The European Weekend

By: chris | September 20th, 2008

After kicking off the Champions League & UEFA Cup, Europe goes back home and hasn’t left us wanting, giving us some very big and very interesting games over the next two days. Though it would be nice if they all go together and split the good ones up evenly between Saturday and Sunday…

Prem.: What else? Chelsea v Man Utd

Where: Stamford Bridge, London.
When: Sunday; 1400 local, 0900 EST.
Streaming: Here.
Bet: Here.

As ever, Sir Alex is at his mind games again, claiming Chelsea still won’t be as big as the one against Arsenal:

“Of course we’ve got Chelsea at the moment, that’s without question, but the history of Arsenal versus Manchester means that you’re not just talking about winning a football match, you’re talking about your own history against the other team’s history.”

History being the one thing Chelsea are lacking, and the one thing that can’t be bought. Do you think Alex has a future as a fight promoter once his OT days are up?

La Liga.: Numancia v Villarreal

Where: Nuevo Estadio Los Pajaritos.
When: Sunday; 1700 local, 11EST.
Streaming: Check here on matchday.

At first it seemed Numancia, top flight newbies, simply got the short stick when scheduling was done, kicking off their La Liga return against behemoths Real Madrid and Barca. Now you’ve got to wonder whose sister they didn’t call back.

Then again, they beat Barca and pushed Real to the edge, snagging 3 goals at the Bernabeu and nearly a point. Now they’ve got the Yellow Submariners, who finished 2nd in last year’s La Liga campaign and impressed a bit against ManU. So that’s the top 3 teams in the first three weeks of their season. Is there another rabbit in the hat?

Serie A.: Udinese v Napoli

Where: Stadio Fruili, Udine.
When: Sunday; 1600 local, 0900 EST.
Streaming: Here.
Bet: Here.

This one’s more for the neutrals. Both these teams can be high flying circus acts when they want to be and both bled goals at times last year. Both are looking very strong to start the season, Napoli with wins against Fiorentina & Benfica and Udinese downing Palermo & Borussia Dortmund. Both often play a 3 back defense and can be caught out when talented wingers and pacy forwards, something both have, tuck in behind the midfield. An early goal here could open the floodgates.

Bundesliga.: Bayern v Werder Bremen

Where: Allianz Arena, Munich.
When: Saturday; 1630 local, 0930 EST.
Streaming: Here.
Bet: Here.

The two biggest boys in Germany right now and the Bundesliga happens to be the choice of many as the most exciting of the “big” leagues in Europe. What else do you need?

Eredivisie.: Feyenoord v Ajax “De Klassieker”

Where: Feijenoord Stadium, Rotterdam.
When: Sunday; 1330 local, 0730 EST.
Streaming: Here.

Both of these sides despise one another, making this historically the biggest game in Dutch football, as well as one of the more heated rivalries in world football. They both also played in Thursday’s UEFA Cup matches, with vastly different results: Ajax went to Serbia successfully, taking back a 4-1 win, and Feyenoord surprisingly lost at home 1-0 to Swedish side Kalmar FF. Feyenoord will want some revenge at home, served with a cherry on top.

Other games worth a watch:

Rubin Kazan v Spartak Moscow (Sunday)
Sevilla v Real Betis (Sunday)
Marseille v Monaco (Sunday)
Milan v Lazio (Sunday)
Dinamo Zagreb v Hajduk Split (Sunday)
FC Kobenhavn v AaB (Sunday)