Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Soccer: Liverpool vs.Tottenham Hotspur

Liverpool vs. TottenhamEnglish Premier League – Liverpool host Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham Hotspur still has to think it has a shot of reaching the top of the Premier League. This soccer match at Liverpool will be a tough one especially with the Reds still clinging to European hopes. The Reds are hosting this event, but they’re going against one of the best three teams in England right now. Neither side is a an odds-on favorite with just a slight edge going to Liverpool. The 31st match for league 2nd place holder Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool, who are on 9th place currently with 44 points after 29 matches, will take place on Saturday, April 2, 2016, at 12:30 p.m. at Anfield. The soccer match will be televised on NBC.
Tottenham Hotspur easily beat Bournemouth and Aston Villa in their last two domestic soccer matches, however Leicester City keeps winning and that putting the Premier League title more in doubt. The Spurs have finished the job against the teams which they should be beating, but they aren’t playing at their best against the best teams in England. Tottenham never had a shot against Borussia Dortmund in the Europa League, but they have been impressive in the Premier League. The Spurs lost Nabil Bentaleb two weeks ago to a knee injury that might cost him the rest of the season. That’s a devastating blow to a squad which had stayed relatively injury-free for much of the campaign. Ben Davies has a facial laceration, but we’d bet he plays for Mauricio Pochettino on Saturday in such an important match. Jan Vertonghen is close to returning from a knee injury, but he won’t likely be ready for this match.
Liverpool has not been playing up to their potential right now after blowing that game at St. Mary’s Stadium two weeks ago. Liverpool was beaten 3-2 against Southampton after leading 2-1 late in the game and Christian Benteke missed an easy chance. That ended a run of eight straight matches with at least a point for the Reds. In a soccer match which is expected to be this close, the only result we could possibly forecast is a draw.
 

Monday, March 21, 2016

Soccer Match – Guatemala vs. USA

Soccer-USA-vs-GuatemalaWorld Cup Qualification Match for USA against Guatemala

The U.S. Men’s National Team has a big game coming up this week against Guatemala on the road. There are four matches left in the fourth round of qualification for the World Cup. This is probably the toughest match of the six in the fourth round of qualifying for the World Cup for the Americans. The USMNT. team wants to avoid tripping up in Guatemala, and history hasn’t been kind.  In the five previous World Cup qualifiers, they’ve only won there once back on August 20, 2008. Guatemala is playing with a renewed confidence under Claveri following wins against Honduras and El Salvador. If the USMNT don’t manage to take all three points from this match, there’s going to be a real chance to fail to get out of this group. Coach Jurgen Klinsmann and the USMNT are being favored in this match, though the margin is not big. The soccer match between Guatemala and USA will take place on Friday, March 25, 2016 at 10:06 p.m. ET at Estadio Mateo Flores. The soccer game will be broadcast on beIN Sports TV.
Guatemala head coach Walter Claveri had 18 players from the 23-man roster training in Guatemala City this past Monday. Guatemala has the most capped player in the history of soccer, Carlos Ruiz. He leads the team with 59 goals.  Minor Lopez or Henry Lopez should join him up front, while Fredy Thompson might end up being the only experienced midfielder in the lineup. At the back, it’s entirely possible that Guatemala will call upon a pair of MLS players, Elias Vasquez of Real Salt Lake and Moises Hernandez of FC Dallas.
U.S. men’s national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann unveiled a 26-man roster on  that features a host of veterans, a couple players who may be battling injuries and two more who could be helping the U-23 team qualify for the Olympics. Klinsmann is using every resource at his disposal in an effort to win the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Guatemala. This is going to be a war for sure, and the Americans haven’t proven enough of lately. We can’t see anything better than a draw here in a very important match for Klinsmann and the United States.

Wednesday, March 16, 2016

MLS: D.C. United vs. Colorado Rapids

MLS: D.C. United vs. Colorado Rapids

Colorado+Rapids+v+D.C.+UnitedD. C. United first home game against Colorado Rapids

Two clubs in very different places in the chase for the MLS Cup Playoffs meet in an inter-conference affair when the D.C. United host the Colorado Rapids. D.C. United right now just one point in two soccer matches. The Black and Reds will have a chance for a win against a Colorado Rapids who are still in a re-building mode. Colorado only has three points in the two games that has been played. The one win it got at home last week against LA came on the last kick of the ball. The soccer match between D.C. United and the Colorado Rapids will be on Sunday, March 20, 2016 at 5:00 p.m. ET at RFK Stadium. The match will be broadcast on ESPN2.
D. C. United should look more comfortable playing at home. Offensively, Lamar Neagle and Luciano Acosta should at least both threaten the target in this game. United is struggling without goalkeeper Bill Hamid. Bill Hamid was the is out for at least another two or three months with a torn meniscus. The team didn’t look good defensively against the Galaxy on the road in it’s first 4-1 loss of the season. Last week United followed up with a scoreless draw  in New England.
The Colorado Rapids didn’t look good in a 1-0 loss in San Jose for their first game of the season.  Colorado had their first win of the 2016 season over LA last week. Midfielder Marco Pappa gave them a late show for the win. The Rapids finished the game off after struggling for 90 minutes which should give them a big boost. The Rapids are relatively healthy, but are playing without defender Sean St. Ledger right now.
Neither one of these teams has looked all that good on the offensive end, but we think that D.C. United may have the edge in this soccer match.

Tuesday, March 8, 2016

MLS: San Jose Earthquakes vs Portland Timbers

San+Jose+Earthquakes+v+Portland+TimbersDefending MLS Cup champs Portland Timbers on the Road against San Jose Earthquakes

The Portland Timbers opened their 2016 MLS regular season campaign with a 2-1 win over the Columbus Crew Sunday at Providence Park. The Timbers came out of nowhere to win their first MLS Cup. The Timbers will now turn their attention to Sunday’s road game against the San Jose Earthquakes as they look to have another good performance. The San Jose Earthquakes badly underachieved and failed to make the playoffs. Home field advantage is a huge advantage in the MLS and the Earthquakes are the moneyline favorites. The soccer match between the San Jose Earthquakes and the Portland Timbers will be on Sunday, March 13, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. ET at Aviva Stadium. The game will be broadcast on FOX Sports 1.
The Portland Timbers looks like they could make a nice run this year. The Timbers arguably arrived a year early, as they’ve got a lot of young talent just learning to really play at such a high level. Diego Valeri looked great in the midfield in the opener against Columbus, while Adi and Lucas Melano looked in good form also. The Timbers only have some minor injuries to deal with coming into this soccer match. Liam Ridgewell, Dairon Asprilla and Chris Klute are all have minor injuries.
The San Jose Earthquakes have more major injury concerns. Marc Pelosi is out for at least the next two months with a knee problem. Fatai Alashe has a sports hernia, while Cordell Cato is trying to rehab a hamstring problem. Jordan Stewart has a Achilles injury he is trying to get over. The Earthquakes are looking a little over matched in this one against the Timbers.

Monday, March 7, 2016

Soccer Match: Chelsea vs Paris Saint-Germain

Chelsea+PSGChelsea F.C. Host Paris Saint-Germain: Ligue 1 Champs  Against Erratic Blues

Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea have the Champions League left to play for in the 2015-16 season. The Parisians are already the Ligue 1 champs  and Chelsea needs to win this soccer match to give them a chance to stay in the Champions League next season. The odds have the two teams on even terms with Chelsea at a slight favorite. The tournament between Chelsea and PSG is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, March 9, 2016, at 2:45 p.m. ET at Stamford Bridge. The soccer match will be televised on FOX Sports 1.
The Blues have been in better form in the past recent weeks. Chelsea have shown some attacking prowess with Diego Costa and Pedro. The Chelsea Blues need to score a goal in this game if they want to get through to the quarters, as they’re coming off of a 2-1 loss in Paris.  If the Blues can win by a 1-0 margin, they’ll advance on away goal.
The Parisians have injuries to Matuidi and Verratti, not to mention the knock which has kept Angel Di Maria down in recent weeks and might limit his effectiveness in this game. Paris Saint-Germain manager Lauren Blanc has played down these injuries, however the Parisians aren’t as deep as Blanc suggests. We do think the Blues will take an early advantage in the match,  however Paris Saint-Germain may come back in the end and give them the crucial goal it needs to advance.

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

NBA – Oklahoma City Thunder at Golden State Warriors

Oklahoma City Thunder+Golden State Warriors
Golden St Warriors host the Oklahoma City Thunder – Thursday, March 3

With less than a week after playing one of the best thrilling overtime games so far this season the Golden State Warriors square off with the Oklahoma City Thunder this Thursday night. When Golden State traveled to Oklahoma City last Saturday, it was a six game road streak and the Warriors had to dig deep to pull it out. This time around the Thunder has to play on tired legs with Oklahoma City facing the Warriors on the road. The Golden St Warriors host the Oklahoma City Thunder this Thursday, March 3, 2016 at 10:30 p.m. ET at Oracle Arena. The game will be broadcast on TNT.
In what was arguably the best game of the season so far, the Golden State Warriors relied on the individual offensive brilliance of Steph Curry to will them to an overtime victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder. While Kevin Durant dominated as much as he could, he fouled out early in the overtime, after committing a game costing turnover at the end of regulation. In spite of all that, it was still tied at 118 with 10 seconds left until Steph Curry got his hands on the ball.  Steph Curry may not have to bring that same level of magic yet again. Oklahoma City is one of the worst teams in the NBA away from home. The Thunder are just 16-10 on the road despite being large road favorites in most of their games.  It’s very difficult not to back the home team Warriors against the Oklahoma City Thunder, who has to play it’s third road game in four nights.

MLS: Seattle Sounders vs. Sporting Kansas City

Seattle+Sounders+Sporting+Kansas+CitySeattle Sounders FC host Sporting Kansas City to open 2016 MLS season

The first Sunday of March is arguably the biggest day of the year for Major League Soccer fans. The Seattle Sounders FC will open its Major League Soccer season at home against Sporting Kansas City for the eighth straight year in 2016. The Sounders FC will be an odds favorite for  one of the toughest venues to play in the entire nation. The matchup between the Seattle Sounders and Sporting Kansas City is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 6, 2016 at CenturyLink Field. The soccer game will be televised on FOX Sports 1.
The Seattle Sounders have made their share of changes to their roster to keep pace in the Western Conference. The Sounders have traded midfielders Lamar Neagle and Marco Pappa. Seattle boasts the front line duo of Clint Dempsey and Obafemi Martins and veteran utility man Brad Evans. Seattle won 11 matches last year at home, the second most in the Western Conference behind LA.
Sporting KC will welcome back 2015 MVP candidate Benny Feilhaber as well as U.S. national team regulars Matt Besler and Graham Zusi.  Sporting Kansas City let go of veteran defender Paulo Nagamura and added playmaker Justin Mapp and Brad Davis in the midfield. These players are more defensive-minded players. Dom Dwyer is a great striker, but he’s always proven to be most effective when he has a great running mate. Krisztian Nemeth is now gone, and there really isn’t an obvious answer when it comes to replacing him.
Seattle did win 11 matches last year at home while Sporting Kansas City wasn’t good on the road. This soccer game is looking like it may be a low scoring game.  The Sounders may have an edge in this soccer game having played in the CONCACAF Champions League already this year.