Weekend Soccer Preview

Another edition of the Weekend Soccer Preview!
As always, home team listed first, all times Eastern.

Game of the Week (Rankings from Poll)
14:45 ET Saturday (Italy’s Serie A)
(15) AS Roma v (6) AC Milan
This is a battle for second place in Italy. AC Milan currently occupies that second spot, 3 points ahead of third-place AS Roma. In the first match-up between these squads in October, AC Milan scored a nervy 2-1 on the back of a Ronaldinho penalty and Alexandre Pato goal after an early strike by Roma's Jeremy Menez. For Milan, this is the start of a vital two game stretch, as they look to take a step towards the championship in this game and then must go to Old Trafford mid-week to come back from a 3-2 first leg deficit in the Champions League. With just 11 games left in the campaign after this one, a loss for Milan would be crippling, as they could be 7 points back with no matches left against Inter to make up the points quick. A win for Roma puts them in prime position to overtake the AC Milan and make a run at the second spot in the league.

Other Games Between Two Ranked Teams
16:00 ET Saturday (Spain’s La Liga)
(2) Real Madrid v (21) Sevilla
Real Madrid is on a scorching hot tear in La Liga in an attempt to overtake leaders and rivals Barcelona, who sit on top by 2 points. Real Madrid has won their last 6 matches in the league by a combined 22-4, including 6-2 and 5-1 their last two games. Sevilla has own two of their last three in the league and is in fourth 18 poitns off the pace after a difficult mid-season rut. Still, Sevilla beat Madrid 2-1 at home earlier in the season and are always a difficult test. Madrid will be without Karim Benzema and could miss the services of Guti, while Sevilla is without striker Luis Fabiano. Real Madrid is in search of their 13th consecutive home win and will certainly be tested by the solid Sevilla squad.
15:00 ET Sunday (French Ligue 1)
(7) Bordeaux v (24) Montpellier

Top of the Table Clashes
15:00 ET Sunday (French Ligue 1)
(7) Bordeaux v (24) Montpellier
Bordeaux has not played a match since February 23rd because of rescheduling of their league slate due to Champions League fixtures and weather concerns. This leads to a bit of fixture congestion for the club and they have played 2 less games than most other teams in the league. This kicks off a brutal stretch of 5 games in 14 days, including 3 in 6 days leading up to the Champions League clash against Olympiakos on the 17th. However Bordeaux has a cushion on top as Montpellier is still just tied with them on points and Bordeaux has two games in hand. Montpellier has won 6 of their last 7 games in their climb to the top and a win for them would only heighten the level of panic in the Bordeaux camp in this crucial two-week stretch. On the other hand, a Bordeaux win lengthens the gap at the top, allowing them to breathe easy in the face of constant top-flight competition.

Big Games in Small Leagues
10:00 ET Saturday (English Championship)
Nottingham Forest v Swansea City
Nottingham forest currently occupy third position in the Championship, just 5 points ahead of fourth-place Swansea City, who has a game in hand. Forest is a scant two points behind second-place West Bromwich Albion and the automatic qualifying spot. Still, both sides are fairly comfortably in position to participate in the playoff to make it into the Premier League. This will be a vital game in determining position in that all-important season ending playoff.

English Premier League
10:00 ET Saturday
(7) Arsenal v Burnley
West Ham v Bolton
12:30 ET Saturday
Wolverhampton v (4) Manchester United
11:00 ET Sunday
Everton v Hull City
15:00 ET Monday
Wigan v (22) Liverpool

English FA Cup Quarterfinals
7:30 ET Saturday
Portsmouth v Birmingham
12:20 ET Saturday
Fulham v (10) Tottenham Hotspur
8:45 ET Sunday
Reading v (25) Aston Villa
11:00 ET Sunday
(5) Chelsea v Stoke City

Scottish Premier League
10:00 ET Saturday
Rangers v St. Mirren
8:15 ET Sunday
Falkirk v Celtic

Spain’s La Liga
12:00 ET Saturday
Deportivo La Coruna v Tenerife
14:00 ET Saturday
Almeria v (1) Barcelona
16:00 ET Saturday
(2) Real Madrid v (21) Sevilla
11:00 ET Sunday
Espanyol v Villarreal
Malaga v Xerez
Mallorca v Sporting Gijon
Osasuna v Getafe
13:00 ET Sunday
Athletic Bilbao v Valladolid
15:00 ET Sunday
Real Zaragoza v Atletico Madrid
15:00 ET Monday
(14) Valencia v Racing Santander

Italy’s Serie A
12:00 ET Saturday
Fiorentina v Juventus
14:45 ET Saturday
(15) AS Roma v (6) AC Milan
9:00 ET Sunday
Atalanta v Udinese
Bari v Chievo Verona
Bologna v Napoli
Cagliari v Catania
Palermo v Livorno
Sampdoria v Lazio
Siena v Parma
14:45 ET Sunday
(2) Inter Milan v Genoa

German Bundesliga
9:30 ET Satuday
Eintracht Frankfurt v (13) Schalke 04
Cologne v (7) Bayern Munich
Hamburg SV v Hertha Berlin
Freiburg v Hannover 96
Wolfsburg v Bochum
Werder Bremen v Stuttgart
12:30 ET Saturday
Borussia Dortmund v Borussia Monchengladbach
9:30 ET Sunday
Nurnberg v (10) Bayer Leverkusen
11:30 ET Sunday
TSG Hoffenheim v Mainz

French Ligue 1
13:00 ET Saturday
AJ Auxerre v Valenciennes
Boulogne v (19) Lyon
Lens v Paris Saint-Germain
Nice v AS Nancy Lorriane
Sochaux v Toulouse
Stade Rennes v AS Monaco
15:00 ET Saturday
St. Etienne v Lille
11:00 ET Sunday
Grenoble v Le Mans
Marseille v Lorient
15:00 ET Sunday
(7) Bordeaux v (24) Montpellier

Dutch Eredivisie
12:45 ET Saturday
AZ Alkmaar v Heerenveen
14:45 ET Saturday
NAC Breda v (15) PSV Eindhoven
6:30 ET Sunday
Sparta Rotterdam v (19) Ajax Amsterdam
8:30 ET Sunday
RKC Waalwijk v (18) Twente Enschede

Portuguese Liga
12:00 ET Saturday
FC Porto v Olhanense
16:15 ET Saturday
Vitoria Setubal v (22) Braga
13:00 ET Sunday
Beleneses v Sporting Lisbon
15:15 ET Sunday
(15) Benfica v Pacos de Ferreira

Turkish Super League
7:00 ET Sunday
Besiktas v Akaraspor
12:00 ET Sunday
Fenerbahce v Antalyaspor
13:00 ET Monday
Eskisehirspor v Galatasaray

Greek Super League
12:00 ET Saturday
Larissa v AEK Athens
9:45 ET Sunday
Panathinaikos v Levadiakos
12:00 ET Sunday
Iraklis v Olympiakos

Ukrainian Premier League
8:00 ET Saturday
Illychivets Mariupil v Dynamo Kyiv
7:30 ET Sunday
Metalurh Donetsk v Shakhtar Donestk

Belgian Jupiler League
12:00 ET Saturday
Royal Charleroi v Anderlecht

Austrian Bundesliga
12:00 ET Saturday
Austria Vienna v LASK Linz
SK Sturm Graz v SV Josko Ried
SV Salzburg v FC Magna Wr. Neustadt
9:30 ET Sunday
Kapfenberg SV v Rapid Vienna

Danish Super League
11:00 ET Saturday
Midtjylland v Odense BK
12:00 ET Sunday
Copenhagen v Aarhus
13:00 ET Monday
Aalborg v Nordsjaelland

Swiss Super League
11:45 ET Saturday
FC Basel v Grasshoppers
10:00 ET Sunday
FC Zurich v Lucerne
Neuchatel Xamax v Young Boys