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Soccer Sunday: Your Running Commentary

EduCeltic (Reuters Pictures)

Almost a year to the day that Maurice Edu scored the game-winning goal for Rangers against rival Celtic to etch his name in Old Firm history, another edition of the storied derby takes place in Scotland (7:30 a.m., untelevised). With a win, Rangers could move even closer to first place in the Scottish Premier League, as Edu's side currently trails Celtic by five points with two games in hand.

Two other Americans enjoying fabulous seasons abroad go head-to-head, as Stuart Holden's Bolton and Clint Dempsey's Fulham do battle at Craven Cottage with a spot in the FA Cup quarterfinals on the line.

As for some of Sunday's other major matches, Arsenal and Manchester City will look to keep their FA Cup hopes alive against Leyton Orient and Notts County, respectively, and FC Barcelona will look to start another winning streak when it faces upstart Athletic Bilbao.

If you will be watching any of Sunday's games, please feel free to share any thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below. Enjoy the action (TV schedule is after the jump).

SUNDAY'S SOCCER ON TV/INTERNET

6:30 a.m. – FoxSoccer.tv/ESPN3.com – Lecce vs. Juventus

7 a.m. – Fox Soccer Plus/FoxSoccer.tv – West Brom vs. Wolverhampton

9 a.m. – ESPN3.com – Lazio vs. Bari

9 a.m. – Fox Soccer Channel/Fox Deportes/ESPN3.com – Chievo Verona vs. AC Milan

9 a.m. – Fox Soccer Plus/FoxSoccer.tv – Manchester City vs. Notts County (FA Cup)

9:30 a.m. – GOLTV – Bayer Leverkusen vs. Stuttgart

10 a.m. – FoxSoccer.tv – Fulham vs. Bolton (FA Cup)

10:30 a.m. – ESPN3.com – PSV Eindhoven vs. NAC Breda

11 a.m. – ESPN3.com/ESPN Deportes – Getafe vs. Racing Santander

11 a.m. – DirecTV – Villarreal vs. Malaga

11 a.m. – DirecTV – Osasuna vs. Espanyol

11 a.m. – FoxSoccer.tv – Montpellier vs. Lille

11 a.m. – FoxSoccer.tv – Nice vs. Paris-St. Germain

11:30 a.m. – Fox Soccer Channel – Leyton Orient vs. Arsenal (FA Cup)

1 p.m. – GOLTV – Sevilla vs. Hercules

1 p.m. – Fox Deportes/Azteca America – Puebla vs. Jaguares

1 p.m. – Telemundo – Toluca vs. Necaxa

2:45 p.m. – Fox Soccer Channel/Fox Deportes/ESPN3.com – Napoli vs. Catania

3 p.m. – GOLTV – Barcelona vs. Athletic Bilbao

3 p.m. – Fox Soccer Plus/FoxSoccer.tv – Toulouse vs. Stade Rennes

Comments

  1. “Hangeland is literally a brick wall.”

    You would think that most referees would spot it and asked that it be removed. Hangeland must be cunningly disguised.

    Reply
  2. How about we just put all these guys in the top 3-4 players on their team shall we?

    Because if you’re saying Howard is the best player on Everton over Tim Cahill ur insane

    Howard’s season overall hasn’t been that great

    Reply
  3. I just checked out the rest of the comments. Even though we are all biased I have to agree that Dempsey was left hanging on a few well timed runs in favor of long distance low percentage shots. I wonder if his penchant for doing the same thing works against him. Although today he nearly connected on a few very nice through passes. It seems his goals come mostly from rebounds, set plays or his own creation.

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  4. I’ve watched nearly every match…sorry that I don’t stay locked in and focused on Dempsey the entire game like most people here and just complain when his team mates don’t pass him the ball

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  5. Let’s pull the Red, White and Blue glasses off for a second…

    Dempsey has no doubt kept Fulham’s head above water this season but best player on the team? Yea not sure about that. Dembele easily has the most technical ability, Hangeland is literally a brick wall and probably in the top 5 central defenders in the league, and Zamora (who just played his first minutes since breaking his ankle) already looked ready to start scoring goals again.

    Don’t get me wrong, I like Dempsey a lot but he is exactly where he should be at Fulham.

    Plus I’ll say some of the people on these boards need to go back and watch some past Fulham matches. You will find tons of times where Dempsey bypassed the smart pass to shoot.

    Reply
  6. This is unprecedented in my honest opinion.

    Dempsey is clearly the best player on Fulham.
    Holden is arguably the most valuable play for Bolton.
    Howard is Everton’s best player.
    Jones is on his way to being Blackburn’s best player.

    Reply
  7. it will be

    —–Altidore—-Dempsey——

    LD—Bradley–Jones—Holden

    Dempsey needs to be a striker in a 4-4-2 or a 4-4-1-1

    Holden is a better winger than Dempsey because of crossing, Dempsey is a better player inside the box than anyone else on the nats.

    I’m tired of the USMNT always having to have someone be a hero or get goals off random corners. We need to create and manufacture chances/goals.

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  8. You have no idea what your talking about…the core of this team has taken Fulham to 7th two seasons ago and to the Europa League final last season. Not much for team play? Please…

    And Murphy is the captain and he takes the penalties…that’s it, end of conversation. Doesn’t matter who earns it or who deserves it…most teams have this set up

    Reply
  9. Tough loss for Deuce as he’s desperate to win some silverware. But great win for Stu! Still alive in th FA cup, and an ouside chance at Europe.

    How about that egg ‘gers and Mo laid today. They needed to win that game to make up ground on Celtic.

    Reply
  10. Dempsey played well especially in the 2nd half. Several headers he had weren’t too far off the mark. Dembele should have passed more to him. Murphy had a weak shot toward the end of the match, when he could just as easily passed to Dempsey to get a good shot off.

    I’m telling you guys, Dempsey is now the best player at Fulham and should consider moving up to a bigger club ala Everton, Aston Villa or Blackburn.

    Reply
  11. People tend to play differently at their club than at their NT, but if the way he took control of the field during the October friendlies is any indication, I can’t really see him not starting.

    What a starting midfield we could have, too. Jones, Bradley, and Holden in the center (if Bradley works his way into regular PT at AV, that’d be all three of them at good mid-sized EPL clubs), with Dempsey and Donovan out on the wings? The prospect of Dempsey, Holden, and Donovan working together on the attack is pretty awesome. I’m excited–I hope that they’re all called up for Argentina so we can get some sort of preview (and so that I can scream my head off in excitement at the Meadowlands).

    Reply
  12. I can see it now…

    Frosted Flakes drops back to receive a pass from the Golden Dome… hits a long ball… Onto the feet of… GOLLLLL I like that BOON BOO REE!

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  13. Murphy gets on my nerves too. That attempt at a shot surrounded by blue shirts with two of his men wide open to his left and right in the box 1:30 into added time seems typical. I also recall a game a little while back when he tried (unsuccessfully) to step in for the penalty after Dempsey had clearly earned it. Not much for team play over there. No wonder they sit near the bottom.

    Reply
  14. Is there any question in anybody’s mind at this point that Holden NEEDS to be starting for the red, white, and blue?

    Week after week we see that gelled-to-perfection-frosted-flakes boy running rampant over EPL midfields.

    Reply
  15. I have had the same problem. I will be unsubscribing from my “free” trial. It was horrible. Why does paying for something get you a worse product than when you steal it?

    Reply
  16. I get the feeling that Dembele just doesn’t like Dempsey. He never passes the ball to him. He will turn and play a negative pass or just take a wild, ill advised shot instead of making the easy pass to Dempsey

    Reply
  17. “Bolton are off to a dream start in their FA Cup fifth round tie against Fulham FC, going ahead at Craven Cottage after just 19 minutes. Ivan Klasnic, who has seen his playing time in a Bolton shirt reduced this season by Johan Elmander’s surprising goal scoring record, is the man who put Bolton in front.

    The goal came after a very long and odd build-up that included a lot of pretty play combined with a lot of scrambling by the Bolton defense. Stuart Holden, Lee Chung-Yong, and Kevin Davies played a great combination resulting in a blocked shot that eventually resulted in Bolton getting the ball back on their right flank. Fabrice Muamba took the ball and swung in a cross that resulted in a clearance, but Klasnic jumped on that clearance and blasted the ball into the back of the net to put Bolton 1-0 ahead.

    Both teams have looked very lively to start the match, and it seems unlikely that this goal will be the last one of the match. Both Adam Bogdan and Mark Schwarzer are being brought into the game early.”

    Thats first half

    This is looking like a really good game, i didnt wake up until right now which is the start of the 2nd half

    Its lookin good

    I have to watch German Streams though

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  18. Are you sure? I read that he came on in the 84th minute. Either way, it’s good that he’s back from injury and can start getting some playing time

    Reply
  19. Because your free trial rolls into an actual subscription automatically unless you decide to decline. Pretty standard for most internet free trials that i have seen.

    Reply
  20. Question for anyone who has registered for foxsoccertv’s free trial – Why do I have to provide credit card info if it is a free trial?

    Reply
  21. going to be in the front row, behind the goal in the hammersmith end at craven cottage today for bolton v fulham. heading out the door of my buddy’s flat right now. be jealous.

    Reply

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