Chelsea had championship aspirations heading into the season, but a few stumbles have left the big-spending Blues trailing the Manchester clubs and now stand closer to falling out of top four than challenging for the top spot.
If Chelsea is going to stay ahead of the likes of Arsenal and Liverpool, they will need to beat London rival Fulham in today's Boxing Day clash. Clint Dempsey has been rolling for the Cottagers, and he will look to burn the Blues yet again, as he has done before in his Fulham career.
Manchester rivals City and United are in action as they keep battling for first place, as City faces a trip to Albion to face West Brom, while United takes on Wigan.
Today will offer some big match-ups for other Americans, as Brad Guzan leads Aston Villa against Stoke City, while Jonathan Spector faces his former club as Birmingham takes on West Ham United in League Championship action.
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
8am– Fox Soccer Channel- Chelsea vs. Fulham
10am– ESPN2- Manchester United vs. Wigan
10am– Fox Soccer Channel- West Bromwich Albion vs. Manchester City
10am– ESPN3.com- Bolton vs. Newcastle
10am– FoxSoccer.tv- Liverpool vs. Blackburn
10am– FoxSoccer.tv- Sunderland vs. Everton
12:30pm– Fox Soccer Plus- Birmingham City vs. West Ham United
2:45pm– Fox Soccer Channel- Stoke City vs. Aston Villa
TUESDAY
10am– Fox Soccer Plus- Arsenal vs. Wolves
Noon– Fox Soccer Channel- Swansea City vs. Queens Park Rangers
2:30pm– Fox Soccer Channel- Norwich City vs. Tottenham
How the Rudolph with the Big Red Nose doesn’t play Berbatov is beyond me. The Bulgarian is the essence of football among a team full of horticulturalists (next time I see Rooney in midfield, I will throw up).
Granted, they played Harchester United today (no offense to Wigan), but United’s lack of creativity in midfield as well as porous defenses can be seen even in a 5:0 stroll vs. a top relegation contender.
Gibson surely got the wrong profession, he would make a fantastic lumberjack…I wouldn’t have him on my co-ed team…he is on par w/ Henderson for pure waste of space and/or mistake of nature.
Dempsey still has years left, McBride was 31 before he even started playing regularly in the Premier League, Donovan could still make a mark too, as long as they don’t have major injuries to slow them down. Although right now Dempsey’s form seams to be getting better, while Donovan’s seems to be slowing down which could be contributed to some nagging injuries over the past year.
He’s starting to find his feet in the EPL
I’m sorry, I know that was insensitive. I respect your opinion, just get passionate over my boy Clint. Truce?
Joe Public play in Marvin Lee Stadium named after the player who collided with Donovan, got paralyzed and died.
More Dempsey vs. Donovan controversy?
You think it’s funny that Reyna tore his ACL and as a result of that couldn’t recover to stop a goal?
No love for my boy Ruiz for setting up Dempsey’s tap in?
Can we all just agree that “Khan” is really Claudio Reyna incognito?
5:55 of thus video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hON3_wz4L5E
; )
you’re right. He’ll soon be 29. 39 league goals in like 164/165 league matches is like a goal every 4 matches. Not bad on a team like Fulham when he’s not the designated goal-scorer. He’s done so for 5 years. He can handle the PL. I think he’s good enough for Arsenal. Not to start all the time, but 65-75% of the matches, sure.
I believe it was the Europa quarterfinals but I could be wrong. February was the match right?
Dempsey scores and assists. and yet he plays for a low ranked club. If say Arsenal bought Dempsey, and say he started and scored and helped them win the Carling or FA Cup, his stock would Peak and every US fan would bow before him. But he’s like a Chris Paul. Awesome player on a low ranked team. Not close to the best because he’s big fish in small pond. He needs to move to a CL team asap
Reyna did well in Germany (he was a Bund 1 captain) and England. If you don’t know a thing about the man’s history maybe you shouldn’t talk. He is widely regarded as the greatest American player ever.
In 2002 he was named to the World Cup All-Star team as a midfielder alongside Rivalo, Ronaldihno, Ballack and Yoo.
Like I said, it’s not even close.
Clint has put together a very successful career in Europe. Keep it going Clint! As far as him moving on to another team…it’s entirely up to him. I am fine with him staying on at Fulham but if he’s looking for Champions League futbol he’ll probably need to move on. He’s earned the right to do what ever is comfortable for him and his family.
Dempsey surely is within the discussion of all time greats. “The best” conversation is very hard to decipher because each individual is looking for different attributes in a player. It is tough to debate apples and oranges.
Come on, it’s all in jest. besides players who score goals or assists tend to get greater appreciation. Dempsey has the talent to play for a CL team. If he does, he is soon to be the greatest American player ever.
Reyna has titles and recognition as a great player due to several years in Europe but always had injuries
Friedel has had an Oustanding career. Best Yank ever.
As you said same for Howard/Keller
Serie A is only competitive due to the match fixing/gambling.
Let’s be honest…
Clint is loved by some, hated by others. Dembele is a MASSIVE player, but he barely gets assists in and he almost never scores. And yet people go Ga-Ga over him whereas Dempsey has 6 league goals and 4 assists this year in 16 league matches. Come on you guys, show the man some love
14 league goals from Jan to Dec. Maybe he snags another on Saturday
Sunderland seems more or less same level of Fulham. Fulham is more underrated though.
Khan,
Appreciate you trying (albeit unsuccessfully) to start a debate here, but it’s not gonna happen. Howard and Freidel can be considered, but we all know how difficult it is to compare GK’s to field players.
The “it’s frankly not even close” is laughable.
Clint has scored a goal to save his team from relegation on a final matchday, he’s scored in multiple Confed Cup games, multiple World Cups, the winner in the Europa semis…
Reyna did well in Scotland, got injured a lot, and is remembered for his giveaway that led to us losing to Ghana in the ’06 World Cup.
….Game Over….
Reyna captained Bundesliga side Wolfsburg and was a star player at Manchester City. Why do people think he only played for Rangers?
And no, the EPL is not the most competitive as seen by the pretty terrible showings in European competition. Serie A is certainly the most competitive right now.
I think many of us would love to have Dempsey on a CL team but which teams would he realistically start/play for. he can start and play 100% for Fulham as of now, but a jump to CL will be BIG. He couldn’t start for any of the top 6, well that’s a guess but who knows. maybe a CL team in Germany or France. Like Schalke/Dortmund or Lille/PSG.
what do u guys think
The SPL has been and always will be a joke.
The EPL, in it’s current state, is the most competitive league in the World.
Dembele is overrated and often disappears for large stretches of matches.
I don’t get it either. Martin Jol recently commented about his quality and has yet to ever say similar statements about Duece.
If not for Dempsey, Fulham would have been/and would be still, in the championship.
Claudio Reyna and Brad Friedel are still the best players ever to don the USMNT jersey. Clint is having a run of great form, but those 2 were and in Freidel’s case still are, world class for their entire careers. Even Howard, and Keller can be said to have had better careers.
Can we cool it a bit with the greatest US player ever bit? It’s frankly not even close.
winger/striker?
while Dempsey tends to float/poach more now…he still has midfield responsibilities to track back.
imagine if he was giving the freedom to exclusively poach? yikes…goal city.
Sunderland is a massive club and Top 4 quality.
Dempsey does it again!!!!!
So who would like to explain to me why Moussa Dembele made best of the PL over Deuce according to soccernet.com. WTF, really? I concede that Dembele has slick ball skills and the ability to create chances, yet he also has a tendency (IMO) to kill build up by not passing to anybody and has scored like 1 or 2 goals in EPL play.
Agreed about Landon. Just wish he had the “mental fortitude” that he’s recently acquired about 5 or 6 years ago, where we could have seen his true potential in Europe. And obviously I’m stoked to see him coming back to my Toffees, who are in dire need of some speed and creativity…
Deuce also could transfer to Joe Public or W Connection in the TT Pro League. Both are massive clubs with far reaching influence. Supporters travel from as far as three blocks down the street to see their games.
I’m not quite so convinced that Landon wouldn’t be as successful at the top flight, but we’ll never really know. What HAS kept Clint improving and doing well is his mental fortitude, something that Donovan really has only just acquired.
I would say that when Landon is truly confident and aggressive in the way he plays, he’s more dangerous than any American player ever because of all the tools he has. Clint on the other hand just about always has that when he plays. The 2009 Confederations Cup was a great showing of what Donovan is like confident.
A bigger club like Sunderland? Yeah, Deuce would really be swinging for the fences in that case.
Hey Deuce, you should go to the Thailand Tobacco Monopoly FC, they are a Thai Premier League powerhouse, having won the league in 2005!
as 1 of the above posters said, 39 PL goals in under 5 years as a winger/striker on a small to medium club like Fulham, definitely something to be proud of.
Dempsey may seen overrated by some and underrated by others, but he’s a SOLID player and I wish him well. I look forward to seeing him perhaps play for a CL team someday, even if it’s Lille in France or Sporting Lisbon. He deserves it.
I continue to be unable to understand some the obsession people here have with Dempsey moving away from Fulham. What has he said or done to suggest he has any interest in moving?
And pardon my language, but how the hell is Sunderland a better place for Dempsey than Fulham? Fulham has finished ahead of Sunderland for at least the past three seasons, and has been in Europe for two of the past three.
/Angry Fulham fan rant.
wait no love for my boi Jake Gyllenhaal?
Lol love the last part, mostly because I’m the same
He is the best American football player of all time…
“But Reyna did this…” (with Rangers)
“Ernie Stewart scored oevr 100…” (not in England’s top flight)
“Landon has the most…” (Please. Just. Stop.)
Clint is simply the greatest. His skill. His fight. His tenacity.
He’s neck-and-neck with Gosling’s character in the movie “Drive” for my current man-crush.
BTW, Dempsey always seems to have big games against Chelsea.
Dempsey’s calender year for 2011 was insane. Handles it LIKE A BOSS.
this just in….. Dempsey named best American player ever
If I’m reading his lips correctly it does.
39th PL goal for Dempsey and his 14 league goal for the 2011 calendar year. You can’t tell me this boy Dempsey can’t start on a CL team in France/Germany. Or even a bigger club like Tottenham/Sunderland.
is that what that hand thing he does whenever scores means?
that’s his 6 league goal of the season. This time last season he had 4 and finished with 12. Deuce is Loose
anybody got a feed for these games?
score with his left, scores with his right…
b-tches can’t see me
GOALLLLLL DEMPSEYYY
DEUCE!!!
Manchester v Wigan is also on espn3 according to the info on their site.
Caption: Dempsey dribbles down the wing, past one defender, past another…oh! Dempsey breaks the jaw of the third defender…he shoots and scores!
Don’t Tread…