UEFA Cup Predictions - Semifinal Edition

If you’ve been following the predictions this season, you already know that the Champions League is much easier to predict than the UEFA Cup is to predict. Does that stop us from trying? Hells no. We tried with the first knockout round and we finished with a 4-12 record. We bounced back pretty well in the second knockout round, going 6-2. In the quarterfinals, we predicted that the semifinals would be a two-nation tournament. We got that part right, but not the actual nations. We thought there would be a German semifinal, which there is, and a French semifinal, which there ain’t.

Unlike the Champions League semifinals, there are no WCR Top 25 Clubs left in the tournament. We have finally reached a stage in the UEFA Cup, however, where winning the title probably is the most important thing going on for each of the clubs. (This isn’t necessarily the case in the earlier rounds. For instance, the French clubs in the semifinals likely were preoccupied with trying to win Ligue Un.) With that, here come the predictions.

The top two clubs in the Ukraine are facing off in one UEFA Cup semifinal. They also are taking each other on in the Ukranian Cup semifinals. That’s a lot of action for two clubs in one season. Meanwhile, in the Vischaya League, Dynamo Kyiv sports a twelve-point lead over Shakhtar Donetsk with five games remaining. Can Dynamo Kyiv make it a clean sweep? We’ll see. My guess is yes.

Prediction: Dynamo Kyiv 4 Shakhtar Donetsk 1

The other semifinal pits two Bundesliga clubs in Hamburger and Werder Bremen. Hamburger has been a Jeckyll & Hyde club this season. Despite the fact that it has a goal differential of +2, the club from Hamburg is only three points behind Wolfsburg, the current Bundesliga leaders. On the other end of the spectrum, Werder Bremen currently has a goal differential of +14, however it finds itself languishing in tenth place in the eighteen-team league. I honestly don’t know which club will show up on either side of the pitch. I’m picking Hamburger, but I’m rooting for Werder Bremen.

Prediction: Hamburger 3 Werder Bremen 3 (Hamburger advances on penalty kicks)

Champions League Predictions - Semifinal Edition

This probably is cutting it too close to do anybody any good, but let’s face it – how much good did you expect it to do for you anyway. Here they are, though, the WCR Champions League semifinals predictions.

So far, we have had much better fortune in the Champions League than in the UEFA Cup. After going 6-2 in the first knockout stage, we were 3-1 in the quarterfinals (frisky Chelsea surprised us by upending Liverpool) to leave us at 75%.

What’s going to happen in the next round? Who knows. But my picks are consistent with both my rankings and your voting.

Seventy percent (152/218) of you believe that Manchester United will advance past Arsenal in the all-English half of the draw. Arsenal has been playing very well recently, not losing a Premiership match since November (if I remember correctly), but even with that recent success, it is not even mentioned as a possibility that it can chase down Manchester United for the Premiership title. With the exception of a recent loss in the FA Cup to Everton on penalty kicks, United has been consistently dominant the entire season, most of which it has spent atop the WCR Top 25 Rankings. I believe the talent level is too high and I see Manchester United advancing.

Manchester United 4 Arsenal 2 (aggregate)

With respect to the half-English half of the draw (and the only matchup in this round of either European competition to feature clubs from different nations), I think the battle will be closer. Barcelona once held a lead in the Spanish Primera Division that appeared to be insurmountable. By Sunday night, that lead could be one point. Chelsea, on the other hand, has been more consistent this season. Unfortunately for Chelsea, that consistency included a tough going against good clubs until it pulled off the upset of Liverpool at Anfield. Chelsea is a good enough club to win it all, but I think Barcelona is a good enough club to prevent that.

Barcelona 3 Chelsea 2 (aggregate)

I’ll be back tomorrow with UEFA Cup predictions. Enjoy the matches!!!

WCR Top 25 Clubs in the World - UEFA Champions League Semifinals Edition

This was a great week from start to finish, with three of the best matches of the season happening mid-week. First up was the Arshavin takes Anfield show as the Leningrad midfielder went crazy for four goals against Liverpool on the road – and it still wasn’t good enough for three points as the clubs finished tied at 4-4. Meanwhile, in Spain, Real Madrid and Getafe kept trading punches and, just when it looked like Getafe would pull off an upset, a botched penalty kick and a bolt of lightning by the name of Higuain scored the winning goal in a 3-2 Real Madrid victory. On the other side of the world, in an elimination match in the Copa Libertadores, it looked like Independiente Medellin had advanced when it scored in the 91st minute to pull even with Defensor Sporting, but a 94th minute goal by Diego De Souza, his second of the match, gave Defensor a 4-3 victory and allows the Uruguayan club to advance to the knockout stages of the South American championship tournament.

The weekend wasn’t quite as exciting, but there was some movement in the national tables over the past few days. After both Wolfsburg and Bayern Munich lost their Bundesliga matches, Hertha Berlin was able to move into second place in the top German league. Meanwhile, the final Champions League spot in Italy fell out of Genoa’s hands for the time being and into the hands of Fiorentina, who kicked a little Roma butt this weekend.

Coming up this week, of course, is the first leg matches of the semifinals in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup. Even bigger, at least in Mexico, is the final of the CONCACAF Champions League in which Cruz Azul will try to come back from its 0-2 home loss to Atlante. In South America, the group stage of the Copa Libertadores group stage concludes. In Africa, the CAF Champions League takes a week off in the middle of its first knockout stage.

Next weekend, there are two matches involving a pair of ranked clubs. The bigger one takes place in La Liga where Barcelona takes on Real Madrid at the Bernabeu. A victory for Real Madrid will move it to within a single point of the leaders. In the Eredivisie, AZ Alkmaar will take on FC Twente. A victory for AZ will mean absolutely nothing, since it has already won the Dutch championship.

The rest of the action is below. Enjoy!!!

World Club Rankings – Top 25 Clubs in the World – April 27, 2009

1. Manchester United (Eng) (1) – United has moved even closer to a Premiership championship after being the only club in the Big Four to win six months this week. After defeating Portsmouth 2-0, Manyoo came back from a 0-2 deficit to score five second half goals and beat Tottenham 5-2. This Week: On Wednesday, Manchester United will host Arsenal in the first leg of their Champions League semifinal. Domestically, Manchester United will take on Middlesbrough on Saturday.

2. Barcelona (Esp) (2) – Barca scored a very impressive 4-0 victory over Sevilla at midweek, but the good times came to an end over the weekend as Barcelona was held to a 2-2 draw by Valencia. This Week: The Camp Nou welcomes Chelsea on Tuesday for the first leg of its Champions League matchup with Barcelona. Domestically, Barcelona will hit the road for the match of the weekend in Europe against Real Madrid.

3. Chelsea (Eng) (3) – Chelsea failed to take advantage of Liverpool’s slipup against Arsenal and managed only a goalless draw against Everton, its FA Cup finals opponent. This weekend, Chelsea did manage to keep up with the rest of the Big Four by scoring a 1-0 victory over West Ham United. This Week: As noted above, Chelsea will head to Spain for the first leg of its matchup with Barcelona. In the Premiership, Chelsea will host Fulham on Saturday.

4. Arsenal (Eng) (4) – In what was the match of the season (so far), Arsenal opened a can of Whoop Arshavin on Liverpool at Anfield, and still couldn’t walk away with anything but a 4-4 draw. Over the weekend, Arsenal did defeat Middlesbrough 2-0 to move ‘Boro closer to relegation. This Week: Arsenal heads to Manchester to take on the Red Devils on Wednesday. Who am I picking? It’ll be in my posting on Tuesday. Domestically, Arsenal takes on Portsmouth on Saturday.

5. Inter Milan (Ita) (5) – At midweek, Internazionale managed a 1-0 victory over Sampdoria, but it wasn’t enough as Inter lost 1-3 in the aggregate and was eliminated from the Coppa Italia. Domestically, Inter lost 0-1 to Napoli, but still maintains a substantial lead over AC Milan in Serie A. This Week: Inter will need to win a few more matches in order to win the Scudetto and Inter will host Lazio this weekend to try to score one of those.

6. Liverpool (Eng) (6) – I don’t know whether to comment on the offense that scored eight goals in two matches in a week or the defense that gave up eight goals in those two matches. The 4-4 draw with Arsenal was a match for the ages. This weekend, Liverpool defeated Hull City 3-1 to keep its faint hopes of a Premiership title alive. This Week: Having been eliminated from the Champions League and the FA Cup, Liverpool gets the following weekend off. And by that, I mean that it plays Newcastle United.

7. Sao Paolo (Bra) (7) – Sao Paolo defeated America de Cali 2-1 to finish off the group stage of the Copa Libertadores in first place in its group. This Week: No upcoming matches.

8. AC Milan (Ita) (8) – Its probably too late to catch Inter Milan, but AC Milan defeated Palermo 3-0 this week, thanks to a Kaka brace, to move three points closer to the Serie A lead and two points further ahead of Juventus. This Week: Next up for AC Milan will be a Serie A match against Catania on Sunday.

9. Real Madrid (Esp) (10) – With two victories, first a 3-2 semi-miraculous victory over Getafe in perhaps the best La Liga match of the season, and then a 4-2 victory over Sevilla, Real has moved within four points of Barcelona ahead of the matchup between the two Spanish powerhouses. This Week: Like I said – matchup between two Spanish powerhouses. That must mean that on Sunday (it doesn’t have to mean that it’s on Sunday), Real Madrid will host Barcelona at the Bernabeu.

10. Wolfsburg (Ger) (9) – Now in first place, Wolfsburg choked this weekend, for lack of a better term, losing 0-2 to Energie Cottbus. Wolfsburg did manage to stay in first place, however, after Bayern Munich failed to capitalize. This Week: The current surprise club of the Bundesliga will take on the first half’s surprise of the Bundesliga, TSG Hoffenheim, at home on Saturday.

11. Marseille (Fra) (11) – It had to come from behind to do it, but Marseille defeated Lille 2-1 to extend its lead in Ligue Un in its attempt to unseat Lyon as 226-consecutive-season-champions. This Week: Marseille will host Toulouse on Saturday.

12. Porto (Por) (12) – Porto fell 1-2 to Estrela Amadora in a Taca de Portugal match. In the one that was important, however, Porto defeated Vitoria Setubal 2-0 to maintain its Liga Sagres lead. This Week: On Sunday, Maritimo will host the Liga Sagres leaders.

13. Gremio (Bra) (13) – No current matches. This Week: Gremio will finish off its Copa Libertadores group stage duty hosting Boyaca Chico.

14. Juventus (Ita) (16) – I’m not sure how Juve moved up this week. Frankly, it wasn’t a good week. First, Juventus lost 1-2 to Lazio to be eliminated from from the Coppa Italia. Juve followed that up with a 2-2 draw against Reggina to move farther behind AC Milan for second place in Serie A. This Week: Juventus will host Lecce on Sunday in its next Serie A match.

15. AZ Alkmaar (Ned) (15) – For what it’s worth, AZ drew 1-1 in a 105-minute match against Ajax this week. That’s okay, it is still a club of Eredivisie champions. This Week: In one of the few inter-Top 25 matches this week, AZ will take on FC Twente on Sunday in a battle of the top two clubs in Holland.

16. Celtic (Sco) (18) – No current matches. This Week: Celtic returns to matches in a Scottish Premier League match against Aberdeen on Saturday.

17. Bordeaux (Fra) (17) – Bordeaux won the French League Cup championship this week with a 4-0 victory over Vannes. This Week: Bordeaux will make up its Ligue Un match on Wednesday against Stade Rennes. In its regularly-scheduled match, Bordeaux will host Sochaux on Sunday.

18. Bayern Munich (Ger) (14) – Bayern fell to third-place in the Bundesliga following a 0-1 loss to Schalke 04. This Week: On Saturday, Bayern will host Borussia Monchengladbach.

19. Velez Sarsfield (Arg) (23) – With a 4-2 victory over Colon, Velez Sarsfield remains on top of the Argentine Clausura. This Week: Next up for Velez Sarsfield is an away tie with Sam Martin on Sunday.

20. Cruzeiro (Bra) (21) – Cruzeiro finished up the Copa Libertadores group stage in first place of its group following a 2-0 victory over Ecuador’s Deportivo Quito. Domestically, Cruzeiro defeated Atletico Mineiro 5-0 in the first (and only one that matters) leg of the championship of that league. At least, I’m guessing it’s the championship. I don’t know what’s going on in Brazil, exactly. This Week: Sunday will see the second leg of Cruzeiro’s matchup with Atletico Mineiro for whatever it is.

21. Fiorentina (Ita) (NR) – With a 4-1 victory over Roma, La Viola has overtaken Genoa for the final Serie A Champions League position. This Week: Coming up for Fiorentina hosts Torino on Sunday.

22. Sporting CP (Por) (BU) – Sporting CP defeated Estrela Amadora 2-1 to keep pace with Porto in the Liga Sagres. This Week: The next domestic league match for Sporting will be away against Academica de Coimbra.

23. Rangers (Sco) (25) – No domestic league action for Rangers, but the club did defeat St. Mirren 3-0 to move into the finals of the Scottish FA Cup. This Week: In a return to SPL action, Rangers will host Hearts on Sunday.

24. Valencia (Esp) (BU) – Though still in fourth place in the Primera Division, it was a good week for Valencia in which it defeated Real Betis 2-1 and played second-ranked Barcelona to a 2-2 draw. This Week: Valencia will actually head to Barcelona this week when it takes on Espanyol on Sunday.

25. Twente (Ned) (24) – FC Twente failed to take advantage of Ajax’s draw by managing only a 1-1 draw of its own in an Eredivisie match against SC Heerenveen. In KNVB Beker action, Twente defeated NAC Breda 3-1. This Week: The most fun time of the Eredivisie season continues this week when Twente hosts champion AZ Alkmaar.

Bubbling Under (alphabetically): Ajax (Ned), Hertha Berlin (Ger), Libertad (Par), Sevilla (Esp), VfB Stuttgart (Ger).

Next Five: Aston Villa (Eng), Benfica (Por), Everton (Eng), Genoa (Ita), Lyon (Fra).

Matches This Week Between WCR Top 25 Clubs:
28 April – (3) Chelsea at (2) Barcelona
29 April – (4) Arsenal at (1) Manchester United
3 May – (2) Barcelona at (9) Real Madrid
3 May – (15) AZ Alkmaar at (25) FC Twente

Weekend Soccer Television Schedule - 25/26 April 2009

Once again, we have a great weekend of football coming up this weekend. The biggest events are coming out of Spain. With its bizarre schedule, most of the La Liga season has seen the better clubs taking on the weaker clubs week after week. The good part of having the unbalanced schedule is that for a few weeks out of the season, all of the good clubs take on each other – and we are now to that part of the schedule. On Saturday, Valencia will host Primera Division leaders Barcelona and on Sunday, Sevilla and Real Madrid will battle in the only match involving two WCR Top 25 Clubs. Both matches will be on GolTV, which will also feature Bayern Munich and Wolfsburg in separate Bundesliga matches this weekend.

The matches aren’t as exciting in England as they were last week, but the Saturday doubleheader featuring Chelsea at West Ham and Tottenham at Manchester United should be pretty entertaining. Setanta USA doesn’t have the best English matches of the week, but it makes up for it with great matches from the tight Ligue Un, featuring PSG at Lyon on Friday (yes, Friday) and Marseille at Lille on Sunday.

Other outlets that should have interesting matches include Telemundo (Chivas de Guadalajara at UNAM Pumas), TeleFutura (D.C. United at New York Red Bulls) and ESPN 360 (AZ Alkmaar at Ajax). Everywhere you look, there are really good matchups on television and on the web. Enjoy and have a great weekend!!!

Top Five Matches of the Week

1. Real Madrid at Sevilla (Sunday, 1:00 pm (-4:00 GMT), GolTV)
2. Barcelona at Valencia (Saturday, 4:00 pm, GolTV)
3. AZ Alkmaar at Ajax (Sunday, 8:30 am, ESPN 360)
4. Paris St.-Germain at Lyon (Friday, 6:00 pm (Delayed), Setanta USA)
5. Schalke 04 at Bayern Munich (Saturday, 11:30 am (Delayed), GolTV)

Friday, April 24, 2009

6:00 pm – Paris St.-Germain at Lyon (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
9:30 pm – Necaxa at San Luis (Galavision)

Saturday, April 25, 2009

9:30 am – (6) Liverpool at Hull City (Setanta USA)
10:00 am – (3) Chelsea at West Ham United (FSC)
11:30 am – Schalke 04 at (14) Bayern Munich (Delayed) (GolTV)
12:30 pm – Tottenham Hotspur at (1) Manchester United (FSC)
2:30 pm – Roma at Fiorentina (FSC)
3:30 pm – PSV Eindhoven at Heracles (Delayed) (ESPND) (Live at 2:45 on ESPN 360)
4:00 pm – (2) Barcelona at Valencia (GolTV)
4:30 pm – Aston Villa at Bolton Wanderers (Delayed) (FSC)
6:00 pm – Cucuta Deportivo at Boyaca Chico (Delayed) (GolTV)
6:00 pm – Monarcas at Jaguares (ESPND)
6:45 pm – Manchester City at Everton (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
7:00 pm – Chicago Fire at Columbus Crew (FSC)
7:10 pm – Millonarios at Santa Fe (GolTV)
8:00 pm – Cruz Azul at Pachuca (TeleFutura)
8:00 pm – Santos Laguna at Tigres (Telemundo)
8:30 pm – Sunderland at West Bromwich Albion (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
10:00 pm – Toluca at Atlas (Telemundo)

Sunday, April 26, 2009

2:00 am - Udinese at Chievo Verona (Delayed) (FSE)

6:00 am – Spartak Moscow at Rubin Kazan (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
8:30 am – (15) AZ Alkmaar at Ajax (ESPN 360)
8:30 am – Middlesbrough at (4) Arsenal (Setanta USA)
9:00 am – Palermo at (8) AC Milan (FSC)
9:00 am – (16) Juventus at Reggina (ESPN 360)
11:00 am – (9) Wolfsburg at Energie Cottbus (GolTV)
11:00 am – Wigan Athletic at Blackburn Rovers (FSC)
1:00 pm – (10) Real Madrid at (19) Sevilla (GolTV)
1:00 pm – Indios at Puebla (FSE)
1:00 pm – Chivas de Guadalajara at UNAM Pumas (Telemundo)
2:15 pm – Veitoria Setubal at (12) Porto (ESPN 360)
2:30 pm – (5) Inter Milan at Napoli (FSC)
3:00 pm – (11) Marseille at Lille (Setanta USA)
3:00 pm – Corinthians at Santos (GolTV)
3:00 pm – D.C. United at New York Red Bulls (TeleFutura)
4:00 pm – Boca Juniors at Rosario Central (FSE)
5:00 pm – Sporting Gijon at Atletico de Madrid (Delayed) (GolTV)
5:00 pm – Tecos at Club America (Univision)
6:45 pm – Dunfermline Athletic at Falkirk (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
10:00 pm – Rostov at CSKA Moscow (Delayed) (Setanta USA)

Monday, April 27, 2009

5:30 am – St. Etienne at Nice (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
7:15 am – Lorient at Toulouse (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
3:00 pm – Portsmouth at Newcastle United (Setanta USA)

Non-Televised Matches Involving WCR Top 25 Clubs

Sat., 7:15 am – St. Mirren at (25) Rangers

Sat., 1:45 pm – (24) Twente at Heerenveen
Sat., 3:00 pm – (17) Bordeaux at Vannes
Sun., 9:00 am – (20) Genoa at Bologna
Sun., 3:00 pm – (22) Libertad at 2 de Mayo
Sun., 4:10 pm – (23) Velez Sarsfield at Colon

WCR Top 25 Clubs in the World - Congrats AZ Alkmaar Edition

Another week has passed and the top of the rankings are a little clearer. One reason that the view at the top is so clear is the Super Bonus Points awarded to the four clubs that have reached the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League. (Super Bonus Points also were awarded to CONCACAF Champions League semifinalists, but those still weren’t enough to put any of those clubs into the rankings.) Meanwhile, while regular old Bonus Points are still being used in South America, they have been taken away from the losing quarterfinalists in Europe, so things are a little topsy turvy this week.

There were additional items that further clouded the waters in the middle of the rankings. At this point of the season, there are few changes at the top of the tables of the domestic leagues, so there is little movement in the rankings. This week, however, two of the top clubs saw movement just below the leaders and Bordeaux passed Lyon for second place in Ligue Un and AC Milan passed Juventus for second place in Serie A. Both of these changes are reflected below.

As you already know, three English clubs and Barcelona are in the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League. I’ve pointed it out before, but I’ll do it again, no English club has been eliminated in the Champions League by any non-English club since AC Milan beat Liverpool in the final in 2007. It makes it more exciting for some, more boring for most, but it is what it is. Meanwhile, out west, Cruz Azul and Atlante play the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League final this week. (As I’ve pointed out, the Mexican clubs are North America’s English clubs except that the stars of the Mexican clubs often are actually Mexican.)

Finally, before we start the countdown, let’s congratulate AZ Alkmaar for winning the Eredivisie with three matches left, despite losing this weekend for the first time in recent memory. They are a deserving champion and I look forward to seeing AZ in the Champions League group stage next season. Now, on to the rankings.

World Club Rankings – Top 25 Clubs in the World – April 20, 2009

1. Manchester United (Eng) (1) – The dream of the Quintuple (and, indeed, the traditional treble) came to an end on Sunday when Manchester United fell to Everton 2-4 on penalty kicks after a scoreless match in the FA Cup semifinals. The dream for consecutive Champions League championships is still alive, however, after Manyoo defeated Porto 1-0 on Portugal to advance to the semifinals. This Week: A pair of Premiership matches for United this week at home, first against Portsmouth on Wednesday and then against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.

2. Barcelona (Esp) (2) – Barcelona played Bayern Munich to a 1-1 draw in the Champions League, but that was more than plenty to advance into the semifinals against Chelsea. Domestically, Barcelona defeated Getafe 1-0 to move a little bit closer to a Primera Division title. This Week: The tough part of the second half of the season, and therefore, the fun part, starts this week. Barcelona will host Sevilla on Wednesday and will take on Valencia on Sunday in a pair of La Liga matches.

3. Chelsea (Eng) (5) – The match at Stamford Bridge between Liverpool and Chelsea was a classic. Eight goals after beginning, Chelsea finds itself in the Champions League semifinals. But Chelsea didn’t stop there. Coming from behind, Chelsea defeated Arsenal 2-1 to move into the FA Cup finals against Everton. This Week: A preview of the FA Cup final takes place on Wednesday when Chelsea hosts Everton in a Premiership match. On Saturday, Chelsea will face West Ham United.

4. Arsenal (Eng) (8) – The Super Bonus Points from advancing to the Champions League semifinals moves Arsenal to the same spot in the rankings as it is in the Premiership – fourth place. Not surprisingly, the Gunners got past the weakest club in the quarterfinals with a 3-0 victory over Villarreal. Also not surprisingly, Arsenal fell 1-2 to Chelsea to be eliminated from the FA Cup. (Not that we all knew that Arsenal would lose, but we knew it could go either way.) This Week: It doesn’t get much easier for the Gunners as it heads to Anfield to take on Liverpool on Tuesday in a Premiership match. On Sunday, Arsenal will host Middlesbrough.

5. Inter Milan (Ita) (9) – Internazionale gave up a late goal in its match against Juventus to finish the match 1-1, but that was enough to help cement Inter’s lead in Serie A and move it closer to the column of the inevitable. This Week: On Wednesday, Inter plays the second leg of its Coppa Italia semifinal matchup with Sampdoria, where Inter will have to come back from an 0-3 deficit. In Serie A, Inter hits the road on Sunday to take on Napoli.

6. Liverpool (Eng) (3) – It’s turning out to be a rough year for this great club. Liverpool fought bravely against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge before finishing with a 4-4 draw, which left Liverpool eliminated from the Champions League. Now, Liverpool will have to come back in the Premiership if it wants any hardware this season. This Week: On Tuesday, Liverpool will host Arsenal in another Big Four battle. On Saturday, Liverpool will take on Hull City in another Premiership match.

7. Sao Paolo (Bra) – It wasn’t a great week for Sao Paolo. The Brazilian club fell 1-2 to Independiente Medellin in Copa Libertadores play and lost 0-2 to leave the Paulista League championship in the hands of Corinthians. Still, Sao Paolo is in first place in its Copa Libertadores group. This Week: Sao Paolo will face another Colombian club in Copa Libertadores play, this time America de Cali, but it will get to play this one in Brazil, which is always easier.

8. AC Milan (Ita) (15) – Milan moved into second place in Serie A in grand fashion, crushing Torino 5-1 on Sunday. This Week: This is about as high as Milan can hope to finish, but it will still be a battle to fight off Juventus. This week’s match will be on Sunday, against Palermo on Sunday.

9. Wolfsburg (Ger) (10) – With a 2-1 victory over Bayer Leverkusen, Wolfsburg maintained its narrow lead over Bayern Munchen in the Bundesliga. This Week: Next up for Wolfsburg will be an away match against Energie Cottbus on Sunday.

10. Real Madrid (Esp) (11) – Real Madrid defeated Recreativo de Huelva 1-0 to keep pace with Barcelona in the Primera Division, with the tough part of the schedule coming up for both clubs. This Week: After hosting Getafe on Tuesday, Real Madrid will take on Sevilla on Sunday.

11. Marseille (Fra) (17) – A come-from-behind 2-1 victory over Lorient allows Marseille to stay atop Ligue Un for a second consecutive week and allows it to recover from its quarterfinal elimination from the UEFA Cup at the hands of Shakhtar Donetsk. This Week: Marseille takes on Lille this weekend as it attempts to hold off both Bordeaux and Lyon.

12. Porto (Por) (4) – Porto’s first-ever loss to an English club at home in the Champions League sees it eliminated from the European tournament. Porto did defeat Academica de Coimbra 3-0 to maintain its Liga Sagres lead. This Week: At midweek, Porto takes on Estrela Amadora in a Tacas de Portugal match. Over the weekend, Porto will host Vitoria Setubal in league action.

13. Gremio (Bra) (12) – With a 2-0 victory over Universidad de Chile, Gremio stayed in first place in its Copa Libertadores group and can now prepare for the knockout stage of the South American tournament. This Week: No action this week for Gremio.

14. Bayern Munich (Ger) (6) – Bayern did save some face by playing Barcelona to a 1-1 draw in Munich in its Champions League swan song. Domestically, Bayern defeated Arminia Bielefeld 1-0 to keep pace with Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga. This Week: On Saturday, Bayern will host Schalke 04 in its next Bundesliga match.

15. AZ Alkmaar (Ned) (14) – Despite losing Vitesse 1-2 this weekend, AZ took advantage of losses by Twente and Ajax to win the 2008-09 Eredivisie title. This Week: AZ heads to Amsterdam on Sunday to take on Ajax. Although the match should mean very little to AZ, it will mean a lot to Ajax as it hunts down Twente for second place in the Dutch league.

16. Juventus (Ita) (13) – A late goal allowed Juventus to draw 1-1 with Serie A leaders Inter Milan, but it wasn’t enough to keep Juve in second place as it was caught and passed by AC Milan. This Week: At midweek, Juventus will host Lazio in the second leg of a Coppa Italia semifinal matchup. In Serie A play, Juventus will take on Reggina on Sunday.

17. Bordeaux (Fra) (NR) – A 1-0 victory over 427-time defending Ligue Un champion Lyon was enough to move Bordeaux into second place behind Marseille. This Week: Bordeaux will take on Vannes in the final of the Coupe de Ligue on Saturday. Bordeaux is scheduled to take on Stade Rennes this weekend, as well, but I assume that will be rescheduled.

18. Celtic (Sco) (20) – Celtic remained ahead of Rangers in the SPL with a 2-0 victory over Aberdeen. This Week: Since this weekend is the final of the Scottish Cup, and Celtic isn’t playing in it, Celtic will be off this weekend.

19. Sevilla (Esp) (19) – Sevilla remains in third place despite losing 1-3 to Valencia this weekend. This Week: Sevilla gets the Spanish double dose of pain this week, playing Barcelona on Wednesday and hosting Real Madrid on Sunday. It will be difficult to stay in third place with that schedule, but we’ll see.

20. Genoa (Ita) (21) – Like Sevilla, Genoa kept its place (fourth-place for Genoa) in its domestic league despite losing 0-1 to Lazio. This Week: No Coppa Italia match for Genoa, so it will be off until it takes on Bologna on Sunday.

21. Cruzeiro (Bra) (18) – Two victories over Ituitaba this week gives Cruzeiro the Mineiro League title, for whatever that’s worth. This Week: Cruzeiro returns to Copa Libertadores action this week when it hosts Deportivo Quito.

22. Libertad (Par) (24) – After playing Paraguayan league leader Cerro Porteno to a 0-0 draw, Libertad bounced back to defeat Tacuary 3-0 over the weekend. This Week: Libertad is off from Copa Libertadores this week but will take on 2 de Mayo on 26 de April.

23. Velez Sarsfield (Arg) (BU) – Velez Sarsfield is still in first place of the Argentine Clausura following a 2-0 victory over Arsenal de Sarandi. This Week: Velez will head to Santa Fe to take on Colon on Saturday.

24. Twente (Ned) (23) – Twente stayed in second place in the Eredivisie despite losing 0-1 to Feyenoord. This Week: On Tuesday, Twente will take on NAC Breda in a KNVB Beker match. On Saturday, Twente returns to Eredivisie action against SC Heerenveen.

25. Rangers (Sco) (BU) – Rangers returns to the rankings following a 3-2 victory over Hibernian. This Week: On Saturday, Rangers will take on St. Mirren in a Scottish FA Cup semifinal match.

Bubbling Under: Ajax (Ned), Everton (Eng), Lyon (Fra), Sporting CP (Por), Valencia (Esp).

Next Five: Atletico de Madrid (Esp), Aston Villa (Eng), Benfica (Por), Fiorentina (Ita), PSV Eindhoven (Ned).

Matches This Week Between WCR Top 25 Clubs
21 April – (4) Arsenal at (6) Liverpool
22 April – (19) Sevilla at (2) Barcelona
26 April – (10) Real Madrid at (19) Sevilla

WCR Weekend Soccer Television Schedule - 18/19 April 2009

If you follow the television schedules posted on this site at all, you’ve noticed that I’ve done a lot of bitching about the quality of weekend matches recently. Well, the bitchfest ends this week. This weekend should be awesome.

Generally, the matches that I rank at the top in my Matches of the Weekend section are matches involving two clubs ranked in the WCR Top 25 or in the ten spots immediately following those. This week, all five of the ranked matches are matches among those clubs, and that still doesn’t cover all the greatness that is this weekend.

Let’s begin with the matches that didn’t make the rankings, although over the past few weekends, they would’ve all been ranked as high as one or two. In the Western Hemisphere, we have a pair of superclasicos as Boca Juniors hosts River Plate and Chivas de Guadalajara hosts Club America, both on Sunday. While we’re in the west, Sao Paolo will host Corinthians in the second leg of the Mineiro League semifinals, also on Sunday. Once again, on Sunday, Eredivisie giants face off when Ajax takes on PSV Eindhoven.

What’s left? Plenty. In England, the FA Cup semifinals take place with Arsenal hosting Chelsea in the London half of the bracket while Everton heads to Old Trafford to take on Manchester United on Sunday. In Italy, the top two clubs in Serie A battle on Saturday when Juventus hosts Inter Milan. Other great matches involving clubs just below the top of their respective leagues take place on Sunday when streaking Valencia hosts Sevilla and Bordeaux hosts second-place Lyon. As an added bonus, all of the Top Five Matches take place at different times, so you can watch them all live and not miss a kick.

So much action bunched together in one weekend – mostly in one day (Sunday). Gotta love it. Below is the rest of the schedule. As always, have a great weekend!!!

Top Five Matches of the Weekend

1. Chelsea at Arsenal (Saturday, 12:15 pm EDT, Setanta USA)
2. Inter Milan at Juventus (Saturday, 2:30 pm, FSC)
3. Sevilla at Valencia (Sunday, 1:00 pm, GolTV)
4. Everton at Manchester United (Sunday, 11:00 am, FSC)
5. Lyon at Bordeaux (Sunday, 3:00 pm, Setanta USA)

Friday, April 17, 2009

7:00 pm – New England Revolution at D.C. United (ESPN2, ESPND, ESPN 360)
9:00 pm – Atlante at Tecos (Galavision)

Saturday, April 18, 2009

10:00 am – Blackburn Rovers at Stoke City (FSC)
10:00 am – West Ham United at Aston Villa (Setanta USA)
11:30 am – (6) Bayern Munich at Arminia Bielefeld (Delayed) (GolTV)
12 noon – Lazio at (21) Genoa (FSC)
12:15 pm – (5) Chelsea at (8) Arsenal (Setanta USA)
2:00 pm – (2) Barcelona at Getafe (GolTV)
2:30 pm – (9) Inter Milan at (13) Juventus (FSC)
3:00 pm – Lille at St. Etienne (Setanta USA)
4:30 pm – Fulham at Middlesbrough (Delayed) (FSC)
5:00 pm – Hull City at Sunderland (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
5:00 pm – Santos at Palmeiras (GolTV)
6:00 pm – San Luis at Monterrey (Telemundo)
7:00 pm – Independiente Medellin at Junior Barranquilla (GolTV)
8:00 pm – Pachuca at Monarcas Morelia (ESPND)
8:30 pm – Kansas City Wizards at Chicago Fire (FSC)
8:30 pm – Bolton Wanderers at Portsmouth (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
10:00 pm – Tigres at Necaxa (TeleFutura)

Sunday, April 19, 2009

6:00 am – Zenit St. Petersburg at Lokomotiv (Setanta USA)
8:30 am – Newcastle United at Tottenham Hotspur (Setanta USA)
9:00 am – Lecce at Roma (FSC, ESPN 360)
9:00 am – Napoli at Cagliari (ESPN 360)
10:30 am – Ajax at PSV Eindhoven (ESPND, ESPN 360)
11:00 am – Werder Bremen at Hertha Berlin (GolTV)
11:00 am – Everton at (1) Manchester United (FSC)
1:00 pm – (19) Sevilla at Valencia (GolTV)
1:00 pm – UNAM Pumas at Indios (FSE)
1:00 pm – Jaguares at Toluca (Telemundo)
1:00 pm – (4) Porto at Academica de Coimbra (ESPN 360)
1:15 pm – (17) Marseille at Lorient (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
1:30 pm – Puebla at Cruz Azul (ESPND)
2:30 pm – Torino at (15) AC Milan (FSC)
3:00 pm – River Plate at Boca Juniors (Delayed) (FSE)
3:00 pm – Corinthians at (7) Sao Paolo (GolTV)
3:00 pm – Lyon at Bordeaux (Setanta USA)
3:00 pm – Colorado Rapids at Houston Dyanamo (TeleFutura)
5:00 pm – (11) Real Madrid at Recreativo de Huelva (Delayed) (GolTV)
5:00 pm – Atlas at Santos Laguna (Univision)
6:00 pm – Club America at Chivas de Guadalajara (Telemundo)
10:00 pm – Saturn at Terek Grozni (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
11:00 pm – West Bromwich Albion at Manchester City (Delayed) (FSC)

Monday, April 20, 2009

5:30 am – Toulouse at Grenoble (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
11:00 am – St. Mirren at Motherwell (Delayed) (Setanta USA)

Non-Televised Matches Involving WCR Top 25 Clubs

Sat., 9:30 am – Bayer Leverkusen at (10) Wolfsburg
Sat., 10:00 am – Aberdeen at (20) Celtic
Sat., 2:45 pm – Vitesse at (14) Wolfsburg
Sat., 2:45 pm – (23) Twente at Feyenoord
Sat., 4:00 pm – (16) Sporting CP at Vitoria Guimaraes
Sun., 11:00 am – (22) Villarreal at Real Valladolid
Sun., 3:00 pm – Ituitaba at (18) Cruzeiro
Sun., 3:15 pm – (25) Benfica at Veitoria Setubal

WCR Top 25 Clubs in the World - Spring Holiday Edition

Whether you celebrate Easter, Passover or nothing at all, I hope you had a good week and are looking forward to another one. The world of football had a good week, primarily thanks to the continental club action going on all over the world, especially Europe. Highlighting that of course, was the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals, which was full of surprises. Among the surprises were draws by top-ranked Manchester United and Arsenal. United, in particular, now faces an uphill battle, more than likely having to beat Porto in Portugal, which is no easy task. Speaking of uphill battles, Liverpool and Bayern Munich are both going to have to pull off minor miracles (perhaps a major miracle for Bayern) if they want to advance to the semifinals. Gotta love this time of year!!

You won’t see major fluctuations this week in the rankings based on Champions League matches and here is why. Our policy with two-leg knockout stages here at WCR is that we don’t reward/penalize clubs for their performance in two-leg affairs until both legs have been played. So, you will see that Bayern actually moves up in the rankings, while Chelsea does not. If the results for both clubs in the second leg are similar to those in the first leg, you will see a major fluctuation next week.

You will see major fluctuations in the rankings next week based upon Champions League matches and here is why. Part of it is what I just said – both legs will go into the formulas at the same time. In addition, clubs that reach the quarterfinals receive bonus points will lose those points if they are eliminated in this round. The clubs that advance will receive super bonus points, which will push them even closer to the top of the rankings. A fuller explanation of bonus points and super bonus points is provided by clicking on this sentence.

Super bonus points will also be awarded in CONCACAF next week and now is a good time to congratulate Atlante and Cruz Azul for advancing to the finals of the CONCACAF Champions League. Neither is doing well enough in the Mexican Clausura to qualify for the rankings, but it should be a great final. Super bonus points will not be awarded for several weeks in South America because we are quite a way away from the semifinals in the Copa Libertadores. Until then, South American clubs will still be eligible for bonus points for the top eight clubs in that tournament.

That’s enough of that. Now, on to the rankings. (And as a reminder, if you’d like a convenient place to check on updates, join our group on Facebook.)

World Club Rankings – Top 25 Clubs in the World – April 13, 2009

1. Manchester United (Eng) (1) – Once again, Manchester United is number one, but rest assured that this will not be the case next week if United cannot become the first English club ever to defeat Porto at home in a Champions League match. The 2-2 draw at Old Trafford leaves Manyoo in a position in which it can still succeed, but it won’t be easy. United did defeat Sunderland 2-1 in Premiership action over the weekend to maintain its domestic lead. This Week: The big match for United is on Wednesday. In domestic play, Manchester United will host Everton on Sunday in its FA Cup semifinal match. We’ll know Wednesday if it is continuing to go for the unprecedented quintuple.

2. Barcelona (Esp) (2) – Barcelona is the top-ranked-club-in-waiting since it is likely to advance to the semifinals after its 4-0 defeat of Bayern Munich on four first-half goals in the Champions League quarterfinals. Domestically, Barcelona was just as impressive in a 2-0 defeat of Recreativo de Huelva. This Week: There is little drama leading up to Tuesday’s match in Munich, but you never know. That’s why they play the matches. In Primera Division play, Barcelona will take on Getafe on Sunday.

3. Liverpool (Eng) (3) – I am not shocked that Liverpool lost to Chelsea, they are both great clubs, but I didn’t expect Liverpool to give up three goals at Anfield like it did in its 1-3 loss. I was expecting Liverpool to take out its frustrations on Blackburn Rovers, which it did in its 4-0 thrashing of the weaker club. This Week: Liverpool has an uphill battle in its match against Chelsea on Tuesday, but stranger things have happened, I suppose. Liverpool will not play over the weekend because its Premiership match against Arsenal (if I remember correctly) has been rescheduled to midweek because of Arsenal’s FA Cup match.

4. Porto (Por) (4) – I have long been accused of ranking Porto too high, but it made a prophet out of me by playing so well in its 2-2 draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford. Domestically, Porto defeated Estrela Amadora 3-0 to maintain its Liga Sagres lead over Sporting CP. This Week: History is on Porto’s side, but it still must be considered the underdog when Manchester United comes to town on Wednesday. Win or lose (or draw), Porto will take on Academica de Coimbra on Sunday.

5. Chelsea (Eng) (5) – You got to give the boys in blue a lot of credit. The 3-1 victory over Liverpool was unexpected, but well-deserved and leaves Chelsea in fantastic shape for the rematch at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday. Domestically, Chelsea almost was the victim of one of the greatest Premier League comebacks I’ve ever seen, but Chelsea held on for a 4-3 victory over Bolton Wanderers at home. This Week: As if the Champions League rematch with Liverpool wasn’t enough, Chelsea will have to head across London to take on Arsenal at Emirates Stadium for a Saturday FA Cup semifinal matchup.

6. Bayern Munich (Ger) (10) – As I stated above, the Champions League quarterfinal matches won’t be reflected in the rankings until the second leg is complete, so Bayern moves up the rankings despite the fact that it completely fell apart in the first half of its 0-4 loss to Barcelona. Bayern’s move up the rankings is more due to its 4-0 defeat of Eintracht Frankfurt, which allowed Bayern to move back into second place in the Bundesliga. This Week: The rematch against Barcelona will be in Munich, but the four-goal deficit may be too much to overcome. My guess is that it will be. Domestically, however, things are looking better for Bayern, who will take on Arminia Bielefeld on Saturday.

7. Sao Paolo (Bra) (6) – Sao Paolo remains atop its Copa Libertadores group stage following a 2-1 victory over Uruguay’s Defensor Sporting. Domestically, Sao Paolo fell 1-2 to Ronaldo’s Corinthians in the first leg of its two-leg semifinal in the Paulista League playoffs. This Week: Sao Paolo returns to Copa Libertadores action this week when it heads to Colombia to face Independiente Medellin. On Sunday, Sao Paolo will play the home leg of its semifinal matchup with Corinthians.

8. Arsenal (Eng) (7) – I think a lot of people looked for Arsenal to overwhelm Villarreal in their Champions League matchup, but the 1-1 result was actually pretty fair. Arsenal will be favored again in the rematch at Emirates Stadium on Wednesday. Domestically, the Gunners 4-1 victory over Wigan Athletic leave little doubt that Arsenal will, at the very least, qualify for a return to next season’s Champions League. This Week: The rematch against the Yellow Submarine will be on Wednesday and should be exciting. Arsenal’s home match against Chelsea on Saturday in the FA Cup semifinals could be even more exciting.

9. Inter Milan (Ita) (8) – The top ranked club in the world that isn’t involved in international competition extended its Serie A lead this weekend despite scoring only a 2-2 draw with Palermo. This Week: The top clubs in Italy face off on Saturday in Turin when Inter heads out of town to take on Juventus.

10. Wolfsburg (Ger) (10) – With a 2-1 victory over struggling Borussia Monchengladbach, Wolfsburg maintained its narrow lead over Bayern Munich and other in the tight Bundesliga race. This Week: Wolfsburg hosts Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday in its next Bundesliga match.

11. Real Madrid (Esp) (13) – Real Madrid defeated Real Valladolid 2-0 this weekend and stayed within striking distance in La Liga, should Barcelona struggle down the stretch. This Week: On Sunday, Real Madrid will take on Recreativo de Huelva.

12. Gremio (Bra) (11) – Gremio remains atop its Copa Libertadores group following a 3-0 victory over Aurora at home in Porto Allegre, if I remember correctly. This Week: Gremio’s only match this week is another Copa Libertadores group match, this one on the road against Universidad de Chile.

13. Juventus (ita) (12) – We knew it wouldn’t be easy, and it wasn’t, as Juventus lost 2-3 on the road at Genoa. This Week: Out of the frying pan and into the fire, Juventus will take on Serie A leaders Inter Milan on Saturday, though this time it will be playing at home.

14. AZ Alkmaar (Ned) (14) – With a 1-0 victory over NAC Breda, it’s beginning to look as the Eredivisie has no choice against AZ this season. This Week: AZ welcomes Vitesse to Alkmaar on Saturday for this weekend’s match.

15. AC Milan (Ita) (15) – It wasn’t as easy as expected, but Milan did pull off a 1-0 victory over Chievo Verona. This Week: While one team from Milan takes on a team from Turin, the other club from Milan will host the other club from Turin as Torino comes to the San Siro to take on AC.

16. Sporting CP (Por) (16) – Sporting “don’t call us Lisbon” CP defeated Naval 3-1 to keep pace with Porto in the Liga Sagres. This Week: On Sunday, Sporting will take on Vitoria Guimaraes.

17. Marseille (Fra) (BU) – The week didn’t start out well for Marseille, losing 0-2 in the away portion of its UEFA Cup quarterfinal matchup with Shakhtar Donetsk. The week got much better as the week went along, however, as Marseille defeated Grenoble 4-1 and took over the Ligue Un lead from Lyon in the process. This Week: Marseille will host the second leg of its UEFA Cup quarterfinal with Shakhtar Donetsk on Thursday. Domestically, Marseille will take on Lorient on Sunday.

18. Cruzeiro (Bra) (20) – I have no clue how Cruzeiro moved up after losing 0-4 to Estudiantes in Argentina, but the Brazilian club is still in first place in its Copa Liberatdeores group and has earned its ranking. This Week: There are no Copa Libertadores matches for Cruzeiro this week, but it will play both legs of its Mineiro League semifinal matchup against Ituitabo, on the road on Wednesday and at home on Sunday.

19. Sevilla (Esp) (17) – Sevilla is still safely in third place in the Primera Division despite its 0-1 loss at home this weekend against Getafe. This Week: Whether Sevilla can stay safely in third place in the Primera Division will depend on how it does against Valencia this coming weekend.

20. Celtic (Sco) (18) – The Bhoys played to SPL matches this week, defeating last-place Falkirk 4-0 at midweek before drawing 1-1 with Hearts over the weekend. This Week: As Celtic attempts to hold off a charging Rangers, it will host Aberdeen on Saturday.

21. Genoa (Ita) (21) – Genoa took a big step this weekend towards qualifying for next season’s Champions League with a 3-2 victory over Juventus. This Week: On Saturday, Genoa welcomes Lazio to town for its next Serie A match.

22. Villarreal (Esp) (19) – A 1-1 draw with Arsenal at home leaves Villarreal some hope to advance to the Champions League semifinals. Domestically, Villarreal was upset by Malaga 0-2 to fall to fifth place in the Primera Division. This Week: A trip to Emirates Stadium on Wednesday will decide Villarreal’s European fate. Damestically, Villarreal will take on Real Valladolid on Sunday.

23. Twente (Ned) (23) – Twente managed to keep its tiny lead over Ajax for second place in the Erredivisie with a 4-2 victory over Roda JC. This Week: On Saturday, Twente will play an away match against Feyenoord.

24. Libertad (Par) (NR) - Libertad becomes the first Paraguayan club in the weekly rankings. Despite falling 1-2 to Universitario in Peru, Libertad has clinched the first-place spot in its Copa Libertadores group with one match remaining. Domestically, Libertad defeated Rubio Nu 2-0. This Week: In one of South America’s biggest matches of the weekend, Libertad will host Paraguay’s domestic league leading Cerro Porteno on Sunday.

25. Benfica (Por) (22) – Benfica holds on to the final spot in the rankings after losing 0-1 to Academica de Coimbra. This Week: Benfica will take on Vitoria Setubal in a Liga Sagres match on Sunday.

Bubbling Under (alphabetically): Ajax (Ned), Fiorentina (Ita), Rangers (Sco), Valencia (Esp), Velez Sarsfield (Arg).

Next Five: Aston Villa (Eng), Bordeaux (Fra), Colon (Arg), Everton (Eng), Lyon (Fra).

Matches Between Top 25 Clubs This Week:
14 April – (2) Barcelona at (6) Bayern Munich
14 April – (3) Liverpool at (5) Chelsea
15 April – (1) Manchester United at (4) Porto
15 April – (22) Villarreal at (8) Arsenal
18 April – (5) Chelsea at (8) Arsenal
18 April – (9) Inter Milan at (13) Juventus

WCR Weekend Soccer Television Schedule - 11/12 April 2009

Another weekend of club football, and another week full of blah matches. As always, there are some good ones. And there is no denying that there are plenty of opportunities to get your fix. There are at least twenty-four matches (more counting ESPN 360) being broadcast on Saturday alone. Still, we are a week or so away from things getting really exciting.

There is one match involving WCR Top 25 Clubs. That match takes place Saturday afternoon on FSC, when Genoa host Juventus in Serie A action. Most of the Serie A matches this week take place on Saturday, with FSC broadcasting various matches over the entire weekend, so there will be a few Saturday matches that aren’t broadcast until Sunday. I guess that happens, though, when your Saturday is so full.

I’m taking advantage of the lack of exciting European matches to fill the Top Five Matches of the Weekend list with matches from North and South America. These include matches from Brazil, where the Paulista League playoffs begin at the semifinal stage, and Mexico, where the top four clubs in the Clausura are taking on each other.

Whatever your preferences, there should be something for you this weekend on the tube. Have a great weekend!!!

Top Five Matches of the Weekend

1. Juventus at Genoa (Saturday, 2:30 pm (GMT -4:00), FSC)
2. Sao Paolo at Corinthians (Sunday, 5:00 pm (delayed), GolTV)
3. Toluca at Pachuca (Saturday, 8:00 pm, TeleFutura)
4. Boca Juniors at Estudiantes (Sunday, 4:00 pm, FSE)
5. Puebla at UNAM Pumas (Sunday, 1:00 pm, Telemundo)

Saturday, April 11, 2009

7:40 am – Blackburn Rovers at (3) Liverpool (Setanta USA)
10:00 am – Bolton Wanderers at (5) Chelsea (FSC)
10:00 am – (1) Manchester United at Sunderland (Setanta USA)
11:30 am – Eintracht Frankfurt at (10) Bayern Munich (Delayed) (GolTV)
12:30 pm – Newcastle United at Stoke City (FSC)
1:30 pm – FC Utrecht at PSV Eindhoven (ESPND, ESPN 360)
2:30 pm – (12) Juventus at (21) Genoa (FSC)
3:00 pm – Juventud at Penarol (GolTV)
3:00 pm – St. Etienne at Rennes (Setanta USA)
4:00 pm – Chicago Fire at San Jose Earthquakes (TeleFutura)
4:00 pm – Estrela Amadora at (4) Porto (ESPN 360)
5:10 pm – Palmeiras at Santos (GolTV)
6:00 pm – Tecos at San Luis (TeleFutura)
6:00 pm – Santos Laguna at Jaguares de Chiapas (ESPND)
6:45 pm – West Ham United at Tottenham Hotspur (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
7:20 pm – Cucuta Deportivo at Deportivo Cali (GolTV)
8:00 pm – Toluca at Pachuca (TeleFutura)
8:00 pm – Monterrey at Tigres (Telemundo)
8:30 pm – New York Red Bulls at Houston Dynamo (FSC)
8:30 pm – Hull City at Middlesbrough (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
9:15 pm – Once Caldas at Atletico Huila (GolTV)
10:00 pm – Chivas de Guadalajara at Atlante (Telemundo)
10:30 pm – Los Angeles Galaxy at Chivas USA (ESPN2, ESPND, ESPN 360)
11:30 pm – (7) Arsenal at Wigan Athletic (Delayed) (FSE)

Sunday, April 11, 2009

6:00 am – Lokomotiv at CSKA Moscow (Setanta USA)
9:00 am – Palermo at (8) Inter Milan (Delayed) (FSC)
10:30 am – Willem II at (25) Ajax (ESPN 360)
11:00 am – Real Valladolid at (13) Real Madrid (GolTV)
11:00 am – Fulham at Manchester City (FSC)
12:30 pm – Everton at Aston Villa (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
1:00 pm – Recreativo de Huelva at (2) Barcelona (Delayed) (GolTV)
1:00 pm – Puebla at UNAM Pumas (Telemundo)
1:00 pm – Cruz Azul at Monarcas Morelia (ESPND)
2:30 pm – Roma at Lazio (Delayed) (FSC) (Sat., 9am on ESPN 360)
3:00 pm – Atletico de Madrid at Deportivo La Coruna (GolTV)
3:00 pm – Monaco at (24) Lyon (Setanta USA)
4:00 pm – Boca Juniors at Estudiantes (FSE)
4:30 pm – (15) AC Milan at Chievo Verona (Delayed) (FSC) (Sat., 9am on ESPN 360)
5:00 pm – (6) Sao Paolo at Corinthians (Delayed) (GolTV)
6:00 pm – Indios at Club America (Univision)
7:00 pm – Hamburg SV at VfB Stuttgart (Delayed) (GolTV)

Monday, April 12, 2009

4:30 am – Bordeaux at Auxerre (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
6:15 am – Grenoble at Marseille (Delayed) (Setanta USA)
11:00 am – Rangers at St. Mirren (Really Delayed) (Setanta USA)

Non-Televised Matches Involving WCR Top 25 Clubs

Fri., 2:45 pm – (14) AZ Alkmaar at NAC Breda
Sat., 7:30 am – (18) Celtic at Hearts
Sat., 9:30 am – (9) Wolfsburg at Borussia Monchengladbach
Sat., 1:00 pm – Naval at (16) Sporting CP
Sat., 2:00 pm – Academica de Coimbra at (22) Benfica
Sat., 2:45 pm – Roda JC at (23) Twente
Sat., 4:00 pm – Malaga at (19) Villarreal
Sun., 1:00 pm – Getafe at (17) Sevilla

UEFA Cup Predictions - Quarterfinal Edition

It’s not nearly as exciting, but just like it’s prediction season for the Champions League (where we are 6-2), it’s prediction season for the UEFA Cup, where we started off 4-12 in the first round, but improved to 6-2 in the second round. It’s not nearly as exciting without any WCR Top 25 Clubs, and it’s less predictable because it’s not necessarily the most important thing on the agenda for the clubs, particularly those that are competing for championships of their domestic leagues. Nevertheless, we will look into our crystal balls and see what the future holds.

The first two matchups involve the top two clubs from Ukraine’s Vischaya League (Dinamo Kiev and Shakhtar Donetsk) and two clubs that are still in contention for a Ligue Un title (Paris St.-Germain and Marseille). I think the French clubs will be more distracted because Ligue Un is the much tighter of the competitions. I also admire the way the eastern European nations have performed in this competition over the past few years – with Russia’s Zenit St. Petersburg being the defending champion. That being said, I’m going to go with my western European biases in my predictions. At this point in time, though it’s always subject to change, I believe that Marseille is the best remaining club in the UEFA Cup. I believe it will handily defeat Shakhtar Donetsk.

Marseille over Shakhtar Donetsk.

I’m not quite as confident in Paris St.-Germain in its matchup with Vischaya League leading Dinamo Kiev. Because they are tied with Lyon, however, for most Ligue Un victories, I’m going to give PSG the benefit of the doubt. I’m predicting both French clubs to advance.

Paris St.-Germain over Dinamo Kiev.

Hamburger is tied for the lead in the Bundesliga, though it sometimes appears to be doing that through smoke and mirrors. It’s goal differential in the German top league is rather poor for a club so high in the table. Its opponent, however, is stuck in the middle of the Premiership and doesn’t appear to be destined for greatness, at least not this year. Both clubs have played well in this competition and I think it’s a toss-up. I’m going with the club, however, that has managed to find a way to win the close ones.

Hamburger over Manchester City

Finally, we have a battle of two clubs that are struggling mightily in excellent leagues. Udinese actually held on to the WCR Top 25 number one ranking briefly, early in the season, after it started the campaign in red hot fashion. It has since cooled off considerably. Werder Bremen, on the other hand, has never really gotten on track in the Bundesliga, but it has managed to do well against good clubs, such as Bayern Munich and AC Milan. I don’t believe a cup is in the cards for Bremen, but I do believe we will have two German clubs joining the two French clubs in the UEFA Cup semifinals.

Werder Bremen over Udinese.

That’s it for this round. We’ll check in on the results in a few weeks and see how we’ve done. Enjoy the matches!!

Champions League Predictification - Quarterfinal Edition

After a 4-12 start to the prediction season in the first knockout round of the UEFA Cup, we have turned things around pretty well here at WCR Soothsayer Central. We were 6-2 in the round of sixteen in both the Champions League and the UEFA Cup. That leaves us 6-2 in the Champions League, 10-14 in the UEFA Cup and 16-16 overall. Not very good, but again, we’ve hit 12 of our last 16, so grab some butter because we’re on a roll.

This week, we’ll have predictions for the quarterfinals of both the Champions League and UEFA Cup. Up first – Champions League. Like we did the last time, we’ll go down in the order of your confidence on the result, based on your voting on the left hand column of the blog. As always, the WCR Top 25 Rankings are brought to you courtesy of, well, me.

Arsenal (73%) vs. Villarreal

You guys are pretty sure about all of the Champions League quarterfinal matchups. You’re most confident about Arsenal taking out Villarreal. I have to say that I don’t think Arsenal is as good as it has been in recent years, but I still think it will be good enough to take out the Yellow Submarine. Villarreal is, at the moment, sitting in fourth place of the Primera Division. Although Arsenal is only in fourth place in the English Premiership, it has been playing very well recently and appears to have put Aston Villa behind it for the final English Champions League spot. I think Arsenal will be the worst of the semifinalists, but I think it is the best of this particular matchup. Prediction: (7) Arsenal over (19) Villarreal.

Barcelona (72%) vs. Bayern Munich

If this matchup had taken place in December, I would have called it a no-brainer. About a month ago, I’d have had second thoughts, as Barcelona was busy letting Real Madrid back in the Primera Division race and Bayern was destroying Sporting CP by historic margins. At this point in time, Barcelona still isn’t playing at the same level that it was playing in the early part of the season, but Bayern has dropped to fourth in the Bundesliga and is coming off of a 1-5 loss at the hands of Bundesliga-leading Wolfsburg. Either way, you have to think that this star-studded matchup will be fun with Henry, Toni, Messi, Ribery, Eto, Klose, et al. I think it could be close, but I definitely favor Barcelona. Prediction: (2) Barcelona over (10) Bayern Munich.

Manchester United (70%) vs Porto

I’m a little surprised by the voting on this one, but surprised in a pleasant way. I expected people to disrespect Porto and assume that Manchester United would roll through this matchup with ease. While I believe that Manchester United is the best club in the world this season, the times that I have seen Porto this season lead me to believe that it won’t be a completely one-sided matchup and that Porto won’t just roll over. That being said, I think the talent level for the English club is just going to be too great for Porto to overcome. Prediction: (1) Manchester United over (4) Porto.

Liverpool (65%) vs. Chelsea

This is the matchup that was closest in the poll that I took, and even it wasn’t that close, with Liverpool garnering nearly a 2-to-1 advantage. This has been an interesting season. In the first half, I think it is safe to say that Barcelona was the hottest club in the world. More recently, I believe that it is safe to say that the title has been passed to Liverpool, with recent blowout defeats of Real Madrid and Manchester United. On the other hand, Manchester United and Chelsea have been the more consistent clubs. The one big difference, however, is that while Chelsea can be relied upon to beat the clubs that it should beat, it has all kinds of trouble against talented clubs. Liverpool is a very talented club. I think if this is played in January, Chelsea wins. It’s being played in April, though. Prediction: (3) Liverpool over (5) Chelsea.

WCR Top 25 Clubs in the World - We're Back Edition

It was pretty much a status quo weekend this week in the world of club football. Only three clubs in the current WCR Top 25 lost a match this week, and one of those (Bayern Munich) lost to another ranked club (Wolfsburg). That’s what happens when you have a weekend like the past one, where there are so few matches between top clubs.

Of course, that’s all about to change as many of the top clubs in the world are getting ready to take on each other in Champions League quarterfinal action. Not that you need me to tell you this, but Tuesday will see Manchester United host Porto and Villarreal host Arsenal. On Wednesday, we have Chelsea at Liverpool and Bayern Munich at Barcelona. On top of all of this, we have the UEFA Cup quarterfinals, the second leg of the CONCACAF Champions League semifinals and the return of the Copa Libertadores group stage. Gotta love this time of year.

As far as weekend league play is concerned, the coming weekend isn’t going to be much better as this past weekend. In fact, it may even be worse. That’s okay, though. We can enjoy the midweek championship action until we get closer to the finish of the league seasons and those matches start to count more. The only matchup of ranked clubs this coming weekend takes place in the Italian Serie A, where Genoa hosts Juventus. Other than that, the weekend is pretty meh.

Anxious to learn the new rankings? Of course you are. And I’m anxious to give them to you. Ready? Okay, here we go.

World Club Rankings – Top 25 Clubs in the World – April 6, 2009

1. Manchester United (Eng) (1) – A lot of the clubs at the top had tough games before they ultimately pulled out victories. One of those was Manchester United, who came from behind to defeat a slumping Aston Villa club 3-2 at Old Trafford. This Week: Manyoo’s first leg quarterfinal match will also be at Old Trafford as Porto comes to visit in the Champions League. In Premiership play, United heads northeast to face Sunderland.

2. Barcelona (Esp) (2) – It wasn’t pretty, but it was a victory. More specifically, it was a 1-0 victory over Valladolid that kept Barcelona atop the Primera Division by six points. This Week: Barcelona welcomes Bayern Munich to town for its Champions League quarterfinal first leg match on Wednesday. Domestically, Barcelonal will host Recreativo de Huelva on Saturday.

3. Liverpool (Eng) (3) – It looked like it would end up as a draw, but Liverpool pulled a late goal to defeat Fulham 1-0 and stay hot on Manchester United’s heels in the Premiership. This Week: Anfield will be the site of the first leg of the quarterfinal matchup between Liverpool and Chelsea. On Saturday, it will also be the site of Liverpool’s next Premier League match against Blackburn Rovers.

4. Porto (Por) (4) – Porto maintained its lead in the Liga Sagres with a 3-1 victory over Vitoria Guimaraes. This Week: That was easy enough. This week won’t be so easy. At least the first part won’t, since Porto is heading to England to take on Manchester United in a Champions League match. It could be easier over the weekend, however, when Porto hosts Estrela Amadora.

5. Chelsea (Eng) (5) – Chelsea had the next best thing to a week off . . . it played Newcastle United. Unsurprisingly, Chelsea won the match 2-0. Next Week: In a battle of the runners-up in the Premiership, Chelsea will take on Liverpool at Anfield in a Champions League quarterfinal match. On Saturday, Chelsea will host Bolton Wanderers.

6. Sao Paolo (Bra) (7) – Sao Paolo picked up four points in two matches this week to qualify for the Paulista League semifinals. Sao Paolo defeated Guaratingueta 2-1 and drew 2-2 with Sao Caetano. This Week: Sao Paolo returns to Copa Libertadores action this week with a Thursday night matchup against Defensor Sporting in Brazil.

7. Arsenal (Eng) (8) – Arsenal is playing pretty well recently, and continued that this week with a 2-0 victory over Manchester City. This Week: The Gunners head to Spain this week for a Tuesday Champions League matchup with Villarreal. On Saturday, Arsenal will face Wigan Athletic in a Premiership match.

8. Inter Milan (Ita) (9) – Inter Milan was able to extend its lead in Serie A with a 1-0 victory over Udinese, the last Italian club alive in European action. This Week: The best club in the world that is no longer in the Champions League will host Palermo on Saturday in Serie A play.

9. Wolfsburg (Ger) (18) – I don’t know if Bayern was looking past Wolfsburg, but whatever the cause behind this weekend’s events, Wolfsburg crushed Bayern Munich 5-1 to move to the apex of the tightly packed Bundesliga. This Week: The state of Wolfsburg’s competition drops significantly as Wolfsburg goes from Bayern Munich to Borussia Monchengladbach.

10. Bayern Munich (Ger) (6) – Sometimes you lose. It’s understandable. But there’s really no excuse to get crushed 1-5 by anybody, even if it is the new first place club in the Bundesliga. Thanks to the loss, Bayern is the new fourth-place club in the Bundesliga. This Week: Wolfsburg is good. Barcelona is better. If Bayern was just looking past its German competition in anticipation of its Champions League match, I hope it pays off for them. Domestically, Bayern will host Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday.

11. Gremio (Bra) (23) – Gremio moves up straight up the rankings this week after moving to the top of its Copa Libertadores group. It also lost a pair of Gaucho League matches, to Caxias du Sul and Internacional, but that’s neither here nor there. This Week: Gremio gets a chance to defend its first place spot in its Copa Libertadores group this week when it takes on Venezuela’s Aurora.

12. Juventus (Ita) (10) – Juventus moved two points further away from Internazionale for the Serie A lead after giving up a late goal to draw 3-3 with Chievo Verona. (Note: I know that a Chievo player scored a hat trick this week, but I forget his name and don’t want to look it up right now. I encourage you to do so, though. Or you can just clink on the link to the match report.) This Week: Juventus will take on fourth-ranked Genoa on Saturday in what should be Europe’s match of the weekend.

13. Real Madrid (Esp) (11) – Much like Barcelona, Real Madrid played a not-very-exciting match that ended in a 1-0 victory for the favored club. Real’s victim was Malaga. This Week: Coming up this weekend is, as usual, Barcelona’s leftovers. This week, it’s Real Valladolid.

14. AZ Alkmaar (Ned) (12) – AZ extended its Eredivisie lead with a 4-1 victory over ADO Den Haag, moving AZ Alkmaar even closer to next season’s Champions League. This Week: AZ will take on NAC Breda on Friday in this week’s Eredivisie match.

15. AC Milan (Ita) (13) – In another match that looked like a draw for seventy-five minutes but then finished in a victory for the favored club, AC Milan defeated Lecce 2-0. This Week: On Saturday, AC Milan will take on Chievo Verona in Serie A action.

16. Sporting CP (Por) (16) – All of the clubs at the top of the Liga Sagres won this week, including Sporting CP, who defeated Leixoes 1-0. This Week: Sporting CP will host Naval on Saturday.

17. Sevilla (Esp) – Yes, all of the clubs at the top of the Primera Division won 1-0; it wasn’t just Barcelona and Real Madrid. The team at the zero end of Sevilla’s 1-0 victory was Recreativo de Huelva. This Week: Sevilla will host Getafe on a Sunday Primera Division match.

18. Celtic (Sco) – This weekend, Celtic did what Celtic does, that is, beat up on the Scottish minnows. Hamilton Academicals fell victim to Celtic by a 4-0 score, keeping Celtic atop the SPL. This Week: It’s not exactly a Champions League match, but Celtic will play at midweek this week just like the big guys. For Celtic, it’s a makeup match against Falkirk, the last place club in the Scottish Premier League. Over the weekend, Celtic will take on Hearts.

19. Villarreal (Esp) (15) – Like Bayern Munich, perhaps Villarreal was just looking past this week’s opponent in anticipation of its Champions League matchup. Yeah, that’s the ticket. Almeria wasn’t looking past anybody, defeating the Yellow Submarine 3-0. This Week: On Tuesday, Villarreal welcomes the Gunners for the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal. Upon its Primera Division return, Villarreal will host Malaga.

20. Cruzeiro (Bra) (19) – No recent matches. This Week: Cruzeiro will play in what should be the best of the week’s Copa Libertadores matches when it heads to Argentina to take on Estudiantes.

21. Genoa (Ita) (21) – Genoa made like a Spanish club this weekend and defeated Reggina 1-0 to keep its current Champions League position. This Week: It should be a special week for Genoa when it gets to host the European match of the week. If it keeps current form, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Genoa beat visiting Juventus on Saturday.

22. Benfica (Por) (24) – As I pointed out earlier, all of the Liga Sagres leaders were victorious this week, keeping the status quo at the top. Benfica played its part in this conformity by defeating Estrela Amadora 2-1. This Week: Benfica will host Academica de Coimbra on Saturday.

23. Twente (Ned) (22) – After a 1-1 draw with NEC Nijmegen, Twente has fallen farther (further?) from AZ Almaar and the Eredivisie lead, as well as letting Ajax back into the mix for second place. This Week: Twente will try to get back on track at home on Saturday against Roda JC.

24. Lyon (Fra) (BU) – The current leaders of the most exciting top league in Europe this season return to the rankings after defeating Le Mans 3-1. This Week: On Sunday, Lyon will host AS Monaco.

25. Ajax (Ned) (BU) – Also returning to the rankings is Ajax, who defeated Roda JC 2-1 and moved to the heels of Twente for second place in the Eredivisie. This Week: On Sunday, Ajax will host Willem II on Sunday as it tries to chase down Twente.

Bubbling Under (alphabetically): Colon (Arg), Everton (Eng), Lanus (Arg), Marseille (Fra), Rangers (Sco).

Next Five (alphabetically): Aston Villa (Eng), Fiorentina (Ita), Hamburger (Ger), Hertha Berlin (Ger), Libertad (Par).

Matches Between WCR Top 25 Clubs This Week:
7 April – (4) Porto at (1) Manchester United
7 April – (7) Arsenal at (19) Villarreal
8 April – (8) Bayern Munich at (2) Barcelona
8 April – (5) Chelsea at (3) Liverpool
11 April – (12) Juventus at (21) Genoa