Myeoma, myeoma and Weekend Preview

Touch, touch, touch, and touch. If Uruguay does well at the World Cup there is a good chance I'll play this song on repeat and dance for 36 hours straight. Normally Jim Stanley does the Weekend Preview but I've decided to give it a crack.

(all times Eastern)

Saturday

7:45 am - Stoke City vs. Wigan Athletic
Before you immediately X the screen and get annoyed that you've doubly wasted your time reading this blog, just remember that this game is on Espn. So out of principle, since we all want Espn to buy more Premier League games, you should tune in. Not to mention that getting up to watch soccer is the most pleasant of alarm clocks. You can snooze a little during half-time or have breakfast. Soccer this early in the morning is a good thing, even if it is only between two squads that are frisky at best.

10:00 am - Bolton vs. Manchester City
The Citeh is on a tear as of late and this match is on Fox Soccer Channel. In case our reader didn't know, Veetle.com is a nice place to watch any games currently showing on FSC or GolTV if you don't get those channels at home. And so far as I know I haven't downloaded any viruses or had my identity stolen yet. Manchester City is a permanent fixture on my watch-list this year if they don't conflict with the other TLOCA teams because they are one of two teams in my opinion that can break up the big four (pictured*). The other team was Hull City at the beginning of the season but now is more reasonably Tottenham if only for their propensity to explode offensively.

12:30 pm - Manchester United vs. Aston Villa FSC (note the 30 minute lunch break)
As much as I want to hype this contest to be a close one I can't bring myself to do it. United will be playing at Old Trafford having won its last 5 meaningful games and Aston Villa, who choke harder than Latrelle Sprewell, have tied or lost 7 of their last 10 games. Only one of those came against the big four, Chelsea. This one will end 3 nil and by the 80th minute you'll realize suddenly it's been an extremely one-sided contest and a typical United win. BOOOO. Whatever, its still the U, and therefore you must watch.

2:30 pm - Bari vs. Juventus FSC
No, the bitterness hasn't subsided yet. This year the inevitable Juventus crash out of the Champions League was a bit more sour than usual simply because this year's team was a better team than last year, and much more suited for the CL. All of this in spite of the fact that it was clear they didnt' have it, whatever it is that makes a team's impending failures tremendously obvious. Think Hleb and Flamini leaving with no reasonable replacements at Arsenal. So, in summary, David Trezeguet should be starting and that's why you should watch.

Sunday

9:00 am - Atalanta vs. Inter
This is a highly comical match-up we, as followers, are privy to twice a year because Atalanta and Inter have the exact same uniforms. Thus, if you're hung over just enough you might go the whole first half wondering when Inter signed Robert Acquafresca and why he's starting over Samuel Eto'o. To be frank, the only reason I watch Inter nowadays is because I hate Jose Mourinho and I want to understand why Inter, with their mostly uninspiring squad achieves any success at all. I don't get it and it's almost as if every time I watch them play I get further and further from the answer.

11:00 am - Liverpool vs. Arsenal FSC
If you had forgotten, Arshavin scored four goals against this team in what was the most disappointing yet insignificant draw in Arsenal history. I expect a win and even though Torres will be back and will surely score a hat-trick, we should still win 5-3. This game is unfortunately somewhat irrelevant since the season will be decided for Arsenal come January 27th, when they play, in order, Aston Villa, Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool. I am not looking forward to that.

Enjoy the weekend.




*From left to right; David Lloyd (Britain), Vittorio Orlando (Italy), George Clemenceau (France) and Woody Wilson (USA). The beauty of this photo, also coined, "The Big Four," is that Arsenal is clearly Clemenceau, Man Utd Woodrow, Chelsea Lloyd, though those two can be interchanged, and Vittorio, Liverpool, is trying to stay relevant even then. I think we know how this story ends. I feel like I've written this before...

Weekend Preview

It seems like England's been getting all the attention lately, what with their preeminence in the Champions League, but it'll be an interesting weekend in all three leagues.

PAELLA

Sevilla (6th) vs. Villareal (2nd). Last weekend, Villareal launched themselves into second and made a huge statement by smashing Atletico Madrid 3-0. Now, this game will signal to Real Madrid whether or not they should be legitimately concerned or just leetle scared. Conversely, Sevilla have had the absolute worst run-in over the past few weeks; first losing to Atletico, and then to los Blancos. Now they face a test against a red hot Villareal side with legitimate title ambitions. If Real Madrid slip up against Mallorca (a real possibility if Guiza shows up), then things could get very interesting.

The verdict: Even though Sevilla are at home, they haven't looked very threatening since their crushing exit from the Champions League at the hands of Fenerbahce. They're on a nice little losing streak to the top teams, and Villareal have shown themselves to be just that. They did a good job handling Atletico's potent front two, and they'll have a real test trying to mark Fabiano, Kanoute, and speedy right back Dani Alves, but I think they can do it. Villareal have shown they can play attractive attacking football under any circumstances, and hey, defending is less of an issue when you dominate possession like them. Where's Juande? 1 - 3 Spanish Arsenal.

SPAGHETTI

Atalanta (9th) vs. Internazionale (1st). Inter will have mixed feelings about Roma's 2-0 defeat in the Champions League this week. On the one hand, it demonstrates vulnerability and the potential for a collapse. On the other hand, it may mean that Roma will commit all energy toward pulling themselves out of their four point deficit in the league. Either way, Inter need to focus on themselves, as they remain in the driver's seat. This week, they'll be playing an inconsistent Atalanta side. The other Nerazzuri (prepare for this game to appear confusing; Atalanta and Inter have identical home uniforms) beat AC Milan handily at the San Siro in their last Serie A outing, but are floundering around down in 9th. Doni and Floccari were excellent for them then, but must be considered streaky players at best. They've also got the other (lesser) Inzaghi coming off their bench, but that shouldn't concern Inter too much.

The verdict: I can't shake the ease with which Atalanta's attack broke down Milan's defense last week. I know that Inter aren't Milan, and are far better organized at the back, but they've been in a bad spell. Draw with Genoa, defeated by Juve, draw with Lazio... I think Atalanta can take something from this match. I see a game with Inter dominating possession and scoring but getting hit on the break by the Doni-Floccari combo for an equalizer. 1-1.

FISH AND CHIPS

Arsenal (3rd) vs. Liverpool (4th). For the original Star Wars trilogy and even for The Godfather, there are many who would argue that the second installment shines through as the finest. However, I'm predicting this match will be more like the second Indiana Jones movie: ugly, filled with bit players, and kind of a letdown. That's not to say it won't be interesting, though. The game means a lot more to Arsenal, who refuse to concede the title when there's still mathematical hope. What this means is that Liverpool will likely rest key players before the epic Part 3 of this series, and that Arsenal will be forced to play their increasingly worn-out starters.

The verdict: Arsenal distinctly had the better of play in the last two matchups between these giants of English football, but have had to settle for 1-1 results on both occasions. With Benitez keeping his eye on the big European prize, and rivals for the fourth spot Everton facing a tough run-in, one can expect to see a lot of rotating (his trademark) for this one. I foresee a relatively cagey affair, with Tuesday's showdown at Anfield looming, but Arsenal want and need this result more. Red-and-Whites 1 - 0 Reds.