It's ok... I've got it...Liverpool make the short trip up the M62 on Saturday to face their North West rivals Manchester United. After knocking United out of the FA Cup last month Liverpool will certainly feel like they have a great chance on Saturday despite the match being played on United's home turf.

For much of this season, Spurs number one Brad Friedel has quietly gone about his business and at times, solid performances across the back four have provided him with little to do. When called upon, the American is an uncomplicated keeper who has brought calm between the posts where once there was chaos.

Olympique de Marseille vs. Olympique Lyonnais

Stade Vélodrome – Week 22, Ligue 1.

The swords are drawn.

The only two teams in French League alive in four championships play in The Olympico at Stade Vélodrome. Not just another League match, but one that will set expectations for greater games to come.

Henry to start?

Horrible is the word to describe our last meeting against Blackburn Rovers. Steve Kean's side only had two shots on goal and still managed to beat us 4-3. That was a dark day in our season but nothing compared to the run of form we are in now. The draw at Bolton was the first league point we picked up this season and we're now facing an uphill battle to find our way back into Champions League spots.

3pm ET, live in the US on espn2
Last four head-to-head:
0-4 Tottenham (a) 09.18.11
0-2 Tottenham (h) 05.15.11
1-2 Tottenham (a) 11.28.10
2-0 Liverpool (h) 01.20.10
Last three matches:
Liverpool: 3-0 Wolves (a); 2-1 United (h); 2-2 City (h)
Spurs: 3-1 Wigan (h); 1-0 Watford (a); 2-3 City (a)
Goalscorers (league):
Liverpool: Bellamy 6; Suarez 5; Carroll 3; Adam, Gerrard, Maxi, Skrtel 2; Henderson, Johnson, Kuyt 1
Spurs: Bale 10; Adebayor 9; Defoe 8; van der Vaart 7; Lennon, Modric 3; Assou-Ekotto, Kaboul, Walker 1
Referee: Michael Oliver
Guess at a line-up:
Reina
Johnson Skrtel Agger Enrique
Gerrard Spearing
Kuyt Henderson Bellamy
Carroll
With six days since the last match, there seems little need for drastic changes from the side which beat Wolves three-nil.

2:45pm ET, live in the US on Fox Soccer Plus
Last four head-to-head:
2-1 Liverpool (h) 09.24.11
3-0 Liverpool (a) 01.22.11
0-1 Wolves (h) 12.29.10
0-0 (a) 01.26.10
Last three matches:
Liverpool: 2-1 United (h); 2-2 City (h); 1-3 Bolton (a)
Wolves: 2-3 Villa (h); 0-1 Brum (h); 1-1 Spurs (a)
Goalscorers (league):
Liverpool: Bellamy, Suarez 5; Adam, Carroll, Gerrard, Maxi, Skrtel 2; Henderson, Johnson 1
Wolves: Fletcher 9; Hunt, Ward 3; Doyle, Edwards, O'Hara 2; Ebanks-Blake, Jarvis, Kightly, Zubar 1
Referee: Anthony Taylor
You may remember Mr.

szólj hozzá: q0-1c

The other match with a potentially explosive racial overtones was effectively nipped in the bud as the FA decided to do away with handshakes pre-empting Anton Ferdinand's contemplated threat not to shake John Terry's hand. The Chelsea captain begins his legal challenge on Feb 1st defending against charges of a racist verbal assault on Ferdinand in their last match on Oct 23rd.

What a rough week I have had. My week was similar to Arsenals current form, depressing. Well screw all that, we still had a great week of football. So let me give you a slightly over the top review of the week that wasn't:

Arsenal

It was another dramatic week for the Gunners.

They say that lightning doesn't strike twice but both Equatorial Guinea and Gabon scored late goals in their matches to make the last eight of the African Cup of Nations.. Then again many experts said that Equatorial Guinea and Gabon shouldn't be hosting the African Cup of Nations as neither country has any real football pedigree.

This was one result i was not expecting, however one i totally agree with. Right from the start of the tournament and even through out the Qualifying period, the Lions of Teranga had established themselves as one of the very few sides who were strong favourites to lift the AFCON trophy on Feb 12th.

It's always tough to take your focus away from Clasico clashes. Hence Barca's visit to Malaga could be a herculean task in some aspect. First you have to get your feet back on the ground following a sweet victory at Bernebeu, then the big task - keeping the Wednesday's clash with real Madrid at camp Nou in the background.

The time has finally come to play out the reverse fixture of the 8-2 defeat that Arsenal suffered at the hands of Manchester United on that horrific August evening at Old Trafford. The memories of that mauling are fresh on the minds of not only the Gunners fans but also European bookies like Champions League betting, which is why Arsenal have been priced as the underdogs even though this Sunday's match is taking place in the North Londoners' own backyard.

Andy Carroll is hoping Steven Gerrard's comeback can help kick-start the striker's difficult start to his Liverpool career.
Injuries to both players have resulted in Carroll and Gerrard starting just one game together - last week's Carling Cup semi-final first leg win at Manchester City - since the forward's £35million move from Newcastle last January.

Too much time has been devoted to transfer activity in this space. It's time we get on with the business of matches. This weekend sees a rejuvenated Sunderland visit the Bridge for what promises to be an interesting affair. More, after the jump:

Down, but not out

In our last PL encounter, we put the screws to Wolves on the road, before a ten minute finishing salvo against Portsmouth in the FA Cup.

By the standards used to judge recent red-carded tackles like Vincent Kompany's against Manchester United and Jay Spearing's against Fulham, on Wednesday night Glen Johnson at the very least put himself in a position where seeing red was a very real possibility. Maybe even the most likely possibility.

There has been, as has seemed perpetual over the last few months or so, a lot of bad news about recently. Whether we are driving to distraction over racism, looking at football clubs that are staring into the financial abyss or lamenting the death of anything approaching civility within our national game, putting our heads above the parapets of modern football for longer than a fraction of a second can be a thoroughly dispiriting experience, and it can become a thorough bind to even seek to engage with the wider world of football at times.

Theo Knows

A bit of a break before the Monday FA Cup third round tie against Leeds United. After a hectic last one week of football, it's a welcomed breather for the team. 7 out of 12 points from our last 4 games is not ideal but it isn't bad either. Could've been more had the team not collapse in the last part of the Fulham game.

If Carroll starts he'll be looking for those delicious crosses from Gerrard...Liverpool travel to the City of Manchester Stadium on Tuesday evening to face Mancini's side for the first of three times this month. The Reds will be looking to take advantage of City after they lost to Sunderland on Sunday.

Round 1 Of 3 Versus City

If Carroll starts he'll be looking for those delicious crosses from Gerrard... Liverpool travel to the City of Manchester Stadium on Tuesday evening to face Mancini's side for the first of three times this month. The Reds will be looking to take advantage of City after they lost to Sunderland on Sunday.

Arsenal's competition comes from Galatasaray and Lazio who also desire the FC Koln striker in top form this season. However, Poldi has singled out Arsenal for attention saying they are a top club.

"Arsenal are a top club. They are a good team and play in England at the top with .

I hope everyone had a happy and safe New Year celebration. It seems odd to be writing a preview one day after a recap, but so it goes. Our boys are back in action tomorrow, taking on Fulham at Craven Cottage. Our opponents aren't having the best of seasons, currently sitting in 13th place with 20 points, and a -5 goal differential (which is also the same record as 14th place Swansea).

szólj hozzá: Chelsea v A.Villa 1:3 MOTD

David Luiz was AWOL as Villa took advantage of Chelsea's non-existent central defense to first slip in Steve Ireland, then Stilyan Petrov, and finally Darren Bent. The last two came within minutes of each other towards the end of the match. Stamford Bridge erupted in boos.

From being bad to good..........
Galatasaray and Fatih Terim's boys, earned that, at the end of the Turkish Super League 2011-2012 season first half of the season!
"Third time charm" really working for Fatih Terim, this time, so far....
If you remember after very successful first time with Galatasaray, his second coming was a bust, at Galatasaray!

Could the Spaniard be given less defensive duty?

As is customary during this period of the season, games come thick and fast. Tonight sees us visiting Villa Park and this is the first of 4 games in 13 days. Yet, we cannot afford to rest on our laurels. This is as big a test as the Manchester City game.

By Alan Duffy

Scott Dann having a ball in the medical centre

With so much talk and reporting of sprained ligaments and torn hamstrings, it's not easy to get football fans wincing at a highly-paid player's injury. However, Blackburn defender Scott Dann's predicament will have men wincing up and down the country.

Reds Away To Villa

Downing returns to Villa... Liverpool make their way down to the Midlands on Sunday for a game against Alex McLeish's Aston Villa. Villa at the moment appear to be struggling to score goals and with Liverpool creating chances but perhaps not converting as many as they should be, this could be an interesting fixture.

Downing returns to Villa...
Liverpool make their way down to the Midlands on Sunday for a game against Alex McLeish's Aston Villa. Villa at the moment appear to be struggling to score goals and with Liverpool creating chances but perhaps not converting as many as they should be, this could be an interesting fixture.

Photo: Earl Gardner

Editor's note: At the end of the 2010 season, we posted a series of season reviews of every Philadelphia Union player. Over the next several weeks PSP continues with a review of the 2011 season.

Zach Pfeffer was signed as the Union's first Homegrown player before the beginning of the 2011 season at the ripe old age of 15.

Barcelona has reportedly placed David Villa on the transfer list, sparking a scramble for his signature between Liverpool, Chelsea and Aston Villa.
The Spanish international, 30, has dropped down the pecking order at the Nou Camp this season, and more importantly, has allegedly fallen out with star player Lionel Messi.

THFC1882 present a guest preview by Rob:

Shamrock Rovers v Tottenham Hotspur, Thursday 15th December 6pm KO ITV4

So here we are, at the last match in the laborious group stage of the Europa League. A competition that is supposed to be the second best European competition to win but in my opinion is just plain second rate as shown by the fact that not that many teams are interested in playing in it.

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola has dismissed Spanish media reports linking David Villa with a move away from the Nou Camp in the January transfer window.

Sports newspaper Marca claimed oin Wednesday that the striker is ready to move on from Barca just 19 months into the four-year deal agreed following his 40million euro transfer from Valencia.

David Villa will not be sold to Chelsea says Barcelona's Pep Guardiola

• Coach says report linking striker with transfer is 'a lie' • Liverpool and Aston Villa also linked with January bids The Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola has dismissed Spanish media reports linking David Villa with a move away from the club in the January transfer window.

By Joel Greenwaldt
Baltimore Blast (5-1) vs. Missouri Comets (5-3)
Game Time: 12/9/2011 7:35PM
http://www.misllivesoccer.com/
What needs to go right for the Blast:

• Stop the recent skid at home: Dating back to the last season's MISL Championship Game, the Baltimore Blast have lost their last two games at home.

The last round of matches of the group stages of the 2011-12 Champions League had a couple of surprises.Firstly, Manchester United was elminated for the first time in the group stages of the tournament since the 2005-06 season. More surprising than this fact is nevertheless that it happened against the underestimated FC Basel in the last match of the tournament, where the English side needed only

England national team got themselves a pretty good draw in their Euro 2012 campaign, considering all the worse possibilities, being paired with Ukraine, France and Sweden obviously isn't the toughest group on paper.

This drawing result apparently gave confidence to the Union Jack's manager, Fabio Capello, who revealed that his team obviously got a pretty comfortable group on paper especially compared to Group B which consist the likes of Holland, Germany, Portugal and Denmark.

(P.S: If you access this site via "come.to/matchpix", please click the "Facebook" icon after you click "HERE" when you want to view the album as that will redirect you to the album, thank you)

• S.League - Gombak Utd 0-3 Etoile FC (5/11/11)

The last match before another adjournment saw Etoile FC beat Gombak Utd 3-0 at the JBS.

THFC1882 welcomes back guest writer Mike Hooley with a preview of Wednesday's Europa League game:

So, Tottenham Hotspur play a European tie on a Wednesday once again, in what all Spurs fans hope will be a prelude of things to come next season.

However, the fantastic current league run – nine wins and a draw since the Manchester City defeat – is put to one side this week with the return fixture against the Greek outfit PAOK Salonika, current Group A leaders.

Michael Ballack greeted his former side Chelsea to BayArena by leading Bayer Leverkusen to a shock 2-1 win that heaps tremendous pressure on Blues boss Andre Villas-Boas.

In a day of reunions, Ballack went the Zlatan Ibrahimovic way (the Swede scored in Milan's 3-2 loss to his former club Barca) by getting at the end of many good chances, only to be denied by Petr Cech throughout the night.

FIFA released today its monthy ranking with SPAIN retaining the Nº1 spot for the month of NOVEMBER as the "Best Football Nation in the World". However, the defeat against England in a Friendly International & the last moment draw against COSTA RICA has narrowed the points gap with the second placed nation , HOLLAND, which lost as well against Germany in their last match.

Manchester United and Manchester City both look like solid bets to reach the knockout stage of the UEFA Champions League, and both can take major steps to securing their spots among the final 16 teams with victories on Tuesday.

United hosts Benfica (2:45 p.m., Fox Soccer Channel) in a meeting between two teams tied for first atop Group C.