Ross County F.C. v. Inverness Caledonian Thistle F.C. (Saturday)
Between the fixture pile-up resulting from this past winter’s rougher-than-usual weather, County’s run in the Scottish Cup, and their position in the league, the month of March is going to be an epic one for the northernmost professional team in the U.K. This weekend sees a renewal of the Highland Derby with arch-rivals Inverness, an in form side who now lead County by three points- though County do have two games in hand over their nemesis club. I’ll be interested to see if the Staggies are up for this match- they should be, but with their Cup replay with Hibernian looming on the near horizon it may be tough for the team not to have one eye on their midweek fixture and the £250,000 coming the club’s way should they move on and face Celtic in the semifinals.
Heart of Midlothian F.C. v. Hibernian F.C. (Saturday)
The Edinburgh Derby is probably the last chance for Hearts to salvage their 2009-2010 campaign. Though currently in sixth place, they trail rivals and fifth place Hibs by ten points, they will be lucky to finish in the top half of the table, they have been out of both cups for six weeks, and they’ve only managed draws in their previous meetings with Hibernian this season. They need this win. Hibernian, though by no means tearing up the SPL this year, will remain in the top half of the table, have a big win over Celtic, and have a chance to reach at least the semifinals of the Scottish Cups (though County will have something to say about that!). Fun Fact: Hibernian recently demolished Easter Road’s East Stand, when replaced the stadium will be the fifth biggest in Scotland, rather than the eighth.
Aston Villa F.C. v. Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. (Saturday)
As usual for matches at this point in the season, there is a lot on the line for both teams. A Wolves win could put some breathing space between them and the clubs just below them (Burnley and Hull) and it could possibly allow them to leap over two teams and into the relative safety of fifteenth place. A win for Villa could have an even greater impact on the EPL table. Currently in seventh place, Villa have at least a game in hand over six of the seven teams ahead of them, could end the weekend tied on points with fourth place Spurs (though behind them on goal differential), and find themselves fighting for a chance to enter the Champions League through the playoff system. Fun Fact: Early in his career Brad Friedel- who has made 450+ appearances in England- was denied a work permit in the U.K.- three times!
Borussia Dortmund v. Bayer Leverkusen (Saturday)
In this match Leverkusen will be looking at the teams in front of them in the table while Dortmund will be focused on those behind them. Leverkusen are in third place in the Bundesliga, but only three points behind leaders Bayern Munich. They are also tied with Bayern on goal differential, so should they win and Bayern lose (and second place Schalke do no better than tie Hamburg), Leverkusen could find themselves all alone in first place come Monday. Dortmund are in fourth place, have a Europa League spot in their grasp, but are eight points behind Leverkusen, so they will be watching the rearview mirror for Hamburg (two points back) and Bremen (three points back). Fun Fact: I hope Dortmund’s Neven Subotic never leaves the Serbian bench during World Cup 2010.
Deportivo Xerex v. C.D. Tenerife (Saturday)
It’s that time of year when we start shifting some of our focus towards the bottoms of world football leagues and to who will and who won’t be playing top-flight football next season. Deportivo Xerex fall into the “won’t” category and nothing they do this weekend, or likely for the remainder of the La Liga season, is going to change that. Tenerife, however, are still in the “will” category- sort of. They are currently in the “top” relegation spot in Spain, and a win combined with a Real Zaragoza loss will…keep them there! However, they would be tied on points with Zaragoza and potentially within three points of three other teams. So there’s hope. Not a lot, but enough that Los blanquiazules should be “up for it” on Saturday. If not, they could be looking for a quick trip back to Segunda B.
Manchester United F.C. v. Liverpool F.C. (Sunday)
At the beginning of the season most people, including me, would have circled this as a “big match” to look forward to in the EPL. It’s funny how things change. It’s still a big match, but for very different reasons. For United a win means staying ahead of Chelsea (though the Blues do have a game in hand over them) and remaining at the top of the table for another week. For Liverpool, well, a win might take a little bit of venom out of the average Scouser. Between their on-field disappointments and their off-field bickering, the red half of Merseyside has not given its fans much to cheer about in 2009-2010. Oh, and a win is the only way that Liverpool can hold on to its European spot for another week. Fun Fact: Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard needs to check himself before he wrecks himself.
Atalanta B.C. v. A.S. Livorno Calcio (Sunday)
Meanwhile, in the basement of Serie A, two of the three teams currently in the relegation zone meet each other this weekend. The order of the last three teams (Livorno, Atalanta, Siena) is very fluid at the moment and, consequently, the outcome of this match and of Siena’s match against Bologna could result in each of the teams moving up or down. Unfortunately, if Lazio can manage a draw against Cagliari, none of it will matter- all three teams will remain in the relegation zone at the end of the weekend. Fun Fact: If you’d like a good laugh read the Wikipedia page for Livorno’s Brazilian midfielder Mozart Santos Batista Junior. Fun Fact 2: Atalanta striker Javier Chevanton seems pop-up on the opposing team with annoying regularity whenever I’m playing FIFA on my PS3.
F.C. Girondins de Bordeaux v. Lille O.S.C. (Sunday)
The big matches just keep coming in Ligue 1. The first of the two French matches previewed this weekend pits first place Bordeaux against fourth place Lille, though only two points actually separate the two clubs. Considering that the top six clubs in France are only separated by three points, this weekend is likely the beginning of a wild last two months in one of Europe’s most competitive leagues. Should Lille win this match and the other matches involving the top six go its way, the club could find itself all alone in first place both on points and on goal differential. Anything less than a win for Bordeaux and it’s unlikely that they will end the weekend in first place. Fun Fact: The two best players ever to wear the red shirt of Lille- Patrick Kluivert and Abedi Pele- were not French.
Olympique Lyon v. Olympique Marseille (Sunday)
The second big match in France this weekend involves fifth place Lyon and sixth place Marseille. Once again it shows how close things are at the top of Ligue 1 when you see that neither of these clubs hold a European place at the moment, but that either could hold a Champions League spot and that Lyon could takeover the top spot and Marseille could tie for it with help from the other matches this weekend. Seventh place Lorient are too far back (7 points) for either of these sides to have to worry about being caught by them. Fun Fact: Marseille’s midfielder Benoit Cheyrou began training at fourth division R.C.F. Paris when he was six years old- six! Fun Fact 2: In addition to being Lyon’s goalkeeping coach, Joël Bats is also a published poet.
Boca Juniors v. River Plate (Sunday)
It’s El Superclásico time again and I’m finding it difficult to get very excited about it. River are the better of the two teams thus far in Argentina’s Primera Division- and they’re in eleventh place in the twenty team league. Boca are in seventeenth place. Seriously, I don’t care what the league is, if your roster has names like Insua, Palermo, and Riquelme on it, you have to be doing better than this! Is it just me or did the recent financial implosion in Argentine football result in a great deal of parity happening all at once? Last year Banfield(?!) won the league, and currently C.D. Godoy Cruz are in second place- they haven’t won Argentina’s top division in over four decades! Fun Fact: It is not a good idea to try to write these previews while watching Enter the Dragon.
Henderson Tigers v. Scorpions (Saturday)
Last weekend the Tigers continued last fall’s form with an 8-0 victory over Dynamo LV. This weekend sees the Tigers facing the Scorpions. This game is personal for the Tigers as the Scorpions are a new team combined from last season’s Young Guns and Nitro teams. The Young Guns handed the Tigers their only loss last season which also knocked the Tigers out of the Henderson Cup tournament. The Tigers are looking to make up for that this Saturday. There is no scouting report on how well the Scorpions look, but last week’s game has the Tigers playing some beautiful soccer early in the season. Nice passing and play into space, four goals off crosses during play, and a newfound aggressiveness on 50-50 balls, should have the Tigers looking at another very fine season. Go Tigers Go!
