have another shot at Italy

    ” Villarreal forward Giuseppe Rossi still has a chance of making Italy’s World Cup squad despite being left out of a two-day training camp this week.

    Media reports say Rossi had been pencilled in as the 30th name in Marcello Lippi’s training squad but with Villarreal still having slim hopes of reaching the Champions League qualifying places in Spain’s la Liga, he has not been released because they play Almeria in midweek.”

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  11. Claudio Ranieri is manager of the year in Europe. He took over a demoralized team with zero big summer signings (actually selling a hometown favorite) and turned them around to 2nd place. He has been a revelation and deserves some silverware this season even if he falls short of the scudetto. I am very excited to see what he does during the summer transfer session with some funds. forza roma!

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  12. Did someone say Italy??? Doesn’t Rossi play for Italy?? Why wasn’t he on Lippi’s prelim roster?? weird… I wonder if he regrets being a turncoat… (sorry sbi, i’m a cynical bas**rd and couldn’t resist)

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  13. Good times. Should be a lot of fun tomorrow.

    I’ll be pulling for Man City to take 3 points. Not because I support them, if nothing else, just to satisfy my disdain for United.

    Nothing like the ” noisey neighbors ” getting Champions League Football, along with their deep wallets & more summer signings, to annoy Sir Alex and the rest of the United fan base.

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