Week in Review: Europe

English Premier League

Not much changed in the Premiership standings this past weekend. Chelsea still remains atop the table with 27 points folwing a 4-0 drilling of Bolton Wanderers. Manchester United though remained close to the blues by defeating Blackburn Rovers 2-0, allowing United to remain two points back of Chelsea.

One result that did stand out over the weekend was Fulham defeating Liverpool 3-1 at Craven Cottage on Saturday. Bobby Zamora got Fulham going with a 23rd minute strike, but Fernando Torres equalized for the reds in the 42nd minute. Fulham persisted, and Erik Nevland put the home side back in front in the 73rd minute and it went downhill for Liverpool from there on, as two players were red-carded and US midfielder Clint Dempsey sealed the match for Fulham with a 87th minute goal.

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MLS Playoff Preview

Western Conference
Los Angeles Galaxy (W1) vs. Chivas USA (W4)

The Superclasico get taken to a whole new level as the two occupants of the Home Depot Center gear up for two matches that promises to be just as intense as their three regular season meetings.

The Galaxy not only went undefeated against Chivas this season, but didn't allow Chivas to find the back of the net. The three matches however were grinders for Los Angeles. The two teams played to a scoreless tie in the first meeting back on April 11, but LA took the last two matches by scores of 1-0. A first-half goal by Edson Buddle was the difference in the second meetig two months later and Beckham's 80th minute strike vaulted Los Angeles to the Superclasico trophy.

Prediction: Chivas USA finally finds the back net against Los Angeles, but the Galaxy pushes more goals across and takes the series 3-1.

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European Soccer Recap

English Premier League

The teams currently occupying the top two spots in the Premiership swited spots over the weekend, as Chelsea regained the top spot in the league.

Chelsea did its part on Saturday, as a brace by Frank Lampard helped the blues to a 5-0 rout of Blackburn Rovers at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea also got help from Liverpool, as they defeated Manchester United 2-0 at Anfield on Sunday.

The win not only stalled Manchester United, but brought a sigh of relief to Liverpool, whish was sliding down the standigs prior to Sunday'a match. Manchester United found itself behind the eight ball towards halftime, as Nemanja Vidic recieved two yellow cards in the first half, and Liverpool finally capitalized with a Fernando Torres goal in the 64th minute. David Ngog sealed the match with a stoppage time strike.

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U.S. Rallies for a Draw

Despite having to finish up its World Cup Qualifying against Costa Rica at RFK Stadium on Wednesday night, to the United States men's national team, the sport itself took a back seat to very serious matters.

Early Wednesday morning, teammate and striker Charlie Davies was seriously injured in a car accident that occured outside Washington DC. The accident claimed the life of 22-year old Ashley J. Roberta. Davies was seriously injured in the crash and in expected to be at Washington Hospital Center Medstar for at least a week. The injuries Davies sustained in the crash could keep him out of next year's World Cup in South Africa.

For the US, taking the field against Costa Rica in the wake of the tragic news must have been very tough, yet they were there at RFK Stadium, trying to solidify first place in the CONCACAF Hexagonal standings, which it did, as the US rallied from a two-goal deficit to preserve a 2-2 tie against Costa Rica.

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U.S. Headed to the World Cup

When Julio Leon scored two minutes into the second half, it looked like it would be another tough World Cup Qualifying road match for the United States.

Instead, the US responded big time, as Conor Casey picked a great time to score his first two goals of his national team career and a goal off a set piece lifted the US to a 3-2 win over a feisty Honduras squad at Estadio Francisco Morazan at San Pedro Sula on Saturday night.

The win sends the US to its sixth straight World Cup and preserves its lead over Mexico in the CONCACAF Hexagonal standings. Honduras slips to fourth in the standings after Costa Rica's 4-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago, so if the standings hold up, Honduras would be forced into a two-match playoff against the fifth place squad in CONMEBOL, which right now is Uruguay.

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U.S. vs. Honduras Preview

The United States findes itself in great position to officialy book a trip to South Africa for next summer's World Cup, but it will have a tough road this weekend if it hopes to achieve its goal.

That tough road begins tomorrow night in San Pedro Sula, as it faces off against Honduras in Estadio Olimpico. The United States currently leads the CONCACAF Hexagonal standings with a one-point advangate over Mexico. Honduras occupies the third and final automatic qualifying spot in the standings and is also three points back of the United States. Honduras needs a two-goal win on Saturday to shift the tiebreaker advantage against the US in its favor.

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The Week in Review: Europe

Premier League
A change of hands at the top of the Premier League standings occured over the weekend. Chelsea's 2-0 over Liverpool combined with Manchester United's 2-2 draw with Sunderland allowed Chelsea to take back the top spot in the Premiership.

Arsenal had the weekend's largest margin ov victory, as it defeated the Blackburn Rovers 6-2 to pull into a tie for with Liverpool for fifth place while Portsmouth finally registerd its first points of the season by defeating the Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-0.

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MLS Week: A Look Back

Several teams locked playoff berths, others moved closer to doing so and others are now teetering on the brink of missing out.

The Los Angeles Galaxy defeated the Chicago Fire 1-0 at the Home Depot Center on Friday night. That win along with Chivas USA's 2-0 win over DC United puts Los Angeles back in the playoffs for the first time since 2005, the year it won the MLS Cup.

The win also put the Galaxy in first place in the Western Conference. LA is still there, but it was to share it with the Houston Dynamo for the next two weeks. The Dynamo played to a 1-1 draw against the Kansas City Wizards in Houston on Sunday afternoon. The two teams will decide the conference title against each other in Houston on October 18. A draw will work to the Galaxy's advantage, as it defeated the Dynamo 1-0 at the Home Depot Center back on June 28.

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Look Ahead: Serie A, La Liga, EPL

Don't look now, but Sampdoria is sitting atop the Serie A standings while AC Milan is struggling and sitting in the middle of the pack.

Sampdoria has only lost once in its first six matches, giving them a league-high 15 points. It's lead though is tenuous, as Juventus is only a point behind them and both Inter Milan and Fiorentina are only two points back. AC Milan meanwhile is struggling, playing to a scoreless draw with AS Bari last Sunday and losing to Udinese the week before. Milan is tied with three other clubs for eighth in the table.

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MLS Weekend Preview

With the regular season rapidly winding down, several teams head into the weekend with opportunities to clinch playoff spots. FC Dallas got things started off on Wednesday, as it kept its slim playoff hopes alive with a 1-0 win over New England.

Two of the teams that have a chance to clinch playoff berths face off at the Home Depot Center on Friday night, as the Los Angeles Galaxy host the Chicago Fire on ESPN2. The winner of the match will have the pleasure of rooting for Chivas USA to defeat DC United the following day to cement their playoff spots.

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Soccer's Week in Review

USA-Honduras at a Neutral site?

The World Cup Qualifying match between the United States, scheduled to be played on Oct. 10 at San Pedro Sula may be moved to an alternate site amid the political unrest that is currently gripping Honduras.

Airports in Honduras have been closed down due to widespread violence in the wake of ousted president Miguel Zelaya's return to the country. FIFA and CONCACAF are monitoring the situation and hope to make a desicion sometime next week.

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A Manchester Classic

It was an opportunity for Mancehster City that came up short in heart-breaking fashion.

Yet in the end, Manchester United showed why it is still one of the top clubs in the world, let alone the big dog in Manchester, as a stoppage time strike by Michael Owen enabld Man U to steal a 4-3 win over Man City at the Old Trafford.

United never trailed in the match, but each time it jumped ahead, City rallied for the equalizer. The last equalizer came from Craig Bellamy, whose goal in stoppage time appeared to have salvaged a draw for City, but extended stoppage time gave United enough time, and Owen won the first leg of the Manchester derby with a strike in the fifth minute of stoppage time.

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MLS to Break During World Cup

Major League Soccer today announced it will not play any matches during the 2010 World Cup

The World Cup will start on June 11 and the last MLS matchday prior to the tournament will be on June 10. The group phase of the World Cup is to end on June 25 and MLS also announced it will not play any matches on the days of the World Cup semifinals and championship match.

MLS also announced that the 2010 MLS season will start on March 25 and conclude with the MLS Cup final on November 21 and with the addition of the Philadenphia Union to the league, it will play a balanced 30-match schedule with each team playing against each other twice a year.

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