Friday, October 24, 2014

¡El Clásico!



Whew. There goes another one, eh? We find ourselves on a Friday yet again, eagerly awaiting the fine fixtures that will be thrown our way over the next two days. The Big One is at the Santiago Bernabéu, but we'll get to that a bit later. Best to start in the Premier League, where Chelsea's trip to Manchester United has SSN Headquarters on edge. Here we go!




The Special One and LVG meet again...

¡El Clásico! ¡El Clásico! ¡El Clásico! ¡El Clásico! ¡El Clásico! ¡El Clásico! ¡El Clásico! It all goes down tomorrow at 12 p.m. EDT on beIN Sports USA. Is it The Biggest Game in Club History?

Sid Lowe has a preview here. Graham Hunter explains why the contest is so compelling here. Tim Vickery says Neymar is learning from Messi here. Alan Smith ponders who has the better lineup here. You want a 50-50 Challenge? It's here. Lawro?! Lawro?! What's he doing talking about this? Geez, everyone wants a piece of the action. One final preview? Sure, why not?


Did you see the vid of Lamela's rabona above? Pretty sick, right? It happened last night in the Europa League. Here's the rest of what happened last night in the Europa League.

The Joy of Six is...well, it's an odd one this week. Big-Boned Footballers. Enjoy.

Just a wee bit of history...

Look at this: As the MLS season enters its final weekend, the Supporters' Shield is still up for grabs and the race to for Eastern Conference playoff spots is heating up quite nicely. Here's what to watch when the assGalaxy and Sounders clash.

Podcast! What a week! On today's Football Weekly Extraaaaaa, AC Jimbo has Barry Glendenning, James Horncastle and Rafa Honigstein in the pod to look back on a huge week in the Champions League, with Liverpool outclassed by Real, Bayern ruthless against Roma, and Arsenal lucky to beat Anderlecht. Also in the show, Sid Lowe looks forward to Luis Suárez's likely return in a typically low-key clásico, while we also catch up with the state of play in India's Super League and Ireland's Premier League. Finally, we preview the big games in the Premier League this weekend, including Manchester United v Chelsea, Sunderland v Arsenal, and 'Arry Redknapp v Adel Taarabt.

 Let's not forget Italy. Here's a preview of the weekend's Serie A menu.

 And finally...The day UFOs stopped play.

Onward!!

-SSN

Posted by The Editor at 10:57 AM 0 comments

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Real Madrid Thump Liverpool, Arsenal Escape With Three Points, Tear Gas in Lille, Sid Lowe on Suárez, Super Mario Shirt Swap


Hey Hey! Great action yesterday as Ronaldo and Real showed the gulf in class between Liverpool and Real Madrid (and Super Mario did a half-time shirt exchange), Arsenal were awful but still somehow managed to grab a late win, Olympiakos shocked Juventus, and Sporting were robbed in their game against Schalke and want a rematch. Check it:


Liverpool 0 - 3 Real Madrid: Phil McNulty at Anfield
Liverpool 0 - 3 Real Madrid: Daniel Taylor at Anfield
Liverpool 0 - 3 Real Madrid: Three Things We Learned
Liverpool 0 - 3 Real Madrid: Five Talking Points
Anderlecht 1 - 2 Arsenal: Three Things We Learned
Anderlecht 1 - 2 Arsenal: Three Points


Luis Suárez's ban is about to end. Sid Lowe wants to talk about it. That makes us happy.


Meanwhile, over in Lille, Everton fans awaiting their side's Europa League match were greeted with teargas. Smashing. Interested in the Europa League? Here.

So, Borussia Dortmund are cruising through their Champions League group, but are struggling mightily in the Bundesliga. What's wrong?

And finally...Manchester United v Arsenal: Pizzagate revisited - 10 years on.

Onward!!

-SSN

Posted by The Editor at 11:41 AM 0 comments

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Bayern Ravage Roma, Chelsea Crush Maribor, Shakhtar Donetsk Destroy BATE, Sneijder Rules Istanbul, Previews for Today's Champions League Matches

Bayern Munich and The Pope
Is it really Hump Day already? Good Grief. Let's get to it. Europe's top club competition wasn't really much of a competition in a few of the matches yesterday. Bayern at Roma was supposed to be a good one. It finished 7 - 1 in favor of the Germans. Chelsea have a bunch of injuries to deal with. They won 6 - 0. Shakhtar? They beat BATE 7 - 0. That said, there were some good ones. Here's your lot:

CSKA Moscow 2 - 2 Manchester City: Jamie Jackson at the Arena Khimki
CSKA Moscow 2 - 2 Manchester City: Three Points
Bayern Munich 7 - 1 Roma: Three Things We Learned
Barcelona 3 - 1 Ajax: Three Points
Barcelona 3 - 1 Ajax: Three Things We Learned
Chelsea 6 - 0 Maribor: Amy Lawrence at Stamford Bridge
Chelsea 6 - 0 Maribor: Three Points
Chelsea 6 - 0 Maribor: Five Talking Points

Sneijder! Sneijder! Sneijder! We don't normally cover the Istanbul Derby, but, man. Check out the two goals that won it for Galatasaray (and the other Goals of the Week). Fenerbahçe didn't know what hit them.

Bad Goalkeeping Performances? Here are FIVE.

William Gallas has retired after a very successful 19-year career. Amy Lawrence takes a look back at the French defender's tenure.

D.C. United = Worst to First

More matches today, folks! All eyes are on Anfield as Ronny & Co. arrive from Madrid to face Liverpool. Elsewhere, Arsenal are at Anderlecht, Galatasaray host Dortmund, and Juventus go to Olympiakos.

Liverpool vs. Real Madrid: Preview
Liverpool vs. Real Madrid: Preview II
Anderlecht vs. Arsenal: Preview

And finally...Rochdale AFC's grass will look better this season, and it it thanks to some confiscated marijuana lamps.

Onward!!

-SSN
Posted by The Editor at 11:27 AM 0 comments

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

West Brom 2 - 2 Manchester United, Scribes, Champions League, Sunderland Fans Get Their Money Back

What West Brom executive allowed a 12-year-old to take over the official Twitter feed?
Good Day! The match in the West Midlands last night was a fine affair. The hosts were certainly up for it and looked set for three points, but the Red Devils managed to snatch a draw. United goals scored by...Marouane Fellaini and Danny Blind. No. No, we were not expecting those two names on the score sheet. Here's the breakdown:

West Brom 2 - 2 Manchester United: Luke Reddy at The Hawthorns
West Brom 2 - 2 Manchester United: Stuart James at The Hawthorns
West Brom 2 - 2 Manchester United: Five Things
West Brom 2 - 2 Manchester United: Three Points

Scribe Time! It's time to pull a Wide World of Sports and span the globe to bring you the constant variety of sport soccer... the thrill of victory... and the agony of defeat... the human drama of athletic competition...

Where? Spain. Who? Sid Lowe. What? Bilbao suffering from Euro hangover

Where? Portugal. Who? Andy Brassell. What? Porto increase doubts over tiki-taka


Where? Germany. Again? Yes. OK. Who? Raphael Honigstein. What? All is not yet lost for Dortmund

Where? Italy. Who? Paolo Bandini. What? Inter and Milan missing urgency


Woop! Check this out: Best XIs from the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1 and Bundesliga, plus analysis of the big Champions League fixtures. We'll take it.

Taarabt vs. 'Arry. Here's the latest.

The Big Interview today is...Álvaro Arbeloa! Yes, as you might expect, the Spaniard is relishing his Champions League return to Liverpool after leaving the club for Real Madrid.

The Champions League is back, folks. Get on it:

Champions League Match-Day Three

Roma vs. Bayern Munich: Preview
Rudi Garcia: Emperor of Roma
CSKA Moscow vs. Manchester City: Preview
Chelsea vs. Maribor: Preview
Schalke vs. Sporting Lisbon: Preview

And finally...you travel 317 miles to watch your club get destroyed 8-0. At least you get your money back.

Onward!!

-SSN

Posted by The Editor at 11:26 AM 0 comments

Monday, October 20, 2014

Southampton 8 - 0 Sunderland, Juventus Draw, Barcelona & Real Madrid Win, Monday Night Football

That was quite the weekend, was it not? Southampton scored eight against poor Sunderland. Aguero scored four against Spurs. Ronaldo scored two against Levante. Inter and Napoli drew. Juventus did not win. Late drama between QPR and Liverpool. And...loads more. Let's dive in, beginning in the Premier League...




















Manchester City 4 - 1 Tottenham: Daniel Taylor at the Etihad Stadium
Crystal Palace 1 - 2 Chelsea: Three Points
Arsenal 2 - 2 Hull City: Amy Lawrence at the Emirates Stadium
Southampton 8 - 0 Sunderland: Paul Doyle at St. Mary's
Newcastle 1 - 0 Leicester City: Iain Macintosh at St. James' Park
QPR 2 - 3 Liverpool: Jonathan Jurejko at Loftus Road
QPR 2 - 3 Liverpool: Three Points

Over in Italy, leaders Juventus were held at Sussudio, Roma crushed Chievo, and Milan rode Honda's heroics to a win at Verona. Here's all you need to know. More tomorrow with Paolo.

España? Barcelona scored three in 15 minutes to win and Real Madrid had little trouble against Levante. Here's all you need to know + Five Things We Learned in La Liga. More tomorrow with Sid.



There are a bunch of strikers in the Premier League who are either new to the league, or are simply playing with new teams. Jacob Steinberg takes a look at who is providing the best value for the money.

Back Stateside, it's advantage Seattle as the Sounders came back to claim a draw against the assGalaxy. Bird's got more on that here. And check out the Five Things We Learned from the action in MLS this weekend. Wait! Here's a Sixth Things We Learned: Boys II Men sang a tribute song for Landycakes...


Sweet! Monday Night Football is a good one. West Brom vs. Manchester United. Here's a preview. Here's another. 3:00 p.m. EDT on NBCSN.



Onward!!

-SSN

Posted by The Editor at 11:29 AM 0 comments
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