What? Are you kidding? Vacation???
A couple of programming notes before we get to the Newsy Notes. I will be on a well-earned vacation starting Monday, so the lads will be handling you (heh) while I’m away. I’ve only taken one day off from work this year thus far, and so, it’s a much-needed respite. I’ll be here tomorrow morning with your Sunday open thread, and today’s obviously, but someone else will be handling next weekend. I should be back mid-week the following week, so make sure to support Adam, Fuse and Mags. They are doing the Lord’s work, truly.
The Premier League has some choice matchups this weekend. Liverpool comes to London today to take on West Ham United, and tomorrow sees both the Manchester derby and Spurs traveling West to take on Chelsea. All three matches will go a long way in telling who’s who in the league this season, quite frankly. West Ham need a signature victory to get back in the frame, while Liverpool have been searching for consistency. There’s clear animosity both on and off the pitch with United and City, and that should be cracking. Spurs were quality against Chelsea last season, so the Blues will be looking for some payback against the suddenly-resurgent North Londoners. Yes, I’m excited for it.
It’s a nice slate of matches available on television and computer today, with the list including 10 different countries. I’ll get to the list below the jump, along with some links of note. Join me, won’t you? Cheers.
Sparky and Fergie aren’t BFF’s any more. Sad. [BBC]
Two draws in MLS last night. Fuse is laughing somewhere. [SI]
A couple of hobbits had words at Aston Villa’s training ground yesterday. Unfortunately, one of them was the manager, so the other hobbit has been sent back to the Shire. [Mail]
He’s here, he’s there, he’s about to finally start participating again, Joey Cole! [Guardian]
Edin Dzeko managed a brace yesterday, and Wolfsburg defeated Schalke 04 2-1. [Fox]
Celtic’s next Far East import may be from Japan. Well, Nakamura didn’t turn out too badly, so why not. [Sky]
Despite his horrendous form at the start of the campaign, Rafa Benitez insists that Javier Mascherano is in the frame. Okay then. [OleOle]
Sampdoria is making a move in Serie A. [Yahoo]
Okay, what’s on television? Here’s the list, and all are EDT as usual.
7:30 AM – Burnley v. Sunderland – EPL – ESPN2
9:30 AM – Bayern Munich v. FC Nurnberg – Bundesliga – ESPN360
9:30 AM – Hann0ver 96 v. Borussia Dortmund – Bundesliga – GolTV
10:00 AM – Arsenal v. Wigan – EPL – Setanta
10:00 AM – Aston Villa v. Portsmouth – EPL – FSC
10:00 AM – Hull City v. Birmingham – EPL – Setanta Extra
12:00 PM – Deportivo La Coruña v. Espanyol – La Liga – ESPN360
12:30 PM – West Ham v. Liverpool – EPL – FSC
1:00 PM – Nice v. Monaco – Ligue 1 – Setanta
2:00 PM – Osasuna v. Sevilla – La Liga – GolTV
2:45 PM – Juventus v. Livorno – Serie A – ESPN360
3:00 PM – Seattle v. Chivas USA – MLS – FSC
3:00 PM – Marseille v. Montpelier – Ligue 1 – Setanta
4:00 PM – Barcelona v. Atletico Madrid – La Liga – GolTV
4:00 PM – San Jose v. Colorado – MLS – ESPN Deportes
4:15 PM – Braga v. FC Porto – Portugal – ESPN360
5:30 PM – Bolton v. Stoke City – EPL – FSC (delayed broadcast)
6:00 PM – EC Vitoria v. Internacional – Brazil – GolTV
7:00 PM – Juventus v. Livorno – Serie A – FSC (delayed broadcast)
8:00 PM – Independiente Santa Fe v. Atletico Junior – Colombia – GolTV
8:00 PM – Chivas de Guadalajara v. Jaguares – Mexico – Telefutura
10:00 PM – Once Caldas v. Atletico Nacional – Colombia – GolTV
10:00 PM – Atlante v. Santos Laguna – Mexico – Telefutura
10:15 PM – Cardiff City v. Queen’s Park Rangers – CC Championship – Setanta (delayed broadcast)
Have a lovely day, and tomorrow, a live report from Stamford Bridge as my Dad travels to West London for the first time in 20 years. That should be fun.
Have a great vacation mate!
It looks like my statement was correct…Since I didn’t pick any draws this week, all of the MLS matches are going to end that way.