Manchester United is marching toward an English Premier League title, but the Red Devils will have to beat a familiar face to take a step closer.
Former United goalkeeper Tim Howard and Everton will look to upset Manchester United in one of the day's marquee match-ups. Everton is chasing Liverpool for sixth place in the Premier League, while United has pulled away from Arsenal in the title race.
Looking for some non-Premier League action? Look no further than Spain, where Valencia will look to catch Real Madrid on a letdown after its mid-week Copa Del Rey triumph. In Italy, Inter Milan takes on Lazio in a clash of teams battling for third place in Serie A.
MLS returns to action as well, with the Los Angeles Galaxy looking to slow down the Portland Timbers, while Benny Feilhaber is expected to make his New England Revolution debut against Sporting Kansas City.
If you will be watching today's action, please feel free to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below.
Enjoy the action (Today's TV Schedule is after the jump):
TODAY'S SOCCER ON TV
6:30 a.m. - ESPN3.com - AS Roma vs. Chievo Verona
7:45 a.m. - ESPN2/ESPN3.com/ESPN Deportes - Manchester United vs. Everton
7:45 a.m. - Fox Soccer Plus/FoxSoccer.tv - Cardiff City vs. Queens Park Rangers
9 a.m. - ESPN3.com - Inter Milan vs. Lazio
9 a.m. - ESPN3.com - Palermo vs. Napoli
9 a.m. - ESPN3.com - Udiense vs. Parma
9:30 a.m. - GOLTV - Eintracht Frankfurt vs. Bayern Munich
9:30 a.m. - ESPN3.com/ESPN Deportes - Schalke vs. Kaiserslautern
10 a.m. - Fox Soccer Channel - Liverpool vs. Birmingham City
10 a.m. - Fox Soccer Plus/FoxSoccer.tv - Aston Villa vs. Stoke City
10 a.m. - Fox Deportes/FoxSoccer.tv - Tottenham vs. West Brom
10 a.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Blackpool vs. Newcastle
10 a.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Wolverhampton vs. Fulham
12 p.m. - ESPN3.com/ESPN Deportes - Valencia vs. Real Madrid
12:20 p.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Millwall vs. Preston North End
12:30 p.m. - Fox Soccer Channel - Chelsea vs. West Ham
12:30 p.m. - ESPN3.com - Borussia Monchengladbach vs. Borussia Dortmund
1 p.m. - ESPN3.com - Brescia Calcio vs. AC Milan
2 p.m. - GOLTV - Barcelona vs. Osasuna
2:30 p.m. - Fox Soccer Plus - Marseille vs. Montpellier
3 p.m. - Fox Soccer Channel/ESPN3.com - Juventus vs. Catania
4 p.m. - ESPN3.com/ESPN Deportes - Athletic Bilbao vs. Real Sociedad
4 p.m. - MLS Matchday Live/Direct Kick - Toronto FC vs. Columbus Crew
4 p.m. - Telefutura - San Jose Earthquakes vs. Chivas USA
4 p.m. - GOLTV - Medellin vs. America de Cali
6 p.m. - GOLTV - Santos vs. Ponte Preta (delayed)
6 p.m. - Telefutura - Queretaro vs. Pachuca
7 p.m. - MLS Matchday Live/Direct Kick - Vancouver Whitecaps vs. FC Dallas
7:30 p.m. - MLS Matchday Live/Direct Kick - New England Revolution vs. Sporting Kansas City
8 p.m. - Telefutura - Santos Laguna vs. San Luis
8 p.m. - Telemundo - Monterrey vs. Puebla
8:30 p.m. - MLS Matchday Live/Direct Kick - Chicago Fire vs. Houston Dynamo
10 p.m. - Telefutura - Atlas vs. Chiapas
11 p.m. - MLS Matchday Live/Direct Kick - Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Portland Timbers
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What gets me about this thread is that , particularly with the US, defense is a matter of organization and discipline.
Which means it is less about individual defensive ability than about whether a given player understands the defensive scheme and is committed to doing what he is supposed to be doing and being where he is supposed to be. Which is why is is hard to slot a new guy into a team and expect him to do a great job right off the bat.
That is one reason why most national teams managers ( not just whipping boy BB) often prefer familiar guys to newer guys even if the new guy is more “talented”. Donovan may not be a great tackler but he is extremely familiar with how the US plays and is usually where he needs to be, which defenders need to know.
Torres should be playing a “Makalele” role for the US, sweeping up in front of the back four and then getting the ball to Donovan or Dempsey. He’s better than MB at that particular role but he has very little offensive capability.
Actually Gio has become reborn in Spain and Vela has been scoring with west brom and news form there say that he is doing great. Maybe you should stay more up to date on your footy news. Gosh the igonrance!! 😛
In crazy heat, no less. 38 degrees C (about 100 F, I think). In each half the ref stopped play for a minute or two to let the players rehydrate.