As always, home team listed first, all times Eastern.
Before we get to the rankings, I want to acknowledge Fulham’s stunning comeback in the Europa League. Fulham came home with a 3-1 deficit to Juventus. Juventus got an early goal from David Trezuguet to put Fulham down 4-1 on aggregate. However, goals from Bobby Zamora and two from Zoltan Gera bought Fulham to 4-4 on aggregate and a wonder strike from Clint Dempsey in the 82nd minute put the Cottagers through to the quaterfinals.
Game of the Week (Rankings from Poll)
9:30 ET Sunday
(3) Manchester United v Liverpool
The always intense northwest England rivalry strikes once again at a crucial point in the season for both sides. Manchester United are still perched atop the Premier League, 2 points ahead of both Chelsea and Arsenal, though Chelsea has a game in hand. Liverpool are chasing down a Champions League qualifying spot, just a point behind fourth-placed Tottenham, who has one game in hand, and a point ahead of Manchester City and two ahead of Aston Villa, both of whom have two games in hand. As such, a loss for Liverpool would cripple their Champions League aspirations. Still, they are coming off of mid-week success in the UEFA Europa League, a competition in which they are going full steam ahead in hopes of salvaging some kind of silverware from this tempestuous season. A win for United gives them a boost ahead of a tough five game stretch including Chelsea, Manchester City, and Tottenham Hotspur.
Other Games Between Two Ranked Teams
16:00 ET Sunday
(T23) Marseille v (22) Lyon
In early November, these two teams played to a stunning 5-5 draw that included 5 goals in the last 11 minutes as Lyon battled back from a 4-2 deficit to take a 5-4 lead and ultimately be stuck with a draw on a Jeremy Toulalan own goal. This match carries heavy European consequences, as outlined below.
Top of the Table Clashes
12:00 ET Sunday (French Ligue 1)
(9) Bordeaux v Lille
16:00 ET Sunday
(T23) Marseille v (22) Lyon
| Club | Pld. | Pts. |
| Bordeaux | 27 | 53 |
| Montpellier | 28 | 53 |
| AJ Auxerre | 28 | 52 |
| Lille | 28 | 51 |
| Lyon | 28 | 51 |
| Marseille | 27 | 50 |
Ligue 1 is as congested as it gets up top, with the top six teams separated by a scant 3 points. Four of those teams clash this weekend as Bordeaux hosts Lille and Marseille hosts Lyon. The top 3 teams are guaranteed a spot in the Champions League while the 4th team is guaranteed a spot in the Europa League and 5th place will likely get a spot there as well. A win for Lille would be huge as it would bring Bordeaux fully back to the pack due to their game in hand. The Lyon-Marseille match-up is sure to be hard-fought as both teams are on the outside looking into Europe at the moment.
Big Games in Small Leagues
13:00 ET Sunday (Greek Super League)
Panathinaikos v Olympiakos
PAOK Salonika v AEK Athens
Panathinaikos is currently on top of the Greek Super League with a 5 point lead over PAOK Salonika. Olympiakos is two points back in third and AEK Athens is 9 points back of Olympiakos. The Panathinaikos-Olympiakos match is the heavy rivalry, dubbed the “Derby of the Eternal Enemies” in what has to be the greatest rivalry name I’ve ever heard. The two clubs are based out of Athens and are generally fighting for the title in the league. The rivalry is so fierce that a clash between the supporters caused a two week suspension of all team sports in Greece back in 2007. Olympiakos needs a win to stay in the title race in Greece and move up the table, as only the top two get Champions League qualification.
13:00 ET Saturday (Austrian Bundesliga)
Sturm Graz v Rapid Vienna
10:30 ET Sunday (Austrian Bundesliga)
Austria Vienna v SV Salzburg
Salzburg is at the top of the Austrian Bundesliga by 6 points over second place Rapid Vienna. Just 3 points back of Rapid are Sturm Graz and Austria Vienna. The first place team gets the lone Champions League spot while second and third get Europa League spots so these games are vital for next season’s European qualification.
English Premier League
8:45 ET Saturday
(17) Aston Villa v Wolverhampton Wanderers
11:00 ET Saturday
Everton v Bolton Wanderers
Portsmouth v Hull City
Stoke City v (10) Tottenham Hotspur
Sunderland v Birmingham
Wigan v Burnley
13:30 ET Saturday
(5) Arsenal v West Ham
9:30 ET Sunday
(3) Manchester United v Liverpool
11:00 ET Sunday
Fulham v (14) Manchester City
12:00 ET Sunday
Blackburn Rovers v (2) Chelsea
Scottish Premier League
11:00 ET Saturday
Celtic v St. Johnstone
Spain’s La Liga
13:00 ET Saturday
Athletic Bilbao v Getafe
Deportivo La Coruna v Valladolid
Xerez v Tenerife
15:00 ET Saturday
(4) Real Madrid v Sporting Gijon
17:00 ET Saturday
Espanyol v (25) Sevilla FC
12:00 ET Sunday
Malaga v Villarreal
Mallorca v Atletico Madrid
Osasuna v Racing Santander
14:00 ET Sunday
(T12) Valencia v Almeria
16:00 ET Sunday
Real Zaragoza v (1) Barcelona
Italy’s Serie A
13:00 ET Saturday
(T23) Fiorentina v Genoa
15:45 ET Saturday
(18) AS Roma v Udinese
Palermo v (6) Inter Milan
10:00 ET Sunday
(7) AC Milan v Napoli
Atalanta v Livorno
Bari v Parma
Cagliari v Lazio
Chievo Verona v Catania
Siena v Bologna
15:45 ET Sunday
Sampdoria v Juventus
German Bundesliga
15:30 ET Friday
FC Cologne v Borussia Monchengladbach
10:30 ET Saturday
Eintracht Frankfurt v (8) Bayern Munich
Nurnberg v TSG Hoffenheim
SC Freiburg v Mainz
VfB Stuttgart v Hannover 96
Werder Bremen v VfL Bochum
13:30 ET Saturday
Borussia Dortmund v (11) Bayer Leverkusen
10:30 ET Sunday
Hamburg SV v (T12) Schalke 04
12:30 ET Sunday
VfL Wolfsburg v Hertha Berlin
French Ligue 1
14:00 ET Saturday
AJ Auxerre v Le Mans
Boulogne v Lorient
Grenoble v AS Monaco
Nice v Paris Saint-Germain
St. Etienne v AS Nancy Lorraine
Stade Rennes v Toulouse
16:00 ET Saturday
Lens v Sochaux
12:00 ET Sunday
(9) Bordeaux v Lille
(T20) Montpellier v Valenciennes
16:00 ET Sunday
(T23) Marseille v (22) Lyon
Dutch Eredivisie
15:45 ET Friday
Heerenveen v NEC Nijmegen
14:45 ET Saturday
PSV Eindhoven v (T15) Twente Enschede
15:45 ET Saturday
Feyenoord Rotterdam v Vitesse Arnhem
7:30 ET Sunday
RKC Waalwijk v (19) Ajax Amsterdam
9:30 ET Sunday
Sparta Rotterdam v AZ Alkmaar
Russian Premier League
9:30 ET Saturday
Saturn Moscow v Sibir Novosibirsk
12:00 ET Saturday
Lokomotiv Moscow v PFK Samara Kryliya Sovetov
7:00 ET Sunday
Zenit St. Petersburg v Spartak Moscow
9:30 ET Sunday
CSKA Moscow v Dinamo Moscow
8:00 ET Monday
FK Tom’ Tomsk v FK Rubin Kazan
Turkish Super League
14:00 ET Friday
Kasimpasa v Besiktas
13:00 ET Saturday
Fenerbahce v Gaziantepspor
13:00 ET Sunday
Trabzonspor v Galatasaray
Greek Super League
13:00 ET Sunday
Panathinaikos v Olympiakos
PAOK Salonika v AEK Athens
Ukrainian Premier League
13:00 ET Friday
Metalurh Donetsk v Dynamo Kyiv
10:00 ET Saturday
Zorya v Shakhtar Donetsk
Belgian Jupiler League
15:00 ET Sunday
Germinal Beerschot v Club Brugge
KSC Lokeren v Anderlecht
Standard Liege v KAA Gent
Austrian Bundesliga
13:00 ET Saturday
Sturm Graz v Rapid Vienna
10:30 ET Sunday
Austria Vienna v SV Salzburg
Swiss Super League
12:45 ET Saturday
Young Boys v Grasshoppers
Welsh Premier League
10:30 ET Saturday
Llanelli v Rhyl
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