Chicharito praying for playing time
Its that time of the week, where we set our alarm clocks for odd kickoff times and look for (illegal?) online streams. Look below for the game times and some notes from the week. Let us know what you think in the comments.
FRIDAY (Central Time)
Real Madrid v Almeria- 1:45PM– Real Madrid have more wins this season than Almeria have points. Ancelotti might opt for a rotated squad. If he does, it will be between Jese and Chicharito for the starting nod up top.
SATURDAY
Rayo Vallecano v Valencia- 11:00AM– Aquino seems to have faded off for Rayo since his hot start. He is not getting the same amount of playing time as he was early on.
Malaga v Celta Vigo- 3:00PM– Memo wont play, nothing to see here….
SUNDAY
Espanyol v Granada- 5:00AM– So far Moreno has played about 100 minutes for his club team but every minute is a step toward him reclaiming a spot in Piojo’s starting 11. Also, every game is an opportunity to show interested clubs he is over the broken leg he suffered at the World Cup. If he can show he is back to his old form, look for Espanyol to aggressively shop him around come January.
PSV v FC Twente- 7:30AM– Corona has proven to be a shifty and tricky player in the Eredivisie. He had a poacher’s goal last week to add to his season total to 3. Twente are going to need some more Tecatito magic if they want to upset El Principito and his league leading PSV.
Hellas Verona v Udinese- 8:00AM– El Kaiser will be forced to sit this one out due to another RED CARD.
Atletico Madrid v Villarreal- 12:00PM– El Submarino Amarillo are coming off qualifying for the knockout phase of Europa League. If they are serious about challenging for a Champions League spot, these are the types of games they need to be winning. It is not known if Jimenez or Gio will make their gameday 18s but Jona is a sure bet to be in Villarreal’s squad.
Real Sociedad v Athletic Bilbao- 2:00PM- The David Moyes era is still in its early days but his most important player is already obvious, Carlos Vela. Carlitos made the La Liga team of the month for November. He will continue to be the focal point of their attack going forward.
Porto v Benfica-2:00PM– Porto was able to rest some players in their mid-week Champions League, Herrera included. Benfica currently sit above Porto in the league table, a victory will see that flip. As for Reyes, he will likely see the game from the bench or stands. The only way he will see consistent playing time is if he goes out on loan or Porto sell a defender in January. My money is on a loan.
NOTES
-Cruz Azul open their Club World cup tourney 1:30PM Saturday against Western Sydney Wanderers. The winners go on to face Chicharito and Real Madrid on Tuesday.
-Andres Guardado wore the captain’s armband for PSV during their Europe League match this week.
-The FMF ruled against Alan Pulido, saying he has a contract with Tigres until 2016 but he is not going down lightly.
–Tecatito Corona signed a new deal with Twente that sees him with the Dutch club until 2018. This is in response to Corona generating interest abroad from bigger clubs.
– Mexico vs USMNT is set to happen April 15th in San Antonio
–Cubo Torres said to the press last month he has until December 15th to make a decision on his future, it seems like MLS will be his destination but anything can happen.
-Per Sports Illustrated, Univision said it averaged 847k total viewers per match for 2014 LMX Apertura, 9% higher than NBC’s EPL coverage for the same time frame.
-Mexico’s Javier Hernandez, Memo Ochoa, Gio Dos Santos, and Rafa Marquez are nominated for CONCACAF Player of the Year.
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Back from the Barca days.