European club ball rolls back into play this weekend, while the Mexican playoffs begin and the path to MLS Cup ends.
by Greg Seltzer for Soccer365
European club ball rolls back into play this weekend, while the Mexican playoffs begin and the path to MLS Cup ends.
S365's Tables, Fixtures, Results & Stats
As always, we will point out Americans Abroads potentially involved in foreign matches and drop the pertinent U.S. television info. All times are listed in ET.
#5 - Rubin Kazan v Zenit St. Petersburg
SAT 5:45 AM on Setanta USA
The defenders can lock down a Russian title repeat - but they will need to go through guests Zenit St. Petersburg, who can cut the gap to a single point with a win, without playmaker Alejandro Dominguez. The teams have traded 4-1 wins the last two times out in Kazan and played a scoreless draw at St. Petersburg in October, so anything can happen here.
#4 - Liverpool v Manchester City
SAT 7:45 AM on espn2
Rafa Benitez and the Reds are teetering on the brink and Citeh would love nothing than to give them a little nudge. Man City have not won at Anfield since 2003, and only once since 1982. Steven Gerrard is back for the searching hosts, but Fernando Torres mat get a rest for his groin niggle. Meanwhile, Criag Bellamy and Robinho are in heavy doubt for the Citizens.
#3 - San Luis (Michael Orozco) v Toluca
SUN 1:00 PM on Univision
Can Michael Orozco and the Miracle Team pull one off by opening their playoff tie with a home victory over regular season kings Toluca? Aside from a 5-1 smashing in their last home game in the series, San Luis have played the favorites tight, bagging three wins and three draws from the last 10 clashes Of course, someone may want to locate Hector Mancilla, who has hit for 14 goals in his last 14 games across all competitions.
#2 - Bayern Munich v Bayer Leverkusen
SUN 9:30 AM on Dish German Sports
Eighth place Bayern need a boost. What better way then to ambush first place Leverkusen at Allianz Arena? The weekend visitors have just two wins from 31 visits to Munich, and Bayern have won 15 of the last 16 home meetings. Of course, they are also missing Miroslav Klose and Franck Ribéry.
#1 - Los Angeles Galaxy v Real Salt Lake
SUN 8:30 PM on ESPN/ESPN360, Galavision/Telefutura
It's all comes down to this: the American version of FC Hollywood against the upstart Royal Army for all the marbles. The all time series is deadlocked at 5-5-5, and oh what a tiebreaker. Recent history seems to side with RSL, who have not lost to the Galaxy in their last six contests and have scored two goals in seven straight meetings. Does The Beckham Experiment finally pay off on the field? We shall see. It should be a good final.
Honorable mentions:
Athletic Bilbao v Barcelona SAT 4:00 PM on GolTV, Atlético Mineiro v Internacional SUN 2:00 PM,
Beşiktaş v Fenerbahçe SAT 1:00 PM, Brøndby v Odense BK SUN 12:00 PM,
Dynamo Kyiv v Shakhtar Donetsk SAT 8:00 AM, Dinamo Moscow v Lokomotiv Moscow SAT 6:00 AM,
Fiorentina v Parma SAT 2:45 PM, Independiente v Banfield SAT 7:15 PM,
Manchester United v Everton (Tim Howard) SAT 12:30 PM on FSC, Monterrey v Club América SAT 6:00 PM,
Spartak Moscow v CSKA Moscow SAT 6:00 AM
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