Manchester United and Chelsea have battled for the English Premier League title for years, and both should be there when the title is decided this season. We will find out just which team has the stronger championship bid when the rivals meet on Sunday in this weekend's marquee match-up.
Manchester United is unbeaten this season, having blown away all comers, but Chelsea has shown the firepower necessary to pose a legitimate threat to United and Manchester City in the Premier League race. With Fernando Torres showing signs of waking up, and Juan Mata looking like a masterful signing, Chelsea is ready to challenge Alex Ferguson's squad.
It's a great weekend for exciting MLS match-ups, with Real Salt Lake taking on Sporting Kansas City in a potential MLS Cup preview. Seattle and D.C. United will also meet in another inter-conference showdown that should feature plenty of action.
Europe has some good match-ups outside of England as well, with AC Milan facing Napoli in a battle of teams who earned impressive Champions League results at midweek. Also, Schalke 04 faces Bayern Munich in what should be an entertaining affair as Manuel Neuer faces his former club.
Here is this weekend's soccer on TV (and SBI's Top Ten Matches to Watch):
SBI'S TOP TEN MATCHES TO WATCH
1. Manchester United vs. Chelsea. Another new Chelsea manager tries to beat the master as Chelsea tries to win at Old Trafford. Something that won't come easy given how well the Red Devils attack is playing.
2. Real Salt Lake vs. Sporting Kansas City. Two teams playing some of the best soccer in MLS. RSL centerbacks will face a good test for Sporting KC's forwards.
3. Napoli vs. AC Milan. Could be the two best teams in Serie A all season, and this one will promise some attacking fireworks.
4. Tottenham vs. Liverpool. Brad Friedel tries to stop his former club, while the Reds offense looks to continue its early-season success.
5. Seattle Sounders vs. D.C. United. D.C. tries to strengthen its new hold on a playoff spot, but beating red-hot Seattle on the road won't be easy. Expect goals galore.
6. Schalke 04 vs. Bayern Munich. Bayern is on an early roll and will try to strengthen its hold on first place in Germany as Manuel Neuer returns to Gelsenkirchen to take on his former club.
7. Barcelona vs. Osasuna. It isn't often that Barcelona winds up on a two-match winless streak, but that's where Barca is. Want to bet against them coming out with a six-goal blowout this weekend?
8. Philadelphia Union vs. Columbus Crew. This match-up isn't as tasty as it looked a month ago, but it's no less important for two teams trying to solidify their holds on playoff spots in the East.
9. Inter Milan vs. Roma. Two Italian powers coming off season-opening losses face off as both sides attempt dangerously poor beginnings. Inter is in worse shape after its shocking Champions League loss to Trabzonspor.
10. FC Dallas vs. New York Red Bulls. Why watch this one? To see if Thierry Henry can carry the Red Bulls out of their two-month-long winless streak against a Dallas side that might be vulnerable without Brek Shea.
THIS WEEKEND'S SOCCER ON TV
FRIDAY
7 p.m. - Fox Soccer Channel - Akron vs. New Mexico
11 p.m. - Fox Soccer Channel - Portland Timbers vs. New England Revolution
SATURDAY
7:45 a.m. - ESPN2/ESPN3.com - Blackburn vs. Arsenal
8 a.m. - Fox Soccer Plus/FoxSoccer.tv - Nottingham Forest vs. Derby County
9:30 a.m. - ESPN3.com/ESPN Deportes - Bayer Leverkusen vs. FC Cologne
10 a.m. - Fox Soccer Channel - Aston Villa vs. Newcastle
10 a.m. - Fox Soccer Plus/FoxSoccer.tv - Wolverhampton vs. Queens Park Rangers
10 a.m. - FoxSoccer.tv/Fox Deportes - Everton vs. Wigan Athletic
10 a.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Bolton vs. Norwich City
10 a.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Swansea City vs. West Brom
12 p.m. - Fox Soccer Plus/Fox Deportes - Cagliari vs. Novara
12 p.m. - DirecTV - Sporting Gijon vs. Valencia
12 p.m. - DirecTV - Granada vs. Villarreal
12 p.m. - DirecTV - Mallorca vs. Malaga
12:30 p.m. - GOLTV - Kaiserslautern vs. Mainz 05
1 p.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Valenciennes vs. Dijon
1 p.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Nice vs. Ajaccio
1 p.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Auxerre vs. Caen
1 p.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Brest vs. Montpellier
1 p.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Lorient vs. St. Etienne
1 p.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Toulouse vs. Bordeaux
1:30 p.m. - MLS Direct Kick/MatchDay Live - Toronto FC vs. Colorado Rapids
2 p.m. - ESPN3.com/ESPN Deportes - Barcelona vs. Osasuna
2:45 p.m. - Fox Soccer Channel/Fox Deportes - Inter Milan vs. Roma
4 p.m. - GOLTV - Sevilla vs. Real Sociedad
4 p.m. - Telefutura - Chicago Fire vs. Chivas USA
6 p.m. - Telemundo - Monterrey vs. Cruz Azul
6 p.m. - Telefutura - Jaguares vs. America
7 p.m. - Fox Soccer Channel - USA vs. Canada (Women's friendly)
7:30 p.m. - MLS Direct Kick/MatchDay Live - Philadelphia Union vs. Columbus Crew
8 p.m. - GOLTV - Irapuato vs. Merida
8 p.m. - Telefutura - Pachuca vs. Atlas
8 p.m. - Telemundo - Chivas de Guadalajara vs. Puebla
8:30 p.m. - MLS Direct Kick/MatchDay Live - FC Dallas vs. New York Red Bulls
8:30 p.m. - MLS Direct Kick/MatchDay Live - Houston Dynamo vs. San Jose Earthquakes
9 p.m. - MLS Direct Kick/MatchDay Live - Real Salt Lake vs. Sporting Kansas City
9 p.m. - MLS Direct Kick/MatchDay Live - Seattle Sounders vs. D.C. United
9:45 p.m. - Galavision - San Luis vs. Santos Laguna
10 p.m. - Telefutura - Atlante vs. Tigres UANL
10:30 p.m. - MLS Direct Kick/MatchDay Live - Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Vancouver Whitecaps
SUNDAY
6:30 a.m. - Fox Soccer Plus - Atalanta vs. Palermo
6:30 a.m. - ESPN3.com/ESPN Deportes - PSV Eindhoven vs. Ajax
8:30 a.m. - Fox Soccer Plus/FoxSoccer.tv - Tottenham vs. Liverpool
9 a.m. - Fox Soccer Channel/Fox Deportes/ESPN3.com - Siena vs. Juventus
9 a.m. - ESPN3.com - Udinese vs. Fiorentina
9 a.m. - ESPN3.com - Catania vs. Cesena
10 a.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Fulham vs. Manchester City
10 a.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Sunderland vs. Stoke City
10 a.m. - ESPN3.com/ESPN Deportes - Real Zaragoza vs. Espanyol
10:55 a.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Evian Thonon Gaillard vs. Paris-St. Germain
11 a.m. - Fox Soccer Channel - Manchester United vs. Chelsea
11 a.m. - FoxSoccer.tv - Stade Rennes vs. Nancy
11:30 a.m. - GOLTV - Schalke 04 vs. Bayern Munich
12 p.m. - ESPN3.com/ESPN Deportes - Atletico Madrid vs. Racing Santander
1 p.m. - Telemundo - Pumas UNAM vs. Toluca
1:15 p.m. - ESPN3.com - Feirense vs. FC Porto
2pm- FOX– Manchester United vs. Chelsea (Tape Delayed)
2 p.m. - GOLTV - Levante vs. Real Madrid
2:45 p.m. - Fox Soccer Channel - Napoli vs. AC Milan
3 p.m. - Azteca America/ESPN Deportes - Tijuana vs. Estudiantes Tecos
3 p.m. - Fox Soccer Plus/FoxSoccer.tv - Lyon vs. Marseille
4 p.m. - GOLTV - Athletic Bilbao vs. Real Betis
7 p.m. - Azteca America/ESPN Deportes - Morelia vs. Queretaro
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Which matches will you be watching this weekend? Which match-ups are you most looking forward to seeing?
Share your thoughts below.
DC United has a good test of their road strength tonight! And tomorrow’s return of Neuer to Schalke Stadium will be an awesome one! Bayern Munich has thoughts of Champions League glory this year! Beating Schalke on the road will be a good test for them.
Viva USA
Marseille looked OK in UEFA CL, but they do need to pick it up
Marvin Chavez has mysteriously disappeared also
RSL/SKC is top billing in the states, no doubt
Incognito, if Iniesta scores against Osasuna this weekend, I’ll give you $10,000 times whatever you’d like to put up. Let me know…chump.
Ives, do you work for Fox Soccer? Wouldn’t you know this in advance? HUC.
Prediction for Barcelona vs. Osasuna, 4-0.
David Villa assisted by Messi
Iniesta no assist.
Messi PK.
Messi again assisted by Xavi.
I’m fairly certain they already did sellout. KFC corner? Lol. That’s the saddest stadium section in the league. I don’t know how anyone could be an RSL fan with a straight face.
+1
The few Ligue 1 matches I’ve seen over the years have always been entertaining. IMO the style of play is a good balance of technical skill and pace. Scoring has picked up this season from what I’ve read. I hope FSC (regular) would show more matches.
There goes Fox Soccer teasin’ with that typo about Liverpool v. Tottenham on FS Plus because I’m really jazzed bout Siena v Juve… Hoping SBI peeps can post a few updates and go Red Dragons!
(SBI-What typo? Are you saying Liverpool-Tottenham isn’t on Fox Soccer Plus? I’ve checked and the listings I’ve seen show that game being on at the time we have listed.)
I know you guys aren’t big on French Football but damn, Lyonnais – Marseille is actually a big deal this weekend. Marseille hasn’t won a game in Ligue 1 and hopefully when it’s all said and done they will still be winless. This PSG fan is pulling for Lyon to keep OM’s winless streak alive.
(SBI-Funny you mention it because I actually had it No. 5, but then considered Marseille’s awful started and dropped it out. I’ll still be watching, but couldn’t really recommend it. Fair points though.)
BTW, this chelsea Man united game is being shown on FOX 5 NATIONAL TV ontape-delay right after or right before an NFL game at 2 or 4:30 during PRIMETIME. every soccer fan should watch just to get the crazy ratings because some NFL fans might watch too.
Brek Shea is being rested
(SBI-Shea has a groin injury.)
Brek Shea injured or…?
A sellout at the RIOT, Go RSL!!!