Last Anfield Appearance For Gerrard, Superclásico Abandoned, St. Pauli Issues

Hey, now! There goes another one. We're getting down to the end of it all. What happened to the season? Geez. Let's get to the weekend shiznit, beginning with the UK and all that.

Premier League Spotlight

10 things to look out for this weekend (includes Championship & League Uhhhhhh)
Jim White: Steven Gerrard: A once-in-a-lifetime talent, and the last of his kind
Greg Johnson: Liverpool legend who should have been even better
Team News

Paul Merson's Predictions

Lawro's Predictions

So. We know the Champions League Final will be Juventus vs. Barcelona. What about the Europa League Final? Why, it's Sevilla vs. Dnipro Dnipropeptreptakniptrovsk!

A bunch of idiots at La Bombonera forced the the Superclásico Copa Libertadores matchup between Boca and River to be abandoned. Great. Nice work, assholes.



Italy? Serie A? Here's a Weekend Preview as clubs scramble to qualify for Europe. Spain? Barcelona can win the whole bloody thing if they can beat Atlético Madrid at the Vicente Calderón. Here's your Weekend Preview for La Liga.

Backheel Breakfast

There is a Joy of Six today. It's...Sporting Insults! Look out! Top Tenner? Why, it's got to be...The 10 best moments of Steven Gerrard's Liverpool career!!

Is there hope for English managers? Richard Williams makes the claim that there is, thanks to Tim Sherwood and Gary Monk.

Kirsten Schlewitz got in with some Fiorentina supporters. Embedded, as it were. Here's her report.

And finally...No Dinner For You!!

Onward!!

-SSN

nbcsoccer.com

Juventus Oust Real Madrid, La Liga Strike Won't Happen, Friedel to Retire

Well, now. Ronny and Co. will not be involved in the Champions League Final. Juventus made sure of that last night, with a 1 - 1 draw and 3 - 2 aggregate win. Most around SSN Headquarters were pleased with the result. There's not much to like about that Real Madrid team, and (unlike in years past) this Juve side is actually rather attractive, what with Old Man Pirlo covering the midfield in his Rascal and Alice Cooper Gigi Buffon keeping things clean at the back. And now we've got a final featuring Luis Suárez and his old buddies Patrice Evra (a little racial slur incident) and Giorgio Chiellini (a little biting incident) Anyway, here's the fallout:

Real Madrid 1 - 1 Juventus (agg. 2 - 3): Sid Lowe at Santiago Bernabéu

Real Madrid 1 - 1 Juventus (agg. 2 - 3): Three Quick Things

Amy Lawrence: Buffon still godfather in gloves as he gets set for date with destiny

Gabriele Marcotti: What next for Real Madrid?

Sid Lowe: Ancelotti nears end at Madrid, a club who never truly believe in any coach

Andi Thomas: How Real Madrid ensured their own downfall, again

Graham Hunter: Real Madrid run out of steam

Desmond Kane: Rush to blame Bale for Real's woes is wrong and unjustified

Is this the end for Gareth Bale as Real Madrid fall to Juventus?

They will finish the La Liga season after all. They talked to the judge and he said that a strike would be illegal. So that's that. Barcelona have it all to lose.

Back to Munich for a second. What's Pep going to do next? Will he stay? Is Bayern broken? Can he fix it? We shall see...

More matches today! The Europa League needs a final, too. We'll see if Fiorentina can overturn their deficit against Sevilla and whether Napoli or Dnipro Dnipropeptreptakniptrovsk will prevail.

Robin van Persie. He was pretty good. He was pretty good very recently. What's happened? Richard Jolly is on the case.

Backheel Breakfast

Brad Freidel will retire. It will happen. Finally. Sticking with U.S. stuff, Grant Wahl has a few notes of note. He has an update on Bob Bradley, for example.

Ashley Cole's got the same problem as RVP. He went to Roma but now he doesn't play.

That's it for today. Ta!

Onward!!

-SSN

nbcsoccer.com

Barcelona Advance, Turkish Football Violence, Juventus vs. Real Madrid, Sepp Blatter and the FBI

Crowd trouble at Manchester Under-21 Derby

Is it Hump Day already? Geez. Where does the time go? Anyway, as expected, Barcelona booked their ticket to Berlin last night despite a 3-2 loss in Munich. Bayern got the first goal to give them a hint of hope, but Neymar ended any optimism the hosts had shortly thereafter. Here's your lot:

Bayern Munich 3 - 2 Barcelona (agg. 3 - 5): Barney Ronay at the Allianz Arena

Bayern Munich 3 - 2 Barcelona (agg. 3 - 5): Three Things We Learned

Raphael Honigstein: Bayern Munich recover some pride, but questions remain

Paul Doyle: Bayern’s heads and legs missing as they tumble out of Champions League

We knew the situation in Turkey wasn't good. But, we had no idea about the extent of the troubles over there. This is an excellent look at the worrying state of Turkish Football. Violence is killing the game.

Today! The other tie. Go:

Real Madrid vs. Juventus: Preview I

Real Madrid vs. Juventus: Preview II

Real Madrid vs. Juventus: How Juventus got back to the top of European football

Jonathan Wilson: Is Tevez Juventus’ Champions League traffic-stopper or car crash TV?

Jim White: Bale is playing for his future against Juventus - and Man Utd will be watching

Backheel Breakfast

Nice! Javier Zanetti's Champions League Dream Team!

And finally...is Sepp Blatter avoiding the U.S. due to an FBI investigation?

Onward!!

-SSN

nbcsoccer.com

Swansea Beat Arsenal, Bayern Munich vs. Barcelona, Chelsea Are Big in Japan, Scribes, Goals of the Week, Getting Shirty With Scott Murray

Right! Off we go. Swansea swept into the Emirates Stadium last night and left with the maximum points on offer. Dafydd Pritchard was there and filed this report. Amy Lawrence was there, too. She had this to report. Three Points? Why not? And so...here is your Premier League Table.

Chelsea are also big in Japan. See below...

The Champions League returns today with Bayern Munich facing the unenviable task of attempting to turn around a three-goal deficit at the Allianz Arena. Here are your previews:

Semifinals Preview

Bayern Munich vs. Barcelona: Preview I

Bayern Munich vs. Barcelona: Preview II

Why Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are more different than ever before

There's a Top Tenner today. Naturally, it's Top Champions League Comebacks. Are you reading, Pep?

It's Tuesday and that means it's time to Scribe!

Where? Spain. Who? Sid Lowe. What? Barcelona can rule again after Real Madrid falter

Where? Germany. Who? Raphael Honigstein. What? Schalke get their moment in the sun … for all the wrong reasons

Where? Germany. Who? Raphael Honigstein. Again? Yes. OK. What? Guardiola retains Bayern Munich's faith despite recent difficulties

Where? Brazil. Who? Tim Vickery. What? Championship gets underway, but big clubs have other things on their mind

Where? Germany? Who? Uli Hesse. What? Bundesliga's relegation race is as tight as some of the league's historic best

Where? Italy. Who? Paolo Bandini. What? Hernanes and Mattia Destro bring ex factor to Champions League race

More Tuesday fun: Goals of the Week. More Tuesday fun: Marcotti's Musings.

We could use some thoughts and some power rankings for MLS, right? Bird is on the case.

Backheel Breakfast

Here's a question for you: Is the correlation between a well-designed kit and a well-functioning team obvious? Scott Murray claims that it is.

How about a European Team of the Week? Good. Mexico has named its squad for Copa America. As expected, they're saving the big guns for the Gold Cup.

There was talk around SSN Headquarters yesterday about Newcastle. Most agreed that they should be relegated. This morning we find an article by Andi Thomas indicating that he agrees, too.

And finally...we're big in Japan.

Onward!!

-SSN

nbcsoccer.com

Burnley & QPR Relegated, Liverpool & Chelsea Draw, Real Madrid Held, Bayern Lose Again, Red Bull Win Derby, Monday Night Football, Someone Almost Shot The Zlatan

The New York Derby is off and running...

Happy Monday! Club soccer is coming to a close across Europe, and the battles at this point are primarily for spots in the Champions League and Europa League...and to avoid the dreaded drop. The La Liga title looks to be Barcelona's to lose after Real Madrid could only salvage a draw with Valencia on Saturday, and, as you know, the Champions have already been crowned in England, Italy, and Germany. Let's get to it, beginning with the Premier League.

Chris Kamara's Weekend Review

Premier League Notes

10 Talking Points

Heroes & Villains

Crystal Palace 1 - 2 Manchester United: Three Things We Learned

Manchester City 6 - 0 QPR: Daniel Taylor at the Etihad Stadium

Manchester 6 - 0 QPR: A Trio of Thoughts

Nick Miller: QPR relegated but their real issues are just beginning

Chelsea 1 - 1 Liverpool: Dominic Fifield at Stamford Bridge

Steven Gerrard: Chelsea fans slaughtered me all game

Barney Ronay: Gerrard’s long Liverpool goodbye is becoming painful and poignant

Garth Crooks's Team of the Week

Team of the Weekend

What else did we learn in Spain other than the fact that Real Madrid fans will boo Ronny when he misses a penalty? Here. And how about a nice little review of all of the matches in Spain's top division? Yes? Good. Here.

Down in Italy, Inter are suddenly up to seventh after their win at Lazio. Here's your Serie A Weekend Review.

Backheel Breakfast

We've got Champions League Semi-Final Second Leg action this week. How did those four teams fare in their domestic matches this weekend?

Back Stateside, the New York Derby was hyped aplenty. Apparently, it lived up to it! Here are Five Things We Learned in MLS this weekend. And here's a Weekend Review.

What the?! Some dude almost shot The Zlatan due to his crap parking. Based on his record, we don't doubt the intent.

Monday Night Football! Swansea have been quietly successful this season under the tutelage of Mr. Monk. Arsenal are hoping to make second place their own. Who will prevail? Check out the action this afternoon at 3:00 p.m. EDT on NBCSN. Here's a Preview. Here's another.

And finally...how cool is this?

Onward!!

-SSN

nbcsoccer.com