The Premier League took an interesting twist this weekend. On Saturday, first place Chelsea was ousted by Aston Villa by the score of 1-0. Manchester City did its part by earning a win over Hull City on the road to pull within six points of first place with three games in hand.
The first leg of the Europa League round of 16 took place on Thursday. The results were undoubtedly filled with a plethora of surprises. Here are five things we learned from the first round.
On Wednesday, Lionel Messi quieted the critics who were complaining that he was undergoing a "crisis" with a beautiful flick from his left foot that gave Barcelona a 3-0 aggregate lead against Manchester City.
The Premier League has entered the stretch run and in a matter of weeks fans will know which side will emerge as the champion. This weekend is as crucial as any in the grand scheme, but it features a number of major rivalries that simply cannot be ignored. Here are the Premier League matches to watch this weekend.
The "Group of Death" is usually one of the most exciting terms when it comes to an international soccer tournament. The term refers to a group filled with at least three top tier sides and the inevitability that one of them will not make it past the first round of the tournament. The World Cup always has a "Group of Death," but this year's tournament seemingly has three. Or does it?
Despite all the positives reaped from the game, there was one major sore spot - Neymar. Barcelona won 2-1 over Manchester City with some terrific display of class.
After drawing tremendous criticism for an embarrassing display this weekend against Real Valladolid, Gerardo Martino's Barcelona put up a solid performance against Manchester City in the second leg of the Champions League.
Bayern Munich will head to the quarterfinals of the Champions league after taking down Arsenal 3-1 over the course of three legs. Many have anointed this team the favorite to repeat as Champions and it is hard to ignore that possibility. Under Pep Guardiola, the team has found efficiency in its passing and use of speed that has somehow eclipsed even the loftiest form under Jupp Heynckes. But is the success sustainable this year? Or is there another team that can take down the mighty Bavarians.
Arsenal was eliminated from the Champions League by Bayern Munich for a second straight year and for the second straight year, the Gunners manager Arsene Wenger looked out of his depth in guiding his club in this tournament.
Can the Ivory Coast finally get out of the group stage at the World Cup? Can the Ivory Coast finally get out of the group stage at the World Cup? While the African nation, which is often touted as a potential contender, has struggled in the big competition, they have a huge chance to take a big step thanks to a solid draw this year.
The Champions League returns on Tuesday and Wednesday with the second leg of the round of 16. Four teams will finally find out if they will be destined for a quarterfinals berth while the remaining four will return home with the hopes of returning to the competition in 2014-15. Three of the matchups seem to be finalized while one still has some suspense.
The Netherlands finished in second place in the 2010 World Cup. Four years later, the team is hoping to finish at least second in Group B of the first round.
Barcelona dropped a 1-0 decision against Villarreal on Saturday. When Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid won their respective matches this weekend, the defending Spanish Champions found themselves in third place and four points out of first place.
While the World Cup will undoubtedly be filled with a plethora of poor design choices there are a more uniforms to marvel at. Here are the best designs for the upcoming World Cup.
One of the most exciting parts of the preparations for the World Cup is the unveiling of the uniforms and kits that will be worn. As with anything related to fashion there are always major duds involved. Here is a look at some of the worst World Cup uniforms being utilized at the upcoming tournament.
Spain defeated Italy in an international friendly on Wednesday by the score of 1-0. Spain defeated Italy in an international friendly on Wednesday by the score of 1-0.
Spain and Italy will face off in arguably the most exciting friendly of the day. Spain and Italy will face off in arguably the most exciting friendly of the day on Tuesday.
France and the Netherlands will face off in an international friendly on Wednesday. France and the Netherlands will face off in an international friendly on Wednesday.
