It may just be December, but Chelsea faces what amounts to a must-win match on Sunday.
The Blues take on first-place Manchester United at Stamford Bridge and a win could pull Chelsea a point ahead of the visitors. A Manchester United win would give the Red Devils a five-point cushion on Chelsea with a game in hand.
For the weekend's other marquee match-up you can look to Italy, where first-place AC Milan will take on Roma in what should be an intense and entertaining affair. France has a juicy match on the schedule as well, with Marseille taking on Lyon in a battle of Champions League Round of 16 participants.
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. Chelsea vs. Manchester United. Moved to Monday because of snow.
2. AC Milan vs. AS Roma. Milan is rolling right now but Roma has been tough on the road.
3. Marseille vs. Lyon. Top match-up of French powers.
4. Liverpool vs. Fulham. Clint Dempsey looks to remind Roy Hodgson what he's missing.
5. Sunderland vs. Bolton. Stuart Holden and the Trotters face a tough road match against Asamoah Gyan and the Black Cats.
6. Espanyol vs. Barcelona. Derby match should give Barca a tough test in front of hostile crowd.
7. Real Madrid vs. Sevilla. If Barcelona slips, Real Madrid will be looking to close the gap against struggling Sevilla.
8. Lazio vs. Udinese. Quality Italian clash features a Lazio side playing must-watch soccer these days.
9. Once Caldas vs. Deportivo Tolima. Juan Carlos Osorio leads Once Caldas in the Colombian Championship.
10. Blackburn vs. West Ham United. Ugly match? Perhaps, but also a chance to see if Jonathan Spector can keep his recent run of good form going.
THIS WEEKEND'S SOCCER ON TV
SATURDAY
7:45am- Sunderland vs. Bolton
9:30am- GolTV- Eintracht Frankfurt vs. Borussia Dortmund
10am- Fox Soccer Channel- Arsenal vs. Stoke City (POSTPONED-SNOW)
10am- Fox Soccer Plus- Birmingham City vs. Newcastle United (POSTPONED-SNOW)
Noon- GolTV- Villarreal vs. Mallorca
Noon- DirecTV- Levante vs. Athletic Bilbao
Noon- ESPN3.com- Deportivo La Coruna vs. Sporting Gijon
12:30pm- Fox Soccer Channel- Liverpool vs. Fulham (POSTPONED-SNOW)
2pm- GolTV- Espanyol vs. Barcelona
2pm- Fox Soccer Plus- Blackburn vs. West Ham United (Delayed)
2:45pm- Fox soccer Channel- AC Milan vs. AS Roma
4pm- ESPN3.com- Real Sociedad vs. Valencia
4pm- Fox Soccer Plus- Ipswich Town vs. Leicester City
5pm- Fox Soccer Channel- Wigan Athletic vs. Aston Villa
1pm- Fox Soccer Channel- Gold Coast United vs. Central Coast Mariners
SUNDAY
6:30pm- ESPN3.com- Ajax Amsterdam vs. Feyenoord
6:30am- Fox Soccer Plus- Lazio vs. Udinese
8:30am- Fox soccer Plus- Blackpool vs. Tottenham
9am- Fox Soccer Channel- Chievo Verona vs. Juventus
9am- ESPN3.com- Napoli vs. Lecce
9:30am- GolTV- Bayer Leverkusen vs. SC Freiburg
10:30am- Fox Soccer Plus- West Bromwich Albion vs. Wolverhampton
11am- Fox Soccer Channel- Chelsea vs. Manchester United (POSTPONED-SNOW)
11am- DirecTV- Almeria vs. Getafe
11am- DirecTV- Osasuna vs. Real Zaragoza
11:30am- ESPN3.com- VfB Stuttgart vs. Bayern Munich
12:30pm- Fox Soccer Plus- Cardiff City vs. Burnley
1pm- GolTV- Malaga vs. Atletico Madrid
2:45pm- Fox Soccer Channel- Sampdoria vs. Genoa
3pm- ESPN3.com- Real Madrid vs. Sevilla
3pm- Fox Soccer Plus- Olympique Marseille vs. Lyon
3:15pm- ESPN3.com- Pacos de Ferreira vs. FC Porto
5:30pm- GolTV- Once Caldas vs. Deportes Tolima
How about FIFA Club World Cup coverage instead of games that didnt even happen…Eurosnobs
^The top ten list that is…
Sochaux v Bordeaux not on the list at all?
Davies is on the squad sheet… I’ll watch that just to see if he makes it into the game.
(SBI-The game wasn’t originally airing on TV in the USA, but Fox Soccer Channel has picked it up to replace Chelsea-Manchester United.)
ESPN’s web schedule says that Real Madrid vs. Sevilla will be on ESPN2 and not just ESPN3.com.
And it’s been how long since there was French game on FSC
I find it hilarious that Sampdoria v. Genoa gets top billing on FSC over MARSEILLE v. LYON, which will air on Plus. Pitiful!
I would agree bc spurs is my favorite team, but I think Ives may be biased towards Yanks (Spector)? I figure most readers of this site follow Americans. But yeah, its hard to convince anyone that Wigan west Ham would be more entertaining, or even entertaining at all.
(SBI-It’s not a question of “bias” or entertainment, but rather which matches may be of more interest to American soccer fans. While you as a Tottenham fan will always want to watch Tottenham, there are plenty of American soccer fans who would want to watch West Ham play to see if Jonathan Spector can keep it going. Tottenham is obviously more fun to watch, and they make the Top Ten quite a bit, but this time around I think the West Ham game could be of more interest to American fans than Blackpool-Tottenham. That’s not a “bias”, but rather trying to serve SBI readers.
The Top Ten list has never been about the ten best soccer matches based purely on skill and quality of soccer. I try to create a list with variety that not only highlights matches featuring Americans, but also matches from a good assortment of leagues.)
A married Indian Hindu women made the kit.
thanks!
Come on Chelsea! We need to beat this slump! We are still the team to beat! Glad we got Copenhagen in the champs too so we can concentrate on the task at hand.
come on the genoa derby will be awesome with sampdoria vs Genoa. These two teams share probably the best stadium in Italian soccer as far as fan atmospherics go. there is no running track around the pitch, you can see the fans. Its going to be a great game and should have been above Lazio vs Udinense for craps sake
There must have been a sniper in the crowd that was ready to take him out.
The Red Flower on the jerseys are for recognition for English veteran’s day… http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/35625
FIFA Club World Cup Final is on FSC at 11pm EST Saturday
Thanks for that info.
Sunderland v Bolton will be on ESPN 2
I am assuming that the Sunderland vs. Bolton game will be on ESPN HD. Correct assumption?
What?
There are no must win games when less than half the season is complete and the top teams are separated by two points. Chelsea can lose and still be in striking distance, and a draw means the Blues are still only one win away from the top. Must win my foot…
And Wigan vs. West Ham #10? Blackpool vs. Tottenham, two teams in the top half of the table, should be much better than absolute last West Ham.
Anyone know what the red dot on Terry’s jersey is for?
CHELSEA!!!!!!!!!
Is the club world cup this weekend? Is that not on TV? Heard a lot about TP mazembe.