Avoiding the Drop

The New England New Guy

Ross County F.C. v. Partick Thistle F.C. (Saturday)

After taking home their second ALBA Challenge Cup trophy in the last five years County must turn their attention to league play and improving their hopes of remaining in the SFL First Division. Hopefully the form they displayed in dominating a Queen of the South team that actually sits above Partick Thistle in the league table will carry over to this weekend’s match. Partick, though in sixth place, cannot yet count on staying out of the relegation battle- Dundee, County, and Cowdenbeath all have enough time to catch them if they slip up. Fun Fact: Forward Michael Gardyne is the only player to win the Challenge Cup this year who was also on Ross County’s senior roster when they won their first cup in 2006-2007. Current back-up goalkeeper Joe Malin was on loan at Elgin City at the time.

Philadelphia Union v. Seattle Sounders (Saturday)

It’s still early in the MLS season and these two clubs have to be a bit of a surprise to MLS fans- but for different reasons. I know there was a difference of opinion on how Seattle’s season was going to play out, but did anyone really think they’d be this… mediocre? There seems to be too much talent at this club for the results not to be consistently better. As for Philadelphia, it’s early yet, but the “let’s play some good football” tactics and the “no nonsense” approach that Piotr Nowak has championed appear to be paying off as the team becomes more talented at each position. Philadelphia may not be ready to compete with the top teams in MLS, but they won’t be an easy match for any team- especially at PPL Park. Fun Fact: Let’s get Danny Mwanga and Sebastien Le Toux U.S. passports, okay?

Blackpool F.C. v. Wigan Athletic F.C. (Saturday)

The Premier League season is winding down and these two clubs need to start earning points with regularity if they hope to avoid the drop. With seven teams within six points of the bottom of the table there’s no sense in worrying about results in other matches, these two clubs need to take care of their own business starting this weekend. Despite being the higher placed of the two clubs Blackpool may be in the worse situation, with Newcastle, Stoke, Spurs, Bolton and Manchester United still to play while Wigan will have the chance to face off against only one team in the top half of the table (Everton) as the enter the final weeks of the Premier League season. Fun Fact: Wigan midfielder and Scottish international James McArthur made his professional debut against…Ross County.

Wolfsburg v. St. Pauli (Saturday)

Speaking of teams looking to avoid the drop, these two have been doing just that all season. While the teams are tied on points, St. Pauli trail on goal differential and of the two teams they seem the most likely to go down- they’ve lost seven matches in a row. Both teams are in a bad spot, however. If Stuttgart pick up even a point in their match against Köln it won’t matter what happens in this match, both teams will remain in the relegation zone. Even worse for St. Pauli, if this match ends in a draw and last place Borussia Mönchengladbach win their match with Mainz, it will be St. Pauli that will be propping up the Bundesliga table when the weekend concludes. Fun Fact: For a few seasons beginning in the late 1990s St. Pauli’s primary shirt sponsor was Jack Daniels whiskey.

Real Madrid v. Barcelona (Saturday)

I’m sure that this version El Clásico will be a great match, but it will not be an “important” match outside of the rivalry between the two clubs. In recent weeks Barcelona have pretty much run away with the league title and Real Madrid have opened a huge lead over third place Valencia. It’s also hard to put to much importance on this match given that the two clubs will meet each other three more times this season, and that on two of those occasions there will be something on the line in the Copa del Ray and the Champions League. So, basically, if you plan on tuning in to watch this match you’re just going to have to be content with watching some great football- personally, I think I can manage. Fun Fact: Lionel Messi has his own song. No, seriously, you can listen to it at his website.

Arbroath F.C. v. Queen’s Park F.C. (Saturday)

I chose this SFL Third Division match not just because it features one team about to be promoted (Arbroath) and one team still fighting for a promotion playoff spot (Queen’s Park), but because the rosters of these two clubs say everything about Third Division football. It features Graeme Eaglesham who spent a season playing college soccer in Nebraska, Adam Strachan whose career has gone into a tailspin since head-butting his girlfriend in 2009, Danny Griffin who turned down a £1,000,000 transfer to Derby County when he was 18 only to see his career ruined by injuries, and the wonderfully named Gavin Swankie. Fun Fact: This match includes three former Ross County players (all on Arbroath’s roster) and Queen’s manager Gardener Spiers, who was once the caretaker manager at Ross County.

Arsenal F.C. v. Liverpool F.C. (Sunday)

There is no sense in pretending that this is a big match for Arsenal- it’s not. They aren’t going to win the title and it’s unlikely that they are going to drop out of the automatic Champions League spots. So let’s look at Liverpool, shall we? Liverpool are five points below Spurs for the EPL’s Europa League spot and have a game in hand, so that’s good. However, they are only four points ahead of Everton and five ahead of Bolton, so that’s not good. Whatever happens from here on out the season is going to end better than it started and the permanent job should belong to Kenny Dalglish if he wants it. Personally, I blame John Henry and Tom Werner- they’re Americans after all. Fun Fact: Arsenal forward Nicklas Bendtner was once substituted out of an international match in favor of Rajko Lekić (see below!).

New England Revolution v. Houston Dynamo (Sunday)

It’s early in the season, but the Revolution have a chance to make a statement in this match. So far they’ve been able to grind out enough points to stay near the top of the Eastern Conference standings, but only their recent loss to Real Salt Lake could be called “decisive.” A convincing win may be just what they need to prove that they are for real. In other news, Houston’s move to the Eastern Conference has gone “okay” so far, time will tell… Fun Fact: A goal scorer may have finally arrived at Gillette Stadium in the person of Danish international Rajko Lekić. The striker has spent the bulk of his career at Superliga side Silkeborg IF, for whom he scored 67 goals in 110 matches. It is unclear, however, if Lekić’s paperwork will be processed in time for him to participate in this match.