Weekend Watch:

By: Laurie | April 11th, 2008

A small sampling of the games available this weekend for your viewing pleasure.

Saturday

US Women’s NT vs. Canada

Both teams have qualified for the Olympics, so this final game is for bragging rights and the ability to say they’re the women’s CONCACAF champions.

The US women are heading to China this summer after defeating Costa Rica 3-0 this week. Canada is Olympics bound after seeing off Mexico, 1-0. Now they get to see who the best team really is.

Kansas City Wizards vs. Houston Dynamo
MLS is back! Okay, yes, it’s been back for two weeks. But this is the first week I’ve been in the country and able to watch the games, so it’s all new to me.

Houston are the reigning MLS Champions, but they lost some strikers in the off-season and are struggling a bit. And Kansas City are the surprise package of the season so far. They’ve leapt out of the gate with a 2-1 record and are currently sitting top of MLS alongside perennial bridesmaids NE Revolution. And KC is accomplishing this without superstriker Eddie Johnson, who left the US in January for Fulham. Why are they doing so well? I credit the party buses. (Which is still, in my mind, the greatest marketing concept ever.)

Sunday

PSV Eindhoven vs. FC Twente
The main question in the Dutch Eridivisie is this: Will PSV Eindhoven lock up the championship this weekend, or will they have to wait till next?

All they need is a win against fourth-place team FC Twente and the title is theirs. Or, since they have a five-point lead over second place Ajax, they could do it if Ajax loses or draws against Groningen. Since it’s always more enjoyable to go through on your own power rather than on someone else’s collapse, they’re hoping for the win.

PSG vs. Nice

PSG: Deathwatch, or survival story? Will Paris St. Germain escape relegation this year, or will they sink into Ligue 2 (and despair) for the first time since being promoted to Ligue 1 in 1974?

Nice is currently in 6th place with 44 points. PSG is in 18th (and the relegation zone), one of four teams with 35. A win here, with some bad luck for Toulouse, Lens or Strasbourg, would pull them clear. At least for the moment.

Arsenal vs. Manchester United
The writer at Reuters summed the game up this way:

The last flickering embers of Arsenal’s Premier League title hopes will all but be extinguished on Sunday unless they beat vibrant Manchester United at Old Trafford.

What can I possibly add to that?

Enjoy the games!